Gratitude...FHE....And Soup....

Last night we celebrated the begining of Fall.

The mornings are cold....the evenings are too....the days are still warm.

The leaves on the trees are yellow and falling....there is just a special feeling in the air.

I love it!

We officially welcomed Fall last night with the first leaves of our Gratitude Tree, being placed.

During the month of November, we fill our tree with things that we are grateful for. It is a great reminder of how blessed we really are. A few notes of gratitude that I found interesting last night were....The XBox (The Rooster), this is siginificant because The Rooster "lost" it a few weeks ago because he hadn't completed some assignments at school....he finally earned it back just a few days ago. Another....Peanut Butter (PreShie) she has always LOVED peanut butter, but just recently found out that it is high in fat....what a let down. Another....School (The Boy), okay...that was a mockery I am pretty sure...although he is quite enjoying the "social" aspect of his life at the moment and soaking up his Senior year. And finally....Wife (The Farmer) and although he loves his wife....I am pretty sure this was a political move...had he put something else first....it could have caused a small problem for him...I am just saying....

Cousin Loly came by....she added her leaf....it said...My Missionary. And for me.....

I am beyond grateful for moments with my children....around our dinner table...talking about the events of the day....laughing together....just being together. I am grateful for that!

The Farmer has taken to drawing on the leaves this year....that makes it extra fun.

The tree will soon fill up with gratitude leaves.


Another yearly event is Dinner In A Pumpkin. I have used the same recipe for years but

this year I tried a new version. It was super YUMMY!

We will make this our new "Fall Dinner."

Fall Soup In A Pumpkin

5 small baking pumpkins

2 t. sugar and Kosher salt

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Using a small knife carefully cut a circle around the stem

of the pumpkin. Remove the lid, and clean out the inside of the pumpkin. Sprinkle 1/2 each salt,

and sugar inside of the pumkin, place on a parchment lined baking sheet and bake for 20-30

minutes, or until tender. For me, it was more like 40 minutes.

Meanwile make the soup.

3 T. butter

1/2 small onion, chopped

Kosher salt

1 t. thyme

1 t. sugar

1 can evaporated milk

10 c. chicken broth

1 med. butternut squash, peeled and cut into chunks

pepper to taste

Melt butter in a large saucepan, add onion and 1 t. salt. Add thyme and cook until onion is soft. Add squash and sugar, then add chicken stock and cook until squash is soft. Once the squash is soft, use and immersion blender to puree until smooth. Add evaporated milk, season with salt and pepper and ladle into the cooked pumpkins.

Add toppings such as;

crutons, finely chopped green onion, crispy bacon, rice, Durkee onions,

Pepitas (pumpkin seeds) and a little chopped parsley.

It is the perfect start.....to a perfect Fall season!