Friday, October 11, 2013

Break Out The Winter Coat and Orange Flip Flops - It's October in New England!

It's October - YAY!  My absolute favorite month of the year.  We live in Connecticut so the leaves are changing colors and it's so beautiful.  The thing with October in New England, though, is that it really depends on what kind of a mood Mother Nature is in on a day to day basis. You may need a winter coat one day and shorts and a t-shirt the next.  Even a few hours can make a huge difference...I've actually put the heat on in the car driving Lauren to preschool in the morning....then had to put the AC on for the ride home when I pick her up 3 hours later. 
Lauren having fun trying to catch falling leaves

Last week was a beautiful summer like week in October so I decided it would be nice to take the kids apple picking.  So we put on our shorts and flip flops and hit the apple orchards.  Upon our arrival, we were handed a bag and sheet of paper with a list of the like 67 different types of apples that were available for picking.  There was a chart with the names of the apples along with several categories of which apples were good for different purposes.  So Gala apples are great for pies AND sauces, where Red Delicious aren't good for either, only eating.  Idared are great for pies, but don't try and put those buggers in a sauce.  My head was spinning.  Macoun MAY be ok in a pie, but not a sauce.  Oh Jesus, it was just too much info to process. There was too much responsibility involved. Who knew?  Whatever you do, don't mix the Empire and Jonagold together or else you might summon a demon.  Do not taunt the Granny Smith apples.
So off we go trying to navigate our way around this huge orchard, following the signs to the various types of apples. It was a free for all, with kids picking any apple they could spot and tossing it in the bag. At one point I realized we didn't have any apples good for making applesauce.  Oh no, I wasn't getting backed into a corner like that! I will make sauce if I damn well please.  When did this fun fall activity become so complicated?  I don't remember any of this going on when I was a kid.  We showed up at the orchard and picked whatever the hell we wanted.  Sometimes it wasn't even an apple....sometimes it was a winning horse for the races at Suffolk Downs.  Oh wait, that wasn't apple picking.  No, those were the good old days when kids were allowed at race tracks to see the ponies.   I'm from Boston.  In Boston back in the early 80's it was common place for families to throw the kids in the back of the Chevy Nova - sans seatbelts - and head down to the racetrack for a fun family night out.  What?

Anyway, by the end of the harrowing apple picking experience, we were hot and tired.  So obviously this would be a great time for the corn maze!   The corn maze is one of those things that sounds like a fun idea.  Until you get lost in the middle and need your phone GPS to get out. We got exactly half way through the maze when Lauren announced she needed to use the potty and Ben decided he didn't want to walk anymore and wanted me to carry him. So I put them in the little wagon supposed to be used to haul pumpkins around, and made for an exit...or what I thought was an exit but was actually another dead end.  They both weigh just about 40 pounds, so I have 80 lbs of babies in a little wagon, hauling them around and lost in a corn maze.  And it was hot. I felt kind of like a pack mule.  So I asked Siri for help.  She kept telling me to start out by going west and take a left onto Route 83.  Screw you, Siri.  Words were had and needless to say, Siri and I are taking a little break from each other.  We eventually found our way out a half our later, the kids declaring me a "hero"...and sung the theme song to "Higglytown Heros" all the way home. 

Hayride in New England

So far October has been a productive month.  Along with the fun fall activities and overdoing it with the Halloween decorating, I decided to finally take down the 80's pink flower wallpaper that's been plaguing my kitchen.  For 3 years, since we bought this house, we've talked about all of the different things we'd do with the kitchen.  And finally, one morning last week as I was sitting at the kitchen table drinking my coffee, staring at the hideous wallpaper, I reached over and picked at a little tear at one of the seams.  It peeled back pretty easily, so I kept pulling at it.  Flash scene to 3 hours later - the kitchen furniture and appliances moved to the center of the room, and me peeling off the last bit of wallpaper behind the fridge.  The room was  littered with old wallpaper remains... and it was finally done.  Just like that! I texted a picture to Brian at work.  He knows me.  How I'll just decide to do something and go for it kind of spur of the moment.  Like the time I hired Julio, a young, latin, live-in handyman who closely resembled Mark Consuelos to do house repairs in a uniform consisting of tight black pants an no shirt.  Now all that's left before we paint is to get that pesky wallpaper glue off that's still stuck on the walls. What a pain.  Wallpaper should seriously be illegal.  People who try to obtain and use wallpaper should be put on a "watch list" of sorts.  At the very least, there should be support groups available to those who have been impacted by the effects wallpaper has had on users and their loved ones. 

And now if you'll excuse me....my Mcintosh and Honeycrisp apples have intermingled and have become radioactive.  Happy Baking :)

8 comments:

  1. I truly enjoy your blog!! You have a gift!! I look forward to all your post cause they always leave me laughing!!
    One of my favorite quotes is from Coco Channel and I think you would like it
    " LIfe is short, you best be amusing"

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you so much!!! I really appreciate the compliment and I'm so glad you're enjoying the blog :) Love the quote!

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