"String too short to use"

10) It is October. My favorite month of the year. The trees will turn brilliant colors. The reds, yellows and oranges of autumn are sensational. The air feels crisp and the sky becomes a deeper shade of blue. It is time for hot spiced cider and jack o’lanterns and bobbing for apples, trick or treating and Octoberfest! What is not to like?

9) Speaking of trick or treating, Liam’s Halloween costume came in the mail yesterday. He is going to be a lion this year. I’ll post pictures.

8) I have a doctor’s appointment this afternoon. Not my favorite thing in the world to do, but necessary at least four times a year when you are diabetic. Wish me well. I want the tests to be good and my medication to stay the same.

7) Liam is tall enough now and steady enough on his pegs to reach into the drawers of my desk. He painstakingly takes items out of one drawer and puts them in the other. As if I needed my life to be more complicated! Now I’ll never find anything.

6) This one is really the corker. Liam can climb onto the couch. He stands in front of it. Puts one little foot up there and hoists himself up. Then he sits up there and grins, so proud of himself. Cracks me up. I guess we are going to have to move the coffee table so when he falls off he has a clear shot at the floor. Otherwise he’ll bash his head on the way down.

5) Thanks to everyone for the wonderful cards and notes and flowers to memorialize my dad. I so appreciate the outpouring of love and sympathy we have all received. As with most who suffer such tragedy in their lives, I have good days and bad, good moments and bad. I anxiously await the day when it just doesn’t hurt quite so much.

4) Another of my favorite things about this time of year: Christmas music! I have to admit I am a real sucker for both the old Christmas carols and any new, interesting songs that help prepare me for the holidays. I have to start listening to them now in order to be well into the spirit by the time the holidays are truly here. I have to do it on the QT tho’ cause Chris is completely against them until after his birthday (Nov 1).

3) How late can a birthday card be before you should just hold onto it and send it next year? This is the kind of question that keeps me awake at night. I started out the year right on top of things. If you were born in the first five months of the year, I got you covered, after that things fell apart.

2) Why is it people have such a terrible time asking for help? Are we so afraid to admit weakness? So afraid to admit we can’t cope? Do we think our friends will think less of us for it? Even when we know people are just waiting in the wings to help us if we need it, it about kills us to say: “Please help me, I can’t do this alone.” We should all work on this for the future. I have found, when I do finally breakdown and ask, anyone and everyone is ready and willing to help me with whatever it is that is causing me to stumble.

1) Unlike rice cakes, chocolate doesn’t crumble and leave a mess for the office cleaning staff.