fall-ing in love

I couldn't let the month of October go by without sharing a story ...

I met my husband in the spring of my junior year of high school. We hit it off immediately and became very fast friends (something, I told him, that would never change). As the summer came and went, we began spending more time together ... Hanging out on weekends, going to see movies, meeting up during separate vacations at the same place, having dinner with each other's families ... The list could go on and on.

For my birthday in September, he sent flowers and a necklace to me at school. Not only did this make me uncomfortable (I went to an all-girls' school, so gifts like this were cause for LOTS of attention ... Which I didn't want), it served as a huge reminder that this guy whom I merely considered "my friend" wanted to consider me something else entirely. Trying to shake off the strangeness of it all, the rest of September went by without incident.

Then came October.

I should note that both my husband and I have always loved the fall. Everything about it, even the dark and dreary days are met with open arms from both of us. There is no other season that makes us happier.

Maybe that's why I let my guard down ...

As the month began, we would meet up as part of a much larger group, driving out to various haunted attractions on Friday or Saturday nights. Somehow, despite all the different cars and drivers to choose from, we always ended up traveling together. This was fine with us, as barely a moment passed where we weren't joking or laughing about something ... Or singing along to the "Saturday Night 80's" the local radio station played.

By the middle of the month, the large group began to dwindle. A massive caravan of cars became one or two ... But that didn't stop our haunted outings. We kept going. Locating new attractions each weekend and making the trip to visit them, even if they were hours away.

By Halloween night, it was just us and a handful of friends. Although we probably could have fit into one car (or van), we drove separately. We were coming off of a long day together ... A pancake breakfast at church, a scary movie with a friend, a visit to his house, all capped off with one last haunted attraction ... A haunted forest.

To spare you the suspense, I went in holding onto the hood of his sweatshirt, but came out holding his hand ...

And the rest, as they say, is history.

That was Halloween 1999.

This Halloween, then, marks 11 years as an official couple. I say official, because (although, at the time I would certainly deny it) we were most obviously a couple from the very beginning. From that very first moment we spoke and hit it off, there was always something there. It may not have been romance, but it was a true connection.

One that would withstand many different obstacles and bring us all the way up to today...

It's just funny how the sights and sounds and smells of fall bring it all back ...

just call me superwoman (or crazy)

While this could be the title of a post about following through on popping out a baby the "natural way," I'm not going to go there ...

Maybe some other time.

Seven months ago, when I signed up for an internet class at Cleveland State University, I thought it would be my big chore of the fall. With daylight hours slipping into darkness, and cool, rainy nights to contend with, I figured I wouldn't mind spending hours each night holed up in the computer room, reading from the glowing screen and responding to the various requirements of the class.

Seven months ago, when I applied (and was hired) at a local tutoring facility, I thought that it would be something "to keep me busy," a mere escape from the house. A moment to myself where I could continue to hone my teaching skills, make a little spending money, and still maintain my role as stay-at-home-mom during the day.

Seven months ago, when I emailed that application to the virtual school, I thought I was only appeasing my husband. He was becoming more and more concerned about us "hitting a wall" as the money I had built up from my time at work slowly dwindled away. Never in my wildest dreams did I think that anything would come of that tiny little email, two page resume attached. I certainly didn't anticipate the whirlwind that would follow about six months later.

Today, I am somehow managing to keep my head above water. I am completing my class assignments on time, working my part-time job in the evenings, and falling into a rhythm with my full-time job(s) during the day ... But the really funny thing about it, is that all these commitments, all the busyness and stress-fueled activities, only serve to remind me of how important the quiet moments can be.

And how much I truly love them.

Of course, I couldn't do any of it without the support of my husband. Without him to watch the boy for a couple hours in the evening, or to feed him dinner, or give him a bath, my whole well-timed, perfectly orchestrated balancing act would cease to exist.

My superhero facade would crumble.

I guess that makes him Robin to my Batman ...

I always did have a little crush on the Boy Wonder.

clambake couture

Malcolm represented our entire family as he attended his second-ever clambake over the weekend (his dad and I went to a childhood friend's wedding, instead).

Since many of the people in attendance hadn't seen him in quite a long time (and some, never at all), I knew I had to send him off in style. After all, even though he couldn't partake in the seafood, he could look extra cute.

Here he is posing with the bags used to hold the unfortunate clams prior to their arrangement in the steamer:

Sweater: Wonderkids (thrifted for $2.00)
Jeans: Circo ($4.00)
Socks: Circo (gift)
Shoes: Stride-Rite (thrifted for $3.00)

a year in pictures

Malcolm hit thirteen months over the weekend.

I figured that it was about time I put together a little retrospective video for him ...

the frustrated football face

This is the expression that all Cleveland Browns fans wear when their team takes the field ...


As you can see, Malcolm caught on quite early!