Autumn - My Favorite Time of the Year

It's officially fall, although earlier this week it felt like summer was in full swing with very high temperatures throughout the Bay Area. While a heat wave means that the fog disappears for awhile (a nice treat), I'm always happy when it returns along with the cooler temperatures. It was nice to experience some warmer than usual temperatures over the past week, especially because it was a rather cool summer here in the Bay Area, but now I am ready for the cool, crisp days to return.

As some of you already know, Disneyland is one of my favorite places to visit. I have always wanted to go to Disneyland when it is decked out for Halloween and last year my wish came true. I thought it would be fun to include some of the photos from my trip in this posting. After all, I love Disneyland and I love Halloween, so what better way is there to kick off the "spooktacular" celebration? A trip to Disneyland isn't in the works for this year, but I have a feeling that I'll be visiting sometime next year...perhaps in honor of my 40th birthday. And yes, I'll be wearing my Mouse ears when I go!

What are some of your favorite things about fall? As I mentioned in a previous post, I like this time of year because my favorite sports swing into high gear - football and hockey! I went to my first hockey game of the season last night - I saw a pre-season match-up between the San Jose Sharks and the Vancouver Canucks, and the Sharks won! In three weeks my brother and I will be traveling to San Diego to see the New England Patriots take on the San Diego Chargers. It will definitely be a fun weekend! And although I am not a big fan of baseball, it always gets more interesting as the World Series approaches, no matter which teams are playing. This year will no doubt be more exciting because it looks like the San Francisco Giants are going to take first place in the NL Western Division.

Other things that I enjoy about this time of year include sipping a warm Chai tea latte on a cold, crisp morning, seeing the leaves begin to change colors on the trees, bundling up in cozy sweaters and toasty boots, making handmade Halloween cards and treats, and baking homemade pumpkin bread.

Hoping that all is well with you and sending out a "thank you" for taking time to visit my blog.

Our work-a-day lives are filled with opportunities to bless others. The power of a single glance or an encouraging smile must never be underestimated.

-G. Richard Rieger

Time to Get Crafty!

Hope that you are enjoying the long weekend. The weather is wonderful here in the Bay Area and I am finding plenty of time to relax and have fun.

I took some time to create a cute gift with an autumn theme. Wouldn't it be fun to have these clothes pin clips on your desk at work? Nothing like a little "crafting goodness" to brighten your work day. These were super easy to make and I can imagine creating more sets with different themes - winter, Christmas, Valentine's day...the possibilities are endless. It's also a great way to use your scraps of paper because you only need a very small piece of paper for each clothes pin.

Just a short and simple blog post today - it's time to get back to relaxing and having fun. Wishing you a wonderful rest of the weekend and hoping that you are able to get out and enjoy the last days of summer.

Autumn is a second spring where every leaf is a flower.

-Albert Camus

A Little Bit of This and That

September 1 already?! How the heck did that happen? With the wonderful weather that we're having, it hardly feels like autumn is just around the corner. Of course Northern California usually sees its best weather during September and October when the fog disappears and temperatures really warm up.

You might have noticed some slight changes on the blog-o. Did you happen to see the Twitter feed that I added in the right column? Not only have I established a Twitter account, but I've also re-joined Facebook! Earlier this year, for a variety of reasons, I decided to leave Facebook, and quite honestly I didn't think that I would reactivate my account. Whoever said "Never say never," got it right because I recently decided to join the world of Facebook again, and I am having a much better experience than I did when I originally joined. So, if you are a Facebook member, feel free to drop me a line so that I can add you as a friend.

Do you enjoy reading? If so, I have a book recommendation for you. Check out Perfect on Paper - The (Mis)adventures of Waverly Bryson by Maria Murnane, available for purchase on Amazon. One thing that I love about the book is the fact that it is set in San Francisco. I love reading books that take place in the city that is literally in my backyard. How neat is that? Also, I consider this "chick lit," which is one of my favorite type of books to read. Here is a synopsis of the book (taken from the back cover):

"Waverly Bryson is a successful business-woman in her late 20s who almost has it all: a dream job in sports PR, two best friends, and a bar where everybody knows her name. What she doesn't have is a ring on her finger. And after being ditched at the altar, she's in no hurry to get one. Besides, plenty of other issues keep her busy, including her wayward father, a new rival at work, and an ever-nagging fear that her life is not turning out as she thought it would...or should. To stay sane, Waverly makes a habit of jotting down "Honey Notes," self-deprecating bits of single-girl humor that she hopes one day to develop into a line of greeting cards. As Waverly stumbles back into the dating scene (no stalkers or jeans shorts, please), her personal and professional lives threaten to collide. Perfect on Paper reminds readers that everyone has had a bad date (or twelve), and that everyone needs a best friend to tell them, "Honey, you are not alone.""

One final note about this book - I met the author, Maria Murnane, this past weekend during a book signing event. Maria told an amazing story about the journey she experienced while writing this book and attempting to get it published. To learn more about Maria Murnane, visit her website at www.mariamurnane.com.

Despite experiencing a lot of disappointments this year, I can honestly that "life is good" at the moment. I'm looking forward to the change of seasons, and my favorite holiday, Halloween, is just around the corner. I'm settling into my new job and finding many things that I really enjoy about it. I'm also excited to begin taking some graphic design courses which will start later this month. Without a doubt the next several months will be busy, but I'll still be taking time to post on my blog.

I recently enjoyed having brunch in Burlingame with some wonderful people, and we all shared one of our favorite quotes. I'll wrap up this post with a quote that I found quite inspiring:

What you think, you create. What you feel, you attract. What you imagine, you become.

-Adele Basheer