Ride 'Em Cowgirls!

Here are the girls giggling at the front door waiting for daddy to answer so they can yell "Trick or Treat!". It was a beautiful evening for Trick or Treating! No coats required! We had no school today, so it was a nice, relaxing day and we got our pumpkins carved just in time! :)

Only $1.95

Yes, our gas is really down to $1.95/gallon. This past July when we moved here, it was running $3.89/gallon...it's like buy one gallon get one free...in less than 4 months! I never thought I'd see gas under $2 a gallon again. I'm glad I was wrong!

Quotable Quotes

Here are a few quotes I found online tonight...

• Reach for the stars because mom and dad will catch you.
• Just when the caterpillar thought the world was over, it became a butterfly.
• The laughter of a child is the light of the home.
• Together is wonderful place to be.
• Faith makes things possible - not easy.
• Scatter Kindness.
• Don't judge each day by the harvest you reap, but by the seeds you plant.
• Write your worries in the sand, carve your blessings in stone.
• Be yourself - everyone else is taken.

And my favorite tonight...

• Enjoy this moment, for this moment is your life.

I'm trying to find quotes for my walls...it's so hard to choose!

Gram's Touch of Love

My mom once again painted in the girl's rooms. She didn't do the entire room mural this time...I think she's afraid we might move again (smile, smile), but she did add something to each of the girl's room to make them special. She is so talented!!

A Weekend with Gram & Gramps

This n That

My friend just sent me a link to http://www.thecutestblogontheblock.com/ -- It was fun to add this fall background to my blog! :)

My parents are here visiting! It has been great to see them again. They just got here yesterday and will be here for the next week. I am so thankful they take the time to come visit every April and October...it's become a tradition that brings comfort and joy to us! You should have heard how excited the girls were!!

Unfortunately, I just came down with my 1st cold...I wonder how often I'll get sick now that I'm working in the school!?!

The girls got back their school pictures...how disappointing it is that the pictures fail to capture the joy of their smiles, the fun of their laughter, and their giggles that fill their our hearts!

This week has also brought great sadness, as Morgan's teacher, who was due in March with her 1st child, just lost her baby this past week. It's still hard to understand tragedy in this life. It still makes my heart ache and spills out into tears.

Lastly, on a lighter note, I still love Jill Savage's blog. She's running a "marriage wild side" contest this month and I think it's been fun and funny to read the stories! Check them out if you get a chance: http://www.jillsavage.org/2008/10/living-on-wild-sideoctober-contest.html

Lovin' the Internet

I LOVE THE INTERNET! It's hard to believe that 15-20 years ago or so the Internet was a new concept...because I use it everyday...to easily check weather, check my bank account, keep up with my friends on their blogs. I really don't know the last day that went by that I didn't use the Internet. It is one of the most useful and fun resources that I use all the time. Like last night, it's 9:30 and I'm putting my last load of laundry in the dryer...only to discover blue ink all over everything! Apparently Sarah found a broken ink pen and put it in her pocket. So, I check the Internet...hairspray I find gets out ink...and sure enough it did work to get out the ink in our really important clothes...I was amazed. And today we got rid of the last of our moving boxes...I put them on craigslist.com and 3 hours later they are picked up and gone! Earlier this week I searched for games and crafts for the girl's fall party. The Internet has brought such convenience to my life. I know it's kinda silly, but today I have thought about it often and how thankful I am for the access I have to the Internet. :)

VICTORY!! Today we had a garage sale and tonight we actually pulled BOTH of our vehicles AND our boat into our garage! :) That is a great feeling! :)

Mike's in the Spotlight

The other night I'm on my way home and Mike calls... "I won't be here when you get home 'cuz I have a meeting now.", "ok, have fun." "I'm not excited about it, they're interviewing for a news story". Like I said, have fun! :) Neither him nor I like the "spotlight" and avoid it as much as we can, we just have the personalities that enjoy the "behind the scenes, get stuff done" kinda life! But every now and then we're pushed out of our comfort zones! :) With that said, here is the online video of the news story. http://www.kspr.com/news/local/30668404.html

And oh yah, we got $4.68 for our 1st 36 lbs of hulled walnuts and last night we got $15.08 for the next 116 lbs. We should have one more trip, by the looks of what still needs to fall off the tree. They girls are spending their money at Sarah's school book fair tonight.

Fall in the Ozarks

I keep thinking I need to blog...give an update on the girls...like how awesome of a year they are both having in school, how they were both star students last week in their classes, how I just read 2 really great books, "The Choice" by Nicholas Sparks and "The Shack" by Wm. P. Young (these are both books I'd like to read again and I'd love to discuss both of these books with someone)...how my new job is going...how wonderful it was to come home from work this week and find Mike folding the 5 loads of laundry I hadn't been able to find time to fold (I can probably count on 1 hand the # of times he's actually folded laundry...It's just one of those things I usually do). But to be honest, I've been a bit tired and overwhelmed working full time and trying to figure out how to get everything else done...finding that new routine...so I haven't' felt much like blogging!

Fall has arrived here in the Ozarks! Today we are going to pick up a bunch more walnuts in our yard (our neighborhood use to be a walnut farm...just imagine how many walnuts are falling right now!) and then go and sell them...the girls have high hopes of making money...we'll be lucky if we even get $2 for them! Oh well, it's been a fun thing to do in the evenings this past week. After that we are heading to downtown Republic to Pumpkin Daze, which is the biggest event our town hosts each year.

Oh yah, I love the fresh, crisp air this time of year brings...I find myself breathing deeply when I walk out the door...it's a great feeling!