November is a transition month. We’re moving from a relatively quiet time on the schedule to the busier holiday season and from fall to winter, though technically winter doesn’t officially start for a few weeks yet. It’s been nice to have some quiet times and breathing space.

Though our fall color came late and didn’t last very long this year, there are still vestiges of it left. I like not only the fall leaves still on the trees, but the bunches of them on the ground. I have trouble with the colorlessness of winter, so I treasure up whatever I can find of fall color until the first signs of spring.

What I’ve been into this month:

• Activities: a lot of sorting and pulling things out to give away. Always a good thing.
• Health: still holding steady with afib issues – a few flutters here and there, sometimes an episode seeming to start, but then going away (Yay!) My second follow-up visit with the cardiologist was scheduled for earlier this month, but I had to reschedule it, and they didn’t have any new openings until January! Since I have been doing ok, I think that will be fine, and I’m sure if I have any trouble crop up, I can call them and probably get worked in.
• Reading: I just posted the books I’ve read the last month here.
• Baby-sitting time with Timothy, a little more than usual this month. One of those times we did a little fall sugar cookie baking. he liked putting on the sprinkles. 🙂

• Thanksgiving! Always a lovely day with the family an lots of great food.
• Thanksgiving leftovers! Besides the turkey sandwiches and plates of reheated Thanksgiving fare, one thing we always look forward to is Turkey Bone Soup. Such good stuff.
• Christmas decorating! I’ll say more about that in tomorrow’s Friday’s Fave Five. Timothy was into it last year, but at 3 1/2 this year, he’s even more so. Such fun!
• Christmas shopping! Mostly online! Though I have a bit to look for in town.
• Church searching: still visiting. We wish we could combine the best of the two we like most into one. 🙂
• Music: a variety of things, but primarily Beyond All Praising by the BJU Singers and Orchestra. I also discovered a new-to-me group, Voces8. When someone linked to this song on Facebook, that sent me looking through YouTube for more of their music.
• On the creative front: Not much this month – the sorting and giving away took precedence over the one project I had hoped to get to. Oh – I did do some painting with Timothy. 🙂 And I did make this card for my friend Melanie‘s birthday.

New discoveries:

• Single-serving dessert mixes. Nice for portion control when you want something fresh-made and sweet:

• Decaf flavored teas. I haven’t tried them yet – I’ve never liked hot teas whenever I’ve tried them, but I’ve been wanting some variety in hot beverages with cold weather, and these are the required decaf. So maybe this time will be the charm.
• A new Mexican food restaurant.
• Little Free Libraries. I’ve seen other people mention them, but this post led me to a map to look for local ones. There are two not all that far from me. I’d love to start one!

Things I wonder:

• Why catalog companies think that they if they send me multiple catalogs a week, especially this time of year, I’ll buy more. I’ll look at one for a new season, but after that I just throw them away until the next season. I wonder how much this waste adds to the cost of the merchandise.
• I’ve had a couple of experiences with looking at things for purchase online, once putting an item in a cart and then deciding against it and removing it, and then getting an email from the online company about it. One said something like “We noticed you looking at this item. It’s still available!” When I contacted them and said I do not want these types of emails, I was told it was “all or nothing,” and to avoid receiving them, they’d had to remove me from their email list completely. The one where I removed something from a cart said something like, “We know what it’s like to be pulled away from the computer in the middle of something, so we kept this item in the cart for you!” My husband received one that said, “Caught you looking!” Who thought this was a good idea?! It’s really creepy. I know it’s probably computer-generated, and they have cookies to track what you look at anyway, but this is a step too far!
• Why, when you mention you’ve been cleaning, does someone always say something like, “When you get done, come over to my house! I need that done, too!”

On the blog:

Besides the weekly highlights at Friday’s Fave Five, book reviews, and some Laudable Linkages, I’ve posted:

• The Strength of My Faith
• Everyday Gifts. The daily manna was as much a gift and a miracle as the parting of the sea. Encouragement not to miss the daily blessings while watching for the “big” ones.
• Watching Angels. 
• Keeping Minimalism in Balance. Even good traits need balance.
• News about The Laura Ingalls Wilder Reading Challenge 2018 and a list of books by and about her besides the Little House series.

As we turn the calendars from November to December tomorrow, the focus will turn more fully to Christmas preparations – Christmas cards and newsletters, finishing shopping and starting wrapping, activities and events. In the midst of this fun but busy season, may we all have make some moments of quiet reflection on Whose birth we celebrate and why. May His love flow into us and then through us to others.

(Sharing with What I’m Into at Leigh Kramer)

I’ve enjoyed reading end-of-the-month posts from a few blog friends for some time now. I’ve thought about joining in, but I already share the highlights of each week in the Friday’s Fave Fives, so I thought perhaps a monthly recap might be redundant. And then the last couple of months as I have considered it, I wasn’t able to do it before the actual end of the month, so I put it off. That’s the case again this month, but I thought I’d go ahead and give it a whirl and see what happens.

