October 13, 2013 by Stephanie

Autumn on My Mind-Fall Collage

This is our last link up of this series. I can’t believe it’s been a full month since we started!

“Autumn on My Mind Collage”

They say a picture is worth a thousand words. This is a link up to show in photos what you love about the season. We would love to see what fall looks like in your community!

Rules of the Link-up:

1. Do one entry or all! It’s up to you!

2. Add your entry’s link below, and be sure to put the button in your post!

3. If you do link up, check out a couple fellow bloggers to see something new.

4. Your hosts (Elizabeth and Stephanie) would love a following on Bloglovin, but it is not required! We are just glad you stopped by for “Autumn on My Mind!”

The leaves haven’t changed so much here. They all just have tinges of orange and yellow. I see it coming in the next few weeks, but that means that I haven’t been able to document fall in this area yet.

Since I don’t have pictures of true fall here, I have a compilation of photos that say what I love about fall.

October . Anne of Green Gables quote . pumpkin . by joystclaire, $15.00

football and Dabo

Bowman Field at Clemson University, South Carolina

The Friendship Tower at the University of Central Missouri

Marching Mules at my Alma mater (UCM)

one of our engagement photos

So what photos do you have that describe how you feel about fall? Link up below!

Check out my lovely partner! It has been great getting to know her through this link up!

October 3, 2013 by Stephanie

Autumn on My Mind-Fall Food Must

We have a few more episodes of Autumn on My Mind! We hope that you enjoy!

Today is about the yummies in the tummies!

“A Fall Food Must”

We love fall foods! Let’s expand our recipe books by sharing go to foods that we have at fall get-togethers or tailgates!

Rules of the Link-up:

1. Do one entry or all! It’s up to you!

2. Add your entry’s link below, and be sure to put the button in your post!

3. If you do link up, check out a couple fellow bloggers to see something new.

4. Your hosts (Elizabeth and Stephanie) would love a following on Bloglovin, but it is not required! We are just glad you stopped by for “Autumn on My Mind!”

So here we go.

I think most people associate pies with fall.

I am going to let you in on a little secret. I am not a big fan of pie. Actually, I am not a fan at all. The texture of pie crusts is just icky to me, and I just can’t get over it enough to eat it. I know most of you are probably shaking your head.

But.

I do love pie filling.

So whether it is pie or cheesecake, I usually scrape all the guts out and leave the crust.

I was in search of finding a recipe that I could make a “pie” without the gross crust part.

Enter “apple pie sugar cookie cake.” Or what I am calling Everything It’s Not cake.

I saw something similar to this on Pinterest and made some adjustments to make it my own recipe.

Everything It Is Not Cake

Ingredients:

4 packages of pre-made sugar cookies

2 cans of apple pie filling

4 tsp of cinnamon

1/4 cup of sugar

a whole lot of sugar

You will mix the Cinnamon and sugar together to “dust” the layers you are about to make.

you may not use all of this

I couldn’t find my cake pan, so I used a bundt cake pan. I think my rectangle pan may have disappeared in the move…

The cookies in my package looked like this but you can use the ones that come in rolls too.

I may have eaten a few of these raw…

You will take approximately one package of cookies and knead it into one layer on the bottom of the pan.

Smooshed cookies

Then you take the cinnamon/sugar mix and sprinkle it over the dough.

Take one can of apple pie filling and layer it on top.

Then dust another layer of cin/sugar mix on top of the apples.

pie filling

Then you put another layer off the sugar cookie dough on top of this. You will have to flatten out the dough and lightly smoosh or just lay it on top. It doesn’t need to be perfectly covered.

second dough layer

Then you repeat with the “dusting” and apple pie filling.

Once you have two layers of the dough and apples, then you put on your remaining layer of sugar cookies.

On this one, I just sort of flattened the cookies. This made for a thicker layer of sugar cookie. Then you add a final layer of the cinnamon/sugar mix.

ready for the oven.

You will keep this in the oven for about 45 minutes at 350 degrees. Your oven may vary so check it at 35 minutes.

The top layer will harden faster than the rest of the layers. I also don’t recommend using the bundt pan if you have a regular pan.

This is definitely not a healthy recipe, but it will satisfy any sweet tooth.

The middle layers will be gooey so just be aware of that. I like it because there are a variety of textures, and not one that resembles pie crust.

This is a treat that would be great with ice cream.

This is a yummy recipe and super easy to do. You can only do one layer if you want, which will change the consistency of the middle layers. You would just need to cut the recipe in half.

As I said, you shouldn’t do this is a bundt pan. The filling will seep through. Just so you know our fire alarm does work in our house. Whoops.

Do you have a go to fall recipe or something you were itching to try? Link it up here!

We hope to see you return on Sunday for your Autumn Activities! You can see the full schedule for our Autumn link up here.

Check out my lovely partner!

September 29, 2013 by Stephanie

Autumn on My Mind-Fall Date Night

“A Date With Autumn”

What would be the perfect date night you can only do in fall in your area? Are there go to places for couples?

Rules of the Link-up:

1. Do one entry or all! It’s up to you!

2. Add your entry’s link below, and be sure to put the button in your post!

3. If you do link up, check out a couple fellow bloggers to see something new.

4. Your hosts (Elizabeth and Stephanie) would love a following on Bloglovin, but it is not required! We are just glad you stopped by for “Autumn on My Mind!”

Ok so I didn’t exactly follow the prompt with an activity that you can only do in the fall. I just think it is better done during the fall because of the cooler weather and scenery.

