september

I've attempted this post at least three different times now, and one of the tries was yesterday. Stella was down for a nap, and I had just prepped vegetables and meat for pot roast, put the ingredients in the crock pot, and sat down to type away only to hear Stella waking up. I waited a few minutes to see if it was a false alarm, but no, she was up after only 45 minutes of napping. She didn't nap at all the rest of the day, so it was a challenging day. I can usually count on a 1 1/2-hour to 2-hour nap from her. When she naps, I can do my BSF study, prep dinner, respond to e-mails, etc., so when I don't get that little break, I feel so behind, but that is life with children: you never know what they're going to pull, so you have to be ready for anything.

I bought her first-ever outfit in the Baby Gap 12-18 month size. It's still a tad baggy on her, but a lot better than the 6-12 month size. The leggings have bows on the bottom. *swoon* I am a huge Baby Gap fan. Their clothes are so soft and so stinkin' cute. I buy Stella some clothes from Target and Carter's, but I absolutely love the leggings and other pants from Baby Gap because they just seem like they are better quality. Don't get me wrong-I really do like Carter's as a close second. :) I'm just not as big a fan of their pants. How cute is this and this and these? Oh, and this jacket and this hat (that I'm sure Stella will not want). Even long before I was pregnant, I would peruse the Baby Gap site, and swoon over the cute little outfits.

Polishing her glasses

Which led to polishing all her toys

BSF has been going pretty well. Stella missed one of the days because she was sick. Fortunately, I was able to drop her off at my mom and dad's house. She napped three hours for my mom, and then slept another two hours later that afternoon. My discussion leader is really nice; there are about 12 or 13 women in my group. I had requested to be with other young moms. I don't think the ice has been broken yet in our group, so sometimes it's awkward and thus frustrating. But then again, I seem to attract awkward situations and am often awkward. I'm basically a less quirky, less cute Zooey Deschanel. This week we all seemed tired and out of it, and the leader commented that we were quiet. I'm sure we'll get into the swing of things and have some better discussions eventually. It's not all bad: we have had some good threads of discussion, but it's not super consistent yet. Many of us are new, and I think we don't really know how it works yet. All in good time. 

Brett and I have been attending a different church since July. Among other reasons, we wanted a church that was smaller (although the church we're attending is growing). So far I've gone to a women's study on The Gospel Primer. There will be two more get-togethers over the next couple months to discuss this book. I miss Bethlehem sometimes, but we felt God pulling us to this other church, and we really like it for so many reasons. 

Brett's parents are coming to visit the first weekend in October. We haven't seen them (besides Skype) since February when we flew out to Ohio. We are looking forward to spending time with them. I am hoping for some beautiful fall weather when they arrive. :)

I recently discovered the world of beauty balm creams. They're kind of like a multi-purpose beauty cream that has a touch of color, a primer, moisturizer. So far I have tested one kind, and I liked it so much that I bought it this week. There are some higher-end ones like Smashbox (which is known for their great primers) that I really want to try eventually, but for now, I'm using L'Oreal Magic Skin Beautifier BB Cream. I love how it's lightweight and adds a little warm tint of color to my otherwise alabaster complexion. Have any of you readers tried a BB cream lately? 

Fall is my absolute hands-down favorite season. Every autumn, I look forward to buying some scrumptiously-scented candles from Bath and Body Works. I picked out one called Leaves and another called Spice or something like that. Unfortunately, they were all out of Cinnamon Pumpkin, so I may have to go back and check if there's more. :) Soon I'll be buying Stella's Halloween costume and picking out pumpkins for the front stoop. My family also has plans for visiting an apple orchard.

Along with her new outfit, I bought her some warmer pajamas. These are Carter's pjs from Macy's.

She's very into her belly button these days

Brett and I have been planning a weekend getaway up North for this November. We will be gone three nights, which makes me feel sad about being apart from Stella, but it will be okay. She will be staying at my parents' house. My mom reassured me that Stella will be fine, and I know she's right, it's just that it will be a first-time thing. I think we may try an overnight trial run with Stella at my parents' some night on a weekend in October. Maybe I'm weird, but I like the cold up North in late fall/winter. It's so cozy. I've always preferred cold weather over warm: you can always wear more clothes if it's cold, but nothing compares to the discomfort of high humidity plus high heat of summer. I'm not a huge fan of snow - I like snow for Christmas and for a little while after that - what I don't like is driving in snow and dealing with ice (especially black ice).

Shout-outs to our friends who welcomed babies this month:
Steve and Tiffany welcomed Brooke Elise on the 8th. She was 7 lbs 4 oz.
Shaun and AmyBeth welcomed Adam Wesley (born on the side of the road and delivered by Shaun) on the 25th. Adam weighed 9 lbs 8 oz
Brett's boss and his wife welcomed Finnegan Matthew a couple weeks ago, too.
Congratulations to all the happy parents!
Oh, and congratulations to Doug and Missy who recently announced they are expecting their second child. Baby is due April 1st!

Well, I'm signing off for now. Have a wonderful rest of your week, and say hello in the comments below. Also, if you decide to comment, share your favorite thing about fall; if you've been reading a good book lately, and tell what your weekend plans are, no matter how boring you think they may be! Don't be a hater, leave a comment sooner than later! (right there is my weak attempt at rhyming)

Oh, one more thing. Stella is now walking! She still crawls a lot, but she is taking lots of steps on her own. :)