A (much needed) Day Off (sort of)

Last night was the second meeting of my new monthly "Creative Playgroup for Women" at the library. We printed leaves onto fabric with acrylic paints to make a seasonal decoration. These can be used to line a Thanksgiving bread basket or as part of the table decor under a centerpiece. All the ladies had a nice getaway from the home responsibilities for an evening, had some nice conversation with other sympathetic, hardworking moms, and went home with a nice handmade souvenir! I call that a success!

But this morning I woke up with terrible sciatic pain in my right hip and down my leg. I actually had a hard time getting out of bed and into the kitchen to make the lunches. So I didn't take Cassie out for our usual morning exercise session; instead I rested with one knee over the other to stretch out my hip and finished the last few chapters of my current book. Then, after all the girls were safely on their way to school, I sat down and did a little art therapy! I made a cane of polymer clay with a jack-o-lantern face and sliced it up to look like this:

I baked them, and then made a nice carrot cake and some cupcakes (sort of a welcome home for my big Cupcake who is coming home tonight after more than ten days away on business!). While they were baking and filling the house with a lovely autumny, homey, spicy smell, I noticed the kitchen was badly in need of a good scrub down. I try to ignore all the little crumbs, stains, dust, and cobwebs (I don't usually wear my distance glasses in the house and don't really see the dirt!), but this morning everything looked especially dingy. So I spent a little while

with a sponge, some paper towels, and some cleaning products. I even tackled this lamp in the dining area, which had two bulbs out and a heavy layer of dust! Here is the picture after it's been cleaned (no before picture - too embarrassing!).

After the kitchen was all spic-n-span, I finished up a few pairs of the jack-o-lantern earrings. I'll give them away to my three girls and my two partners-in-crime at the library (since we work with small children, we always wear costumes the week of Halloween. That's next week!).

I'll leave you with a shot of the finished carrot cake. Keep smiling and have a nice weekend!