My First Southern Fall

Well, I haven't written a post in awhile.  I've been busier, for various reasons... but it's a good thing.  It's starting to finally feel like Fall here in Texas.  It just didn't feel right without the crisp cool air making my nose and ears cold...  However, according to the weather forecast we can expect 80 degrees and showers this week.  Ugh.  Fall shouldn't be muggy.  I guess I have been spoiled all my life having four seasons in Washington.  But the other day Barbara got out all of her beautiful Fall decorations and it definitely made me happy...  Hopefully the weatherman is wrong and the cool air will stick around a little longer...

In Texas, with Fall comes the Texas State Fair.  We went a couple weekends ago, when it was still very hot outside.  We enjoyed walking around looking at all of the different fried food options--from fried butter to fried Snickers.  Some of us tried some.  The only fried foods I ate were a few fried pickles and a corny dog.  I have to say that it did a number on my stomach though!  Oh yeah, I also had a bite of some fried banana pudding...  We spent most of the day looking through all of the buildings with stuff for sale... If you want to find something unique, look for it at the fair!  The one ride I decided to cough up the money for was the Ferris wheel...  It's not a real day at the fair without that right?  It was a really great time with family and friends.

Last weekend we drove to Canton, which is a town about an hour away that has a huge, I mean HUGE, flea market type thing.  It has something for everyone...  Home-made crafts, clothes, food, furniture, antiques, collectibles, animals and more.  It was a feast for the senses and I thoroughly enjoyed it.  I probably spent a million dollars in my mind.  But at the end of the day all I walked away with was a new pair of sunglasses, a barbeque tool for Aaron, and a firefighter t-shirt for Aaron (wonder what I was thinking about)..  Not too shabby...

I also decided to substitute teach at some of the local elementary schools.  I got the opportunity to observe a kindergarten class the Friday before we went to Canton.  It was a blast.  Kindergardeners crack me up!  I'll probably have lots of stories for the blog once I start subbing.

I don't know if it was the kids or Canton, but I came down with a pretty bad illness last Saturday night and had fever, chills, aches for a couple of days.  I went to the doctor on Wednesday and found out I had tonsillitis.  My tonsils are still recovering, but they're much better now. 

It was kind of a bummer to be under the weather on my birthday (Tuesday), but Aaron's family had a birthday dinner for me on Wednesday night that more than made up for it... Matthew gave me a card that he signed himself and he even licked the envelope...  and then licked it again and put the card back in it after I opened it.   His mom, sister, and sister-in-law also took me shopping yesterday (Saturday) for my birthday present.  It was a lot of fun to try on clothes and be girlie.  I haven't done that for awhile.

As I write this, the rain is coming down outside..  I wonder how long it will last...  For all of you who get annoyed by all of the leaves you have to rake out of your yard, think of those in the South who don't get to see the beautiful colors of Fall! :)