FALL

It's unofficially fall.  Yes, I know it's still HOT out here in Virginia.  Yes, I know fall isn't officially official till Sept. 22nd, it's my FAVORITE season and so I'm pretty pumped that we have hit September.  Here's a list of the things I'm looking forward to THIS year.

*VACATION- Disney World, here we come.  We've managed to keep it a secret and we're taking a friend for Anna.  BEST. BIRTHDAY. PRESENT. EVER. Especially since we get to enjoy it too.  We leave on Sept. 23rd, very early in the morning.  Anna's friend also doesn't know where we're going...she also thinks it's TN and has NEVER been.  These 2 girls are going to be CRAZY excited.  And, I need a vacation.  BAD.

*School has begun.  I do so love school.  Anna has the most amazing teacher.  School has become something she loves instead of something she hates.  I love having Robin, Amma (Robin's mother) and Robin's girls in our lives.  They have been so good for all of us and I'm not just talking about school stuff.  And, this year, the kiddos I babysit are in school too.  So, I'm basically doing before and after school care.  That gives me LOTS more time and after this summer, I need that!

*Jeans, boots, sweaters, sweatshirts.  I miss my boots.  Like really bad.  I can't wait to put them on again.  I've already been wearing jeans even though it's still pretty warm most days. 

*Cooler evenings.  Yep, it's hot during the day but the evenings are cooling off.  I miss the crazy way temperature would drop in Maine as soon as September came but for now, I'm glad it's cooler at night.  Now, if we could just get the bugs to go away...

*Anna's 11th birthday.  WHOA!  I don't want my baby to turn 11.  Not. At. All. This trip is her present and party but we will have dinner with family and a few friends to celebrate.

*I'm a TOTAL tv junkie.  In fact, I was looking up the fall lineup and making a calendar for TV shows just before I started writing this.  No joke.  I'm looking forward to all my favorites returning, and hoping to get a few new good shows too.  I'm especially interested in Elementary which is a different take on Sherlock Holmes...which I do so love. 

And, here's my bucket list for the fall:

*Pick apples.  This is something we did all the time in Maine.  I love doing it but there's just not comparison to the one we went to there.  It was this perfect little spot close to home that had pumpkins, pick your own apples, and a quaint little country lunch spot with the best whoopie pies. 

*Go to Farmville.  I miss Maine a lot in the fall.  BUT, I miss Farmville MORE in the fall.  I love it.  I need to get Anna back up there, eat at Macado's, take some pictures of my Alma Mater's campus (you'll see one of my favorite pictures of Anna there to your right), and just hang.  I wish we could go for Octoberfest this year but with a baby shower and vacation so close together, that's not possible since I still work on Saturdays. 

*Pick pumpkins at Pumpkinville.  This is an annual tradition of ours.  The past 2 years, we've taken the girls out of school after lunch and gone pumpkin hunting with them. 

*Changing things up at church!!!  This is something I'm really excited about!  When WEC Newport News opens, we will be moving to that campus.  That will change up quite a few things for us!  We will go to church in the morning!  WHAT!?!  Yes, no more night time church for us.  And, we will also join a Community Group on Sunday nights so that Reed isn't ducking out of work to make it on time and Anna and I aren't running around trying to get there on time (impossible on snack nights!).  This is going to free up some time for us during the week (YES!  YES! YES!) and will keep me from running from place to place to place on Tuesday night.  I need this so much!  And, it's also just time for a little bit of a change.  I love my team.  I love my church.  But, sometimes it helps to make some changes like this to liven it back up again.  Did I mention that I can't wait?

*Spend more time enjoying Anna.  I hate it when our schedule gets so full that I get cranky.  When we go from activity to activity, it wears me OUT.  Then, I get cranky and I hate being that way.  I love hanging out with Anna and I do miss how much we used to hang out.  So, I'm excited about this new schedule so that I can do more with her and be happy about it when we get to do those fun things. 

*Fall clean.  Yes, most people spring clean but it's so much more pleasant in the fall.  I'm so much more motivated when it's not blazing hot outside!  We need to have a yard sale AND take a few loads to the Goodwill and the dump.

*Be seen at the Woman's Clinic on base to rule out miscarriage issues.  Yes, we are still looking very hard at adoption.  I was telling Ashley today that while I am certain God is leading us to adopt, I still can't shake want for an infant of our own.  I've been praying HARD about it too and it's just not going anywhere.  So, I just want to rule out a few things and then go from there.

What's you're favorite thing about fall?  What's on your bucket list?