Fall is in the air here and I am here for it! I love summer, but I also love fall, maybe even more than summer. I just hope that we have a nice, long fall! We had some hot, humid weather earlier this week - like upper 80s. Once the splash pads/local pools are closed, I'm kind of over that kind of weather. So give me all the cool, crisp mornings and warm, sunny afternoons!
The book I'm reading is The Defense by Steve Cavanagh which is the first book in a series. I heard about a later book in the series on a podcast and was really interested in that one, but as they say on this podcast, since I'm not an animal I started with the first book in the series. I am not far into it so can't say if it will be a success yet!
The high of my week was my day off on Tuesday! I had a haircut at noon so took the day off. It was a wonderful day! I started with a run at 5:30 with my neighbor, finished a book, sorted through the boys' clothing/packed up stuff they have outgrown, bought some new clothes for them, and then attended a work happy hour at 4. Yes, that is a lot, but when I am setting the schedule, I don't mind being super busy like that. I typically would not go into work on my day off for a happy hour, but the head of my division was in so I wanted to make an appearance. I saw him last week in Charlotte but knew our interaction would be different in a social setting. I really like the people I work with so I did not mind going into downtown to socialize with them! And missing the dinner hour is not the worst thing. ;)
 |
| That new haircut feeling! |
The low of my week was dealing with some crankiness from Will. He's getting his bottom 2-year molars so has been quite cranky. I know the crankiness is from discomfort so I have sympathy for him but will be glad when he has all of his teeth and we can put teething behind us FOREVER!!
A recipe I made was a corn chowder from a Milk Street Kitchen Instantpot cookbook. I used fresh corn and the recipe has you cut the corn off the cob and then put the cobs in when it's cooking. It is so much better when I do that because the corn flavor is extra strong and delicious!
A show we are watching is The Patient on Hulu. I mentioned this earlier this week, but it's a show by the creators of "The Americans" which is one of our all-time favorite shows. Steve Carell plays a therapist who has been kidnapped by his patient who is a serial killer. The patient is desperate for his therapist to help him overcome his urge to kill. So clearly this is not a light show! But we are enjoying it but enjoying is a weird word to use to describe a show like this if you know what I mean. The new season of The Great British Bake-Off is on, too, so I will watch then when I have time alone in the house which is very rare!
For workouts I did a strength training workout on Monday and ran 4 miles on Tuesday and Thursday morning. I'll run on Saturday morning and do a strength training workout during nap time on Sunday. So this week I'll fit in 5 workouts, but that's because I was only in the office one day this week! Check out the view from my Thursday morning run. It was a crisp 48 degrees. I am sure that sounds so cold to my friends in the south but it's ideal running temps for me! The leaves are just starting to turn so the views will get better and better this fall!
The best money spent was on clothes for the boys. Paul got new shoes and socks from Target and this may make you all cringe, but I bought some outdoor clothes for winter from Once Upon a Child. I stopped there to sell some clothes and they had all their winter stuff out so I figured I'd buy it while I was there. I love buying things at Once Upon a Child, especially winter stuff like boots and snow pants, especially since we ideally need 2 sets of snow pants/winter coats so we can leave one set at daycare. On this trip I got snow pants for both boys, but I need to exchange Will's for a bigger size. Winter clothes are tricky to buy. I thought what I bought for Will might be too big, but he has such a long torso so I need to go up a size. I really really really hope we won't need these clothes for many months but you never know. We got a huge snow storm in mid-October a couple of years ago so it's not out of the question that they may need these clothes in as soon as a month!
My plans this weekend include very little so far! Our mornings are set - library and gymnastics on Saturday, farmers market and park on Sunday, but we'll need to fill our afternoons. I think we are going to go to one of our favorite parks one afternoon but that's about it for plans! We'll definitely be outside soaking up the beautiful fall weather!
Bonus pics:
 |
| Paul had soccer again this week and it went much better. I don't know how Phil did it with both kids last week. I think I would have given up and gone home if I was him. It was tough with 2 parents as Will wanted to be on the field, too. Next week I will take him for a stroller walk in the neighborhood and stay the heck away from where Paul and Phil are! |
 |
| Paul is very into puzzles these days so I bought a couple new puzzles that have big and small pieces so we can work on a puzzle together! |
 |
| Visiting the geese at a house in the neighborhood. They change the costumes throughout the year. Last week one was a squirrel and the other was a teacher. Now they are a Vikings player and a ref. Paul LOVES seeing these geese so much! |
 |
| Throwing leaves into the (nearly dry) creek on a beautiful fall evening. |
How was your week? What is the weather like where you live?
