Pumpkin Sheet Cake

I really enjoyed Halloween last year. My family didn't do much with the holiday growing up. We lived way out in the country and I only remember someone coming to the door for candy once! But last year was Jack's first Halloween, and one of our first in our new home. My sister was living with us at the time and she was really the impetus behind getting Jack dressed up. We decided on a lumberjack costume, dressing him up in a flannel shirt, carhartts, a beanie hat and an axe made out of a toilet paper tube and tin foil. And to complete the look, a scruffy little beard fashioned out of mascara on my sweet ten-month old's face. 

He was so cute. 

Chicken Noodle Soup

There's something about chicken noodle soup that speaks of home. Maybe it's the warm broth, soothing many a sore throat or steaming red faces fresh out of the snow banks. Or maybe it's the tender chicken and perfectly cooked veggies, wholesome goodness that fills hungry stomachs. Or it could be the noodles, each one slightly different, homemade and hearty.

How-To: Homemade Noodles

Homemade noodles can take a soup from good to amazing. There's something about the texture of a homemade noodle that leaps past the cookie-cutter sameness of store-bought and gives a soup individuality. Store-bought noodles tend to be a little bland and they slip right off your spoon before you are able to get them to your mouth. Homemade noodles are different. Toothsome. Hearty. They put the love in your soup.

Pumpkin Bread

I remember the first time that I had this bread. I think I was about eight or nine years old. We went to a friend's house for dinner after church. It must have been late fall or early winter because I remember it being cold outside. We all sat down to eat dinner and I nervously eyed what lay on the table. I tend to be a picky eater and always dreaded going to someone's house because I was afraid that I wouldn't like what they served. And when you are eight, such things are very important. 

That's when I spied the pumpkin bread in the basket across from me. Ah, here was something I knew that I liked. I don't remember much about the rest of the meal. I'm sure it was all tasty stuff. But I do remember I ate a lot of that bread. I think the hostess noticed too because she gave me the recipe before I left and I've been making it ever since. 

Molasses Crinkles

There's nothing better than getting something in the mail from someone you love. Whether it's a letter, flowers to cheer a dreary day or a homemade treat when you're far away, it's nice to be remembered. 

This seemed to be especially true when I was in college. Package notifications always brought out expectant smiles and quickened my pace to the student center.