For the Journey


Any day spent with you is my favorite day. So today is my new favorite day. ~A.A. Milne

"You crown the year with Your goodness, and Your paths drip with abundance." ~Psalm 65:11

WHAT WE'RE EATING THIS WEEK
Seth is in Wyoming so that means all of our meals are kid favorites.  I've basically been eating salads everyday for lunch and supper.  But we had home made pizzas on Monday night and their favorite poppyseed chicken casserole last night.  Tonight is our four hour dance marathon so that means a trip to the drive through.  Tomorrow night will probably be tacos because that's super easy to throw together after we get home from night two of dance.  I'm not sure about Friday night.  Spaghetti and meatballs, maybe?

WHAT I'M REMINISCING ABOUT
One of the other dance moms has a little boy who just turned three years old.  He is cute as a button, and I absolute LOVE watching his antics around the studio.  He is just so much fun.  Every time I see him, I think back to when Mason was two and three years old.  He was the sweetest little boy.  Still is, but he was extra sweet back then.  Those days were just so simple!  I didn't realize it back then, but they were.  And I could use some "simple" right now!  I miss hanging out with him and doing whatever he wanted to do, playing in his room, playing on the swing set outside, watching Mickey Mouse.  Now he's ALMOST as tall as I am!





WHAT I'M LOVING
I found a new app last week, and it's just the coolest.  It's called Prisma.  I don't even know how to describe it so I'll just show you.

Do you know who this is?
I had taken a picture of Ellie, and the app fancied it all up.  There are several different designs, but I think this is my favorite.

We saw a double rainbow last week.  Here's the original picture.  I took it as Seth was driving so the cane field is a little blurry.

And here it is after I uploaded the photo to Prisma.
You can't see the second rainbow in this particular one so I did it again with a different design, and it really picked up that second rainbow.
Isn't that the neatest?!

I found these at the grocery store this week.  
And they are so. good.  I'm not a fan of pumpkin spice EVERYTHING, but I do love pumpkin spice SOME THINGS (like candles and brownies and lattes).  I usually don't eat breakfast, mainly because I'm just not a morning person, and I don't even feel like fixing something for myself after I feed the kids.  But since I'm up before dawn even thinks about it during the school year, I do try to eat a little something that's quick and low maintenance.  Usually that's a bowl of grits.  But these are my new quick breakfast favorite.

WHAT WE'VE BEEN UP TO
September was a pretty ordinary month.  We are well into our homeschool and dance routine now so that pretty much defines our lives these days.  Today Ellie will finish her third workbook since August.  She's moving right along.  I've thought about starting kindergarten with her after Christmas, but the other part of me is in no hurry.  She wants to do school all. the. time.  Nights.  Weekends.  So I finally had to tell her last week that school work is for weekdays only.  No nights.  No weekends.

WHAT I'M DREADING
I have nothing for this one.  I need to make an appointment to see my ophthalmologist for my annual check-up, but I haven't done that yet.  Needless to say, that's the doctor I enjoy going to the least because they are always so behind, and it takes forever.  Besides, I don't know anyone who enjoys getting their eyes dilated!

WHAT I'M WORKING ON
Believe it or not, I've been putting my last two valances together.  The others were finished last spring, but I had to get some more fabric to finish.  I ordered the fabric in July, hoping to finish before school started.  But then the flood came, and the shipment was delayed.  I just picked it up a couple of weeks ago.  One of them is almost complete, and the other one is already cut out.

I'm still Christmas shopping.  Almost finished!  I should be done by the end of October!

My big project this Friday is purging the kids' closets to make room for cooler weather clothes.  Not that we even have cooler weather.  But we can dream, right?  Both Hannah Kate and Mason are going to need new clothes this year.  Ellie will have a good stash of hand-me-downs from Hannah Kate.  I just need to get those boxes out of the attic.

I've decided to part ways with my beloved monogram machine.  I haven't used it since Ellie was born.  I just don't have time.  Besides, all of my children have decided they're too old to wear their initials and appliqués anymore anyway!  I love my machine, and I hate to sell it, but I know I won't use it anymore.  I'm letting all of my stabilizer and thread go with it, too.

I'm also getting rid of my infant carrier and stroller and cradle swing and bouncer.  All of those were purchased brand new when Ellie was born, and they're still like-new.  I can't imagine I'll ever need them again.

So I guess I'm fall cleaning.

WHAT I'M EXCITED ABOUT
Oh, this is easy!  We have a long overdue family vacation coming up.  We're taking the kids to Disney.  They can't wait, I can't wait.  I'm not sure about Seth.  I'm sure it'll be tiring (because let's face it, Disney just is), but I know it'll be fun.  And we need some FUN!

Ellie was 9 months old the last time we went.  So, of course, she doesn't remember anything from that trip.  She knows only what she sees in our pictures.  And she looks at those pictures over and over and over.  Needless to say, there is not a word I can think of to describe her excitement right now.  It's off the charts!  And I have no doubt she's going to love every second of it!  I'm just hoping she'll be a good sport for the character encounters.  The two big kids aren't much for that anymore so Ellie is my only chance this time.  We've kept our picture in front of the Magic Kingdom on the frig ever since that trip.  I can't wait to get a new one!
WHAT I'M WATCHING / READING
Today I will finish The Best Yes by Lysa Terkeurst.  Last month I read Uninvited and it was so. good.  I've enjoyed The Best Yes, too.  It seems I can't read much more than a book a month these days, but I'm thankful for that one book.  Mason and I read Carry On, Mr. Bowditch.  It wasn't a book I'd choose to read myself, but I did enjoy it.  There were lots of great lessons in it, and it gave us a lot to talk about.  Now we're reading Shakespeare's tales.  All of them.  Honestly?  I'll be so glad when we're done with that.  I've been reading another book and trying to get through it for three months now.  I just hate starting something and not finishing it, even a boring book that I just can't get into.  But I'm determined to finish it.  Up next is Beth Moore's new book, The Undoing of Saint Silvanus.  I'm saving that one for our trip because the drive will be long.
Speaking of . . . did I mention I MET BETH MOORE last week?!
  Football.  It's football season.  First of all.  My team hung in there pretty good until they went to Oxford last weekend.  But I knew it was coming.  Let's just say we have lots of opportunities for improvement.  I still love my team though.  Second of all.  It just got a whole lot more interesting around here because, in case you haven't heard, Seth's team fired their coach last weekend.  I'll just leave it at that.

WHAT I'M LISTENING TO
Ellie just finished breakfast, and she's watching Mickey Mouse before she begins her school work.  So that's what I hear right now.

Besides that, I'm learning the music for our Christmas musical.  Yes.  Christmas.

WHAT I'M DOING THIS WEEKEND
Well, originally Seth's friend from Spain was coming for a visit, but he had an unexpected change in his work schedule that prevented him from traveling to the States this weekend.  So, plan B.  I'm not exactly sure what that is, but I think it involves the local annual Swamp Festival.  And I think my guys are going to the LSU game Saturday night.

WHAT I'M LOOKING FORWARD TO NEXT MONTH
That's easy.

Disney.

And maybe, hopefully cooler weather.  I doubt boots and scarves kind of weather, but I sure hope we get out of the 90s soon.  It's hot!

WHAT ELSE IS NEW
Nothing much.  It's just life as usual over here.