Fall Farms, Pregnancy Updates, Family Recipes & More!

You may need more than one cup of coffee for this recap blog because it’s a long one! Of course, I’ve put weeks of recaps off (well, kind of!). Hopefully, this will be the one that finally catches me up (aside from the pregnancy updates I still need to write soon.)

This recap is packed with recipes I’ve made for the family, toddler activities, fun farm visits, and plenty of random little moments in between.

I started feeling better around 19 weeks of pregnancy. Right around the time I got back from New Jersey, it felt like I was finally returning to normal with no more nausea, smell sensitivity, or all the horrible HG symptoms. I also completely stopped medication at that time. It’s taken me a while to even consider writing a recap of the first half of my pregnancy because so many of the foods (and a few hospital visits) are still a bit triggering. I’ll get there soon! I’m hoping to find some free time this weekend to sit down with a cup of coffee and write it. I just dread having to scroll through some of the photos from that time. I still get a little queasy just looking at fast-food ads on the side of the highway!

It’s also been so nice finally having non-humid weather to enjoy being outside again! We’ve been spending our days doing sidewalk chalk, park dates, coloring on the porch, and visiting farms.

One of our favorite farms to visit in the fall is Windy Hill Orchard. They have the best apple cider and the most delicious apple and pumpkin donuts! After our family photos, we stopped by to enjoy a few donuts (my son decided to take a bite out of each one, ha!) and play some yard games. I also picked up a big bag of apples for us to make homemade cinnamon-date applesauce which is his favorite! That reminds me that I need to get that recipe up soon!

During my 11th week of pregnancy, I was hospitalized twice in the same week—once for dehydration (I couldn’t keep water down for days) and once for a subchorionic hematoma (I’ll talk more about this in my pregnancy recap!) As if the week couldn’t get any worse, the afternoon I got home, I received a call from my dermatologist letting me know they had found melanoma in my leg, for the second time this year.

The crazy part is that I had that spot checked out about four months earlier, and the doctor told me it was just an age spot. But as the months went on, it got darker and bigger, and I decided to get a second opinion. Sure enough, it was melanoma. So before we headed to New Jersey, I went to a skin surgeon to have it removed. They wanted me to be in my second trimester before the operation. This time, the scar ended up being about four inches long (I’ll spare you the photos!). The good news is that they got it all, and I’ll continue staying on top of my checkups. Now that I’m considered higher risk, I go every four months for skin checks.

And this is where our New Jersey travel blog left off! When we got back from the trip, it was my dad’s birthday. My brother and his girlfriend were staying at our house, and when we walked in, they had made a delicious pot of chili. We all spent the evening hanging out and watching the Iowa Hawkeye game.

After church on Sunday, we stopped at the store to grab ingredients for that salad I got hooked on while I was up visiting. It had fresh spring lettuce, romaine, berries, mandarins, apples, dried cranberries, candied pecans, bell peppers, goat cheese, and a simple oil and vinegar dressing. It’s so good! I made a big batch of that, plus homemade butternut squash soup, shrimp cocktails (my dad’s favorite), and I defrosted some mini éclairs for dessert. We had the best time lounging around the house, watching the Eagles play, and turning the toy room into complete Sunday chaos!

It was back to school the next day for the little one, which meant I finally had a morning to myself after all the traveling and family visits. I spent it pruning my garden (so sad it’s in its final days now that it’s getting colder but I added a bunch of garden photos in this post for you!). Our church had just set up their pumpkin patch, so I couldn’t resist snagging a few beautiful pumpkins for our front porch! The heirloom pumpkins are my absolute favorite.

I did some meal prepping for the week and made a big batch of quinoa, roasted butternut squash, seasoned chicken breasts, and salad to have on hand for quick meals. My salads were similar to the one I mentioned above, but the bowls included quinoa, chicken, cranberries, avocado, butternut squash (or sometimes sweet potatoes), goat cheese, and kale. I drizzled a little oil and vinegar dressing on top. For my sweet tooth, I made my three-ingredient brownies and topped them with fresh raspberries and a dollop of whipped cream.

