Fall Activity #5: Apple Picking and Apple Pie

This time of year the apples are perfect for picking and the kids love to get in on the action. We pick at a local orchard called Lynd's that has a variety of apples to pick during September and October as well as pumpkins and pears. We went when we could pick Melrose and Suncrisp. The Suncrisp apples are yellow and tart and are perfect for eating and making pies. The kids did not help me make the pie, but they did help me eat it. Apple Pie with Crumb Crust
For single pie crust crust:
1 1/2 cups flour
1/2 cup shortening
1/8 tsp. salt
4-5 Tbsp. cold water

Roll out and put in a 9" pie plate.

For Filling:
6-8 tart apples (6 cups), peeled, cored and thinly sliced
1 cup sugar
1 tsp. cinnamon
2 Tbsp. cornstarch

Combine and spoon on top of the pie dough.

For Crumb Crust:
1/3 cup sugar
3/4 cup flour
6 Tbsp. chilled butter

Combine until resembles coarse crumbs. Sprinkle over the apple filling. Bake in a 350 degree oven on a rimmed cookie sheet for 50 minutes to an hour or until the top is golden brown. Serve with vanilla ice cream.

Fall Activity #4: Painting Pumpkins

I never promised that these activities were going to be creative! But, well, there you have it: another activity to do with your kids when they are driving you up a wall from all of the loud screeching noises they seem to making lately. I think you could go crazy with this idea: big pumpkins, little pumpkins, stickers, ribbons, googly eyes, or glitter. My grandma taught me that there is no such thing as too much glitter!

By the way, natural cures for mosquito bites include: toothpaste, a paste of baking soda and water, tea tree oil, lavender essential oil, ice, and meat tenderizer.

Fall Activity #3: Leaf Collage

With the leaves we collected from our Nature Walk, the kids assembled this collage by sticking the leaves onto Contact Paper. I suppose they could glue the leaves on paper, but for a 3year old and an almost 2 year old, this is definitely the easiest way to go! We hung it in the window and it is a very cool effect to see the sun shining through the leaves.Totally off subject, why are the mosquitoes so bad in Ohio in the fall? I don't notice mosquitoes all summer long, but now we can hardly go outside. Eli looks like he got into a fight with a hundred of them. He has about 20 bites all on his face, which makes his face swell. His eyes are swollen and he looks awful. I broke down and bought some bugspray yesterday, but I hate putting it on his face. I'm not fairing much better. I itch like crazy. I'm searching for relief. Anyone know of any natural remedies?

Fall Activity #2: Nature Walk and Collection Necklace

Fall days in Columbus are so beautiful. I love this time of year. The weather is perfect: sunny, cool in the morning, warm in the afternoon. It's the perfect weather to take a little nature walk and explore the changing leaves, nuts, seeds and berries. We went to a local arboretum that is just a stones throw from our house and collected leaves (for a project I'll post tomorrow), seeds, acorns and whatever else they found to be interesting, but mostly berries. The kids love berries. I love this little collection necklace that we made by sewing two bowls together. Every time Sadie bent over she spilled everything out of her bowl, so we spent a lot of time picking up the spilled contents of her collection necklace. The necklace is very fragile. Do not wrestle while wearing the necklace. This picture was taken after said wrestling match; it looks a little smooshed and I had to staple it back together. In case you're concerned, Sadie does not have some sort of rash or infectious disease on her arm, she just stamped all over them!

Fall Activity #1: Fall Tree Handprint

Ummm.... Yeah. This is a little late. I meant to get this up yesterday but the forces were against me. After working the whole weekend, Dennis had the day off for Columbus Day so we had family time down in Hocking Hills. I had yoga last night. (yea, yoga!) Dennis was using the computer for school work and writing up job applications and he was up far past my bedtime. Excuses, excuses...
But, better late than never so here are directions for Fall Activity #1: Fall Tree Handprint. Paint brown paint on your child's hand and a little down her arm. Press her hand and arm onto a piece of paper. This makes the tree. Then, she dips her little fingertips into paint and puts small dots on the tree, in the air and on the groun for the leaves. Enjoy!

I'm Back

Hi Two Cups of Coffee Readers! Sorry for the break. It got a little longer than I intended and I even contemplated not starting up again as it has been so nice to do activities with my kids and not have to worry about taking pictures! But, after much thought, and lots of "I never finish what I start" lectures to myself, I'm going to give it another go. As a way of making up for lost time, starting next Monday I'm pledging to do a fall/Halloween activity a day (Monday-Friday) through the month of October. That's 15 activities for you to do with your kiddos. Now, I'm not promising that these will be great, revolutionary activities, but they will be quick and easy! So, stop by often, the coffee's always on!

Also, thank you for your warm thoughts and prayers for my family. My grandfather passed away on September 18, but my grandmother is still holding strong. I'm so glad that I had the chance to visit with them both. It was a hard visit, as I've never seen either of them looking so sick, but it was worth it. My nephew, Reid, was also born while I was visiting. I'm so thankful I got to meet him. I'm his Godmother and was able to be there for the baptism. He's super cute and such a good baby. He even smiled while the priest was pouring water over his head during the baptism.

Taking A Few Weeks Off...

...My grandmother is quite ill. Hospice has stepped in to help. We flew at a moments notice to ND to visit her one last time. She's never met Sadie. We'll probably be here for several weeks. The good news is that my brother and his wife are expecting a baby any day now, so I'll be here to welcome him into the world.