One More Sleep

Who's so excited for her scrapbooking weekend that she had her car packed LAST night? Apparently, THIS girl!

I was missing a few key items that had to wait until tonight/tomorrow morning... like my clothes for the weekend. Even though I'll wear the same thing probably all 4 days. And the food and snacks – which half are in the fridge right now.

Including my Pumpkin Spice Spice Baby Trifle I whipped together after work! 

Now I just have to throw my clothes together and hopefully I'll be all set to hit the road at 8 a.m. Must make the most of 4 days! Ha. 

I don't know if I'll have time or connectivity to blog at all. I'll be working to finish up my 2017 "family memories" album and get a good start at 2018. My high school BFF Julie will be joining me again (yay). Sometimes we get more distracted chit-chatting than scrapping. But you know what? I wouldn't change that for anything. 

So no judging on my productivity (or lack of it). I really need these 4 days out of the office!

Plus, reliving memories is so fun and healing. Today my dad would have been 98 years old. Logically, I know he wouldn't have made it this far. But that doesn't make me miss him any less. I scrapbook to preserve moments in time that I want to cherish from this day forward. 

I mean if you can find a hobby that's both fun and therapeutic, you gotta grasp it and hang on!

Pumpkin Spice Spice Baby!

 

Much to the relief of thousands of fans, Trifle Tuesday is back! Hey, I can't control the work team birthday calendar!

But throw in the month of October with some Pumpkin Spice Spice Baby – and you've got a winner!

And this one is sort of fraud since hubby and I have been coughing and dealing with stuffed noses. So no oven was turned on at Blue Jay Drive to create this. Instead here is the latest made-up trifle recipe...

The cake layer was something called Pumpkin Cake Bites, which makes total sense. My pudding layers were one layer of pumpkin spice pudding and the other layer of Cinnabon pudding snack packs.

Yes! This brings out every fall flavor, in my opinion! And yes, all 6 little packs went into one layer.

As for the crunchy layer (which I always require) I took my momma's rolling pin to a gallon-sized Ziploc bag of a combined cookie packet of Pumpkin White Chocolate, Gingerbread Cream Cheese, and Brown Butter Cinnamon Bun cookies. This time, courtesy of Wal-Mart.

Even though I do have some Pumpkin Spice Eggnog in the fridge, I just wasn't willing to sacrifice it for this trifle. But... now you know another option to add to this trifle mix. 

Happy October. And good luck!

Typical October Vibes

Well it’s the first week of October and you know what that really means. Nope, I mean beyond the new season of The Voice and Pumpkin Spice explosion time. It means if you’re lucky enough, you have a baseball team to cheer on in the playoffs.

That’s what 90% of Wisconsin and the Brew Crew fans can feel like right now.

Jim and I are on the sidelines with our loser teams, but we do wish the Brewers well. (Maybe not too loudly since Jim’s dad is a Cubs fan).

But we still have our fantasy football teams, of course. 

And yes, I purposely buried the lead here so I could brag about going 5-0 so far and getting 196+ points this week. I mean, I think it’s a work league record! And no, unfortunately there is no money on the line here. Just competitive Robyn trash talking and bragging. Ha.

So now we can change subjects. LOL.

As the weather dudes warned us, temperatures were “plunging” today. In other words, it’s 60 degrees and raining and feels like, well, October! Not concerned. Especially since I’ve got all my outdoor fall sports photographed – at least once.

Of course that prompted me indoors evening. 

I mean it just happened I was in town for my monthly chiropractor appointment after work so why not shoot a little volleyball afterwards? It was actually an "away" game for middle school volleyball. At one of the Lutheran schools in town. When I saw my next-door neighbor's Royals daughter and one of the little Lutherans from my church on the "opposing" side, I was glad I went. Hopefully I got some decent images of them both!

I'll check those out before the good (hopefully) TV starts in Wisconsin tonight! Let's cross our fingers!

Satur-Night

 There wasn't too much excitement in my Saturday. Edited some photos, visited with Mr. Deck Chair (thank you, Mother Nature), hubby and I went shopping Stevens Point (side note: It's Sweetest Day and I have the SWEETEST!), and I had a senior photo shoot. 

But afterward, on my way home via Nekoosa, I just about stopped on the bridge over the Wisconsin River when I saw the sunsetting. So I pulled off the side after the bridge. And captured a few images for your viewing pleasure...

Was just so pretty! I used my phone for the pictures even though I had my camera with me. I guess I should look at the images from my actual photo shoot. But I don't think anything will match this.

Hope you were able to enjoy the fall weather and colors today. Or just something beautiful!

It's Almost Hermit Season

It's a good thing it's still light out at 5:30 p.m. or might have skipped our monthly Girls Night Out dinner. We're getting close to that time of year when it takes a lot to get me to leave the house when I get home from work. Especially if it's dark.

