Happy Halloween!

Today will be a great day! Minus the spiders (why, of all creatures, did spiders have to be a main feature of this otherwise fantastic candy filled holiday?) Halloween has always been a fantastic celebration and full of happy memories. A few favorite things:

1. Dad's Birthday. "He would be born on Halloween", is usually the response I get when I tell people. It's true, too. Who better to be born than my dad on a day that celebrates characters, tricks, treats, laughter, and candy? No one, that's who.

2. Candy. 

3. Did I mention candy?

4. Pumpkin Carving. My brother in law takes the cake on this one - he is a brilliant pumpkin carver. Like a true artist, he is never satisfied with his work, but we all stand around "oohing" and "ahhing" over each year's new creation. This year he made one pumpkin with his kids' hands/feet as the face. It was brilliant! The other, was a beautiful carving of "Singing in the Rain", complete with a street lamp and umbrella. Again, gorgeous.

5. Cute kids in costumes. Grayson is Tigger this year, and growls for candy. It doesn't get much better than that! Brooklyn is a beautiful winter Belle, and curtsies while saying "Merci!". And Madi, when in Jaime's carrier, becomes a little popcorn baggie. So awesome! Props to Jaime for her creativity and craftiness on that one as well.

All in all, Halloween is a fun, whimsical, candy-filled day with lots of laughter and love. Plus, it is the unofficial kick-off to the holiday season. From here we speed right into Thanksgiving, then it's just a few short weeks to Christmas and New Years!

Happy Halloween!

Love These Two

This is how Brett and Piper fell asleep the other afternoon. Sweet.

Java

I made coffee this morning. Let me repeat that. I made coffee this morning. 

There was a need in the office, and I filled that need. I brewed coffee on a brand new machine. I brewed it like it was hot. And it was. And the best part? It was delicious. 

But let's start at the beginning.

I'm not a fan of new technology. In general, manuals and set-up, troubleshooting and experimentation: Not my strong-suit. I can rise to the challenge when absolutely necessary (and, since my life has proven to be a string of incidents like printer jams, virus alerts, or error messages I have had to do that more often than I would like.) 

What can I say? I have a special connection with flip phones, good old fashioned hot water kettles, and using a cookbook instead of an app. I'm not what you would call a "trailblazer" or a "trail follower". If I were on a trail I would have stopped at the first river because figuring out how to ford the river would have been too much of a hassle. But I digress..

Here in our office we have quite a few professors, researchers, and even an occasional IT guy who need a good cup of coffee, especially on those cold rainy Georgia days. So, I thought to myself this morning, "Today, I will learn how to work the coffee maker, and we WILL have fresh coffee this Autumn". I quietly made my way into the break room, read the directions 3 times for clarity, and 

~ BOOM!

Ten minutes later (only ten minutes!!) a lovely smell came out. Roasted coffee beans. Just the right strength. Add a little french vanilla creamer, and you've got yourself a morning cup o' jo. De-licious.

Who knew modern technology could be so easy? ;) Next up, I tackle the touch screen.