Such a beautiful Fall-and a recipe

Hi Everyone-
  The weather as been SO gorgeous here this Fall.  It's been so nice to be able to continue to enjoy being outside.  It's one of my boys favorite places to be.  Yesterday I took my oldest to the Farmers' Market early in the morning.  We got some great vegetables, some coffee that was roasted yesterday, and some artisan chocolates--along with a great foccacia bread and some homemade jam.  With that I made some delicious broccoli cheese soup for us to have for dinner last night.  It is my Mom's recipe, and it totally makes me think of a crisp fall day when I was growing up.  After my youngest son woke up from his nap, we headed out for a family hike at our nearest nature preserve.  Alex has had summer camp there the last three summers, and loves it.  He was a great tour guide, and Jack sure loved running after his brother on the trails.  It was a beautiful day, and so nice to be together as a family.
  Tonight I'm continuing to work on some of my items for our holiday vendor fair coming up at the end of the month, as well as prep for my workshops I have at the end of the week, and my next couple challenges for the design team.  I'll be taking pictures and posting soon.  :)  Have you guys tried out our challenge yet?  It's Holiday Mini this week over at SUO Challenges--come check us out!!!  In the mean time, how about that delicious hearty soup recipe?  Thanks Mom for sharing!!

Linda's Broccoli Cheese Soup
1 1/2 qts. water
1 c. chopped carrots
1 c. chopped celery
1 med. chopped onion (any color--I like yellow in this soup)
Simmer the above vegetables in the water until slightly tender (about 10 minutes) then add:
1lb. chopped broccoli
1lb. chopped cauliflower
Continue to simmer--add 1/4 c. (1 stick) butter and one lb. Velveeta cheese cubed.  Turn heat to low.
In another bowl combine 1 1/2 c. milk and 2/3 cup flour.  Whisk together until there are no lumps in the flour mixture and add slowly to the soup--stir constantly until well blended.  (This will help thicken the soup)
Cook on low, stirring frequently, until ready to serve.

Enjoy!!

Happy Stampin!
Amy

PS--as promised, some pictures from our Grand Marais trip last weekend:

My sister, Em, and me in the Grand Marais Harbor

Me by the pier in Grand Marais

Me, my Mom, and Em in the Grand Marais Harbor--happy belated birthday present, Mom!