I LOVE fall. Hurricane Fiona is making landfall late tonight where I live so I don’t enjoy that aspect of fall (we always get a tropical storm or tail end of a hurricane each year). I love the crisp mornings and actually enjoy that it’s darker a little earlier at night. It makes the bedtime routine and settling down more intuitive for the kids.
ReplyDeleteThis fall is definitely the busiest we’ve had in terms of extracurriculars. COVID impacted a lot of things and this is also the first year our daughter is in middle school, so there are just a lot more opportunities. While I feel like I’m falling behind in life “maintenance” - I am enjoying the new activities.
Love the haircut - can’t wait to see some of your family pictures!!
Brr! 48 would be very cold for us- I would be running in hat and gloves. But that actually sounds good compared to what we're having- hot and steamy weather, high in the 90s every day, UGH! But, that's September in South Florida.
ReplyDeleteYour day off sounds really fun. Sometimes I'll try to "relax" and do nothing on a day off, and it's really not as great as it sounds. I'd rather get some things done- I agree, if I'm on my own schedule I don't mind being busy. Oh and your haircut looks great. Enjoy your weekend!
Those geese are too cute!! I bet they’ll be such a fond memory for the boys when they’re older. I also love cool fall mornings. The best!
ReplyDeleteYour haircut is so great! Love it!
ReplyDeleteI can't wait to watch The Patient. Two of my favorite things: Steve Carell and serial killers lol. Glad you are liking it!
My husband and I have been watching the Junior Bake Off with our daughter which is really fun. But I'm excited to watch GBBO as well. We are in the middle of three shows right now though so it may be a while before we get to either.
It is definitely starting to feel like fall here! I love it! Give me all the boots and sweaters!
What a lovely self-care day! Your hair looks great.
ReplyDeleteI met some people from Colorado and they were laughing so hard about how there are geese statues in the midwest that people dress in clothes. I guess it's just not a think in other places? I think it's sort of a fun little tradition and marks the passage of time in an interesting way!
Why would buying stuff used make us cringe? Makes sense to me!
ReplyDeleteIt's cooling off here -- today we didn't get out of the 60s, which is fine as it was a beautiful day and I took a fairly long walk, my first in awhile since the hip has acted ugly. As for the week, I've had better and worse so OK, I guess!
I love that we can usually share the same weather trends... haha! At least temperature wise, I feel like we are usually in the same realm. Fall moved in here, too, but it hasn't been terribly cold, so it's just felt nice to me overall.
ReplyDeleteI love the dress up geese! This will likely be something your boys will look back on fondly one day. When I was a kid, we had a neighbor lady that had these huge boulder rocks in her front yard. Like big enough that you had to hoist yourself up and climb up, putting your hands and feet in cut out areas to get up there. We used to LOVE walking over there and climbing on her rocks. It's so random, but I still think of it now and then. Just one of those things that seem relatively insignificant at the time, but end up being such a fun and sweet memory.
And I think it's genius to hit up Once upon a child if you can find good stuff! We never had good resale shop options around us, but especially at that young age, it makes so much sense- they just wear those items for such a short time anyway. It's on my list to do some drawer/closet clean out for the boys today, too. Ethan goes to DC and Philadelphia in a few weeks on a class trip, and I'm not even sure if his jacket fits. I don't know what the weather will be like but I'd assume it could be quite cool by the end of October there. He is big into just wearing hoodies, of course, but I definitely want him to have a jacket along! He has grown some lately though (finally starting to grow...a little, anyway!!) so we need to check on all of that. Don't need any surprises when we go to get him packed!
OMG, the geese! How funny! I love them.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you're getting to enjoy some fall-like temperatures and I hope the snow stays away until December, at least! I'm wishing it into existence.
At first, I thought you meant that buying used clothes would make us cringe, but I think you meant buying WINTER clothes already is cringe-inducing. I think it was a smart call to get what you need before you need it! Hopefully it serves the boys well this season.
I haven't been to a hairdresser since before the pandemic started, so I am living vicariously through you and your lovely new haircut! :)
ReplyDeleteSounds like you had a pretty good/full week. Isn't a day off during the week just so nice? I don't mind if it's busy either since you're still setting the schedule.
I am glad you're getting some fall like temperatures and I hope it'll be a long season for you. We're still up in the 90s here, so while I am anticipating fall, I am not quite ready yet (due to the heat).
you day off sounds like a perfect day!!! i love those days during the week when girls are at school, so I can just focus on doing things for me. somehow those days feel longer like i can do so much.
ReplyDeleteI, too, love your hair. I also love fall - but I definitely am bundling up more! I see people running when it's 40 out now, in shorts! Meanwhile I am walking (no more running for me) in a down jacket. Ha!
ReplyDeleteYou do have busy busy busy weekends. Life with small children - it must be exhausting. Hang in there.