more fall fun

One of the things that used to get me down about living in Michigan was the brevity of autumn. We'd have a week of a delightful light chill in the air and pretty foliage, and suddenly there'd be SNOW and WIND and DARKNESS. FOR SIX MORE MONTHS. Returning to the East Coast has made things a bit easier this fall, and I'm trying to make the most of it. Last weekend, Dave's sister, brother-in-law, and niece came to visit our new place in LI. Amie is 4.5 years old, the perfect age to enjoy a trip to White Post Farms.

 We fed the birds.

 Mr. Bluebird on my shoulder

 Eager goats

 And an extremely slobbery camel

This guy had it all figured out.

Look at the adorable little houses!

Dave's parents visited us this weekend, bringing our grand total to eight different guests who've slept under our roof this week (not including us!). We love hosting friends and family, and we finally have the space to do it. One other nice thing about guests: an excuse to cook! Here's a spiced pumpkin layer cake with cream cheese frosting:

It looked good, but I had cut out too much of the sugar from the cake and the frosting. It ended up tasting too much like a muffin! Oh well.