Baked Honey Berry Oatmeal

I'm really trying to "embrace" fall this year.  It always makes me sad because I know it means summer is over and winter is on the way.  As part of my "embracing" we went apple and berry picking this past Saturday.  It was a beautiful day out in the country and we came away with a bushel of beautiful apples and baskets of blackberries and raspberries.

 I found this wonderful recipe for Bake Honey Berry Oatmeal at Apple of My Eye's blog and thought I'd give it a try this morning. Since I have to be at work at 7:00 a.m., I prepared the dry ingredients and wet ingredients the night before so all I had to do was assemble and bake.  One note though, I did not melt the butter and add to wet ingredients the night before.  I thought it would solidify in the refrigerator so I melted it and added it before combining everything.

 This is what it looked like before baking.  I decided to save my blackberries for a dinner recipe so I used blueberries with the raspberries.

 The recipe says to bake 15-20 minutes.  Mine was not nearly baked by then so I actually baked it an ADDITIONAL 20 minutes so 40 total.  It came out fully cooked, bubbly and yummy looking!

 It was SO good that we each took a piece with us to work to enjoy for a mid-morning snack.  

 I've tried the "overnight" oatmeals and did not care for the consistency but this baked version is amazing!  The recipe says to serve hot OR cold.  I didn't think I'd like it cold but I did try it and yes, it is indeed good both ways!

 Embracing fall (and my handsome hubby) in the orchard (wink wink) 

So how are YOU embracing the season?  Are you like me -- sad to say goodbye to summer or are you an "all season" person?

Fence Board Art

 I love working with old, weathered wood.  Fence boards are a great medium for all kinds of projects! I have gotten several different types and widths all for free from friends, curbsides and freecycle.  This sign was made by attaching three boards side by side.  

I do most of these signs by painting the letters on.  I print them out on copy paper and trace onto the wood using graphite paper, then paint.

Usually I'll go over it all with final "light sanding" to distress a bit more.  My hubby came home the other day with a trunk load of fence boards that someone gave him!  

This sign was for my son and daughter-in-law's rehearsal dinner.  It was made from two pieces of old wood siding.

Using a different method for applying the image, I created these little boards to give away as favors at the rehearsal.

So keep your eyes open -- there are so many possibilities with fence boards!