Happy Fall, Y'all Party

Good Monday morning!

The Showcase Pic this morning is of Josh leaving for the Auburn game. He and Mikie had a ball, and I am SO glad they were able to go.

The Gallery Pics are of us watching Amazing Race. I know what you're thinking. No, Austin has not joined the military. Yes, he was wearing camo pants, but ALL of his jeans were being washed and ironed. Yes, he could have worn shorts, but (will wonders never cease?) it was cold outside. (You can read the entire haircut story under Belinda's Project 365. He's the picture of the day!) We've heard if you rub it, it will grow... So if you see Austin out and about, please rub his head so it will be picture-worthy for the Faulkner Five 2009 Christmas Card. Thank you.

I hope everyone had a great weekend. Mine turned out a little differently than planned, but it was still good. Mike and Josh received an unexpected invite to the Auburn game Saturday, so I very graciously postponed my date with Mikie so they could go. (I'm SO unselfish that way.) Actually, it was kind of a no-brainer. If you are offered tickets, you have to go. Even I know that!

So my Saturday was very, very nice. I baked, did some housework, did some shopping. It was just a "nothing" sort of day which doesn't happen very often... or not often enough.

Sunday was wonderful with Austin home for the day and night, and we DID finish the weekend watching Amazing Race together... so some things stayed as planned. (Mikie and I are going to try the date thing again this coming Saturday night. I've got a good feeling about it!)

Well, after the contest Friday, I had the weekend to think about the changes I'll be making to A Simple Life beginning today! Here is the new schedule. (I'll also be adding it to the sidebar.)

Monday - Monday will continue to be Party/Event day, but I will be adding Family Devotions to the mix. One of the three (Party, Event OR Family Devotion) will be featured on Monday.

I will also be adding Monday Mayhem to the line-up. This is basically what I've been doing all along, but with a cute name. It will just be a re-cap of anything interesting that may have happened over the weekend. (A lot of Mondays, this will be a short section!)

Tuesday - Tuesday received the best response of all. Everyone likes trying new, easy recipes. Tuesday will stay exactly the same.

Wednesday - Seasonal Traditions and Wednesday Wisdom will also stay put. There were no complaints mentioned in this department.

Thursday - Dates with spouses and/or kids will continue to hold the Thursday spot. However, Weekend Family Fun is going to be replaced by a new section called Blog Linkage. I've referred readers to other blogs whenever something has come up in random posts, but on Thursdays there will be a list and description of links that go along with A Simple Life, and the things I talk about on this particular blog. Under my Blog List, Boo Mama occasionally has a "link post" which is great. It is also easy to refer to when it is listed in one post and not just here and there. Thursday will be the place to keep up with new and interesting links.

Friday - TV Reviews are out of here! I don't think many people watch Survivor any more. I will probably refer to the shows I watch in random posts, but not all on one day. Also, the Book of the Week will now become Book(s)of the Month. I will have a book or a list of books the last Friday of each month. Weekend Happenings will remain the same.

I hope one of the biggest changes I am making will work well. I would like to have a Special Guest on A Simple Life the first Monday of each month. (This will begin November 2.) I am preparing a simple questionnaire which I will give to a "willing" participant. (Again, I have put 65+ names in a bowl, and I will be drawing from the bowl every month. The bowl is full of names of women I know and admire in my everyday life, as well as bloggers I have come to know and admire over the past year.)

If the person agrees to be the Special Guest, they will need to answer as many (or as few) of the questions on the questionnaire as they want, and they will be featured on the first Monday of the month. If the person would rather not be featured, no harm done... I just draw another name and no one will ever know! It's that simple. Also, the questions are NOT difficult.

If the Special Guest has a Party, Event, Family Devotion, Wednesday Wisdom, Date, Recipe or Book they would like to share, it will be posted on the day those items would normally appear. (For example, if Gigi is the Special Guest and she has a recipe to share, her questionnaire will appear on Monday and her recipe will appear on Tuesday... Recipe Day.) And by the way, I don't know anyone named Gigi... yet.

