Happy Fall, everybody! I love this. I love everything about it. The pumpkin candles, the orange and red leaves, the crisp morning air, I love it!!

Each year my youngest loves to get something to decorate our yard. This year it's a little scarecrow, hay bale, a pot of mums and some pumpkins. That's the picture of it at the top of this blog post. His older brother has always tortured him about liking to get mums each fall, and for a few years there he wouldn't get any for fear of ridicule. We finally got him out of that!

Next week we are heading to the Smokies. Well, Jimmy, Mother, Seth and I are going. Layke is staying home, and so is Rachel. We love to go up each fall and see the trees in all their glory! We've got a little apartment rented and have lots of fun things planned. On the agenda are going to get my knives sharpened at the Smoky Mountain Knifeworks, visiting the Apple Barn, going to the Craft Community, taking a picnic to Cades Cove, walking the streets and window shopping, and who knows what else. Since Mother is going it's going to be a much slower pace, but that suits me fine. I want to come home rested and refreshed, not exhausted.

Our big dog Toby is going to have an "operation" while we're gone to Gatlinburg. Mwahahahahahaaha!! I hope it calms his butt down some. He's such a sweet, sweet dog but he has a tendency to be hateful to Ernie, my basset hound. He's tried growling at me a time or two but I don't put up with that crap. It's usually when he's eating and if he growls I go over and stand between him and his food bowl. Typically I'll pick it up and he just sits there and looks at me. Then I'll put it down, let him eat a few bites, then pick it up again. He is NOT going to growl at me. I'm the pack leader, as Cesar Millan would say!!

Jimmy has a few gigs he's going to play this month and next. I'm happy for him; he absolutely loves playing his bass better than anybody I've ever seen. One of the gigs is a Halloween party. That might be fun, although I don't know anybody. I really don't have any close friends that live here in town. That's sad, really. I get lonesome, but I'm not a civic club type person and we go to church in Huntsville, so...I guess I'll stay lonely. :(

Well, nothing much of interest to say, but I did want to check in here at my blog. I'm trying to do better about posting!

Good Sunday morning

It's quiet in the house. Jimmy, Seth and Layke have gone to church and I'm sitting here half drunk from the medicine I took last night. Stumbling around the house straightening up a little, I realized just how grateful I am for all my blessings. We don't live in a big new house, but I have a home, warm and secure and full of love. Our cars aren't the newest models, but they are in good mechanical shape and get us where we want to go. We all have jobs that are fairly secure in these iffy economic times. The back yard is full of my sweet baby dogs who are so happy to see me every time I step out my back door or pull up into the yard. They see my car and three sweet faces are standing at the fence and it seems like they're saying WELCOME HOME!! Every single day I get a hug from Seth. That's like being wrapped up with a big old teddy bear. Jimmy loves me and treats me good. I cannot imagine what it would be like to be one of the women who have to run to the shelter because their husband has beaten them. My mother is the cake queen. She can't cook regular food, but she's the queen of cakes. She's even taking cupcakes to church this morning. My kids are good kids and I can't believe how grown they all are. Seems like they should be babies. I remember Sunday mornings when they were little, ironing little dresses and pants, making sure Sunday shoes were found, brushing teeth, combing hair and finding their little Bibles and making a mad dash out the door. Never in a million years would I have thought those days would end so soon!


All this rambling from a half-asleep mind is just to say thank you, Lord Jesus, for all of my blessings and for all You have done for me and I don't deserve it. That's grace, folks. And mercy. And unfailing love.


Have a good Sunday. :)