the grey ghost

I saw this parked outside the gym today - the license plate says "the grey ghost."  How perfect is that?  Happy Halloween, everyone! :)

this week...

...we went to a schooltime play with friends,
I got a much-needed haircut,
started working out again after a long, long time,
had coffee with a group of moms - some very different, some very similar,
said goodbye to my cousin,
shot the second-to-last wedding of the season with Kim,
enjoyed watching the leaves change,
corralled a new crawler...

moon

 I wanted a photo of the moon when I was driving tonight (I was on the frontage road at a slow speed and only took two, I promise!)

...and here's how it all looked when I moved my camera - cool, huh?  That's the downfall (or upshot?) of the iphone camera - the shutter speed has to be like 1/2 seconds!!

yummy bagel!

kitty

So I know that technically I've gone over my 30 days of gratitude, but can I just keep using my iphone camera?  Cause it's SO much easier than downloading and editing from my real camera. ;)

grateful for...

...a swift kick in the tush.  Today I'm starting a lose-the-baby-weight program at the gym for moms.  As the one year mark looms in the not-so-distant future, I'm realizing that I'm not getting rid of that baby weight by eating m&m's and not exercising (shocker)!  So today I start meeting with a personal trainer, boot camps once a week, and meeting with a nutritionist who is going to actually ask me what I eat.  So this is my afternoon snack, which normally would have involved caffeine or chocolate to get me through the rest of the day.  Someone asked me if I'm worried I won't be able to follow it, or will just gain the weight back when the program's over...the thing is, it's all stuff I know.  I mean, I actually do know that sitting on my bum and eating junk isn't going to make my baby belly go away (the oldest keeps asking if we're having another baby and I have to tell him no, it's just the leftovers from the last baby).  But I'm hoping the accountability will become habit, and the kick in the pants will just get me heading in the right direction.  Wish me luck. ;)

grateful for fall

grateful for...

...a little nudge from someone who thinks I'm ready for the next step (because I probably never would myself).

grateful for...

...a little reading corner.

grateful for...

...a brother who lives close, my kids love, and is willing to babysit! :)

grateful for naptime...

...in whatever shape it comes.

grateful for...

...my now five-year-old's excitement over birthday toys.

grateful for a certain boy...

...who turns five today.

grateful for...

...little splashes of color along the way.

grateful for my pensive one...

grateful for Cheerios

all my kids have been raised on them (as was I!)

grateful for "my little helper"

grateful for my babies

(kinda wish the oldest boy wasn't wearing a too-small cardigan we borrowed long ago from a girl friend)

grateful...

...for an almost five-year-old who just got new bunk beds because he "outgrew" his race car bed (sniff, sniff)

grateful for...

...times we have a few minutes to do something creative.

grateful...

...for our neighborhood, especially this time of year when we can go out our back yard and wave to hot air balloonists flying over our house.

grateful for...

...stepmoms who paint the girly-girl toddler's toenails ;)

grateful for birthday tea with my hubby

at St. James, our favorite tea splurge. ;)