Category Archives: fall

From Cold to Cozy

This morning started out cold and blustery. The dark skies and bitter rain led me straight to the fireplace. I sat at the kitchen table working and felt infinitely better looking over at this:

The candles (on the mantle)? One of my favorite purchases eva!
Here’s the deal. We were visiting our very dear friends in Wisconsin last summer, kids in tow. The live in a lovely town, with an unbelievably low crime rate, where kids roam free more often than not. Our boys loved the chance to head out without us! One day, after they returned from their adventures, we sat down to a lovely dinner. (‘We’ meaning the grown-ups. I think we fed the kids pizza in some other room.) Around 11 or so we decided to get the kids into sleeping bags and beds, and as we turned the lights out I noticed that my friend’s candle was still burning. I was worried about it burning through the night & asked her if she’d like me to blow it out.
“Sure,” she smiled, “go ahead.”
And when I bent over the wick, I saw this:
Although that may appear to be a flame, it is, in fact, a tiny little light bulb. With a timer! I’m tellin’ ya. Did I grow up in a corn field? I’d never heard of such innovation. Of course, I wanted one for myself.
Being a bit more frugal than my dear friend, I didn’t purchase right away. And the frugality gods smiled upon me and sent the lovely candles to Costco, who put them on their shelves so I could buy them and all would be right with my fall decor.
And with that little purchase, a dreary, cold, rainy morning became a lovely, warm, cozy day.
(If you simply must have these candles, too, and can’t find them at Costco, check Restoration Hardware (currently on sale) or Amazon.)

What I Wanted to Post Today…

What I wanted to post today was some very funny–as in really amusing, I might be able to blackmail some people here–photos from a dinner party I attended last Saturday. The big idea was my exceedingly-polite friend Janet’s: “Let’s come in costume,” she said, “since it’s October and all.”

Yes, that sound you just heard was my eyes rolling waaayyy back in my head. I’m just not that creative. I protested, but she told me to put my big girl pants on and get a darn costume.
So I did. She’s authoritative like that.
And, I must admit, she was right. Argghh. Don’t you hate it when that happens? But apparently, when you mix good food with good beverages, and throw in 8 costumes, all hell breaks loose. So you don’t get to see the fun photos, but here are the costumes. At least I can give you that.
We have a witch, a vampire, 4 of the Village People, and Jon & Kate. I love my friends, I really do. This is a great group of people and, clearly, a bunch of good sports.
Now go get your costumes on & invite some friends over for dinner.
And Happy Halloween, almost!

The Sporting Life

It’s cold and rainy and just about as dark as can be around here these days. But our kids are happy and healthy, so who can complain? My parents came to visit, and my dad spent every second of every sporting event on the sidelines, with his big camera and his even bigger heart. Thanks to his apparent obliviousness to the weather, here are a few snippets from the most recent games. I was busy staying warm, so I’m glad he got a few!


Happy Friday, all. Go enjoy that weekend!