November Already?!

I can’t believe that it’s November already!  It seems like this year is just flying by.  I certainly didn’t mean to miss posting last week, but it was just one of those weeks.  I’m sure we all have them.  Anyway, I’ll share what happened here to say that I got the end of October documented.

Wrapping Up Halloween

Halloween finally came to a close Monday evening.  I spent most of the Sunday afternoon before stuffing treat bags for trick-or-treaters.

I’ll admit we just dropped the ball here on how much candy we should have bought, but at the same time, I can’t hold myself to expecting to have candy for every child that passes through our neighborhood.  It’s in the high hundreds, and that can get quite expensive.  We had lots of candy last year to hand out, but I did 114 bags this year and called it good.  Those bags were gone in a matter of twenty minutes.  After that, we just turned off the light and shut the door.  I only had one kid to still ring the doorbell after that.  We saw lots of cute costumes, but it was so busy that I was a nervous wreck watching kids and cars constantly moving down the road.  I fear for their safety every year.  Most cars take it slow and are mindful, but kids are so fast!

Hello November

I took down my Halloween Beanie Babies and put up my lone Thanksgiving Beanie.

His name is Plymouth, and he’s quite cute!  I spent the day after Halloween taking down a few decorations.  That’s another thing; I haven’t gone all out on the Halloween decorations this year.  I couldn’t seem to get into it much this year.  In any case, that task was done, and now we have a couple more weeks to admire our fall decor until we put up our Christmas decor.  We always put the tree up on the day after Thanksgiving.  While most people are out battling for deals in the stores for Black Friday, we prefer to stay at home and enjoy the peace.

Mama’s Kitchen Renovation Progress

My mama’s kitchen is just about finished up.  The guy doing it has to come to touch up some paint on the ceiling and one other small thing I can’t remember.  As long as I lived in my parent’s house (24 years before I married), the kitchen always had wood paneling and cabinets.  Here is the before….please excuse the open cabinets and such.  Mom started taking pictures after the doors were removed.

And here is a bit of the after.

 

I am still floored that this is the same kitchen!  She let me pick out the granite countertop and backsplash.  We did have opposing views about the cabinet paint.  I would have gone with a white, but she liked this, so...it is her kitchen! Haha!  She also installed pot lights in the ceiling, which is amazing now.  No more fluorescent lighting.   In any case, she is now busy putting things back into the cabinets and getting rid of excess things she no longer needs.  She’s also in the market for a lighter-looking kitchen table to match the airy feel of the kitchen.  I’m just so glad she could do it, and I’m so glad she is enjoying it.

Blessing Box

One new thing I did this past week was to locate a Blessing Box in our town.

It’s right near the college, which is nearby to us.  I have seen a couple of YouTubers mention these boxes.  It’s sort of like the Free Little Library boxes.  You donate food to the box, and whoever may be in need can take something.  I was surprised we had any of these boxes in our small town, but so glad we do.  I went through our pantry and donated a few items, and will do this periodically from now on.  If you’re interested in donating to one near you, you can locate a Blessing Box here.  This list will help you with what’s good to put inside a box and what to avoid because of the weather.  If you’re feeling adventurous and want to start or build one of your own, this Pinterest page has many ideas.  I normally do not share about charitable causes I contribute to, and I’m not doing this to toot my own horn.  I simply didn’t know these existed and had no idea one was so close to me.  I want to share in case someone else might be looking for a way they can help make a small difference to others.

Time & Weather Changes

The time change hasn’t bothered me much, but the weather has been dreary-looking.  We had rain on Saturday evening.  It’s just been cloudy this weekend and warm.  It was cool Sunday morning, but then just felt muggy later on.  Cloudy…no sun.  I think it has been affecting my mood.  I don’t know why this past week was so tough mentally for me.  Monday was ok, but then it just went all downhill from there.  I’m missing my work, missing my students, and just struggling to find a new rhythm.  I’m sure it will become easier as time passes, but it is what it is right now.  But enough of that.  I’ll leave you with this:

Sweet Hershey Girl and two of her three kittens napping beneath the tree.  Kittens can always cheer me up.