It's Apple Season!

It's apple season in Northern California, which means Apple Hill time! One of our family traditions is to drive up to Camino each fall and visit the many apple ranches off of Hwy 50. Our favourites are High Hill Apple Ranch pictured below and Rainbow Ranch. We get caramel apples, apple cider, apple fudge, and fun crafts at High Hill. At Rainbow Ranch we get apple donuts, Bobby's favourite!

The ranch stocks the lake with fish for the kids to fish for.

Chandler brought his friend Matt and Josh with us this year.

A couple in our ward has apple trees that were overloaded with apples and they gave us a whole box! I quickly set to work and made apple pies and apple butter. Since it is also peach season I also made two little peach pies and canned some peaches as well. I never knew I liked canning and baking so much!

Home grown apples.

My apple pie!

Canned peaches, apple butter, and an apple marinade, so yummy!

Two little peach pies... to die for!

Farewell to Gaston

These are the last shots of our cockerel, Gaston before I took him back to the feed store where I bought him. I would have loved to have kept him, but we aren't allowed to have roosters in the city. :(

Just as we finally got up the gumption to get rid of Gaston a suspicion I had was confirmed this morning that our little Chouette is actually Claude. We heard this little guy beginning his weak new crow this morning!

The first signs I had where the hackles (the feathers around his neck) and the pointed feathers draping around his tail. He doesn't have a large comb and that's why I wasn't sure.

Rowan goes to preschool and work??

 Rowan started preschool this year! He is in a co-op down in Rocklin with some other kids from the Rocklin Stake. There are 6 boys and each mom takes a turn doing pre school at her house for a week. Rowan loves it and I'm told that he's the calm one. He comes home with fun projects and coloring that he's done. When I pick him up the first thing he asks me is, "Where is sister?" They don't like to separated for long!

Chandler also started Jr. High this year and loves it!

Rowan has a new game he loves to play. Every morning when he wakes up, the first thing he wants are his tools. He get's into the drawer and gets his measuring tapes and masking tape. Then he says he has to go to work. This is what he does...

I find this on the house, the cars, the plants. He very carefully measures and then tapes everything! Whenever Bobby is doing any home projects Rowan is always right there helping. He loves working with tools and building. I've had to begin hiding the screwdrivers...