Fall in Flip-Flops

Fall in Texas is very different from NY.  Palm trees line the streets instead of maples and elms dressed in autumn colors.

At "Pumpkin Patches," you are unlikely to find growing gourds... rather, you discover a field with scattered pre-picked pumpkins, from which you can "re-pick" a pumpkin of your choice for fall celebrations (Pumpkin photo courtesy of "The Express-News/SA").






And, fall drinks like spiced teas and coffees come in more cold varieties than warm.  You might as well add a paper umbrella to top off your favorite fall beverage.

Despite feeling a little at loss in our typical fall traditions, Tony and I agree that the perfection of the weather more than makes up for it.  Most days are in the 80's, with beautiful blue skies, sun shining, and a perfect light breeze.  Outdoor sports are at their peak, and there are many opportunities for visiting parks and exploring festivals.  Flowering bushes and trees bring a different sort of color to the fall season.  And, trading in our heavy fall jackets for tank-tops has been a welcomed change.

However, an unseasonable "cold front" made its way to San Antonio this weekend, bringing with it chilly temperatures into the 60's.  Tony and I seized this opportunity to return to some of our favorite autumn traditions: fall foods and beverages

Feeling nostalgic, Tony and I crafted our first true fall Crock Pot meal: Irish Stew.  In Batavia, NY, there is a cute Irish pub named "O'Lacy's," a favorite and frequented place of Tony and mine.  We used to meet my parents there halfway between Albion and Buffalo on chilly fall evenings.  Most of us would get "the regular:" draft beers with their famous lamb stew, seasoned to perfection with ample helpings of Guinness for flavoring.

The smell and warmth of our own version of the stew filled the house throughout the day

Butters also seemed to approve of the Irish Stew.  He spent most of the day sitting dutifully next to the Crock Pot, ready to help us sample the food.  And, when the meal was finally served, he was first in line to try to get his bowl too.

We were so pleased that our first try at this recipe came pretty close to the perfection of O'Lacy's.  Tony added some cheddar cheese as a finishing touch.

Although fall beers are my favorite, Baby Bean made me have to skip out on that side of the fall festivities.  However, Tony graciously told me how great the Oktoberfest beer tasted with the meal.

And, the fresh-baked bread made a perfect side to the tasty stew.

To complete our fall weekend, we added the finishing touch: Warm Cider.  Adding mulling spices (something I learned from my mom), I warmed up some fresh apple cider as a special treat to end the weekend.

Butters also seemed to approve of the apple cider...

...as did Mummy

The weather is set to go back up into the 80's this coming week, but Tony and I were happy to make the most of our special fall weekend!  We are looking forward to Halloween celebrations this coming week.

No More Monkeys Jumping on the Bed!

Tony only had one real rule when we brought Butters home: NO DOGS ON THE BED! I was fully prepared to honor that request.  From the beginning, Butters had a warm little bed in his crate.  He would willingly trot off to his own bed each night… of course, with the encouragement of carrot treats!

And, here we are 10 months later.  

It turns out that Tony kind of has a soft spot for this little dog... a queen-sized one.  Butters certainly figured out which one of us he needed to win over. 

When we finally caved in, we expected some things to change.  We were ready for him to stretch out to the size of a Great Dane and hog the bed.  The occasional early morning wake up call was planned for. Heck, we even were prepared to put up with his snoring.  But, we weren’t expecting this…

Butters did not come alone…

Sure enough, he has decided he is not the only one who deserves the big bed… so do all of his friends.

Meet the guilty cast of characters...

                                               GIRAFFE MAN

STRING MONKEY

FOREST FOX

...and...

WOODY

On any given night, one (or all) of them ends up scattered like mines all over the bed. 

It is not uncommon that Tony or I will roll over in the middle of the night to be awoken by a squeeker, misplaced limb, or loose tail of one of Butters’ toys.

 It would be easier to exile the group if Butters didn’t look so darn cute cuddling with them

So, we have decided… only one friend per night can come to the sleepover!

We’ll see how long that one lasts too...

It's Just a Mummy

Butters has (thankfully) never been much of a barker.  We only hear a peep out of him about once a week... usually in response to a cat at the window.  He really does not make a very effective guard dog.  Overall, he is just more of a non-verbal communicator.

Recently, Tony and I found a cute little decoration at a local store to start off our fall/Halloween decorating.  Meet... "Mummy!"

He is so cute!  How can you ignore those adorable (although slightly askew) eyes.

Well, Butters didn't seem to agree with us on Mummy.  The morning after we brought Mummy home, I woke up to this...

My normally quiet doggie loudly announced his disdain for this intruder.  Clearly, Butters did not approve of Mummy.

Mummy seemed to bring out all of the bad habits in our normally well-mannered Butters.  Later that day, Tony came in to find...

...yes, Butters ON the table... trying to eat Mummy.

Thankfully, over the last couple of weeks, it seems that Butters may be coming around (a bit) on Mummy.  He now lets Mummy hold his space on the table in peace.  Our little guy no longer announces Mummy's invasion on our household.  And, I think the two might even be becoming friends...