With the arrival of Fall comes the social permission to start eating and drinking all things pumpkin spice. Pumpkin spice recipes started appearing in America in the 1700s when ginger and allspice made their way to our shores by way of Asia and then as part of the crops produced in the Caribbean. I make the spice blend at the beginning of the season to have on hand for any recipe that calls for the taste of Fall. Below I will give you my recipe for pumpkin spice bread/muffins.

Ingredients
Dry

1 ½ Cups All-Purpose flour
½ teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
¼ Cup light brown sugar
1 Cup white sugar
1 teaspoon salt
2 Tablespoons pumpkin spice blend (see above)

Wet

¾ Cup pureed pumpkin (canned or roasted yourself)
4 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
¾ cup vegetable oil

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350 F
In one bowl add ingredients below and mix with whisk or hand mixer for 1 minute. You are trying to whip a little air into them.

Eggs
Vanilla
Brown sugar
White sugar

Once mixed fold in the pumpkin puree and oil
In a second bowl add Flour, Spice mix, Baking powder, Baking soda, and Salt
Add the wet ingredient mixture into the dry ingredients and mix until well combined. Don’t use a hand mixer or whisk for this part over working the batter will make your bread extra dense and dry.
Grease the loaf pan or muffin tins you are going to cook in.
Pour your batter into the pan and place in the oven

For bread loaf it will take about 70 minutes to bake depending on your oven. Use a wood toothpick to test if it is done.
For muffins it will take about 50 minutes to bake. Use the same test to see if it is done.

I hope you enjoy and feel free to share your pictures of all things pumpkin spice with us. We love to see all of you enjoying the season!

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“In life, as in football you won’t go far unless you know where the goalposts are.”
-Arnold H. Glasow

Greetings Everyone,
This week Carolyn Muller and Linette Dobbins celebrate birthdays. Carolyn took a well-deserved weeks’ vacation and visited her sister in Dallas, Texas. It has been a long time since the two were together due to restricted travel. Carolyn has been a member of the McGee/Mercer team since she joined March 23, 1993. She reminded me that three days later we had an earthquake. Many of you have a special relationship with Carolyn who has been serving clients needs for so many years.

In 1988, very early in her career, Linette Dobbins joined Judith McGee's financial planning business in Spokane, Washington. Throughout her years of service, she has been the driving force in the development of systems and practices always looking to enhance the client experience. She currently serves as Director for Mercer Advisors Portland SW office.

OSU Beavers Football Makes History
I started my career in financial planning in Corvallis, Oregon and loved being an OSU Beaver fan. So, when the Beavers played USC on Saturday, the game was historic winning its first Pac-12 opener since 2013. The OSU win was 45-27 against the Trojans at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. The first time since 1960 when Dwight Eisenhower was President!

Photo credit: Marcio Jose Sanchez - The Oregonian

In the fall spirit, a Witch’s Castle hike
Fall has arrived and there’s a chill to the air as daylight fades. To get you in the fall spirit, just a stone’s throw from Portland, there’s a mysterious woodland trail that leads to one of the most intriguing places in the state. It is known as the Witch’s Castle. Double, double toil and trouble…it’s a hauntingly fun hike, the Wildwood Trail and Lower Macleary Trail Loop. Find trail guides & maps for hiking at www.Alltrails.com.

Judith McGee, L.H.D., CFP®, ChFC®
Executive Vice President and Senior Lead Advisor

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In the Markets

LAST WEEK

Investors rode a bumpy ride, opening last week lower only to rebound later but not enough to avoid a third consecutive weekly dip. Only the Nasdaq was able to avoid closing the week in the red, but barely. The Dow and the Global Dow fell nearly 1.0%, while the S&P 500 and the Russell 2000 declined more than 0.8%. Traders were able to overcome concerns early in the week of the possible financial collapse of a major Chinese property developer, only to learn last Friday that Chinese regulators will now consider crypto-related transactions illicit financial activity.
Wall Street suffered its worst day in nearly four months last Monday. Each of the major benchmark indexes fell, led by the Russell 2000 (-2.4%), followed by the Nasdaq (-2.2%), the Dow (-1.8%), the S&P 500 (-1.7%), and the Global Dow (-1.7%). Prices on 10-year Treasuries climbed, driving yields down by 4.5%. The dollar was mixed, while crude oil prices fell 1.6%. Each of the market sectors declined, with energy (-3.0%), consumer discretionary (-2.4%), and financials (-2.2%) falling the most. Investors were concerned about the impact on global financial markets from the possible collapse of Evergrande.
Stocks closed mixed last Tuesday, with the Nasdaq and Russell 2000 edging 0.2% higher, while the Dow and the S&P 500 ticked lower. Crude oil prices and Treasury yields rose, while the dollar was unchanged. Industrials and communication services were sectors that weighed down stocks, while energy and health care climbed higher.
Equities rebounded last Wednesday, as the Dow, the S&P 500, and the Nasdaq each rose by at least 1.0%. The Russell 2000 led the indexes, gaining 1.5%, while the Global Dow advanced 0.8%. Ten-year Treasury yields, the dollar, and crude oil prices each ticked higher. Among the market sectors, energy, financials, information technology, and consumer discretionary advanced. Investors may have been encouraged by potentially favorable developments involving Evergrande. Also, the Federal Open Market Committee was guardedly bullish on the growth of the economy, indicating that a tapering of its asset purchases may begin soon but that interest rates would remain at their current level for quite some time.
Wall Street continued to rally last Thursday. Investors were buoyed by the Fed's stance on paring stimulus, the Food and Drug Administration's authorization of a Pfizer booster vaccine for those age 65 and older, and an easing of concerns over the ripple effect of an Evergrande default. Each of the major benchmark indexes posted gains of at least 1.0%, with the Russell 2000 again leading the pack after advancing 1.5%. The dollar and crude oil prices fell, while yields on 10-year Treasuries ticked higher. Several of the market sectors also climbed higher, led by energy (3.4%) and financials (2.5%).
Friday ended the week with mixed results. The large caps of the Dow (1.0%) and the S&P 500 (1.0%) closed higher. The Global Dow also advanced 0.8%. The tech stocks of the Nasdaq dipped less than 0.1 percentage point, while the small caps of the Russell 2000 fell 0.5%. Ten-year Treasury yields and the dollar advanced, while crude oil prices edged lower. The market sectors also closed mixed last Friday. Energy, financials, and communication services climbed higher. Real estate, materials, health care, and utilities declined.

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THIS WEEK

There's plenty of important economic data available the last week of September. Orders for durable goods slipped in July but are expected to rebound in August. The third and final estimate of second-quarter gross domestic product is also out this week. The economy expanded at an annualized rate of 6.6%, according to the second estimate.

Source: Broadridge Investor Communication Solutions, Inc.

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Articles & Education

Military Benefits: A Planning Overview

The U.S. provides military service members with excellent benefits, but they are often challenging to understand and navigate.

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Navigating the Storm

Summary Q1 growth slowed, the Fed is trying to fight inflation, but global economic growth remains positive.

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Investment Term of the Week

Thought of the Week

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Sector investments are companies engaged in business related to a speciﬁc sector. They are subject to ﬁerce competition and their products and services may be subject to rapid obsolescence. There are additional risks associated with investing in an individual sector, including limited diversiﬁcation. The companies engaged in the communications and technology industries are subject to ﬁerce competition and their products and services may be subject to rapid obsolescence. Investing in the energy sector involves special risks, including the potential adverse effects of state and federal regulation and may not be suitable for all investors.

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MWM Weekly Update

The Week of September 27, 2021