Highlights and Favorites from September-- A Sentence a Day

 We had a wonderful September and I feel lie the time just flew by! Our weather has been all over the place and while we enjoyed quite a few really lovely hikes we had at least a few that were canceled due to rain. 

1. After a quick workout with my mom, I ate breakfast, and then Evan and I headed out on a hike around the Dam. It was cool and breezy and just lovely and we talked about our plan for starting school next week. Alec had a great 2nd day of school (his first was pretty awful so I was so relieved to hear his 2nd was great) and Ian tackled a lot of his schoolwork both before and after work.

workout/hiking outfit

After shower outfit

2. Alec headed off to work and my husband and Ian went to help my father in law so Evan and I enjoyed a relaxing morning at the house; I finished my book and did my nails. In the afternoon my husband and I ran some errands and stopped to get ice cream.  

3. Alec worked ALL day (including 3 extra hours he hadn't been scheduled for) while my husband and I repainted the entire shed.  Ian worked on a full days' worth of schooling and got all caught up. 

After painting and showering

4. Labor day had Alec off at work bright and early while my husband and I headed out grocery shopping.  He did take off with Ian in the middle of the day for a RZR ride while I worked on the blog and read my book. 

5. We started Evan's first day of homeschooling, then headed out on a hike around Ross' pond, and stopped to drop off an Amazon return order at Staples. I dropped Evan off at home and then picked up my mom for Curves. 

I just removed the blazer & sandals for our hike and working out

6. My mom and I headed to the gym bright and early which allowed me time to run through school with Evan, run to the library, cook up dinner, make banana bread, a salad, & some salad dressing while also having time to clean the whole upstairs and still have time for reading and working on the blog.  Alec had a 1/2 day due to the heatwave. 

7. Another scorcher of a day so my mom and I headed to the gym early and then Evan and I tackled his schoolwork, went to the library (again!), and the post office (again!).  Alec had a 1/2 day because of the heatwave (again!).  

Zucchini bread, eggs, and veggies for lunch

8. Our hike was canceled because of the heat so Evan and I enjoyed a leisurely morning of school then I ran out to do some errands before Alec came home (he had another 1/2 day). 

9. Saturday was supposed to be pretty rainy so I didn't plan on doing much of anything but reading and working on the blog.  My husband talked me into an afternoon run to get ice cream. 

10. Another rainy day where I spent my time reading and pulling together a macaroni and cheese casserole to go with dinner.

11. After working out with my mom and tackling some schoolwork with Evan he convinced me to head out grocery shopping before it started raining.  We made our first stop of the year to the apple orchard too and then the skies really opened up and it began pouring after lunch. 

12. Evan had a friend coming over at 10 so we flew through his schoolwork and I spent my morning cleaning the whole house.  Alec got pulled out of his first day of culinary to go work at his job (it's a program set up through the school called Work Based Learning where he gets credits for his job since it's in his field). 

13. My mom and I went to the gym, then Evan and I finished up his schoolwork for the day and I ran a quick errand back to the grocery store to pick up one item I was missing for dinner.  Thankfully the skies waited to open up and downpour until I got back home! 

14. I worked out with my mom, Evan and I did his schoolwork, and then we headed out for a nice hour long hike. Saw that 2 of our favorite hiking places closest to home are shut down for cases of EEE (Eastern Equine Encephalitis).

 

15. Evan and I headed out bright and early to meet our friends so we could hike Mount Wachusett today; it was a beautiful day for a hike!

My hiking outfit (hiking boots and socks were in the car)

Afternoon/after shower outfit

16. My husband and I had a date night planned; we just went to the Black Dog for a simple meal followed by a stop to get some ice cream (for my husband- I didn't want any).

What I wore all day (and planned to wear to dinner too)

But it got cold as the day wore on so I changed to something warmer

17. My husband and I got up early and went to both BJ's and Market Basket to get ALL the groceries. After unloading the whole car and getting everything put away I talked the younger two boys into hiking. Alec talked me into stopping at The Vanilla Bean on our way home and found he spent more time behind the counter helping out than actually eating. 

He's so at home behind the barista station now.. 

18. A rainy Monday morning found my mom and I at the gym early then I spent the day inside pushing off all my errands until Tuesday (and hopefully drier weather).

the wind and rain make some really neat patterns on the water

Shrimp stir fry over rice

19. Evan and I decided to only do some of his planned schoolwork and head to the zoo instead. We spent a good 2 hours walking all over Southwick's and taking lots of photos. 

20. After a morning at the gym, Evan and I settled in to work on his schooling then we headed to the library and out to lunch with my mother in law at the Railside Tavern.

Roasted vegetable flatbread sandwich with side salad

21. After working out and doing school Evan, my mom, my mother in law, and I planned to eat lunch at Alec's school-- it was delicious but I completely forgot to take any photos of the food!

We did bring home a couple of brownies 

22. Evan and I had plans for a 5 mile hike with our hiking group-- it was beautiful but we did cut out a bit of the hike since some of the younger kids were getting tired (we still hiked for 3 solid hours). 

we had 2 river/brook crossings

23. The heating element in our stove blew out (with lots of noise and a small fiery burst) just before dinner on Friday so I spent my Saturday finding a new no-bake cheesecake recipe to use for Evan's party and getting most of his dessert put together.

24. We spent Sunday cleaning the house and finishing up Evan's cheesecake then we hosted the grandparents for his 16th birthday party. 

25. Another day where it just poured and I decided it was the perfect time to decorate the house for fall; after going to the gym with my mom and finishing up school with Evan for the day.

26. I headed out grocery shopping first thing in the morning then worked on preparing food for the week while my husband took Evan to the DMV for his learner's permit test. 

27. I went to the gym, did school with Evan, and then we headed out hiking around the dam. It was a beautiful day.

28. Gym, school with Evan, and then I went to get my hair cut in the afternoon.

a very belated lunch

29. Our hike was canceled because of more rain so Evan and I headed to our friends' house instead and spent an afternoon hanging out. 

30. Alec and my husband went of to work while Ian, Evan, and I all settled down to work with our computers all day (me on my blogging, Evan on video games, and Ian on his college course work). It was dreary and cold so after everyone returned home mid-afternoon we all settled in to watch TV. 

Linking up with: Spread the Kindness, Weekend Traffic Jam Reboot,