AUTUMN IS IN THE AIR.....HALLOWEEN IS NEAR




        
                                                   

   
 Colorful Lady     
By E. Joanne (Gordon) Kennedy
Autumn has come courting, leaving her old summer flame behind
I see her but once a year, yet my heart yearns for her through each season
She comes whirling in with a refreshing burst of a crisp breeze
And leaves a new and invigorating scent in the air


She carries with her a paint brush and a palette of brilliant colors
To begin a masterpiece on an inviting seasonal canvass
Soon she will dance, her calico skirt rustling in the
Colorful fancy she has created


For some, autumn means work
For children it means good times and play
It means piles of raked leaves to frolic in
A visit to the pumpkin patch to pick out one for the perfect Jack-O-Lantern
Hayrides, apple cider, candy corn, popcorn balls, bobbing for apples


For me it is a time of reflection, remembering a time long ago
We shuffled and jumped for joy in her rain of hues
We rushed inside from play with a red nose and blushed cheeks
A cup of hot chocolate warmed our hands and heart


I drank in her very essence along with the cocoa
I embraced every hour of her visits, knowing that I would soon
Wake to find that she had faded away into Old Man Winter and
I would be homesick to see her 'til she came around again







Pumpkins Galore!


How to Make Nutty Chocolate Caramel Apples


How to Make Nutty Chocolate Caramel Applesthumbnail
Make Nutty Chocolate Caramel Apples
Although caramel apples are luscious by themselves, adding a layer of
chocolate will turn them into a fabulously decadent treat.
Makes four apples.

Difficulty:
Easy

Instructions



Things You'll Need


  • 4 caramel apples
  • 8 oz. baking chocolate
  • 2 c. chopped walnuts
  • 2 tsp. butter or shortening
  • Groceries
  • Greased Baking Sheets
  • Microwave-safe Bowls
  • Spoons

    • 1

      Make caramel apples (see recipe under Related eHows).
    • 2
      Refrigerate caramel apples for 15 to 30 minutes, or until caramel has set.
    • 3
      Place chocolate and butter or shortening in a large microwavable bowl.
    • 4
      Cook on medium for 1 minute. Stir.
    • 5
      Return bowl to microwave and cook on medium for another 1 to 2 minutes, or until all chocolate is nearly melted, stirring every minute.
    • 6
      Remove bowl and stir until chocolate is completely melted and mixture is smooth.
    • 7

