First of all - does the picture at left say it all? I don't know why, but there is no other season that I am ever more ready for than beautiful, marvelous, wonderful Fall. It's not that I don't enjoy summer with it's watermelon, long days and swimming. But it's hot. And pretty soon, all you can think about is how to get indoors and away from the sun. Anything to stop dripping sweat from rolling down your cheeks, back, etc. On the contrary - Fall is the beautiful in between. Not hot, not cold. Not dull, not too lively. It's everything about Autumn that I love - the changing colors of the leaves, the cooler evenings, a toasty fire, hot cider with cinnamon, caramel apples, pumpkins, turkey, gravy, stuffing...ahhh Fall - I love you so! Thank you for coming round the corner so quickly - I don't think I could have lasted much longer without you. Time to get out my door wreath and start enjoying what the next few months will bring...In the meantime, I've had a lot on my mind but I've got to do some bullet points this time around, because time is short and work is piled high on my desk here next to me. Sigh.
- I made it back from California Sunday evening. It was truly wonderful to be back home with all the comforts that home can bring. While the trip was completely worthwhile and it's always so good to see my family, it was a bit exhausting (as I've mentioned) and I'm not seeing another one like it in my future. Next time, AB will have to come along.
- I received no less than 6 e-mails or comments from people who live in Cali and were dismayed that I had not announced my trip. So to you - you know who you are - I am truly sorry. First of all - my parents decided to surprise my family with mine and Quint's arrival, so I was not able to blog about it, because many of them read the blog. Second, when I got there - it was kind of understood that this was a family trip, because it was very brief. I would have been skinned alive if I had taken time away from the grandparents, aunts and uncles to see all my friends. Quint was the star, and there was no prying him away for those few days I was there. SO, it was not an intentional slight - I promise! I still want to see you and there will be more trips to California. I try to go twice a year, at least. Catch all of you on the next one?!?!? Still love me?!?!?
- When Fall starts approaching, I can feel myself getting inspired. I'm the opposite of Spring Cleaning. I'm the Fall Cleaning/Creative type. When the leaves start changing, my creative juices start pumping and my mind starts whirring around all the sentimentality of the coming months. I love this time of year!
- I'm thinking of launching a challenge to all you peeps out there who have trouble emptying your pantry. You know who you are! If you're anything like us, you buy groceries (without a list, ahem) and stock up on duplicates that you completely forgot you already had (ahem...four bottles of soy sauce later). We have an outside pantry and an inside pantry. We have an outside fridge/freezer and an inside fridge freezer. I, for one, am tired of that food sitting in there so long that it goes bad. We actually had canned goods exceed their expiration. Come on, party people - that's pretty bad! So, the "Empty Cupboard Challenge" will entail pictures of your pantry before and after. And the challenge is to use up what you have, without buying more than necessities with your grocery money - such as dairy, etc. I'm not sure what the time frame will be, but I'm thinking about a month or two. Since our biggest pitfall can be eating out - this should be fun and interesting. AB is a spectacular cook - so I'm curious to see how creative we can get and how much money we have left over.
- To leapfrog off of the above - I really enjoy reading Mary's blog. She's doing a challenge called "30 Days of Nothing" during the month of September and I would encourage all of you to stop by and see how she's doing. We didn't have to guts to start this particular challenge until January - so we'll find out just how hard it is in about four months. Meanwhile, you'll love how creative she and her husband are with their 10 kiddos. Wowwwwza!
- Also - wondering if any of you use a menu plan? We started one a few months back and really liked it - it helped to keep us organized with our days and on track, kept us eating at home, and using what we had in the pantry. I'll share our ideas on this when I launch the above challenge and the tools I used to create our weekly meal grid. Totally worth it and hassle free!
- Quint is turning 10 months old on Monday. My little guy is two months away from a year old. What?!?! He was just four months old at referral...just four months old. Where does the time go. He's such a cutie pie - his Daddy and I are just sick in love with him. His new favorite trick is waving, and walking while holding on to our hands or anything he can grab on to. He's the best! (and he's still a rascal, in case you were wondering if the stubbornness wore off - definitely not - but we love him to pieces anyway!)
- On the Chi*na issue - while I am SOOO happy for my friends that have received their referral in this last batch, we're a little on the bitter side ourselves. We are being forced to apply for the I80o-A - which entails mucho expense and ridiculous amounts of paperwork. This will be our third, yes 3rd, time getting approval saying we're fit to adopt. I'm gonna puke! Not only will we be out another $2000 from this process, but we're supposed to go to even greater trouble and greater lengths to prove we're worthy. Those of you wondering why we're even bothering anymore, get in line. We're wondering too.
- I made Reece's Pieces cookies tonight, and I ate three of them. Ok, four. ALRIGHT! I ate six. Jeesh...stop looking at me like that. Gah! I'm so ashamed. Fully and happy, and totally drowsy, but ashamed. Double gah!
- The battery on my computer is dying. Seriously. It blinks continually to let me know it's living out its last days. I've ordered a replacement, but I'm not sure it will make it in time. Just like a car - you apparently have to change the battery on your laptops too, occasionally. Who knew? (Besides all the geeks over a Dell?)
