Picked a Peck

Red Delicious, and Golden and York! Oh my! Not to mention a couple of hard earned Granny Smith, some Romes, and lots of unknown apples we like to call "Hybrids" (Golden Delicious meets Granny Smith in a shaded, remote corner of the orchard, and well...the rest is delicious history).

We went apple picking at Hill High Farm this weekend, and it was such a fun day! Nothing says Autumn quite like driving into the Virginian countryside, with all the changing colors and cute little farm houses, turning off on a little dirt road that leads to a real-live farm, deciding between a peck a bushel or a half-bushel, and then spending a few hours walking up and down rows of apple trees searching for the best apples. We were a little bummed when we were told there were no more Granny Smiths--they're Brian's favorite, and I'm a sucker for an apple crisp that has a bit of a bite. But after hiking to the most remote part of the orchard, where either due to the gigantic hornets' nest or sheer distance no man but us dared to go, we saw 2 decent sized Granny Smiths up near the top of one of the trees. And up Brian went. I think he's part monkey. I, of course, snapped pictures thinking, "Ooooooooo blog." :)


After the apple picking fun, we strolled through the pumpkins, and had a glass of delicious apple cider at the little gift shop in the barn. Can we say fall? Fall, fall, fall, fall!!! Anyway, here's some of the pictures from our day at the farm:



I tell you, for someone who's not usually a planner, Brian sure has outdone himself lately. I believe we're on the path to making this the "fall of all falls". It will definitely go down in history, and might just be tough to match.

PS: Brian, I definitely think your tractor's sexy. As for mine, well...I guess it's not so bad either! :)

Getting Squirrely

Yes, we're newlyweds, but NO that is NOT what this post is about. :) This is a family friendly blog people. :) Sheesh...onward... :)

This is a typical ride to the grocery store for us:
"Ooooooo...Brian, look at the squirrel! He's eating an acorn! Hi little squirrel!"

This is a typical walk to the park for us:
"Ooooo...Brian! Squirrel! He's looking at us! Look...look at his cute little face! Hello...you're so cute!"

This is a typical trip to the mailbox for us (yep, we get the mail together...give us a break, we're newlyweds!):
"Oooooooo...Brian! The squirrels are chasing each other. Look how they run! [Insert me doing an idiotic impression of a squirrel, teeth and all]. Go little squirrels, go!"

Yes, being from Utah I am only used to seeing squirrels when I'm camping, and then maybe one or two. But here, oh my! They are EVERYWHERE! And they are so stinkin' cute. So, after obsessing about them every time I've gone outside in the past 4 months, I thought it was time to finally give them an official blog shout out. :) I should've known moving out here would be full of squirrel fun--after all, when I came to visit Brian last November I had quite the friendly little guy stalking me through the National Mall. He would NOT leave, and kept coming right up to me and standing on his little back legs to look. I was trying to figure out a way to cuddle him without getting rabies. Brian was getting a teensy bit jealous. :)


Since I've moved here they've all been a bit more bashful, but I know one day they'll talk back!

Bringin' Home the Bacon & Major Mess Makin'

I got the cutest text from Brian the other day while he was at work. Totally melted. Can you see why I love this guy so much? I didn't plan on sharing it, and am still kinda hesitant. I'm more of a personal person with displays of affection, but I needed a picture to go with the post (which is going to be pretty ooey gooey by my standards anyway)...and it IS pretty cute. :)

