Celebrating and Observed

September 20 was National Punch Day, National Pepperoni Pizza Day, National String Cheese Day, National Fried Rice Day, and National Care for Kids Day.

I nicely abandoned my children to work on my literacy activity for the day. I made them make pepperoni pizza while I was gone. Someone may have eaten string cheese that day but for sure the day after. Nobody attempted to make fried rice anytime around that holiday. The kids made punch the next day because they forgot to on the 20th. 

But I did read a book where there was punching happening.

And I did do the literacy activity with Jet.

 

The literacy activities for adult and children's calendars from Shadow Mountain Publishing for National Literacy Month for the few days around that time were:

 

September 20 Read somewhere new

Read before bedtime

 

September 21 Recommend a book to someone

Find a book about adventure

 

September 22 Enter the adult book giveaway!

Let your child "read" the pictures 

 

Part of my abandoning my children was so I could read more of A Lady's Guide to Love and Pirates for a few hours so I could finish it in time for The Proper Romance Book Club event on September 22.

I finished it on the 21st. Woohoo.

I'm grateful I did. September 21 was World Gratitude Day.

I also went around singing, "Do you remember the 21st night of September?"

 

Since A Lady's Guide to Love and Pirates is my favorite book I've read this year (and I've read it twice), I was excited about the book club to learn more from the author, Jennifer Moore. 

It took place on the first day of Fall. We have some Fall colors around, especially up in the mountains.

I had plenty to contribute during book club because I love that book so much. 

Often with this book club, the authors will add little behind the scenes info throughout the month about their book then there is an online event at the end of the month to listen to the author and host discuss things and comment in the chat. Those that comment are added into the drawing for a book. That's how I won When You Rescued Me by Sian Ann Bessey the end of last month.

This month was a little different. Jennifer Moore took us on a treasure hunt with clues to answer throughout the month. I loved it! Those that got them all right were entered to win a special prize.

Guess what. I won! I won the book, Pirateology. I'm excited to explore it with my family.

They also had the regular drawing for a book based on comments throughout the month and from the book club event.

I've been enjoying book clubs this year and reading challenges.

September Continues

September 9 was Wonderful Weirdos Day. We never have to put any effort into that holiday. We celebrate it by being us.

 

September 10 was National TV Dinner Day. I put a little more effort into that one, putting together a dinner with things you might find in a TV dinner. Crispy chicken, mashed potatoes, corn, brownies. Shout out to Jr. who baked the brownies for it.

On September 11, I took some time to reflect what happened 25 years ago. I found out that day someone I know was in the same building experiencing the same thing I did at the time the second tower was hit so we were both reflecting on similar things this year.

I also got out for a morning walk, which I hadn't done in a while.

On a brighter note, it was also Make Your Bed Day so I made pigs in a blanket. 

 

September 12 was National Video Games Day. The kids played video games. 

It was also National Chocolate Milkshake Day. Jeremy did some sketching of a chocolatey scene.

It was also Hug and High Five Day. Nichole, Jeremy, and I went to a funeral for my uncle so there were lots of hugs but not so many high fives.

You know family means so much to me, including extended family. Even if I haven't seen some of my cousins for years and we've gone in different directions, that love is always still there. We are always still family. It was also good for the three of us sisters to be there as well, representing the rest of our family.

 

Jeremy's sketch from that day must have been in my mind because the next day, September 13 was Roald Dahl Day and International Chocolate Day and National Peanut Day. Someone at church was wearing a purple dress. It made me think of Willy Wonka and chocolate. I pointed it out to her. Later she told me she had peanut M&Ms to celebrate. 

That day was also Positive Thinking Day. There was some positive thinking going on.

It was also Grandparents Day. I wished that happy holiday to my mom and sister.

And it was Kids Take Over the Kitchen Day. I told them to make dinner. I think they maybe made pizza? I don't know. I wasn't in charge. And I didn't take pictures.

 

Lots of emotions that week. 

