On my mind....

Do you ever feel yourself in a rut and cant get out? Well I seem to be there and I dont like it. I have always had issues with weight and I have lost and gained weight so many times! I think its time to buckle down and lose it for good. My friend and I are starting up a new so called diet(I like to call it a lifestyle change)and I think it will be good. I haven't decided if I want to have another blog to talk about my ups and downs or just do it on here.What do you think? Either way I am hitting a milestone birthday next year and I want to feel good about myself. I want to take pictures and not hide when someone brings the camera out. I am sure for some of you this has never been an issue but for me it has and its hard. I would love to love myself again and I am going to give it my best this time around. Hopefully I wont be talking about doing this again a year from now. Wish me luck!

The skys the limit ...

So if you know me you know I love cloud pictures! I think they are so pretty and can make some amazing pictures. My roommate has been taking pictures on her way home from work (which is scary since she is driving but they are pretty awesome)so I thought I would post some. The trees are amazing too right now so there are a few pictures of those. I cant believe that October is almost over! The year is flying by so fast.

Come little leaves

"Come, little leaves," said the Wind one day,
"Come o'er the meadows with me and play;
Put on your dresses of red and gold
For summer is gone and the days grow cold."

Soon as the leaves heard the Wind's loud call,
Down they came fluttering, one and all;
Over the brown fields they danced and flew,
Singing the glad little songs they knew.

Dancing and whirling the little leaves went;
Winter had called them, and they were content;
Soon, fast asleep in their earthy beds,
The snow laid a coverlet over their heads.

I just love my grandparents! I am especially close to my mom's mom grandma Braegger. She is just the sweetest thing every time I talk to her. She has gone downhill quite a bit and is dealing with dementia and partial alztimers. She has a really hard time remembering things that happen recent. She always amazes me with things she knows from years ago. Today when I was talking to her we were talking about the leaves changing and how pretty they are. Out of no where she just started singing this song. It was so sweet to listen to her and I wish i could have recorded it. She said it was a song her mother taught her and they would sing it in the fall time. I love these special moments that happen every once in awhile. I am glad to have them as memories for when she is gone.

Silver Falls

Yesterday afternoon Trish and I decided to take advantage of the last good day of the week possibly the season. It was such a beautiful day and 68 degrees. We went to a place called silver falls and it was gorgeous! The leaves were all changing colors and it was so vibrant. They have a hike called the ten falls hike that is around 9 miles but we didn't have enough daylight for that. We decided to just hike the south falls and call it good. It was so awesome because we were able to hike behind the falls. In one of the pictures you can see me down almost behind the falls I am in red. There are cabins you can stay in during the summer. I thought it looked so cozy I could live there all year! It was such a great day and we had a hot dog after the hike. I would recommend going up its amazing!The pictures kind of got out of order but you get the main idea right?! Maybe this will entice my brother and his family to come back and visit!

Do you ever smell something and you have so many memories come rushing back? Well that has happened to me alot lately with different things. I love the memories that come with certain things. There are so many different smells out there that have brought a different memory for me this week. The one that I smelled today made me tear up and I guess that is why I am writing this now. I was standing in line at the post office and all of the sudden I smelled my grandpa! I turned around and there was this cute grandpa standing there wearing the same aftershave lotion. It brought tears to my eyes to smell it. I longed for the good old days of watching him rub it on his face and neck and then put a drop on my nose. It was nice to remember him today since he is no longer with us anymore but sad too. Do you have any smells in your life that bring a smile to your face or a tear to your eye?...

A cute way to start off October!

Trix or Treat Spider Cookies

1 package Betty Crocker Double Chocolate Chunk Cookie Mix
1 can of chocolate ready-made frosting
1 can of vanilla ready-made frosting
24-48 Trix orange and green sweetened corn puffs
Toothpicks
Re-sealable plastic bags

* Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
* Mix ingredients for cookies as directed on the package.
* Use a small ice cream scoop to get similar sized cookies or just use a spoon and vary the amount for different size cookies.
* Place cookie dough on a parchment covered baking sheet.
* Bake for about 7-8 minutes.
* Cool completely on a wire rack.
* Makes about two dozen cookies.

To decorate:

* Spread chocolate frosting on the top of each cookie.
* Fill a re-sealable plastic bag with a couple of heaping spoonfuls of frosting and snip a tiny hole out of the bottom of one corner.
* Pipe on three circles of white frosting for each cookie. Start in the middle with the smallest circle and work your way out.
* Take a toothpick and beginning in the center, drag it lightly through each circle. Repeat all the way around the cookie.
* Take remaining frosting and separate it into two bowls. Tint one frosting with orange icing color and the other with green.
* Fill two re-sealable bags with the orange and green frosting and snip off the corner of each.
* Pipe eight small legs with each color and place a matching orange or green Trix Cereal puff on the top of each pair of legs. Add one or several spiders on each cookie.