And super especially if it's cold.

And that cold is here! Tonight is going to be the coldest night in months. Ugh. My heated mattress pad is cranked to HIGH and I'm ready to dive under the covers. 

But am grateful I did leave the house and meet the "girls" at Whoudini's. It's always nice to visit and catch up. And the food wasn't bad either. I could not believe how busy they were for a Tuesday night. I must be getting old. I forgot that bars have dart night and pool night and all that kid stuff on school nights! 

I really am old. And cold.

I'm hoping to hold off on turning into a hermit too soon. Gotta make it through the time change anyway.

Bundle up and hang in there, everyone!

Flying Season

It so cold, windy, and rainy today, it felt like the scene from a scary Halloween movie. Though, with gas prices inching back up, I feel like I could have had good gas mileage if I'd ridden a broom to church.

I know we need the rain. But combined with chill and wind, it was not a day to be out and about. In other words, I had to postpone a senior photo shoot. No one wants to be out in a "real feel 39 degrees" kind of day and actually smile.

So we spent the day indoors. I whipped up some cheese stuffed tortellini chili in the crockpot and did some cleaning. Vikings were on bye so I had a much more productive Sunday than usual. Even got a call from our baby so day was made!

I know it's not even 9 o'clock but it's dark and my side of the bed is fully heated and waiting for me. I might have to dive into my Halloween romance book (it's a thing, I think) called Hex and the City. I'll let you know if it's worth the ride, er read!

Hang onto your hat – and broomstick – and be careful out there!

Don't Judge a Trifle By its Layers

By the grace of ReddiWip in a spray can, I was able to salvage my dessert that just last night was one layer short of a trifle.

As I mentioned yesterday, with the distraction of our sweet grand-pup Rey, I put my last 2 layers in the wrong order. But as predicted, it didn't matter. I've never made this the same way twice anyway – whether it's the ingredients or the order of layers – so this was today's Pumpkin Spice Trifle. 

The bottom was cubed up frosted pumpkin bars. So good on their own! Next layer is the game changer.

Instead of pumpkin or vanilla pudding, add Cinnabon Pudding. The creamy cinnamon brings out the spice! Also yummy on its own. I topped that with a thin layer of whipped cream then added the crunchy layer...

Put a row in a Ziploc bag and go to work with your rolling pin! I nicely crushed crunchy layer.

I meant to repeat those layers but forgot the crunch layer BEFORE that final whipped cream layer, so I added that at the end. Wasn't a complete fan of that, so this morning – thanks to a back-up can of ReddiWhip, I added another thin layer on top with some Halloween sprinkles.

Whew. I could leave the house with my Trifle Queen dignity intact!

And yes, we all know it's only pretty until the first scoop anyway, but still. Ha. And it was tasty! The birthday girl liked it. And definitely no one complained. And it went fast, as usual. I brought home the bowl with a small serving left in case hubby wants it. 

If not, I'll take it. Or just lick the bowl. It was that good. 

Give it a try. Keep in mind that some of these layers are seasonal. If you want to use those P.S. Oreo's, you'll have to get them soon. Also, the only place I've found the Cinnabon Pudding is in the snack pack area at Walmart, but it might be in other stores, too.

Or if you want ME to make it... Plan the party and save me a seat! 🎃

Chillin' Out on Monday

When the "wake up and crawl out from under the covers" temperature is technically below freezing, it's time to make a power move.

I walked down the hall and turned on that heat again with no one the wiser. Well, until you could hear the air vents anyway. My promise to the man in the office on the other side of the wall was that I'd shut it off as soon as the house warmed up.

Fast forward to 4 p.m. when I remembered that. At least I was cozy to in my office today – assisted by hot Pumpkin Spice coffee, naturally. 

I also warmed up because we got special visitors after work that washed away all Monday stress-itude. (Not a real word, I know.)

Casey and Emily were visiting from Minnesota and we were excited to see them. But we also were super-duper excited to see our grandpup Rey, who we hadn't seen since their wedding a year ago!!

She was my little helper in the kitchen. I was trying to teach her how to make a trifle, but she was so cute and distracting, I actually forgot a layer and it's not symmetrically pretty. I'll share the images and recipes for my Trifle Tuesday blog tomorrow – if it gets positive reviews. 

I mean it's Pumpkin Spice Trifle so I know at least the birthday girl and I will enjoy it! 

The four of us humans went out to grab a quick bite to eat. It had been awhile since we ate at Tamarack's Pub (formerly Cheers, formerly 19th Hole, and who knows what else), but since it was close to home, we went there so Rey wouldn't be alone too long. We weren't sure if she'd invite the guys in the neighborhood over for a party. But Charlie and Buddy stayed home. As far as we know.

