31 Days of Words {Day 31}

We made it! That was a difficult challenge - I like to write when I feel like writing, and when I have something great to share. On the days when I wasn't feeling it, it was hard to let go and post something I felt was mediocre. But I made it to the end of the month.

Here's a look back at all the words of the day. Repeat, Creative, Quiet, Accomplishment, Compassion, Golden, Home, Reconnect, Routine, Individuality, Stifle, Chocolate, Dreary, Catch-up, Pasta, Challenged, Pink, Fleece, Scraps, Blur, YoMama, Planning, Nada, Yankee, Tunes, Patchwork, Rainbow, BFF, Homecoming, Sisters... Finally.

it's kinda creepy

Yesterday we went to my sister's house for some Halloween fun. My sisters and I change our hair color a lot, and were all a little lighter over the summer. All three of us showed up last night dark - completely unplanned. Freaky.

pay attention to the signs

Sometimes life is busy and confusing, and I forget to breathe. And then a beautiful sign helps me pull it together again. I stopped and pulled over into a parking lot - a church parking lot, no less - to take this pic.

homecoming

This is what my oldest has been doing since she graduated from high school.

my BFF

In grade school I was tall and awkward, with glasses and eventually braces. Although I got along with everyone by high school, I only had a few real friends. I am a lot the same as an adult - my circles include dozens of people on the surface level, but it takes me a long time to open up and share enough to build those real friendships (the awkward part is still just the same).

This week, and today especially, I am so grateful for my best friend from grade school who is still my best friend 25 32 years later. :)

there's more to it than sewing...

Last weekend when my daughter was home, she decided she wanted to make a quilt over the winter. We chose a patchwork pattern, pulled out the fabric stash, and washed a load fabric. I don't think she realized how much quilting involves ironing and cutting.... good thing I like both!

warm smells

We burn candles all winter. They seem to take the chill out of the air just enough that we can keep the heat a little lower. This time of year is my favorite because I love the fall scents like cinnamon, hazelnut, mulled cider, and caramel pecan!

just follow the crowd

Today was one of the final cross country meets heading into the state competition. Beautiful day and the course was close to home. The kids were hoping for some personal records, and good finishes to move forward with.

I don't know who planned the course, but what a mess. Most of the course was too tight to pass, in some places the leaves had blown back over the course leaving no indication where to go, and I have never been to a race where the runners have to stop on the course and wait for cross-traffic runners to pass. God help you if you got separated from the pack at this one....

no, YOUR mama

Why do so many of my posts deal with food? There is a new frozen yogurt place in Milwaukee - serve yourself, soft serve, with all the fixings. Thank goodness I have my kids to find these places for me....

coffee, coffee, coffee

Some days go by so fast. One thing to the next, taking in new info and tossing out old, going from little things to big things and back. You get to a point where you just say whatever... and then you get more coffee. That was today.

scraps and lists

My mom was a list maker. She wrote on little scraps of paper, napkins, the back or receipts - and she stuck them everywhere. And I'm just like that. Today I wrote a grocery list on the cardboard sleeve from a coffee cup. I purposely slip them into books, drawers, and stacks of papers sometimes - I like the surprise of coming across them later!

60 seems warm in April...

I gave in an turned the heat on - I swear I only turned it on for a few minutes. I am trying so hard to get to November without it.

It's not even really cold outside yet. The sun isn't strong enough to keep the ground warm overnight. Later in the year, when we have all adjusted to the cold, this will seem wonderful, but today 60 degrees in the house was not nice to wake up to. The house had such a chill that no one could get warm. Thank God for fleece.

pink

My oldest found this t-shirt for me.

i want my t-9

Today I switched phones with my middle daughter. She wanted a flip phone again, and I thought it would be good to learn how to text on a QWERTY keyboard so we switched. I can type on a keyboard - I should be able to type on a phone keyboard right? RIGHT?!!!! How long does it take to learn how to type on a damn phone keyboard? I mean really, this is easier than T9 and I learned that.... Geez.

family dinner

When the kids were little we used to eat dinner together as a family all the time. Then as they got older and schedules got busier, we ate together less and less. Some nights we would find ourselves eating dinner at 10pm. For a while we actually ate dinner twice - 4pm and 9pm because everyone would be starving between school and sports and I didn't want them snacking on junk.

Tonight, for the first time, I think since school started, the whole family was here for dinner.

pacing myself

Nothing interesting or extraordinary. A little bit of work at home. Then an early start to the weekend by cleaning the house and getting dishes and laundry done. Picked the oldest up at school and went to the middle's cross country meet. I even had some time to go for a run with the youngest and watch tv. It reminded me of the very short time when the kids were little and I stayed home with them. What a different pace.

yep it's October

I work downtown, about 20 miles form home. When conditions are right, the fog comes in from the lake to the downtown area. This morning the fog covered the tops of most of the buildings. Driving in, the sky went from sunny to overcast in less than a mile - like driving into a dream. By mid-morning the rain rolled in and stuck around all day. The drive back out into the sunlight was beautiful.

i can't come to work today...

Part of my life requires me to attend some very formal meetings, like parliamentary procedure formal. This has been challenging for me in many ways for example sitting still, not swearing, and resisting the urge call people names. Every once in a while something will happen that makes me laugh, and unfortunately, that's not really formal-meeting appropriate either. Tonight I had one of those moments. I was mid-sentence when I realized it. You have no idea how hard it was to contain it... worse than the giggles in church.

college fair

Tonight my middle daughter and I went to a college fair at school. It was interesting to see how she approached the school reps, what questions she asked, and how she explained what she was thinking about studying. It was a completely different experience than attending college events with my oldest daughter.

It amazes me that all three of my kids have been raised in the same home, and are nothing alike.

pups

Today was just a regular Sunday; doing wash for the start of the week, grocery shopping, cleaning the toilets. Bet you wish you were me.... Oh, yeah, almost missed the highlight of the day - took the dogs to the dog park.