In every yard, some leaves will fall

Fall has officially started - evidenced by the falling leaves all over our yard, and my rake is quivering in the corner of our garage. I would like to wait a LITTLE longer before we start the endless raking of leaves, but the cold temperatures that are expected this week are not going to permit it.


This week was a fun whirlwind. Tuesday night was the open house at the school where I work. It was fine and only one hour. I had a chance to just chat with my co-workers. I got a lot of hugs from my kids and their parents, so that was nice.

Wednesday was open house for Arlington's school. It was great to finally meet her teacher. For those of you who grew up in my hometown, Mrs. M looked just like Gretchen B's mom. She could be her double! We seems sweet and nice, but also means business. A perfect combination from what I can see. We got to listen to her talk about what she will be doing during the year, and upcoming events. We sat at our child's desk (which, even for me - small as I am - was a bit of a challenge) and got to look through it. Mrs. M had school work the kids have been working on sitting on top of the desk. She also had a "welcome to first grade" packet with helpful information to use at home. There was a copy of the report cards. The days of small report cards are gone and have been replaced by 5-6 pages of detailed information about your child. While I do like it, I feel bad for the teachers. Anyway, I looked through Arlington's desk and am pleased to report that it was pretty neat. Okay.....I DID still straighten it out a bit. I wouldn't be type A if I didn't. And while I was straightening it out, I found a handful of sticky notes that said "I like you. From "P" " Oh boy. "P" is a little boy that sits right next to her. They all said the same thing. That is so great.

But the open house was nice. I got to meet some parents that I didn't know, so that was a good thing. Mrs. M spoke highly of Arlington and said she is a really good girl, so that was good news.

Wednesday was also picture day for Arlington. Here is the outfit she wore.

I took two pictures of her - in case the school pictures don't turn out very well. I should have taken them outside and had a nice background, but I ran out of time. Ah well.

Thursday was a quiet night - we didn't have to run any where. That was good because Arlington had a biggish homework project to work on, so it gave us time to get it completed.

Friday was a half day for my school. The staff had to stay a full day, but it was nice to have a couple of hours without the students. We had inservices and then in the evening the nurses all went out to dinner. It was really fun. We went to a really yummy restaurant that we frequent and had a great time. We managed to talk very little shop, and enjoyed three hours of sitting around and relaxing over dinner.

Today was a busy day yet again. Arlington had soccer this morning, then we went to a birthday party for one of her new classmates over lunch time. It was a fun party with a nice mix of kids. She had a great time and was tired by the time we got home this afternoon. Mat did yard work, and we did house work, and before we knew it, it was time to put the kids to bed. Tomorrow we don't have plans to go anywhere, and for that, I am grateful. We have another long week ahead of us, and company coming in the middle of it.

I was getting the last of the winter clothes out of boxes, and I found this cute hat of Finley's for winter.

I had forgotten about it. Isn't it so cute? She wanted to wear it all around tonight.

Finley and Cainan have also been into wrestling each other all over the house lately.

I don't know what started it. It is all in good fun, and they have a great time. It is fun to see them play together.

So that is about it. Something funny is going on with my right wrist. It has been hurting for a few weeks now. I must have overdone it at some point, then jumped into work, and it has just been constantly aggrevated. I am not right handed, so it is definitely my weaker hand. But, just like most offices, mine is set up for the right handed world - mouse, phone, etc. I just never changed it - I dealt. But now it is catching up with me. The physical therapist and occupational therapist at my school suggested a tight brace to wear for a few weeks to see if that takes care of it. I need to wear it also when I sleep. So we shall see.

Anyway, have a great week, and I will see you Tuesday!