pumpkin pickin'

sunday we took a trip to the dearborn farms pumpkin patch. the patch was S-A-D-L-Y picked over but we didn't mind. we made our way through the corn maze, "rooted" for the pink cuties in the pig races and watched all the walking kiddos run around like crazy. it was the perfect way to spend a beautiful fall day with my guys. enjoy the photos!

flowers & friends in bloom

last friday wil and i were invited to take a day trip to the new york botanical garden with heather, lily and heather's parents, rob & diane. it was members day (thanks rob & diane!) and the opening of the 2008 kiku exhibit. kiku is the japanese art of chyrsanthemum cultivation. it was fantastic! i have never seen anything like this and cannot believe the time and care and PATIENCE that obviously goes into creating these beautiful flowers. if i wouldn't have been arrested i would picked the flower below - i thought it was the most beautiful and unusual thing!

the gardens were beautiful, the exhibit was amazing and it was a trip i would love to make again. we spent a wonderful day outside in perfect fall weather enjoying nature, lunch and friends. thank you heather for inviting us and thank you rob & diane for sharing your membership with us. we had a wonderful time!

surprise, surprise, surprise

there is nothing better than an unexpected gift to boost your spirits and last friday* i was the lucky recipient of one such gift.

ryan and i had a pretty lame friday night planned. we were watching wil use his walker and throwing a stuffed chicken for lucy when ryan offered me a deal...i would shower with wil, he would shower with lucy. both desperately needed a bath.

in the middle of my shower with wil i heard ryan talking to someone and thought he was on the phone. he then opened the door and i could see someone down the stairs staring up at me...it was TIA. i was so excited. tia, shawn & hank made a surprise trip to NJ for the weekend. it was perfect! we had a wonderful weekend eating portuguese food, watching football, visiting the beach and laughing. (especially when while tia was giving wil a bath, hank felt the need to get in on the action.) it was just what the higgins family needed.

sadly we took only one picture (above) but we have good memories. thank you tia, shawn & hank for making the trip. it was fantastic!

*this was the weekend of the 11th. i had a busy week last week and am just getting around to posting this.

appetite pleasin'

oh ranch style beans...how i love you. let me count the ways:

1. oooey
2. gooey
3. spicy
4. thick
5. bean-y
6. delicious
7. stylish

about a month ago i used the last can of a case that lasted exactly one year. i was stingy with the beans but once used 2 cans (!!!) in a kooky casserole i made when i was preg. because they are not available in the stores here lindsey and i drove a case from texas to new jersey last summer. having a whole case to myself was fabulous and so much better than bringing back a can or two in my suitcase. yum. if you've never eaten ranch style beans it's very difficult to explain what all the fuss is about. they are unlike any bean i know and the best way to describe them is to borrow from the can which describes them as appetite pleasin'.

i was feeling so sad to have eaten the last of the beans that i photographed the last can before we ate them. luckily my aunt becky loves me very much and felt so sorry for me that she sent me not one, but TWO, cases of RSBs for my birthday!!! people, in case the math escapes you, that is 48 CANS! yeehaw!

thanks, beck, for the beans. what an unexpected and delightful gift. i promise not to use them all at once...and if i do, i promise to stand down-wind.