A day of apples ♥

Hello Friends!

 

 

As you can see from the picture above I have been enjoying my cozy Saturday October mornings.  After crazy-busy weeks I look forward to the slow pace of the weekends more than you can imagine.

 

 

This past week my mother had to go into the hospital to have surgery. Thank God she is recovering beautifully and came home today! The word home takes on a new meaning when you are away from it.  And suddenly it becomes even better when you get there ♥

 

 

I took both of these photos from my mother's hospital window.

I knew in my heart that she was being taken care of and I felt at peace ♥

 

 

 

She's doing great and very thankful to be home.  It's no fun in there. 

 

 

And now back to your regular scheduled programming.....  

 

 

The first Friday in October we always reserve for our trip to the apple orchid.  John had a half day of school so we met up with some friends and headed to the farm. 

The weather was nice, still warm but not too hot. I would have preferred it a bit cooler, but I'm not complaining : ) 

 Off we go....

John and I know that Rob loves Macon apples so that's what we were hunting for.  

We found them and they were huge!  

Eating them right off the trees. 

This is real life...:)

 

After a while we filled our bag.  I was dreaming of apples pies the whole time! 

Walking back through the orchard to the country store we came upon some friends. 

And some gorgeous mums! I came home with one of these. 

And a pumpkin of course.

John picked out a little one for his desk.  

I'm always curious about these jellies and relishes but I've never bought one.  

Candy apples on the other hand... YUM! 

The Halloween train is our favorite!

We like to linger around the table and look for all the spooky details. 

 

Boo!

 

Halloween is coming! Do you have your costume yet? 

Now with so many apples in the house I have to think up things to do with them all.  I'll be making pies and freezing them for the holidays and I know I want to make my mom's

 

apple swirl cake. 

 

 

It has orange juice in the batter and is absolutely delicious! (click here if you want the recipe)

 

 

Tonight on a whim I decided to make a quick batch of apple sauce.  Have you ever made homemade applesauce?  Its easy-peasy and taste so fresh!

Are you having pork chops for dinner tonight? If so, please make this apple sauce to go with them.  It's a must!

Start with 4 medium size apples. Peel and chop into chunks. 

Put them in a large sauce pan with  1 cup of water.  Heat over med-high until boiling. 

Reduce to simmer and cook for about 10 minutes. 

 

 

Stir in 1/2 cup brown sugar, 1/4 tsp cinnamon, 1/8 tsp nutmeg, and 1 tbsp. butter.  Simmer for a few more minutes until all the flavors are incorporated.  Remove from heat.  Cool. 

 

 

That's it! 

 

 

Serve ice cold as a side dish to your pork chops or roast chicken, or for an instant tummy warmer stir some into your oatmeal on a chilly morning (that's what we're having tomorrow!) 

 OR you could be like John and put some over vanilla ice cream and top with whip cream : ) 

Either way...yum. 

What do you like to bake with apples? I still have so many and are looking for ideas.

 

Thank you for stopping by today! 

 

There's no place like home ♥

 

One more thing...

Here's a picture of the full Harvest moon over my neighbor's house the other night. 

Isn't she a beauty?! I think she outdid herself this month!


Happy October!


xoxo