Inconsistent

The weather has been as inconsistent as my mood lately. We've had lovely, crisp, sunny days of Fall followed by a cold and rainy Thursday. And today it is warm and muggy, the skies threatening to burst but waiting until we are all good and miserable.

Around here, I have had days of relaxing and enjoying my boys and days of ragweed induced headaches. I have had bursts of energy to begin cleaning and purging and rearranging to make room for baby, and today I am fighting off depression and grumpiness, trying not to let it affect how I interact with my kids and not doing a very good job. Needless to say, the boys' behavior has been as on and off as the weather and my mood, affected by both.

Despite it all, we are managing to enjoy a few things. We took an exploring walk on Tuesday and found some wonderful Fall treasures to decorate our house, acorns and leaves and pinecones. (Oh, yes, and moon rocks, of course. The space obsession continues.)

And we picked up some wonderful books at the library this week. I think I have found two new authors for the boys and I to fall in love with. Daniel Kirk's Moondogs has all that my boys love right now, space and adventure and a moon monster. His illustrations and subject matter are perfect for boys, and the rest of his books look just as promising. And then there is Leaf Man by Lois Ehlert. What and absolutely charming book! The boys and I were enthralled and have already read it half a dozen times, at least. If I get out of this funk, we may even try to make some leaf men for ourselves.

I am loving Kerry's recipes these days. We have a lot of squash to use up from our CSA box, and her baked butternut squash and apples were fantastic. We had cinnamon raisin bread last night and loved that, too. In fact, I have never tried a recipe she's posted that I didn't like, all simple and fabulous.

Finally, I am trying to fight the funk by working through A Mother's Rule of Life and putting some of it into practice. I think it is going to be really good for me if I can find someone to keep me accountable to living it out. Circumstances are not likely to change much for me anytime soon. In fact, I am going to be even more tied to home and children in a few months. I suppose it's time I start learning to live this vocation well, giving thanks and glory to God for the gifts He has given, even when I think I want something else.

What are you enjoying these days? Any suggestions for good books, good recipes, or fun Fall activities? I am in need of some inspiration.