Pre-Winter Worries

Well, it’s officially fall.  I have to say, the rain has done wonders for our air quality, which was borderline unbearable for the last couple of weeks.  The dust from the almond orchards seemed worse than ever this year.  I feel like I can finally breathe again without feeling like the smoker that I once was.   

With fall comes a lot more time indoors, but it also means I need to push push push myself to get outside and get things prepped for winter, so that I will have an easier time when things burst to life again in the spring (I’m talking to you thistles, I’m coming for you.  Be warned). 

Josephine doesn’t mind being out in the rain (or at least she didn’t last year), so really I need to keep it in my mind to bundle her up, slap on the rain boots, and get out into the yard.  Mud is just mud, and we have a heater (or we will as soon as Taylor hooks up the gas line) and a bathtub and hot tea to warm us up after we’ve spent time in the pastures pulling weeds and taking names. 

Last year Josephine took great pleasure dancing in the rain on the front porch!

 — As an aside, do you like how I’m pretending that we were hit with fall weather and I won’t be able to step outside until April?  Never mind that the forecast for the next week includes multiple days in the low 80’s.  I am so dramatic.  God! —

I am, however, worried about the impending shortening of days and what that will do to my already paltry outside time.  I get home anywhere between 5:15 and 6:30 on the days I work, so pretty soon it will be dark as night upon my arrival.  Floodlights and gardening gloves anyone?  Anyone?  Yeah, doesn’t sound appealing to me, either. 

I suppose it’s time to knock out a list of things I want to accomplish by springtime, that way I stay on course.  But that sounds boring and not fun. 

I will say that although I have done little outside of my house, I have finally, maybe, just for these last couple of weeks perhaps, gotten into a routine inside the house.  Things are clean, and areas are being organized small tiny task by small tiny task.  PROGRESS!  If we could just get it together to hang our artwork up after 2 ½ months of bare (however beautifully painted) walls, I would really be proud.

As with all things, life is a balance of hard work, fun, stress and joy.  Taylor and I have been focusing hard on the fun and joy portion of that equation, taking some much needed family time.  Just yesterday Taylor and I took Josephine to Micke’s Grove Zoo and Park. Taylor has been itching to do this for a while, but we’ve been so busy (we actually got in the car to go one day, but had to turn around becauseTaylor had an unexpected show that he had to play).  We had a lot of fun for the most part, and the weather held out just long enough for us to tour the zoo, enjoy the Japanese Tea Gardens, and ride some amusement park rides (we had the ENTIRE FUN TOWN TO OURSELVES!  The ride guy just walked around with us saying, “OK, what do you guys want to go on next?”  I pretended we were rich and famous and they shut down Disneyland for us.  Ah, imagination!).  All in all a fantastic day.  We have some more fun joyful things on the horizon (boo hoo, I know), but then it’s time for this mama to buckle down and work on that winter list.  And now that I’ve bored you with my rather unexciting life here are some pictures of my day yesterday …Farewell.

Josephine and I rode a giant turtle at the zoo.

And there you go.  I believe I told you in my very first blog post that I am disgustingly in love with my kid, and will bore you to tears with pictures, stories, etc.  I may be lazy, but I’m no liar!