Feeling happy...

Today's been lovely. One of those days where you don't do anything special, but ordinary thing things seem magical. The exact opposite of the days when even the most fabulous outing feels grey and flat.

Bobby and I went for a misty pre-breakfast bike ride. It was beautiful...



but cold!! I didn't wear gloves, and by the time we got home my hands were so numb that I literally couldn't move my fingers enough to change gears on my bike. The picture is of a lake just a few miles from our home. Yesterday was the first time that we'd ever been there - we didn't even know it existed till recently. People sail there, apparently. We saw the boats, and the clubhouse, but, thanks to the fog, we still have no idea what the lake itself looks like.

We woke the kids up when we got home, and had a leisurely, coffee-drinking, paper-reading breakfast before we did the weekly house-cleaning. Then Bobby took Sophie to gymnastics while I did some college work. The mist lifted and the day turned out gorgeous - sunny and crisp, perfect autumn weather. In the afternoon, Bobby went to fly his plane, and I read, and worked, and hung out with the kids. The girls baked choc-chip cookies after lunch - totally yummy! I love having children who are old enough to decide they want to cook something, do it, and clean it up, without any help. (Though teaching them to cook when they were little was fun too ...) And this evening we all sat at the table and chatted for ages after dinner. (Which was black beans and rice - and red wine for the adults - something that the whole family loves). As the children get older and busier and more independent, it gets harder and harder to get everyone in the same place at the same time, so days like this seem very precious.