So I have talked here a bit on hospitality and sharing what you have. Sometimes hospitality isn’t about having people into your space but about sending out a bit of what you have! In the midst of the penny pinching and meal planning and planning for our next family celebration we can get um…a tad bit focused on us. I have worked hard to make sure that taking care of others is part of our weekly schedule.  It doesn’t always have to be but it is often in the form of nourishing others!  No matter how bad the economy is I feel like we can all find ways to share what we have with others.

We are off to our nieces and nephew’s baptism this morning so I don’t have lots of time but I thought I would post a little fall treat mix recipe that is 5 mins of work to mix up but is nice to pass on to co-workers and neighbors.  We first had this little snack mix at my friend Annie’s house. So this is in no way anything I made up! It’s easy, peazy but so yummy!

Mix together the following in a big bowl:

salted peanuts

golden raisins

candy corn

reece’s pieces peanut butter candies

almonds

pecans

Use whatever ratios you like. ou can make this mix as healthy as you want. For our batch I did plain almonds and pecans but added the salted peanuts. The salted peanuts added enough salt for flavor but kept the snack on the healthier side. I am all about my kids getting a candy corn or reece’s here or there if they are also getting a handful of nuts too!  And you could also do it more like a chex mix substituting the extra nuts with chex cereal.

Grab a few baggies and some fall color ribbon and fill’em on up. Have them handy for friends or neighbors. Jackson took some to his teachers who had a work afternoon ahead of them. Another bag went to my friend Bonnie who was working long shifts in the ER. They were so thankful for a little treat! Throw the rest in a jar for snacks for your family.

Happy Fall! (I know it’s sneaking away from us and winter is on it’s way, but we will enjoy it while it’s here)

When I was growing up we had a cookie jar. My mom was home during our early school years and I can remember many of our snacks being something homemade.  Until recently we didn’t have a cookie jar. I finally found a big glass jar at a garage sale and it does the job!

About a month ago I started a little tradition with Jackson of baking on Sunday afternoons. We don’t make anything fancy. Normally just something to fill the cookie jar for the week to come. It isn’t really about the cookies or muffins, although they do make good after school snacks and treats for lunch boxes. It’s more about spending time being together in our home away from the distractions. The rest of the week we bustle and keep so busy without really producing much to show for our busyness. On Sundays we go to church and spend the rest of the day relaxing and make it a point not to make big plans. Our Sunday baking is a relaxing activity (minus the egg rolling off on to the floor and things going in far from the recipes directions) that allows me to steal a little one on one time with Jackson who is gone so much of his days now in school.

Last Sunday we made simple peanut butter cookies, oh if you could have seen my boy pressing cookies with the fork…made.his.day. These cookies pictured above are from Gina’s Skinny Taste blog. They were the Pumpkin Spice Oatmeal Pecan Cookies.  I try to look for recipes that will be healthy and also a bit of a treat. I was pleased with these because Owen thought he was getting cookies and I knew he was getting oats, pumpkin, nuts…I think I will try these homemade granola bars next.

I am off to help with the MOPs fall consignment sale. If any of you are local and want to get over to Ashburn today I will be there helping out and would love to see you! It is going to be a madhouse of people scrambling for bargains.  And Seth is at home POTTY TRAINING the O man! The mad house of shoppers doesn’t sound so bad now does it!?    Have a great Saturday, y’all!

I said I would hop back on with some fall recipes and here I am! Pumpkin it is today!

Tonight I made a great soup. I have to admit that it took a little bravery to try. Not that anything is super unusual about it but I have a hard time mixing savory with sweet. The recipe comes from Edie over at Life In Grace. I came across Edie’s blog a while back when her gorgeous home burned down and the blog community was jumping in to support her and bless her socks off as she rebuilt her families home.  If you have time you should check out more of her blog. I enjoy her blog and she often has great recipes so when I saw her recipe for Chipotle Pumpkin Barley Soup with chicken I knew I had to try it. We love chipotle peppers in adobo so I knew that was a plus and I have been wanting to use barley. I have eaten it but never cooked with it. Although I am not into the fad diets as I mentioned yesterday I am interested in cooking with grains and things that are good for us. So, 2 points for the soup. The drawbacks for me were the cinnamon, nutmeg and honey. I know from making butternut squash soup that it works but for some reason I fight it every time. I can’t wrap my baking brain around those spices being for a savory soup. But, I went with it and it was delicious. It had a nice smokiness from the peppers and I even thought it was yummy enough before I added the cream. Speaking of cream, I substituted half and half but  again I think you can eat it before adding anything at the end!  And the best part, the boys ate it and enjoyed it! Packed with veggies and spice! Click on her blog link above if you want to give it a try!  I served it with a salad and some crusty bread. I tried looking back to confirm but I am pretty sure Edie made up this recipe. Impressive! Sorry, I forgot to take pictures of it but she has a picture that will entice you!  And for you ladies around the world, if you can’t find canned pumpkin but you have access to smaller pumpkin just cut it in half down the middle, roast until soft, scoop out and then puree in a food processor or blender. Then just substitute it for the same amount as the can.

With the leftover pumpkin I made a batch of pumpkin chocolate chip muffins for the boys to have for an after school snack. They were a hit! This is the recipe I used from The Joy of Baking blog! They turned out great and were quick to make. They can also be made into a loaf.

So, every week begins about the same. Owen and I drop Jackson off at school and we head to the gym. Since we joined about 6 weeks ago we are making it there about 3-4 times a week which seems like a success when you consider our other busyness.  I have been pushing myself extra hard to get back into shape. Pushing hard and not really seeing many results. Yes I feel heathier, but more tired and a little lot disappointed that my work doesn’t seem to be paying off like I had hoped. I don’t plan on getting close to my high school, pre-marriage or even pre-baby weight…I just want my clothes to fit and to be healthy.

While being overseas I was aware of lots of fad diets going on stateside but it wasn’t until we came back that I am stopped in my tracks and I am completely confused. On any given day I have a friend or fellow blogger adding this or giving up that. Low Fat Dairy is great for you one day and the next poison. Same with wheat, salt……you name it, it’s likely been discarded and then re-embraced.  I don’t know how many people I know that are doing some special plan. I’m not saying they are bad I am just saying that if you are like me and you are trying to research the best method you can find yourself spinning as they all contradict each other.

I have always had to be careful with my weight. I can remember in high school I got a spot in show choir and it became my goal to look like all of those other girls. I was a terrible dancer darn it but I would look good if I could. And I did. I dropped down to my lowest weight ever just in time for my senior prom.  My hard work had paid off for once in my life. I had eaten really carefully and had faithfully run each evening.

After having had two ginormous baby boys children and adding some years it has become harder and harder for me to lose extra pounds. Positive thinking and the desire to be like my skinny friends just isn’t enough for my body to lose.

There has to be more to this story. In Switzerland, and most places we went to in Europe the people are not overweight. They eat seasonally and enjoy themselves. In the winter their dishes focus mainly on potatoes, carrots, beets, and apples…and fondue! In the Spring it was asparagus, strawberries, leeks, etc.  Summer was full of lots of greens, fruits, etc. But back here potatoes are the enemy and good grief things get serious if you aren’t drinking skim, fat free, la, la, la. Make that ORGANIC. Oddly, Americans seem really unhealthy and spending tons of time and money trying to fix themselves.

So, I am resolving to just be healthy. Watching portions and exercising regularly. I plan to savor the seasonal stuff and I am hoping and praying that I can resist this epidemic of being preoccupied with all things food and fitness. My next post will be on fall foods on our menu line up just so you are reassured that we are still enjoying the goodness!