"Fall" in Houston

So earlier this week, as I was watching the morning news, the weather girl came on and gave the forecast for the next few days.

"It's going to continue to be hot and humid into the weekend, with highs into the 90's through the rest of the week," she said.  "But once Sunday gets here, it's going to feel like fall!  I can't wait!"  Then, she added, "I'm going to pull out my tights and put on a pot of potato soup!"  "Ooo," I thought, "Tights and soup?  Weather like that will feel amazing!"

Then the high and low temps for the following several days popped up.  I want you to guess what the forecast high was for the fallish day.

65, maybe?  That, to me, would feel like fall.  But, let's be realistic here; we're in Houston.

Okay, so maybe 72?  It's been so warm lately that 72 would be fantastic!

Nope.  The high for the day in question was 84.  EIGHTY-FOUR.  Really?  Who puts "tights" and "soup" in the same sentence as "84 degrees"??

I'm still laughing about it.  I guess that if we're anything, we Texans are optimistic.  We take what we can get when it comes to cool weather.

Touched

After a long day, I walked into my room to find this on my nightstand:

I had totally forgotten that on our way in from the car this afternoon, as I was just trying to get everyone to walk to the front door so we can go in and I can put Clara + the bags down, for crying out loud, Noah ran up to me with this and said, "Mom, I picked a flower for you!"

This is actually a crepe myrtle bud.  We pulled up a few crepe myrtle trees in our front flower beds two years ago when we moved into our house, but the dang things keep popping up.  So, when my sweet little boy brought me a flower, I thought, "Those dang crepe myrtles again!  Dadgum flower!"  What I actually said was: "Thank you, Noah, that is sweet!  Will you carry it inside for me?" "Sure!" he said.

When we got inside, he asked, "Do you want me to plant it with your flower?" referring to my potted hydrangea.  "No, Buddy!" "What about in the vase?"  In the water with the sunflowers? "No, Kiddo.  I'll take care of it in a minute."

Which I promptly forgot to do, in the busyness of unloading the car and taking care of hungry and attention-seeking kids.

On top of it all, I was pretty short with the kids this afternoon, due simply to tiredness.  Their messes and noise and low-level disregard for the rules--all of which is pretty much completely age appropriate--was driving me crazy.  And I didn't realize my tiredness was the cause of my crankiness until late in the day, and then I felt pretty crummy about it and had to apologize to them.  (And then follow it with a tickle fight, which really does make everything better!)

So when I walked into my bedroom and saw that Noah had found a spot for my flower--right next to my bed where I was sure to see it and enjoy it--I was very touched.  I was cranky, and he was loving.  I sure am thankful for that.

I am thankful that we do not always get what we deserve.  That with some people, we love them and they love us, no matter what.  That God loves me more than I deserve and leaves me figurative flowers all the time; I only need eyes to appreciate them.

But, mostly, I am thankful for Noah today.  He is pretty wonderful.

A Couple of Birthdays

 A few more pictures from sweet Clara's birthday party:

Grandma and the birthday girl.

Our dining room, outfitted with a garland of photos from Clara's first year and snacks that went with the Peter Rabbit/garden theme.

When both the cakes you make fall to pieces, all you can do is throw some grapes on top and hope it looks pretty.

 

 

 Friends!

Sweet cake eater.  Oh, and that hair!

The best thing about Clara these days is that she is a great hugger.

 It's not the typical fleeting baby hug; she pulls you in tightly and holds on for a good five or ten seconds.  It's marvelous.

 Clarabelle is a delight.  We love her lots.

~

 A week later was my birthday.

The card Nathan gave me, referencing my two gifts, cracked me up!

 For dinner, we went to a nice restaurant, which is also a plant nursery (Tiny Boxwoods, for you Houstonians).

It was really nice that we had some family along.

Matthew,

Andrew,

and Emily.

Cute couple.

 I recommend the sangria.

It is wonderful, as you can see.

We were seated outside, at a picnic table.  I really like this restaurant, because the food is really nice and upscale, but the atmosphere is unfussy and relaxing.

Our group.

 We stayed a nice, long time and chatted until after dark.

And after we went home, we ended the night with--what else?--a board game.

 Happy birthdays, both!

Progression of a Photo Gone Wrong

At Clara's birthday party, I tried to get a picture of all three of my kids.  I set my camera for continual shooting, pressed the shutter button, and held it down while several adults and I tried in vain to get all three kids to 1. sit still, 2. sit near one another, and 3. look at the camera.  The progression of how it just all falls apart (thanks mostly to Clara) made me laugh, so I thought I'd post it.

 

 

 

A Bit of Unimportant Personal Trivia

On my nightstand right now:

• The first Longmire novel.  Nathan and I are fans of the TV series, and by all accounts, the novels are great.  This one's been on my list for several months.
• Taste: The Story of Britain through its Cooking.  Me and my random historical interests.
• Cranford.  I saw the miniseries on TV a couple of years ago and thought at the time that it'd be a nice, mild, cozy read.
• The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie.  This is a reread, and I recommend it.
• The Call of the Wild.  I actually just finished this one.  I'd never read it before.
• Twelve Years a Slave.  There's a movie adaptation coming out, and we actually had a copy, so I thought I'd reread it.  Nathan took a class on The History of the South in undergrad, and I picked this book up and completed it shortly after he read it.  I don't remember a whole lot about it, but I've since learned that its popularity at its initial publication was one of the things (among many, many others, of course) that incited the Civil War. 
• The Midwife trilogy (original UK version).  I do love that show!  Also reissued here, here, and here.
• The Heirloom Tomato, a beautiful coffee table book with history, recipes, varieties to explore, etc.

This is more books than I've had on my nightstand in quite a while, and there are lots of quality goods in there.  I've got a nice little stack to work my way through.

Clara's First Birthday!

Clara turned 1 today!  

Can you believe that this is the messiest she got while eating her first piece of cake?

She's a tidy little girl.

She's 1!

She had a happy time.

Sweet little face.

We love you ever so much, Clara.

We can't wait to see what the next year will bring.

A Family Quilt

 I finally posted some better photos of Janey Beth's flower blanket here.  Go check them out!

 In the meantime, I'd like to show you something else.

This is a quilt that was given to my great-grandmother, Granny Lou.  It has a special story behind it.

Granny Lou volunteered for many years as a Pink Lady at her local hospital in small-town Mississippi.  One year, the Pink Ladies got together and made this quilt together to sell in an auction.  Then, you know what they did?  After all the hours and love they put into this quilt, they went and bought it--for $500--and gave it to Granny Lou to thank her for all her years of volunteer work.

Not only do I like the quilt for its own sake--the colors and the starburst pattern are so happy--but I also love having a piece of family history in my possession.  Especially one with such a great story that honors what a great Granny Lou I had. :)  One day, I think it'd be neat to crochet a blanket to go with it.