Oh Hey There Fall!

one. So Fall decided to waltz on in this week. And I love it. We've worn jeans and coats. On Monday we had to venture into Old Navy because M had only one pair of socks! It was surprisingly hard to do. In the back by the toddler clothes, they only had single pairs of socks. And I grabbed all four pair that were her size. No seriously, they only had four pairs that were 2T/3T.

We went to the checkout area, and THAT is where the packs of socks were hiding but they still didn't have any 2T/3T. As I was checking out there was another bin and I found one pack. I don't understand how they expect people to actually buy the socks if they put stuff in the checkout lines but past registers.

two. In honor of fall, I made pumpkin bread. I made this Downeast Maine Pumpkin Bread because it has all the good reviews and comes up in articles about the best pumpkin bread. And it just wasn't doing it for me. I think it had too much spice and not enough pure pumpkin flavor. The pumpkin chocolate chip muffins I made a few weeks ago were way better.

three. I had book club last night. It was the first time in the history of my involvement with this book club (5 years now!) that I have just blatantly decided not to read the book. It was a book that just didn't sound like one that I would revisit and it was kind of expensive. So I didn't buy it and never made it to the top of the list from the library. Oh well.

four. I cannot believe that we are already 21 days into preschool! I have seen such growth in C so far. In a major development writing is no longer the worst thing in the world. It is not his favorite, it will may never be his favorite, but now he can write his name in about 2 minutes which is pretty great! I cannot believe that tomorrow is OCTOBER. This month went SO fast!

five. I made the typical homemade fall-like meal of baked pork chops over rice last night. Instead of using water with the cream of chicken (I don't like cream of mushroom) I used chicken broth and it was amaze-balls. No really, such a simple, simple substitute and it made all the difference.

six. I read Liane Moriarty's new book Truly Madly Guilty. I have really enjoyed her books. What Alice Forgot was my favorite but The Husband's Secret was pretty good too. I fully anticipated loving TMG and it. was. so. hard. to. read. I still consider myself a Moriarty fan but boy howdy, I wish TMG lived up to the hype.

seven. Have you seen all the news stories about coffee shops turning into Luke's Diners to publicize the new Gilmore Girl Netflix mini-series? Well, on Wednesday there is going to be a Luke's here and I am pretty excited about it! I mean, other than the fact I don't actually like coffee. But that is not going to stop me from going. No sir.

7 Fully Random Takes

one. Oh the lure of a dual oven. It's calling me. In a vague, we bought a new range right after we bought the house in 2012 so we will NOT be upgrading anytime soon kind of way. But for real. You'd think the dinosaur chicken nuggets people (Tyson) and the tater tot/fries/crispy crown people (Ore-Ida) could figure out how to cook both at the same temperature... just saying.

two. I bought some LuLaRoe leggings just to see what all the fuss is about. I am sure you've at least heard of them. If not...they're the leggings social media goes on and on about. I was especially curious what "buttery soft" meant. Because I don't think I've ever described anything at all to be buttery soft and that's apparently the LuLaRoe tagline and pretty much everyone says it. What it means is, they're soft. Almost fuzzy, but not. You will probably like to pet your legs. I still don't know that "buttery" is the phrase I'd use but whatevs.

It's too hot to actually wear leggings right now but I do have my heart set on finding a top or a Nicole dress that isn't ugly. Some of the patterns are...intense. But they may be your style. Allison is a new LuLaRoe consultant and Bonnie's consultant has a coupon for Bonnie's readers so... choices abound. I even dusted off my Facebook because apparently that's how people buy LuLaRoe when you don't just have a party in your living room.

three. So I am a totally Harry Potter fan. And now you can discover your Patronus. The quiz tells me that my Patronus is a manx cat. Which is kind of whatever. I have very neutral feelings about that. But really, I saw this on Instagram and... it is actually my spirit animal.

