October

 October

More Fun

Can I just admit it?

Holidays, seasons, so many things are just so much more fun as a mom.

More work... no question.  But more fun... absolutely!

My Favorite Things About October

If I had to choose a favorite month, I would have a hard time -- 

May is awesome because its spring and the end of the school year, 

July is awesome because its summer and Hubby and I have the whole month off to spend with family

December is awesome because its winter and the entire month is full building up to Christmas and full of seasonal activities

... and October is awesome because its fall and I simply love October.

My favorite things about October include:

• College football season is in full swing, but not at the end yet -- every game counts, every week can change a season, teams are firing on all cylinders and the whole month is very exciting (GO MICHIGAN!)
• Baseball is still going on -- playoff season, which is pretty much all of baseball I really pay attention to (sort of like the only basketball I watch is March Madness) -- I'm married to Hubby now, so I do see baseball throughout the summer, but ever since college, I do pay attention to post-season October baseball even without Hubby's influence (GO CARDINALS!)
• Colorado is GORGEOUS in October!  The colors are amazing, the temperatures drop, the snow starts to tease us with its eminent arrival, but full winter isn't here yet
• School is in a routine -- whether its a good one or not is debatable, but by October school and work has a routine and I take comfort in that
• October starts the Holiday season in my mind -- I start thinking about Christmas presents (so not all shopping is done in December), we're preparing for Halloween, I'm getting pictures in line for our Christmas cards... but the whole Holiday season is still ahead of us.  I feel like the anticipation of Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas all begins in October and I love!  That doesn't mean we're decorating our tree in mid-October or anything like that... but the Holidays are right around the corner and October is full of anticipation and planning, which is really exciting.

I don't really make seasonal bucket lists for our family... but if I did, my October bucket list for us would be:

• To play in a pile of leaves with my kids
• To take them to a pumpkin patch, dressed in their costumes, and pick out pumpkins and take pictures
• To take them Trick-Or-Treating
• To attend a middle (and maybe high school) football game
• To go for a family hike to see the pretty leaves
• To take as many moments as possible to look around and cherish the beauty of where I live
• To take nice big deep breaths and cherish that the air "tastes like fall" -- if that's even possible... but it does

I Love October and welcome it with open arms.

 

Thank you, Lord for October.

 

Let's Go MICHIGAN!

Michigan football is BACK and this season has been SO exciting.

Today is not only the Michigan State v. Michigan game, but both teams are ranked in the top 15, and College Gameday is broadcasting living from Ann Arbor.

This will be a VERY exciting game.

GO MICHIGAN!!!

Our First Halloween

This was not just Tracey Ann's first Halloween -- it was Hubby and my first Halloween as parents.  It was the beginning of the rest of our lives. 

Hubby and I have never really cared much for Halloween -- sure, it was fun when we were kids, sure, it was fun in college and in our twenties... but as adults, Hubby and I are not Halloween people.  We have actually never dressed up together, or attended a Halloween party together.  We're just not into it.

I guess it makes sense, then why Hubby was so surprised to see me suddenly get really excited for pumpkins and Halloween.  I'm not making a graveyard in our front yard or anything (and I never will), but I was SO excited to choose a little costume for Tracey Ann, and do some Autumn Harvest, Halloween-y activities with her.

We dressed up our Little Punkin and took her to a pumpkin patch, and we had a great time... and we got some great pictures.  We had a great time.

Happy Halloween.

Beautiful Mountain Sunday

Hubby and I spent a wonderful Sunday afternoon in the beautiful October Colorado mountains with our precious baby girl and puppy.

It was windy and chilly and gorgeous.

 

Treasuring the Present: October

October is one of my absolute favorite months.

These are just a few of the reasons why:

• Autumn weather -- crisp and chilly
• COLLEGE FOOTBALL -- the heart of the season
• Baseball playoffs (usually including the St. Louis Cardinals)
• By October, the school year maybe hasn't calmed down... but at least there is a routine
• Hunting season -- it makes Hubby so happy, and, Lord Willing, we get meat for our freezer
• Canning season... I'm not sure how this will work this year with our baby girl, but, traditionally, October is canning season for me
• Usually the first snow in the mountains
• With our precious baby girl this year the season that has always been oen of my favorites, is now even better -- her first football game, her first pumpkin, her first Michigan games (on tv), her first Cardinals playoff season, all culminating in her first Halloween
• The commencement of the Holiday season

I LOVE October!

Thursday Night Lights

October in most places if full of Friday Night Lights... but for the family of a middle school athletic director, life is about Thursday Night Lights.

Chris' school had their last football games of the season against their district rival, and the last game of the season always occurs at one of the district high schools.  The game is a pretty big deal for the middle schoolers who have worked so hard all season.

There are two games -- a seventh-grade game and an eighth-grade game, and Tracey Ann and I stayed for most of the first half of the seventh-grade game.  It is hard when her bedtime routine starts at 5:30 or 6:00, and the game's kickoff was 6:00.

But, we made it out to support the kids, and it was such a great night.  Both of Chris' teams lost, but it was such a great fall, October, football night.  It was damp, and chilly, but not cold, and just everything fall football weather is supposed to be.

Our family loves October!