After having breakfast with a friend on Thursday (Poppyseed, my fave!), I headed to the surgeon’s office to have my stitches removed. It felt so good to finally get those itchy things out! Since I had been diligent about applying Vaseline for the past few weeks, it’s healed up incredibly well so far. The edges are still a bit puckered (just like my arm was last time) but I know it’ll smooth out over time. I’m just so relieved knowing it’s out of me and behind me now. Hopefully that’s the last time! So don’t mind me if you see me in a sweatshirt and long pants all summer long. I’ve also realized I’m not the best about sunscreen and hats during the winter sun, and I definitely need to get better about that!

Friday was a jam-packed day!

We started the morning at Anne Springs to explore the nature trails and outdoor playground. Of course, I didn’t realize my husband had put our son in the car wearing his Crocs, which made for some very wet feet and a few “Can you get the mulch out of my shoe?” every ten minutes. It was still such a fun morning! After Anne Springs, we headed to Baxter Village for lunch at Ilios, grabbed our favorite macarons from Southern Olive, and made a quick stop at the library to return our old books and pick out new ones.

Friday night, we had plans that I look forward to every single year—pizza night at Wise Acres Farm! They have the best pizza in Charlotte. Even my Italian, New Jersey–born husband agrees! We were so excited to spend our last evening out with Kyle before he flew to Germany for work the next morning. He was going to be gone for over a week.

Wise Acres is definitely one of my favorite farms in the Charlotte area. They have the coolest outdoor playgrounds made from recycled materials, pumpkin patches, flower fields, swings, tractor rides, donuts and the list goes on! I look forward to going every single year, especially when pizza is involved.

I have pictures of him on that same swing from when he was just eight months old since we’ve gone every year since. It’s so crazy how fast life is going. People weren’t joking when they told me not to blink. I know it can be annoying as a new mom to hear all the “just wait” comments or unsolicited advice from others, but looking back, they weren’t wrong.

One breakfast I’ve been loving (and also craved during my first pregnancy) is Greek yogurt with granola, fresh fruit, and local honey (which reminds me, I need to pick up some more local honey today!). Lately, the Painterland Sisters yogurt has been my favorite! I usually have my cappuccino around 5 a.m. with a packet of oatmeal, then enjoy this delicious bowl as soon as I get back from preschool drop-off.

I love making my own granola, and that’s actually on my to-do list for today! Anything that involves a mixing bowl, my toddler wants in. I usually keep it in a jar on the counter for my morning yogurt, or for my toddler to sneak a handful of. When I don’t have a homemade batch ready, my go-to is the Blueberry Purely Elizabeth granola.

One of my favorite meals to make in the fall is my orange cranberry carrot chicken! I usually marinate the chicken for about 24 hours first. It’s so delicious and filled with all the perfect fall flavors. Sometimes I cook it on the stovetop, but lately, I’ve been making things easier by baking it in the oven at 350 for about 25 minutes (depends how thick you cut the chicken.) I also like to pre-cook the carrots with a little olive oil for about 10 minutes before adding them in. I served it over marinated arugula, burrata and an olive oil and pepper drizzle. Since my mom was going to be hanging around for the week while Kyle was gone, I took advantage of making some yummy fall meals for us.

I was in love with how my peachy-pink cactus zinnias bloomed this year! I think I found the seed packet at Lowe’s, and they turned out even prettier than I imagined. I’ve been harvesting the seeds for next year. Most of the zinnias in my garden actually come from seeds I’ve saved from previous years.

The dahlias were all cut down back in August. I was so sick and couldn’t tend to them, so my mom came over and cut everything back in the garden. A few months later, they started coming up even stronger! After the first frost in a few weeks, I’ll be separating the tubers so I can make the dahlia garden even bigger next year. I think I’m going to move some down along the fence line since I’m starting to run out of room in the beds. Some of the dahlias in my garden are three years old, and some new from farms from upstate New York.

After church on Sunday, we had a little mommy-and-son date at the mall. We stopped by the LEGO store, grabbed matcha at the Nordstrom Café, picked out a few clothing items since he’s getting too tall for his pants, and ended the day with a yummy lunch at one of my favorites, Chopt! I’ve been loving with their Harvest Bowl lately (which I always try to recreate at home!).

My son loves LEGOs, so we picked out a few fun kits to build together. We usually save them for Sundays during the Eagles game—it’s become our little tradition to watch football and build LEGOs side by side.