Husband says as far as brand loyalty goes, I am all in for Amazon. He's right. I love them. The end. 

four. In case you're wondering, I am a Slytherin. Which I wish surprised me but...it doesn't. I think I am Slytherin who wishes to be Ravenclaw. I would be constantly annoyed by some of the stupidity of Slytherins but that doesn't mean I don't belong there. They can't all be morons like Crabbe and Goyle. My wand is 10 3/4 inch Laurel Wood with a Unicorn Hair core.

five. In preschool news, C got to be the Good Apple yesterday. Which means he got to sit in the Froggy Chair instead of criss-cross-applesauce on the carpet and be the line leader. It was very exciting for him and he, of course, celebrated at home by having an apple.

six. In M news, she is constantly cracking me up! I think she is prepared to be a sports fan because with no prompting or example that I am aware of she has now started chanting what she wants. "Mickey! Mickey! Mickey! Mickey!" "Strawbee! Strawbee! Strawbee! Strawbee!"

She has this new thing where she will not go into her crib without her "jammies." (C gets VERY annoyed if you refer to his sleep clothes as anything other than pajamas, so I don't even know where she learned that word.) So before rest time, she has to put on her jammies. Then get redressed after her nap. And of course she mostly has to do it "by self."

seven. It was super rainy here this morning which is unfortunate because it is the Hot Air Balloon Festival. I have no idea if it will still go on. I know that if there's a storm within 100 miles they can't fly. But sitting in the mud doesn't sound appealing either. We shall see.

bonus take: We are praying for a minor miracle. My family has until Monday to find some important legal paperwork and it is a needle in a haystack situation. If you have any prayers to spare we would appreciated it!

Have a stellar weekend!

This is Us

Last Spring when the fall previews were coming out I saw the one for This Is Us: 

Now this show is on NBC. They do not have a stellar track record with keeping decent things on the air but it looked like I show I would watch.

So we watched the premiere last night and darn it all, I DO like it. I wasn't looking to start a show that's on TV right now. I am very happy with my Netflix thank you very much. But alas, the show is good. And the twist that I legit did not see coming makes me even more interested.

It's so weird because KIND OF  A SPOILER....

I totally was calling BS on the fact that the hospital wasn't monitoring her very well for a triplet birth. But it never occurred to me what was actually happening. Until it all made sense and oh... I am going to like this.

So there go my Tuesday evenings. Until they move it to Thursday. Or Sunday. Or wherever they will move it because this may be us but it is also NBC. I do appreciate their answer to taking Parenthood off the air though. It hits all the same notes.

What are you watching this season? Anything good?

I'm Waiting on You Fall!

I know that technically Fall doesn't even start until later this week but boy am I ready for it!

That pretty much sums up how I feel these days. It's too hot and humid to not have the air on, but it gets cool enough at night not to run and then we all wake up as sweat balls. It's pretty terrible really. But #firstworldproblems I know. 

Over the weekend we had friends over for brunch and I made my first pumpkin food of the year with Billie Jo's favorite Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins.  They were great! It is a perfect recipe if you're hosting, because everyone can have some, plus there's enough to send some home with your guests and still have some in the cupboard for later. That is a major win. 

Later today, my Warmer of the Month for October comes and it is a BEAUTY! It's called Harvest Pumpkins. 

And with it come my preview Scent of the Month bars, Farmstand Pumpkin. Which also sounds like something I am going to like. 

Sometimes the warmer and scent of the month do not interest me one little bit. And I do not order the kit. I know there are a lot of people with different tastes and the company is trying to appeal to all of them. But this one? This one speaks to me! 

What I am trying to say is... it may be in the upper 80s and humid as heck but darn it, inside my house it is Fall and I am going to embrace it. Fall wax! Fall warmers! Pumpkin decorations! Pumpkin food! 

So if you need me I'll just be sitting here pretending until Fall decides to mosey on in. Happy Tuesday!!

Happy Monday!

So you know, in My Big Fat Greek Wedding, when Tula's brother Nick comes in the morning of the wedding and says "Hello ladies, fresh baklava!" Well... even if you don't, this past weekend was the Greek Festival in town and I just finished my last piece of the fresh baklava. It was, no lie, the best baklava I have ever had. I am fairly certain I need a Greek Grandmother in my life to feed me.

