Trick-or-Treat

A few Halloween pics....

We had a fun night celebrating at Aunt Lyndsay's house

Blaise with little pumpkin Ellie

So sweet! 

An Iowa Autumn Hike

Yet a few more Iowa pics.... 

We went on a gorgeous hike on Sunday afternoon. It was much warmer than the previous day, the sun was shining and the fall colors were so pretty!  Off in the horizon, we even saw the hills of South Dakota. 

The dads sporting the Ergo baby/child carrier. We use it all the time...and it will last us awhile too! Natalee's almost 4 and is still in it, pretty handy! 

A couple family photos.....

As I write "family photo" I am reminded that our family is growing-Polly Pepper, the little black puppy, is Matt and Becky's latest addition. And of course we have our sweet little baby Blaise. Yet in the joy of new growth, my heart still tingles with sadness. There's a something wrong-it's a terrible feeling of incompleteness as I am reminded it's not the whole family.  Our Natalee is missing. And all her sweet little babies that she wanted to bear, cousins Bella, little Natalee and Blaise will never know and grandchildren my parents will never have. (She wanted 6!) I will never feel that we have a complete family photograph again-because we won't.   It's alway so bittersweet when we are all together.  There is such a void without her joyful, carefree spirit and her lighthearted fun and silliness.  Ah, how I miss my sister!  I look forward to the day when we will euphorically embrace again....

Here are two sweet sisters-two years apart just like me and Natalee were.  They played so well together all weekend long-what wonderful imaginations they have! Play mobile is their favorite and they love little horses and kitties. Instead of watching TV, they read.  They could sit and listen to their momma read to them from chapter books for hours! (Becky is an excellent, expressive reader I must say!) I've been trying to read to little Blaise daily, knowing how important is is for his language development and knowing that Becky did this for her girls. She is a wonderful role model and I am so thankful to have her in my life!  Both Matt and Becky have really influenced and challenged us in many ways.  They live such a simple, minimilastic lifestyle-continually reflecting and thinking through their actions and how they can serve Christ in all areas. We miss them and wish we were closer. As my brother said, the irony is ridiculous-he becomes a college professor and they move 10 hours away just as our life situations become "similarish."  We look forward all the more to the times we have together. 

Pumpkin Patch!

Fall with children would not be complete without a trip to the pumpkin patch! It's even more perfect when you go with your cousins. We were able to visit a beautiful pumpkin farm when we were in Iowa-Blaise and the girls loved it! 

Road Trip!

Several weekends ago, we piled into my grandparents RV with my parents and took a very long road trip up to the northwest corner of Iowa to visit my brother and his family in Sioux Center. They recently moved there so Matt could be a professor at Dordt college- teaching painting, drawing, and art history. Being in the RV made the 10 hour trip much more bearable with a baby; Blaise was able to move about some, eat and get his diaper changed with out us having to pull over. 

It was so good to see my brother, Becky and the girls again. Iowa was much prettier than I had imagined it to be, there were much more trees and hills than I had pictured. Sioux Center is a very small town (population 6,000) but it was still quaint. And though there were plenty of hog farms around, the smell wasn't terrible. Corn fields and farms abounded too. 

Bella critiquing art in the studio 

Professor Matt in his office (he has quite the collection of root beer bottles!) 

Here're my adorable nieces at breakfast! Becky is an amazing cook, she made delicious meals for us ranging from fresh brisket and potato soup to hot baked oatmeal. Mmmm They are able to buy most of their meat and produce locally, and even get fresh milk from a cow! We're so happy for them. 

Carmel Apple Cheesecake

I saw this recipe in September's Cooking Light and couldn't resist making it. It proved just as tasty as it looked/sounded!

From September 2008 Cooking Light: This creamy cheesecake showcases fall flavors. Granny Smith apples lend a pleasant tartness, but you can substitute Rome, Braeburn, or your favorite apple variety. Make this cake the night before your gathering.

Yield 16 servings (serving size: 1 cheesecake wedge and 1 tablespoon topping)

Ingredients

CRUST:

1 cup graham cracker crumbs, about 8 cookie sheets (I used cinnamon)

1 tablespoon egg white

1 tablespoon water

Cooking spray

CHEESECAKE:

1 3/4 cups sugar

1/2 cup light sour cream

3 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

2 (8-ounce) blocks 1/3-less-fat cream cheese, softened

1 (8-ounce) block fat-free cream cheese, softened

4 large eggs


TOPPING:

1/3 cup sugar

3 tablespoons water

1/2 teaspoon fresh lemon juice

1 tablespoon butter

2 tablespoons half-and-half

1 3/4 cups thinly sliced peeled Granny Smith apple (about 8 ounces)

Dash of nutmeg

Preparation:

1. Preheat oven to 400°.

2. To prepare crust, combine the first 3 ingredients in a bowl; toss with a fork until moist. Press mixture lightly into bottom of a 9-inch springform pan coated with cooking spray. Bake at 400° for 6 minutes. Remove from oven; cool on a wire rack. Wrap outside of pan with a double layer of foil. Reduce oven temperature to 325°.

3. To prepare cheesecake, place 1 3/4 cups sugar and next 7 ingredients (through fat-free cream cheese) in food processor; process until smooth. Add eggs, 1 at a time; process until blended. Pour cheese mixture into prepared pan. Place springform pan in a large roasting pan; add hot water to larger pan to a depth of 1 inch.

4. Bake at 325° for 1 hour or until cheesecake center barely moves when pan is touched. Remove from oven; let stand in water bath 10 minutes. Run a knife around outside edge of cheesecake. Remove pan from water bath; cool on a wire rack to room temperature. Cover and chill at least 8 hours.

5. To prepare topping, combine 1/3 cup sugar, 3 tablespoons water, and lemon juice in a small, heavy saucepan; cook over medium-high heat until sugar dissolves, stirring frequently. Cook 4 minutes or until golden (do not stir). Remove from heat. Add butter to pan; gently stir until butter melts. Stir in half-and-half. Cool slightly.

6. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add apple to pan; sauté 5 minutes or until lightly browned. Stir in sugar mixture and nutmeg. Serve topping with cheesecake.

(OR Instead of making the sauce you could just saute the apples in melted carmel candy then pour on the cake)

Nutritional Information

Calories:256 (33% from fat)

Fat:9.5g (sat 5.6g,mono 2.7g,poly 0.7g)

Protein:7.6g

Carbohydrate:35.8g

Fiber:0.4g

Cholesterol:79mg

Iron:0.6mg

Sodium:268mg

Calcium:59mg