October 31, 2009
Day 304 - Halloween!
After retiring from teaching, I saved ONE Halloween sweater. I just had to wear it today when going out for lunch with teacher friends!
October 30, 2009
Day 303 - Pumpkin cake
This is the cake I baked today to take to a Pumpkin Fest party. The party is held in memory of a colleague who died from breast cancer 4 years ago. Attending the party are past & present students, parents, and staff members. At the party, the kids carve pumpkins. We all eat, visit, and laugh!
October 29, 2009
Day 302 - Too wet!
We have had so much rain in October that THIS is what is growing in one of our gardens. What is it??
October 28, 2009
Day 301 - Orange balls
At the bowling alley this afternoon, I saw this rack of orange balls. They are the light weight balls that the little kids use with the bumpers for birthday parties. With Halloween coming up this weekend, they reminded me of pumpkins!
October 27, 2009
Day 300 - Evening walk
Lucy loves to go for a nice long walk after dinner. I'm not crazy about it being dark now that fall is here. But Lucy doesn't seem to mind. She seems to 'see' with her nose! She is enjoying all the new smells that Fall brings.
October 26, 2009
Day 299 - Skeleton
This scary skeleton was made by one of the children in the primary special education class where I subbed today. They had a lot of fun gluing on many shapes of pasta to create their masterpieces. There are now a line of skeletons waiting for Halloween!
October 25, 2009
Day 298 - Giant arachnid!
While out for a walk with the dog this evening, we came across this giant arachnid. She didn't quite know what to make of it and gave it a growl & a couple of barks before moving on. This purple spider is an air-filled Halloween decoration and it lies flat & deflated during the day, but swells to this size at night when the motor is on. Lots of yards in our neighborhood are ready for Halloween next weekend!
October 24, 2009
Day 297 - Wrigley
This handsome guy is a certified therapy dog. Today I worked at a local public library in a program for children with autism. They get to come for an hour and interact with the therapy dogs. Wrigley is a big dog, but is as gentle as can be. He is so well trained and was a great companion to the children who spent time with him today.
October 23, 2009
Day 296 - Big puddle
It has now been raining for about 30 hours straight. When I took the dog out this morning, she wanted to turn right around and head back into the house! I grabbed my camera and snapped this photo of the raindrops hitting the big puddle at the end of our driveway.
October 22, 2009
Day 295 - Wet pumpkins
I snapped this photo as I was leaving to substitute teach this morning. It had started raining during the night and continued to rain all day. I am so glad we took time to plant the bulbs in our gardens yesterday!
October 21, 2009
Day 294 - Fall at the lake
On my way home from my flu shot this morning, I decided to stop and walk around Lake Arlington because the weather is beautiful today. I haven't been to the lake in quite awhile, mostly because when I walk, I have the dog with me and they don't allow dogs at this lake. That makes me sad, because I know Lucy would love walking the 2 mile path around this lake. But, I'm glad I stopped today. The fall colors were wondereful!
October 20, 2009
Day 293 - Fun fundraiser
We went to a really fun fundraiser this evening for Clearbrook, a local agency that provides services for children and adults with disabilities. It was an 'Around the World Food Tasting' and there were foods from 22 different local restaurants to sample 'tapas-style'. Since it was a warm fall evening, the 11 of us that went together sat outside on the terrace while we sampled the foods and visited. I wish I had remembered to take my camera out of my purse while we were still there!
October 19, 2009
Day 292 - Wall unit
Today we hired a handyman to reconfigure the wall unit in our family room so that it can hold a bigger TV. Last year, we bought the largest flat screen we could that would fit in the space that originally housed our old tube TV. As you can see, the TV is not big enough to enjoy. But, the new space that has been configured should be able to hold a much larger flat screen. My husband is anticipating being able to see the TV while sitting on the sofa!
October 18, 2009
Day 291 - Fall trees
Today was the most beautiful day in over two weeks, we had sunshine and warmer temperatures. It was a great day for a long walk around the neighborhood. These beautiful trees are on the edge of the playground at the elementary school around the corner from our house. What a pretty view from the school!
October 17, 2009
Day 290 - Geese again
Today the geese were on the pond. This little pond is part of a wetland area that has been restored to a natural state by a joint project between the Park District and a couple of local School Districts. This area is attached to the park in our neighborhood, so we are lucky to be able to enjoy watching it change each season. Our dog, Lucy, loves to take walks around this area!
