Beginning the season off right, we performed our annual family trek to Hanna, IN to purchase trees from our favorite Christmas tree farmer.
As usual, it was worth the drive to be able to wander around through rows of evergreens, seeking out photo ops and of course searching for that perfect tree.
Though our eldest son did not join us (he was occupied with Christmas activities elsewhere), the little guy had a blast helping Opa saw and drag the trees.
This year the weather was mild and not raining (yay) so I had the opportunity to get a great group shot.
Oh, the yule-tide memories.
Later that week, another seasonal transition had to be made.
This guy was begging to be turned into a yummy pie. This being a feat which I had never set out to accomplish, I decided it was worthy of a blog post :)
Thanks to the Pioneer Woman, I found a recipe to help me turn a pumpkin into a scrumptious pie.
First, we cut it in half.
Then we scooped out the guts (the boys' favorite part)
Of course we saved those seeds and enjoyed a delicious snack later in the day.
We cut the pumpkin into chunks, and steamed/boiled half in a covered pot, and roasted half (ran out of room in the pot!).
After they cooled, I pureed them in the food processor and set to work on the pie.
It wasn't the prettiest I've made, but it was delicious and worth the effort.
So, by now we've devoured our yummy pie (with 4 bags of extra pumpkin puree to spare in the freezer) and successfully decorated our new tree.
Season transition complete. Now we prepare to joyfully celebrate the advent of our Messiah.
