First week of fall
Fall has arrived but not without summer's gallant effort to remain relevant and hot.
Last Thursday, the first day of fall, the temperature hit 88 degrees. 88 degrees! Fortunately, Thursday seemed to mark the crescendo of the whole summer into fall transition's ridiculously high temperatures. While it did get into the 80's over the weekend, at least it was the low 80's. By Monday, the temperature was positively fall like with highs barely reaching 70. Now that's fall weather :).
The first full week of fall's activities were ones that had been occurring well before fall officially began. On Saturday, since Alyssa's soccer team didn't have a game, her coach scheduled a training session for Saturday morning. While Donnie was with Alyssa at soccer training, Saturday morning I took the teens to and from the local soccer fields so they could ref two games. A month into reffing, the teens have remained steadfast in their abhorrence of reffing. Said one teen on Saturday, "Since I've been reffing, I find myself dreading Fridays because the next day is the day I have to ref." Said another teen, "Reffing makes my heart wrench (wretch?)." I'm not sure what that means but I know it's something bad. They are nothing if but consistent- they do not like reffing!! However, they love to have spending money so they will continue to ref during the rec soccer season (through the end of October).
Saturday afternoon/ evening, I tried yet another copy cat recipe for Chick-Fil-A's Chocolate Chunk cookies. I thought this recipe would be the one. The cookies turned out to taste quite a bit like CFA's cookies but there was one huge difference: my baked cookies spread out way too much; they weren't thick and luscious like CFA's cookies are. I then spent an inordinate amount of time reading baking techniques for keeping cookies from spreading out when they bake. I knew some of the tips but was too lazy/ unwilling to employ them; some are tips that I didn't know about and will try in the future. I am determined to make a cookie as good as CFA's Chocolate Chunk cookie :). Baking seems like such a quintessential fall activity, but it's something that I do on a regular basis no matter the season.
The remainder of the first week of fall was pretty much business as usual for this time of year. Alyssa's soccer training schedule was changed this week to account for the reduction in daylight hours. Unexpectedly, the family whom we carpool with for soccer offered to take Alyssa to soccer training two nights this week instead of one. The unexpected time at home for me was a bonus; I subbed six out of seven school days in a row (my record so far) recently and appreciated not having to be gone three hours in the evening for soccer as I would have been had I taken Alyssa to soccer.
The end of the first full week of full was a good one for the kids: Grandpa Rineer offered to take Jacob to Thursday night's BENGAL'S game (!!) in Cincinnati. Jacob loves football and hasn't been to too many games despite us living close to Cincy. Jacob and grandpa are there right now. About a month and half ago when grandpa asked if Jacob could go to the game, we said that he could go even though it would be late on a school night (the game doesn't start until 8:30). A few weeks ago, I was looking at the school calendar and realized that the kids don't have school on Friday (tomorrow) so it was a perfect evening to be out late on a school night. The kids are super excited about not having school tomorrow. Breaks are few and far in between in the beginning of the school year :).
That's about it for the first week of fall, which happened to almost coincide with the end of September. October promises some unusual activities: overnight school trips for both girls, a very special girl's birthday (Abby), homecoming game/ dance (if we decide to let Jacob go) and fall's most beloved holiday (for the kids anyway...)- Halloween.
The first day of fall last week- 88 degrees and one week later- today at 64 degrees
Trying hard to make Chick-Fil-A Chocolate Chunk Cookies- the recipe I used this time around didn't say to grind up the oatmeal. A different recipe that I tried a few months ago said to do so and so I did this time even though this recipe didn't say to do that step. CFA's cookies aren't an oatmeal cookie per se but they definitely have oatmeal in them so grinding up the oatmeal made sense to me.
The last time that I tried a copy cat recipe, I didn't use chunks and morsels. I didn't make that mistake again.
The color of the dough looked (and tasted!) promising...
The color was spot on and the taste close to CFA's chocolate chunk cookies, but...
...my guys were much too thin and flat.
I started to decorate for Halloween this week. I don't have my outside lights on- hope to do that this weekend.
Jacob is at the age/ stage where he doesn't love to get his picture taken. I didn't take any photos of him tonight before he and grandpa left for the game. I did dig through my photo archives and found some pictures from the last Bengals game that I remember for sure that Jacob went to. Brian gave us four tickets that he had and was planning on using. Then, at the last minute, he couldn't use them. I took Jacob, Caleb and Karlie to the game. Here is Alyssa, Karlie and Jacob before we left for the game.
