It is November. We've had a few flurries in the last couple weeks. The grass is yellow and dry, the trees are bare. Maddie and I stopped on the side of the road on the way to town to watch a flock of Canadian geese. There must have been a few hundred. With babies so small, I've spent most of my time inside. Cabin fever is already setting in.

It's that time of year when the cold cramps your fingers and you finally give in to making a fire in the furnace...piling the kindling into a little teepee, lighting the match then slamming the furnace door shut and racing upstairs because you forgot to open the switch that feeds air to the fire. Come December I might remember to do that before I go to the basement.

I've been in a major decluttering spree. We've been deciding whether or not to sell the house. After a visit from the realtor and a disappointing look at the comparable homes in our area, we've decided to stay put for the time being. We'll renovate instead. I'm disappointed. I had hoped for a better price on our home, and to be able to buy a little homestead. This house is a good house, but not at all how I envision my dream home. When the market turns around for the better, we'll take a second look.

Who knows what might have happened between now and then?