Snapping out of it, because come on

It has been a WEEK. Work is super hectic, primarily because one of my best employees gave her notice on Monday and after I finished weeping over the loss, I've been scrambling desperately to replace her. We were supposed to be doing our annual family photos this weekend, but a miscommunication with our photographer led to them being rescheduled to next week, which is fine, really, but frustrating as I've been preparing and also am thinking the leaf colors won't be quite as good a week later, but so it goes. I have been having repeated frustrations trying to schedule a play date with one of Callum's best friends from school ("Davey" from this post), which still hasn't happened after four attempts spanning more than a month. Annika has been fighting bedtime with me for the last few days, with incredibly aggravating and escalating stalling attempts, though thankfully she doesn't seem to do this with Torsten so... guess who's in charge of bedtime now? Small mercies, I guess.

Anyway, it's only Thursday and I'm basically here flailing about and crying uncle because I'm afraid of what else the last couple days of this week might throw at us. But instead of dwelling, I'm trying to take refuge in good/small things, because otherwise, bleh. So, here's my "snap out of it, self" bulleted list:

• After an unseasonably warm September and first half of October (we were still running the air conditioning! Regularly!), the weather has finally turned over the last couple days. Highs below 50 yesterday and today, lots of rain (always good in a semi-arid climate, plus what's rain in Denver is snow in the mountains and that's good for ski tourism), and tomorrow the sun returns but the weather will remain cooler and fall-like. Yay! Summer was lovely, and very practical with kids, but I'm ready for something different.
• I've been focusing on my fitness for the last few months, and I'm seeing results, both in terms of weight/clothing size and in terms of stamina at the gym (getting to higher levels on the machines while maintaining the same heart rate). That is very moralizing, and also right now I'm wearing smaller pants, and that's very moralizing too.
• We are heading into a spate of celebrations/occasions... first Halloween, of course, and then our wedding anniversary is November 1, Annika's birthday is November 2, and Torsten's birthday is November 7, so that's honestly probably the craziest week of the year for us (plus the birthday of one of Callum's best friends from his old school is November 3 so that throws an extra party into the mix for us that week). Lots of stuff to plan and coordinate, but also: birthdays! Anniversaries! Kid-adored holidays! All good things. We will definitely be going low-key on the celebrations for all of the above, but it will be a fun week for sure.
• Per the above, the week of craziness always feels like the kickoff to the holiday season for me, because once it wraps, it's almost Thanksgiving. And I do love the holiday season. I actually really like winter in Colorado, because even though it's cold and snowy, the cold isn't enduring, and neither is the grayness--we get lots of sun, even in winter. So, bring it on. (Famous last words?)
• Also per the above, we have so many toys already (this is a real second child advantage--access to all the cool toys at a much younger age) that we are keeping it very limited for Annika's birthday presents. In fact, we're only planning to give her one, but it is a splurge: an American Girl Bitty Baby. I am super excited. I'm leaning toward getting the one with red hair and hazel eyes because it's surprisingly rare to find a red-haired doll that doesn't look comical, but also would love to get something a little more diverse, so... am torn, basically. But don't worry: the outfit will definitely be purple.

Hey, wow, just writing out that list has made me feel better. Catharsis! I have it.