I don't know what happened to September, but October seems headed in the same direction. How is it the 13th? Evie is almost 2 months old, our 3rd anniversary is in 9 days.

At the head of one of the lakes. It took my breath away.

 I love everything about autumn. The weather, the colors, the food - especially butternut and delicata squash. Which brings me to a delicious dinner I made the other night. 

You will need:

• Ground beef, pork, venison - I did a pound of beef and half pound of pork
• Butternut squash - I used a medium-sized one
• Bell peppers - I think I used 2. Any color or combination of colors
• Quinoa - I made 3/4 cup UNcooked
• Fresh cilantro
• Cumin
• Salt and pepper

First, bake your squash. I cut mine in half, scoop out the seeds, put them face down in a pan with a little water. 350° until the skin is kind of brown and the meat is soft (usually 45min).

Next, bring the water for your quinoa to boil. Quinoa is like rice - twice the amount of water. Once the water is boiling, add the quinoa, turn it to low and cover. It's done when the little curly strings are curly. 

While that is cooking, brown your meat (with a little diced onion if you have an onion). Throw in the peppers. Cook until peppers are soft. 

Once the squash and quinoa are done, scoop the squash out of the skin and add it with the quinoa to the meat and peppers. Throw in a handful of chopped fresh cilantro and cumin, salt and pepper to taste. You can serve it now, or put it in a dish and bake for 20 minutes. 

I made it again last night, sans quinoa and cilantro, with 4 peppers and a large squash using chili powder as my spice. I wanted to add some chopped kale, but Evie needed to nurse so I skipped it. Next time. This kind of meal is very forgiving - you can adjust the amounts to suit your family - more veggies/less meat, no problem. Since we don't eat wheat products, I probably cook more meat than most people. I also try to make enough so that we have leftovers for lunch.

Evie is growing so quickly. She's very alert and follows you around the room. She knows if I leave and promptly cries. But she is a very good girl. We get lots and lots of big smiles and coos.

Cross-eyed.

Jack returned with us from my parents. He has been incredibly well-behaved, with the exception of escaping the other day and being gone for a few hours before we got a call that he was found two streets over. Tony loves having him here. Jack is very patient with Tony, and hasn't bothered Evie at all. He's sniffed at her in her bouncy chair a couple of times, but for the most part is completely uninterested.

Tony is growing like a weed. He talks all the time, and wants to know what we are talking about. At dinner, if Zach and I have a pause in our conversation, Tony will say, "Whatcha talking about?" (Complete with hand motions, which kills me. When I get off of the phone, I get interrogated, "Talking to Grandma? Talking about squash?" It's adorable and crazy. The other day I was telling Zach something, and part of a conversation I repeated included "Shut up." In the car on the way home, Evie started crying and Tony said, "Shut up, Evie. Shut up." I felt awful - he was playing in the grass while I was talking to Zach, so I didn't think he heard, and I certainly didn't think he would understand the context. Thankfully, that was a one time thing. He's back to his sweet big brother self - "It's okay, Evie. Mommy is coming. We are almost there."

Life is such a blessing. Bringing children into the world is a blessing. Some days are hard, no doubt about it, but most days are good.

The statue inside of the Capelhina.

 In case anyone else's pastor didn't find it worth mentioning, today is the anniversary of the Miracle of the Sun at Fatima. A few years ago I had the great fortune to visit Fatima. It was amazing. I would love to go back to Portugal some day and spend more time at the Basilica.

Love,

Jess