Lucky 13

It happened.  

I am officially the mom of a teen. 

 {long happy sigh...}

That certainly didn't take too long to happen...

Late September of 2002 was a balmy and warm start to the fall season.

I was so bleary-eyed and tired...but also so overjoyed...

Truly overjoyed.

...Loving my new baby...

My days were spent in an endless cycle of

 feeding, rocking, diaper changing and 

often times, and best of all...

 ...just watching in amazement ...

sheer and utter amazement...

I sat there loving every ounce of my brand new baby girl.

I was so frazzled (as most new moms are) 

in those first few weeks of

motherhood...

I didn't daydream about what she might be like at 13...

my thoughts were mostly about getting through each day and 

figuring "us" out.

All these years later, 

I am happy to report that I am well rested, (on most days)

and my dream come true...

my darling daughter...

 is even better 

than any daydream 

I could have ever tried to dream up. Ever.

I'm proud of her from head to toe
 and so impressed with all that she

is and will someday be...

She's so accomplished for someone so young... 

Turning thirteen felt like a major milestone.... 

entering the teenage years... 

...and every milestone requires a celebration of course...

Making her birthday special was the plan... 

We celebrated with French macaroons, 
vanilla, peach, passion fruit and lemon, 

miniature cupcakes, ice cream and strawberry lemonade.

Lydia invited a small group of her dearest girlfriends 
to spend the afternoon together...

 They painted....
 they ate.... 
they giggled...
I'm pretty sure there was some dancing and singing too...

The perfect kind of get-together for a newly minted 'teenager'.

I'm looking forward to 
these upcoming years with my girl.

If it's anything like our beginning...

it will be full of wonder 

and I can sit back and watch in amazement...

{I am hopeful I can remain well-rested...and not become too frazzled...}

I'm really counting on that!!

 Happy Birthday Lydia.  

Love, 

Mom xoxo

Tomato Soup: French Onion Style

It's possible I may have stumbled upon "the next BIG thing"  

...at least for our family and for our kitchen...

Remember back in the 1980's when we all discovered

 that we could make nachos in the microwave??

That was pretty awesome. 

I'm fairly certain we were all enjoying plates of steaming 

(albeit slightly soggy) and also very hot in some spots 

nacho masterpieces... 
1980's microwave nachos were

 an almost everyday occurrence 

one summer in our house...

...And it wasn't too much longer 
when we were all making those 

English muffin pizzas...

Remember those??

  A culinary awakening...  

So many topping choices and it was 

yet another way to enjoy the microwave...

This culinary breakthrough I dreamed up, well...

...it might be up there with those great gems from past decades... 

I'm not saying it's the next "salted caramel" dessert or anything...

but it definitely has some amazing qualities... 

And then... and then I actually made it.

...wait until you see how it turned out....

Pumpkin Wreath 101

Making a wreath is the perfect thing to do while waiting on a repairman...

It doesn't take too long to make...

it isn't too involved...

  this pumpkin wreath is all 

about the fall... 

it makes a statement without

being too fussy...

So...back to my waiting.... and the needed repair...

The other day, I had a suspicious feeling 

 that our household had gone too long ...

 way too long...

without any major appliance going on the fritz...

{Isn't that the worst...when you sense a repair is looming...}

And like clockwork... our dryer stopped drying.

Not the end of the world... 

Only a temporary loss of the modern day drying convenience ...

 --a brief  hiatus of fluffy warm towels and soft clothing.

While we (anxiously) wait for the repair truck to arrive...

 I will happily share with you the quick and easy how-to on 

this fabulously effortless fall pumpkin wreath.

This little beauty can get your front door ALL the way
 through Thanksgiving!!...it's only pumpkins.

Apple Cider & Doughnut Party

For me, the fall really begins when the weather

 takes a turn toward the cool and crisp...

And lucky us, 

this weekend it will be a crisp 65 degrees...

(which will surely feel chilly compared to the week of 

humid hot-ness we just had... )

I can't wait to throw on a sweater

 and have a cup of hot cider...

Which of course,  

made me think of the fall gathering 

we had last October in our backyard.... 

...Complete with a red plaid couch...

(a what??)

Yes, like something the Beverly Hillbilly's might do, but fancier...

like something out of some crazy furniture ad... 

or strange perfume TV commercial...  {who does that??}

me.  

I guess I do... 

Here's how it all turned out, complete with some of my favorite feel-good fall recipes!!

Please enjoy...and don't be surprised if you suddenly want a red plaid couch too...