What's for dessert?

Because I love torturing Cabana Boy guess what I made him for dessert the other night???

SQUASH PIE!!!!!!

Hah! I couldn't let all this fresh produce go to waste!

It was actually really good. Think like pumpkin pie but not as strong of a taste.

He ended up loving it too. I sent half the pie with him to work this morning so we will see what returns. Wonder if anyone will be brave enough to try it. 

For those of you who are "SQUASH LOVERS"

Here are the two recipes I used. I hate measurements and directions (and typing) so I abbreviated. If you are picky about that stuff. get over it. :)

Magic Squash Pie

1 1/2 cus cooked/mashed butternut squash
1/4 tsp salt
1 c milk
2 larg eggs
1 15 ounce can sweet/condensed milk
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp allspice
1 tsp cinnamon

1 tbs flour

~Mix all the ingredients, pour onto unbaked pie crust and bake at 375 for about 50 min.
Smells delicious!

Harvest Squash Soup

-1 roasted butternut squash

1 tbs olive oil

1 yellow onion, sliced

1 large clove of garlic smashed

about 4 cups vegetable stock

1 tsp paprika

2 tsp fresh thyme

1/2 cinnamon stick (This is a must!! Smells unbelievable!)

salt and pepper

If you have toasted pumpkin seeds and oil drizzle this as a topping.

~ Cook onions and garlic in the oil. Add squash. Stock, paprika, thyme and cinnamon stick. Season with salt and pepper. Simmer for about 20 min. Turn off heat and remove stick.

~Blend soup in blender on high in batches to make it really smooth. If it is too thick add more stock. Return to soup pot and put the cinnamon stick back in to add more flavor.

~ I served the soup with french bread and a salad. Ben claims he did like the soup but would have appreciated it more as an appetizer than an actual meal. :)

Guess what we are having for dinner tonight? Meatloaf and SQUASH!!!!! :)

Birthday Bash

I've been delinquent with posting pics from Brooks' first birthday party. I still haven't edited these but at least wanted to share a few from our day.
We had a really nice morning with the grandparents. They all came early to come with us to church for Brooks' dedication. It worked out perfectly that they could enjoy that with us and then help me with all the party preparations in the afternoon! Smart planning! :)

The weather was perfect for an outdoor fall party.

Papa Sensow getting a kiss from Brooks.

The GIGANTIC cupcakes!!!! 

The Birthday Boy!

Kisses from mama after stripping him down to dive into his cupcake.

Hayride time!

Ahh... the end of the night. What a fun filled day with family and friends. Thanks to everyone who made the day special. It was great to celebrate with people who mean a lot to us. Brooks loved having everyone there and is enjoying his gifts. He was spoiled with some really fun things and some sentimental/keepsake gifts that I especially loved (his own chair to sit with his brothers at the kids' table and a rocker that was mine when I was little.) 

Thanks again to everyone! We really appreciated you celebrating our baby boy with us. 

My Birthday Boy

Happy 1st Birthday to my birthday boy
Brooks Frederick!

What's for dinner?

Cabana Boy claims I was trying to poison him with this dinner.
His colleagues even agreed.
I said I was trying something new. Something healthy. Something from my "Mothering" magazine.
What's for dinner?
Squash Soup!
What is your verdict?
Dinner or Poison? 

Remembering Brooks' birthday

Today was Brooks' first birthday. I know I should be sharing a collage of his first year in pics but I am just not up to going through my thousands of pictures. I cried enough already today.
Instead I am just reliving his BIRTHday 1 year ago. It really was the best day of my life. The wedding was nice, the births of Charlie and Sawyer were awesome but Brooks birth was just the best. I loved it because I fell in love with my husband more than ever and was so happy to have my other two boys there with us (and can't forget Nana!). I can't say enough wonderful things about Goshen Birth Center and the Fairhaven midwives. They really did give me the birth of my dreams.

So... if you would like to see some of the posts dealing with his birth here ya go...
-One of the last posts before he was born- "Homestretch"
-Posting at 2am the next morning right after walking in the door- "It's a..."
- First pics posted "Brooks"
- Details- "The Final Countdown"
- I love "The High"
- and of the answers to your "Burning Questions"

Here are a few pictures from this morning of my birthday boy-

I almost want to go wake him up and squeeze him. almost...

Fall Fun

We had fun last week doing some fall activities. 

The boys and I made our annual trek to the Pumpkin Patch with our MOPS group. 

Poor Brooks he is going to have to put up with a lot from his big bros over the next 18 years!

On Saturday we went to the Apple Orchard with Cabana Boy. The 80 degree weather felt pretty weird as we were hiking around the orchard but we still had fun.

"Seriously Mom. It's an apple. Do you really need to take a picture of it?"- Sawyer



Brooks LOVED chomping on this apple the whole time. 

Luckily Cabana Boy is tall and has long arms to reach those high apples!

You know I love me some tractors! Thank God I am a country girl. Last week was gorgeous around our place. The tractors and combines were out in full force all around our house and the beautiful trees are in prime color. Seriously, I am blessed to live where I do. I know Malibu probably has it's perks but man I can't imagine anything much prettier than rural Indiana in the fall. Thank God I am a country girl!

ps. T minus 2 days until Brooksie's birthday. Pass the Valium, Prozac, Zolof.
Whatever just something to get me through the day!

America's Next Top Model

Charlie wants Tyra to reconsider her 5'7 requirement. He's got the "smile with your eyes" part down pact.

This was Sawyer's pose that he wanted to do for me. 

And this was the freaky squirrel that we were chasing. It didn't have a tail! So weird! Pretty sure it was sick. 

My bribery this time for the boys (aka me. i was hungry) was Georgia Mudslide Blizzard. Totally worth it! yum!

Apple Orchard

Thanks Nana and Grandma Sensow for coming with us to the Apple Orchard! 

Sawyer was a tad tired afterward. :) 

Call me sentimental

This was me and two of my pumpkin babies 1 year ago today. I have been trying to pretend that my baby boy won't be turning one in two weeks but with it being October 1st I have to face reality.
Oh man... hope i make it through his b-day and party without any valium or prozac!