The boys have been antsy to set up the tent and try out the new extra insulated sleeping bags. So, they headed out with Daddy for a little campout on our property.
The next morning, I was the first person out of bed. I stepped out onto the porch and looked down the hill at the tent. All was silent and still...and chilly. Imagining pajama-clad boys peeking out of toasty warm sleeping bags and meeting the cold morning air gave me inspiration for a hot breakfast.
Homemade oatmeal with cinnamon apples was cooked on stovetop and transferred to the crockpot. I love the "warm" setting that allows a meal to sit in anticipation.
This ended up to be amazing oatmeal (and this coming from someone who doesn't typically liked cooked fruit!). When I added the cooked apples to the oatmeal, I also added quite a bit of the natural apple juices that had cooked out of the apples. Ohhhh...very good stuff!
See...this is what I love. I get a deep satisfaction out of setting the stage, making preparations to surprise and please. The candles, the fun fall napkins, the smell of apple cinnamon oatmeal, and the warm house were all set to welcome the camping boys and the sleepy-headed girls (who decided that they'd rather sleep in their comfortable beds instead of in a tent).
When it's time to serve the oatmeal, these are the must-haves for topping it all off... A pad of farm fresh butter goes into the center, where it eventually melts into goodness (and if you haven't tried real butter straight from a farm, you are in for a big treat...it makes all the difference in the world). And, with maple syrup drizzled over the top, this is a meal fit for a house full of hungry campers and non-campers alike.
Eager requests for hot chocolate were granted, and everyone was quite pleased that fall's chilly mornings had finally arrived in the mountains.
