1. MULTNOMAH FALLS: Early in the month my parents and I took a trip to Oregon to visit my sister, and two of my aunts and their families. Besides having a good time visiting with family, we saw some really pretty parts of Oregon, including this waterfall. I took this photo with my iPhone...doesn't it look like it comes straight out of Rivendell?? Mmmm dreamy...
2. SWEET POTATOES: Oh man. Sweet potatoes. I want to eat sweet potato fries. And mashed sweet potatoes. And sweet potato chips. I want it all. This month Shaun and I discovered something amazing: Sweet. Potato. Tacos. We sort of based them off a recipe online, but mostly I think Shaun improvised, and seriously folks, I could eat these all the time. I have never been a taco person, but sweet potatoes have officially converted me.
3. PUMPKIN PIE CAKE: This was Shaun's "birthday cake" that came a few weeks late, but it was worth the wait. Again, I based this off a recipe I found online, but with a few tweaks. It's basically a layer of pumpkin pie with a layer of cake mix on top, and they way they mix together in the baking process is super. C'est magnifique!
4. TROLLEYS: One of the highlights of the trip to Oregon was surprising my dad with a visit to the
Antique Powerland Museum, where we got a private tour of the trolley museum AND my dad got to DRIVE A TROLLEY! This is especially significant because a few years ago he said that if he ever got to drive a trolley, his head would explode. He drove this one pictured above, a trolley from Portugal in the early 1900's I think. It was so cool!
5. TURKEY TIME: This is a picture of my family's dining room table at Thanksgiving, prepped for a feast. My mom did 95% of the cooking, and I helped out 5% by making delightful cornbread pudding. The best part...Shaun was able to join us because we are sharing holidays between families this year! I am so full of thanks for that day!
6. WINE TASTING: After the trolley museum, we visited some nearby wineries to taste the offerings. The vineyards were so pretty with all the fall leaves, and it was fun to FINALLY be able to drink the wine at wine tastings (thanks a lot Mom and Dad!!). I personally thought the wine was really good, but I'm no oenophile...yet.
7. SCARF SEASON: That's right, it's scarf season. So get ready to see my brown pashmina permanently attached to my neck for the next 5 months.
8. GINKGO: FACT: Ginkgo trees are completely underrated. Why doesn't anyone ever talk about how pretty they are? Since yellow is my all-time favorite color, Ginkgo is now my favorite fall tree. I never noticed how many there were in Philadelphia before this year, but now they sure do stand out. *Swoon*
