Family Times: I just LOVE October!

When I used to live up north, I remember loving the month of October. It always seemed that it was still warm most days in September, and it was like Mother Nature couldn't decide if she wanted us to be in summer still or in autumn. But once October got here, it started to consistently stay cool, and I was always in jeans and a sweatshirt. The weather the last few days has reminded me of why I love the month of October. Of course, my birthday is smack dab in the middle of the month, which I'm sure is one of the reasons I've always loved the month, but there is something else. Among other things, there is the promise of the holiday's being just around the corner.

I know that in just over a month, I'll be enjoying a meal with my family, reminiscing about times past, meeting my future brother-in-law (!!! :)), expressing hopes of the future, watching my children start to piece together that there is something special about holidays. In just under 2 months, we will be singing Christmas carols in front of a sparkling tree, a mug of hot coffee in our hands, fire in the fireplace (well...maybe not...it is Florida after all), and brightly wrapped gifts stuffed under the tree eagerly awaiting two pudgy little sets of hands to tear them open, and the smell of a turkey roasting in the oven and remnants of the smell of the apple pie that was baked the day before. In just over 2 months, we will be starting a new year. A fresh start. Want to lose some weight? Want to kick a bad habit? Start fresh on January 2 (you have to recover and watch football games on the 1st...) and a whole year is out in front of you, ready to be opened like a gift from God.

With October comes a change in the weather. No more (at least not for a few months), are the long hot days of Florida, when you break into a sweat just walking to your car from grocery shopping. Although we don't get much in the way of fall colors down here, some leaves do start to fall. There is an unwritten rule that all windows and doors should be open and the AC and heater turned off, which makes the house smell fresh and no longer stale from all the months of AC. The evenings and early mornings are cold, and I feel like pulling out my robe and slippers again, and putting the kids into fleece pajamas to keep them warm. But the afternoons are simply gorgeous! Today was a high of 61 - and with the sun out and barely a cloud in the sky - it was simply glorious to be out and about.

I took a few pictures of the kids at the pumpkin patch at their school this afternoon. Enjoy!