Bengals babes- it's hard (and sad) to believe that Caleb doesn't live in Ohio anymore and Karlie doesn't live in our neighborhood anymore.
The kids and the Bengal momma...
Last Thursday, the first day of fall, the temperature hit 88 degrees. 88 degrees! Fortunately, Thursday seemed to mark the crescendo of the whole summer into fall transition's ridiculously high temperatures. While it did get into the 80's over the weekend, at least it was the low 80's. By Monday, the temperature was positively fall like with highs barely reaching 70. Now that's fall weather :).
The first full week of fall's activities were ones that had been occurring well before fall officially began. On Saturday, since Alyssa's soccer team didn't have a game, her coach scheduled a training session for Saturday morning. While Donnie was with Alyssa at soccer training, Saturday morning I took the teens to and from the local soccer fields so they could ref two games. A month into reffing, the teens have remained steadfast in their abhorrence of reffing. Said one teen on Saturday, "Since I've been reffing, I find myself dreading Fridays because the next day is the day I have to ref." Said another teen, "Reffing makes my heart wrench (wretch?)." I'm not sure what that means but I know it's something bad. They are nothing if but consistent- they do not like reffing!! However, they love to have spending money so they will continue to ref during the rec soccer season (through the end of October).
Saturday afternoon/ evening, I tried yet another copy cat recipe for Chick-Fil-A's Chocolate Chunk cookies. I thought this recipe would be the one. The cookies turned out to taste quite a bit like CFA's cookies but there was one huge difference: my baked cookies spread out way too much; they weren't thick and luscious like CFA's cookies are. I then spent an inordinate amount of time reading baking techniques for keeping cookies from spreading out when they bake. I knew some of the tips but was too lazy/ unwilling to employ them; some are tips that I didn't know about and will try in the future. I am determined to make a cookie as good as CFA's Chocolate Chunk cookie :). Baking seems like such a quintessential fall activity, but it's something that I do on a regular basis no matter the season.
The remainder of the first week of fall was pretty much business as usual for this time of year. Alyssa's soccer training schedule was changed this week to account for the reduction in daylight hours. Unexpectedly, the family whom we carpool with for soccer offered to take Alyssa to soccer training two nights this week instead of one. The unexpected time at home for me was a bonus; I subbed six out of seven school days in a row (my record so far) recently and appreciated not having to be gone three hours in the evening for soccer as I would have been had I taken Alyssa to soccer.
The end of the first full week of full was a good one for the kids: Grandpa Rineer offered to take Jacob to Thursday night's BENGAL'S game (!!) in Cincinnati. Jacob loves football and hasn't been to too many games despite us living close to Cincy. Jacob and grandpa are there right now. About a month and half ago when grandpa asked if Jacob could go to the game, we said that he could go even though it would be late on a school night (the game doesn't start until 8:30). A few weeks ago, I was looking at the school calendar and realized that the kids don't have school on Friday (tomorrow) so it was a perfect evening to be out late on a school night. The kids are super excited about not having school tomorrow. Breaks are few and far in between in the beginning of the school year :).
That's about it for the first week of fall, which happened to almost coincide with the end of September. October promises some unusual activities: overnight school trips for both girls, a very special girl's birthday (Abby), homecoming game/ dance (if we decide to let Jacob go) and fall's most beloved holiday (for the kids anyway...)- Halloween.
The first day of fall last week- 88 degrees and one week later- today at 64 degrees
Trying hard to make Chick-Fil-A Chocolate Chunk Cookies- the recipe I used this time around didn't say to grind up the oatmeal. A different recipe that I tried a few months ago said to do so and so I did this time even though this recipe didn't say to do that step. CFA's cookies aren't an oatmeal cookie per se but they definitely have oatmeal in them so grinding up the oatmeal made sense to me.
The last time that I tried a copy cat recipe, I didn't use chunks and morsels. I didn't make that mistake again.
The color of the dough looked (and tasted!) promising...
The color was spot on and the taste close to CFA's chocolate chunk cookies, but...
I started to decorate for Halloween this week. I don't have my outside lights on- hope to do that this weekend.
Bengals babes- it's hard (and sad) to believe that Caleb doesn't live in Ohio anymore and Karlie doesn't live in our neighborhood anymore.
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