Fall break

 This week I had fall break. It was the first time I ever had a complete week for fall break. When I was in the public school system, we had UEA, which was only two or three days off. BYU didn't have fall break. And last year, the U didn't even have a fall break because of COVID. It was less epic than I hoped, but I still had fun.

Last Sunday, I made ice cream with my new ice cream maker. I only eat holiday-themed desserts, except I can have desserts that are made with our own home-grown produce. And we have tons of mint growing in our front garden, so I used the leaves to make mint ice cream (there was a recipe in the manual that came with the machine). It also used peppermint patties. Then I shared it with my sister, niece, and grandparents (and my parents the next day). There were mixed reviews from my family about the mint leaves (I could have strained them out), but overall it was a tasty treat. This ice cream maker is really easy. You freeze the bowl, which has some kind of liquid in it, so all you do is turn the machine on and put the mixed ingredients in. There is no ice, salt, or cranking!

On Monday, my parents came home from their vacation. They ended a few days early so they could avoid the snow in Wyoming. Before the freezing temperatures, I had picked a watermelon from our garden, so I cut it when my parents got home. It was small, but I was pleased that it was an enjoyable melon. I've had better melons before, but this one was special, because it's the only one I ever remember from our own garden. (We had another one that rotted on the vine.) You know how the whitish-greenish part of a watermelon is really bitter? On this one, it wasn't—it tasted just like cucumber. It was a watermelon and a cucumber in one!

But most of my Monday was spent studying.

Since Tuesday was rainy, it was a day of cooking with the apples that grow on our neighbors' tree, which hangs onto our property. I cooked some apples with cinnamon and butter, then I put them in homemade vanilla ice cream. It was OK; the apples could have used a little more cooking and sweetness. And I made apple crisp, which was amazing. I make a lot of crisps, but this one was especially good—maybe because I used oats, which I don't usually do. And then I made apple sauerkraut soup. I know that sounds gross, but it's really not. 

Wednesday, I was glad to get one long run in for the week. Hopefully, my days on the trail are numbered—I say "hopefully" because we need all the snow we can get, even if it disrupts my hobby. 

When I woke up in the morning, there was a dusting of snow on the ground and the roofs, so when it melted, I ran to Ensign Peak from my house, because that trail dries out faster. It's around nine miles round trip, though I don't know the exact miles this time because my watch battery died near the end. I go to Ensign Peak a few times a year, usually during the seasons' transitions. It is a fun run, though there are others that I like more.

Thursday was another day full of studying.

Friday I worked at This Is the Place, which was surprisingly busy for a cool fall weekday.

And Saturday was another day of studying. One day I will be done with school and I will have more time to take advantage of perfect weather.

Then today I rode with my parents down to Delta, because my youngest cousin just finished a service mission, so he was speaking. Almost no one there was wearing masks. You would think they would pay more attention to a variant that literally has their name on it. I guess we're better at following the prophet in the city. But I got to pet cats at my aunt and uncle's house!

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I had to tell myself no to a few pumpkin things this week, but I still have plenty to show you for pumpkinundation roundup.

I got this Trader Joe's Pumpkin Body Butter back in 2018, and I still have a lot of it. It's gloppier and oilier than most lotions, so I don't look forward to using it. And it really has nothing to do with pumpkin—it has pumpkin seed oil, but that's only one of a huge list of ingredients. Coconut is the dominant scent. 3/10.

Sprouts Organic Pumpkin Spice Apple Sauce is like typical cinnamon apple sauce, but it's noticeably more orange and has some pumpkin flavor. 7/10.

Chef Shamy Fresh Churned Pumpkin Butter with Honey tasted more like pistachio ice cream to me. I enjoyed it, but I've never been a big fan of butter. I preferred to eat this bread (see below) plain. 7/10.

I first had Pumpkin Pie Pop-Tarts in 2013, and I've been hooked ever since. They are better than the brown sugar and cinnamon ones. But I've come to like Pop-Tarts themselves less than I used to. 8/10.

Sprouts Pumpkin Spice Almond Butter has spices but no pumpkin. It's fine, but I am annoyed that I have to stir it to get the oil back in. 6/10.

Lee's Marketplace Pumpkin Spice Sandwich Bread was better than I expected, and I was expecting it to be good! It's like a fancy bread, but it has little cinnamon pockets, and it's made with pumpkin. It's like Great Harvest Cinnaburst Bread but better. 9/10.

Sprouts Organic Pumpkin Spiced Apple Cider nicely blends apple cider and actual pumpkin and spices. 8/10.

Ever since I had Thomas' Pumpkin Spice Bagels, I don't bother with others, because these are clearly the best. They're soft, and they have little pockets of pumpkin. Since I eat so many carbs at this time of year, I love to pair them with savory foods (in this case cheese and egg). 9/10.

Jojo's Pumpkin Spice Guilt-Free Chocolate was expensive, but luckily it doesn't disappoint. It has a nice dark chocolate flavor with spices, and it also has pumpkin seeds on top, but it doesn't have much sugar. 8/10.

When I got these Sprouts Roasted & Salted Pumpkin Chips, I expected they would be along the lines of parsnip chips or carrot chips, which aren't my favorite, but I still wanted to try them. They were way worse than I expected. Imagine you are carving pumpkins, and you taste one of the raw pieces, and it's crunchy. That's what these tasted like. I could only handle one. I still have this container, and I don't know what to do with it. I might be able to put it in chili or something, but I definitely can't eat it as is. 2/10.

Trader Joe's Honey Roasted Pumpkin Ravioli is yummy, but it's so sweet that I think it will clash with most sauces. Luckily, it's good on its own, though the texture could use something moist. 7/10.

I went into Trader Joe's Pumpkin Alfredo Sauce expecting not to like it, because I don't like alfredo sauce, and I was right. But my parents liked it. And to be fair, I didn't have it on regular pasta—just spaghetti squash and the above ravioli. 4/10.

I like to get Annie's Bunny Grahams at Eastertime, for obvious reasons. I was eager to try Annie's Caramel Apple Bunny Grahams, but they aren't as flavorful as other varieties. The red ones have a mild apple flavor, and the brown ones have a mild caramel flavor. They're good as grahams, but not so much as a caramel apple product. 6/10.