Monday Morning Coffee: Halloween Week Edition!

Good Monday morning, and Happy Halloween Eve! We celebrated this weekend with our annual Family Halloween Party. We sure missed Peyton and Chris, who were here last weekend, but she surprised us by sending down these amazingly delicious cookies for the party! The kids went all out with the costumes this year! We ate, played games, and had lots of fun together. I was thankful that the dining room furniture arrived just in time!

If Saturday was all about Halloween fun, then Sunday was for cozy and quiet and the beauty of an ordinary autumn day. 

Today is going to be beautiful here, so Flynn and I are going to do school earlier than usual and then head to the beach. The rest of the week is going to be much more fall-ish, so we thought we'd get one more beach visit in. Thank you for all the love for Cosmo, our furry new family member. He is absolutely precious and, so far, quite the snuggler. Mocha is warming up to him, too! I hope you have a wonderful day, my friends. And have a Happy-Not-Too-Spooky-Halloween!!!

BillieJo

Monday Morning Coffee

Good Monday morning! I hope you had a lovely October weekend. Peyton and Chris came for the weekend, and we had a wonderful time. We visited at the house, went to the farmer's market, attended a beautiful mass, then went to dinner at a favorite Italian restaurant. We spent Sunday at the condo, watching movies and playing games. I even spent some time in the pool, and although I strongly dislike exercise of any kind, I do enjoy swimming. It is the only time I don't mind actually doing some sort of physical activity! It felt good to move my body, and even better when I was showered and back on the couch with my Halloween throw blanket and my pup!

Peyton and Flynn made one of our seasonal favorites, Spiderweb Munch. It wouldn't be Halloween without it! Here is the recipe if you want to try it this Halloween.

SPIDERWEB MUNCH

Just click on this!

We were also so happy to see Rhett's very good friend, Gabe. He drove down to visit Rhett and Kyrstin. If you have read here for some time, you might remember Gabe. He lived across the street when the boys were little, and he and Rhett became friends in Preschool. It seems like Gabe was knocking at our door yesterday and playing on our driveway. He was the sweetest kid and is now an amazing young man. This is a picture of them this weekend...

 

And this is how I still see them in my heart.

While we were down here doing all that, Madison and Nicolas visited my mom! My hometown has the most beautiful Main Street, which is extra amazing the first two weeks of October.

Madison said they had a wonderful visit, and Mom was so happy to see them. I love this picture so much. It shows two of the most beautiful, amazing women who have a most beautiful relationship and who have forever blessed my life: my mother and my firstborn daughter.

Well, Mocha and I are off to start our day. We have school and laundry and some other beautifully ordinary things to do today. I hope your day is beautifully ordinary, too!

Thanks for stopping by, my friends!

BillieJo

(Google for the Halloween fun.)

Monday Morning Coffee

 

Good Monday morning, my friends! Welcome to the middle of October. I love this time of year, as you no doubt already know. These next few weeks, however, are some of my favorites. Slowly, almost unnoticeably, the shift occurs. For me, the pumpkin spice obsessions, bright afternoons, and vibrant leaf-covered trees that define early autumn are replaced with cloudy days and earlier nights, chilly enough for the heat to kick on afternoons and spooky movies on TV at night.

I plan on intentionally enjoying these next two weeks and promise to live in the now, the time of cozy, spooky fun. Come November 1, I can shift into all things Christmas. (No matter how tempted I am by the Target and Home Goods Christmas placemats, ornaments, and throw blankets they shove at me.)

That being said, do you prefer

Reese Peanut Butter Pumpkins or colorful candy corn?

It's The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown or Michael Myers Halloween?

Colorful leaves on trees or crunchy leaves on the sidewalk?

Pumpkin patches or Haunted houses?

Whatever you enjoy, savor it. These next two weeks will pass before we know it, and we will be knocking on the door of Christmas. (Which I also love, by the way.) Today is a homeschool day for us, and that is about it. We have some groceries to pick up, and  I can finally pull on some of my Halloween sweaters and sweatshirts!!!! 

Thanks for visiting, my friends. And if you want to get even more in the spirit, search YouTube for Halloween ambiance. It takes enjoying this time of year to a whole new level!

BillieJo

P. S. 

My answers are Peanut butter pumpkins, Halloween, Crunchy leaves, and Pumpkin patches.

Monday Morning Coffee

 

Good Monday morning, my friends! Thank you for all the Happy Birthday wishes for Steve. He had a wonderful birthday, as depicted in the following few photos. His day started with breakfast at a new place, where Peyton and Christopher surprised him!!! They were vacationing nearby and came to celebrate his birthday with him. This super secret mission was devised and executed by the kids themselves. Steve was so happy! 

We received these pictures of some of their delicious breakfasts.

Not to be outdone, I promptly responded with an image of what my delicious, if not nutritious, breakfast was. I'm sure they were jealous. 

They spent part of Steve's birthday getting some things ready at the new house. Flynn and I were home enjoying school; really, we actually enjoy it! Then Madison, Nicolas, Rhett, and Kyrstin took Steve to a new restaurant for his birthday dinner. They all had a wonderful time, and I am so thankful to my children for making Steve's day super special. 

Saturday, while they were on their way home, my best friend Heather came over, and Flynn helped us make our favorite apples. We have a wonderful friend named Frank, who had a shop here in town, and his wife made the most delicious apples. We bought them for every holiday. Last fall, she passed, and Frank closed the store. One day, shortly before Christmas, Frank came over with apples he had made himself. We were so touched by his thoughtfulness. Frank then offered to come over and teach us how to make them. So one day last winter, he did! And they were delicious as always. 

Heather suggested we make some before I head down to Maryland, so after a consultation with Frank, we did. They turned out great! Although not as aesthetically pleasing as Frank's wonderful wife's, they are every bit as delicious. And I have one set aside for Frank. You may think they look similar to any caramel apple covered in chocolate. You are partially correct. Want to know what makes these apples so extra?? There is a layer of peanut butter between the caramel and the chocolate! Let's keep that just between us.

And finally, while I was sitting home under my fall throw blanket eating apples, Steve was off at the Steeler game! He took Rhett, Kyrstin, and her brother to the game, and although they gave him a hard time about wearing a 49ers jersey, he came out the victor, as our Steelers lost the home opener 30-7. Could make for a long season. 

Have a cozy Monday, my friends. September is moving along, and I fear I am not fully embracing fall as I should be. But then, with temperatures in the 90s, it is hard to do. This week looks cooler, thank goodness! This is the last full week we will be here in Pennsylvania until November, and I miss my pumpkin decor. Soon! Thank you for visiting! I am always thankful you do!

Leaving you with this today. 

The passage of time will never diminish America's courage on September 11, 2001.

BillieJo