Happy Thanksgiving!

My sister took this picture at my house on Thanksgiving

(...and I stole it from her - it's beautiful, isn't it?)

Things I'm most thankful for this Thanksgiving:

The kid's table, filled with... my daughters, nieces and nephew, handmade place cards courtesy of my sister's kids, THE BEST Thanksgiving spread my sister and I have ever made (ok, the guys did fry the turkey, but come on - that takes like an hour total), and another year of warm and wonderful memories together as a family.

The long weekend visiting friends, like Jessica from Bernthis, and her adorable daughter Phoebe - who my girls are still talking about practically every hour. Not to mention that Kirsten and I are still exhausted from laughing through our entire visit with Jessica.

The fact that I don't have to go to work on Monday. Or the day after that, or the day after that, or the day after that... and at least for December, the only thing I have to think about is what to pack for Disneyland!

And lastly, I'm thankful for finally having some down time to read some of my favorite blogs and write a post on my own blog! If you are looking for a good laugh, check out this post my good friend Lish wrote recently.

I hope you all had a great Thanksgiving too!

words to live by

Some say the glass is half empty, some say the glass is half full, I say, are you going to drink that?

-Lisa Claymen

Wordless Wednesday

Found on Seesa's bedroom door...

I don't know, do you think she's trying to tell us something?

I just got laid off... So, what am I going to do now?

I'm going to DISNEYLAND!!!

(Literally. I'm not kidding.)

The tortuous wait is finally over. I found out today that I am getting laid off from my job at the end of the year. I was prepared for it, but it's bittersweet. After sixteen years at the same firm, it's really surreal to be moving on. I'm lucky to have gotten a severance that will give me some cushion time to find a new job.

In the meantime, I'm looking forward to going to Disneyland in December. Our kids have never been before, so we're really excited. I'm also looking forward to being a stay-at-home Mom for a while, enjoying the holidays with my family, finishing a list of projects around the house (just the list - I may not get to any of the actual projects - haha), writing and generally savoring some time off before I delve into my next adventure in working motherhood...

I'll tell Mickey you said hello!

Reasons Halloween is my favorite time of the year

I've always loved Halloween. Seriously, what's not to love? Dress up as whatever you want and get a lot of candy. Find something wrong with that, I dare you.

There's the pumpkin carving.

(Yes, we rock at pumpkin carving.)

Roasting pumpkin seeds.

(Yum!)

Trick-or-Treating.

(examining the loot)

Coloring just about anything orange.

(rice crispy treats)

...and this little girl.

The BEST Halloween treat I've ever gotten in my life, is when Seesa was born 6 years ago on October 31st. I fell in love with her from the moment I touched her cheek right after she was born, and life has never been the same. I love that she always wants to be something "spooky" for Halloween, like a witch or black cat. I love that she adores animals - will watch any movie with animals in it, likes to pretend she is a dog (even though we find ourselves frequently telling her to quit barking) and I can't take her to the pet store for rabbit food without having to endure begging for whatever animals she finds there. I love that she took to Kindergarten like she'd waited for it all her life. I love that she takes care of her little sister. I love how she crawls in bed with me in the mornings and cuddles. I love her creativity and sense of humor. I love how her eyes smile. I love her love of life. And I love how she shows me, every day, a new reason be grateful for the blessing of her - my beautiful daughter.