Apple Festival, Pumpkin Patch, Caramel Apples

It was another fun-filled weekend. First Luke and MacKenzie came home and we celebrated Luke's 21st Birthday!!!

Then Sunday we went to the Portland Nursery Apple Festival. You can find the festival because of the giant apple in the sky:


Then there's the variety of apples to taste:


The festival also offers face painting, balloon art, music and more.


Then, we headed out to Sauvie's Island Pumpkin Patch. We went on a hay ride,

We used to do these things every year while the kids were growing up. It was fun stepping back in time and appreciating all these activities with my kids, now that they are grown up.


We wandered the fields to find the perfect pumpkin.



We ran into my nephew, his girlfriend and a couple other people we knew:



We saw a little moo train, which was for the kids to ride if they didn't want to ride the hay ride.

And then we went home to make homemade caramel apples - Yum...



Easy microwavable Caramel Apple recipe (I love EZ recipes that take little to no time) but I still want the food to taste good.

Caramel Apple Recipe

One package (14 oz) of traditional caramels
3 tablespoons of water
Microwave on high for about 2-3 minutes or until caramel is soft
Stir water and caramels to mix

Shove sticks in center of apples and Dip apples in caramel.

Set caramel apples on cookie sheet, covered with wax paper and/or buttered to let caramel stiffen. Eat and enjoy – yum!!!

Luke's 21st Birthday Party - at Home

Monday was Luke’s 21st birthday. Jake drove down to Eugene after working all day to take his ‘lil brother out for a drink . . . or two. They had a good time but Lars and I missed out on the fun. So Luke and his gfriend, MacKenzie, drove to Portland Saturday morning so we could have a family celebration. We had the family over for lasagna and then ate cake and ice cream and tried to sing Happy Birthday to Luke - you can listen and see for yourself how we fared.





Here’s a short clip and some pictures to share the fun.

Nondenominational Women's Conference

I spent last Friday night and Saturday at the Women of Faith conference here in Portland, Oregon at the Rose Quarter Arena. The voices of American Idol's Mandisa, Sandi Patty, Nicole Mullen and Sheila Walsh were unbelievable.

Friday night Denise and I went together and Saturday Janice and I went. I took a couple of photos with my phone.

THE SHACK By William P. Young

My husband and I went to listen to William P. Young give a lecture at Warner Pacific College, here in Portland, Oregon Monday night.

I raised my hand and told the author that I felt the book was really two stories rolled up into one book and I asked him if he wrote it that way intentionally or if he wrote it in bits and pieces. He said, he started the book because his wife, Kim, wanted him to write something down that he could give to his children. He intended the story to be that gift to his kids for Christmas. And originally he went to Office Depot and printed out fifteen copies for his family and friends, never intending it to go any further than that. Today, The Shack has sold over 4 million copies.

He answered my question by saying that he started out by writing the conversations, as questions he wanted to ask as a child but was never allowed to ask.

He was warm and funny but even more. He was Real. He spoke from his heart about difficult subjects and he had the audience on the edge of their seat for the nearly two hours he shared his story with us.

Here is a short clip of him talking about growing up in Boring, Oregon. Yes, there is a place in Oregon that is truly Boring.

EARTH FRIENDLY FRIDAY - AND ANSWER to Thought for Thursday

ANSWER TO THOUGHT FOR THURSDAY: Sir Walter Scott Marmion, Canto VI, Stanza 17. There was some controversy about Shakespeare but the general consensus is Sir Walter Scott

Turning TRASH TO TREASURE, we’ve all heard the phrase. But how’s a person to do it?

I’d be lost without my husband around but, with him leading the way, it’s easy. He’s a wanna be carpenter – some of the time.

Both his brothers work with wood all day, while my husband sits in an office pushing paper to support his family. But at home, he manages to express himself with scraps of wood he finds at recycling centers. Here's just one example of what he's made with his scraps of wood.

Here's a story I wrote about Recycling Your Way to Romance, which was published by Romantic Homes magazine.

If you want to read the entire story of how to turn trash to treasure, read it here.

And the next time you think about throwing something away, think again.

THOUGHT FOR THURSDAY - Lit ?

Okay, it's only fun if you don't google it, until after you answer it.

Who wrote, "Oh What a Tangled Web We Weave, When First We Practice to Deceive."

It kinda goes along with my Mark Twain Quote of the Week.

My theory is, if you don't lie, you never have to be careful what you say. Okay, I know there are other reasons to be careful: you might hurt someone's feelings, offend someone, journey into the toxic topics of politics and/or religion, without even thinking about it but at least people won't have to guess where you stand on the subjects.

Happy Thinking. . . and try not to get tangled up by your tongue.

The Orphanage - SHOCKTOBER post

The Jacketflap of the movie said “terrifying horror thriller” well worth seeing. It was worth seeing but, IMHO, it wasn’t terrifying or horrifying - not in the least.

It was more like "a little creepy". Along the lines of Nicole Kidman’s "The Others".

My husband and I watched it together. He kept saying, “Where’s Carlos?” whenever anything was wrong. And it’s true. Where was the husband all the time? [A bit of a spoiler here] No wonder he wasn’t in her thoughts at the end.