oh just some old thing

Today's topic: Share a photo of something old.  I am a very sentimental person. A hopeless sentimentalist I guess. Things passed down to me from a grandparent or great-grandparent mean a lot. I really treasure them. Picking just one took some thought. But I give you: my Grammy's peridot ring. 

The story goes that my Poppop, who traveled for work often, brought this home for his wife after a trip in India. I'm the only granddaughter with an August birthday so I was the obvious choice. I've worn it often. I've shared it with my sister-in-law on the day she married my brother... I shared it with my sister on her wedding day. It was their "something old." Someday I will give it to Letteria, also an August birthday. I hope she will love it and care for it as much as I do.  Thanks for joining me on another blog challenge! Sayonara Blogtember! Here's to October!

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dear facebook

Today I am told I should write a letter to my Facebook friends.

Image source.

Hey you, Facebook User. 
Yeah you. I like you. I may even love you. You may be a member of my family but more than likely you are my friend. I've gone through several severe friend cleanses through the years (imagine The Soup Nazi. NO FB FOR YOU!) so if you are still seeing me on your timeline then I really have no complaints. If I did have a complaint about something you were doing I would probably have blocked you and miraculously disappeared off the face of Facebook Planet. 
So I guess just keep doin' you. Living the dream if you will. It's just Facebook after all. We should all just take it less seriously.
Love Your Facebook Friend Forever, Laurie LYLAS
Oh poop. I just saw this was supposed to be anonymous. How is that supposed to work?!

Monday's (and final) topic, something old and yet meaningful. 

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fall bucket list

I love Fall. I love lists. I love Brittany from Life of Charmings and when she did this today I thought: oh me too me too! And the kids are both knee deep in quiet time so what else to do when one's brain is scattered? Oh that's right. It's The Making of The Lists Time. And also a Viewing of Last Year's Fall Pics Time. All photos courtesy of Wishbone Photography.

//letteria clearly feels as excited as i do about lists\\

- Pumpkin picking and hayrides with friends that are like family and family of the blood variety. 

- Celebrate two friends as they soon will become four friends. 

- Apple picking

- Apple cake making and eating 

- Carving of pumpkins

- Corn Cob Acres with the kids. It's a first time thing. 

- Get David his Darth Vader costume because so help me I WILL have a Darth Vader baby at some point in my life. Letteria has decided upon Princess Sofia. For the past two days. 

- Gettysburg day tripping with my long lost blogging sister. 

- Fall photo shoot with kids that I shall attempt to do myself. No reason to torture my poor sister-in-law again. 

- Create one of those stove top potpourri things I see all over Pinterest. 

- Apple. Dumplings. 

- Manheim Farm Show and those milkshakes and those animals. 

- Get a card for Matt's birthday. Have kids sign it.

- Second Friday in Lititz

- Happy Hauntings at DW at least twice maybe three times. 

- Get back into schedule with toddler gyms and story hours.

- Casper viewing!
- Do many more fall chalkboard walls.

Oh yes and pack and move and all that other detail-oriented and not quite so festive stuff. Happy Fall Ya'll!

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vanilla chai latte please

Today's topic is: go to a coffee shop. order a favorite drink. Write about what makes you happy and what makes you sad. Or anything you'd like. Include pictures of the shop. Or just write someplace new. So I enter this little shop. It has such a cute name. My Kitchen. Embracing the odors of brewing coffee and steamed milk I smile instantly. The silence surrounding me is warm and comforting like a favorite cozy blanket. I approach the counter and order my beverage of choice. Skinny tall vanilla chai tea latte please and thank you.  ....... Oh wait. I don't go out to coffee shops.  If you happen to find a family friendly coffee shop (i.e one with toys and perhaps a television and maybe some goldfish) please let me know I will be there faster than you can say FREEDOM. In the meantime I will hit up a local coffee joint conveniently located in....my kitchen. The barista is friendly enough if you are looking for few words but fast service without a smile. I enjoy the take no prisoners form of customer service. The prices are reasonable as far as coffee goes. I make my selection. I watch it as it brews. Wala.  This shop happens to be fresh out of chai tea today so I'll fall back on an old favorite. Folgers Gourmet Selections Vanilla Biscotti. The aroma fills the air... I can almost hear it brewing over the babble of the fellow (two) patrons. 

Sweet nectar of the gods. I have it in my hands! The beverage that gets me from morning till acceptable alcoholic beverage hour. In. My. Hands. 

Things I love about this place? Look at that mug. Such a tuscan feel. The comfortable seating. The peace and solitude that it brings with it. Happy sigh. I sit down to enjoy my lovely caffeinated beverage. And focus on what makes me happy and what makes me sad because Jenni says so. Happy: - Coffee. For obvious reasons.  - Watching these two patrons play together and have conversations. Even if they are one sided in the little girl's favor. They are playing. Chasing each other around and rough housing. Dancing together. Etc. They still have bed head but then again so do I. That's what I love most about this place. No judgement.  - Mums. And Fall. The changing of the seasons and the impending fall activities. - Moving closer to my family. I really love them. You'd think I lived across the country from them. I'm a mommy's/daddy's girl. Fact. 

