Fall is Here

 

It was a dreary, chilly Tuesday.

Great for candle burning...

 

 blanket snuggling...

 

She fell asleep on the couch. This is blog worthy!

 

and coffee & cocoa sipping.

these two. they are the best of friends.

they spend hours and hours playing together.

and I did not know that siblings could get along so well.

honestly, they rarely fight.

occasionally they get a lil on the wild side for the confines of my living room

but they are not trouble makers either.

this morning they were upstairs quietly entertained,

when I went to check on them the 'worst' thing they had come up with

was turning the bunk bed ladder into a balance beam.

I wish I could take credit for all this, but if you ask me for my formula, 

I'm afraid you'd be disappointed.

  the only thing I did different with these 2 from the others 

is have them closer together.

if that makes the difference??

I doubt it.

if we'll have rough days ahead?

I'm sure.

if I feel very blessed to be their mama?

absolutely!!!

 ************************************************

I'm s.l.o.w.l.y. trying to add a few touches of fall around the house.

There are a few specific places that I like to switch out seasonal decor.

This shelf is one of them.

 

{This saying is one I need to read again and again and again!}

And I dug a few old pillows out of the closet and covered them 

with some fall-sy, clearance, fabric from Hobby Lobby.

There is a bit of blue in the design and I thought the blue ribbon would 

help to pull it out but it didn't.

It ended up looking a little lost and out of place

 so I didn't waste the time adding it to the second pillow.

Neither did I waste the time to rip it back off.

'Cause I'm patient like that.

Less than $10 later...they'll work.

Next up, Hump Day!

Enjoy yours!

A month...

...since I wrote. How did that happen?

...of fun times and train rides with little friends.

...of the return of our favorite Daddy after 2 long weeks on the road.

...of birthday photo shoots for Little Miss who is 3 going on 17.

...of an undefeated soccer team.

...of purchasing pumpkins and mums {and just a few more mums. and another pumpkin or two.}

 ...of a special lunch date with Mommy and a very quite day at home, just to two of us.

{I thought maybe while his little sister was gone he would need me to play games, read books, just generally keep him company but it was exactly the opposite. He read books, played with the kitty, and quietly entertained himself for hours. I almost forgot he was there. Almost.}

...of celebrating 60 years of Grandpa.

...of field trips with first graders.

...of joining a cousin for a small town parade. {where record breaking amounts of candy are thrown out, thank you to whoever threw the toothpaste our way too. not pictured are the potato chips, pens, glow sticks, water bottles and chocolate milk also collected at said parade.}

 

... of a 30th birthday party for a sister-in-law, returned from afar. My sister and I made the food, but not the cake. Her family did the decorating. Her husband (my brother) conspired and coordinated it all from across the globe.

  {Yeah, we've been a on a bit of birthday overload around here, but who doesn't love a party. Another one coming up this week.}


...of a weekend church retreat (sans kids) where I took not one single picture. Not one! I find it hard to believe  myself but there was just too much connecting and being inspired and late night partying to be done.

{This picture was taken at the same retreat several years ago, it gives you an idea what we had to suffer through.}

And now you are officially up to date. I know you've been checking daily for all these inspiring, thrilling details. Be back sooner next time. Really.

With a Grateful Heart

I know Thanksgiving is history. Even the leftovers are gone by now. I'm as excited as anyone to move on to lights and trees, Christmas Carols and nativities, but there are a a couple of Thanksgiving memories that just need to be included here in this little blog of mine.

Note to self: Remember to sign up to help with every Kindergarten Thanksgiving feast your children are part of. After the meltdown my son had when I didn't show up for lunch with his class a few weeks ago, the next volunteer sheet that came home was for the Thanksgiving feast. I signed up. How hard can it be to serve apple slices and popcorn to kindergarteners. Sounds much easier than creating glittery Christmas ornaments--count me in.

And truly it was no big deal. Open a few bags of carrots, slice a few apples and run the hand sanitizer pump like a pro. In exchange I got to watch the cutest little people put on a darling show. They sang several song. Marched around the room in there Indian feather hats and painted pasta necklaces. They did those little finger plays that Kindergarten is famous for. I'd have missed it all if I hadn't signed up to serve those carrots. I suppose the teachers probably reuse the same ideas every year but I was super impressed with their ideas and crafts. Projects I would never dare to attempt with 2 little people much less 20 of them.

 

They ended with an impressive rendition of  This Land is Your Land. I wish I had known what was coming, I'd have saved room on my camera card to record it!

**************

Roasted us a tasty good turkey this year. Almost every year my hubby brings me a free fresh turkey. While I'm not big on the whole carving (a.k.a. picking meat from bones for hours) thing, there is something domestic-y and satisfying about smelling that baby roasting all day and then pulling a golden bird from the oven.

It also helps if you're tackling the whole process on Tuesday afternoon and minus a house full of starving guest with high expectations! 

