Update:

Whew. What a month.

Things we've accomplished around here:
Trip to DC and Maryland without kids. (Thanks Grandma!) M turned 8. My big toe broken. M's bike fixed. M's birthday party. A turned 10. Piano lessons started by A & M. New teeth for me! Huge amounts of chicken prepped/canned/frozen. M baptized. Huge amounts of ice cream eaten. Staycation in Scottsdale for three days. Two orthodontist appointments. Three kids' dentist appointments with ZERO cavities found. (YEAH!) State fair visited. Fall break survived. Several books read. Teeth sensitivity finally gone. House pressure-washed. Cars 2 finally seen. Yard sale items eliminated from garage. Several Halloween decorations added to the collection. Getting "Boo'd" more than once. Progress made on costumes for the kids. N's car starter died. Goldilox towed to Tempe. 39 gallons of paint mixed and picked up from Home Depot.

Things on the horizon:
Making pumpkin bread. Trip to the pumpkin patch. Finishing costumes. Entering orthodontist pumpkin-decorating contest. PAINTING THE HOUSE. Service project. Fixing J's bike tire. Fixing A's bike (it looks like it got run over???? I hope it can be fixed!) Chili cookoff next weekend. Running booth with activity day girls. Selling stuff on ebay/craigslist. Family pictures. Our 13th anniversary.

Things wanting my wallet's attention:
Goldilox needs a new timing belt. A mixer. Countertops for my craft room. Shutters. A new office chair. A leaf blower. A functioning microwave, with a handle. Our home depot credit card. New sunscreens for the house. Paying off the water softener. POOL REMODEL before next summer. Ugh.

East Coast.

SIGH. And Double Sigh. Why, why did I ever move away from Maryland? I totally forgot how absolutely beautiful everything is, how lush and green it is everywhere, how stuff just grows by itself, how charming and detailed all of the architecture is, so not stucco and tracty....
We drove on roads like this...

and this...

and went by our old house, which is still as shabby and in need of a paint job as ever...

but there are plenty of beautiful houses everywhere, including this awesome one... I know it's not the best camera angle, but you can still see the gray wood siding, white trim, red door, brick path, and wrought iron gate... Are you kidding me?? SWOON.

If my husband dies before me, I get to make the choice on where we're buried, right? So here it is, an adorable little church and cemetary on the side of the road in New Market. I love this.

Come on, don't you want to lay your body to rest here too? Awesome.

And of course, we went to our favorite restaurant while we were in Maryland too. You know there's some places you build up in your mind, thinking they can't possibly be as good as you remember? Yeah, this isn't one of those. As excellent as ever.

Here's our half-eaten pile of seafood... oh, those scallops were delightful.

Try as I might, I'd never be able to take a picture of the decor in this place and do it justice. Beautiful. I could stare at the woodwork all day.

I can't even describe how amazing this cream of crab soup is. Seriously. This most assuredly will be served in my mansion in heaven.

This is the super cute family we stayed with for a couple of days. It was great to finally meet Amanda's kids and go to Mt. Airy ward again. Still have lots of great friends and memories there, even though the ward has changed a lot.

Me and my peep, Amanda.