weather

Toddler jumping in a puddle with rain boots

Last Harvest, Challah, and Would You Eat This Donut?

I was at Dunkin’ the other day and saw that they have a spicy ghost pepper donut. Would you eat it? I think I would try it because I feel like it would have the whole sweet and spicy thing going on.

The DIY decorating kit below the ghost pepper donut looks pretty cool, too. 

Spicy ghost pepper donut from Dunkin

Do you spell it donut or doughnut? Apparently, donut is the Americanized spelling of the tasty treat. Also, what is your favorite type or flavor of donut? I like Dunkin’s strawberry frosted donut with rainbow sprinkles 🙂

I think I harvested the last of the vegetables from our garden today. We’ve had a few frosts, so I think everything is about done.  

Green peppers and tomatoes from vegetable garden in Pittsburgh, PA

I would love to do indoor gardening throughout the winter with a grow light, but we have one curious cat who likes to nibble on flowers and plants. 

We’ve been getting a bit of rain here in Pittsburgh the past few days. I enjoy rainy days for the most part. They feel like the perfect type of day to light a candle and read a book. Rainy days are also fun with a toddler who likes to jump in puddles!

Toddler jumping in a puddle with rain boots

We filmed a vlog on Monday, so you can see Sadie in action at the 10:30 mark in the video. There’s also some cooking (four ingredient pizza pockets!), grocery shopping, and homeschooling in there 🙂

I braided this loaf of challah earlier today and it’s in the oven right now. It always feels great to braid some bread and do things with my hands. 

Challah bread braided before going into oven

What do you think of rainy days?

Have you ever had challah bread?

Adventuring and Getting Creative in the Kitchen

Pittsburgh has been getting some warmer weather and sunshine lately! So much so that we mowed our lawn twice this week and it was warm enough for Mavis and I to take a little adventure to a creek near our house.

Cocker spaniel puppy by water

This was her first experience with a body of water and she was definitely curious, but not super into it. Lola enjoys water, so I wish she had been with us to show Mavis how fun it is, but I’m not confident taking two dogs by the water with an almost 20 week baby bump, lol.

The warmer weather has me dreaming of gardening, too. Jimmy and I were back and forth on starting a garden this year since our baby is due in September and we have done like zero things to prepare for his or her arrival, but we figured we’ll just make the garden smaller this year and if it gets neglected, then oh well. We love gardening too much to give it up 🙂

I’ve been having fun in the kitchen lately! I think my favorite way to cook and bake is to see what we have on hand and then improvise and create meals or treats out of those items.

Tabbouleh ingredients cucumber, tomato, green onions, bulgur and quinoa mix, and lemonTabbouleh

I realized we had some of the classic tabbouleh ingredients on had yesterday, so I improvised off of this recipe and our little side dish turned out wonderfully!

I had also bought a container of cocoa powder and was in the mood for cookies, so I made these chocolate drop cookies and highly recommend the recipe. It’s simple and they definitely hit the spot.

King Arthur Flour Chocolate Drop Cookies on cooling rack

Other ways I’ve been creative in the kitchen lately include whipping up my favorite homemade baked beans and adding some extra spices, making a strawberries and cream oatmeal creation, and cooking cereal bars with marshmallow fluff, vanilla Chex, and Mr. Goodbars.

Alright, I better get going. I’m having my mother-in-law, mom, and sister over this evening and need to clean up our house a bit! I got the kitchen all cleaned from the aforementioned cooking and baking, but the rest has been a bit neglected 😉

Do you like to get creative with cooking and baking?