The Haunted Bookmobile Story Time

Happy Halloween! Thanks so much for all your kind comments on the last post. I'll let you know if I can figure out a way to make it to the Banquet. For now, though, I'm just stopping in to share this video, which Jai and his boss Katie made yesterday on their Bookmobile run, in the Haunted Bookmobile...

It's a Major Award!

Hey, I've been meaning to share this video for a little while now! My friend Andre filmed it for Club 400, and I just love it!

Also, we just got some exciting news today... Unbeknownst to us (how often do you get to use that word?!) my name, as well as the names of the two other Moms who helped me get the playground built, was submitted for an award with Recreation Nova Scotia, and we won! The Executive Director of Recreation Nova Scotia called me today to tell me. It's the Bluenose Achievement Award. There's an Awards Banquet in Halifax, and everything. I'm supposed to work at the library that night, and I don't know if I'll be able to get out of it, but still... that's pretty cool.

skipping and plodding, weaving and dancing along

Hello Again! I can't even believe that October is more than half over already. In one more month, I will be turning thirty. It doesn't bother me at all, but it does feel oddly like some sort of milestone. My last month of being a twenty-something. Hm. I hope in my thirties I am able to mellow into myself a little. I'm quite looking forward to it!

Anyway, there's nothing to remind you that time is passing quite like vivid autumn leaves. This year seems even more spectacular than usual. Everywhere we go, I'm awestruck. Griffin has been loving picking the leaves up off the ground and twirling them around. He just wants to walk absolutely everywhere now, and we've had a few meltdowns when he didn't want to hold my hand. He's definitely getting of an age where he can decide what he wants, and let you know in no uncertain terms. And there's a lot less sitting still, and a few more blurry photos.

Anyway, we're mostly skipping and plodding, weaving and dancing along as usual. The big news this week was that Jai built us a gate to go around the fire. It's not the prettiest thing, maybe, but it's built from what we had lying around in the yard, and it does it's job quite well. Prior to this, we had an overturned Exersaucer blocking off the whole part of the room, so we're really enjoying having free access to the couch and the windowseat. Not to mention cosying up in front of the fire again. Personally, I'm loving it! It makes me want to snuggle and knit and sip hot chocolate from my favourite mug. Of course, I haven't actually had time to do any of those things yet, but just wait! Maybe when I'm thirty...

Happy Belated Thanksgiving!

Hi! Geez, I practically dropped off the face of the planet there last week. We spent Thanksgiving with my parents in Halifax, which was great. We got to relax, picked up some treasures at VV, spent way too long in Chapters, ate delicious food, and enjoyed wonderful company. What more could you ask for in a Thanksgiving weekend? It was great.

The next day, however, was not so great. I didn't feel very well that night, but thought it might have something to do with a lack of sleep (Griffin spent Thanksgiving weekend growing some new teeth.) Tuesday I was in agony. We ended up driving up to the hospital when Jai got home from work, and after a 3-1/2 hour wait, I was diagnosed with a kidney infection. Huh. Not great timing, because the other thing that happened this week was I started a new job doing Programming at the Library. Anyway, last week was a bit of a struggle, but here we are at the other end - a little bruised, a little battered, but for the most part all in one piece.

Of course, I'm totally suffering Mother's guilt for leaving Griffin while I go off to work. Last night he kept waking up and screaming, "Mommy!! Mommy!!" and I would go in and hug him and lay him back down and rub his back, and he would go back to sleep, but then 15 seconds later wake up screaming "Mommy!! Mommy!! Bye Bye!!! Mommy!" It was a little bit heartbreaking. Today, we spent the whole day together, and loved every second of it.

Every last second!

Well and Truly Autumn

Hello! Whew, time is whooshing by! I think it has something to do with the time of year. Fall always seems to go too quickly. It's my favourite season, and we're trying to enjoy it to the fullest. We've been stomping on leaves, and playing with fallen chestnuts, wearing our wellies, and lighting fires in the woodstove, admiring the pumpkins, and picking the apples. Fall seems to be about "fitting it all in" whereas we know that winter coming means having some delicious down-time.

All that good stuff came with the first cold of the season, though, so we've had a steady supply of kleenexes pass through the house. Everyone's on the mend now, though. It's the perfect excuse to bake a batch of cookies, and then scarf them all down. Last night I brought out the quilt and threw it on the bed. It will be with us now for the next six months, at least. The toques and mittens have started to creep back in to the closet, coats have been dusted off, and soon we will have to admit that the time has come to pack away our shorts and sandals for another year. Maybe it's a leftover from my school days, but September has always seemed to me like it should be the start of a new year. Things change so fast in the fall, it can be summer one day, and fall the next, just like that. The light changes, schedules change, the very smell of the air shifts. The next three months will be crazy busy, so we will have to continue to make sure we take some time every day to look up at the sky, and reach down to the earth.

"Every leaf speaks bliss to me, fluttering from the autumn tree" ~ Emily Bronte