I'm so delighted with cooler temps and looking forward to sleeping with the windows open.

I might even have to break these out and make some pumpkin cake.

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I've also started feeling crafty/creative again. I've finished two cross stitch projects and am working on another. I've even been working on a pair of terracotta pots. Mom was awesome at this stuff (tole painting); me--not so much, but I like doing it.

I have one pot done but the other pot design presented me with a bit of a challenge. But DD will be coming to the rescue.

The Pride pot still needs a coat of varnish or something. And then I need to plant something in it.

Here are my finished cross stitch projects...

Here is the finished pot...

The other pot is going to have a bees and gnomes theme to it -- stay tuned.

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In other news, our guest room finally, really looks like a guest room. We'd had a big wood-framed futon bunk bed thing in there for years. It was Sonshine's, and though he's been gone for a decade (IS THAT REALLY TRUE?!?!), we've just never taken it down. Not even for Mom, bless her heart. But after she passed, we discussed whether DH wanted to move back into that room or stay in the garage. DH opted to stay in the garage for the additional space. And it's taken another two years to disassemble that bed, lol.

But here's the room now. It still needs a few more things on the walls, but that's just a matter of deciding what I want. Although one of those things will be the cross stitch sampler that I'm working on.

Rascal says hello and welcome!

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I have also finally started walking the dog. Not the dog I meant to walk for all those years -- sorry, Reyna! But little Rascal and I have been walking for a month or so. I needed to up my activity level and he definitely needed the exercise and the getting out of the house and I'm hoping it'll keep his little nails somewhat in check. He does need a trim though.

And then DD decided she'd start walking with us. So that was a nice surprise, and it's doing us both good -- we've both felt our pants fit just a tad more comfortably.

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And apologies for this not posting last Monday. I forgot to add images and I just wasn't ready for the post to go live on time. So I opted to hold onto it for another week.

Have a super October!! It's fall y'all! And I'm excited.

Sweet baby angel Caleb, the newest member of the family.

I traveled to Omaha this Labor Day -- as I have done every Labor Day for the last decade or so -- and met that sweet little boy pictured above. He's just turned three months old and is a sweet natured baby.

I also saw my oldest daughter who drove from Colorado, so that was a nice treat as well.

But let me tell you, my family is a hot mess. Mostly lovable, but such a hot mess.

I also went to visit my dad's grave and left my traditional offering of pinwheels. There was a lovely breeze, and I did get video, but as I'm technologically challenged sometimes, I messed things up and now can't get the video to play. (Bah!) But here's a picture:

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And I've finally, finally gotten to work on the revamp of Series One, Book One!

Yeah, remember that?

I've struggled to make progress over the last four months because there were more changes/fixes than I expected there to be. But I kept reading / reviewing and making notes. Finally figured out some of the things that were holding me back and now I'm able to move forward. Whew!

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Oh, guess what? I'm no longer an official member of my writers group board of directors! Someone else ran for Treasurer. I still manage the website, but I'm gonna work on documentation so that someone else can take on that job at some point. Maybe even next year. :0)

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I've also made some progress on those clay pots I mentioned wanting to paint. Here's the first one:

And, yes, I obviously went with a Pride theme. :0) The other one is going to have gnomes, but I'm still searching for a simple pattern that I like and can pull off with my rudimentary painting skills.

Once I plant something in this pot, I'll share the completely finished project. And once I finish the other, I will of course share that as well.

Take care and see you in two weeks.

 HAPPY LABOR DAY

Hope you have enjoyed / are enjoying the three-day rest from your labors, whatever they may be.

I'll be back next Monday with a regular post.

Take care.