September 30. Not July 30.

It was 93 degrees here in sunny Southern California today.  I wore (from the bottom, up) Sketchers, jeans and a sweater...a turtleneck sweater with flouncy sleeves.  

"Leanne," you say, "why did you think it would be a good idea to wear any form of sweater on a day like today?"

"You," I answer, "obviously you don't understand that when it's the day before October, the weather should allow for a bundling up of sorts."

So, just to make sure that I am not completely crazy, I decided to do a Google search for "Fall Clothes".  Among many other things that support my nutty ideas, I found an article stating that the following are important parts of "The Basic Elements of a Fall Wardrobe":

Fabrics:  corduroy, faux fur, suede, cable knit, quilted fabrics and wool

Pieces:   turtlenecks, long cardigan sweaters, jeans, pants, scarves/mittens, long skirts, long- sleeved button down shirts, boots, hoodies, etc.

Next Tuesday is supposed to be 73.  I guess I'll have to break out my wooly gloves and go buy me a pair of Uggs.

Come on, California.  Could you at least get it below 70 for October?  That would be great.

The individual responsible for this list obviously does not reside in Southern California.

Yay for stuff!

The rest of "us" has finally been redeemed from Middle America.   My Mom arrived yesterday to begin her new contract in Fountain Valley, and along with her she brought a UHaul filled with most of the things we left in Missouri when we moved to California two years ago.

There are still a couple of prized possessions that I suspect may be gone forever, but we got back a ton of pictures and books, dishes, curtains and other various parts of our past we'd forgotten about.  Yesterday was a very busy day of unloading, unpacking, cleaning and visiting.  And we still have a TON of stuff that needs to find a home in this apartment.  And I look forward to finding those homes.

For now, I'm content to see our dishes and crockpot (the one of two items we actually received from our wedding gift registry) sitting on our countertop as I go along with my busy day.

  Speaking of which, I need to start grading some papers!

Let's call it an experiment

Lately, there's been a lot of talk around Revolution about "being" the church.  With the start of Life Groups, a lot of us now have opportunities on a weekly basis to step up into our role as "the Church" and I am hoping to go as far as to utilize this very blog on a regular basis to give you (my readers) opportunities to help others whom you may not even know.  So here is your first opportunity.

There is a couple I know who's gone through the adoption process but still has a few fees to pay before everything is completed.  The total left is around $500.  To a lot of us, that's not a huge sum of money.  But to this family, it will help close a chapter of their lives and move on into the future as a fully legal family.  Would you consider helping them?

You need to be aware that when I do this, I (typically) won't give names.  Therefore, you can either do a trust fall in the form of a blank check given to me or you can email me and I can connect you with whoever might have the need (or let you know where you can buy a gift card, etc.).

As the title of this blog suggests, this is an experiment.  I hope to see a positive outcome from my faithful readers!  Wouldn't it be cool to have a blog that's dedicated to randomly meeting needs?  Wouldn't it be cool to be a reader and a need-meeter of that blog?

If you can help this amazing family, email me (Leannelytle@gmail.com).  

A challenge

I've spent the last couple of nights reading my Self magazine.  The focus of this issue seems to be almost solely on issues surrounding Cancer (mostly breast cancer).  And let me tell you, I'm a little concerned.

Let me preface by saying that there is a history of cancer in my family.  Neither of my parents have suffered, but my Grandmother and Great Aunt both lost their lives to Breast Cancer...so I have cause to be somewhat worried.  I think.

Okay, so there are a few things.  First, over and over again I've read that to keep your chances of developing cancer down, exercise and keeping weight at a healthy level is paramount.  I've been working on weight loss the last 6 weeks, but only for the sake of aesthetics and not having to buy a whole new wardrobe.  This takes my motivation to a whole new level.

Second, I read about these things called BPA's and a woman who believes they are to cause for her development of the disease.  BPA is freaking everywhere.  If you don't believe me, go here.  

To those of you who are alarmists, I hope this doesn't ruin your day.  But I do hope that it will give you pause to look at your life and think about what you are doing to and with your body and if you are taking the best care of it as you can.  I firmly believe that God has given us our bodies, and just like everything else he's given us, we are supposed to take care of it.  We can't treat our bodies wrongly and expect them to last or even work correctly for us.

My challenge to you today is to take the link above and do a little cancer research.  But I not only want you to get information; I want you to find ONE thing that you can change about the way you live that might help your body stay healthier longer.

My goal?  30 minutes a day of exercise.  

My life is my job

Has anyone ever had one of those weeks where, although great things are happening, it feels like nothing is getting accomplished?

As I sit at my desk after just waking up at 8:45 (almost unheard of for me) looking at the disaster that is my home realizing that I have no clothes because my laundry is incomplete and not even here because I left it at my personal laundrymat (my in-law's)...I think to myself...

So this is what it would be like if I worked full time.  

And, for now, I'm really glad that's not the case.

I have the smartest 18 month old ever

Well, I'm sure there are others like her.  And even some more advanced.  But this morning, after breakfast, we were in the living room reading books and Bella stood up and pointed to her diaper.  I figured that meant she already peed or pooped, because that's what it usually means.  But I went with my instincts and asked if she wanted to try using her potty.  We both ran into the bathroom, I took her diaper off, and to my surprise, it was dry.  So she sat down on the potty and after about a minute, I hear this wonderful tinkling sound.  Bella peed in the potty for the first time ever!  Yay!  

And here is the evidence...

Oh the things you can get away with...

...when you're 18 months old.

Today, Bella's lunch was turkey and provolone on toasted rye, tomato/roasted red pepper soup and applesauce (which I gave her toward the end of the meal).  She wasn't the least bit interested in the rye bread until the applesauce was introduced.  That's when she decided, since the bread couldn't possibly get any worse, maybe she should try dipping it IN the applesauce.  Well, I guess that was a good idea because that's how she proceeded to finish the entirety of the bread.

Far be it for me to keep my daughter from trying new things.  Even if they might seem gross to the adult eye.