Fall, anyone?

This morning... I must confess... I was a bit down. It was just one of those days when emotionally I just didn't have it in me. I asked the Lord to please give me something to be happy about today, because otherwise I was just going to bring everyone down.

I had to go to the store for milk in the middle of our homeschooling day, and on impulse I bought a pumpkin scented candle. When I got home my two oldest girls smelled it and started talking about how good it smelled... and how it brought back memories...

and the next thing you know, I said, "we need to get this house decorated for fall."

That was all it took.

There were whoops of joy as the kids got up into the attic, pulled down the boxes, and started bringing out all our traditional fall decorations -- the bowls, plates, garlands, knick knacks, etc.

Then we were off to our nearby craft store for wooden balls, felt, and pipe cleaners so that we could be ready for one of our favorite hobbies of the season -- making acorn people! (more pictures when we actually make them)

It was such a joy to see the joy THEY were feeling, as we were participating in one of our yearly traditions, and it gave me that feeling of joy/wistfulness also (thanks, CS Lewis, for defining this so well!) as we enter my favorite time of year.

Of course, being in South Carolina, our fall decorating day came about in 80 degree weather with a thunderstorm to boot, but hey! I'll take fall any way I can get it!