I cannot wait for December because we’re going to start building some of the Christmas LEGO sets! In the playroom, we have an area called “LEGO Lane” that’s filled with over 35 kits we’ve built together. We’re planning to add shelves in his room eventually to display them all on the wall. We just haven’t decided yet what to do about the rooms and nursery, whether we’ll move him into the bigger room and put the baby in his current one, or keep things as they are for now. We only have three months left, and we’ve done nothing! The second-child prep really is so much more laid-back, lol.

That evening, the driveway turned into an art zone for all the kids on our street—it was so much fun! I love when they play outside until the sun starts to set. My son is always peeking out the window to see if his neighborhood friends are out, ready to join in.

It was fall break, so we decided to do some fun fall baking to kick off the celebrations. I’m so lucky to have a little boy who loves all things baking. He’s always asking to make brownies, cookies, or sourdough bread. He especially loves mixing everything together in the bowls!

When we made frosted sugar cookies last year, he had an absolute blast. We’ve done it a few times since, but this time we wanted to make a festive fall version, and it turned out so cute!

Here’s my recipe for Frosted Sugar Cookies (Dye-Free), and here’s the Gluten-Free Frosted Sugar Cookies (Dye-Free) version!

This time, we made pumpkin and leaf-shaped cookies! I like to use the cookie cut outs for crusts for when I’m making fall pies. My mom joined us for decorating, which made it even more special. It’s something we’ve loved doing together since I was a kid and probably a big reason why I love baking so much.

I get all of my natural sprinkles from Amazon, Whole Foods, or Sprouts. They have so many fun options without any dyes!

And they tasted so delicious the next morning with my coffee! We packed some up for my dad and a few friends, but the rest went into the freezer and we’ve still been enjoying them a month later.

That night, to go with the cozy fall weather we were having, I made a batch of my butternut squash soup and poured it over some bowtie pasta and arugula to make a creamy butternut squash pasta. We topped it with leftover orange cranberry chicken, and it was absolutely amazing!

Fall break continued with a cozy morning of baking banana streusel muffins, heading out for park dates, and ending the day with one of my favorite breakfast-for-dinner recipe, maple sausage & potato hash!

On Thursday, we met up with our friends at The Union Exchange for a full day of fun. The weather was absolutely perfect, and I was so glad we got to spend every bit of it outside doing all the fall things. Anytime I’m at Union Exchange, I just have to start off with an oat milk latte because it’s so good! This time I added one pump of pumpkin spice syrup.

There’s so much to do at Union Exchange, which is why we’ve been loving it (and spoiled by it) for the past three years. I still remember taking my son there when he was only six months old!

They continue to expand it every year, too. The kids love the playground, having picnics by the water (I highly recommend their sandwiches when the kitchen is open!), visiting the horses, goats, and chickens, playing in the arcade, riding the tractor, and enjoying all the fun events they host.

We spent over six hours there with the little ones!

Looking back at all the photos makes me emotional because it’s sad how fast time is flying. Next fall when we go, we’ll have another little brother with us!

It was about a 40-minute drive home, so we decided to stop in Waxhaw to check out the cute new coffee shop, Daily Grind! I grabbed a decaf cappuccino to enjoy on the drive home, and we made one more stop at Waxhaw Creamery for a scoop of their pumpkin ice cream.

On Friday morning, we headed out for a walk and picked up coffee at the neighborhood pop-up. I absolutely love Naturally Sweet Café! The owners are the sweetest! They let us sample their new pumpkin donuts, and they were amazing. Everything they make is organic, and you can truly taste the difference in quality. I had a matcha latte for the walk home, and it was the perfect cozy start to the day.

After our walk, we stopped by Poppyseed for breakfast, then spent the rest of the day playing with chalk, doing some yard work, and relaxing around the house, especially needed after such a big day out the day before.

And you guys know I’m obsessed with doing chalk with my toddler (he loves it too!) I just restocked our chalk bin since we were running low on colors for all our fun creations. I even keep a highlight on my Instagram highlights with all of our chalk drawings if you ever need some easy inspo!

Since we’ve had almost no rain lately, and a bunch of kids who love to cover my driveway in chalk, I’ve had to secretly break out the hose (while they’re all at school so they don’t catch me!) every few days to make room for new drawings. I do love when the little girls come over to join in, though! It gives me the chance to draw Disney castles and butterflies instead of only construction vehicles, haha!

A little pro tip for you if you have dark chalk that doesn’t want to come up, try spraying it with Dawn dish soap before a rainstorm or before hosing it down. It helps it come right up every time for us!