October 16, 2009
Day 289 - Grass
As I was subbing in 3rd grade today, I saw this little grass garden growing. I was happy to see they were still doing one of my 3rd grade activities while studying plants in the prairie habitat. The kids love to see the roots growing through the soil in the clear container. When the lid is on, they can see the precipitation that forms to provide water to their grass. And, as the grass grows they love giving it a 'haircut'.
October 15, 2009
Day 288 - Weber Grill
My aunt and uncle are heading home from their Wisconsin home to their Florida home. They invited us out for dinner on their way through. Here, Uncle Dick is getting some grilling advice from the expert at the Weber Grill!
October 14, 2009
Day 287 - Tall grasses
These tall grasses have been planted around the tennis/basketball court at the park in our neighborhood. I like that the Park District is using more natural, native plants as they landscape our parks.
October 13, 2009
Day 286 - Pampered Chef
Yesterday, the FedEx driver brought seven big boxes of Pampered Chef items to our house. All of this was ordered by my friends and family at the Pampered Chef party I had last week. Tonight, I got to go through all the items and bag them according to the orders. I'll start making the deliveries tomorrow. And, I have some fun new kitchen items for myself, too!
October 12, 2009
Day 285 - Geese
These geese have been congregating on the soccer field at the park by our house. I tried to get a photo through a soccer goal net, but when I started walking through the grass, my dog started eating the goose poop. I can't imagine the little soccer players enjoy playing in goose poop!
October 11, 2009
Day 284 - Piano Bar
Scott and I went to a play at The Metropolis this afternoon and then had dinner at Big Shot, a quaint little piano bar around the corner. The piano player on Sunday nights is Jim Peterson, who has been tuning our piano for years. What an enjoyable night!
October 10, 2009
Day 283 - Car ride
Lucy is buckled into the backseat for a trip to Rockford this afternoon. This is about an hour long trip and the longest car trip she has taken. We went out to Rockford to visit Scott's brother & sister-in-law. We had a great visit!
October 9, 2009
Day 282 - Stir fry shrimp
Since I've been retired and Scott has been out of work, we often cook dinner together. We whipped up a yummy stir fry shrimp for dinner tonight. What a great warm meal for a cold Friday evening in October!
October 8, 2009
Day 281 - Sly squirrel
After a summer of trying to figure it out, this squirrel has finally figured out a way to get up into the birdfeeder. From the ground, he jumped on the oriole feeder first and then leaped from there up to the feeder. Looks like we need to move the oriole feeder to a new spot!
October 7, 2009
Day 280 - Fall grasses
Yesterday's rain was followed by today's beautiful blue sky. These fall prairie grasses have become quite popular in gardens in our neighborhood as people plant more native perennials.
October 6, 2009
Day 279 - Celebrating retirement
Okay, technically I didn't take this photo, but it is on my camera. I couldn't resit posting this picture of myself. The photo was taken at our Octoberfest luncheon for D25 retirees. The rain forced the luncheon inside, but that didn't stop us from having a fun time!
October 5, 2009
Day 278 - TVs
This isn't a good photo, but hopefully it gets the point across. We were out for dinner at a neighborhood bar with a group of retirees. This bar, Gatsby's, has a row of TVs on every wall. Many people come here to enjoy watching sports. We meet here to catch up with old friends!
October 4, 2009
Day 277 - Fall at the park
Today we went out for lunch to meet up with my best friend from high school. She and her husband were in town for a wedding. We had a wonderful long lunch, chatting, laughing, and reminiscing. I'm so glad we got to see Marianne & Bob! On the way home, we stopped at this park in the middle of our village to photograph the fall flowers around the fountain. Our park district does a great job making our parks beautiful!
October 3, 2009
Day 276 - Theatre
This is outside the Rosemont Theatre. Tonight my dear husband took me to see Robin Williams. He surprised me with the tickets for our 35th anniversary last August. The show was great. I laughed out loud for the whole 90 minutes!
October 2, 2009
Day 275 - Fall wreath
I'm putting out some fall decorations inside the house, and as I put up this wreath, I have happy memories of my mom who loved to create beautiful things for my home. It will be ten years at the end of this month since she lost her battle with cancer. I'm very lucky to have things like this to remember her love.
October 1, 2009
Day 274 - Fall flowers
I'm having about 20 friends over tomorrow afternoon for a Pampered Chef cooking party. While I was at the grocery store today, stocking up on the ingredients needed for snacks and the recipes for the show, I decided to treat myself to a bunch of fall flowers to brighten the table.
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