Perhaps one of the strongest items associated with the months of October and November is the pumpkin. Is it Halloween without a Jack O'Lantern? How can it be Thanksgiving without pumpkin pie, right? Well, recently my sister made some awesome pumpkin cheesecake, and I was fortunate enough to get one of the last pieces. It was delicious. I might even try making it myself sometime once my oven thermostat gets fixed. In the meantime, I've discovered a very close second to the real thing--you guessed it--the latest Ben & Jerry's flavor, Pumpkin Cheesecake. It is Delicious with a capital D. On a side note, did anyone else know that they expect you to get 4 servings out of one of those small pints? (I discovered this after I'd eaten about 2/3 of the container :) Oh well, pumpkin is one of the 14 "super foods" so it can't be that bad, right?
It seems everyone is posting pictures of the state fair on their blogs, so I thought I'd jump on the bandwagon. This was my first year to go to the Texas State Fair, or the Great State Fair of Texas as they say on the radio. It was a lot of fun, I have to admit. I actually went twice-once at night and once during the day. On Saturday night I went with some friends from church and got to see the pig races, light show, and experience all the rides lit up. Then on Monday I went with my sister's family and got to experience smaller crowds and the cutest kid exhibit ever--Little Hands on the Farm (check it out on my sister's blog).
Here's a picture of Colette, Lila, Big Ben and Big Tex. (sorry Ben--I couldn't resist :) 
Here's a picture of my niece Lila waving at me when she was on the carousel. She loves the "horsies." Who doesn't, really? I mean, I would have ridden it too if everything at the fair didn't cost an arm and a leg. But I'm sure I'll have forgotten that part by the time it rolls around again next year...
Look what I found near one of the shops on the waterfront in Long Beach. Remember Zoltar from the movie Big? I confess I even spent the buck to hear my fortune. It even spit out a little card, but it wasn't like the one in the movie which said, "your wish has been granted." That would have been cool. Instead, this one has some trite and vague fortune on it in addition to my lucky numbers. I guess it's true--life isn't like the movies.
The conference was okay, but by far the best part was getting to see some of my pa school classmates again and also my friend Rimvydas (who I forgot to take a picture with) from Lithuania, who is doing post-grad work in Economics out there now. I was also very glad there were no earthquakes or mudslides while I was there :) Some experiences I can live without.
Today the guys from Deckmasters came out while I was at work and framed a partial porch covering for my back patio. I'm sure Toby had an exciting time, but of course, he never spills the details when I get home :) They should be back next week sometime to put the shingles on. I guess I'll see if it survives the effects of Hurricane Ike over the weekend. But it is looking pretty good, I think, and I'm sure will be a nice break from the elements (rain or sun) once it is finished.
Here Lila practices the fine art of adjusting your swim goggles.
Lookin' good. Now all she needs are a few swimming lessons...and maybe a swimsuit.
I'm not sure I should be admitting this (especially after seeing all the yummy recipes my friend Keri has been posting on her blog lately) but today I placed my first order with the Schwan's man. Or rather the Schwan's website. Part of it was nostalgia--my Grandpa always ordered stuff from Schwan's and now I have a deep, deep fondness for the Gold 'N' Nugit bar (pictured above). If you think it looks a lot like a Snickers ice cream bar, well, it tastes a lot like it too. But I also thought I would try a few things out of practicality. A lot of their stuff comes in individually wrapped portions. Hopefully this will give me a little variety without a lot of leftovers. We'll see...I only ordered a few things to see if I like it or not. Hopefully the Gold 'N' Nugits will be as good as I remember!
One of the pros/cons (depending on your viewpoint) of living in a townhouse is that the extent of grass in your "backyard" is this. Which works if you just want to let the dog out quick to take care of business, but isn't the most ideal for any greater exercise. Well, recently Toby and I were pleasantly surprised to discover that the wooded area surrounding our community or subdivision-whatever you want to call it--on 2 sides contains some very nice walking trails.
Here is a view at the edge of woods, looking back at the closest townhouse (ours is 1 block over) so you can see how close it is.
Of course the best part about walking these trails rather than streets or sidewalks, besides the shade the trees provide, is the fact that I can let Toby off the leash. He loves that part because he is free to take his time sniffing stuff and/or scouting the trail ahead, and he is very good about not running off and keeping track of where I am.
Here Toby is checking out the creek that runs through the woods (perhaps the same creek in my address--I couldn't find the name of it anywhere on the internet). I was surprised how much the width and flow of the creek varied. This was one of the widest spots, but sometimes it was just a little trickle over a few rocks that you could jump over easily. 
Some have asked how Toby likes our new place, and I have to say overall there is less for him to watch out the windows than at the apartment. So I know he is a little more bored at times. But I could never let him off the leash when we went for walks at the apartment, so maybe this will make up for it some. Doesn't that look like the face of a happy dog?
I saw this when I was standing in the checkout line at a store a few days ago and I couldn't help but wonder who buys this stuff? If you are so addicted to caffeine that you have to have it in your GUM, does it even work? Or at that point are you basically immune to the stimulating effects of caffeine?
They say everything is bigger in Texas...and they ain't kiddin'. I came across one of these bad boys, or rather girls, I guess I should say, walking rather quickly along the stone ledge at the back of my property. She was an inch to an inch a half long and as bright as the picture. After jumping back a couple feet and trying not to scream like the big sissy I am, I watched her scurry along and finally go down the wall and disappear in the creek bed below. Then I went inside (carefully closing the door behind me as I debated whether or not I needed to wedge a kleenex in the slight gap I have at the bottom of my back door) and immediately googled "bright red spider" to find out what kind of poisonous creature I was dealing with. After several unsuccessful hits about a red spider mite (way too small), I broadened my search to "bright red bug." And THAT is when I discovered that there is something called a Red Velvet Ant. Only it's not an ant--it's a wasp, and the ones you can actually see are the wingless females. They feed on other bees and wasps, so I guess I won't kill her if I run across her (unless she is actually in my house-then all bets are off). Oh yeah, the best part? Her nickname is the Cow Killer, b/c apparently her sting hurts so bad it could kill a cow. How's that for a welcome to the neighborhood?
I was unpacking some more things today and opened this drawer to discover this. These are the kinds of things you find after your 2 year old niece visits. It makes me wonder where else a stuffed animal might turn up...
Here is a photo my friend Keri made for me and sent along with my birthday card. She did such a great job! This is the face Lila made when told to "smile." But Keri's interpretation is hilarious. At least it made me laugh so I thought I'd post it.