Something that has really been helping me during this pregnancy is having meals prepped (now that I can finally stand the sight and smell of food again.) Some of my favorites to make are roasted sweet potatoes, jalapeño cheddar turkey meatballs (I use my burger recipe but just shape and bake them instead!), and bowls of quinoa with roasted vegetables. I get hungry so randomly, and I hate not knowing what to make. Plus, I definitely don’t want to start cooking while hungry and pregnant because that’s never a good combo!

My son and I planted some spinach for the winter, and we’re planning to add more winter lettuce once the dahlias come out. He loves helping me plant and cook. It’s become one of our favorite things to do together.

On Saturday afternoon, we headed to the airport to pick up Kyle! We were happy to have him back home.

Sunday was a relaxing one.

We headed to church, came home for breakfast (I eat about three breakfasts a day now because I wake up at 4 every morning ha!), watched football, baking, and caught up on a few household chores.

One big win I’ve had in the kitchen with my toddler lately is homemade air-fried French fries. He and I slice the potatoes together, soak them, dry them, and toss them in a bit of avocado oil. I air-fry them at 400 F for about 15 minutes (he likes them extra crispy!) They’re so good. I’ve been making big batches and keeping them in the freezer to reheat throughout the week. He’s a good eater but definitely a picky one, so I try to work with his favorites while sneaking in extra nutrients whenever I can. For example, he hates eggs, but I sneak them into smoothes and his homemade banana protein pancakes. I need to be better about getting more toddler recipes for picky eaters on the blog.

On Monday morning, I baked up some of my chocolate chip cookie dough balls (my go-to recipe!) and packed them in a bakery box with the best frosted pumpkin spice cake bars for Kyle to take into work. Whenever people ask what I do with all the treats I bake for recipe testing and blog posts, they go to my husband’s work, our neighbors, or straight into the freezer for my late-night sweet tooth. Nothing ever goes to waste around here! Oh, and that afternoon I brought some over to my dad (the biggest sweet tooth guy I know) as a little bribe to get him to help me with a Halloween project.

With cold season rolling in, we’ve been upping our morning smoothie game! The key to getting my toddler to drink them is letting him make the entire thing himself but minus the part where he doesn’t see me sneak in hard-boiled egg whites (shhh 🤫).

Our go-to smoothie has organic mixed frozen berries (I get them at Costco!), organic whole milk, a few scoops of Greek yogurt, local honey, ½ serving of organic Orgain protein powder (it makes it so creamy and delicious!), juice from half a lemon, one serving of kids’ elderberry juice, ½ banana, and sometimes a few egg whites for extra protein. He usually has half of the smoothie for breakfast with his waffle and peanut butter, and the other half with dinner later in the day.

After school on Monday, we headed to my parents’ house so I could work on the ghost project with my dad. I don’t usually decorate much for Halloween (aside from a few pumpkins and a cute wreath) but when my adorable little neighbor asked when I was putting up my decorations, I realized how much it means to the kids in the neighborhood, especially since everyone around here goes all out. I told her I’d have them up soon!

My dad was so excited when I told him I had a fun woodworking project I needed his help with. We took a trip to Lowe’s to pick up supplies and got to work! In just a few hours, we cut out the wooden ghosts, added stakes, and the next day I painted them and placed them in the yard. My son also loves helping whenever tools are involved!

I think I’m going to have to plan a Christmas woodworking day with him next to step up our holiday decor game! Let me know if you’d like to see a blog post on these!

It was the most beautiful, crisp fall day with a sunrise to be truly grateful for.

Some of these dahlias have been blooming the size of my toddlers head! I cannot get over them. Fall temps with flower blooms like this is the season I can get behind.

After school on Wednesday, we headed to the library to pick up some new fall books, then went to our favorite spot in the field to read and, of course, enjoy our favorite macarons! Oh, and this Ciao Peach Sanpellegrino is so good!

I love spending time out in the field reading these books while my toddler sprints around between pages and he loves it too. I really need to update our Book Club and start a new page for the fall reads we’ve been working through.

I made a double batch of my favorite turkey meatloaf recipe and sourdough bread so I could send my mom home with plenty of leftovers for her and my dad. She came over that afternoon to help out while I had my prenatal appointments, and I’m so grateful she’s here for to help. She’s truly the best.

