Fall, Food, and Furkids!

Fall, Food, & Furkids!  Those three things are what you will find in this post!  This past weekend was a little less busy than the last 3 or 4 months of weekends have been and it was NICE.  Saturday I did a few things around the house and spent a lot of time with the furkids. Hubby about about 30 others went to help a friend who is having back problems gather and cut firewood for the upcoming winter months.  Sunday we went grocery shopping!  I will share more about that on Wednesday for the next MidWeek Munchies LINK UP!  Before I jumped in the car to go to the store I took a few pictures of the changing leaves.  I didn't do that last year and regretted it!

This 2nd photo is part of the tree in front of our house.  It's a Japanese Maple and it's my favorite tree on our property at home.

I have been wanting to get a few photos of the forest/mountains/trees where I live but the photo is ruined by power lines.  The mountains I mention where I live are mountains of trees not like snow covered mountains that you would see in Colorado for example.  I live right by The Allegheny National Forest.
Maybe one of these days I will take some panoramic photos worth posting!

Last week I posted photos of Cricket - our newest addition - and I was so excited when I saw so many comments asking for MORE CRICKET!  Well, ask and ye shall receive!  I have two more photos of Cricket to share with you today!  She seems to be calming down quite a bit which is nice.  And this past weekend I decided to let her roam overnight.  She is crate trained - for the most part - but I don't think she really has to be - Paco on the other hand we do it more for his protection while we aren't there because of his health/immune issues and I would feel awful if he fell off the sofa while we weren't home.  But Paco is completely fine with his crate I think sometime he actually prefers it.

I still can't believe how small Cricket is.  Usually when we adopt dogs they are smaller dogs because we don't have the room for large dogs like Labs, etc.  But Cricket is by far the smallest dog we've ever had.  She's only 4 pounds!  She's such a sweetie, tho!  Eventho she's a Chihuahua mix she acts very much like a Chi that is for sure!  We think she's mixed with Rat Terrier.

One thing we have found out with her is that she doesn't like it when animals are on TV.  She freaks out!  This is REALLY funny because she LOVES other animals!  She's a very social dog and doesn't understand if other animals don't want to play with her.  Plus she has no concept of size either.

One of the QUICK FOODS I made for lunch recently was a Sun Dried Tomato Cashew Cheesy Rice.

It had 1 c Cashews, 1/4 C Water, 1/4 C Nutritional Yeast, 1/2 T Minced Garlic, 2 T Lemon Juice, 2 T Apple Cider Vinegar, 1 T Mustard, About 10 Sun Dried Tomatoes, and Black Himalayan Sea Salt to taste.

I also added about a tablespoon of Sun Warriors Liquid Vitamin Mineral RUSH.  Of course this is optional.

I have been into raw veggies and making them meals lately!  So that means that dips and spreads are KEY!  Here's the one I made this past week - it was a Sweet Dill Dip!
1 C Cashews
1 C Macadamia Nuts
Juice of 1/2 Meyer Lemon
3/4 C Water (or so)
1/3 C Apple Cider Vinegar
3 T Agave Nectar
1/3 C Grapeseed Oil
1 t EACH Of Minced Garlic, Dill, Basil, Onion Powder

Blondee Apples & Kabocha Squash

On Thursday I mentioned I purchased 2 new-to-me types of produce.  One being Orange Kabocha Squash and the other item was a Blondee Apple I actually got as a free sample at my local produce stand.  Of course I hit up Google for more info on both of these foods and here is some of what I found out.  Kabocha Squash is grown in Fall, Winter, and Spring and is a Winter Keeper meaning that it can last 4 to 5 months!  YAY!  They are said to be one of the sweetest types of squash!  I read they pair well with Broccoli, Raab, Radicchio, and Dandelions.  You can roast it for 30 minutes in the oven with little effort.  I like that!  And I really am drawn to this recipe that I found, too!

My last trip to my favorite local produce stand wasn't the first time I noticed them offering free samples of something.  This time I took them up on the offer!  They had small, yellow apples which were called Blondee Apples.  They are a lot like Gala Apples.  They were originally found growing among Galas and some people actually call them the "Yellow Gala".  I read that these apples are resistant to bruising...that's a PLUS!  And can be kept for several months in the refrigerator!  Eventho this is becoming popular in New York State - and I actually live in Pennsylvania - but right ON the state line - it doesn't shock me that I found them here now that I do know more about them.  BUT this apple was introduced in 2000 by a couple from Ohio.  It wasn't available to the market until 2012.  I'm writing this prior to actually TRYING the apple but I am looking forward to it.  I LOVE trying new types of produce!  What's the last thing you tried that was new-to-you?

