An Autumn Walk With the Boys

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It’s time to bundle up the kiddos, and head out for an Autumn walk. The leaves are really starting to change, and I know I don’t want to miss them.

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There are plenty of finds along the walk too. Both kids had fun picking up acorns, and Thade found a few pecans too.

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I love to look at the changing Maple trees. Some are a bright orange, and there are sugar maples downtown that are a pretty bright  pink.

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I really want to get a Maple tree for our yard.

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One of my favorite houses nearby has beautiful yellow Maples that line the sidewalk.

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The kiddos walk along the sidewalk, crunching leaves under their feet.

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The recent cold snap has really brought out the pretty Autumn colors.

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As we were walking, we were also planning our Trick-or-Treating route that we will take this year. The boy’s can’t wait for Halloween, and I can’t either.

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Every Autumn I try to find my very favorite tree, and I think this year this yellow maple is the winner. It is absolutely beautiful at sunset with the sun shining through the bright yellow leaves.

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We wrapped up our walk, as the temps dropped a bit, and the evening clouds rolled in. The kiddos were getting a little tired too, and I enjoyed spending the extra time with all of  my boys.  However, on the next Autumn walk, we’ll need to bring along a stroller.

Enjoying the Peace

As my pregnancy is coming to the end, I find myself  happy, sad, anxious, and nervous all at the same time. I am happy that our little girl will be here soon, but sad that I am feeling selfish that I am losing my quiet afternoons. I’m already anxious to be home from the hospital, and I haven’t checked in yet, and nervous about being away from my kids for a few days… I know they will worry, and I will too.

This week I’m trying to enjoy the quiet moments, and days out of the house while I’ve got them. I’m enjoying the free time this week, and keeping my mind busy planning a Halloween party for Thade’s class. I also have a lot of fun activities planned for the week.

Today we had a MOPS Steering team lunch, and it was so nice to catch up with friends, and get a little break from the kitchen too. One of my friends and I have already made plans for tomorrow morning too, and I have another lunch to go to tomorrow. There is also a breakfast at my hubby’s work on Thursday, and yet another Doctor’s appointment to attend to. School is out on Friday, and my hubby has the day off,  but there is a MOPS meeting to go to, and I can’t wait for this one. James and I even have a date night planned for Friday night, and the kiddos have plans that night too.

The next few weeks are going to be crazy, and stressful, but hopefully wonderful at the same time…

Making Memories

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Occasionally mommy-guilt will kick in, and I feel bad that we don’t take many vacations… I have kids that love to go places, but not necessarily travel, and then there is me with a gigantic fear of flying, so that is a mess all together. Just because we don’t travel far doesn’t mean that we are lacking in family memories.

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Take the time to make every outing a mini-vacation. I like to treat the kids to a special treat while waiting for Dad at the airport, or try a new restaurant on the drive back home.

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Day vacations are one of my very favorites. You travel just long enough for the kids to get tired of being in the car, but you get far enough away from home that you miss it.

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Keep an eye out for local events to take the kiddos too. Many of them won’t cost you a penny, and the kiddos have fun too.

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Don’t forget to keep your camera ready to get all of those memory making photos too. I keep mine in the diaper bag (with extra batteries) at all times.

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Let’s be honest though… Getting the kiddos to school on time is an adventure all by itself. I won’t even mention taking a toddler grocery shopping, that is another adventure.

5 Is Too Many

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It’s Monday and as Thade had told me many times over the weekend “we are out of EVERYTHING!” Time to go grocery shopping for the week, a task I’m not too fond of, but it has to be done. Dylan and I were browsing down the aisles, and I was fighting off the urge to fill the shopping cart with Baby Ruth’s and Munchos, and then we came to the Ice Cream aisle.

My ice cream in the freezer was in a sorry state, and every where I looked they were on sale, and they all looked delicious. I ended up buying 3 different flavors, I really wanted 5, but I decided that 3 was better, and I wouldn’t look like a crazy-preggers lady wiping out the entire stock in the Ice Cream aisle. I’ll probably go back for the other 2, but later on in the week…

An Afternoon Out

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James had a much needed half day off, and he sent me out of the house for a little break. There was an awesome thunderstorm moving in, and I saw a great opportunity  to get some pictures of the clouds.

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I also got to head downtown and visit a few antique shops, and look for some fabric too. Checking out the antique stores was really fun, but I still haven’t found the fabric that I am looking for.

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The mid-afternoon thunderstorm came and went. I really appreciated the afternoon out too.

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