A Little of This and That and a Menu Plan!

So.....the new school year is in full swing.....it's October, which means the schedules of the special needs children are pretty much set now that we've been in school for almost 4 weeks,  and I'm enjoying time in the general ed. 2nd grade with a special little autistic boy and in the self-contained classroom with 5 multiply handicapped K-3rd graders. It is a great team this year and we are off to a very good start!!

Around our house I've been decorating for Autumn.  A couple of my friends who visit my blog asked me to post pictures so here they are!

This little wooden table was one my sister Hope was going to throw away several years ago!

I took it cause it's so darn cute, though worn, and I've had it in my family room with a plant on it until this summer when I moved it to our dining room after we did the paint make-over.  For autumn I placed this dried flower, pumpkin and other wild grasses, etc.arrangement  in a rust colored bucket.  Underneath is a photo of the girls when they were 6 yrs old (Courtney) and 8 months(Claire) and a button jar. 

This wooden harvest sign greets guests as they leave the kitchen, heading to the family room.  I bought this from a country magazine and usually have it hanging off the garage side door. I wanted it in the kitchen this year in place of Courtney's bulletin board we removed, now that she is living at college! It is on the wall between the kitchen side door to the garage and to the family room entryway.  Isn't the sign cheerful?? (the colors are more vibrant than what the photo captured!)

Our coffee table holds the pewter bowl (that had large white decorative balls in it all summer) of silk autumn-colored maple leaves.  The fabric pumpkin was a 40% off item at a local craft store.  I like to keep a "simple look" for the family room coffee table because as you can see, my husbands plops on the couch often with his laptop, Nook and remotes.  Usually the table is cluttered with his "stuff"....the little wooden container in the far right background of the table has a red apple on the lid and holds tea candles in apple-cinnamon and pine.  The shelf is on the wall next to the TV armoire.  I tend to do a seasonal theme here as well although the handmade Amish potholder hangs all year round.  We bought it in Lancaster Co, PA a few years ago.  On the shelf I placed a glass votive candle holder with orange/red leaves all around it and an Autumn Harvest scented candle inside.  Next to that is a dragonfly plate (a gift from a co-worker), 2 mini pumpkins (artificial) and the crock of grasses. The grasses will be replaced soon with some cattails.  Hanging on the left hook is a sign that says "Harvest Greetings" and features autumn-colored squashes.  Again, simple!

This Shaker-style wicker basket was on major clearance at the same craft store where I bought the scarecrow and fabric pumpkin.  It was only $3.00!!!  It has pretty autumn colors all the way around, the raffia ribbon and 2 fabric maple leaves.  I lined it with a cloth napkin decorated with red apples and filled it with our fruit:  fresh, local granny smith apples, fresh pears, 3 lemons, 2 kiwis and a local, organic plum.  YUM!!  Keeping fresh fruit right between the stove and refrigerator works well for us....my youngest grabs an apple as an after-school snack and I like to slice pears with cheese for breakfast or lunch.  I like to keep it well-stocked and at this time of year we can get some very good, fresh, local fruit!  That is one blessing about living in New York State. We have wonderful orchards with an abundance of fruit for sale! On the mini corner curio shelves near the Keurig, I placed a mini pumpkin like the ones in the family room and 3 very mini ceramic pumpkins at the feet of a miniature scarecrow. Unfortunately, I forgot to take a pic of that part of the kitchen!  

My youngest daughter talked me into showing off these very mini pumpkins.....they are in a glass hurricane candle holder that my friend E bought me one year.  I think the different colored pumpkins look so pretty on my living room  bookshelf in the clear glass.  It is between our lamp and a little green house that my friend M gave me last year for my birthday.....the house contains a little tealight candle.  The rest of the living room is the same other than a harvest picture on the wall of pumpkins and Indian corn, replacing the summer flower die-cut picture.  At Christmas time, a Christmas greeting will hang in place of the havest picture.  I love decorating for autumn...the muted colors of reds, oranges, yellows.....so golden like the fields I see driving down the road to work.  It's a beautiful time of year in upstate New York for sure!

The last thing I'm featuring here is this dining room table centerpiece. In this pic it's "off center" because I snapped it while there were still dishes on the table from dinner last evening!  This is a little hurricane lantern style candle holder that I bought in June on clearance for less than $3.00!!  I placed a clear glass votive holder inside for autumn with a orange/cinnamon scented votive candle. All summer this "lantern" held a blueberry candle that my friend Lynn had bought me from Maine. I love changing my candles with the seasons and this is one scent my husband can tolerate!

So...that's a glimpse around our house for the next 3 months. Of course, as the end of autumn approaches, it becomes December and then I decorate for Christmas......and after Christmas I take out winter things...but I don't wanna think about that season yet!!

and...around our house we are getting super organized every weekend for the next week.

Because we have 2 evenings where we have to eat early, (Mondays due to ballet classes and Wednesdays due to my small group coming over and Dave and Claire heading off to Youth Group), I have to be very organized with meal planning. Tuesdays find us eating LATE...as in after 6:30 because of another ballet class.  BUT...we eat together each night of the week now except for Mondays as my husband typically comes home just after we've had to leave for ballet.  This all makes me plan dinners on Saturday or Sunday afternoon and helps to keep my food budget down.  It also saves on several grocery trips during the busy work week as I find that by menu planning, I can make one list and get the shopping done either Sunday after church or Sunday after dinner.  Here's the menu plan for the week. (I tend to be flexible, too...for instance, just because it says one thing for Thursday doesn't mean I'll cook it that evening....I might switch it up with Friday's menu, etc.).  I'm doing this because a good friend of mine who visits this blog, wanted to see a sample of how I plan dinners.  If you have menu ideas, PLEASE share them...I'm always looking for more!!

Sunday:  Pizza burgers with the antibiotic-free, hormone-free beef on sale, boston baked beans; Steamed Spinach, Apple Slices. Dessert: oatmeal cookies

Monday:  Cream of Potato-Garlic Soup(slow cooker meal/meatless meal)French Rolls, Salad.  Dessert for Claire: ice cream sundae after ballet class; coffee for Faith.

Tuesday:  Grilled Lemon/Pepper Salmon (dave will start this while Claire and I drive home from the dance studio); Tossed Salad with cucumbers, cherry tomatoes, sharp cheddar cheese, shredded carrots, red and green pepper slices; Orzo with Black beans (dessert free night for adults/ice cream for Claire)

Wednesday:  slow cooker meal:  Chicken Stew (chicken breasts in broth, rubbed sage, garlic, oregano, basil leaf grown on the deck; chunks of sweet potatoes, baby carrots, green beans) with Cranberry Sauce and Sliced Pears/Apples.  NO dessert.  

Thursday:  Pasta and meatballs in Marinara Sauce; Salad; Garlic bread

Friday: traveling to the cape/beach house! (dinner someplace on the road like Panera or Subway)......

What's on your menu this week??