Change of Plans

Today I had a million things I wanted to accomplish during Bryce's naptime, so of course it was shorter than normal. :-) When I heard him crying, my first response was frustration that I would not finish my projects. Then I was able to take a step back and decide that I was going to make the most of it. I keep thinking about finding more joy in each moment, and not being so stuck on "my" plan.
The weather was beautiful, a little chilly, so I scooped Bryce out of bed, threw a jacket on him, made Emily change out of her princess nightgown for warmer clothes, and we headed to our local park. We picked up a few friends on the way. It was so much fun! I even had Dallin dropped off there after school so that he could play for a while. I don't always make the best Mommy decisions, but this is one I am glad I made.

Biggest Loser...

...wasn't on tonight! I was so bummed because the basketball game was on instead. That's all I have to say today. Too many things going on in my head right now to get any down on paper. Have a good night everyone! Hopefully NBC will have Biggest Loser on their website soon.

It's hard.

That's all I can say about this month. I knew it would be tough for me but I didn't realize just how much I would think about my dad. In the past year, there has not been a day gone by that I didn't think of him, and I am grateful for that. I hope I never lose that. I want him to always be a part of me and remind me who I want to be. My kids mention him almost every day, especially Emily. My organizing project for today and the next couple of days is to finish my 2005 family digital album. This is the year he was diagnosed with cancer. This is the year my world was turned upside down. This was the year we really focused on family, making as many memories as we can and pulling together as a team. This year holds many amazing pictures but they each pull at my heart strings. How do you capture it so that you never forget? That is what I want to do.

Putting down roots

We have lived in our little town for almost 8 years. We feel so blessed to be here. We love the tree-lined streets, close knit community and especially our neighbors. Without family close, we really depend on our friends and neighbors to help us out, and we try to do the same for them. When we moved into our house, our plan was to live here 7-10 years. It has definitely served us well. I love how open the floor plan is, and over the years we have tried to move things around to fit our needs. The only thing that I have never liked about the house is the yard. It is teeny tiny and there is no where for our kids to run around. On the other hand, just out the front door is a great semi cul-de-sac for riding bikes. It has been wonderful! So, we are in the process of deciding what the next step is. I have never felt I needed a HUGE house (I can barely clean the one I have!), but I would like to find a house that fits our needs a little better, especially for the boat and my kids to have space to be kids.

So, tell me what you love about your house, neighborhood, etc? What would you do differently?

Edited to add: I forgot my new section! Jeff and I went through our closets today and got rid of anything we hadn't worn in a year- woo hoo!

Happiness is...

getting beat by your 6 year old at checkers! Dallin has always loved to play games. He usually goes in spurts and will want to play the same game over and over again. You would think this would get old, but I have truly enjoyed it over the years. As a 4 year old, it amazed me that he could understand counting and game play enough to beat me at Sorry. (Sometimes the winning card "magically" appeared on the top of the deck.) As a 5 year old, I loved the excitement that Uno brought with its faster pace and quick decision making. As a 6 year old he has many games that he cycles through. Ticket to Ride is a game we learned with friends and fell in love with, and I was surprised at how quickly Dallin caught on. He started learning names of cities and loved calculating his score as he went. It really improved his math skills and strategy. He also likes Battleship, Chess and Checkers. He has even suckered me into playing Pokemon cards, and I have to admit, I love his sound effects! He was taught Backgammon by Jeff and taught me the other day. I think playing games is one of the best ways to learn new skills. I was very humbled today when Dallin beat me in about 5 minutes, and I really was TRYING to play. I don't know if I should be proud of him or embarrassed by my lack of skills. We ended the night by playing Sorry with Emily. The cycle begins with her. She may not enjoy games as much as Dallin but I look forward to the one-on-one time it will give me with her. As the kids get older I look forward to many game nights as a family. Can't wait to teach Dallin Settlers of Catan!

How about the rest of you? Do you play games with your kids? Are they better than you?

New section on my blog: To encourage me to blog earlier and get a project done, I am going to list my "assignment" for the night at the end of each blog. Then I will edit it with whether or not I accomplished it. You don't have to comment on this, it is just for my accountability.

Today's project/cleaning: Church bags cleaned out and ready for church/downstairs picked up.

Edited to add: Church bags are ready and downstairs is clean. So, my question is, what do you have in your church bag?

