The Fun is Just Beginning!

Some of you may have already taken down your Christmas tree.  Maybe you've unplugged your outdoor Christmas lights, too.  The holiday wrapping paper is put away and you're nearly finished with the fattening eggnog in the refrigerator and the cookies in the tins on your kitchen counter.  Christmas is over and you couldn't be more relieved.

I talked with my mother-in-law today and she told me with a good laugh that ten minutes after her final guests departed on Saturday night she was taking down her tree and tossing it off the back deck.  She was tired of the falling needles and mess and couldn't wait to be rid of it. 

I can relate.  Our Christmas tree is getting barer by the moment.  It stopped taking water a few weeks ago and has lost so many needles it's virtually invisible on the bottom half.  The fact that we had to remove all of the candy canes and decorations from this part of the tree, to protect them from our two year-old, only makes the barrenness more glaring. 

Running an Obstacle Course

We all face obstacles when attempting to exercise. Just to get out of the door we may have to battle low motivation, uncooperative elements (wind, cold, rain), time that is limited or workout clothes that just really aren't cute enough to be seen in, in public anyway.  But I think some of us have especially difficult challenges standing in our way of a good workout.  Literally.  Challenges that could be described as shorter than waist-high with sticky, slobbery faces and poor manners. (Dogs, children, or both.) 

At least that's usually the case for me. 

But I have to be honest (not to brag or anything) that once in a while, I will have a great run.  Like this morning. 

I was alone in the frigid early morning air appreciating nature and thinking deep thoughts like, I wonder if the neighbors would call the police if I purchased a ski mask and jogged around wearing it?
 

A Successful Thanksgiving?

It's Monday and I'm back to work.  The sky is nearly black outside my window.  The rain is pummeling the pavement.  Puddles are overtaking parking places.  But none of that matters.  Nothing can darken my spirit today.  I am filled with light.  I just spent four days at home with my boys.

Yes, we ate homemade stuffing and green bean casserole.  Yes, we went shopping.  Yes, we raked leaves, decorated our blue spruce, made leftover turkey sandwiches with cranberry sauce, broke the wishbone, made fires in the fireplace, baked sugary, buttery desserts and were really, really thankful.  But it is not any of these Thanksgiving-related events brightening my heart right now.  

It is instead the little moments, the unexpected, unplanned events of the long weekend, that are inspiring me today.  Like last night, and my four year-old in his blue striped pajamas standing next to our dining room table after his third bedtime snack (and way past his bedtime) giving me a private performance of his upcoming school Christmas program.

BOO!

I won't be sharing any intimate thoughts today.  Just some fun photos of our Halloween in The Bluff ...

Our Fireman and Dalmatian posing on the back of a fire truck Saturday night.  The college hosted a Halloween event in conjunction with a local radio station and an estimated 4,000 parents and children showed up.  It was wild!   

Henry kept being mistaken for a girl all weekend.  I guess he does look kind of pretty in his costume.

Ok, before we go any further with Halloween photos, I need to defend myself for a minute.  I ordered these costumes online. I ordered Henry's and I was actually afraid it was going to be too big because it was labeled 2T-4T.  Whoops!  Guess not! And Henry is a small two year-old!  I can't imagine a four year-old in that costume...