{p,h,f,r} and Life Through the Lens

I'm taking a tiny break from my less is more series to reflect on this past week's blessings...

{pretty}

 This photo - might be my favorite I've ever taken.

{happy}

We had a birthday celebration in our house - always a happy time! We went apple picking, pumpkin picking and did some cake eating!

{funny}

Yes...this is the same photo as the first one in this post. What's funny about this is that this is a maple tree - the kind of tree that bursts with color each fall. The kind of tree you typically find in abundance in New England (which is why fall there is so brilliant!). This is the kind of tree I was eager to see while in Vermont last week.

But this tree, the one pictured below...I saw this yesterday. In Oregon. And it was more spectacular than any single tree I saw while in Vermont or New Hampshire. We were at a local arboretum (or tree museum) and our tour guide pointed out that many people travel to New England in the fall to witness this glory and splendor. And that's exactly what we did. Of course, we had other reasons for going east, but the fall foliage was a big draw. 

Since returning from our trip, I've noticed just how beautiful fall is here, too. I'm no longer jealous of New England's fall foliage - it's beautiful, don't get me wrong - but Oregon is fantastically beautiful and colorful this time of year, too!

{real}

I feel so incredibly overwhelmed these days with things I need to do and things I want to do. I'm the kind of person that wants to do things thoroughly and well. 

This seems like an extra busy month and being gone a week probably didn't help. Now that we are back I'm trying to catch up and keep up with several things.

Homeschool....I shouldn't feel like we are behind because that's one of the benefits of home education - going at your own pace. I realized today that one of our curriculum choices just isn't working for me or the girls and I'm trying to give myself permission to let it go.

Violin/Viola....personal playing, teaching, practicing with the girls - there just isn't time for all of it!

Blogs...I've got two 31 days series going on this month. Less is more right here on Daily Bread and 31 days of Compassion over at Compassion Family. I don't regret either, but it's a lot of work! Still, I'm learning a lot and feel like my blogging has purpose. 

Reading / Personal Study...I've recently started a new Bible study with an online group and I'm a week behind. I'm struggling to keep up with my daily Bible reading but I'm determined to finish my fourth consecutive annual read through. I have several books from the library waiting to be read. I have a book I need to read and review. I'm reading a book and discussing it monthly with a group of ladies I met on line.

Exercise...With the return to homeschooling, then the rain and then vacation I put on 8 pounds! I've run 4 days in a row this week so I'm feeling better, but I need to find a way to make exercise part of my daily routine. Especially with the days getting shorter and shorter.

Compassion...I've still got to write my October letters (I aim to have this done by the second Friday of each month) and Christmas cards are due this month! Plus, I want to write Christmas cards for unsponsored children - this is the only time of year we can write to the unsponsored children. I also have a couple blog posts to write for the official Compassion blog and I'm in the beginning stages of planning an advocate/sponsor gathering here in Oregon for early next year.

Garden...My yard needs some maintenance work done and the garden needs to be cleaned out. I also have a couple hundred bulbs to plant. We are having gorgeous weather, so I'm eager to get out there.

Church....I'm in charge of the church library and I have a pile of books to check in. I also am trying to organize/start-up a mentoring program for the 4-6th graders and need time to work on that!

Photography....Thankfully I don't edit my photos so I don't have piles and piles of photos to go through and edit. But I do put together an annual photo book and now is the time I usually start getting organized for that. Also, I'm doing several photo scavenger hunts right now. It's fun, but it's something else to do. My friend Lisa is hosting 31 days of capturing blessings (#capturingblessing), Yvonne and I are hosting weekly treasure hunts with a weekly theme (next week is orange), and Compassion is doing a OneMealOneDay scavenger hunt. 

All good things, worthy of my time....but when you put them all together it feels overwhelming!

I'm linking up with Like Mother, Like Daughter

and Four Simply Living