It all goes back to something I wrote about a couple of weeks ago... Everyone has a story to share. My favorite stories have the same ingredients... some tears, some laughter, some struggles, some victories, but always, always a happy ending. And as a Christian, I DO have a happy ending... or should I say a happy new beginning. I've heard Pastor Kevin say, "Your last breath on Earth will be your first breath in Heaven." That's the way I want every one's story to "end."

I already have a person in mind to be the first Special Guest. I did NOT draw her name out of the bowl because she doesn't have an entire month to get ready for the "Blog Spotlight." I wanted to ask her in person to make sure she didn't feel obligated. So tune in November 2 for our first ever Special Guest, and we'll all get to hear a little of her story.

This will be our new schedule:

Monday - Monday Mayhem, Party/Event/Family Devotion
Tuesday - Recipes
Wednesday - Wednesday Wisdom, Seasonal Traditions
Thursday - Blog Linkage, Dates
Friday - Weekend Happenings
First Monday of the Month- Special Guest
Last Friday of the Month - Books

We will re-assess the changes in six months, and see if anything needs changing again. (Except for the color. The color is non-negotiable!)

Happy Fall, Y'all Party

This is a party for fall lovers, young and old. It includes old-fashioned fun, relays and great food.

Invite up to ten people (teenagers or adults) and have the following activities. This party is definitely an outside party, so check the weather often and have a Plan B if you have to move it inside at the last minute.

Wheelbarrow Races - You will need two wheelbarrows, a little hay and two blankets for this race. After you have "padded" each wheelbarrow with hay and a blanket, divide the guests into two teams. Once the teams are divided equally, one person will ride in the wheelbarrow while another person pushes them to a designated tree or bale of hay at the other end of the yard. Each team will have to push the wheelbarrow around the tree or hay and make it back to their team. Depending on numbers, make sure everyone gets at least one turn pushing OR riding. For the relay to be fun, there should be at least THREE runs per team.

Pumpkin Chunkin' - This is hard for a pumpkin lover like myself, but it is fun, too. Again, supply as many medium-sized pumpkins as there are people. If there are too many people, ask each team to pick two of their strongest players to chunk a pumpkin. (You will only need two pumpkins per team.) Standing behind a line, let the two members of each team take turns chunkin' their pumpkin as far as they can. Measure the distance to see who wins this game.

Scarecrow Relay #1 - Give each team the following items:

1 pair of overalls
1 flannel shirt
1/2 bale of hay
1 farmer's hat
1 pumpkin (for the head)
1 Sharpie marker (to decorate the face)
1 lawn chair (to let the scarecrow sit when finished)

When you begin the relay, the team who finishes their scarecrow first wins. The scarecrow has to be able to sit independently in the chair (head and all) for it to be considered totally finished.

Pumpkin Pie Throwing Contest - You do NOT have to make a dozen pumpkin pies to be wasted. Use food coloring to make an inexpensive brand of whipped cream orange. Tape three or four quarters to the bottom of the pie tin before adding the whipped cream. Then divide into teams and have them take turns trying to hit the target. (The target could be the scarecrows you just finished making.) Adding the quarters will give the pie tin a little weight and allow them to throw it farther. The team who hits the target the most times will win.

Searching For a Penny in a Haystack - Make two piles of loose hay (fairly large piles). Drop 10 to 20 pennies in each pile in different spots. Give each team a time limit (1 to 2 minutes) to go through their pile of hay and find as many pennies as possible. The team with the most pennies is the winner.

You can finish off the evening with an old-fashioned hayride around the neighborhood. If you are taking teenagers and you don't have a trailer to pull them, you can use loose hay in the back of a truck with them sitting DOWN and SAFELY ride around a large neighborhood in the crisp, fall air.

There's a lot of food which would be good for a party like this, so check in tomorrow for not one, not two, but SEVERAL recipes to help make this party a huge success!

ADDITIONS - If you begin this party before dark, you can let the kids or adults play horseshoes or bob for apples.

TODAY is the day to plan this party for family and friends. I've had two of them, and they are always a lot of fun!

Have a great Monday. Tomorrow's recipes come straight out of my new Taste of Home Halloween Cookbook. You don't want to miss that!

Take care, and I'll talk to you tomorrow.

Sincerely,

The Enchanting Belinda