Fall Break and a Pumpkin Party

Hello everyone!

Last Friday I told you that the upcoming weekend was a long one, because we had Monday and Tuesday off. Last year during Fall Break, I went home to visit my family. This time, I stayed here and they came to visit me! My parents have obviously been here before, but they brought my aunt and uncle, who had never seen Saint Mike's. It was so much fun showing them around!

Dad, Mom, Aunt Tracey and I hanging out on Main Campus.

My mom left her mark in the Word Garden!

The weather was a bit cold and rainy when they first arrived, but it cleared up pretty quickly and it was beautiful on Saturday! We took advantage of the nice day and went on a drive up to the Champlain Islands in northern Vermont. At one point, we were only about a mile away from the Canadian border! We also took the bridge over to New York.

Hmm, which way to go?

A lovely view of Lake Champlain.

After the ride, we came back into Burlington, where we went to Church Street. I insisted on getting kettle corn...it's one of my favorite snacks to have while I'm downtown. I could live on that stuff!

Mmmm...kettle corn!

We tried to cram as much as we could into the days they were there, so it was pretty hectic but lots of fun! Everyone had a great time, and I was so happy to see my family after seven weeks without them!

This weekend has been jam-packed with fun stuff, too! Yesterday, my friends and I decided to have ourselves a "fall party". Some of us went apple and pumpkin picking that morning. It was a beautiful day, so we took a drive out to Shelburne Orchards. We had a great time picking apples, and they were delicious!

Cara found a good one!

 

Greta likes liberty apples!

Once we picked up pumpkins, we returned to campus and began making apple and pumpkin pie. Other friends contributed cupcakes, cookies, and pretty much any dessert you can think of...there was a LOT of food!

Nobody knew where to start!

Cait and Emma mixed the apple pie filling.

Emma, Alex, and Merrill made delicious cupcakes! (Click on the linked names to see their blogs!)

We also brought our pumpkins outside and carved them to make jack-o-lanterns. It brought me right back to my childhood! I know some people get freaked out by "gutting" the pumpkin because it feels so slimy in your hands, but I have to admit that's one of my favorite things about pumpkin carving! It turns out that most of my friends are the same way. It got very messy very fast!

Getting started!

 

Liz with a "pumpkin beard"! She separated all of the seeds so that we could roast them :)

And here are the finished products! Maya and I carved the one in the middle with hearts for eyes.

Our party was definitely an awesome way to spend the day. The fun will continue later on when Green Up, an environmental club here at SMC, hosts their annual Harvest Fest. There's all kinds of food and tons of fun activities. But for now, it's time to study!

Enjoy the rest of the weekend, everyone!

Lauren