The Top Ten Things The Leighton Girls Have Loved About October 2014!

1. Little Leighton’s continued healing!

2. Cool nights. Cool mornings. The Beginnings of crisp, lovely Autumn days!

3. Pumpkins!

4. Fall Fashion! Sweaters, sweatshirts, more jeans/less capris—which leads to less leg-shaving (does not apply, of course, to Little Leighton...lucky gal...), boots, and more scarves! (I say “more” scarves because TLC wears scarves year-round—even in the hideous Texas heat of August—Silly Woman.)

5. Little Leighton’s healing!

6. Fun Shopping Adventures! The days of browsing quaint shops feel much lovelier and tres pleasant, in terms of getting in and out of one’s car.

7. More pumpkins!

8. Trick-or-Treating! (As I type this, Little Leighton is two hours away…going from door-to-door in her neighborhood—dressed as…wait for it…DRUM ROLL…a Fancy/Sparkly Pumpkin!)

9. Thoughts of Thanksgiving and the upcoming Christmas holidays!

10. Little Leighton’s better and BETTER health! Yippee!!!

Happy Halloween, Our Sweet Sillies…Wherever in the World Y’all are…

ELC's TOP TEN FAVOURITE TELLY SHOWS!

First, I’m two days late on this post. Time flies when you’re babysitting Little Leighton (LL) while her parents go to a wedding! We picked LL up on Thursday morning in Fort Worth (She rode the bus! Ha. Just kidding.) and then took her back to TLC Sunday afternoon after her nap. She was sick, sick, SICK with a mean old cold the entire time she was with me and My Sweet Hubby (MSH). Still, when she wasn’t struggling to breathe while trying to nap or sleep at night, she was a DOLL. She’s a Funny Girl. Trust me on this one.

I’d thought I’d do a post Sunday evening. Too pooped. Then I flat forgot yesterday. I was gone for several hours during the day. Once I got home, I plopped myself on our davenport and started watching my Monday night shows. (I go back and forth between The Voice and Dancing With the Stars!)

As I looked up all the shows I DVR in our Great Room (That number would be 71. Yikes. Now, a few of those are MSH’s. I end up deleting a lot. My rule is this: If I haven't watched something I recorded four months ago? It's gone.) and in our bedroom (That number would be 17. Wow. Two or three of these are also MSH’s.), I realized it’s not surprising I have no time to read a book. (I’m currently on Page 124 of Gone Girl. TLC read it in 2 days. I’m going on two weeks. Sheesh.)

I intended to tell y’all about my NEW favourite telly shows. Unfortunately, there aren’t ten of them. And that is the requirement for this month’s posts. Ten of something.

I then decided my best bet would be to share with you my favourite shows at this time. The shows I cannot wait to see each week. The shows that make me laugh out loud. Cry.  Talk to some of the characters—like they can hear me. Like they’re real peeps. The shows that make me happy. Or cause me to think. Or, best of all—inspire me. I realize I’ve mentioned some of these shows before. Because, in January, we’ll begin our fifth year of this blog. Wwhhhaaaattttt? Wow.

Here’s My List (I’m numbering them but, truly, these are all equally important to the quality of the entertainment portion of my  life!):

1. Grey’s Anatomy. Love it. Need it. Will simply not know how to cope when they all decide they are done. I’ll need therapy. Possibly meds.
2. Parenthood. Didn’t begin this show until last year. That makes me very, very sad. I do intend to go back and watch previous years. It is incredible.
3. The Voice. Love. Love. LOVE. Everything about this show. The Judges. (Blake and Adam are full of fun and charm. I adored Usher and Shakira. Miss them very much. But Pharrell and Gwen this season? They are two classy, CLASSY artists.)
4. Nashville. I am a Country gal, Folks. I live in the country. I have been obsessed with country music since I was 19 years old. That’s a long, long time. I think it’d be a blast to live in Nashville. Tennessee is BEAUTIFUL. This show, to me, is fascinating.
5. The Blacklist. MSH and I watch this one together. We have very few that we both enjoy. It replaced 24 for us—in the “scary/violent/spy/suspense” genre of TV. We don’t usually quite understand what the heck is going on—and we don’t even care. I’m serious. We could watch it without the sound on. It is a heckuva ride every single week.
6. The Biggest Loser. I cry every single week. Every. Single. Week. I think Alison is fantastic. I treasure the trainers. Bob? My hero. I am beyond impressed with the courage of the contestants. I always say this to whoever will listen to me: Every person in America—or the World—should watch this show for inspiration. Period.
7. Dancing With the Stars. When all my other friends (and TLC) abandoned this show, I couldn’t. I get furious with the Judges. I mean MAD. I think they’re too critical and rude. But Tom cracks me up. Most of these contestants inspire me, too. Even though I get it. They’re celebrities doing it for the exposure. Makes no difference to me.
8. Shark Tank. Another show I insist (Oops—didn’t mean to say that!) MSH watch with me. Every week I try to think of something we could invent so we could be on this show. All six Sharks—even Kevin—are interesting people. I’d rather be home on Friday nights, watching this show, than at a 5-Star Restaurant in Dallas. Or watching a Texas high school football game. I’m not even kidding you.
9. Modern Family. I thought I’d never get over the end of Friends. This show is unbelievably funny to me. It has helped me cope with my loss. I laugh out loud the entire 22ish minutes (I don’t do commercials. Ever.) The cast? SPECTACULAR. Seriously.
10. The Middle. Another fabulous comedy I must watch. Each week I say something like this to TLC: Sue is my most favourite! The next week? It’s Axel. The next? Brick. The parents? Hysterical. Yes, I know, because of the writers. They admit that—I’ve heard them do it. But they are all talented actors and comedians. I missed the first year of this one. That makes me sad.

