I love these ladies…

Not only because they’re my sisters, but because they’re both pretty awesome women.

I only wish I got to see them more…

and that when I did, we didn’t do silly things like take pictures from this angle and make me look like I have a double chin.

So, with the failing of one hard drive, the conversion to the new computer…and all the time and effort it took to move pictures from one to the other…it has been a long time since I’ve posted any pictures or real updates.

So…this post begins a catch up…favorite pictures of fall.

Enjoy!

October was fabulous! It included a trip to Kansas City with Nathan’s sister and her husband and his cousin Matt and his wife. We went for the Chiefs/Vikings game. Although the Vikings were unsuccessful, at least 2/3 of the group left happy. And, it isn’t like I can complain – the Chiefs did beat the Packers this year too.

Wartburg homecoming…with orange foam swords. When you’re between 3 and 5, it rarely gets more exciting than this!

Picking out pumpkins is always a treat – our rule: if you can carry it, you can have it.

Ellie taking the “can you carry it” test.

They could not wait to break out the sled! Leaves were close enough to snow I guess.

We ended October as The Super Friesens for Halloween.

I was so close to blogging this morning…

So close…

Pictures picked out and everything.

And then…failure.

I was attempting to move some pictures to a jump drive so I could load them to the blog at work. Yes, I was going to do it at work – I will be here for 10 hours today…so I was thinking during a particularly slow time i could get a few pictures up and finish the text tonight and viola…we’d have a blog post.

Well, it was not to be. The computer wouldn’t recognize my jump drive and when I attempted to put them on a different one, the computer froze.

I was frustrated.

Frustrated with the computer. Frustrated that it was 9:07 and I had planned on leaving around 9:10, and frustrated that my 3 year old was not putting his boots on like I’d asked him to.

So…question of the day…

Does close count? Is it truly the thought that counts? Do I ever really have to follow through, or are good intentions good enough?

Last night, I was sitting in the recliner at approximately 7 pm when it struck me that I had forgotten to pull books for someone at the library. This patron was sending her husband in to pick them up for her and I told her they’d be waiting.

I dropped the ball…but I had good intentions.

It’s like asking for forgiveness constantly. I meant to, but…   I tried, but…

And then…in asking for grace, I think of my children, whom I should probably show more grace. They try. They mean to. Sometimes they just don’t get it done.

Interesting questions for the day I guess.

Thoughts?

So, the day after I post that I want to worry less and get rid of some anxiety, I pick this up at the library…

seriously, people?

I haven’t read it yet…

We’ll see what wise words of wisdom it gives me.

Okay…in all actuality, I realize there are probably relatively few people who are dying to read what I aim to do in this next year. However, I’m still going to put this out there in order to help myself be more accountable. Read on if you so desire…if you don’t, I promise to attempt to make the next post more fun. Something with pictures, Sue.

I have been struggling with how to make my new year’s resolutions quantifiable and meaningful…well, meaningful is the much, much easier part of that.

I have a lot of goals. Being able to check them off a list at the end of the year is much, much harder.

A couple easy ones…

1)I resolve to read one more book this year than I read last year. Always a good goal I think – especially given my profession. I started keeping track in 2010 of all of the books i read (excluding children’s books – wow, that would be a list!). This year, in order to best last year’s number, I need to read 41.

2)I resolve to exercise in some form at least 306 days this year. Last year’s number 305.

Bringing us to number 3.

3)This is the hard one.

First a confession – I have an anxious personality. I am a worrier. I fret. It is one of the things I wish I could change about myself.

I want to worry less in 2012. My husband may tell you it’s an impossible goal.

I lay in bed some nights unable to go to sleep and confess to my husband that I have “the bad feeling”, as I so often refer to it. You know the one…that feeling in the pit of your stomach that comes from expecting the worst to happen. It’s my anxiety and it’s killing me.

One example…We recently signed up for the Warrior Dash – this crazy, intense 5K. You can check it out at www.warriordash.com. I am scared out of my mind to complete this race. I usually have some anxiety before running at any event…but this one seems to be occupying a lot of my thoughts. I’m not even sure what it is about it that scares me so much. Am I able to run the distance? Absolutely. Am I able to complete the obstacles? I think so. Is it the height that comes with a lot of the obstacles? More than likely. Will worrying about it do me any good? Absolutely not.

My goal for this one – finish…without throwing up beforehand. If I throw up after, it’s a different story, I don’t want to worry so much about doing this that I make myself sick. I want to train as hard as necessary to complete it and maybe even have a bit of fun with my co-workers while doing it.

I want to be rid of the anxiety I have over it.

I want to be free of fear.

I have a feeling it’s going to be harder than I think.