And of coarse a mommy feeding a family of 7 never turns down free meat!

I told my man not to bring me one that didn't fit in my oven, he listened but he stretched me to my limit, she's a 26ish pound-er!

***********

Most importantly as I thought about my own reasons to be thankful, there are many, I was reminded of a song we sang a lot when I was a teenager.

Give thanks with a Grateful Heart,

Give thanks to the Holy One,

Give thanks because He's given Jesus Christ His Son.

That first line, that's where I got stuck.

It always seemed like a repetition to me. Songs are like that, especially choruses. Say the same thing a couple times in different ways. Make it 'flow-y.' Make it rhyme. Make it easy to remember.

But it suddenly hit me one day. Giving thanks is NOT the same as having a Grateful Heart.

I say I'm thankful for my house,  but I sure wish it had a bigger kitchen and an attached garage.

I say I'm thankful for my children, but I get frustrated when the act like children.

I say I'm thankful for food but I think that the fridge and freezer full are not enough, I must go get that one thing I'm out of.

The list could go on. I just had to wonder if my words and my heart are connected on this thankful stuff.

We live in a world that doesn't promote much thankfulness, much less the grateful heart.

We've come to the place where we miss our family dinners to line up to be the first one in the stores for a good deal. (That's another  post, another soap box....but it sure makes some pretty loud statements about the contentment and thankfulness, or lack thereof, that we're surrounded with.)

I too, could easily get caught up in the "I wishes" and the "It would be nice..." thing, but what I want, what I really want is that Grateful Heart.

There are some out there if you look for them.

As I watched a dear couple facing serious health issues hold each other tight and sing

"I Have Someone to Thank" I saw a grateful heart.

When a sweet little voice says "Sanks Mom" for a simple snack or a glass of water, I see a grateful heart.

 When I receive a hand written note of thanks for doing something simple for a friend, I see a grateful heart

When I choose to focus on what I have and the many blessing I've been given instead of the endless list of  wishes, I take another baby step toward a grateful heart.

I do however, think it this will be a longer process than figuring out what to do with all those turkey leftovers.

Made Me Smile Monday

{a  snapshot from my week. with or without words. something exciting. something ordinary. something special. something silly. just something. that made me smile this week. a memory to brighten my day. to make me smile again. even though it's MONDAY!}

I got the best little package in the mail this week. 

It's that time of year again. Time to collect the coordinating outfits, bribe the munchkins, pray for the photographer and hope for the best.

Forget the nice, normal, sitting still, smiling sweetly stuff

we're going 'au-naturel.'

Oh the personalities that shine through and the captions that one could devise.

Feel free to add yours in the comments! 

This little guy? 

I just wanna stuff him in my pocket 

and do everything I can to stunt his growth.

Seriously, he's just too much fun!

Happy Monday

Who is making you smile today?

Inspiration Strikes

and at the strangest times I might add.


***I've been on my "knock-off Olive Garden Salad" kick for over a week now. It's my lunch almost everyday. Just yesterday it hit me, they've been missing the onions all along. It's just so sad! Today's lunch was so much better. :)

***I bought this  candle holder somewhere on clearance, certain that it would find a happy spot somewhere in my house. It's been sitting in the closet for years. I didn't want to get rid of it because I do like it. It's kind of different, unique. But it a strange size and I just wasn't willing to pay top dollar for a specialty candle to fit it. So it sat, collected dust, took up space.....

....until last week when I discovered the perfect use for it.

 plastic headbands hang over the one side....

elastic headbands hang from the curly-q's and the top is perfect for little clips and flower pins. Bingo!


***I treated the kids to "dinner and a movie" night, one evening while Daddy was working. In an effort to avoid ketchup on the beige carpet I did this. Worked like a charm! My one moment ingenious moment of the year.

***My kitchen/dining area is a coffee theme. The curtains and most of the decor is black/brown and I suddenly realized this fall that since we gleefully said goodbye to our red plaid couch their really isn't any prominent color theme in the living room either. Pretty much the only color in either room is accent pieces AND   **light-bulb moment** I could swap them out seasonally. With just a few new candles and quick changes I added a little bit of fall to my house. My fall decor in the past usually consisted of a mum and a pumpkin on the porch. I'm kind of loving the fall colors inside too.

[The mirror inside the front door & the reflection of the opposite wall.

I wish I had gotten about a dozen more of those little white gourds!]

***Last Saturday my husband mentioned in passing that an Amish lady gave him a homemade donut at one of his stops. It wasn't even that day. It was months ago. But he mentioned and I got inspired and that was that.

Mix

Roll

Rise

Fry

Devour!

Mmm. They're so good that first day now I think it's time to get back to that salad kick!


Your turn....what's your latest inspiration? I'm always looking for new tips and ideas to make a Mommy's life easier, prettier, more organized, more fun...............

Happy Friday!!