Had a delicious meal and it was great to catch up – much easier to talk across a table then down a row at Target Field. We love having them close by again. And Rey, too, of course! 

She's a big sweetie. And no, I didn't give in to her begging brown eyes. Though Grandma Robyn may have let her lick the Cool Whip-covered spatula! 

Spoil while you can!

Ice Cream (anti) Social

Woke to 44 degrees and one of the bedroom windows had been cracked open all night. I was basically cold all day!

I threatened to turn the heat on, but the guy in the office on the other side of the wall said he did just fine the last 2 cool days.

So I waited until he left the house to go see our nephew Colin race in La Crosse before I turned in on. I mean we should test it anyway before it really gets cold.

Anti-social me just stayed in tonight. I'm still cold! I put on my fuzzy robe and got a blanket and started watching a new Netflix show. I was hooked on Nobody Wants This immediately and binge-watched half the season already. It's hilarious.

At some point, I thought, "You know, ice cream sounds good." 

So whip off 3 layers of warmth and grab me some Mint Moose Tracks. That's how some of us roll.

Ice cream season is ending. But ice cream with a jacket (or robe or blankets) on is beginning. Enjoy! 🍦🍨

Tricks AND Treats

Happy Halloween! I just gotta say to all you pumpkin spice haters who were griping in August, having the Christmas season arrive on Halloween is even worse!

My first reaction this morning was: "Well, frost my pumpkin! It's Halloween!"

It was still dark when I headed to work, so I couldn't get a picture of all the snow in the yard, but I was the first traveler on our road heading east. Yikes. Not a fun TRICK for Halloween.

We did have TREATS at work, though, Some mildly spooky...

Some scary gross... but still delicious if you closed your eyes and remembered it was just vanilla wafer cookies in disguise!

It kept snowing through the morning. This is the view from our cafeteria. I realize you all got it way worse up north – with icy roads and such. I only saw one semi jack-knifed in the ditch on my way to work, so I counted myself fortunate.

For fun, our writing team dressed up. I mean I count a "Pumpkin Spice, Spice, Baby" t-shirt a costume – especially since Darcey (lower right) brought extra witches hats!

We make a fierce-looking coven, don't we? And we're writers so we can SPELL! You've been warned.

I told my friend Tom it was cannibalism for him to be dressed like a banana then eat a banana. But anything goes on Halloween, I guess. Side note: He's bananas!

Jim and I are both home now to greet trick-or-treaters. Last year we had one family of 4 and this year we've had the cute 2-year-old neighbor girl so far and that's it. I hope we get a few more.

Though I wouldn't complain about leftover Reese's Peanut Butter Cups, would you?

Have a BOO-tiful Halloween! 

October Can Be Pretty Cool

I feel like after all the bragging about the gorgeous sunrise and sunset yesterday, Mother Nature decided to kick off some "who can do it better" competitions.

I mean I loved yesterday's pink skies, but you know me, throw in a little purple and Wednesday might have a slight edge over Tuesday. Either way, I win. I have a glorious commute!

October is cool that way... And between last night and tonight, I finished my senior portrait season. Almost. There's one more boy who doesn't want senior pictures of any kind. We'll see if he or his mom wins that argument. Either way, it was fun to meet six complete strangers this fall and a joy to capture a lot of amazing kiddos I did know – along with half a dozen family sessions.

Not to put in a personal plug, but if you want fall-color family pictures, contact me now. Every day, absolutely gorgeous colorful fall trees seem to pop up! Just saying.

Enjoy your October any way you can!

Don't Stop Believin'

Not all good streaks are good ones. But most are meant to be broken. I was devastated the other day when I broke my 136-day Wordle-solving streak. Dang. But today the streak on my mind – and every lifelong Twins fan's mind – was the fact that we made it to the playoffs but hadn't won a post-season game since 2004. 

Do the math. 19 years!! Uff da. The mantra has been "We Believe" we can break that streak. Would faith be enough?!

Thankfully, even though I had work meetings all day in Stevens Point, we got done in time for me to catch the 3:30 p.m. game. I had to laugh because one of my sports apps on my phone notified me of Royce's homerun before the pitch was even thrown on TV!  I had extra minutes of excitement there.

But thanks to phone apps, I could keep track of the final nail-biting (well, c'mon, it was a stressful streak) innings while I shot pictures of middle school football then volleyball. This is my "I've been busy and now have to catch up on fall sports pictures" week.

Still... fall ball is my favorite. C'mon, Twins, let's keep this going!

Oh, and since we were in the mood to make or break history today, we had a record high! Even if I want to "believe" that will continue, I know by Saturday's football game the high will be 50. Uff da again!

