Grateful

We are slow, scary slow, at work ... so I spent my day reading this  feeling such profound sadness, hope and love for these strangers that I am emotionally exhausted. I couldn't stop thinking of them and though they were never out of my mind tonight, I was delighted when I came home and found these waiting for me in my mailbox!

    It is magazine day and all my favorites were waiting for me when I arrived home!  So I've been lost in useless reading as Ellie and Kassidy run around me singing and dancing and playing dress up and I can not help but being so grateful for the gifts in my life.

Trick or Treat

Halloween was a huge success in our house this year. 

Elle loves going door to door to collect her candy and I am quite certain she will expect candy on our afternoon walks for months to come. 

Kassidy hit the streets unattended for the first time with her friends and "had the best Halloween ever!"

& of course Ted thoroughly enjoyed his favorite holiday and hosted most of the neighborhood at a bonfire while terrorizing unsuspecting trick or treaters.

One Busy Week

We had one busy week and this week isn't shaping up to be anything less...

On Monday we had a surprise visitor from home (aka California) and it was a much needed fix to lessen my homesickness. My pseudo brother Gene (Jimmy's best friend from his college days at UCLA) came to NYC to celebrate his 40th and he hopped a train to have dinner with little us. The girls had a blast with him and so did we. 

Preparations for the qualifier competition this coming weekend meant more cheerleading with almost no complaining by Shoosh as she has her eye on the prize, Nationals in Florida in December. I will post next week to let you all know how they do. Keep your fingers crossed. 

We wrapped up the week with our annual trip to the pumpkin patch. Elle was not quite her happy self at first and didn't enjoy everything the patch had to offer, but she finally warmed up to it and the trip was a success. 

Ted was his funny self...

& Elle had fun in the corn maze even though she kept getting lost..

& Kassidy is still complaining that I wouldn't actually buy anything but the sugar pumpkins from the patch and have gone to the market to get 3 pumpkins for $15 instead of the $30 for one there. She'll get it someday, I can only hope. 

Overall it was another great week and today was just the best! 

Once upon a time

Ten years ago I moved 3,000 miles away from home to start my life in Connecticut and follow my dreams. This journey has been amazing, but when I left a tiny piece of me stayed with them... 

Thankfully the day I moved here my dreams became reality and I became a Mommy to this amazing little girl and though technically I am a "step" I consider her mine all the same. 

Six years ago on Sunday I realized more of my dreams  and I became a Mrs on an enchanted October evening under a romantic desert sky.

And then two years ago our family grew and I became a Mommy again to this fascinating little girl and some more of my dreams came true.