Jacket, Shirt and Pant (Gap). Scarf (Jacob). Shoes (Aldo).

This is what I wore today. I’m extremely tired from yesterday’s excursion with my son’s preschool to the Corn Maze. I basically slept while he napped and then spent most of the evening in bed with chest pain. It’s come back, not as bad, but it’s there taunting me :(. I guess I haven’t rested as much as I should have. Anyways the weekend is fast approaching, so I’ll get a chance to get some more R and R. Below are pictures of our Corn Maze adventure.

Aiden had the time of his little life. We were both exhausted and quite dirty from our field trip.

Canadian Thanksgiving is coming up his Monday October 8. Thanksgiving for me is not just about the Turkey, or in our case the roast beast, it’s about remembering to be grateful for what we have. We get so caught up in the preparations for Thanksgiving, the cooking of the meal, the making of the desserts, the decorating of the house, that we forget to actually stop and be thankful for all the wonderful things in our lives. Although this past year has plagued us with some rotten luck, my family and I are still so very lucky. We are blessed with our beautiful home, wonderful, supportive friends and family, and to some extent our health (mine thankfully is on the mend, slowly). I know that I am guilty of focusing on the negatives in our lives, but I want to teach my son to be thankful for all the good that is in it, because we have a lot. I told my husband and son that on Monday I want to go around the table and get everyone, including our guests, to say what they are thankful for. It all starts at home. It starts with us, the parents, teaching our kids, because we all know they learn by example. We need to focus more on what we have, rather than what we don’t have. Here are my reasons why I am thankful this Thanksgiving.

1. For the health of myself and my family. Although my health hasn’t been perfect these past few weeks, I am healing. I didn’t need to be hospitalized or needed any further interventions. My son is growing like a weed and my husband is as healthy as a horse (thank God, because someone has to take care of me :)).

2. To be blessed with so many caring and wonderful friends. I know that I keep saying this, but it’s true. Our friends really stepped up to the plate and came to our aide with loads of positive thoughts, prayers, offers to help and by filling my fridge and freezer with great food.

3. To live in our beautiful home. It hasn’t been easy this past year, with my husband losing his job, but we are able to continue to live in it. We are so proud of what our home represents. It represents ourselves, our love, our family and most importantly our heart. We have had so many compliments on how “homey” our home feels. It makes us feel good. We want our friends to make themselves feel at home. I’ve been to too many homes, where you walk in and you don’t see a stitch of personality anywhere. I like when you see kid’s artwork, their toys, people’s personality in their home. We take great pride in our home, and we love to share it with our friends.

4. My husband has a job!!!!!

5. For my wonderful boys. I have the best husband and son. They have taken the best care of me these past few weeks, and I know that I wouldn’t have healed as well without all their TLC.

6. My son is in preschool and I get a few hours to myself :). It’s not much, and is filled with errand running, but it gives me a bit of a break. It’s also teaching him independence, self-confidence, how to socialize with other kids and how to solve problems without Mama around.

7. For my job, for being allowed to do what I love. It’s not always easy and is full of politics, but I love working with the moms and bringing babies into this world.

8. My blog. My blog has given me a voice and has allowed me to share my experiences with other women. It has been therapeutic and cathartic, giving me a platform to share my trials and tribulations.

9. The opportunity to make cupcakes for an inner city school every month. Last year, a school in the East side was struggling. Kids were coming to school without proper food, footwear, and/or clothing. I offered to make cupcakes for the kids every month for their birthdays. I truly believe that every child deserves to celebrate their birthday. Their circumstances are not their fault, and shouldn’t be punished for it. It makes me feel incredibly blessed to be able to give back to the community ). This makes it my second year doing this.

10. To live in a country where I have the freedom of speech, to work, to wear whatever I want, to practice whatever religion I please, the freedom of choice, to vote, etc. I complain, like many of us, about politics and life, but we can’t forget our freedom. There are many, many people out there living in oppression and fear. They don’t have the same rights. Whenever I frustrated about things here, I try to remind myself that things could be so much worse.

11. My husband had the chance to meet his idol: James Hetfield this past August :).

Take the time this weekend to reflect upon what you are thankful for.

To change things up a bit, here are my must-have items for Fall. For the past month or so I’ve been blogging about different Fall trends, but here they are in a nice, neat nutshell. You can click on the links below to read my previous posts on some of the must have items.

1. Find yourself some great nail polish. The colors that I like for Fall are deep shades of blue (Opening Midnight), red (Mr. Right Now), black (What’s a Tire Jack), grey (Dark Room) and purple (Seriously, It’s a Naan Issue). All available at Sephora by OPI.

2. Get yourself a pair of boots or 2 or 3 :). Consider rain boots, booties, riding boots, Ugg type boots and high heel ones.

3. Add sexy patent heels to your wardrobe. Nude is very popular and black is classic.

4. Have some fantastic jeans in your closet. They can be trouser, boyfriend, skinny, doesn’t matter, as long as they fit well and make you feel pretty.

