fall in north carolina

Ella and I are wrapping up a long weekend at my parent's house. I feel like Fall has actually arrived, and here are some reasons why...









My parents when they were in the first grade...



Homemade pumpkin-chocolate chip mufffins (way better than the Frothy Monkey's) and milk from a local farm...



It's good to be here.

tuesday at the monkey

I got to the Frothy Monkey just in time to snag the last booth. I Love booths. Especially when I'm pregnant. I marked my territory, ordered a decaf mocha and an organic pumpkin/chocolate chip muffin (how can one's day be anything other than wonderful when it starts off with so much chocoalate?) and now I sit facing the sun and the street and enjoying the general coffeehouse buzz.

How did I manage to get here midmorning in the middle of the week? Because my sweet Ella is at Parent's Day Out for the fourth time. We started her this semester one day a week, five hours a day (naps are included - and the kids Actually sleep on their little mats. I Really wish I could be a fly on the wall for that.), and she still definitely cries when we drop her off. We get reports, though, that the tears don't last too long, and she's soon playing with her four classmates.

My freetime activities have varied these last four weeks - and although a nap is most assuredly in today's agenda, I was feeling the pull of the blog. I was going to just update from home, but we have an infestation of chipmunks that ruins all concentration and sleep. That's right. Chipmunks. At first we thought it was a demon bird escaped from the rainforests of Hell. The noise wakes us up every morning, disrupts peaceful moments, and I liken it to a kind of Chinese water torture - but with sound. It's a basic pattern, but with just enough pauses to make you crazy. Well, me anyway.

So one day I was looking out the window trying to spot this horrid bird, and I looked down on our patio at the cute little chipmunk that hangs out there. It was then I noticed that everytime I heard the noise, that chipmunk's sides moved. WHAT. "It's the chipmunk!!!" I shrieked. "Whooooaaaa," Ella answered - probably wondering why I was having a tantrum in front of the window.

A few days later I looked out another window and, two feet away, that dumb thing was was perched on it's hind legs Barking. I swear, that's what it looks like. But I wish to the good Lord that it sounded like a dog's bark instead of the spawn of Satan having a hissy fit. And Now more chipmunks have gathered on our property - we think there are about four of them - and pretty much are on all sides of the house screaming at each other.

I know. It's the weirdest thing. I used to love chipmunks. Who knows why this fall they decided to show their true allegiance with the Dark Side. But we are seriously considering traps. And if that doesn't work, bombs.

But since I'm not actually in my house being driven crazy, I will divert my thoughts to happier topics. Like shopping. Now that Ella's in "school" I decided she needs a whole new wardrobe. Ok, it's actually because she's growing like a crazy weed (our 18 month check-up yesterday confirmed this - she's in the 85 percentile for height, but only 25 percentile for weight) and the season's changing - so she needs warmer clothes and shoes that are not sandals or flip-flops.

I spotted these boots at a Franklin consignment store, and because they were $5 and I've been looking for a pair in my size, they are now part of her collection...




Here's another pair of shoes she loves to wear no matter what she is (or isn't) wearing...



And here are a couple of pictures that I'm posting just because I love them. My friend, Krista, captured these moments...

saturday, squatters & neverending laundry

It's Saturday, and Andy is out of town. Thankfully, it's just for one day. With fall shows coming up, I'm going to have to get used to him being out for three-four days in a row. I don't like this. One day I can handle (usually). There's just this thing called sleep that I can't get enough of, and Ella has not been the most reliable napper as of late. Especially today - the poor babe has a very runny nose and sneezes constantly. She's also gnawing on her hands so much that she has raw spots on her fingers. Sure signs of teething. Right now she's moaning in her crib and I can hear her sniffling through the monitor. Very sad.

I've been trying to do laundry during her spotty napping, and managed to fold four loads, Stain Stick one load, and throw one load in the dryer. Two more are waiting to be washed. How in the world does a family of three manage to have this many dirty clothes? It's unbelievable. And now we're dealing with a very mysterious problem...

I believe it is all due to a squatter living in our basement. Andy does not. But for whatever reason, there is definitely a smell of cigarette smoke in the basement/garage, and it's starting to creep upstairs. Sometimes I'll walk inside and smell it. Sometimes I'll walk to the back of the house and catch a whiff. But what I cannot accept is that it is starting to make the laundry smell. I pull out Ella's sweet, little clothes from the dryer, and instead of smelling baby, I find traces of grody. Boo. We can't seem to find the source, and since nobody has been lighting anywhere in the house, it continues to be quite the puzzle.

I just hope I don't stumble across a family of smokers living down there because I will (first) have a heart attack and (when I recover) giving them a good talking-to about the dangers of smoking and their audacity for choosing my home.