Other September thins

Other things we did in September:

 

More Walks-

alone (or with the birds)

with Jet (he still really likes to ride in the stroller)

 

Can I just say what a gorgeous place we live in? It is a treat just to walk outside and look at our mountains.

 

FHE fun-

Jeremy's been trying to come up with ideas that are not the usual ideas for Family Home Evening activities. We did the glow stick story back in August. In September, we played "Keepy Uppy." We even put on the accompanying music and had fun. If you don't know, "Keepy Uppy" is a game the family played in an episode of Bluey. We even turned on a fan and added more and more balloons to our game. It was fun.

 

Creativity continues to happen.

I thought I was being nice one morning and made scrambled eggs and got out cheese and tortillas for making breakfast burritos. I even made a sign that said, "Go for it. Enjoy! (Love) Mom," with an arrow pointing toward the burrito fixings. 

Someone thought it would be funny to move the sign so it was pointing at the chocolate chip banana muffins that were in a different spot on the table. "Go for it? Enjoy? Oh, thanks, Mom." 

I agree it was funny. Points for creativity. Of course I was fine with them eating some muffins with their breakfast burritos. I love this family! 

 

One evening I was having a rough time and I needed to take my young men to a fireside at the stake center. I decided to stay for the fireside instead of just dropping them off and I'm glad I did. I needed the extra little spiritual uplift that night and sharing it with my boys was nice. I love my children so much.

Lots of reading. Jet likes it when Daddy reads to him.

 

Dress Up! 

Looking like Mommy? Or a ghost? Boo!

The Next Few Days

The day after our van and we had issues in Southern Utah, we went to church when a sister came up to me before church started and asked, "What's the holiday today?" I love that we're known for that. I let her know that September 21 was the anniversary of when Joseph Smith saw Angel Moroni who told him about the Book of Mormon. And it is also H.G. Wells' birthday. Then we chatted about Fall (since September 22 was the first day of Fall) and the Fall colors.

At home after church, I went around singing, "Do you remember the 21st night of September?" 

Jeremy and I took a big nap after our long day the day before.

Besides being the Autumnal Equinox, September 22 was Hobbit Day so I listened to Hobbit music.

We didn't have time to go out for a drive to look at Fall colors so there was a lot of just hanging out.

 

 Then as you know, I got sick a few days later, so that was the end of celebrating September.

A Little September Catching Up

September!

September 1 was Johann Pachelbel's Birthday. I watched something with Pachelbel's Canon playing in the background.

It was also Labor Day so I got a selfie with the American flag. 

September 3 was Skyscraper Day. Nichole very obligingly took a picture of a 10 story building near where she was for me because I wasn't going to get out to see anything taller. 

 

September 4 was National Wildlife Day. I took some time for myself to go for a drive and a little walk to see some Fall colors starting to turn and to look for birds. I saw some birds (nothing exciting), a squirrel, and lots of yellow jackets.

 

September 5 was Lazy Mom's Day. I tried to be lazy. I only succeeded a little. I decided to let myself sit down and watch a movie but of course I fell asleep during it. This was in the morning after the boys were off to school. I'm usually awake in the morning. Then again, I'm usually moving around and not being lazy in the morning.

Friends Helping Friends

September 19 was International Talk Like a Pirate Day. Often we'll do pirate themed food but we didn't this year. Instead my friend, Stephanie, and I got together to make a meal. I supplied ingredients for making an Instant Pot dish, my go to honey garlic chicken from sixsistersstuff.com because she wasn't as familiar with using the Instant Pot as I am so I wanted to teach her. She supplied ingredients for making cauliflower rice. 

So we each learned a new recipe, had great bonding time together, and each went away with a meal for our families.

 

I did celebrate Talk Like a Pirate Day by putting on some Monkey Island music.

 

September 19 was also Slimey the Worm's Birthday. This is how Jr. celebrated when I reminded him who Slimey the Worm was. 

Jr.: Oh, I love trash. I love you, Mom.

Then he realized what he said and corrected himself.

Jr.: AND I love you, Mom. AND I love you.

