...Falling in Love...

Last night I washed and put out the flannel sheets and the thick blanket with animals on it. Fall has struck. Knowing this area, there may still be one or two hold-out days of high heat, but the majority of the days will start to require shoes with socks and longer sleeves. The house is in that in-between stage - too cool to need air-conditioning, not cool enough to need heat. But, my feet are crying out for shelter from the chilly floor, and it is much harder to make that first step out of bed into the crisp air each morning. Now is the start of the season where I really need at least an hour each morning to dedicate to hot, strong coffee and a stimulating book so my day can begin correctly.

I am vowing to be more motivated this fall than last. I WILL put in more garden beds and prepare better now for the spring planting. I WILL go to an orchard and get plenty of apples for pies, crisps, and raw crunching, as well as a belly full of hot cider and donuts. I WILL winterize the house so we don't spend another winter letting precious warmth escape to the outside. I WILL get rooms cleaned out so we have space to fulfill our plans.

So, I'm really looking forward to this Saturday. I have the day off of work, and I get to spend it: going to the farmer's market, working outside (provided the weather is not wet,)decorating the house for Halloween (I believe in decorations for all of October, as it is my favorite month!,)and then going to a party at our friends Scot and Marla's house! I'm sure there will be other activities in the day, but those are all the major ones I can think of!

...The 'couv...

We returned Sunday from our six-day adventure to Vancouver! It was great!!! The city itself is really interesting and nice, plus our traveling companions (Piper, Nick, and Clayton) were loads of fun too. Yesterday was my first day in a week without seeing little Clayton Blue. It was hard, as he is such a sweat pea. Clay was a very well-behaved baby on the flights, and was a mellow traveler. He enjoyed soaking up the city vibe.

As for things we did...went to the aquarium, Stanley park, walked around various parts, ate way too much chocolate, ate lots of other things, babysat, attended the wedding Piper and Nick were going to for about 5 minutes until Clayton had a poop explosion and we had to take him back, indulged in the city's special coffee houses, I got my first pedicure at Piper's urging, hung out with Cynthia and Ross - they live in Seattle and came up for the day Saturday, etc.

I highly recommend visiting Vancouver if you have not. The weather was fantastic (55-65 degrees!) plus they only have black squirrels!

Now it is back to regular life...dishes, laundry, work...yay.

...that girl is poison...

So, a couple of Sundays ago, Jeremy and I had a major yardwork day. I know that I picked some poison ivy to dispose of, but I had never gotten it before (and I know I have been exposed) plus I was wearing gloves. I guess I must have been careless while putting it in the yard-trash bag. Two days later a little patch appeared on my arm. F***! Ah well...I begin using every homemade and over-the-counter remedy known to man. I had a tiny patch appear on my other arm, then a bigger one on my side, and the one on my left arm grew much nastier looking. I fondly referred to it as my mark of the beast. Yesterday, day 11 after exposure, I made my way to Shawnee Mission Urgent Care after work on the advice of many people. The doctor said my side patch and right arm stuff looked fine, but it looked like I had a bacterial infection on the left! Yowzer. So I became the recipient of a steroid shot, antibiotic shot, and tetanus shot. I also get to take oral antibiotics for 10 days...whoo! Sure am glad we have health insurance now.