When people ask how I manage to get so much done with a toddler, the answer is simple: it’s because of her. She’s completely in love with my son, and honestly, it’s hard to keep her away. I wouldn’t want it any other way. I’m so lucky to have her, and I can only hope I’ll be just like her for my kids one day.

Meatloaf night is one of our favorites. I’ve been trying to make a few good meals throughout the week where we actually sit down at the table and eat together. We usually end up eating around the kitchen counter, but I’m making an effort to have more sit-down family dinners even though it’s not always easy, but it’s the effort that counts. The best part? My toddler loved the sourdough bread and French fries, and I even witnessed him swallow a few bites of my meatloaf (which is a huge win for my little non–meat lover!)

Saturday was jam-packed!

We started the day with an early park date with friends, spent the afternoon at Chuck E. Cheese for a birthday party, and ended the day with a dinner date with our good friends at Burtons Bar and Grill. I love their Harvest Bowl—it comes with rice, goat cheese, butternut squash, Brussels sprouts, broccoli, cranberries, and vinaigrette, and I had them top it with steak. It’s amazing! I also can’t leave without ordering their General Tso cauliflower wings because they’re one of my favorites! I’ve been ordering them for the past ten years!

After church on Sunday, I had to sneak my son’s favorite stuffed animals into the wash. I took it to Instagram to ask for advice on how to sanitize this little guy because he goes everywhere with us! Airplanes, church, restaurants, car rides… you name it. Since my son suffers from seasonal and dust allergies, I knew I had to do something. I already vacuum and wash his sheets every few days to help with his symptoms, but Moo Moo definitely needed some TLC too.

Someone recommended putting him (and his brother, Billy) inside a pillowcase and tossing them in the washing machine and it worked! They came out clean and in one piece. I let them air dry in the sun on top of the laundry, and now they’re fresh again. I think this is going to become a quarterly tradition for Moo Moo!

Another football Sunday in the books.

We kicked off the morning with our smoothies, put together a new LEGO set (an Eagles football game tradition!), made a batch of our favorite blender breakfast oat bars, and enjoyed a cozy dreary fall day at home. I’ve been so bad about keeping up with bump or pregnancy updates, but honestly, I think it’s just harder this time around as a toddler mom when being pregnant isn’t my entire personality this time, lol. Still, it’s wild to think we only have 14 weeks to go!

On Monday morning, we had our friends over for a playdate later in the afternoon. Since the kids were having so much fun, I decided to make dinner for everyone. It was an easy one to throw together: meatloaf, green beans, corn, toasted sourdough bread, and my sausage stuffing, which I already had prepped earlier in the day while working on a blog post!

I did an extreme deep clean upstairs on Tuesday morning. I took apart everything in my son’s room and dusted, washed curtains, cleaned every hidden corner, and even swapped out the pillows. We’ve been dealing with some awful allergies and are still trying to figure out what’s going on. I’ll update soon since we’ll most likely be doing some testing for him. In the meantime, I’m doing as much cleaning as possible and added a room air purifier to help.

After a few hours of cleaning, I treated myself to one of my favorites, Rock Hill Coffee Roasters, for a decaf cappuccino. Just to clarify, I don’t only drink decaf during pregnancy. I usually have my regular coffee around 4 a.m., and then switch to decaf for the rest of the day… unless I really need the caffeine, of course!

That night, I made Dutch oven steak with roasted vegetables, and it was the perfect dinner to end the day. Oh, and I also toasted some sourdough bread!

My parents live just a few miles down the road from Black’s Peaches, a fun little farm with amazing produce, strawberry picking, ice cream, and a playground for the kids to run around. My tractor-loving son is in his glory there, especially with all the refurbished playground tractors!

Before heading out, I picked up a bunch of fresh produce to cook for the week. Their prices and quality outshine all the local grocery stores! I’ve been on a serious squash kick lately, and they had such an amazing selection. And of course, we can’t leave Black’s Peaches without a scoop of ice cream!

My son picked out the cookie dough chocolate chip ice cream, and although it’s not a flavor I’d usually go for but wow, it was incredible! There were huge chunks of cookie dough in every scoop. Seriously, some of the best ice cream I’ve had!