5. Purchase some sweaters. I would recommend a turtleneck, a cowl-neck sweater, a chunky cardigan and one with some simple detail, like sequins on the collar.

Turtleneck (R W and Co). Skirt (Gap). Boots (Browns) Tights (Jacob).

Sweater (Old Navy). Jeans (Gap). Shoes (Toms). Bracelet (Stella and Dot). Watch (Coach).

Sweater (R W and Co). Leggings (Jacob). Hunter Boots (Gift).

Now the sweater belted with flats.

Sweater (R W and Co). Leggings and belt (Jacob). Shoes (Aldo).

6. Boyfriend Blazer. Both blazers from R W and Co.

7. Leggings and tights. Great for under bulky sweaters, or skirts.

8. A sexy pencil skirt. I think every girl should own at least one, even if you don’t work in an office. They are very versatile and flattering on all body shapes. Think about something in lace or what about a tweed!!!

Tweed Skirt (R W and Co). Cardigan (Jacob). T-Shirt (Gap). Boots (Nine West). Necklace (Banana Republic). Watch (Michael Kors). Bracelet (Poshlocket).

Now the cardigan belted. Belt from Jacob.

Tweed skirt with a turtleneck

Turtleneck and Skirt (R W and Co). Boots (Nine West). Tights (Jacob).

With a blouse and heels. Sorry about the sunlight. There was no place else for me to take the picture.

Top (Mexx). Skirt (R W and Co). Necklace (Banana Republic). Shoes (Aldo).

Lace Skirt

Top and Skirt (Jacob). Shoes (Aldo).

9. Statement necklace. Just because you are bundled up in a sweater or coat, doesn’t mean you can’t have some bling and/or sparkle underneath there :).

10. White t-shirt. Great layering piece, under sweaters, jackets, cardigans and blazers.

11. Colored pair of pants. The huge trend for this Fall is burgundy.

Blazer and Pants (R W and Co). Top (Jacob). Shoes (Aldo). Bracelet (Etsy). Watch (Michael Kors). Necklace (Banana Republic).

A casual look.

Top (Gap). Pants (R W and Co). Shoes (Fergalicious). Necklace (Etsy).

12. Find yourself a sexy blouse or 2. You can wear them with a trouser jean or skinnies, or with your very versatile pencil skirt.

Blouse with skinny jeans and heels. Wore this out last Friday.

Blouse and Jeans (R W and Co). Shoes (Aldo). Necklace (Stella and Dot). Bracelet (Etsy). Watch (Michael Kors).

Same top with a tweed pencil skirt

Top and Skirt (R W and Co). Necklace (Stella an Dot). Shoes (Aldo). Bracelet (Etsy). Watch (Michael Kors).

Blouse with trouser jeans and heels. This was inspired by an outfit I found on Pinterest.

This is from Pinterest.

My version with trouser jeans but could definitely be done with skinny jeans or boyfriend jeans.

13. Great Jacket.

14. Collared shirt, whether is Gingham, Oxford or Chambray. They layer well with sweaters and cardigans.

I’ve shown an Oxford shirt layered under a sweater with cuffed jeans and heels.

Oxford Shirt (Jacob). Sweater (Old Navy). Jeans (R W and Co). Shoes (Aldo). Watch (Michael Kors). Bracelets (Poshlocket).

15. Get yourself a hat and some colorful scarves. These can be found at Old Navy and the Gap and its 30% off this weekend on line.

Last but not least, here is a great Pumpkin Chiffon Pie Recipe courteosy of Oprah’s friend Christine Ferrare. It’s a yummy alternative to the classic pumpkin pie and you don’t have to bake it.

Recipe created by Cristina Ferrare

When topping off a holiday meal, Cristina Ferrare suggests making pumpkin chiffon rather than regular pumpkin pie. It’s a lighter dessert option for those who are already stuffed!

Servings: Serves 8

Ingredients

• 1 envelope unflavored gelatin
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp. allspice
• 1/4 tsp. ginger
• 1/2 tsp. nutmeg
• 3/4 cup milk
• 2 large egg yolks , beaten
• 1 cup canned pumpkin puree
• 2 egg whites
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup heavy cream , whipped
• 1 (9-inch) graham cracker crust
• Whipped cream for garnish

Directions

In a saucepan, combine the gelatin, sugar, salt, cinnamon, allspice, ginger and nutmeg. Stir in the milk, egg yolks and pumpkin. Cook over medium heat until the mixture bubbles and thickens. Remove from the heat and chill until partially set, about 1 hour.Remove the chilled pumpkin mixture from the refrigerator and give it a stir, set aside.Beat the egg whites until soft peaks form, then gradually add the sugar and continue whipping until stiff peaks from. Fold into the pumpkin mixture along with the whipped cream. Pour into the pie crust and chill for 1 hour. Decorate the top with more whipped cream.

May this blog inspire you to think about all the things you are grateful for this weekend, to try adding something new to your Fall wardrobe and you try this fantastic alternative to the traditional Pumpkin Pie.

Happy Early Thanksgiving Everyone!!!!