Brrrrrrrr — it sure feels like December, even if we don’t have snow yet. We are starting our first round of sniffles in the house, too…so winter is at our doorstep.

I’m buried up to my eyeballs in school and work — no time to worry about anything, let alone flexible metal hoses.

I’m feeling the urge to get out my snowmen decorations more every day. Perhaps this coming weekend, the girls and I will get our little guys out and finally put away the autumn splendor for another year.

We just recently finished our annual fall cleaning. Yep…you heard me right. Along with annual spring cleaning, we also do annual fall cleaning. After a summer of activity with the entire family traipsing in and out of the house constantly, you might be amazed how dirty a house can get. So…we do most of the same things we do in the spring in the fall too. Too bad we don’t have Houston Junk removal closer to us…I’m sure we could use their help! A company that would come and get our junk, haul it away and dispose of it…wow…I’d be in heaven. The people who live in Texas don’t know how good they have it! All they have to do is call and they’ll get upfront pricing with a conveniently scheduled pick up time. How cool is that?!? Sure beats hauling your own stuff off to the junk yard and paying fees for every little thing like we have to do. Save yourself time, effort and money by using this junk removal service to dispose of your trash and unwanted refuse!

Well, Thanksgiving 2011 is now another Thanksgiving Past…another one for the memory books. It was a lovely one…one of the best, I’d say. We had 21 in attendance, eight of them 10 and under. Yes…it was lovely and LIVELY! But a good lively. We managed to seat everyone at three different tables…I wish we had a table big enough for everyone, but I don’t know where we’d put it!

We finished up the leftovers on Sunday with a big pot of turkey noodle soup. That should give us lunches most of this week, I’d say.

Now…on to winter! Time to hunker down and get busy with school, I guess!

I love the look of Adirondack chairs in an outside space. A deck or patio furnished with attractive and comfortable furniture like these wood chairs is a beautiful and high-quality outdoor space.

Of course, it’s always nice to browse through various Picnic Tables to find a nice one that will seat the whole family outdoors for those impromptu summer meals outdoors. We do not have a picnic table right now — instead we have patio tables, chairs and an umbrella.

This last summer, we added a new bench to our backyard. My dad actually made this bench himself. It’s a simple design, yet it fits in just perfectly. Along with the bench Daniel made several years ago, the Park Benches in our backyard provide ample and comfortable seating.

As for playground equipment, well, as you might imagine…we have a fair share of this in our yard also. Hubby and my dad made our swing set years ago back when the kids were really little. It’s continued to serve the kids through the years and still works well for swinging and sliding.

Have I tempted you yet? Go have fun shopping for all the different outdoor furnishings!

I’ve been watching my kids’ teeth with anxious curiosity. You see…we do not have dental insurance that includes orthodontia…so kids needing braces is enough to send me into a panic.

A couple of years ago, David had a weird situation where one of his eye teeth never fell out and the adult tooth began coming in over the baby tooth. We had the baby tooth pulled and happily, the adult tooth is coming down and moving all of his teeth pretty nicely. I was surprised!

The more I look at Michael and Sarah’s teeth, the happier I get, too. It looks like we lucked out with them and their teeth are moving really nicely into place.

Ruthie — now 10 — will be the next one that I watch carefully. We’ve always had trouble with her teeth, so I wouldn’t be surprised if that trend continues.

Oh, to be close to San Antonio Orthodontists. Obviously, we couldn’t be further away…so I’m left dealing with the dentist we have up here. He’s not my favorite guy — always rubbed me the wrong way. Why does dentistry have to be so difficult!!?!

What a dreary day. I know…November tends to be a gray month. I need sun, though! Regularly…or I start to suffer.

Right now, it’s cold and it’s raining. I’ve got all the lights on and candles lit. It’s toasty inside…but I can’t help but feel dreary like the weather.

This is the time of year when I pull out the wool socks, warm underwear, heavy quilts and flannel robes. Nope…no plus size lingerie for me. It would be a tad too big on me…but I need my tootsies covered in bed! Even with the electric blanket! Actually, truth be told, I’m not even a lingerie person when the weather is warm. When it warms up, you’ll find me in t-shirts and boy shorts in bed, not anything slinky…sorry hubs!

Anyway…how do you keep warm in the winter? Are you one of those girls who snuggles between the sheets looking gorgeous in lingerie or do you go for comfort instead? I wish I could handle prettifying myself with lingerie. If I could, I’d definitely do some damage with shopping it up at a few websites. Oh well…probably best that I save us a little money, anyway.

Thanksgiving…it’s all about abundance, isn’t it? Overeating and overindulging is the norm. It is also about appreciating and being thankful for our blessings. I don’t know about you, but I’m thankful for our HEALTHY blessings. I’m thankful for the ability to feed my family healthy and wholesome food. I like the fact that I can prepare a traditional Thanksgiving meal that is completely whole and healthy.

Free range turkeys, whole wheat stuffing, organic vegetables, naturally-sweetened pies…Using fresh herbs, spices and seasonal fresh vegetables helps maximize flavor so you don’t even need tons of butter, cream and salt.

I’ve never heard anyone complain or even comment on what they’re missing when they partake of a Thanksgiving meal in my house. In fact, they seem rather happily satisfied!

The Thanksgiving holiday is a great time to think about hostess gifts. Everyone enjoys special gourmet gift baskets stuffed full of yummy treats. If you are heading out to enjoy good food and special times with family, consider taking along something for the hostess.

And no…this isn’t a hint, any family who may be reading. In my case, I’ll be thrilled when you all get here safe and sound! Can’t wait!

My kids have amazing eyelashes. I know…that’s kind of a weird statement, but it’s true. I’ll also tell you something else a little weird…they didn’t get their eyelashes from me. Nope, they got their awesome eyelashes from their dad. Yep…none other than hubsters, himself. He’s also got amazing eyelashes.

It’s totally not fair. Among most of our family, I’m probably the only one who ever contemplates ways to lengthen and fatten up my eyelashes. No one else ever gives a passing thought to eyelash enhancers and would never think to click here for eyelash enhancers.

Not fair…but there are worse things, I guess.

I was looking at one of the family shots that we had taken last summer with the whole gang the other day. In the center back is our second son, David, who will turn 18 in February. To David’s left is Dad…who to my surprise…is shorter than David by about 2 inches in the picture. I always had my hunches that David would end up being the tall man in the family. Of course, Michael and Isaiah may still give him a run for his money.

Anyway, I wouldn’t be surprised if I’m buying big and tall jeans for teenagers before all is said and done. Where do they get these genes? Seriously! People on my side of the family are average at best. My dad is 5’10″ and I don’t think I have a single uncle that is 6 feet tall. On hubby’s side, I believe his Dad might have been slightly taller than he is (6 feet even), but I’m not sure.

David is just about to start basketball season, which he is looking forward to. His size 11 Nike’s just came in the mail yesterday! Yikes!