Nothing makes your house smell good quite like homemade applesauce. I have many memories making it with my mom growing up. The stuff from the jar doesn't even come close. 

I picked up some local organic and no-spray apples from a produce shop close by. Little Grabbie McGrabberson always wants to hold something from her perch in the Ergo when we are out running errands. This day she wanted to hold an apple of course. When I loaded her into the car she was still having fun playing with the apple so I let her keep it. As I was driving I heard some interesting sounds from the back seat and discovered when I arrived home that Quinn had eaten a quarter of the apple already! I found her juicy and grinning. It was hilarious. Those eight teeth can really do some munching. (Her dentist appointment went great by the way. She wanted to hold her new toothbrush all day.)

I decided to use the crockpot to make applesauce this time. And now I'm hooked. I peeled and cored the apples and cut them into pretty big chunks, probably about 10 chunks per apple. It took probably 15 minutes total. They really don't have to be pretty. 

These are the ingredients I threw into the crockpot:
- 3 golden delicious apples, 4 granny smith apples, 4 braeburn apples
- a scant 1/4 cup of brown sugar
- a heaping teaspoon of cinnamon
- 1/4 cup of water

You can always add more water later, but you can't easily remove it. No one has ever complained about applesauce being too flavorful. Stir it up and set the crockpot on high. At two hours I stirred it with a fork and mashed it a little too see how firm the apples were. At a little less than four hours it looked like the texture I wanted it to be. I mashed it with a potato masher until it was mostly smooth with some small chunks. It really didn't take much mashing, it was so soft and velvety. Then I put it into glass jars to eat, freeze, and gift. I'll definitely be making more batches, it was so easy!

We went to the pumpkin patch this weekend with the two other families on our street with kids Quinn's age. It rained off and on, but was otherwise pretty fun. Afterward, we had some pizza and pumpkin pie. Our neighbor is very scientific and well-researched about his pumpkin pie baking and it turned out amazing. We also had some nice family hangout time and friend hangout time this weekend.

I made pumpkin mac and cheese for Quinn and me last week and it was delicious! And some pumpkin muffins too of course, 'tis the season!

Now I'm off to take Quinn to her first dentist appointment. I figured with eight teeth, it would be good to start taking her. Hopefully she's nice to the dentist!

Just a little Public Service Announcement from your friendly local blogger:

Did you know that most of the chocolate found at the store is harvested by child slaves? Halloween is such a fun time of year for kids in the U.S. It makes me sad that some children have to suffer so that we can get cheap candy. I know Fair Trade chocolate is on the spendy side, but even buying non-chocolate candy for trick-or-treaters helps. If you haven't purchased your Halloween candy yet, would you consider buying non-chocolate candy? Like these great lollipops on Amazon.com. Or I found a great deal on a giant box of fruit snacks at Costco today.

Alright, back to your regularly scheduled blog reading...

I thought it's about time for a crafting update. The colder weather inspires sipping warm drinks to comfort music while working on projects. 

I've got a fun secret project I've been working on, but there are two I can share. One is a Fall wreath decorated with pom-poms from a friend's blog.

I feel like it needs a pop of orange on it somewhere. I might have to go on a nature walk and gather some goodies. After years of apartment life, it's so fun to be able to decorate doors!

Another is a simple skirt and matching hair clip for Quinn. The skirt tutorial was so easy even I could do it (with my mom's guidance). I'll definitely be making more of these.

And I managed to overseed the lawn before the rain began with some Fleur de Lawn. It's an herbaceous, flowering lawn alternative that's a combination of grasses, clovers, and small flowers. I'm hoping it will fill in some gaps, be more low-maintenance, and look pretty next Spring.

Anyone else working on fun projects?

I've completed the next quarterly video of Quinn. If you have a spare 22 minutes and want to see how much she has changed from 9 months to 12 months, you can watch it here. Two of my favorite parts are at 8:30 and 15:30. She cracks me up.

So all my extra snuggling has paid off, Quinn has tooth #7 and 8 now on the bottom! She just wants to be held or on laps when she's working on teeth. 

For a long time now, Quinn has been content to sit and play with a couple toys or look at some books. But for the last week her interest in moving has drastically increased. Shinobi is no longer safe.

Quinn got sick for the first time last week. I'm amazed it took that long, breastfeeding is magical. She also had her one year check-up last week. She's continuing her streak of being in the 40th percentile for weight, 30th percentile for height, and 75th percentile for head circumference. She shared a paragraph with the doctor. She'll say things throughout the day, but a couple times a day breaks into a monologue a couple minutes long, haha.

I planted some blueberry bushes in my backyard this weekend. Hopefully they survive, I have a very black thumb. I have daydreams of sending Quinn out to pick some berries for breakfast next Summer, we'll see... We also went to Eugene for the weekend because my friend since birth (we are 10 days apart in age) was in town. Quinn got to meet her daughter Maya who is about two months younger. It was so strange realizing that was us over two decades ago!

 

Spying on the kids walking to school.

Sunday was a perfect Fall day for a birthday party at a park. The maple trees were just starting to change color and providing some shade, there wasn't a cloud in the sky, and the temperature was in the low 70s. My favorite sort of day. While Quinn napped, my parents and sister helped me set up pumpkin cupcakes, apple slices, cheese, and crackers to go with the iced coffee and apple cider. We hung red balloons from the trees and strung Quinn's monthly photos from a red ribbon. Dear friends and family began to gather and mingle. We feel so blessed to know so many friendly, sweet people that can all get together and chat with ease.

Quinn was passed around and entertained by loved ones. When it came time for her to eat her cupcake, she delicately pinched the frosting and brought little bits of it to her mouth. Quite a polite lady :)  We broke it into easy to grab pieces and then she got into it a little more. She was reaching for the cheese on the table so I gave her some of that and she gobbled it down. Next time I'm just going to buy a block of cheese and chisel away at it until it is the shape of a cupcake, haha. 

After eating, she had a lot of fun playing with balloons and her guests. We opened some presents at our house and then went out to dinner with our out of town guests. It was a very pleasant day. What a blessed girl to have so many people that love her!

On her actual birthday, we went to the park for lunch and after dinner. While she was swinging after dinner, we were chatting with some other families at the park. When it came up in conversation that it was her birthday everyone insisted on singing to her. Everyone at the park sang a hearty rendition of the birthday song and clapped at the end. This made Quinnie burst into a giant smile and start clapping herself. It was a very heart-melting moment. We feel so blessed to live in such a warm, welcoming neighborhood. Thank you, Lord!

Well, my baby is one-year-old. It breaks my little heart how fast she is growing up. 

It's been fun to reminisce about what was going on a year ago. I bought sunflowers at the Farmers Market because I had bought some right before Quinn was born. Her party was at 3pm yesterday and I was recalling my first contraction at 3:24 while dancing in the kitchen making zucchini bread. When we went out to dinner after the party, I was remembering talking to my doula and going for a walk as my contractions increased. And when we went to sleep last night, Jonathan and I recalled the contractions get more and more challenging as he coached and encouraged me through the night until we left for the hospital at 3 in the morning. What an amazing morning that was a year ago!

I just love this little sweet chickie. She brings sunshine to my days and light to my eyes. She has made me braver, fiercer, gentler, and more relaxed. She is a passionate, loving, jolly rascal. Jonathan and I feel so blessed that God has mercifully entrusted her to us and we can't imagine life without her.

Happy 1st Birthday Quinn!