I cried during Yoga

Sometimes things touch me at the strangest moments. I guess I should expect it in a class where you are encouraged to get in touch with your "center." However, if you know me at all, you know it is tough for me to truly get into a "zone" where my thoughts aren't going all over the place. I have tried Yoga a few times and never been able to truly let go and concentrate. Today was different and I needed it.

I had a perfect plan. I was taking the kids to Child Watch so that I could go to Yoga, and then Jeff would meet us after work and we would all go swimming. Well, first of all, I couldn't find my car key, and my kind neighbor let me drive her van to the Y. (Crazy girl, doesn't she know I am a terrible driver, ha ha?!) It was very kind of her, and it is only a mile away! So, I was running a few minutes late. No big deal. So then we get into Child Watch and Emily does her mad dash to the bathroom. I get there just in time to watch her pee all over the floor. I tried to stay calm. I had to make a decision. I even said out loud, "I don't know what to do about this Emily." Finally I decided that we wouldn't go swimming. She was not too happy about that. So, of course she went to Child Watch kicking and screaming. By the time I got out of there, I was very flustered. I called Jeff to let him know the update and he could tell I was irritated. I told him I might not go to Yoga. He said not to let it get to me and to go to class. By now I am 30 minutes late.

It took me a few minutes to calm down, but then all of a sudden it all went away. I was able to relax and enjoy the movements and the calmness of the instructor's voice. I felt uplifted and soothed. At the end as I was laying there with my eyes closed, there were a few phrases that really struck me and my emotions took over.

"Let go of all the negativity. It is not worth it. Feel the weight of it being lifted off."
"Take time for quiet moments."

I was very grateful that I stayed for the class. I felt renewed and ready to face the next thing. Unfortunately, the next thing happened as I walked out of class. When I saw Dallin he actually started complaining that we hadn't been there long enough and was really upset. So, I will admit I lost my cool a little.

I need practice, okay. "Let go of all the negativity." I will keep telling myself that. I really want to be able to give my full self to my kids. That is what they deserve.

Daily Joys of being a Mom

I was reminded today by a good friend of the importance of putting our children first and enjoying the moments with them. It is such a short time when they are little kids and I want to cherish it. My focus lately has been to get my life in order such that I don't get overwhelmed as easily so that I CAN enjoy the moments a little more.
One of the many reasons I am grateful to be a stay-at-home mom is to enjoy moments such as these:
I love watching my children play and learn as they play. I love watching what they will decide to do when the choice is theirs. We went to OMSI with Emily's co-op preschool.
While she jumped from sand to water to flubber to paining to the balls, I watched her look of sheer pleasure as she flitted from one thing to another at her own pace.
Meanwhile Bryce played with her a little, but mostly he just hung out on my lap, which was delightful. It was nice not to chase him and of course I didn't have any dishes to load or messes to clean up. :-) I know he would have had much more fun if he wasn't so tired, but it was wonderful for me! We also happened to be there at the same time as another co-op from our circle of friends. It was a fantastic coincidence, as one of my other favorite things is sharing motherhood with great friends. (I took a cute picture of Heather, Molly, and Sarah getting to enjoy a nice chat while kids were busy playing, but unfortunately it didn't come out! )

Then when we came home, Bryce took a great nap, Emily played with a friend and I was able to start thinking about my organizing plan. When Dallin got home they all played very nicely together. In the midst of yuckiness around us (weather and society), I am grateful for days like today.

Ready for good habits...

It is almost 10pm and I am going to bed. This is a huge deal for me. I have noticed my energy level way down the last few days and I need to do something about it.

I was excited to get my organizing book in the mail today. (For those of you I bought copies for, I will drop them off tomorrow!) So, my hope is that I will wake up to many words of wisdom in the form of your comments to get me motivated to start my organizing plan!

Thanks for all your comments during NaBloPoMo- it has been fun to see what you have to say. Keep the great ideas coming!

The other "baby" in our family

The day we put away the boat for the winter is always a sad day for me. This summer we weren't able to get out on the boat as much as I like because gas was $4/gallon! (Too bad it's not warm right now-gas is cheap!) I do have to give props to Jeff for being able to pull off the parking job it takes to get the boat in our garage. :-)

I thought it would be fun to take a look back at our journey with our "baby". I hope you will enjoy this with me. Edited to add: This ended up being way longer than I had anticipated. I will be amazed if anyone makes it through this. Just enjoy the pictures!

