Caston Ray McConnell

Haven't had much time for updating all my social media sites...been busy being a mommy. Our family welcomed Caston Ray McConnell into the world on November 18 at 4:51 am in Jefferson City, Mo. He weighed 7.7 lbs. and was 20.5 inches long.

I never imagined how quickly my life could change in just one moment until he was born! He is the reason my husband and I were made for each other. All we do is sit and watch every movement, every smile, yawn, kick, squirm- anything he does. We don't want to miss a single moment...

It's also amazing how you look at your own parents differently after giving birth. You think about the sacrifices they've made, the lessons they've taught and the love that they give you. I hope to be as good as a parent as mine were to me.

Caston is the very best Thanksgiving blessing ever! I hope your family has a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday and many family moments that will last forever...

Eat Local This Thanksgiving

Do you want "Eat Local this Thanksgiving?" Well it's not as difficult as you might think.

I just posted my Top 10 Ways to Eat Local This Thanksgiving on my other blog: A Taste of Missouri.

I've provided my list of ways you can shop for local farm products and recipes to go along with your holiday menu planning.

If you have other suggestions on how to eat local this Thanksgiving- please leave me a comment!

Pumpkins, Pumpkins Galore

Some folks have thought I've had the baby, since I haven't posted in awhile. No- just busy "nesting" and doing a lot of freelance work at home. I have another blog that I'm using as part of my freelance work: Taste of Missouri. You can also find me busy at work on Twitter as TasteofMissouri or look me up on Facebook.

Last night I was busy in the kitchen finishing up processing the last of my pumpkins and decided to make some pumpkin bread- which is my favorite part of the holidays! Instead of baking two loafs, which the following recipe makes, I made two trays of pumpkin muffins! Let me tell you- the muffins are the perfect size for snacks and go so perfect with a nice frosty mug of milk!

I can't stress how important it is to use only fresh pumpkin for this recipe. My father and I grow our own pumpkins and then process them. We have enough pumpkin left for the whole year. If you use pumpkins to decorate with in the fall, process the pumpkin.

Read an old post of mine about how to process pumpkins at home for the very best pumpkin puree for your holiday baking needs!

Baldwin Pumpkin Bread
3 C. Sugar
3 1/2 C. Flour
1 C. Oil (1/2 vegetable, 1/2 sunflower oil- don't have sunflower oil- don't fret, you can still just use vegetable oil)
2/3 C. Water
2 cups Pumpkin
4 eggs well beaten
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons soda
1 teaspoon nutmeg
1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon

Mix well about 50 strokes. Stir in nuts (I like walnuts).
Fill in bread pan half full and bake at 350 degrees for about 1 hour.