Every morning the alarm goes off way too early, and Brian jumps into the daily grind of getting ready for work. He's really cute about tip-toeing around the apartment in his attempt to not wake me up until he gives me a little goodbye smoocharooni. Sometimes I get scolded because I can't resist jumping out of bed and running to the door when I hear him putting on his shoes. Sadly, none of my lame attempts at persuading him to stay home ever work ("What if I get kidnapped?" :) ) , and somewhere between 7:30 and 8:00 every morning he's on a shuttle, bound for the metro, bound for downtown D.C, to save the world one computer audit at a time. :) Ok...so maybe he's not flying around like superman fighting crime, but seriously...he's my hero! (It's cheesy, I know, but true. Sorry Bri...you're going to be embarrassed, but I can't help that you're so stinkin' awesome.) I can't even describe how much I appreciate the fact that he works so hard to support us, and allows me to stay home. With some of the weird health stuff I've got going on, the extra sleep and slower pace has been a blessing. And even better, I get to take care of the house. I'm definitely not going to go so far as to say I love laundry, and cleaning (I'm not crazy, afterall...well...not super crazy anyway)... but I do love being able to do it while Brian's at work so when he gets home we can play. And I LOVE being able to whip up yummy things in the kitchen. Having time to cook and experiment with new recipes has been sooooooo much fun! And so.......messy? This Friday it was my turn to plan date night, and I decided on an indoor Fall Festival since it was raining outside. I was going to have homemade chicken noodle soup, with homemade bread sticks and noodles all ready when Brian got home, and then we'd watch Hocus Pocus with some yummy carmel apples. Weeellllllll...the meal turned out to be a bit more of a project than I'd bargained on, and Brian walked in to find the kitchen looking like...well...here's the picture:

To top it off, I couldn't find Hocus Pocus anywhere...so we spent the night cleaning up my mess and playing Scrabble. But I couldn't have enjoyed it more.

Anyway, thanks Bri for all you do. I really appreciate it. And I promise that if you keep bringin' home the bacon, I'll keep mess makin'. Deal? :)

Happy Fall!

My mom tells the story like this: "Your dad really wanted you girls to have middle names...I didn't think you needed them, so I told him to come up with one for you. He walked into the hospital room one day after I'd had you, and said, 'What about Amber Autumn?' I have no idea where it came from, but thought it was cute and agreed..." I like to tell the story like this: "Dad, you're a genius! How did you know me that well before I could even walk, talk or coo?" Seriously...fall makes me CRAZY! This is my very favorite time of year. I love the crisp feeling in the air, the spicy smell of fall candles, the changing colors, the idea of cozy nights wrapped up in a blanket with apple cider, the little kids in costumes...you get the idea. Lucky for me, Brian loves it too. I once dated a guy who told me fall was morbid. "Everything is dying, and winter is right around the corner. So, you dig death, eh?" WHAT?!! Needless to say, that relationship bit the dust, and I'm so happy to be with a guy who can appreciate the best nature has to offer. Granted, when he thinks fall, his first thought is about that first outing to a football stadium, but still... :)

We did a little celebrating of fall this weekend--I had a baby shower to go to Saturday morning, and when I returned Brian had a picnic all packed. Cute, right? He took me to Great Falls Park, and we enjoyed an afternoon of hiking wooded trails in the crispy weather. The water falls that give the park its name are beautiful, and the ruins of Matildaville (the little town that existed along the river in the early 19th century) are so cool! I think my favorite part was that feeling of being in the mountains, though. Ok...so we weren't really in the mountains, we were down in a gorge, but you could've fooled me. :) It was the perfect activity for our first "fally" Saturday...thanks Bri! And Happy Fall to everyone!!! If you come across us, and I'm jumping around singing, or twirling, or pointing at every tree I see, don't be scared...it's really not my fault...it's the season!

Auntie Amber

So, I mentioned that last weekend we were in South Carolina hanging out with Brian's family. But I forgot to tell you about the exciting epiphany I had while we were there: I AM AN AUNT!!! That is new and unusual for me, since I'm the oldest in my family. Woo hoo! So exciting! Especially since the two neices I inherited are quite possibly the cutest little girls EVER. Sienna, the oldest, let me have a "hair party" with her while we were there...we came up with quite the funky do. It was a blast. Then there's little Miya, who ran around saying, "Go Diego, go!" and tempting me with her oh-so-squeezable cheeks. :) I tell you, these girls are too cute for their own good, and boy do me and Brian love them!

To Sienna and Miya, a big kiss from Uncle Bri Bri and Auntie Amber! :) And to Alisha and Matthew, a big thanks for letting us stay with you--we had a great time!