I love October. Usually in October we have the peak of fall color. Even though it hasn’t been as vibrant this time as in previous years, I’m still soaking it up when I see it to store up against the grey, barren landscape of winter to come. The cool crisp air is also a relief from the intense heat of summer, and though we’ve had some actual cold days, they’re not as bad as they will be later on.

Family happenings:

Besides enjoying the in-between state of the weather, I also bask in a more relaxed pace in the family schedule. October is a nice breathing space between summer happenings,  like our “birthday season,” with several of us having birthdays in a row from July through mid-September, and the holiday preparations coming up. Besides our usual get-togethers, we had our annual pumpkin decorating (“punkin time,” as Timothy called it) and attended our first (and probably last) “Boo in the Zoo.”

Speaking of upcoming holidays, I know of people who shop all year and are pretty much done by now. I could only do that with one or two people. I knew my mom’s tastes, and would gather up things for her whenever I saw them. But we’re kind of a techy family, and who knows what new stuff will crop up before the Christmas season? 🙂 We do “wish lists” in our family, and we try to have everyone’s before Thanksgiving so as to take advantage of the sales that week, mostly online. The last couple of years we’ve had the greatest bulk of the Christmas shopping done that week, which made the rest of the season so much more enjoyable. My only real advance preparation is that I try to buy Christmas cards early on. Some years back I stopped buying Christmas cards at the local Christian bookstore when I got to the cash register, and the total was over $60. I decided that was ridiculous, returned them, and looked at W-Mart. They have an “inspirational” section, and as long as I look there before things get too picked over, I can find a good selection. I’ve been making cards for the immediate family the last few years, but that would be just too much to do for the number of cards I send out. Now, if I just got the Christmas letter ready and got them addressed and stamped soon after, I’d be in good shape. 🙂

In sad news, my mother’s oldest brother passed away a few days ago. He had Alzheimer’s and other health issues for years – in fact, during the recent flooding in TX, they couldn’t move him, and just dealt with squishy floors until it was all over. I had not had much contact with him over the years, so it wasn’t quite the emotional impact as when my aunt, my mom’s only sister, passed away a few months ago. But it’s still sad, especially now that I have only one uncle left of all my parents’ siblings.

Back to October…

On the creative front:

I made one birthday card for a lady that I have called my adopted spiritual mom since my college days:

I’ve also been gathering together materials for a pillow I want to make – I actually wanted to have it done during October, but that didn’t work out. There’s still time in November, but it’s just for fun with no deadlines, so I am not stressing over it.

Health issues:

October was a dramatic (and welcome!) contrast from September in that regard. Whether it was getting off one medication, or just reaching the point of healing from the surgery in August, or a direct answer to prayer, I went from having 2-12 hour episodes of afib several times a month to having them just seconds at a time a few times a day. I’d like for even those to go away, too, and they may, but if this is as good as it gets, it’s so much better. Thank you for praying for me!

Changes:

I mentioned earlier that my husband was asked to go to a different position in his job. He had been doing some work on this front but was asked to take it on full time. It’s interesting that two different people took on the responsibilities he used to have. 🙂 So far it has been a positive move for him. He said one advantage is that he’s usually done with work by the time he leaves the office, which was not the case before. He was even recognized by a member of upper management for something accomplished in his first week in the new job!

I also mentioned we decided for several reasons to look for a new church home. That has been interesting but frustrating. It’s amazing that churches that have the same basic core beliefs can vary so much in other areas. A couple have been really good except for one area (different areas in each case). But we’re seeking and trusting God to lead us to where He wants us to be.

Timothy:

For those who might be new here, Timothy is my only grandchild and three years old. As his mom says, “his brain is exploding.” He’s learning so much so quickly, it’s mind-boggling! A couple of Timothy “funnies”: he likes to go into the walk-in pantry sometimes just to look around, or, more often, to play with my “reacher” (it’s been anything from a weed-eater to a vacuum cleaner). Recently he went in and spied some animal crackers within reach and came out with them, only to come face to face with his dad. I don’t know if he had the concept in mind that it was almost dinner time and therefore not snack time, but something in his dad’s expression must have made him think he might not approve. He said in a very sweet voice, “So yummy!” Then, he’s discovered how to activate Siri on his parents’ iPhones and loves that it responds to him. Siri can’t understand everything he says, so its responses (and Timothy’s) are just hilarious sometimes. One was something like, “Would you like for me to look up edfntiotnnginahtinf on the Web?”

Around the blog:

Besides the weekly Friday’s Fave Fives, some book reviews, occasional “stray thoughts,” and sharing links of interest, I’ve posted

• What I’ve read this month, am reading now, and plan to read next.
• Living and Praying in the Light of God’s Name.
• Keeping Balanced in an Unbalanced World.
• Reading the Bible Literally.
• A Stirred-up Woman.
• When God Asks the Impossible.

So, that was October! Overall a very pleasant month. I may experiment in the future with how to format this. I like how Lisa and Linda do it, especially Lisa’s video of a second a day, but some of what they include I post in other places. Monica uses a word-prompt format, which has its advantages. But I like pausing before turning the calendar page to think over the last month and mark what has gone on. It make the passing of time slow down for a moment or two.

(Sharing with What I’m Into with Leigh Kramer)