 

September 20 was Pepperoni Pizza Day, String Cheese Day, and Fried Rice Day. We didn't have string cheese but had shredded mozzarella cheese (string cheese is usually made of mozzarella cheese) which we put in the pizza crust. For the fried rice, I threw together whatever stuff in it. We had lots of frozen corn that needed to be used, etc. #shelftember

Do you remember... the 21st night of September? I went around singing that song that day.

Shelftember

As has become tradition the last few years, each September I join with Jordan Page and many others to participate in Shelftember. Shopping with a limited grocery budget, more shelf cooking, saving money.

The question for me this year was:

Kristin, can you celebrate September holidays AND follow A Season of Family Meal Plans AND still do Shelftember?

The answer:

Yes. Yes, I can. And I did. The whole point of shelf cooking is using what you have which is what Shelftember is also about. Start with what you have. Those cookbooks give ideas for substitutes and I can change things around to have it work for me.

For example, September 2 was Blueberry Popsicle Day. We didn't have blueberry popsicles. We pulled blueberries out of the freezer to have with dinner (with yogurt) then had Otter Pops after dinner. Blueberries and popsicles. We like creativity in celebrating. Shelf cooking is the same way.

The meal for that day in A Season of Family Meal Plans, volume 3, was Slow Cooker Rotisserie Chicken and Crispy Italian Potatoes. We had meat from a Costco rotisserie chicken that we got a few days before (no need to cook our own), used russet potatoes instead of red potatoes, and rounded out the meal by making garlic bread out of a homemade baguette that had been sitting in the fridge for a while, cutting up apples, and having that yogurt and blueberries I mentioned earlier. 

Jet was once again my kitchen helper. He liked shaking up the bag in order to season the potatoes.

Success. I did this all month long, getting things like produce and milk from the store, but saving a lot of money because I also stuck to my list. My mantra going through the store: Not on the list. Not gonna get it.

I absolutely skipped out on things I normally would have gotten. I did have to buy a 25 pound bag of flour toward the end because we were making so much bread, rolls, buns, cookies, brownies, instead of buying them. A 25 pound bag of flour doesn't cost too much, though, so we still saved money.

I really do like participating in Shelftember every year.

On a different note, September 2 was also Labor Day so I made sure to grab a selfie with the American flag which has also become tradition.

Some More September Catching Up

September 17 was Monte Cristo Day. Of course we made Monte Cristo sandwiches. 

Jeremy even decided to "count the Monte Cristo." Get it?

Twice now we've done Monte Cristo Day during Shelftember where I have gone out and bought raspberry jam (you have to have raspberry jam for Monte Cristo sandwiches). One of these years I'm going to buy it in August so I can say I'm really keeping to Shelftember by already having it on my shelf. Tee Hee.

 

September 19 was International Talk Like a Pirate Day. Lucky and I went over to the Orem Library and picked up some pirate themed movies and books. For dinner we had squid pups, carrot hooks, carrot pieces of eight, something red and sticky, oranges to avoid scurvy, some bread, and ocean blue colored flavored sugar water.

 

The 21st night of September, Jeremy and the boys watched videos with Earth, Wind & Fire's music, "September." 

 

September 23 was the first day of Fall this year. I love Fall.

On National Family Day, September 25, we went to another event at the Orem Library. We saw friends there that we had dinner at their house the night before. Jeremy came in a bit late (work) then he and I took turns listening to the music and wrangling Jet out in the hall. Love that kid.

 

September 26 was National Pancake Day. It was also Johnny Appleseed Day (one of a couple in the year) so we had pancakes and apple cider.

 

September 27 was National Chocolate Milk Day so we had chocolate milk with our dinner.

 

Lucky had a presentation about Sevier County in Utah. I told him I went to that county specifically for birding last year. He told me that the inventor of the frisbee was from that county.

Another time, he made a salt dough map of Utah. Way to go, Lucky.

 

Jr. Jr. had his first public performance for orchestra. At parent teacher conferences the beginning orchestra showed some things they'd been working on then afterward, the students were able to teach those that came to support them how to hold a bow correctly. Way to go, Jr. Jr.