I did not grow up with a boat, but I remember the first time I went on a boat to earn a girls scout boating badge. I loved the feel of the wind through my hair. I felt at peace in nature and loved the crisp air. It was a freedom I had never felt before. I loved every minute! (I was probably 9 or 10.) The next time I went on a boat with with my best friend in elementary school, Michelle. She took me to Lake Havasu a few times and again I just loved being on the boat. We never had a chance to waterski because it was always too windy. My best friend through junior high and high school, Val, also had a boat. (Notice a trend...) She took me to Lake Mead and taught me to waterski. That was when I found my favorite sport. I wasn't great at team sports, so I loved that waterskiing was individual and it was all up to me. It didn't matter if I messed up. (Maybe this is why I love running too!)I started off on double skis and by the end of the week I was begging to learn to slalom like the cool skiiers. They did teach me, and it was tough but eventually I got up on one ski- woo hoo. This was when I was 16. Over the next 3 years I would ski off and on, and I loved it every time I did, although I felt like I had to keep relearning because I skied so rarely!

When Jeff and I met, our first real conversation turned to boating and waterskiing. He had grown up with a boat and absolutely LOVED waterskiing. (He is also amazing to watch!)
We both said that someday we wanted a boat for our family. (Not knowing then that we would be getting married, of course!)
When we moved to Oregon, the first couple that we met mentioned that they had a boat. Jeff and I both looked at each other, and knew we had met the right friends. They needed a flag holder so they called us and we went skiing almost every week that first summer. They showed us a dock that was only 5 miles from our house and the most perfect skiing river. It is almost always calm. I happened to get pregnant early in that summer, so mostly I watched Jeff ski. The summer after that was awesome! We again skied often, and Dallin LOVED the boat as a baby.
He would fall asleep on the boat. It was really cute. Our friends, unfortunately ended up getting divorced (so sad), and we didn't have a boat to ride on anymore. We were struggling a little bit because with kids, pregnancy, etc we weren't being as active together. No running, roller blading, etc. We needed something we could do together and include kids.

Right before Emily was born in August of 2004, we went on a family boating trip with Jeff's family. Dallin LOVED the boat and kept saying, Go faster, Dad! The weekend we came home we started looking again. We never thought we would be able to agree on a boat. Jeff wanted a fancy schmancy new boat, and I wanted a boat we could pay cash for. He didn't think we would find one that was in good shape. (Oh, and it had to fit in our garage!) Luckily, we found the perfect boat! It was a used boat, but only a few years old and it was in pristine condition. We bought it a few days later. I was 8 months pregnant so I was the flag holder for the first few months. After I had Emily, I wanted a chance to ski on MY boat after watching everyone else. Emily was born via C-section on Oct. 5th. I tried to talk my Dr. into letting me ski at 2 weeks postpartum because it was awesome weather, and he said no way! He finally agreed on November 5th. It was cold, my good friend Amy came with us, and it took me about 15 tries to get up. I only skied about 30 seconds and I was done! I was not a pretty sight in my wet suit, but I did it! The next summer was much better skiing.
So, we have had the boat for 4 years now. We have been through a lot with it. We have had some great years when we got a lot of boating in, and we have had years with hardly any. We have taken it camping a few times, but mostly we drive 15 minutes to the dock, leaving after Jeff gets off work and ski until dark. The kids have LOVED the boat, as babies and also as they get older. I love watching kids' faces on the boat, especially kids who have never been on one. It is priceless.

It is our family time together and we all enjoy it so much. We also love sharing our passion with our friends. It gets tougher to do as our families get larger. :-) My goal is to get out once a week in the summer, but it doesn't always work out that way. Part of the problem is that even though many people say they want to come on the boat, they aren't always ready to come last minute, and that is just how it works. If the weather is nice (or even a little overcast which makes the river less crowded!) I will just call Jeff and say let's go! Jeff and I also have different views on how many people to invite. I say the more the merrier, and he says there isn't enough daylight for that! Turns out he is right.
So, the plan is to take one family at a time. (Or 3 couples without any of us bringing kids!) I am turning to my blogging buddies to let me know if they would like to come with us. Throughout the year people mention that they would be interested, but honestly I always forget who. So, this winter I am starting a place to keep track of families who want to come with us. Your job is to let me know, and then next year, remind me that I made a list. :-) We LOVE bringing people with us. In my perfect world, someone would call ME and say, hey, let's go out on your boat tonight. Give it a try!

