Hodgepodge

1. Let's embrace it shall we? What's something you recently forgot to do? Is your memory these days more like a sieve or an elephant? I woke up at 3:30 on Tuesday morning and remembered that I forgot to do something. I went into the kitchen and made myself a note (in the dark) and went back to bed. The alarm went off at 5:00 and I got up and did it! I'm a huge list maker so my memory is still like an elephant about many things. Mark will say, "I told you that" and I don't remember. Mark loves to talk and I think he tells his sister or a friend and thinks he told me! haha!

2. Share a trick/strategy you have to help you remember things you need to remember.  I just told you that I am a list maker. Let me tell you another silly trick. So on Wednesday nights, I'm at the Welcome Desk checking in our families for Wednesday night supper. We feed about 400 people. My goal at the beginning of each semester is to know 90% of the family names by the end of the semester. When they come through the door, I say something silly like "Elliott, party of 2 - you are checked in for dinner. Enjoy!" I remember their names by connecting things. We have two brothers - one family has girls and one family has boys. I remember the boy family because the dad's name has a B in it!

3. What's your favorite fall vegetable to cook with? Do you prefer your fall veggies roasted, blended into a warm soup, or fresh in a crisp autumn salad? We love various squashes and pumpkins. We really love Delicata squash and we've cooked two in the air fryer cut into "french fries." So good! I made a protein pumpkin bread this week (no sugar) and I've been eating a piece of it every morning. Mark brought this squash (below - it is an Autumn Frost Squash) home today and we will cook it on Wednesday night. The sticker says you can eat the skin!! I guess that means we like our fall veggies roasted (or air fried).

4. October 5th is/was National Do Something Nice Day. Did you? If so tell us about it. Or maybe someone did something nice for you, and if that's the case please share. I didn't know that Monday was Do Something Nice Day. We actually went to Grandparent's Breakfast with our oldest granddaughter. I got up at 4:30 to exercise. We left our house at 6:00. We drove to her house (in two cars because I had a 9:00 a.m. meeting). We headed to the school at 6:45 a.m. We went to the lunchroom, took a photo, pretended to eat, went to the Booksale in the Library and gave her about $25 to spend . . .and then drove to work. We did those things and I guess they were nice (but they were really because we love her). She gave us both big hugs and thanked us for coming so I guess that was her being nice back to us.

Also, a Walgreen's employee was very nice to me on Monday. Another one was very nice on Tuesday!

5.  Nathaniel Hawthorne is credited with the quote "I cannot endure to waste anything so precious as autumnal sunshine by staying in the house."  

Do you tend to spend more time outside this time of year? I do enjoy being outside when it isn't 100 degrees. My fall allergies are not usually as bad as my spring allergies so I guess I spend a little more time outdoors.

Do you actively pause to soak in fleeting moments of beauty in your daily routine? Elaborate. I want to do this . . .and do every once in a while . . .but not often enough. Sometimes I will be pumping gas and I will turn my face toward the sunshine and I think of that as a moment of beauty (but that isn't every day).

6. Insert your own random thought here.  I am running at 100 miles an hour over here! I have a lot to do and I'm trying to do it well and get it all done!

I look forward to reading all of your answers. If I don't comment on Wednesday, I've been trying to go back and comment on as many blogs as possible during the week.