This is the post-pumpkin carving post. Get excited!
ST1: candles in pumpkins. Doesn’t the light just make everything so much cooler?
This is the photo collage of the pumpkins the 7 of us made last night. We set up two tables in our dining room, covered the tables with trash bags, and went to work. Michael made the pumpkin eating the small one, Brett made the girl from ‘The Grudge”, Victoria made Stephen Colbert, Nathan made the scary shark face, Larry made the two little pumpkins (bat and scary face), Jonathan made the Joker, and I made the artsy moon and stars. Too much fun!
ST2: pumpkin pie and whipped cream. I had some time yesterday so I made a pumpkin pie completely from scratch, down to the pie crust. AND I made my own whipped cream. Who knew whipping cream, sugar, and vanilla could taste so wonderful? We ate the pie and whipped cream with a side of apple cider as our prize for completing the pumpkins. It got a ‘delicious’ rating. Awesome.
My first pumpkin pie!
ST3: New books. I got a book from the library called “My Life With the Saints” and it is already amazing in the first chapter. Laura and I are going to do a book study with it to learn more about the saints and how they can help us be better people. The first chapter is about St. Jude, the patron saint of lost causes. I love that there is a saint to help with things that seem to have no hope. The author called him the saint of the sock drawer because that is where the statue of the saint lived because he didn’t want people to know he had a saint in his room. Hilarious. I’ll keep you updated with what I learn from this book.
ST4: Tornado warnings. Ok, I know this seems ridiculous as a small thing to appreciate. I have good reason. There was a tornado warning today for my county in Indiana and it reminded me of home in Kansas. Tornado warnings were almost a given in the spring, so the familiar sound of the siren and sitting close to the TV waiting for updates made me feel like I was home. And because it was so familiar, I didn’t freak out and rode out the storm. Unlike the first time I was home babysitting my two brothers and dog and there was a tornado warning… we couldn’t get a hold of our parents and the dog wouldn’t go downstairs…that was scary! In any case, thank you Kansas for preparing me for moments like this 🙂
ST5: good interviews. Well people, after waiting a while to find a job I’m excited about, I’m now an official tutor through the Robinson Community Learning Center of Notre Dame. I’ll be tutoring kids three afternoons a week starting mid-November. The interview went great and I start next week with orientation. The people were great, the program sounds amazing, and I’ll get to work one-on-one teaching literacy skills to kids who realllllly need it. I knew God would find a great fit for me, and this looks pretty promising. And its another way I’ll get to reap the benefits of Notre Dame without being a student!
ST6: Old students. I made a special email account before I left my old school for students to keep in touch with me. I hadn’t check it for a few weeks so I decided to look today. There were two emails from students I had last year. They still remember me! One was giving me trouble about how bad Nebraska beat K-State in football, and the other was checking in to see what I was up to. How cool is that? I just love those connections I made with those kids. THAT is why I love teaching.
ST7: pounding around on the piano. I had some time to kill before the husband came home for dinner so I was just jammin’ on my Casio when out came a familiar tune. It was the base line to one of my favorite songs called “Birdland”. So I continued hammering it out till I found the melody to go with the base line and BAM I figured out the song! This was a great accomplishment because for about 30 minutes prior to this moment I was about to throw all of my sheet music away. I struggle with reading music and playing at the same time, so I was about to give up when I was reminded of the one talent I can rely on, playing by ear. Thank you God for this gift you gave me and for helping me to realize this today!
ST8: Pink nail polish.
Alright friends, that is it for the past two days. If you didn’t get a chance to make a comment with a small thing you’ve noticed, please do so! Remember, you don’t have to sign in your real name or email, so if that is holding you back, no more excuses! 🙂
small pieces of joy 
I still vividly remember that night of the twisters. I couldn’t get Kirk out of the crib because I was too small and Kasper wouldn’t go downstairs even after we threw a loaf of bread down to the basement. Oh what a night.
My small thing was a Hug I gave someone today. People need to hug it out more.
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“Down them stairs, loose them cares! Where? Down in Birdland! Yoy, yoy, yoy, yoy, yoy….”
Do you mean THAT Birdland?
P.S. I’m just starting to read (you’re in my google reader now). Thank you for helping me to appreciate the small things in life. In the two entries I’ve read, you’ve already rocked my world. 🙂
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