Okay, I can't believe how long this is. It was really fun to look through the pictures and remember all the good times we have had. I feel really blessed that we were able to buy something that all of us enjoy.

Still to come: Our boating mishaps...(It hasn't all been roses!)


Here are pics of each of the kids as babies on the boat:

We have also enjoyed taking the girls from church. It is fun to watch them learn and they are very helpful with the kids.

Our New Addition

So, there is a big joke about Jeff's birthday presents from me. I always have good ideas that just don't work out. So, I am always telling him that "Well, you were gonna get a really cool _____, but...". For his birthday in January I decided it was time to get him a decent TV. He works so hard and rarely does anything for himself. He is a sports fanatic and it is how he unwinds. I figure the least I can do is let him watch it in HD. :-) So, we went shopping for a TV, but the one rule was that we still wanted it to fit in our entertainment center. As explained in my "anti-shopping" post, the size we wanted was just a tad too big, so we didn't buy one at all. Well, 7 months later, we decided to look again. We finally found one that was a good price and a good TV and it is the smaller size. It is amazing what a difference the clarity is. We watched "Iron Man" on the new TV and really enjoyed it.

So, how about the rest of you? Did you get sucked into society's need for a bigger TV? Is it worth it?

Edited to Add: The TV is a 32 inch and our last was a 27 inch. We had hoped to get a 37 inch, but it was a 1/2 inch too wide to fit in our entertainment center. The 32 inch is great though and I think Jeff is very happy. (He better be!)

The other two kids

My favorite Sunday is when the Primary Children put on the program. It is always a little hectic if you are in charge or a teacher (I am a teacher this time!), but it is so beautiful to hear their voices teaching simple truths about Jesus Christ. The program definitely showcased the differences between my two children. This was the first primary program for Emily. You never know what you are going to get with her. When we practiced on Saturday, she said her line perfectly the first time through. She LOVED using the microphone. The second time through, she just started babbling about her mom and Christmas. When I asked her about it, she said, "I just didn't want to say my line." Too funny. So, I will admit I was nervous today to see what she would do. Of course, I bribed her with candy. I was very happy that she said her line loud and clear and was very proud of herself. (And of course, I gave her the candy.) Dallin, on the other hand, did his line perfect each and every time. No hesitation. That is just how he is. He does things the way they are supposed to be done. There is really no guessing with him. He likes routine and he likes rules.
Today I was also in charge of Sharing Time with my class. Emily isn't in my class, but wanted to be by my side and talking in the microphone. Have I mentioned she isn't shy one bit? After it was over, our music director was kind enough to let her stay in front. She shocked me by singing directly into the microphone. She put on a little concert for the whole primary. I didn't really know what to do. I was amazed by her lack of fear. Let's just hope that she is blessed with more singing talent than her mother.
It was a nice day and I was very proud of my kids. Tonight we went to a good friend's house and were able to rock out to Rock Band for the first time. Good times!

So thankful for Bryce

I was trying to decide what to blog about when I came across this picture on my amazing friend and photographer, Lisa Dillon's blog. She truly captured Bryce's inquisitive personality. I had to put the picture up and talk about my sweet baby boy.

As many of you know, Bryce is our little miracle. All babies are gifts from God, but Bryce was truly a surprise. After needing fertility meds for the first 2 babies, we thought we were done. (Ask Angi about the email I sent her the DAY before I found out I was pregant- it said Congratulations on your new pregnancy, sorry I won't be having one at the same time! Turns out we had our babies 9 days apart! Tells you how clueless I really was.)

Bryce has been a tough baby for me because he is a little more clingy than the others(okay, a LOT more clingy!). At a time when I thought all I needed was space, maybe Heavenly Father knew better that what I actually needed was to have a focus and take care of this baby. If Bryce hadn't been there each and every moment, clamoring for my attention, maybe I would have curled in a ball and laid in bed. Emily and Dallin would have been happy to watch TV and video games for hours while I laid on the couch all day, but Bryce would not let that happen for an instant. He has given me the reason to get through each day when all I wanted to do was cry.

