Maple Leaf Festival

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Maple Leaf Festival Baldwin KS

Hi, October is one of my favorite time of the year. The third weekend in October is always marked on my calendar. It’s a tradition of mine to go every year with a family member. Some years it has been all of them and this year my son, son-in-law and grand daughter was with me.

The atmosphere is just awesome; people, crafts, food, the smell, colorful leaves and plain ol’ fun.

maple leaf crowd
Maple Leaf Crowd
maple leaf food
Maple Leaf Food

The best part of the whole day was my souvenir. Yes, each year I like to buy one item to remind me of the day. This year was the best to date.

The Forever Hands booth. Once I spotted the Forever Hands booth I knew I found just the souvenir for this year. This was one of the very first booths we stopped at. Typically we walk throughout all of them and then I go back to the one I liked the best. There was no question or doubt, this was it.

A sculpture of my grand daughter’s hand- to last a lifetime. What a memory! Clickable gallery below.

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The last image in the gallery; I was worried Brie’s plaster hand was going to have a huge thumb! She was wiggling her fingers in the mold. Once the mold was set and Brie’s hand was removed; we were told to come back in a couple of hours while the plaster set. Upon our return; I was quite pleased……

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Forever Hands

This lovely sculpture is at home next to my computer. I look at it often while working and remember our Maple Leaf day together.

Have you ever preserved your children/grand children’s hand-foot print? Please do share!

Best Wishes,
debra

Our Friend is Moving

adam katie
kate
When friends move away.

Hi, I’m going to cry. I just know it. The tears are swelling in my eyes as I am typing. Today Katie is on her way to the airport. She’s flying to North Carolina to be with her mom, sister, her brother and her family. Katie is very happy. I truly am happy for her as well. However, it’s bittersweet.

What can I tell you about Katie? I consider her one of my kids. She’s fun, care-free and you are left to wonder what color her hair will be the next time you see her. Heck, she might even shave it off! Katie makes my son happy. And that makes me happy! She loves cats and anything furry.

Keeping in touch with today’s technology will be very heart warming. I have already been looking into the Skype for computer and the app for my Android. And of course text and phone calls. Vacations are always possible.

Kate’s leaving is bittersweet. Saying good-bye is never easy. God brought Katie into our lives. I will treasure our friendship and remember her always.

The collage above features images from a casual photo shoot last year. I was preparing a photography order to send to the lab. The lab was having an 8×10 half price sale so I wanted to take advantage of the special. I was going through all of my images and ran across these. The above collage was designed (with Fotofusion) as an 8×10 and I had 5 of them printed. One for each of the kids plus me, my mom and Erika.

Did you ever have a good friend move away? How did you cope with them leaving?

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Best Wishes,
debra

Best Grilled Dinner

stuffed jalapenos pork chops!
stuffed jalapenos pork chops!
Stuffed Jalapenos & Pork Chops!

Hi, my husband grilled the best dinner last evening- seasoned pork chops, corn and stuff jalapenos. I am one lucky gal who enjoys his delicious cooking! Kevin starts with a recipe and tweaks it to his liking. He adapts most recipes for the grill and I get to enjoy the taste of it all.

stuffed jalapenos
Stuffed Jalapenos

Ingredients:

12 fresh jalapeño peppers
8 ounces cream cheese, softened to room temperature
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1 clove garlic, chopped
1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
12 slices bacon, cut in half
24 toothpicks

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400F degrees. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper (best for clean-up) or a silicone baking mat. Place a baking rack on top of the baking sheet. Set aside.

Cut the jalapeño peppers in half lengthwise; remove seeds and center membrane. Set aside.

Using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the cream cheese, cheddar cheese, garlic, and paprika together until combined. You could also do this by hand using a rubber spatula. Salt to taste – I add just a pinch. Spoon filling equally among all 24 jalapeño halves.

Wrap each stuffed jalapeño with a half slice of bacon and stick a toothpick through the center to assure the bacon stays in place. Place each on the baking rack and bake for 25-28 minutes or until the bacon is crisp to your liking. I like to turn the oven to broil for the last minute or two to get things extra crispy. Serve immediately. Cover leftovers and keep in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.

Make ahead tip: jalapeño peppers can be stuffed and wrapped 1 day in advance. Refrigerate until ready to bake. You can also assemble and freeze up to 2 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator and bake as directed.

Best Wishes,
debra