31 days of fall, part 4

Here we are in the last week of October - sadness. BUT. That means November is just around the corner and even MORE autumn will be rolling in. Thank you for spending this journey with me here as we've welcomed fall's arrival to Texas. I'll be capping off the month this weekend with a backyard fire pit s'mores party Friday night, and brunch with my dear Saturday. Can't. Wait.

In case you're curious about the last week, here's a look at our life in photos, October 23-29.

 scarves & animal print. it's gettin' real up in hurr.

 working hard to sew this little sailor costume before our first Halloween party!

 1:00 am and frosting a few dozen cookies for Halloween party #2

 a crazy storm rolling on Saturday night. must have been OU's defense. boo.

 the first sign of autumn colors on a fallen leaf!

 all of a sudden, I look outside and part of our tree has turned a vibrant red-orange!

 anticipating the oatmeal pumpkin chocolate chip muffins we made

Bonus: just in case you were wondering how HOT my husband is. Excuse the snotty-nosed kid. This is from our third Halloween party. Yes, we conquered THREE Halloween parties in 24 hours. Won't do that again.

I hope you all enjoy the rest of your October and have a spooky & happy Halloween! 

31 days of fall, part 3

Welcome to part three of my {photojournalism, if you will} series, 31 days of fall. While we are still waiting for the leaves to change, the temperatures certainly have, and we are soaking it all in. Here's a look at the past week, October 16-22.

Come to me, sweet cup of joy!

One of my new "fall" colors on my nails, Essie's "Sable Collar". It's sort of an iridescent taupe. 

Cafe Brazil does it again, with the most delicious breakfast EVER. Cinnamon pumpkin pancakes with cinnamon butter and holiday blend coffee. Yes.

The first fire in our fireplace. So glad we have gas logs!

"Fairytale" or "Cinderella" pumpkins are my favorite!

Writing up the weekly to-do list, and gearing up with a cup full of coffee in my most treasured mug. Morning coffee has also become a regular part of my life. That's new.

My view this morning during the abs part of Stroller Strides. Clear blue skies and leaves just starting to change. It was a beautiful morning!

Remember to tag your Instagram photos #31daysoffall #painterlypassion for a chance to have them featured here on my blog at the end of the month!

31 days of fall, part 2

Are you on Instagram?! Are you sharing your photos of beautiful autumn? Hit 'em up with the tags, #31daysoffall #painterlypassion for a chance to have them featured here on my blog!

Here's another look at our October around here (10/9-15)

taking advantage of the gorgeous weather to begin sanding & staining some of my pallet boards

mmmm, coffee :)

 play day at Owens Pumpkin Farm

I don't know the name of this plant on our front porch, but I love the colors!

 I'm not the only one who loves the round chair

I happened to catch this shot of the rain and cool weather rolling in yesterday. Don't you LOVE the colors in the background? 

 staining in the garage while the rain falls outside

Today is my last day to stain all the pallet wood we've ripped off of FIVE pallets so far. This weekend, it's going down.... or should I say, UP? eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeekkk!

Pardon me while I go make more pumpkin muffins!
Are you enjoying October?

31 days of fall, part 1

Welcome to my new series, 31 Days of Fall, where I will be sharing with you all the fun little moments we encounter each day with cooler temperatures and warmer colors rolling in. So far the month of October brought us drastically cooler weather over the weekend, when the temperature dropped about 20 degrees in an hour and brought some rain, too. Luuh.ving.IT. We celebrated by busting out the hoodies.

Here's what we've been up to, October 1 - 8.

 What's for breakfast? Pumpkin cream cheese muffins!

 One of our favorite October treats: Brach's Autumn Mix (I usually eat all the pumpkins).

 Pumpkins, galore! We enjoyed the day at the Arboretum with some sweet friends.

 Bustin' out the skeleton "dubby dubs" as we affectionately call them.

 It's 50* outside!

 Buying more mums for our porch, and little man got to pick out his own little pumpkin.

 Addressing and sending out our Halloween party invitations. 

The weather was perfect today, so we rocked and played on the porch at Cracker Barrel before lunch.

What are YOU doing to celebrate the little moments of fall's arrival? If you're on Instagram, share your photos! Upload and tag #31daysoffall. I'd love to share some of your beautiful images here on my blog! 

Later this week: a master bedroom decor update, and another look into my studio as the pieces come together. 

Happy October, everyone!!

october is here!

Hooray! My favorite month is finally upon us, which means the best holiday of the whole year (Halloween, obviously) will be here before you know it! 

It also means I'm going to have my camera out a little more than usual to capture all the fun memories we make this season and bring them to you here in my new series, 

I hope you'll tune in to see some of the great activities we have found around the Dallas area and some of the "little joys" we want to remember each day with autumn rolling in.

To celebrate the dawn of October, last night on "October Eve" I made yet another batch of the irresistible pumpkin cream cheese muffins I found on Pinterest. 

Obviously this isn't a cooking blog, but they're just so good, I HAVE to share the recipe with you! I adapted it just a little bit, so instead of adding 1 1/4 cup of oil, I split it up between Greek yogurt, applesauce, and unrefined coconut oil (the "unrefined" version gives it a little sweet goodness). Last time I made them and used mostly Greek yogurt. They were a little too dense for my liking. I found this combination created a perfect texture and flavor. But you know, do whatever makes you happy. 

from See Brooke Cook

Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins

Makes 24 muffins 

Ingredients:

For the filling:

8 oz cream cheese, softened

1 cup powdered sugar

For the muffins:

3 cups all-purpose flour

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1 tsp ground nutmeg

1 Tbsp + 1 tsp pumpkin pie spice

1 tsp salt

1 tsp baking soda

4 large eggs

2 cups sugar

1 can pure pumpkin puree

½ cup applesauce

½ cup plain greek yogurt

¼ cup coconut oil (melted)

Directions:

Preheat oven to (I did convection bake) 350˚ F and line muffin tins with paper cups. 

Filling: combine cream cheese and powdered sugar in a medium bowl and mix well until blended and smooth. 

In a medium bowl, combine dry ingredients: flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, pumpkin pie spice, salt and baking soda then whisk to blend.

In a large bowl using an electric mixer on medium-low speed combine the sugar, eggs, pumpkin puree, applesauce, greek yogurt, and coconut oil until blended. Turn the mixer to low and add in the dry ingredients, mix just until incorporated.

Fill each muffin cup with just enough batter to cover the bottom of each well (about 1-2 tablespoons). Scoop a small amount of the cream cheese mixture (about 1/2 tablespoon) on top of the batter, then top each with the remaining batter, covering the cream cheese completely.

Bake for 20-25 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack and cool before serving (or not). 

You can thank me later.