The Colors of Fall

Fall's Top 10

10. butternut squash
9. wearing socks and sweaters in crisp autumn air
8. popcorn/kettle corn
7. dark chocolate and caramel
6. apple cider and honey crisp apples
5. pumpkin gingerbread baby bundt cake from Corner Bakery
4. fall's aroma
3. pumpkin spice lattes
2. fall foliage
1. any combination of the above. The more the merrier!

I LOVE FALL! YAY!

Still loving the garden!

Yesterday I was supposed to be stuck in a "Non-violent Crisis Intervention" training for work all day, but they let us out early, so I decided to enjoy the nice day and ride my bike to the Botanic Gardens. A lot of the summer blooms are fading now, but some autumny blooms are coming in and I LOVE them. Not to mention the autumn leaves. I also saw at least 10 brides and their wedding parties taking pictures and having receptions. They were all beautiful, of course. I enjoyed my afternoon out immensely and hope I can sneak in a few more visits to the garden before the weather turns and I never want to leave the house again. Can you spot my bike on this path where I usually run?

God's creation is so amazing!

The clouds reflected in the water.

I'm a sucker for these bright orange sunflowers.

The waterfall by the Japanese gardens.

It's almost coming!

It seems like the trees just got their leaves back after winter, but they're already starting to change colors. I can't believe that fall is almost here! This first picture is from the the carillon concert we attended at the Botanic Garden!
















Beth, this one's for you!

Summertime!

Welcome back after a long hiatus from updating my blog. Somehow I am just not as excited about blogging as when I lived in Taiwan, but I will try to be better! Josh and I had a nice summer, albeit a quick one. During the summer my parents came to IL for a visit, we went to the Shinners family picnic, my parents bought me a Botanic Garden membership, and I have been staying on top of my grad school work. In addition, I got a part time job at Sunset's deli to help make ends meet. Pictured here are: Josh's sweet fashion finds from a day of shopping, a trip to Six Flags Great America sponsored by Uncle Ron and Aunt Terry, Josh and I at the garden, and Ron's 65th birthday party. I can't believe school is already back in session at the junior high, and I had a surprising job assignment--7th grade boys with emotional/behavioral disorders. Quite the challenge for me. But it will be Christmas before I know it and then I start student teaching in January, so I try to stay positive. Thanks for visiting my blog!

May

Ok, it's official: I haven't updated my blog for 6 months. That's half of a year. Geez--time flies when you enter Grad School. Sorry everybody. I am about to give you the rapid-fire highlights of the past months and hopefully try to update my blog at least once a month from now on. We'll see how I do...

Here are the anniversary flowers that Josh got me for our second anniversary. GOOD JOB, sweetie!

We went into Chicago for our anniversary date. Josh wore his "Love" shirt.

I LOVE the spring blossoms on the trees. This was my favorite tree of the day.

After eating something and wandering around the park, we went to Lincoln Park Zoo! It was FREE.99, but such a great zoo! We had a really good time wandering around and checking out the animals. Of course the wildest animal of all is the one pictured next to me, and I don't mean the lion.

April

In Chicago with Mom














With my bro at a family get-together at Gradma Avi's











Grandma and the gang
















holding Smiley Brylie


















Chicago in spring!

March

We got to hang out with our cousins Luke and Nora at our place.
















New Faith Community Church










Geordie's Easter message










Nothing like a little RockBand to put us in the Easter spirit!