His birth and baby blessing brought my ailing father out here at a time that he probably wouldn't have come otherwise. I was able to have many happy memories that I cherish and hold close to my heart. Even 2 weeks later, my dad wouldn't have been physically able to make the trip. I am also glad I was able to share Bryce with my father, even for a short few months. I will try hard to keep those memories alive with Bryce as he is growing up.

Bryce's middle name is Thomas after my dad I would love to see him take on his qualities. So, far Bryce has shown himself to be quite ambitious. He wants to be bigger than he is and is anxious to learn the next thing. He is a very cuddly little boy but when he is ready to run, don't stand in his way! He looks at locks as a challenge for him to figure out. He is a sweet baby who loves dogs and is trying hard to talk but doesn't get much out- yet! I have spent many many hours holding him and he has been a comfort and a strength to me. He is very playful- just like my dad! He especially loves playing with Jeff. He has no fear as he is learning new skills. He makes me smile just watching him play and interact with others. I just adore this little boy and I am grateful for my surprise.

Grateful for the Temple

I had a nice date night with Jeff tonight. I am grateful that he takes me to the temple. I love the feeling of peace that envelops me in this beautiful place. This is the place where I feel the closest to my dad. I am grateful for the knowledge that I will see my dad again. I am grateful for the knowledge that I don't have to be perfect. I am grateful to know that I have a loving Heavenly Father.

The Kelly Shopping Curse

I have always said that I am not a "typical" girl. I am very laid back and just like to do my own thing. I didn't like gossip and how mean girls seemed to be behind other girls' backs. I was never into name brands because I felt like all it did was show other people how much money you spent. I was always a no frills type of person. I didn't have a lot of money so I only bought what was necessary. (ie, I was cheap!) I didn't like wearing makeup because it always felt so thick on my face. Due to all of these reasons and more, I never became as proficient as a shopper as most of my peers did. Fast forward to adulthood, when I really can't avoid shopping.
Here are some of the things that happen to me when I go shopping(and add to my dislike of it):

1. I go to the grocery store, pull out a coupon, find out I am a day early (or a day late!) for the sale.
2. I go to the grocery store (we have 2 main ones in our town) and I pull out my coupon and realize I am in the wrong store! (And it is not the one that accepts customers' coupons.)
3. I wait to go shopping until I know EXACTLY what I am looking for, and inevitably it is the only row that is empty.
4. I get to the store and realize I don't have any credit cards with me.
5. I buy something that I think is the right size (for instance, a mirror for our living room), and I bring it home and it is not even close.
6. I bought 2 cute shirts for full price at Old Navy. The next week I run into someone who has one of them on. I say, "I loved that T-shirt too." and she says, "Yeah, isn't it great that they were only $5?!)" Turns out I bought them 2 days before the $5 sale!
7. I tell Jeff that for his birthday we are finally going to buy a nicer TV. We both decide that we still want it to fit in our entertainment center (which has doors that close.) We measure the width to be 35 3/4 inches. All of the 37inch TV's(they are measured on the diagonal) have widths that are right around 36 inches. The next size down is a 32 inch, which has a 31 inch width. We were so frustrated that we stopped looking for 8 months! This leads me to my next post...stay tuned...

1. Am I the only girl who doesn't like shopping?
2. Any shopping advice?

My Plan for the Year

It is nice to have a few ideas for posts! Writing every day gets a little crazy, but it is a fun challenge.

So, onto my plan. As most of you know, I really struggle with organization. It just doesn't come naturally to me and I get overwhelmed very easily. Usually I will set a crazy goal such as, "I will have the whole house completely organized in the next 2 weeks." I do a marathon cleaning and organizing day and then get burned out. Then I end up more frustrated than I was to begin with. My awesome friend Suziepetunia told me about a book that might help me. It is called One Year to an Organized Life. It gives week by week assignments to get you organized in a reasonable amount of time. Baby steps instead of trying to do everything at once. For the first time in my life I feel very optimistic about getting things somewhat under control. I will be meeting with a few of my close friends (including Suziepetunia!) once a month to talk about how things are going and prepare for the next month. It will be great to have a support system. Wish me luck!

For those of you who I know are incredibly organized, please feel free to comment with any tricks that have worked for you. I will keep a link to this post on the side of my blog, and anytime you think of something to add, please do! I love learning from other people what works for them!

Oops...I need a do-over day!

