“V O T E S F O R W O M E N”

Anyone else have that song from Mary Poppins in your head around election time?

Yes!

We can vote!

Don’t waste it!

I know everything can seem confusing, but one thing stands true. You need to vote. My husband had some great words on why here. There are so many things that can happen tomorrow. There are few things that could make you too busy to show up to the polls. My friend comes to mind. Her son is in the hospital. She might not make it to the polls, but YOU can!!

More important than president could possibly be your congressman. To me, this person is my voice and my representative. He will sign papers and make decisions in my name. I need to know that he will make the best choices for me and my family. The best decisions for my area of San Diego.

If you live in District 53 of San Diego, vote Nick Popaditch to be your local representative!!

Who is your local congressional representative? Check it out before you vote!

I will be voting for:

lower taxes

a lower water bill

my ability to care for those in need with my own money instead of allowing the government to do it

the consistution to be respected as it was meant to be

V O T E !

For a great resource for teacher kids the process of voting and why we do it, go to Kids Voting USA for great activities and explanations for those little ones.

Dressing Up ‘XII

So, here they are: the 2012 costumes.

Another Halloween came and went and so did my birthday right with it. More on holiday birthdays another time.

Just to compare, here are last years pictures. It’s amazing how their personalities are pretty much the same. No big changes in that department. Except this year, Faith has personality with no bangs.

Faith knew right away she wanted to be Pocahontas. Hers was a lot of fun to make because it had fringe. So much fun to cut! Dean knew 6 months ago he wanted to be a knight like his brother was last year. He actually stuck with the idea which is quite amazing for a 4-year-old. Jack took a little time to decide but finally landed on Robin Hood. We are reading the legit book for our school reading so it was on his mind. Plus, I told him he could carry his “bone and arrow”, as he calls it.

We have lived in our house 4 years and every year we go to neighbor’s house behind us. The first year we went trick or treating around here, people told us they hadn’t seen a kid trick-or-treating for 10 or 15 years. Not very many kids around here at all. Craziness. In any case, our neighbors are so sweet to us when we come. They have almost a little party for us with ice cream, candy, and even gifts at the end for the kids. Isn’t that sweet?

After, we went over to some friend’s house for a party and to trick or treat where there are more kids. I don’t have any pictures of that because of the always awesome time of year when the sun is shy and leaves early. We had a lovely time visiting with many new friends.

You can see a few more on my Instagram:

@agoldenafternoon

If you are new to this space and have enjoyed your time, stick around and find me on:

F a c e b o o k // T w i t t e r // P i n t e r e s t // I n s t a g r a m // E m a i l

Snapshots

(all photos above are with my iPhone 4s)

September brought:

a lovely photo shoot with a friend

Nutcracker Auditions (She made it!)

the season of brussel sprouts

turning in our leased car (bye bye Mercedes) means driving my husband to and from his work this week

birthday donuts for the 4 year-old

birthday cupcakes…the dark ones, of course (chocolate)

meerkat birthday celebration with friends

putting our house on the market and cleaning like crazy people every day for house showings

first days of fall mean gingersnaps

local Bonitafest and supporting our congressional candidate

tailgating for the Jason Mraz concert and then getting to see Florence + the machine for $20 the next week

reading with guinea pigs

trying a new evening church service so we could enjoy some good family time in the morning

Happy Fall, friends!

What are you looking forward to?

(comment below)

Linking with Rebecca from Simple as That

Tiny Dancer

I cannot dance upon my Toes —
No Man instructed me —
But oftentimes, among my mind,
A Glee possesseth me,That had I Ballet knowledge —
Would put itself abroad
In Pirouette to blanch a Troupe —
Or lay a Prima, mad,

And though I had no Gown of Gauze —
No Ringlet, to my Hair,
Nor hopped to Audiences — like Birds,
One Claw upon the Air,

Nor tossed my shape in Eider Balls,
Nor rolled on wheels of snow
Till I was out of sight, in sound,
The House encore me so —

Nor any know I know the Art
I mention — easy — Here —
Nor any Placard boast me —
It’s full as Opera —

:: Emily Dickinson ::

Pet Pigs

We are a family of 9 now!

Bon

Faith

Jack

Dean

Leonard the Pug

Peter, Figueroa, and Woody the guinea pigs! *NEW*

We are 10 if you count the worm family in our compost bin.

11 if you count the rotating lizard or beetle member.

I had guinea pigs growing up, all the way as late as high school. They were wonderful pets and I was so excited to share these amazing animals with my kids one day. While my middle and oldest went to Las Vegas with my husband to be with their grandparents while he worked, my youngest and I devised a plan to get some guinea pigs. I’ve been searching on our local guinea pig rescue site for a solid year and RARELY saw babies. As you can imagine, when they did appear, they got snatched up. Frustrating. I’ve also been checking Craigslist but the rare ones i did find were snatched as well. So, when I texted the people looking for a home for 3 adorable short-haired baby guinea pigs, I assumed they were gone in 60 seconds. So, I said a little prayer. No, I really really did. I said a prayer for some guinea pigs.

I thought the timing was perfect for these little guys and thankfully, so did God.