Ahhh, Autumn

My absolute most favorite time of the year in Chicago has arrived . . .

. . . ahhhh.

Sixty degree days and chilly nights . . . yellow and orange trees . . . apple orchards and pumpkin patches . . .

. . . and this gorgeous view outside my window.

I squealed with delight like a schoolgirl when my October Southern Living arrived in the mail. Page after page of drop-dead gorgeous homes filled with pumpkins and dried leaves and gourds. It made me want to put on some boots and a scarf and watch a football game.

And the recipes. Wowzers. Every single page in the back half of the magazine has been dog-eared. Pecans and apples and soups and casseroles. Yum, yum, yumminess. So I started with the apple-pear with maple-pecan bacon salad with cranberry viaigrette. Bacon and maple syrup and pecans and pears and apples and grapes and gorgonzola. Yes, ma'am, it was amazing. The bacon is actually dipped in maple syrup, covered with pecans, and then baked. And I added some grilled chicken just for fun. My, my, my. Mouth watering yet?

The next night I moved to the other side of the page to Chicken Marsala with pecans. I made a side of gouda and garlic mashed potatoes and some leftover salad from the night before, and then my husband knew for sure he married the right woman :).

Tonight will be a fantastic Pioneer Woman (gosh, don't you love her?) chicken thigh recipe. The hubs is super-appreciative of anything I cook, but he has told me many times that I should try more chicken thighs than breasts. Breasts are just so easy -- I don't even know what to do with skin and bones -- but Ree may have changed my mind, so here it goes, Clint. I might get a diamond necklace after this one.

With a new season, comes a new sport. Mimi started a soccer class at Lil' Kickers (they don't really play games. Just a lot of fun drills and playing). Mimi kicks ass at soccer. She may not be the best -- well, she's not the best. There's a little boy in her class who plays like it's his job. He races down the field, high-fives his dad, and then returns to the start before the rest of the class has even gotten half-way finished. Anywho, she loves it and really seems to handle the ball well with her feet.

And she looks really, really cute in her uniform.

Chicago seems to go all-out with Halloween, and almost every home in our neighborhood is decorated with orange lights and spider webs and ghosts. This makes for a very long walk to wherever we're going because Mimi constantly yells, "Wait, Mommy! Go back! I need to see the ghosts and spiders! Spoo-ookie!" She LOVES being scared. She asks over and over again to watch an episode of Curious George where he is afraid of the dark, a Veggie Tales movie called Where is God When I'm Scared? (which she insists is called God's Scared), and an Olivia episode where Ian pretends to be a ghost. By the way, Olivia is my favorite TV show by far. She is so smart and independent and awesome.

I must give you a Halloween sneaker.

Rooooaaaarrrrrr!!!

Sweetest little lion. Ever.

Last year I pretended to be super-mom and made their costumes, and, well, that was just stupid, stupid, stupid. I didn't have the time or energy, and I decided this year would be different. While at Target one day, we walked down the costume aisles, and I let Mimi pick her costume all by herself. I tried to persuade her to be a fairy and Mack could be a gnome. Nope. What about the cute ice cream cone? Or the ladybug? Uh uh.

So what did she fall in love with? A pink pony with purple sparkle wings. Sigh. Not my first choice. Not even my twentieth choice, but whatevs. I'm sure Mimi rock as a flying pony.

And here's a little bit of brother and sister love. Sweet babies. Mack can totally climb up Mimi's little steps and onto her bed, and then they jump and squeal and throw off all the pillows and think it's awesome. And I just noticed that she is lying on a mini Pillow Pet that is a pink and purple unicorn . . . was this the inspiration for her Halloween costume??

As much as I love the changes that go along with this new season, my larynx does not. As of Wednesday night, I finally had a tiny bit of voice back just in time to see this . . .

That's right, homeys. SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Huge fan. HUGE. It was awesome, and my sister told me to use spirit fingers instead of squealing. He he.

And I think formal introductions are necessary. This is my sweet Lacy:

We at the Darby household love, love, love her. On our way home from the show, she and I discussed how I totally offered her a nanny position after speaking about 3 words to her on the phone. She responded with, "Don't you at least want to meet me first?" and I, a fly by the seat of my pants kinda girl, knew I probably needed someone like her. And later I learned she was also a big fan of SYTYCD, and I knew it was a match made in heaven.

So tonight we're having chicken thighs and tomorrow we're off to Michigan to explore a pumpkin patch and a winery. Pictures to come . . .