Sloppy Joe's & Apple Dumplings

MEAT!  

For the longest time I couldn't even look at raw meat without feeling ill.  If I stare at this pic for another sec, that ill feeling reoccurs. 

The weird thing is I think Sloppy Joe meat simmering away in the crock pot smells delicious.  Even if getting it to that point makes me wanna-- um nevermind.

I was asked how I make Sloppy Joes.  All I do is cook and drain ground beef and add Manwich.
  

Sometimes I make a homemade sauce, but this time I took the easier route.

Saucy Sloppy Joes are where it's at Folk's!  Oh, letting it simmer while the kids work up an appetite picking pumpkins is essential.  Food will always taste better when the eaters are super hungry!  ;-)

 

I tried a new Apple Dumpling recipe on the hungry crowd.  They were all eager guinea pigs.  Oh hey, check out my new kitchen island:

Yes, it's my dryer.  The laundry room sprung a leak the other day, and the dryer had to be moved until the repairs are completed.

The recipe only uses 2 big Granny Smith Apples.  You could use any kind, but the tartness of the Granny Smith complements the other ingredients well.

This is one of those super easy dishes to make, as it calls for refrigerated crescent rolls.

It's like pigs in a blanket only with apple slices.

Caramel sauce and Mountain Dew, yes the Dew, are poured over it all and then it gets baked.

Family and friends ate every bit of it up.

It's an oooey gooey combination of sweet and tart.

Apple Dumplings

• 2 whole Granny Smith Apples
• 2 cans (8 Oz. Cans) Crescent Rolls
• 2 sticks Butter
• 1-1/2 cup Sugar
• 1 teaspoon Vanilla
• Cinnamon, To Taste
• 1 can (12 Oz.) Mountain Dew Soda

Instructions

Peel and core apples. Cut each apple into 8 slices each. Roll each apple slice in a crescent roll. Place in a 9 x 13 buttered pan.

Melt butter, then add sugar and barely stir. Add vanilla, stir, and pour entire mixture over apples. Pour Mountain Dew around the edges of the pan. Sprinkle with cinnamon and bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes. Serve with ice cream, and spoon some of the sweet sauces from the pan over the top.

Borrowed from: The Pioneer Woman

Sophie and I have been totally enjoying the fall weather. 

I read to her.  She is a fan of washing machine repair manuals.  :-/

That is, when she is not busy keeping the yard free of squirrels.

My squirrel watch dog-- I feel safe.  :-)

Check out that awesome blue sky!

My truck is in the shop and I got to borrow Mom's car. 

It was detailed and accidentally stored away in the barn wet, which resulted in a mold problem.

Fortunately, the mold wasn't hard to remove.

I felt like I was coating Mom's car with shaving cream.  The interior looks much nicer now, and a little sunshine was good for it too.

The car drives sooo smooth, has been freshly cleaned, and is built like a tank.  It's for sale, for more info feel free to send me an email.

Pumpkin Carving

Hiya!  

After the trip to the punkin patch we did some carving!

Isn't Sophie the sweetest pup ever?

The kids did almost everything all by themselves this year.  I only helped Troy cut out the lid.

I tried something different with mine:

It was easy, AND the kids thought I had gone bonkers!  A win/win in my book. ;-)

I brought out yarn and kept em guessing.

It didn't take much time at all.

Gladdie was busy making Squidward.

Jean had Minion ideas.

Taadaa:

The pumpkin was sooo round that I had to slice off a section from the bottom, so it wouldn't roll around!

Troy named his punkin Bob.

Bob has a tail:

Here's Bob's selfie:

Gladdie made a self portrait, after attempting to make a Squidward.

Jamie carved a cat into her punkin.

Jean changed her mind about the minion and made this guy instead:

Are ya scared yet? :-)

 

Spooky!   

Pumpkin Pickin

It's pumpkin pickin time around these parts! 

The local pumpkin patch, Coulter's, is always a fun place to visit.
 

I don't mind browsing the store, but my favorite part is riding out to the massive pumpkin patch.

Photo props are all over that place!

Eeeee, finally time to pick some pumpkins!

The kiddos were psyched and ready for the pumpkin patch!

What did one Jack-O-Lantern say to the other?

Cut it out!!!!    Bahahahaha.   :-)

Ya'all might think finding that perfect pumpkin is easy.  It's not.  Unless you're Troy.

He found his right off the bat.  Us girls were not so lucky, we had to search through millions and millions, (ok, fourteen), of pumpkins before finding "the ONE"!

(Harp Music)--  I found it!

Oooooh, and then I seen the white one.  It was a tough decision, but I went with the classic orange pumpkin. ;-)

After awhile, I began feeling like Linus from the Peanuts.

I wasn't sure that we were ever gonna leave so I embraced the pumpkin patch life and did my Linus impersonations. 

I waited and waited in that most sincere pumpkin patch as the sun began to set.  :-)

I had the same luck as Linus-- the Great Pumpkin stood me up.  At least I didn't miss out on Trick's n Treats!  ;-)

Speaking of Trick or Treat-- Did I mention that the kids talked me into dressing up as a green witch one year, so I could collect candy with em? 

Yeah, they did, and I did, and all was going well until...

Gladys and Troy were recognized!!!  You see, no one would have guessed I wasn't a kid.  (Sometimes being short has it's advantages.)

Gladys and Troy wouldn't stay in character or keep their costumes on-- toddlers are like that!

One of the houses we trick or treated happened to be where their pediatrician lived.

Soo, I come to the door begging for candy and the Doc say's-- Hi Kristina!  I'm pretty sure I turned from a green witch, to a red one, in the matter of a few seconds! 

This year, the plan is to ditch the kids and get a better costume.  JK, I'll be the MOM.  :-)

Unless, I feel like living on the edge! ;-)