This is the time of year we turn our clocks back one hour.
Spring forward.
Fall back.
That is always the way I remember it.

This year, it was my youngest daughter’s birthday.
The family was here to celebrate with her.
With a full house, there was a lot going on.
Wonderful things; glad to be together things.

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I know that my doorbell will soon be ringing.
I know that children in the neighborhood will be on the other side of the door.
I know that I will recognize some but not others.
That is all part of the fun.

People have divided opinions concerning Halloween.
Some people go all out with decorations, even wearing costumes as they answer the door.
Some people turn off their lights.
Most people are somewhere in the middle, especially if you have young children.

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After the day is done, putting my feet up is so wonderful.
I have a stack of books next to my chair at all times.
There is usually one book that demands my attention more than the others.
Either it is a have to book or it is a want to book.

The want to books are always fun.
I get lost in the story.
I want to see where the author is going with the plot.
Want to books seem to call to me.

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My oldest son ran track in high school and college.
It was the perfect sport for him.
He was not competing against the other runners as much as he was competing against himself.
It was a matter of personal best.

Track meets are long events.
Having four other children, I would often ask him the timing of his particular race.
He had a sense of where the 400 meter race would fall in the lineup.
I would get there a bit before and watch him run.

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My granddaughter is a sixteen-month-old helper.
If I am cooking, she is stirring with a metal bowl and spoon.
If I am standing at the counter preparing something, she is right underfoot.
My own children did that, so I am used to it and find it endearing.

When I water my plants, that are still thriving on the deck, she is right with me.
She loves putting her hand under the gentle spray.
She brings her hand to her mouth and tries to lick the water.
She giggles, which makes me giggle.

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I lifted the bin off the shelf.
The masking tape on the top said, Fall decorations.
I knew that everything in the bin were the inside decorations.
I knew that inside the bin were all the fall touches that I love.

I usually put the things in the same place each year.
However, I can switch them up a bit if I choose.
This year, I did switch a few things.
I grouped things together that were not grouped together before.

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I pass the house all the time.
I watched as the changes began to happen.
I saw that the land in the back of the property was cleared.
I saw a vegetable garden.

It is not easy to look at this house when I drive past.
It sits on a corner of a three way intersection.
The stop sign at this corner says, right turn keep moving.
Since this is the way to the main road, I am always turning right.

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It was a rite of passage.
It was a day for which all of my children longed.
Their sixteenth birthday could not come fast enough.
Turning sixteen meant that they could apply for their learner’s permit.

Our state has a law that a driver with a learner’s permit has to log their driving hours.
They have to drive in all conditions.
The driver cannot take their driver’s test until six months has passed.
That six months time period felt like an eternity to my children.

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A former high school classmate posted a picture on social media.
It was a picture of my high school auditorium.
I would recognize that room anywhere.
This classmate is now a teacher at the same high school.

Memories came flooding back.
I spent so much time in that auditorium.
Many of us spent countless hours there.
That is where our high school musicals were held.

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The bus passed me on my walk.
The bus driver gave a friendly toot on the horn as he passed.
I actually see quite a few buses in the morning.
Even in our small neighborhood of twenty-four houses, four different buses come through.

I like seeing the children at the bus stops.
High school, middle school, sixth grade center, and elementary school leave at different times.
It was the boys at the sixth grade center bus stop that made me smile.
Watching them as I passed by made my morning.

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