Apples from a walk in the woods that made a yummy crisp last night and a bowl full of Autumn- my take on a ‘nature table’- a big beautiful bowl filled with findings from the outside world on our walks this fall.

I love to think of nature as an unlimited broadcasting station, through which
God speaks to us every hour, if we will only tune in.
~George Washington Carver

What abut you? Do you have any ideas for bringing the outdoors in
or celebrating the beginning of cozy fall days?

Farmer’s Market Bruschetta- so named because a stroll through our farmer’s market on a Saturday morning produces the simple and delicious ingredients for bruschetta- served with a big salad it makes a light and yummy meal in itself.

Chop a few cloves of garlic and lightly cook in a small pan with a good amount of olive oil. Slice fresh bread and spread on some of the olive oil and garlic. Toast bread in the oven for a few minutes; prepare tomatoes. Chop tomatoes (my favorite are heirloom or Roma with this) and add some chopped basil, a few spoonfuls of balsamic vinegar, and freshly ground salt and pepper. When bread is lightly toasted, top with heaping spoonfuls of the tomatoes and shave a bit of cheese over the top- deliziosa!

My Mumsy & Papa came for a quick visit this weekend- fun fun!

Walks, 49er & Seahawk rivalry, & a little early
b-day pizza party for an almost 30 year old.

We all know who Owie was rooting for! (Hehe)

More to come on Owie bear who tried solid food for the first time this weekend & couldn’t eat it fast enough! He has been studying us when we eat lately & grabbing onto our plates. We’ll give him some banana with rice cereal once a day for a while before adding anything else, but I can tell this kid is gonna eat anything I give him. Video to come of that & of his new moves- the army crawl. We need to bust out the baby gate already because he’s getting quite fast & mobile at 5 1/2 months. I’ll have my hands full with this one!

The mornings are starting to be a little chilly around here and our schedule is growing full. In the midst of the day to day living I really desire to be purposeful about my time with our kiddos, as moments become hours, hours become days, and days slip by faster than you can say happy birthday! Jude is almost 3, with an excitement for cars, trains, the outdoors, and baby animals. (He cuddled a small plastic dolphin he named ‘Joey the baby dolphin’ to sleep last night and walked out of his room with it this morning!!:) He also has a growing curiosity about letters and numbers, so this month I’m starting some ABC activities- fun and simple little games and books. I’ll focus on one letter a month. I found a great book that goes through the alphabet with a scripture and little story/lesson for each letter that we have started using- the book is called My ABC Bible Verses by Susan Hunt. The devotions are a little over Jude’s head so I just make up one that goes with the verse. The first one is ‘A soft answer turns away wrath’ and I can’t tell you how appropriate that has been for Jude, who is learning not to scream ‘NO’ at people (especially me!) when he gets upset. I’ve also been using the library to check out books on leaves, seeds, China (Jude loves looking at the pictures of the dragon costumes and children) and ABC books. My Mum, who is a kindergarten teacher, (and an amazing one might I add!) has some great ideas for fun letter activities that I’ll share as we do them.

Resources:

*My ABC Bible Verses

*Free printable calendar pages

September is Hunger Action Month. *Check it out here!* There are several ways to get involved through writing letters, giving funds, or donating time at a food bank. There is even a link to ways children can help by writing to their congressmen. If your kids have never thought about these kinds of issues now is the time- we are living in a ME centered culture but we can choose to make ourselves aware of the needs of others and DO something, as well as raise kids that not only care about others but feel empowered to do something about the needs around them as well- while they are still kids!