Sad: - Leaving our best friends and neighbors. I can see their home from this here coffee shop. And I'll miss feeling so connected to a place because of said people's.  - Not being able to take the two maple trees my Grandma bought us when we moved in here with us when we go (excuse that wretched sentence). They have grown so tall in the past six years and the leaves are just starting to change. I love watching them change every year because they really are quite beautiful (duh). And some part of me feels like I'm leaving her here with them. Which is utterly ridiculous.  - Watching 10 Things I Hate About You last night and realizing that came out FOURTEEN years ago. And I was sixteen when that happened. Almost half my life. Marinate in that.  - Discovering that no place will take my highlighted hair if I should decide to chop ten inches off. I've got a lot of hair. It would make a good wig. Such a shame to waste it. 

This list certainly seems weighted towards the sad doesn't it? Sounds like me. This is why I don't normally just sit and think with my coffee. I do what Oprah calls "multi-tasking." Anyways this coffee shop is open 24/7. Although anytime after 5 you'll be able to order alternative beverages. Hit it up.  We are SO very close to being done with this nonsense. Yay! Tomorrow's topic, here's to you, Facebook.

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apple picking take one

I say take one because Fall has just begun and I go a bit nuts for Fall and all things that can fall (heehee) under the category of "traditions." We already have another date on our calendars to visit Cherry Hill Orchards but that time for pumpkins and hayrides. Today it occurred to me that my favorite variety of apple, the macintosh, might in fact be ripe. I was right. A quick text to my mom and we were off. Without my camera. Curses. Foiled again.

//first wellie wearing of the season and it's blurry because have i mentioned i forgot my camera?\\

//don't act like you haven't left the house looking like this\\

It really wasn't that exciting. I felt like they were picked over. David kept touching rotten apples. And I had forgotten my chapstick. Then I said the word 'pumpkin' and a certain three year old would not rest until she got to pick one out. I give in easily when decor is involved for myself. Win-win I always say. This place has a nice little store or farmer's market or outdoor market or whatever you want to call it. Pumpkins. Apples that someone else has picked for you. Etc. WAGONS.

//just a man and his purse.\\

//this was the winner!\\

Before we stopped for lunch we decided to let the kids check out That Fish Place. They got fake tattoos. Never saw that one coming did you? David thought his could be removed by the scratch and pull method. Letteria treated it like she had just had a surgical procedure.

Don't worry. These tats came right off in the tub. Duds if you ask me. Here's what my new pumpkin looks like on my stoop because I'm sure you are all waiting with baited breath. If you want to buy this house I am willing to throw in the pumpkin/mum display. It's a bargain.

In the immortal words of Christopher Walken... I think we need MORE PUMPKINS.

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schtuff happens

Today's topic is to write about a time I screwed up. A mistake that I made. Now I'm not one to admit I'm wrong often. Read: at all. But here is one mistake I made that was pretty bad. Or pretty stupid depending on how you look at it. 
Disclaimer: Beware dog owners! I am not a dog lover. I am not even a dog liker. I am sorry for this. I truly am. I wish I was. You dog lovers seem like a really cool bunch. You know how some people don't like kids? Well I don't like dogs. I don't wish them harm and I cry every time I see that Sarah McLachlan commercial on TV. But I still would prefer to not be around dogs. Hence the stupidity of this mistake.
A mistake I made, quite possibly the biggest one of my life (heavy I know), was getting a dog. I was going through something that was affecting every aspect of my life. I thought a puppy would alleviate some of that pain. Perhaps distract? I had heard all the warnings... the hair... the drool... the responsibility... etc. My father was taking bets on how long till we gave the dog back.  But I was dead set on getting one. Matt wanted one.  I thought if I was around a dog from the puppy stage on I would grow to be a dog lover. And once you go see those adorable little puppies with their floppy ears you just think oh my goodness I can't leave her there! and then I wanted her too. So we got a puppy. Bella. Our German Shepard. 

Fast forward four years. She is a good dog. She is a beautiful dog. She was just a dog that I wished we had never gotten. She deserved to go to a family that would LOVE having her. Every aspect of having her. Where she was a member of the family loved by all. The nuisances of having a dog were weighing heavily on us both and we decided that the pros did not outweigh the cons. In our particular case. Our basement was filthy (remember I am OCD). Our yard had nice big landmines throughout. It was a hassle that we did not want at this time with two little kids running around. I will admit... this was mostly my doing. Matt would have kept her forever I know.
Don't worry dog lovers. She's with such a nice family now, since March I think? And she's thriving. She even has a doggie sibling. 
Are we cool? You forgive?  This was my mistake. I swear I won't make it again. Scout's honor.

Tomorrow's topic, coffee anyone?

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had I said farewell to DW?

Had I? Well I must have spoken too soon. For it was a beautiful Sunday and we had two and a half free hours so what else do we do? Go to DW. Naturally.  I unfortunately had not received the first day of Fall memo and so my children were not properly dressed. So yes I am aware we can just get the judgement out of the way now.

Like I said before, DW is not DW without our neighbor loves. And the neighbor love's grandparents. 

And! Just to prove that this trip wasn't like every other! Stump and I took the girls on a horrendous ride. A feat of stomach strength. A flying. Thing. 

Well played Dutch Wonderland. Well played. 

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