family beach trip

We said a final farewell to summer a couple weeks ago on a family trip to the coast. The weather was absolute perfection. We swam, walked, played, ate and laughed. We returned home with a bit of salt in our hair and a lightness to our steps. 

the end of summer

I love this time of year. I love that it is warm during the day and cool in the morning and night, I love the cool snap in the air that tells me fall is coming, and I love the the promise of all the things coming... October (my favorite), Thanksgiving, and Christmas. 

We are trying to soak in the last bits of the wonderful summer time things, the plants and flowers, the last of our garden offerings, putting in fall plants in the cold frame and nature walks to gather this and that to examine. Their are many interesting things to be found on a nature walk this time of year.

Ace picked up some creek rocks and mica, tree ears (fungus that grows on the side of a tree), and many acorns on a walk in the woods at a friends house last week. She was also entranced by a patch of jewel weed, standing and popping the seed pods for quite some time.

Beautiful jewel weed aka touch-me-not. I love these flowers, they are so exotic!

So fun to touch their little seed pods and watch them explode!

Finished up the apples, peeling and cooking these down to sauce. They might look a little rough, but they made some pretty tasty applesauce! I have some tucked in the freezer for this winter. Thank you Mommy and Poppy!

A lovely ride on the Blue Ridge Parkway...

Spying those first fallen leaves.

Evening walks in the field,

look at that September light through the trees!

Saying goodbye to this season and looking forward to the seasons to come. See you next year summer!

my secret ingredient

I have a secret ingredient that I love to use when I am cooking almost any savory dish. Soups, stews, eggs, pasta, meat, you name it! 

It is healthy, super cheap, and gives a real punch of flavor.

It's onion powder!!!!

You know when you taste something, usually at a restaurant, and it's just so delicious, but you can't quite put your finger on it? We know this little hole in the wall Japanese restaurant that we eat at once in a while. The flavors in their broth soup, vegetables, meat and sauces are so yummy and intense. The flavor is salty and savory, and you just can't get enough. Well, I'm 99.6% sure that what gives their food that amazing flavor is monosodium glutamate. That's why we only eat there once in a while. Ha. (Also, while reading about MSG, I discovered something called umami taste, which I knew nothing about. It's worth a read.)

But I have found, when I am cooking at home, that onion powder can be added to almost anything to give it a wonderful depth of flavor. It is similar, in a way, to what MSG does for dishes. You take a bite, and there is this delightful depth of flavor. And when combined with salt, it is just wonderful.

Here's a few examples of things to add onion powder to:

scrambled eggs
broth soups
sauteed veggies with butter
tomato sauce or marinara
guacamole
rice
mashed potatoes

Now my amazing culinary secret is out. Stop the presses.

nana and poppy's orchard

easy and tender slow cooker chicken thighs

I have another dark meat chicken recipe for you! 

I recently shared an easy chicken leg recipe, and commented on how the dark meat seems to be an overlooked cut of chicken. Yet I find the thighs and legs to be more moist, more flavorful and also cheaper! If I catch them on sale, I can get no antibiotic chicken thighs for around $2 a pound. Add a few things from your pantry, including rice and you have a super cheap and filling meal. Not to mention delicious.

With fall rapidly approaching, and the evenings getting a little cooler, I find myself wanting to pull out my slow cooker more and enjoy easy, warm meals that require little effort, but fill the house with a delicious smell. 

A favorite dish of mine for the slow cooker is chicken thighs, with onions, and tomatoes and is served over a steaming bed of jasmine rice. Super easy and yummy!

So let's crank up those crock pots, and enjoy the wonderful fall coziness that is coming!


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Easy and Tender Slow Cooker Chicken Thighs

serves 4

(ingredients are approximate, you can't mess this up)

1-2 lb package of boneless chicken thighs
2 onions
2 or 3 cloves of garlic
1-2 cans or jars of tomato chunks 
2 or 3 good sloshes of cooking sherry or white wine 
chicken broth (enough to mostly cover meat)
olive oil or butter
any seasonings you like (basil, rosemary, etc...)
onion powder
salt and pepper to taste


Slice onion in thick pieces and lay on bottom of slow cooker.
Lay chicken thighs on top of onions. Add tomatoes, garlic and onion powder. Pour in wine and chicken broth until the meat is almost covered, but not quite. Put butter slices or a drizzle of olive oil over meat and then your seasonings. 

Cook on high for 4-5 hours or low for 8 hours.

Serve over rice. Enjoy! 

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bookworm report: children's edition

Some library books we picked out this week have turned out to be favorites.

Mossy by Jan Brett, is such a neat book! It tells the tale of Mossy, a sweet turtle with a lovely garden growing on her back!

Sam and Dave Dig a Hole by Mac Barnett, with illustrations by Jon Klassen who wrote another of our favorites, I Want My Hat Back. I adore these illustrations.

And this darling book is called Billy and Blaze by CW Anderson. I love a book like this with a classic, vintage feel. The illustrations are beautiful black and white pencil drawings and the story is sweet and perfect for listeners, or early readers. Apparently, this is one of a series of books about the boy and his horse.

Happy weekend, and happy reading!

pinterest interest ~ some pins I want to try

I am a huge pinterest fan. I just love browsing the many beautiful photos, looking for inspiration. Recipes to try, craft projects to do and thoughts and ideas to consider. I love it! It's almost like shopping... Choosing something you really like and then pinning it onto your board. I've discovered a lot of my favorite blogs that way.

I thought it might be fun to share some of the pins I have put on my board I call my To Do List. Things I mean to give a try soon. Maybe you'll see something you might like to try too!

First, some recipes I want to try:

Sweet and Tangy Japanese Cucumber Salad

One Pan Autumn Chicken Dinner

Greek Lemon Chicken Skewers with Tzatziki Sauce

Pickled Deviled Eggs

And now, a few projects for Ace:

Tin Foil River

Felt Apple Pie Kit

DIY Branch Swing Shelves

And a few for me:

Parent-Child Handprint

Homemade Honeycomb Soap 

DIY Toilet Fizzies


Click here if you want to follow me on Pinterest.

Happy pinning!