On Friday, after a fun morning at the park with friends, we headed to Trader Joe’s to stock up for the week. It’s tradition for us to grab a smoothie from Green Brothers Juice after every Trader Joe’s run! I mainly go there for their sweet and spicy jalapeños because they’re my secret ingredient for adding a kick to my sourdough bread, which I’m actually making as I type this!

On Sunday night, I made my favorite salmon bowls, and I’m actually making them again tonight! I air-fry the salmon after seasoning it with soy sauce, honey, Everything But the Bagel seasoning, garlic powder, black pepper, dill, and a drizzle of avocado oil around the edges. Make sure to follow my Instagram because I always post these in real time with the descriptions and save them to my highlights. I pair it with steamed rice and steamed green beans, which I finish with a little soy sauce, garlic powder, and black pepper. So simple, healthy, and so good!

Saturday morning was the perfect day to head to the zoo! Our last visit was in October of last year, and this time the weather was absolute perfection for a zoo day. I honestly can’t imagine coming here in the middle of the southern summer heat!

We love the Riverbanks Zoo because it’s perfect for a day trip and such an amazing experience for kids (and animal lovers like me!) My absolute favorite part is the gorillas. I could sit and watch them all day. They are such gorgeous animals!

My son’s favorite part of the zoo is feeding the giraffes so we had to do multiple rounds until he was fully satisfied!

Another incredible new addition to the zoo is the Saluda Sky Ride, which takes you across the river to the botanical gardens. To make it even better, the LEGO statues in the gardens had my LEGO-loving boy in absolute heaven. We seriously had the best day! After sitting down for lunch, we treated ourselves to a delicious Bavarian salted pretzel. Last time we ate at their restaurant, which was really good but it’s definitely on the pricey side. I highly recommend packing your own lunch instead; there are plenty of shaded spots to sit and eat!

When I got home, I had my leftover salmon bowl for dinner. I’m usually not a huge fan of leftover salmon, but I discovered that if you heat it for about 8 seconds in the microwave with a splash of soy sauce, it reheats perfectly!

We tried out The Mason Jar for a sweet treat after dinner. And I know what you’re thinking—“Gosh, you let your toddler have a lot of ice cream!” But here’s the thing: I can order him a huge serving of ice cream or let him have a slice of birthday cake at a party, and this kid will take two bites and be done. So, I hardly ever say no to him because he never eats enough to hit a sugar high.

I truly think it’s because I’ve always allowed him to have sweets without making it a big deal. Since it’s not “off-limits,” he doesn’t treat it like something he needs to finish or only gets on rare occasions. Honestly, I don’t even think he likes the ice cream as much as the idea of it if that makes sense!

On Sunday after church, I went upstairs to work on my blog, sip some coffee, and watch the final season of Desperate Housewives. I definitely needed a little R&R after a long week and a full day at the zoo. I sent my husband and toddler to Costco with a big list.

When the boys got home, my parents came over to watch the Eagles vs. Giants game with us. My dad’s a Giants fan and my husband’s an Eagles fan, it’s always fun (and a little chaotic) to watch those rival teams together!

I also worked on my Peanut Butter Snickers Cookies with Salted Caramel Buttercream for an upcoming blog post. I used to make these for markets, and they were always one of the best sellers, so I’ve been eager to get the recipe up! Plus, with so many leftover Halloween Snickers bars, I figured it’s the perfect way to use them up. And of course, my little baking buddy jumped right in to help.

Later in the afternoon, I threw my son’s astronaut costume on to do Trunk or Treat at the church. It was a blast and I loved how many people showed up with decorated trunks for the kids!

My little astronaut loved the bounce house and even tried cotton candy for the first time. He took one bite and asked why it “tasted like hair.” I laughed so hard because honestly, even though it tastes good, he’s not wrong about the texture!

My mom and dad stuck around after the game, so I whipped up a quick and easy dinner Dutch oven steak, green beans, roasted squash, and toasted sourdough bread. It was the perfect cozy meal to wrap up the weekend.

Oh and the cookies were a hit with them! 🙂 Snickers are my dad’s favorite.

Like usual, I sent the leftovers to my husband’s work—I could not have those sitting around here! I also packed up some for my friend, whose older boys are always eating their way through the house after all their sports practices.

Although I have so many more photos and moments to add to this recap, I’m going to hold off until after Halloween night! I can’t imagine how your eyes must feel if you’ve made it this far but if you did, thanks for sticking with me!