It's Finally Friday!!

Happy Friday Everyone!! It's the first Friday of October... so fun! I know I've said it before, but I LOVE fall! September is awesome, but my favorite holiday is Halloween and we are finally in the month of Halloween fun! We love to get out and visit pumpkin patches, do hay rides, go to haunted houses, pick apples... yeah, I could go on forever. So, how about a quick Fun Fact Friday post with a side of delicious fall THM-friendly meal ideas?

Okay, let's start with the facts. If you're looking for something to do in the local area this month, this set of fun facts will be right up your alley!

October Fun In The Northland - 10 Fun Facts (or Events)

1. The corn mazes in the area - Engwalls and Silver Brook open this weekend!
2. The Haunted Ship in Duluth also opens this weekend - bring a non-perishable food item to get a discount on your ticket.
3. Michael's in Duluth has a Halloween craft for kids every weekend. Check out their site.
4. Zinema 2 has a horror movie line up for the month of October. Check out what's playing here.
5. Boo at the Zoo is back October 10th & 17th!
6. ValleyScare at Valleyfair is under way this month as well - several on-site haunted houses and awesome decorations!
7. The Haunted Shack Hayride at The Buffalo House opens October 16th. Bring a jacket to donate and receive your second ticket FREE! More details here.
8. For my running friends, there are several Halloween inspired runs all over the region this month. They range from Zombie Runs (Spooner, WI) to a Super Hero Fun Run and everything in between. Check out the list of races here.
9. There will be TWO theatrical showings of Rocky Horror Picture Show in the area this year. One at Marcus Theaters in Hermantown at 10pm on October 22nd and other at The Duluth Playhouse (you can buy tickets here for the playhouse).
10. This one is the best fact... There is a list of events in Duluth throughout the month of October listed on HauntedDuluth.com which includes far more ideas and fun things to do than I've included here. Check it out.

For those who were looking forward to going to the Field Logic Haunted House again this year, I'm sorry to report that they will not be up and operating this year. Field Logic sold to another company, so the group who ran the haunted house there is looking for a new location to host this fun, scary event, but they will not have everything ready to open this year. Sorry! You can follow the progress of their search for a new location here.

See?!? I told you guys I loved Halloween! 

Alright, now for the second half of the post... Fall has definitely hit Wisconsin. We've actually had frost a couple of nights in a row. So, it's time to break out those yummy, hot, feel good recipes! I'll share three today, some I've tried and some I haven't, but want to, so please give me some feedback if you try them. Heck, feel free to give me feedback on any recipe you try that I post. I'd love to hear what other's think or how they tweaked it to make it work for them!

For me, fall screams soups. I usually start breaking out my homemade soup recipes once the weather starts to get a bit crisper. Since we're officially there, I think this weekend will be a great time to kick out the first back. In honor of that my first recipe share is a Low-Carb Chicken Bacon Chowder (S meal). This one we have tried and it is tasty! It's rich, but super good. This would be a great soup to pair as a soup and salad combo. 

Another awesome soup that can be easily tweaked to be THM friendly is a version of Olive Garden's Zuppa Tuscana (S meal). Potatoes are a no-no while you're trying to lose, so feel free to substitute them with radishes. I haven't tried this yet, but the ladies in the THM groups swear that they soak up the flavoring of the soup, stew or roast you throw them in with and have the texture of potatoes once the dish is complete. I'll definitely be trying this one out soon.

My last share is one that I haven't tried yet, but I've been craving something made from apples. This is very rare for me because I'm not a fruit pie or apple squares kind of person. I love the smell, but usually don't find myself migrating that direction. With a change in my tastebuds, this is something that has been on my list of must haves the last couple of weeks. I think I'll cave this weekend and make a batch on Sunday for everyone to enjoy while it's still warm. So, here you are... THM-friendly Apple Crisp!

If you try any of these this weekend, let me know! Since I'm freezing my hiney off in my office today, regardless of the sweater, jeggings and fleece jacket over the top... I'm greatly looking forward to some tummy filling, healthy, on plan, warm meals this weekend! The Hubby is in charge of tonight's meal, so I'm interested to see what he comes up with. Our oldest just requested chicken with cheese. That should be easy enough! It's also karate night for adults only tonight, so we'll be herding the kids to the academy to play in the lobby while we work on our forms and one-steps in preparation for our test in December. I have a feeling that will sneak up on us faster than we are expecting! I also have to add that I LOVE how family friendly this academy is. The kids can watch the class, quietly wander in and out, or just choose to play quietly with all of the toys available in the lobby area. We usually get a combo of all of the above between the four kids. They get so excited to watch us though. I love it!!