Wheels, Turkeys, The Walking Dead, and Steam From the Fountain Show!

This photo I posted over at my Travel Blog but the next 3 pics you won't find over there.  These photos are from our trip to Pigeon Forge, TN, last week.  Inside Pigeon Forge there is a new(er) destination called The Island.  You can read more about that and see more photos here. 

This first photo is of their Wheel.  The Island has LOTS of shops, restaurants, attractions, games, rides, and things to do with more on the way.  They are currently working on their 2nd phase adding more restaurants, tasting rooms, hotels, and shops.

This place is already neat but I think when it's complete it will be really special.

Just like everything else in Pigeon Forge - they are decked out for fall.  Harvest Time is BIG down there.  Outside of the Wheel they had this place where you could pose for photos - so I did.  Yup!  Just us 3 turkeys!  (teehee)

The layout out was amazing and the whole Island was incredibly clean and everyone was very friendly.  More on that at the link above if you are interested in hearing more.

Sometimes when I travel and see something that reminds me of a friend or family member I will snap a pic just for them.  I remember one time I saw  friend of mine on Facebook that took a photo of herself drinking beer thru a straw while in Vegas so the next time I went to Vegas I did the same thing and took a photo of me doing it and posted it and tagged it just for her.

In this case...a good friend of mine has a thing for "Darryl" on The Walking Dead so when I saw this cut out I HAD to take a pic for her and text it over right away!  I'm looking forward to the season premiere of The Walking Dead this coming month and I do like his character but I can't say that I'm obsessed with him like many other women I know.

And this photo I intentionally took, too, but for different reasons. 

I took LOTS of pictures at The Island - and many of them were of the fountains and water show - but this one I took because I wanted to get the fountains moving, the steam rolling, the rocks glistening, the sun shining, and the surrounding landscape with a little bit of the buildings showing in the back ground.  I think I was able to accomplish most - if not ALL of that.

For those of you wanting FOOD posts...stayed tuned I will have another blog post later today!

Dollywood Photography From My iPhone

Over at my Travel Blog earlier today I posted More From Dollywood and there are plenty of more photos over there if you want to check those out but the ones I am posting here today are ones that I feel turned out exceptionally well especially since all I used was my iPhone to take them.  This is the first time I haven't taken an actual camera on vacation to take my 'good' photos.  Needless to say I was pleased with the outcome.  We were trying to travel light and most of what we did pack was for Paco.  We drove over 10 hours in my Fiat and it certainly got the job done.  We averaged about 400 miles a tank.  We only spent a bit over $100 for gas so that was AWESOME.  Now on to the photos, eh!?  This first one is one of the many mills that Dollywood featured.  It was functional and festive.  Inside you were able to purchase their fresh made breads that they made daily.

One of the many decorated gardens was this one.  It had flowers galore!  Not only that they had a turning Ferris Wheel that moved slowly with the potted flowers in each Ferris Wheel Car.  I stopped and stared at it for a few moments.

I mentioned in another post that we visited Dollywood at the beginning of this years Gospel and Harvest Time Festival.  It last about a month and a half and features over 350 live performances throughout the theme park.

While we were there we did see a number of preachers, reverends, pastors, etc from different denominations and faiths.  There's a small church there that is named after the doctor who delivered Dolly Parton as a baby.

One thing I will have to research more is if there is a connection to birds and birdhouses and Dollywood and/or Dolly Parton.  I saw a SLEW of birdhouses throughout the theme park.  And I don't mean just any old birdhouse.  I mean INVOLVED birdhouses that were colorful and creative...ones that were HUGE...ones that had multiple stories...even ones that were themed.  Some were unusual, some where tall yet thin, and others were just so stunning I couldn't help but snap a photo...or 10 photos!

This one was behind a kiosk.  I couldn't believe that it wasn't more out in the open!  It stood about 6 to 6 and a half feet tall, had 3 floors, windows, doors, a deck, etc.  It was very beautiful!  If we visit Dollywood again...I just might have to try and count how many birdhouses I see!

Going along and keeping with the Harvest Time theme - giant colorful displays like this one could be seen throughout the theme park. 

As you can see this is almost like a Christmas Tree made out of potted flowers that tier into the sky.  Behind it was Hay, Wheat, Corn Stalks, and other festive decor. 

You can tell that Dollywood goes above and beyond to change things up and make the place look amazing!  I hear that Christmas Time is even more involved, too! 

We saw several people working on adding lights to many of the standing structures.  I bet they were getting ready for the Christmas Time Festival.  I'm sure it takes a LONG time to decorate for that!