day one

November!!! Welcome! 
I just love November. It's cozy and crisp and full of family and food.....the best two things.
Each November I blog about all of the many things I have to be thankful for.....there is just so much. From big things, to small, to maybe even some of the things we don't always think about (THIS is one of my favorite posts last year thanks to your awesome comments!) I try to cover it all. 

I hope you will play along too.

Day One

I am so thankful for this month. 
So much anticipation! These next few weeks as we come closer and closer to big Holidays, I just get ridiculously giddy. I am like a little kid....a smile on my face and butterflies in my tummy.

All month. And then the next.

Just knowing it's November, and we are only a few weeks from Thanksgiving--with it's mashed potatoes and homemade rolls--I am just so excited.

Late nights with family laughing and playing games.

I can't wait for the leaves on our big tree to finally drop so we can run and jump into it's big golden mounds.

I love the thought of snuggling up near the fire, cocoa in hand watching movies and reading stories.

I keep thinking about all of the pumpkiny food I will be eating over the next few months. I have so many pumpkins to roast and puree and freeze for future use.
Pumpkin breads, pumpkin soups, for sure more pumpkin waffles.

Today we started our day with pumpkin pie steel cut oats. Last winter I posted about how to make overnight steel cut oats (HERE), so you have enough to last your family a week or so. 

(this really is our go-to breakfast almost every school morning.)

Make sure to check out that post for more oatmeal ideas, but here is the basic recipe. 

Basic Overnight Steel Cut Oats

3 1/3 cups steel cut oats (a lot of regular grocery stores carry them, but the packages are small. It's much cheaper to go to a store that sells bulk items) 

8 cups of water 

pinch of salt. 

 Add water, oats, and salt into large saucepan and bring to a boil. Turn heat down and simmer for 5 minutes, and remove from heat. Ladle oats and water (there is still quite a bit of water left over) into containers (I recommend glass jars over plastic containers since this is so hot). Cover with lids and let sit on your counter overnight (or about 8 hours) Refrigerate. 

 In the morning I add enough for four servings to a saucepan with a little bit of regular milk or almond milk, and heat it through for a super fast breakfast.

Pumpkin Pie Steel Cut Oats

this is such a fast breakfast in the morning once you have the basic recipe ready and waiting in your fridge. you can add as much or as little as everything you like. quick. easy. customized breakfast.

-add as many servings of cooked oats as you'll need to a saucepan over low heat. 

add:

-a little milk

-a little pure maple syrup

-a few spoonfuls of pumpkin puree (fresh or canned)

-a large sprinkle of cinnamon (or nutmeg! or cloves! anything)

-a small handful of ground flax

-toasted pecans

-if you really want to blow your mind, throw in a few dark chocolate chips

this is my favorite thing to eat right now after a long run in the cold.
enjoy!

happy november.....remember to be thankful!

for all you instagrammers out there--tag your thankful photos #novemberthanks so we can all see what YOU have to be thankful for. I will post some of my favorites here each week!