Today was an emotionally charged day for many reasons- most of which I am not going to talk about- sorry! So, it is actually Wednesday morning but I am posting for Tuesday. I am ready for the clean slate. I will talk about my plan for the year later on today.

As with the rest of the country, I was glued to my TV and internet. I am grateful the election is over and I am ready to see the "Big Change" that has been promised. :-) Will he live up to his campaign promise? Only time will tell. I hope as a nation we can come together. I was impressed with John McCain's concession speech. I hope we can all be as willing to support the new president. I know I am. Let's roll.

Still Undecided...

...this was not the post I planned on writing tonight, but it is all I can think about right now. I am so grateful to live in a country where I can help decide who will lead us. My problem is that in this election I really can't get excited about any of the candidates. (I even read the bios of the "other" candidates.) Jeff keeps telling me not to stress about it because my vote doesn't matter in Oregon anyway (yes, please razz him about this attitude!), but I really want to use my right to vote. A right that has been fought for by selfless soldiers for over 200 years. I would list all my reasons for liking or disliking Obama and/or McCain, but I don't want to turn this into a political forum. So, for now, I will get back to reading different articles and try to make an informed decision. Wish me luck!

And then I will go watch the SNL Political Bash. :-)

October Pics

How exciting- more readers than I thought! Hope I can keep you interested all month. :-)

So, here is my whirlwind journal update. This is where I mostly put pics up for grandma and so someday I can turn it into a scrapbook using Blurb.com.

Enjoy!

We went to the pumpkin patch for preschool, but I didn't have my camera. I was able to go later with the Special Needs (Snaps) group from the YMCA. I just help out with this group every once in a while and I just love it. My favorite part was when Molly grabbed the wagon handle to start pulling Emily. I had never seen her do something like this. It really warmed my heart. I love involving my kids in things like this and I need to do it more. They sure have a special spirit about them.



We had our first taste of wearing costumes at a kids Halloween party at the Y. The kids met a lot of their friends there and just had a good time playing games and eating treats. What more could you want? Bryce really loved the bean bag toss and kept sneaking to the front of the line and reaching as high as he could to put the bean bag in the lion's mouth. So cute!
The next weekend I took a trip up to Seattle to visit my cousin for her baby shower. Unfortunately I got sick on the way up and she took good care of me. I just brought Bryce with me and Jeff had a great time with the older 2 kids at home. He took them swimming and just enjoyed being with them.
Jeff and I got a babysitter and went to an adults only Halloween Party. We rented a bowling alley and then played pool and hung out. Everyone dressed in costume and just enjoyed chatting without the little ones to take care of. We definitely need to do this more often. I wish I had more pictures, but my camera wasn't working. You can see more on facebook if you want to add me as a friend! :-) It was so much fun!
The day before Halloween was a little busy. I had the co-op preschool at my house. It is one of my favorite holidays to be in charge of because the kids are so cute! We had a great time. I was able to volunteer in Dallin's school for their harvest festival. I don't get to help as much as I would like, I just have to remind myself it is not my time yet! So, I am so grateful for friends who help watch Emily and Bryce so that I can be there every once in a while.
Halloween Day started with teacher conferences. I have been so happy with the charter school that Dallin attends. His teacher is very aware of what he needs and loves to challenge him. I am grateful that she is continuing to foster his love of learning. He has been such a joy to teach and it is wonderful to see him learning from someone else. We spent Halloween night with good friends having a pot luck dinner and then took the kids trick or treating. The boys sprinted so far ahead that I didn't get any pictures of them! They were sweating by the time they met back. (Hopefully someone else has pictures!) Emily was too funny. She was very picky about her candy. One time she said, "I have tried that kind and I didn't like it. Can I have chocolate?" I tried to chastise her a little for being rude, but it made me laugh! Bryce made a very cute pirate, but didn't quite get the trick or treating yet.
So, that is the last few weeks in a nutshell. I look forward to posts of a more random nature!

Getting geared up for NaBloPoMo...

I just signed up again for NaBloPoMo- where you post every day for the month of November. I did this last year and even though it was a tough time in my life, I am grateful that I did it. So, for all of you (the 5 of you who read this!) who tell me I don't update enough- now you will get much more than you want! I already have a few posts in my head. Here are some teasers:

1. Halloween Update (of course!)
2. The Kelly Shopping Curse
3. My Plan for this Year
4. Our newest addition
5. Running Addiction

So stop back by. I will be here all month. :-)