October...

10:30-WC: 2922. I've had problems this evening, with the computer locking up, and the keyboard not responding. I am at a good stopping point, and should be able to pick it up again tomorrow. Right now, bedtime:)

4:15-Word Count: 1950. Time to stop, take my son to swim practice, and fix an early dinner. Then take him to scouts and go see the MIL. Don't know if I'll get back to this later or not.

October already...time for pumpkins, stockpiling candy, picking out the perfect Halloween costume for kids, and getting ready for fall parties. Not to mention the wonderful Fall Break and parent-teacher conferences.

I don't know where we'll buy our pumpkins this year. Normally, we go to the apple orchard, or when the kids were smaller, the pumpkin patch. Take a hayride and pick our own bright orange pumpkins, enjoy a horseback ride, and drink apple cider. I'm sure they have something similar down here; we just don't know it exists yet.

Halloween costumes...that's easy this year. My youngest will most likely be the only one demanding his Spiderman suit, as my older ones scoff at the idea of trick-or-treating. Although, they love the candy I get every year. And I'm just as bad. When I was pregnant with Will, I found a stash of Snickers we'd forgotten about. Well, doing what any responsible parent would do, I tasted one myself, so my kids wouldn't fall ill if they were bad. And they were so bad, I ate both bags in 2 weeks...and then promptly gave into the craving for chocolate, caramel, and peanuts and consumed 2 more bags. The kids still tease me about that..."Hey Mom...how many bags are we handing out, and how many are for you?"

P/T conferences...sigh. I have it so bad. Up at the old school, I confess to an adolescent-like crush on my son's history teacher...I sat through two conferences quietly hanging on his every word, while my brain was screaming at me to lock him in the supply closet and fulfilling a 'Desperate Housewives"-esque fantasy...and when I left, I prayed what had come out of my mouth had at least sounded like the mother of a teenager, and not mindless drivel or even "take off that shirt and have your way with me..." I was hoping we wouldn't move last year, because my daughter was about to have him as her teacher for 2 years! Ahhh...

Not so this year. But it's okay. My kids are good students, and even the toddler is doing well.

Fall parties and break...what can I say? No more elementary parties...and I'll gladly help out at the Fall Carnival that Head Start puts on. And I've heard the break is shorter down here; instead of getting 2 full days off, they only get 1. That's okay; Grandpa will still be willing to meet us halfway, and all 3 can spend a wonderful 3 days with their doting grandparents, and leave their mother to 3 glorious days without having to mediate, and spend as much time on the computer as possible!

I also have several birthdays this month, as well as my parents' wedding anniversary. If memory serves, this will mark 44 years of matrimonial bliss for them. Watch for tributes this month as I sing the praises of all these occasions:)