Well, that is one thing that makes me happy. I cannot believe that it is already Monday! Time is going warp speed right now. M and I had music class this morning which was even more fun than last week. I am really looking forward to seeing how she grows throughout the next few weeks. It really is so nice to have her explore the museum and being the boss. She so rarely gets to make the decisions when she's with C.

Mondays are library day at preschool. Last week, even after much discussion about the very topic, he brought home a book we own. Oh well, he was so excited about it. My guy loves books so so much. He was very concerned however that the Librarian said "Mo Williams" instead of "Mo Willems." Which is kind of hilarious to me. Anyway, this week he brought home "Chicka Chicka 1 2 3" and that is a great choice for him because at least we don't already have it!

In other things that currently make me happy, the Vikings beat the Packers in their first game in the brand spanking new stadium! (Sorry Marie but I have a feeling Mr. B agrees with me!) I honestly wasn't expecting a win because as a true Viking's fan it's best not to get your hopes too high. (Especially with Teddy Bridgewater out.) But they pulled it out and I was SO happy. I still am. Though I haven't heard about Adrian Peterson yet and seriously I hope he's okay.

I say this about 15 times a game, but I really like their helmets. They aren't as shiny as the other teams and I just really like them. 

Well that's about all that's on my mind today. Happy Monday! 

What's New?

Woah Nelly. It has been over a week since my last post? Oh goodness. This whole "finding a new rhythm" thing is more work than I anticipated I guess. I have still yet to find that sweet spot between leaving the house to early and "stress me out late." I am sure I'll get there however.

M started her art class last Friday. It's the same class that C took all of last year practically. She is very proud of herself for being big enough to actually take the class. She loved it. It's super low key and that is how I like it. It gives us something to do without little stress.

We also went to the drop-in music class at our little family museum. Again, it used to be something I did with C. This is even more low key than art because you don't even sign up so we can go or not go as we like. But we will almost certainly go more often than not.

I am not one of those moms that subscribes to the "get dressed and feel better about your day" philosophy. I am a "if I am comfy I automatically feel better and if there's no bra required all the better" kind of gal. So if I have to get up, dressed and out the door four mornings a week you better believe that we are going to do something while we are out! So art class, music class and errands it is!

Yesterday, M and I went to the post office, then the park, then I swung through the drive-through to get her a "dough-it" from my pals at Dunkin' Donuts. It was kind of the perfect morning and somehow turned into the perfect day too. So... go us I guess. That's always nice.

I know I have written before about how much C just loathes writing. He had his first "homework" over the weekend. He had to cut out pictures of things that started with the letter A, write the letter a both upper and lowercase and that was it. The cutting went well but it was pulling teeth to get him to write the letters. I don't know who was more frustrated honestly. Yet today, we got a jump start on letter B before this weekend's letter book work and it was relatively pain free with fairly decent uppercase Bs.

So hopefully this weekend won't be an epic battle of wills to write the letters. Or maybe it will be just as bad, but here is the photographic proof that he can, in fact, do it. 

That's about all the stuff going on in our world. Not much it seems. But that's okay. Have a great Wednesday!

Read To Your Children

2016 has not been a good year in terms of celebrity deaths. But this one, stings a little more than most. 

Sadly, Anna Dewdney passed away over the weekend. Who? The author and illustrator of Llama Llama Red Pajama and all the other wonderful Llama books. 

She has asked in lieu of a funeral service that everyone read to their children. A simple request that I will have great pleasure in fulfilling. 

Reading aloud is not one of my favorite past times. We have LOTS of books and I swear we read daily, but maybe not as much as I could/should. As it happens, the Llama Llama books are among our favorites. I rather enjoy reading them and the kids love them. 

Plus, hearing Miss M say "yama" is one of the best things ever. So there's that. 

I am sad that there will be no more Llama books, but I am thrilled that we have wonderful books to remember Anna by.