Be careful out there. And GO TWINS!!!!

Hello, HOT-ober!

Pretty sure I've given up on keeping up with Mother Nature's mood swings. Crying for days on end and now she's having hot flashes. If I didn't know any better, I'd think she was my age and we were tackling this stage of life together! 

You understand now why "the change" is not all pretty leaves and apples and pumpkins?!

After having the heat on last week, I can't believe it got to 87 (at least) in Wisconsin Rapids.

I fact it was already about 80 degrees at 11 a.m. so Sylvester and I sat out on the swing for our pregame warmup. (Since the Pack played Thursday night our boys were on TV here for once.) About halftime, when the Vikings were bumbling their way around North Carolina, we almost went back outside.

But they're like a bad accident. You can't drive by without looking. No matter how ugly the scene.

Now, I'm glad we did. Since we finally FINALLY got our first win of the season! If you though the drought this summer was long. It wasn't 10 months long! So yay. SKOL!

Thankfully it cooled down to reasonable 80s temps by 4:30 p.m. when I had a senior photo shoot. I mean I love hot weather, but I don't want my subjects melting – especially after they purposely waited until FALL for pictures. 

We made it work, though. Got some cool baseball ones and then out to some fields for more fall-like pictures. Including this winner...

I was taking some bow hunting pictures and saw the fall colors in the sky and had a different idea. No, you can't see this kiddo's face, but I thought it was pretty kick-ass anyway! Can't wait to go through the rest but, hey, that 3-day weekend sped by. The alarm returnith tomorrow.

Let's have a good October! Keep it real, Mother Nature!

October-Fest Eve

If you look at the calendar, we still have a few hours before October. Yet, there sure was a lot of October-Festing going on. I guess since most of my day was seasonally related, I was festing, too.

Took a road trip to Waupaca with my friend Marigene. I didn't have any furniture shopping advice to give her, but sometimes it's just fun to have someone along for the ride. After visiting Stange's, where I got some inspiration for next home improvements, we headed north of town to Christiansen's Orchard.

This wasn't a pick-your-own gig.

They had lots of interesting varieties bagged up, along with various jams, jellies, and apple cider.

All I could think was that I don't have a kitchen right now to do any baking. So...

I bought one of their fabulous-looking apple pies. Still gotta get some vanilla ice cream tomorrow. Then I'll dig into it.

Jim had choir up in Rudolph this afternoon, but when we got home we headed to Whiskey Rapids Saloon to meet some friends for their Oktoberfest celebration.

Caught a few tunes from the Ultimate Polka Band from Stevens Point. Then it switched over to a country band.

Blame it on Waylon is an amazing regional band. Could've listened to them all night but my stinkin' allergies are still messing with me. Still don't fell 100% so wisely called it an early night. Maybe instead of fall allergies, these are just September ones.

I guess it's time to welcome October! Everybody's doing it.

Cold Turkey

I'm wondering if the phrase "cold turkey" really means quitting something abruptly or if maybe it means these turkeys and cold and really, really wish they could fly south for the winter! 

Based on the forecast that we're dipping down into the 20s tonight, I'm thinking it's the these frigid fellas looking for an escape. I know I am!

Besides very cooooool temps today, the wind was wicked and our trees are getting naked!

I was glad I was able to snap this photo yesterday. I call it "Moses Parting the Red Sea." 

We were so blessed with a gorgeous colors this fall. I hope we'll still see some color Up North this weekend for sister weekend, but I'm OK if we don't.

Fallen leaves often create a gorgeous blanket, too. And Lord knows, we all are gonna need an extra blanket. Starting now!

Bundle up and be careful out there!

Flaky Friday

It was so cold at yesterday's football game. Despite the hot streak that is our Assumption Royals this year – they won 76-0 and remain undefeated in conference play for the season! Whoa – it was frigid on the sidelines. My camera didn't like it and neither did I. 

Was winter coming early? I didn't think so.

I was astonished this morning when my family Up North was texting pictures of overnight snow. Like enough to cover the ground and then some. So I may have been a little too early with my sarcastic "haha, it's not doing anything here."

Mid-morning, the flakes arrived. It was kind of pretty seeing them pile up on the green pine branches with the colorful red-ish fall leaves in the background. But then...

No. There is something wrong with this picture! It's October 14. Stay in your lane, Ol' Man Winter!

You know who else wasn't happy?

Here's a clue.

Remember the mantra: If Mr. Deck Chair ain't happy, ain't nobody happy!

At least it didn't stick around. Hubby is on his way back from Indianapolis and the last thing he needs is to drive into a winter-weather system in mid-October. 

But since it is Christmas-like and he won't be home for a couple hours, I better sign off and catch a Hallmark movie while the house – and remote – is mine! 

Stay warm, everyone!