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Almost everyone has a favorite pumpkin pie recipe, but pumpkin is versatile and can be used in many other dishes, including soups, waffles, pancakes and stuffings, culinary experts say. The great thing about using pumpkin in soups is the puree gives it a creaminess without adding any cream, says registered dietitian Ellie Krieger, star of the Cooking Channel’s Healthy Appetite. You also can use it to make healthful muffins, breads and puddings that are loaded with nutrients but not packed with sugar and fat, she says.

Or you can add a couple of tablespoons of puree to oatmeal along with some typical pumpkin-pie spices such as a little brown sugar, cinnamon and a pinch of ginger or nutmeg, she says.

“The smell of pumpkin cooking fills your home with a warm, inviting aroma that rings of autumn and the holiday season.”

Krieger uses fresh pumpkin in cooking, but don’t be misled: You should use the small, sweet pumpkins that are 1 to 3 pounds each for cooking, not the big ones you make into jack-o’-lanterns. When you see that orange color, she says, you see the beta-carotene: “It’s announcing itself.”

Yes, pumpkin is rich in beta-carotene, which turns into the healthy antioxidant compound vitamin A in our bodies, agrees Dawn Jackson Blatner, a spokeswoman for the American Dietetic Association. And one cup cooked and mashed pumpkin is a good source of vitamin C, potassium and fiber, she says.

via For healthy pumpkin, squash the urge to turn it into pie – USATODAY.com.

From Kaboose:

“In fourteen hundred ninety-two, Columbus sailed the ocean blue…”

On October 12, 1492, the Italian seaman Christopher Columbus first stepped foot on the soil of the Americas, bringing with him European culture, goods, religion and practices. While other Europeans and Asians had arrived in the “New World” before him, Columbus publicized his discoveries throughout Europe, which spurred a wave of exploration and expansion throughout the Americas.

Ironically, Columbus did not plan on discovering a “New World”. He left Iberia with the blessing (and financing) of King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella of Spain, hoping to arrive in the Indies, a series of islands in South East Asia that Spain frequently traded with through long and expensive journeys on land. His goal was to find a quicker, water-based route instead.

But what Columbus wasn’t aware of was the existence of the land masses of North and South America. So when he sailed west, he didn’t land in the Indies, but rather he anchored in the Bahamas at a place he named “San Salvador”. When he came ashore on San Salvador, he mistook the native people for natives of India, calling them Indians, a misnomer which stands to this day. In fact, Columbus returned to the Americas three more times over the course of 12 years without knowing that he had arrived in an uncharted land, halfway around the globe from his intended destination!

Wow! Pretty amazing how history works out sometime. Have a great Columbus Day.

History of the Holiday Celebrating Christopher Columbus – Facts, Activities, Party Ideas – Kaboose.com.

Check out this feature of the 10 Wickedest Haunted Houses in America. Ticket prices are around $30 each, but what a frightfully good time these haunted houses offer. Happy Halloween!

In Pictures: The 10 Wickedest Haunted Houses In America – Forbes.com.

Once you’re all packed and ready to go, be sure to bring along the right attitude so children will understand this is meant to be fun, not a chore.

Gina Purtell, director of the Massachusetts Audubon Society’s Allens Pond Sanctuary in Westport, says it helps to present the outing as an adventure, one that is going to be fun no matter what.Even if you’re not the most experienced hiker yourself, it’s good to convey to children that you are confident you can meet whatever challenge may come up.”

Just appear willing,” she says. “I think to some extent kids are afraid of what they don’t know, and what the leader or parent doesn’t know.”It’s important to let kids know there will be some challenges, she says, so they’re not shocked when things don’t go smoothly.

“Acknowledge that there’s going to be ticks, acknowledge that you are going to get out of breath, acknowledge there may be mosquitoes — but do it in a way that makes it fun, part of the adventure,” Purtell says. “Say, ‘We’re going to huff and puff right up that hill, we’re going to flick those ticks right off our clothes.’”

In that same spirit of adventure, she suggests creating some sort of objective. “Kids love a quest or a mission,” she says. It might be climbing a hill, or hiking for 15 minutes without stopping, or seeing who can spot a particular bird or butterfly.She also suggests outdoor games that can be used to launch a hike or as a reward midway or at the end.And finally, keep the outing short, she says, especially if children are very young or if it’s their first hiking experience.

So check your local parks department or hiking gear retailer to find maps and guides for your local hiking trails.

via Fall hikes offer exercise and family time | CapeCodOnline.com.

Its fall and we love spending time with the family picking pumpkins and walking through corn mazes. The Sesame Street one pictured about looks pretty fun.

Sesame Street corn maze – Holy Kaw!.

YouTube – Chicago Sings Bear Down.

“You have to expect things of yourself before you can do them.”
-Michael Jordan

“I ran and ran and ran every day, and I acquired this sense of determination, this sense of spirit that I would never, never give up, no matter what else happened.”
-Wilma Rudolph

“Set your goals high, and don’t stop till you get there.”
-Bo Jackson

“Sportsmanship for me is when a guy walks off the court and you really can’t tell whether he won or lost, when he carries himself with pride either way.”
-Jim Courier

“The difference between a successful person and others is not lack of strength,
not a lack of knowledge, but rather a lack of will.”
-Vince Lombardi

“Setting a goal is not the main thing. It is deciding how you will go about achieving it and staying with that plan.”
-Tom Landry

“It’s not necessarily the amount of time you spend at practice that counts; it’s what you put into the practice.”
-Eric Lindros