A Day of Mixed Blessings

Yesterday, at 8:25am, The Boy™'s sister gave birth to my beautiful new niece, Evelyn Elizabeth. Evie weighed a respectable 9 lbs, 13 ounces, is 21 inches long (though her daddy says he's sure it read 21.5, but he's not arguing), and is the most beautiful baby I have ever seen (since her sister was born almost 2 yrs ago of course). Being a short work week, we were not able to make it to the hospital, so my other SIL texted me as soon as there was any news, and updated me with photos, and stats, and then eventually the name. See, Evie's mom and dad have thing thing about revealing the sex ahead of time, but not the name they have chosen. The name gets revealed with the baby. I love that the two names that were chosen, are both of the first names of each of my grandmothers (this was not known to my SIL at the time). I never met my grandmother Evelyn, as she died when my mom was 19, and my grandma Elizabeth was known as Betty by those that used her name. I was very moved when I found out, and tickled beyond measure.

Maybe We Should Just "Leaf" Them There

I think that if I were to look back in the archives of the blog, I might discover that in the history of owning our house, this is the LATEST we have ever raked our leaves. This fall has been crazy busy, as I suspect most falls until the kids have graduated from HS will be, and we just didn't have the time. Last weekend, I looked at my calender and realized that every weekend for the rest of the month was free. Nothing was written on any of the days. I actually conferred with the people in my house to make sure that I didn't miss anything, and then secretly did a dance. We haven't had a free weekend in ages, let alone 3 in a row!

To Write Love On Her Arm...

Yesterday, was "To Write Love On Her Arms" day. In order to bring attention to teen suicide, depression and self mutilation that often stems from depression, a not-for-profit group started this movement and has chosen November 12th as the day to draw attention to it. I found out about it from my teenaged daughter, who is more up on these "days" than I am. You can read about TWLOHA by clicking on that link. Last year I attended a day long training from NAMI, which is the National Alliance on Mental Illness, on Suicide Prevention. I am actually qualified to be a "turn to" person in my community due to this. Having been down the dark road of depression more than once in my life, this is a cause that is near and dear to my heart. With help comes hope. If someone you know is in crisis, direct them to the Hope Line. Yesterday, with a permanent marker, I wrote love on my arm. Today, I'm considering if I want to have it there forever.

In Which We Give Thanks.....

Sophie helps set the table. 

 For a few years now, my daughter has been mentioning how nice it would be to have Thanksgiving at home. We used to have Thanksgiving at my grandmothers house. Then, when she wasn't able to do it anymore, my aunt took over. It has dwindled down to just us, and a few of my brothers and my dad and grandpa over the years. I like the idea of having the kids come home for Thanksgiving (when they are older of course), and so I agreed, on one condition. Until my grandpa passes on, we continue to go to my aunts. I suggested however that we might pick a random weekend in early November and do our own thing anyhow. Just cuz we've never had a big turkey dinner at home.

Day Late and a Dollar Short

So here it is, the fourth day of the month, and I'm already behind in posting every day. I hope that doesn't speak much about how the rest of my month will go. I was going to come and blog about something, but when I sat down here at the computer, and Sophie jumped up on the dresser behind me (more on that in a minute), I was inspired to post about her.

You might remember that Sophie came home in a lunchbox, on a hot summer day in August a few years ago. Ms. Thang and I were watching Harry Potter, and The Boy™ came home from work early, which was, and still is, a rare occurrence at my house.

Not a Second-Class Citizen

I polled a class of first graders this morning on why today, the first Tuesday in November, was such an important day. I recieved answers ranging from, "It's almost Thankgiving." to "We're about to celebrate St. Patrick's Day." Not one of them knew that it was election day until I asked them why we had so many cars on the playground and were eating lunch in the classroom today. That's when the hands shot up. "Oooh.. oooh! It's cuz of voting!!!". This was followed by a quick lesson about what we were voting for today. Some of them thought we were voting for a new president. I thought I should set them straight. They may not have got it, but they all know that they are called mid-term elections. Job well done.

Nearly November...

Oh wait, it is November. I don't exactly know how we got here.. but here we are. In an effort to reclaim my free time.. I am making a sincere dedication to blogging every day in November. Stop laughing.. I mean it. I have lots to share with you.. things that I should've already have shared, but just have been too stinking busy. I joke often about how when the kids were little, I used the mantra "things will slow down when they are older".. or "things will be easier when they aren't little anymore". Who the heck did I think I was kidding? Myself that's who. It got me through those wretched young years and now here we are. They are older. Things are more crazy then they ever have been. Ya'll.. I am darn tired! But that's a post for another day. :)