Humour me, please: There are five more shows I have to mention: Long Island Medium (TLC network). She rocks. The Millers. NBC. I think. Amazing cast/funny show! About a Boy. NBC. I’m out of adjectives. This one is beyond CLEVER. So extremely CLEVER. Chrisley Knows Best. USA. A reality show that TLC and I are both obsessed with—completely obsessed. The new season just recently began. Angels Among Us. TLC network. She’s as sweet and precious as Theresa Caputo. I believe in Angels. I believe this lady is remarkable.

Humour me, pretty, pretty please, for a few more new shows that intrigue me:

Marry Me. NBC. (A new one.)

A to Z. NBC. (A new one.)
Bad Judge. NBC. (A new one.)
How to Get Away With Murder. ABC. (A new one.) This show, together with Scandal, (Not a new one.) is raunchy. Irreverent. Shocking. Insanity at it's finest. In my humble opinion, both of these are completely inappropriate for the time of the evening they're aired. However, unfortunately, I'm hopelessly addicted to each of them. (Perhaps I'm actually a teensy-itsy-bitsy bit ashamed of this confession.) I cringe as I watch. I say things, to the characters, like: “How stupid could you be?” Or, to myself: "Well, that scene was completely unnecessary." At the end of this week's episode of each of these series? I cannot wait for next week’s. I need as much help, me thinks, as Shonda Rhimes. Yikes.

Yes. I need to turn off my telly and pick up a book. Or go to bed.  I’ll let you know how that works out, okay?

By the way: If it helps your opinion of me, in any way or at all, I rarely ever, EVER watch television during the day. Cross my heart.

TLC's 10 Favourite Fall-ish Things To Do:

Disclaimer: I may not technically do all of these things. Some are "bucket list items!"

1. Decorate pumpkins. (Because carving is too messy for my OCD tendencies.) Pinterest has so many cute ideas! Monograms. House numbers crafted out of gold thumbtacks. Polka dots. Glittered stems. I want to do them all!

2. Wear a scarf. every. day. I LOVE scarves! (Little Leighton really wants one of her own, too!) I'm currently on the hunt for something Burberry-esque, minus the Burberry price tag.

3. Starbucks. As much as I love all things pumpkin, I actually prefer their Skinny Vanilla Lattes over the PSL. (But I'll have a Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffin on the side, please and thank you.)

4. Visit lots o' pumpkin patches!

5. Go on a hayride! (We actually went on a hayride at a pumpkin patch this year!)

6. (Learn how to) Bake Gluten-Free Apple Cider Donuts. Yummy! I would actually love to go apple picking, too!

7. Sit on a quilt and gaze at the pretty, twinkling stars. Crisp. fall, evening air is enlightening.

8. (Learn how to) Knit or crochet a cozy throw blanket. 

9. Have a movie night--outside! We have friends that would host an annual Halloween Party. They would set up a projector and screen in their backyard. We would cuddle-up under blankets, munch on popcorn and have a ball! It was always so much fun.

10. Let a big pot of (Gluten-Free) Homemade Taco Soup simmer on the stove all Sunday afternoon. Nothing beats football watchin' and soup (and cornbread!) eatin'.

Gosh, Fall makes me so happy!

ELC'S Top 10 Favourite Signs It's FALL At Our Country Casa!

I've said it before and I'll say it again: Those of us who live in North Central Texas love, love, LOVE Autumn/Fall! We've had it with hideously hot, stifling, horrible weather. Stick a fork in us. We're DONE.

Yes, TLC is completely, totally, FOREVER OBSESSED with Autumn. (That's one of the millions of things this Mama loves about her.) But My Sweet Hubby (MSH) and I need/adore/cherish Fall, too. For him, it's the beginning of having to mow (whether it's our lawn or pastures) every ten days to two weeks. Rather than every week. (Well, pastures are only mowed three to five times a year. But they are a big job that takes many hours when they require attention.) For both of us, it's the time of cool, crisp, simply delightful mornings and evenings. (It can still be quite hot at mid-day and in the afternoons in our neck o' the woods. Even in the typically "winter" months.)

Although we normally put out about forty pumpkins, this year we decided to cut back a bit. I think we've kept it to 20ish medium to large pumpkins. (I don't really count the tiny/small ones.) I have spared y'all pictures of all 20. You're quite welcome!

Here, then, are the signs around our place that it's Fall:

Hope each and every single one of you have had a lovely weekend...wherever in the world you are!

Punkin Smooches, Darlings...