October is officially over and we are back where it feels like everything makes sense, including us just as people. With Lester gone for so long, most of the moments these last 2 months have felt like they were dragging on. But October at least was a little more bearable bc of all the fun fall time activities! We did all the traditional ones, like pumpkin patches, corn pits, hay rides, soups and breads, crafts and baking, playing in Fall leaves, etc etc. We taught some of our friends about Dia De Los Muertos and the origins and traditions for it, celebrated Addy's 9th birthday with a Raya party, had a few visits from friends on weekends, along with normal 'older girls go to school/me Bear and Tal learn and work from home'. And now we are back home and back together and celebrating all the good things with family and friends. Here is a quick list of things I wanted to write down as memories for this month so I know I can do hard things in the future and remember to laugh at them, as well as way too many pictures of awesome ones [bc who takes pictures of lame things?] In the past, I would have not even written down the tough/silly/hard stuff, but I thought I would this time so I can remember that we can adjust. Plus, the good outweighed the bad, as is shown in the pictures and we are all happy and healthy which is the most important things. Anyways, I will blog about actual Halloween and the days before next time. 

Dumb Things We Figured Out

-Learning how to properly jump my car [which I had to do 3 times throughout Lester's being gone] before finally getting a new battery, kids in tow. 

-Cleaning up a few poop accidents, only to show them what tool to clean up with, then seeing the result of them attempting to clean it up may possibly be even worse.

-Trying to decide if I need to shave adorable Talia's little head bc in the two seconds I stepped away to grab a clean diaper for Talia, Addy got distracted holding her while Bear grabbed my leg razor and accidentally shaved a bald spot on her scalp [SO grateful no on was hurt, but still-I both laughed and cried at that one.] 

-Attempting to be a fun Mom and carve pumpkins, only to find out that not all pumpkins are hollow as we are already halfway through gouging and making a mess etc. So in the end we adjusted by carving one, painting another, and 'sculpting'/gouging the last. It worked out in the end but was pretty ridiculous throughout. 

-Dealing with many sleepless nights with Talia, meaning I was able to bing watch my way through my first Kdrama in a long time-usually she's a good sleeper, but I think teething lately has thrown that off. I don't love not sleeping but thank goodness for Crash Landing On You and Only Murders In The Building to get me through it while Lester's gone. 

-The garbage disposal backing up [not stopping-straight up backing up!] the night before Addy's birthday party, where several kids were going to be dropped off with me as the only adult, and with us making candied apples. Then realizing its the weekend so our landlord's office is closed and not answering, and I don't have a number for maintenance. Then crying bc it feels like the last straw of a lot of dumb things, only to eventually problem solve it [aka wash my dishes in the shower, and suction the nasty stuff w a turkey baster until the next morning] and get it fixed an hour before said party started. 

-And a million more, some to small and unimportant to mention, and some too tough to mention so that I'm not ready to share, and unsure if I ever will.

-But now, on to the FUN joyful parts of the month.