today is angie's 31st birthday, and yesterday was elle's 30th. i've been blessed to know some pretty incredible women in my life, and these are two who stand out. as i was thinking of each of them, i realized that they share a lot of qualities that inspire me. both love other cultures. both actually live simply instead of just saying they will. both make it a priority to really dig into their respective communities. both aren't afraid to take risks and try new things. both listen and love well. they have their unique qualities, too, with quirky senses of humor and thinking minds... happy birthday, dear sisters!

so much excitement! first, thanks for all of the comments! i love thinking about all of you going off to fun places. i think travel is one of the top things i daydream about regularly - travel and accomplishing something important enough to get interviewed on public radio... i'm only really working three days this week, and i am SO EXCITED. thursday i'm technically working, but i'm spending the day at the all-ohio counselor's conference, which means i get a goody bag and to spend the day learning cool things with my counseling friends while wearing jeans. friday is my birthday, and for the first time in years, i'm taking the day off for a three-day weekend. (i have about five weeks of vacation time to use, so i'm starting to do it bit by bit.) rumor has it that one of my best friends is coming from boston to spend it with me, and that makes it even more exciting. the following week i'm taking friday off again, for our trip to new york, which only adds to the exicitement. (especially since our plane tickets are super-cheap, and we're staying with our friend amy rose which, yes, is very exciting!) now that i've gone on and on about all of my fabulous plans, i need to get back to work, so that all of this time off doesn't spin me into chaos. happy monday!

i was extremely productive this morning. now i'm trying to keep up the pace. but i love to get comments, so here's a question: if you could fly anywhere, right this minute, where would it be? i think i would go to a mexican beach. just for a few days, but that would be so lovely right now. we are going to new york city in 2 1/2 weeks - partly business, partly pleasure over a long weekend. it's not the beach, but i've never spent any real time there, so it should also be quite lovely...

guten morgen, sunshines! it pays off to write a few times a day, when i get so many lovely comments - thanks, y'all! today i am determined to conquer my mountain of paperwork. i have my coffee, my music (thanks to daniel giving me his nano, which opens up a whole new world of choice that my shuffle just didn't quite allow), and my professional assessment skills ready to go. the important news is that my sister-in-law, ashley, is 21 today! happy birthday, sweetie! she is smart and kind and disciplined and fun, and i can't wait to have dinner with her tonight!

could someone please explain to me the appeal of dressing up pets in halloween costumes?

there are actual snow flurries today. if i were still living with my parents we would be having the discussion of whether they count as the first snow, thus warranting homemade doughnuts. what do you think?

it probably isn't the best idea to wait until i'm exhausted to post. sorry about that! because, even though it's getting cold outside and things are more grey, my life really isn't all that melancholy. tonight, for example, we had a fantastic time having dinner at the lovely andersons, with the likewise fine company of the foster carlsons, and i was reminded that "apples to apples" is a fun, fun game, and i really do like to play games! in fact, i sometimes buy games at target just because they look interesting and are under five dollars, and i convince myself that of course we will learn to play them as soon as possible. which is why, this month, i have the goals of learning how to play rook and canasta. anyone? also, if you're interested in playing dutch blitz, leave a comment! daniel has become maybe the slightest bit addicted to playing chess. when we were dating and i still lived in cincinnati, we played chess on the phone with our laptops. we would tell each other where we were moving, and it was all very fun and exciting and i was thrilled to have such a smart boyfriend. now, he usually has to convince me to play him. (usually on a daily basis) i think i'm starting to get into it again, though - especially since i'm getting closer to winning sometimes. i learned this week (from an episode of the west wing) that chess was invented in india, and it became that much cooler. in other news, the pumpkin show is fun, but i'm not convinced it was worth the two hours that it took to drive 26 miles to get there. i would definitely recommend a pumpkin elephant ear, however. also, the pumpkin burgers are really just glorified sloppy joes, but they're tasty. finally, maybe the coolest part was that daniel was excited to go, and was very patient in the traffic and with me, and he was wonderfully supportive of doing something that was mostly something i was interested in doing. does that make sense? point being, daniel has been very attentive to and responsive to my needs lately, and let this be considered a great big "thank you, baby!" i should probably go to bed now. it will be a long week, but should also be extremely productive. and, when the weekend comes, i have a coffee date and a tea party on the calendar, both of which i'm really looking forward to. oh - my brother is about to go to germany and prague for ten days, on a break from iraq. if we had enough discretionary funds, i would totally be there to meet him. i guess i'll have to settle for a postcard...(are you reading this, matt?) g'night, and good luck.

on monday, i got to reunify three children from two different families with their parents. on tuesday, i got caught in the middle of a very nasty custody battle that is only hurting a sweet 13 year old in a wheelchair, and i can't do a thing for him. on wednesday, i got to close out a case in court for a family that has come a long way in the past two years. yesterday and today, i've spent most of my time trying to communicate with a borderline personality, schizophrenic, bipolar woman who misinterprets everything i say, but really does love her children. so, that was my week, and now i'm exhausted and have a headache. but tomorrow we get to go to the pumpkin show!

hello there, land of internet. i just wanted to check in and let you know that i haven't completely disappeared. work is very busy right now, and there's school, and church, and marriage, and attempts to spend time with people in the real world. sometime soon i would like to write about things like my first ohio state football game, our church family representing us in cambodia, thoughts on the nickel mine amish school and anabaptist stoicism, and whether or not we can go on vacation in a few weeks. for now, though, i am going to go upstairs and snuggle in our soft bed under our warm comforter and spoon my husband. sweet dreams!