Yesterday it rained the entire day, but this morning it just felt like rain. It was a cool with a grey light and the sun trying to push through. We put the girls in baby back packs, leashed the dogs, and poured the first cups of coffee for the day. Following a trail that winds in and out of the woods bordering the river I am happy to leave behind the hot days of summer.
Neil just got a sailboat. He is busy dreaming of ways to fix it up, and mentions future trips saling around little bays and spending nights camped out on islands. The trees are changing, the geese are migrating and it really is the first time I have felt at home since leaving Vermont more then ten years ago. The air smells like winter with promises of rosey cheeks and frosty noses even though it probably wont snow here. My husband insists that the country side reminds him of northern Italy.
Kiki is now at the age where all she wants to do is help. She likes to scoop flour into the bowl when we make bread, she likes to stir the pot of soup or pasta while it bubbles on the stove top, and most of ll she wants to be part of helping Mia whenever she can. This to leads to fair amount of bumps and bruises for baby Mia (who does her best to take her sister's help in stride.) With all of Kiki's help and the fact that Mia is very mobile these days there seems to be less and less time to get things done. It's already November! My mother will be arriving in a week with my father and brother soon to follow, Halloween flew by and Thanksgiving is almost here, Gwen turns 10 this year and I bet Mia will be walking by Christmas.
I have been trying to get this post finished for good while now, but with our laptop barely chugging along it seems to get harder and harder. Until Yesterdy we had been with out a keybord for bit over week, and now we are using two different ones to type what we are able. So considering how much I wanted to say but how long it now takes to type I would not be surprised if the posts to come are shorter rather than longer.
and on that note this is really all the patience I have with the two keybord combo for today. Here are lots of pictures and my favorite apple cake recipe right now!
Apple Oatmeal cake.about half a cup of oil
2 eggs
1 cup of brown sugar
splash of vanilla
Mix all ingredients well.
add:
1 cup of flour
1 tbls of baking powder
a fair amount of cinnamon.
mix well and add to the wet ingredients. Again mixing well.
Chop one apple and add to mixture. Pour all of the batter into a well greased baking container, or muffin tin, or bread pan, or really anything shaped baking dish you would like.
about a cup of oats
1/4 cup of sugar
some more cinnamon
a few tbls of coconut oil,
mix the oats, sugar, and cinnamon, mash in coconut oil with your fingers, then sprinkle mixture over the top of the batter evenly. Bake at 350 degrees for 40 or so minutes. Let it cool a few minutes before cutting. Its great.
