Ahhhhh, November. I love November, not nearly as much as December, but it doesn’t need to know that. I am behind on my blog. Because it has been so cozy, I have wanted to do nothing but bake and read books. I apologize for my being behind on comments. It is my selfish book reading heart’s fault. I have not been on the internet as much this week. My kids had the whole week off and it was just so nice to decompress with them. I hope to be back on schedule this week. As a family, we went and saw “Big Hero Six.” This is one of the best movies I have ever seen. I give it a ten out of ten. Bring tissues. And be sure to stay until after the ending credits.

My family and I were so sick for two weeks of November. Two weeks. I remember on day twelve bursting into tears because I was so tired of feeling awful, but it did pass. For that, I am grateful. November is a grateful month. It is the dark month of reflection. The lightness of laughter remembered. The darkness of finding light in trying circumstances. I know so many people who are going through a hard time. It is very difficult for me to be happy sometimes when I know their struggles.

My grandmother’s birthday was on the seventh and my heart felt so heavy that day. Yet, I am so thankful for the time I did have with her.

Here is November briefly recapped with things that did not make it on the blog:

I rescued a sea lion.

On Thanksgiving, my aunts, uncle and mother gave me back the last Christmas present I had gifted to my grandma the week before she passed away. It was very sweet. It was a sad moment that day when we watched my laughing grandma on an old VHS tape.

And so now I have this bowl, knives and kitchen mittens that I feel I need to do something special with. That I am terrified of breaking. And yet, they make me feel weary. Tired. My grandma never used them, so even though I try to tie an emotional connection to these things, I find myself incapable of doing so. Unwilling, if you will. For my grandmother never used them when she was alive, so they sat unused because… she died. When I look at these items, I remember her death. Not her life. Hence the weariness. I need to contemplate how I feel about this more. I think instead of the items being a tribute to my grandmother, I will remember them as being lovingly saved by four siblings as a gift to me. I will remember my mother, my aunts and uncle when I use them. Of overcoming insurmountable grief to think of another person during a dark time. Of the love that was saved for me. Ahhhh…So many ponderings over kitchen items.

I have a problem. A tuna problem. I cannot quit it. I ate a whole entire tuna pie all by myself in three sittings. Is there a meeting for this?

Today is Cyber Monday. Because I purchased so much the week of Black Friday, I am sitting this one out (unless you know of an amazing waffle maker on an amazing deal, because I had to throw away my old one yesterday). And I don’t want to do yet another shopping post. However Modcloth is having an awesome sale today offering 25% off everything with code CYBERMONDAY. I will tell you, the following links are affiliate links. Purchasing through the links will provide a small income for this little ol’ blog. Everything I am listing is actually sitting in my cart awaiting a future indulgence (except the blue dress which I all ready purchased through Dear Creatures). Modcloth always offers free shipping on orders over $50:

1. The Chilly Commute Dress. This is adorable. Easy. I like the colors. I like the shape. I like it.

2. Gnome Man’s Land Socks. Oh! I want these so badly! Actually I want ten pairs of these so badly. I have to stop looking at them or I am going to buy them.

3. Channel The Charm Dress by Dear Creatures. If you missed out on Dear Creature’s 40% off sale, where I purchased this dress, this is still a good price with the code. Plus, the return policy is much better.

4. The Copious Comfort Poncho looks almost exactly like the poncho from Anthropologie that I missed out on last year.

Outfit Outtakes:

Ollie being a stubborn bulldog. Original outfit post here.

Being a dork. Original outfit post here.

I found my perfect restaurant. Individual brewed iced teas and tuna sandwiches. What more could a girl ask for?

Coming Up In December:

Three Stripes Your Out-fit
House Tour
Sisters In Tulle
Crazy Searches
The Easiest Salted Caramel Cookie Bars

I am also going to need some help deciding on some purchases I made during Free People’s awesome sale. I bought these boots in red for my husband to gift to me for Christmas. Well, I could not resist peeking at them or trying them on. Now I am unsure. My thighs are much larger than my calves. I feel like having the boot stop right at the start of my thigh is unflattering. I might post a picture soon to see what you think. And I am thinking of returning The Embroidered Moto Jacket. I love the embroidery but I am not sure of the fit on me. And I need some styling help on The Eyelet Duster. So would it be wrong to have a post about items I need help deciding on?

We are now in December. My very favorite month. I love the brightness of the big holiday. The colors everywhere. The excitement. I love giving gifts. I love the smells. It can be overwhelming, though. Because of this, I do a random act of kindness every single day this month. It makes me put the holidays into perspective. It is something I do for my soul to try to balance the present greed. With that in mind, I want to note that while it is so awesome to donate toys for children at this time, please do not forget the elderly amongst us. I definitely will be donating toys, but this is the month when my heart goes towards the forgotten amongst us…

The day after Thanksgiving, I ran into a grocery store to quickly grab two items. I decided to cut through the cookie/cracker aisle to get to the register. As I entered the aisle, a lone woman was slowly pushing her cart in front of me. She was in her late sixties. Not old by any means. Her pants had slid down underneath her bare bottom.

I did not know what to do.

I did not want to embarrass her, but I also did not want a mean person to laugh at her circumstances. I approached the woman and said to her, “Ma’am, you’re pants have slid down.”

She thanked me as she groaned. She was ill. It was the day after Thanksgiving. She was sick. She was shopping for food. By herself. Alone. Like so many elderly people. They have to venture out sick, alone, spend the holidays by themselves. I did not know what I could do for her. My family was waiting in the car. My husband had to get to work. Selfishly, I did not want to get sick myself. So, I left. I have many excuses, but none of them are enough.

I am so imperfect.

Yet it breaks my heart. Makes me feel helpless. Overwhelmed. Guilty.

It could happen to any of us. And so for me, I try to concentrate on making sure I am remembering to take the older generations into consideration this month.

How was November for you? Are you more excited for December? How do you decompress during this busy season? Are you reading anything good? I have read five books this week. I can recommend one of them. It is One Came Home. I will be doing a review about it soon, but it is an easy (it is a children’s book) beautiful read.