What I learned in October.

#Write31Days in October is O-V-E-R and though I really loved it, I’m joining in the collective sigh that October is completed. To celebrate that November has arrived, I’m linking up with one of my favorite people and writers, Emily P. Freeman over at Chatting at the Sky for What I Learned in October

1. I learned that someone else’s mistake can be my hidden gift. When we took a long weekend in the Blue Ridge Mountains earlier in October, we were excited about the rest, the quiet and the family time. Secretly, I was also planning to get a lot of writing work done while there. I was completely banking on the daily rest time the girls would have, and the early mornings I planned to sneak out of bed and power up the computer and tap away in the quiet. When the listing of the cabin we rented turned out to be a little incorrect, with absolutely no internet and very little cell service, I was pretty frustrated. Naturally, a few minutes of standing out on the deck, breathing the mountain air and looking out into nothing but layers upon layers of brightly colored trees– and I found the calm I was seeking. It was a weekend of deep breaths and rest– and thankfully God knew exactly the form of rest I needed.
2. Yellow Jackets REALLY love fresh Mountain Apples. Stuckey Girls really love fresh Mountain Apples. Stuckey Girls do NOT love Yellow Jackets. I learned that you can be smack dab in a picturesque, mountain memory -making moment of Apple picking, and a few stray yellow jackets can really change the mood of those aforementioned little girls and their apples. Add in a little bit of slippery mud, one mommy and her eldest daughter sliding down in the mud and the mood gets even more dicey. Then you take that and raise it with a sudden, and certainly unexpected torrential downpour in the middle of said picturesque Apple orchard– and everything falls apart. You might just find yourself trying to stuff your BetterLife Bag INSIDE your husband’s backpack to save it from being ruined, and then holding your really emotionally charged children under one teeny-tiny cheapo umbrella and trying not to make direct eye contact with your husband so the two of you don’t offend the children by laughing at their extreme hysterics. You might just give up on not laughing and stand in a group hug, in the driving rain and laughing uncontrollably while your children look at you as though you must be either crazy or cruel to take them on such a catastrophic outing. At that moment you will probably take note as to why exactly you married such a ridiculously fun man. 

3. I learned that fresh Apples obtained in such a ridiculous way really do make the best apple pie. And that there is something really magical about standing in your kitchen in a sweater and cozy socks, making the same apple pie for your own family the way the two generations of women before you made it, and knowing Fall has finally arrived– and some things never change. 

4. I learned that I need to throw more candy. Really. Shauna Niequist spoke at Allume on the topic of True Hospitality and though I wrote down practically every little thing she said– because, well, Shauna Niequist– but I wrote these words in my journal in big fat letters, THROW MORE CANDY. She told this personal story about her own realization that she had become someone who was less warm, loving, and giving and more efficient, busy and productive. And wow. I have to be honest and say that it hit me right between the eyes. In an effort to manage all the areas of our family, home and life well– I have easily forgotten how to play. How to laugh on a daily basis. To just enjoy the moments, all of the moments. If you want to hear the entire beautiful keynote, and hear her explain the part about throwing candy– and trust me you do– Go here and listen.  Also, I wrote about my Allume highlights here.