Blogstipated (not my word but it's an apt description)

I feel like I only have random things to write about. We stay home. It's boring. We read a lot more. I have read The Berenstain Bears Trouble With Teasing, Mama's Day Surprise, Don't Pollute, Tricky Valentine, Go To School and others many many times. I can't find my BB Halloween book, which makes me very sad because I love it. "The sights and sounds of autumn...." Are missing from our home (first line from the book). We have also read the book of 1001 questions from nature 1001 X. The snake book, the wolf book, the shark book, Brown Bear Brown Bear, and many other children's books. Besides that I finally finished Fire of the Covenant and it was really good. I cried, I cheered, I was grateful not to be there. Now I am reading PastWatch by Orson Scott Card, which is good. I like his books so I was pleasantly surprised to find it on the upstairs bookshelf.

Why did I bother to crawl up the stairs again? I have a dress pattern and material to make Lucy a dress. I finally gathered everything together that I would need except for pins. I can't find pins. So I went to check with the other sewing supplies (not that I sew, although I intend to, my MIL sews when she is here and has supplies) but no pins. So I need to get some and then I'm off. I want to have it done by the first Sunday in October, which is not such an ambitious goal...Except when you take into account that I've had pattern and fabric in hand for several weeks and am still at the looking for pins stage of the game.

Tonight S dances again. I think they whole family is going to go watch. That seems like a fun autumn activity.
I love this time of year. I am anxious to get out my decorations (in the garage and I need to wait for helpers sigh) So I can participate in Nettie's autumn home tour. I've also been browsing through various magazines and cook books for fall food. There is something so comforting about warm fall food. I save favorite issues from year to year so I can go back to them. This weekend we have two food sharing opportunities and I am trying to decide what to bring. Saturday Nikko is having her conference soup thing, which I LOVE and then Sunday is our potluck lunch. I found the cutest Halloween witch marshmallow dessert things that H would love to assemble and I will probably make that for one of the events.

The photo above is one of my favorite Halloween memories. (Oct 2002) Little Pickle and her best friend Emma went as Hogwarts students. Emma's older sister made their costumes. I was amazed. They looked so awesome. Then the girls (E and her sisters) threw a very fun Halloween party. I remember driving up the long driveway past all these trees with hole-punched, tin lanterns hung in them with candles. It was spooky and delightful all at once. It was a fun party and we still have the cloak, it's going to be used again this year for another Hermione.