We went horseback riding last week. I have not been since high school, so it was a little nerve-wracking when they gave me the horse that is usually skittish and likes to bite people. Awesome…

But Sue (mine) and Ranger (Tom’s) were our pals for our hour long ride. It was a fun afternoon doing something a little bit different. Although my legs were not happy with me for several days after. Sue made sure that I remembered her long after I got off.

There are riding stables here on base that provides trail rides every weekend from March until December. They also do carriage rides every Friday and advertise that as date night. Tom and I wanted to be part of the “action” instead of just sitting there, so we opted to actually ride and control the horses.

The stables are two minutes from our house, and I drive by them every day to work. I have been pining over the opportunity to ride.

It is $20 to ride, which is a little more than we spend on our average date nights. We did make a deal that once a month we would do something “bigger” and not just a dinner date night, so this fit the bill.

It was perfect weather since you really want to wear long pants and shirt when riding. We rode all through the back woods of base, which Tom continued to scout for deer tracks. (I have become a hunter’s wife…)

We stopped by the horse pasture on afternoon too. We got permission to go inside and get pretty close to the horses. This was so much fun to watch these beautiful animals up close.

What do you think they are thinking?

Do those people have food?

So pretty.

I love watching them gallop past us.

This guy was really curious about us.

Such a gorgeous horse, and really friendly.

And then he didn’t want anything to do with us once he realized that we didn’t have food.

I loved the patches on this one.

Dating is really important even when you are married. We try to do one thing each week to focus on our marriage and relationship. Each date is new adventure for us.

Just this week we went to our favorite Mexican restaurant for date night. Right beside us was an old couple on their date night. While Tom was in the little boys room, they leaned over and asked how the daiquiri was that I was drinking. They were thinking about switching over from the margaritas they were downing. This sparked up a conversation that just really made the night for me. They told me how they met after their first spouses had passed. The man told me that the woman was making him try new things and getting him out the door as they both giggled and winked at each other. Adorable. The man had been a medic in the Navy, and the woman had been an Army wife for 30 years. We ended up talking for awhile and had a sweet and endearing conversation. It was delightful. When Tom and I left, we were so touched by this couple.

Never stop dating. There are always new things to experience, and relationships to deepen. So whether it is dinner out or game night in, it is really important to make time for each other and your relationship.

So what do your date nights look like?

We hope to see you return on Thursday for your Fall Food Must! You can see the full schedule for our Autumn link up here.

September 21, 2013 by Stephanie

Autumn on my Mind-Autumn Outside Activities

Who is ready for another fun fall inspired link-up?

“Autumn Activities Outside”

There are so many outside activities that are associated with this time of the year. We have hay rides, pumpkin patches, apple picking and so much more. What are activities that you are doing this year in your neck of the woods? Or what is your favorite fall outside funtivities?

Rules of the Link-up:

1. Do one entry or all! It’s up to you!

2. Add your entry’s link below, and be sure to put the button in your post!

3. If you do link up, check out a couple fellow bloggers to see something new.

4. Your hosts (Elizabeth and Stephanie) would love a following on Bloglovin, but it is not required! We are just glad you stopped by for “Autumn on My Mind!”

I tend to drag Tom along to many different events for the sake of fun. This fall funtivity was no different.

Clarksville has a weekend festival every fall that usually is around Labor Day weekend. Last year the event was the weekend before Tom was deployed, and we went for the evening music scene. It was jam packed so I wanted to see a different part of it this year and avoid the crowds.

Rf Map

We got up early on Saturday to see the Riverfest Regatta.

This is an event where groups enter their boats that are made purely out of recycled materials. They have several different prizes for the design and costumes the teams are wearing, plus the winners of the racing part. Cool right?

It was super fun to watch and see the creativity. We also saw a few sink despite their best efforts.

This helicopter was the sweetest make up in my opinion. Too bad it didn’t last long.

Since we were there, we had to check out some of the festival food stands. It was super hot that day so I couldn’t pass up the fresh lemonade!

This is a great event in this area. It is located in a gorgeous area of town right on the river, which I love. It spans two days with a variety of things to do for all groups of people. And going to the event is free. Each year we only paid for the food we consumed, so you really cannot pass up an event like this. Good time had by all as soon as Tom got over that I dragged him out of bed for it.

What are your fall outside activities? Link your posts up below! The link will close in October, so you have plenty of time to join us!

We hope to see you return on Thursday for your Fall Fashion Trends! You can see the full schedule for our Autumn link up here.

Check out my lovely partner!

September 19, 2013 by Stephanie

Autumn on my Mind-Fall Creation

Today is another day for Autumn fun!

“An Autumn Creation”

With the changing colors and impending holidays, do you have some inspiration to make something? Link up here to release some creative juices and share some autumn inspiration and craftiness.

Rules of the Link-up:

1. Do one entry or all! It’s up to you!

2. Add your entry’s link below, and be sure to put the button in your post!

3. If you do link up, check out a couple fellow bloggers to see something new.

4. Your hosts (Elizabeth and Stephanie) would love a following on Bloglovin, but it is not required! We are just glad you stopped by for “Autumn on My Mind!”

So it has been awhile since I finished a crochet project. The blanket I am currently working on is pretty tedious. It may be another year before that beast gets done…

So I decided to make a scarf to include in the Carabox I made last month for the gift exchange. I can whip out scarves within a few days. Feeling accomplished!

The yarn I used screamed fall and I looked up a new pattern on Ravelry. That’s my one requirement for each crochet project is that I do a new stitch.

This pattern called Urban Shells looks really complicated when you read through it. I also hate patterns that don’t have pictures, but I was determined to make this scarf happen. The first couple rows are tricky, but it is actually really easy once you get through that and understand the abbreviations she uses.

There are different textures on each side. Hopefully you can see the difference in the two shots below.