Blueberries!

Last weekend, Michael and the boys picked blueberries at Poppa and Mimi's house. We love fresh blueberries, and I am always looking for new recipes to try them in. Almost two years ago, I bought a pocket pie maker from Williams Sonoma and never got around to using it. I had some extra time this week and decided to make some mini pies!

Blueberry pie filling:
3 cups fresh or frozen blueberries
1/2 cup blueberry jelly or jam
2 teaspoons corn starch
Mix these ingredients in a bowl and set aside while you make your pie crust.

Pie Crust:
1/2 cup softened cream cheese
1/2 cup softened butter
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour.

Mix the softened cream cheese and butter together. Then, incorporate the flour a little at a time until everything is mixed together well. Roll the pie crust out of a floured surface.

I used my star pocket pie maker to cut out the individual pies. You need two stars per pie. You could also use large cookie cutters or a glass to cut out shapes.

Take one dough cut out, lay it on the pie maker, then add some of the blueberry pie filling.

Add another dough cut out, then close the pie maker to crimp the edges. If you don't have a pocket pie maker, you could just add the filling to one piece of dough, then add the second dough piece, and crimp the edges using a fork.

Lay your mini pies on a baking sheet. Brush the pies with an egg wash and sprinkle them with sanding or table sugar. Bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes or until golden brown.

Here are the fresh from the oven mini blueberry pies! They were so yummy!

***Tip - next time I will make sure the edges are crimped well. Some of the filling oozed out while baking.

Alpine Village

We attended the Alpine Village at Trinity Baptist Church in Cordova, TN. This is our second year to attend. They transform their recreation center into a Swiss Alpine village. The village consists of several shops where kids can make ornaments, cards and crafts. There is a candy shop, a book shop and a little church with stained glass windows. They also have an area where kids can play in the "snow"! It is really an awesome experience and the kids love it. After visiting the shops, you can also see Santa!

We spent Thanksgiving weekend in Liberty. Luke and Andrew loved being there with Mimi and Poppa. Luke especially loved going to the "forest" (as he likes to call the woods) and helping his Daddy and Poppa move a deer stand.

Fall Leaves

Michael decided to go out and rake leaves in the front yard. Luke and Andrew wanted to go and "help"! I'm not sure how much help they were, but they sure had a great time! (And yes, they were dressed in their pajamas!!!)

Weekend Getaway!

Michael and I were able to go away for the weekend. We arranged for Luke and Andrew to spend the weekend with Mimi and Poppa, and we went to New Orleans. We really enjoyed our restful time away & the boys had a great time with Mimi and Poppa!!

Fall Festival

We had our annual Fall Festival at our church. Michael has entered the chili cook-off the past several years. This year he was trying to defend his 1st place winning from last year. He didn't place 1st but he did get a 3rd place award! The kids had a great time dressing up, jumping, riding on the hay ride and trunk or treating. Our car won 1st place in the best decorated trunk. We used all of the kids art that they had made from Parents Day Out! We had a long day of fun. Later, we all went trick or treating!

JAM 2009

Michael and I are co teachers for the RAs and GAs. We took the kids to JAM (Journey into Adventures in Missions) 2009 in Jackson, TN. The kids had a great time getting away and learning about different missionaries.