      Dip caramel apples in chocolate or drizzle with chocolate as desired.
    • 8

      Roll apples in chopped nuts while the chocolate is still soft.
    • 9
      Put apples on greased cookie sheet until chocolate is set and firm.
    • October Events
October 1--Free rural delivery of mail began in the United States, 1896.--First "Model T" Ford put on the market, 1908.--Jimmy Carter, 39th President of the United States, born in Plains, Ga., 1924.
October 2
--Mohandas Gandhi, Indian political leader, born 1869.--Cordell Hull, American statesman, born 1871. October 3--George Bancroft, American historian, born 1800.--Eleonora Duse, Italian actress, born 1859. ~ October 4--Rutherford B. Hayes, 19th President of the United States, born at Delaware, Ohio, 1822.--Painter Jean Francois Millet born 1814.--Artist Frederic Remington born 1861. --The Soviet Union launched first artificial satellite, 1957.October 5--Gregorian calendar introduced, 1582.--Denis Diderot, French author, born 1713.--Chester A. Arthur, 21st President of the United States, born in Fairfield, Vt., 1829.--Joshua Logan, American playwright, born 1908.--President Harry S. Truman made the first presidential telecast address from the White House, 1947. October 6--Jenny Lind, Swedish singer, born 1820.--George Westinghouse, American inventor, born 1846.--Le Corbusier, Swiss-born architect, born 1887.--Anwar el-Sadat, president of Egypt, assassinated in Cairo, 1981.October 7--First double-decked steamboat, the Washington, arrived at New Orleans, 1816.--James Whitcomb Riley, Hoosier poet, born 1849.--Niels Bohr, Danish physicist, born 1885. October 8--John M. Hay, American statesman, born 1838.--Chicago fire began, and burned for about 30 hours, 1871.--Eddie Rickenbacker, American air ace, born 1890. October 9--Camille Saint-Saens, French composer, born 1835. October 10--Henry Cavendish, English scientist, born 1731.--Giuseppe Verdi, Italian opera composer, born 1813.--U.S. Naval Academy opened at Annapolis, Md., 1845.--Norwegian explorer and statesman Fridtjof Nansen born 1861.--Helen Hayes, American actress, born 1900. October 11--Eleanor Roosevelt, wife of President Franklin D. Roosevelt, born 1884.--Francois Mauriac, French novelist, born 1885. October 12--Columbus landed in America, 1492.--Ralph Vaughan Williams, British composer, born 1872. October 13--White House cornerstone laid, 1792.--Rudolf Virchow, German scientist, born 1821. October 14--William the Conqueror won the Battle of Hastings, which assured the conquest of England, 1066.--William Penn, founder of Pennsylvania, born 1644.--Eamon de Valera, president of the Irish Republic, born 1882.--Dwight D. Eisenhower, 34th President of the United States, born at Denison, Tex., 1890.--E. E. Cummings, American poet, born 1894. October 15--Virgil, Roman poet, born 70 B.C.--J. F. Pilatre de Rozier became first person to make an ascent in a captive balloon, 1783.--Helen Hunt Jackson, American novelist, born 1830.--Philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche born 1844.--Clayton Antitrust Act became law, 1914. October 16--Dictionary editor Noah Webster born 1758.--Oscar Wilde, Irish-born dramatist, born 1854.--David Ben-Gurion, Israeli prime minister and Zionist leader, born 1886.--Eugene O'Neill, American playwright and Nobel Prize winner, born 1888. October 17--British general John Burgoyne surrendered his army at Saratoga, 1777.--Abolitionist John Brown and his men seized the United States arsenal at Harpers Ferry, Va. (now W. Va.), 1859. October 18--Henri Bergson, French philosopher, born 1859.--The United States flag was formally raised over Alaska, 1867.--Pierre Elliott Trudeau, prime minister of Canada, born 1919.October 19--First general court in New England held, Boston, 1630.--British troops under Cornwallis surrendered at Yorktown, 1781.--Thomas Edison began first successful demonstration of his electric light, 1879. October 20--Architect Sir Christopher Wren born 1632.--John Dewey, American philosopher, born 1859. October 21--Magellan entered strait that bears his name, 1520.--Hokusai, Japanese artist, born 1760.--Samuel Taylor Coleridge, English poet, born 1772.--U.S.S. Constitution, better known as Old Ironsides, launched, 1797.--British Admiral Nelson was killed defeating the French and Spanish at Trafalgar, 1805.--Alfred Nobel, Swedish philanthropist and founder of the Nobel Prize, born 1833. October 22--Franz Liszt, Hungarian composer, born 1811.--Sam Houston inaugurated as first president of the Republic of Texas, 1836. October 23--British began offensive at El Alamein in Egypt in World War II, 1942.--Battle for Leyte Gulf in the Philippines began in World War II, 1944. October 24--Anton van Leeuwenhoek, Dutch microscopist and naturalist, born 1632.--First transcontinental telegram sent, 1861.--United Nations formally established when necessary number of members ratified charter, 1945. October 25--Henry V of England defeated French at Agincourt in Hundred Years' War, 1415.--Thomas B. Macaulay, English historian, born 1800.--"Waltz King" Johann Strauss, Jr., born 1825.--Georges Bizet, French composer, born 1838.--Spanish painter Pablo Picasso born 1881.--Richard E. Byrd, American polar explorer, born 1888. October 26--Helmuth von Moltke, Prussian general, born 1800. -- Erie Canal opened to traffic, 1825. October 27--Niccolo Paganini, Italian violinist, born 1782.--The Federalist papers began appearing in the New York newspaper Independent Journal, 1787.--Theodore Roosevelt, 26th President of the United States, born in New York City, 1858.--Captain James Cook, English explorer, born 1728. October 28--Harvard College founded, 1636.--Statue of Liberty dedicated, 1886.--Jonas Salk, American developer of a polio vaccine, born 1914. October 29--James Boswell, Scottish biographer of Samuel Johnson, born 1740.--Cartoonist Bill Mauldin born 1921.--Blackest day in stock market history, 1929. October 30--John Adams, second President of the United States, born in Braintree (now Quincy), Mass., 1735.--Benito Mussolini, founder of fascism, became premier of Italy, 1922.October 31--According to tradition, the day Martin Luther nailed his 95 theses to the door of a church at Wittenberg, 1517.--Jan Vermeer, Dutch painter, born 1632.--King's College (now Columbia University) founded, 1754.--Nevada became the 36th state, 1864.--Sir Hubert Wilkins, Australian explorer, born 1888.


October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month

A Little Weather Lore
  • A warm November is the sign of a bad winter.
  • Thunder in the fall foretells a cold winter.
  • If animals have an especially thick coat of fur, it will be a cold winter.
  • When squirrels bury their nuts early, it will be a hard winter
  • If the woolly worms head is more black than colored, the coldest part of the winter will come in the first months of winter.
  • The more black than brown a wooly worm has, and/or the wider the black stripe, the worse the winter.
  • If fruit trees bloom in the fall, the weather will be severe the following winter.
  • If berries or nuts are plentiful, it will be a hard winter.
  • A cold winter is succeeded by a warm winter and vice versa.
  • If the first snow falls on unfrozen ground, expect a mild winter.
  • It will be a bad winter if trees keep their leaves until late in the fall
  • Hornets nest built in the tops of trees point to a mild winter.
  • The first twelve days of the year are thought to foretell the weather for each of the next twelve months. The variant is the 12 days from new Christmas (Dec. 25) to old Christmas (Jan. 5) determine the weather.
  • If an owl hoots on the east side of a mountain it denotes bad weather.


"The clump of maples on the hill,
And this one near the door,
Seem redder, quite a lot, this year
Than last, or year before;
I wonder if it's jest because
I Love the Old State more!"
-   David L. Cady, October in Vermont  

Giant Pumpkin Bowl

What you'll need:

  • 1 giant pumpkin
  • 1 big stainless steel bowl (plastic will work too)
  • 1 pumpkin carving tool
  • Pencil

How to make it:

  1. Placing the bowl upside down over the stem of the pumpkin, trace around the perimeter with a pencil.
  2. Using the carving tool, cut about a quarter of an inch inside the circle you drew on top of the pumpkin. (See photo.)
  3. Place your bowl snuggly in the top hole. (See photo.)
  4. Fill your pumpkin bowl with a bunch of Halloween treats like these candy corn rice treats.
  Tips:
  1. If you can't find a huge pumpkin for this craft, you can look into buying an artificial pumpkin like a Funkin.

Candy Corn Rice Treats


These candy corn rice treats will look fabulous in a giant pumpkin bowl, making a centerpiece that will be the star of your Halloween party table.

Ingredients

  • Nonstick cooking spray
  • 3 tablespoons butter
  • 1 package (10 ounces) marshmallows or 4 cups mini marshmallows
  • 6 cups Rice Krispies cereal
  • White almond bark
  • Yellow and orange food coloring

Cooking Instructions

  1. Coat a 13x9x2-inch baking pan with nonstick cooking spray. In large saucepan melt butter over low heat. Add marshmallows and stir until completely melted. Remove from heat. Add Rice Krispies cereal. Stir until well coated.
  2. Using buttered spatula or waxed paper, evenly press mixture into prepared pan. Allow to cool slightly, then cut into 2-inch squares with a buttered knife.  While the Rice Krispies treats are still warm, shape them into cones roughly the shape of a candy corn piece.
  3. Divide the almond bark evenly among three microwave-safe bowls.  Microwave each batch of almond bark in the microwave in three batches. One at a time, microwave each bowl of almond bark until just melted. Color one of the batches with yellow food coloring and one with orange food coloring Leave the remaining batch white.
  4. Frost each shaped treat with the orange, white and yellow colored almond bark, yellow at the top, orange in the middle and white at the pointed tip.
  5. Wrap each one with plastic wrap to keep them fresh until your party.
  6. Put each treat in a cellophane bag for presentation and tie with a black ribbon and a black plastic spider ring (look for them in your local party supply store). Right before your party starts, pile them into the pumpkin-bowl for a fun presentation for your guests.
Servings: About 20 treats

Work with one color of almond bark frosting at a time, as it cools quickly, and then won’t spread as well. Re-heat as needed.
 The treats are best if served the same day. To store, wrap tightly in plastic wrap.