Fall has definitely fallen here in the Northwest with a big, fat, wet splat. Today is normal fall and winter weather -- grey, overcast, drizzly, with highs in the low 60s.

One would think that it'd be freezing cold in Seattle since we are so far north. I was so excited when I found out we were moving here because I'd finally have a reason to buy the flannel-lined jeans that LL Bean sells and that I have been coveting for years. That's what I thought, however. Then I realized that it just doesn't get cold here. It will go down into the 30s and 40s for the daily highs for a week or two in the dead of winter, but usually the temps are in the upper 40s to 50s all season long.

That said, it doesn't rain as much as they tell you it does. Really, it doesn't. People have this perception that it starts raining in September and doesn't let up till May. That just isn't so. The reality is that most of the time, it does rain somewhere in the area nearly every day -- but if you stay in one place, you get rain maybe once a week. And it's a drizzle, anyhow. You can tell the tourists from the natives because the tourists carry umbrellas. We natives (I guess I'm a native now) know that it's not going to rain any harder than a drizzle, and so we either deal with damp hair or wear a jacket with a hood.

The few days where it does really pour (what I affectionately have termed "Virginia rain" because in Virginia, when it rains, it POURS) are so rare as to be almost shocking. I can remember being on the phone with Kurt and telling him, "Honey!! It's Virginia raining!!! You should see it!!!" I couldn't stop looking out the window because it is such a rare occurrence.

The other thing I miss, besides snow, is thunderstorms. When I was visiting the ancestral home in June, it thunderstormed at one point. My parents just kept going about their business like nothing unusual was happening, while I was glued to the windows, watching the fury of the storm. It'd been such a long time, two and a half years, to be exact, since I'd seen a thunderstorm.

But anyhow.

So Kurt tells me that we're going to be tax-free for the months of September and October, which means that the taxes we've already paid to Uncle Sam will be refunded sometime during October, no later than 1 November. This makes me REALLY happy. If we choose to fly to Tucson for Christmas, we will be able to afford it nicely, PLUS I can get a new entertainment center for the living room!! Kurt doesn't know yet that I want a new one, but he will be footing the bill. I'm so sneaky... I'm hoping to get one with lots of storage that will help my home look way less cluttered. I have waaaaaaaaaaaaaaay too much crap in this house. I need to just purge EVERYTHING and get rid of it all.

But I'm a pack rat.

I come by it honestly; you should see my parents' home!!! My dad still has his college textbooks because, as he says, he may "need them." Um. He graduated from college in 1968, majoring in English. He now works in public relations. I don't think he's even looked at his books since 1994 when we moved back to that house, so it'd be a safe bet that he could get rid of them and never miss them.

I have very few of my college textbooks, mainly just the ones I couldn't sell back to the bookstore for a decent price. If I paid $80 for a text, the bookstore was willing to give me $10 back for it at the end of the year so they can sell it to next semester's students for $65. That just annoyed me and so I kept some of my textbooks. They're in boxes in the garage out of the way.

I still need to get rid of tons of crap, though.

I'll just wait till Kurt comes home... my mantra for the next few weeks!

So today Grace and I went out with my friend R and her little son, who's almost six months old. He has that really round face with the pinchable chubby cheeks, and the most gorgeous blue eyes. He is definitely one of the cutest babies I have ever seen, my own daughter excluded, of course.

We went downtown to walk among the little boutiques and antique stores, and stopped in for a mocha as well. Trust me, there's no way to go downtown without getting a coffee. She'd mentioned stopping to get one, and it was then that I realized there were no less than three espresso joints in a block's distance.

We Washingtonians certainly do like our coffee!!!

The only bummer was that my favorite little antique shop was closed. That's the antique shop that was displaying the Major Award from The Christmas Story during the holidays; you know, the "glow of electric sex in the window." How could you NOT love an antique store that chooses to display the Major Award so prominently?! Plus all the stuff in there is from the 40s and 50s, which is just my favorite time period for antiques.

I wasn't too bummed, however, because they were closed in order to put out more items. That's always a bonus. More stuff to look at and spend my husband's hard earned money on!!!

I also managed to get myself a stick of rock candy while we were out. It always reminds me of elementary school field trips. There just wasn't a place that we went that didn't sell rock candy in the gift shops. I'm not a big fan of candy overall, but I do love a good stick of rock candy.

R was bummed because the children's boutique is closed on Mondays. She had her heart set on a pair of octopus Robeez soft-soled shoes for her son, and the children's boutique is the only store that sells them locally. At that point she suggested going down to the consignment store, and it wasn't like I could say no!

I am drawn to that consignment store like a moth to a flame, and probably as fatally. I just don't want to know how much money I have spent in there.

But Grace needs clothes, right?? You can't just put her in the same outfit day after day, right?? And I need different outfits for going out (which Michele usually provides) and staying home, since today's children's fashions generally don't allow for the bulk of a cloth diaper. So you see, Grace needed new clothes!!!!

Or that's what I keep telling myself, anyhow.

I did get some good deals. A Carter's one piece jumpsuit, brand new with tag, for $5 (retail is probably like $18, unless you get it at Costco, where it would be $6.50). It's cute -- yellow with Parisian designs all over it. Gymboree leggings for $3. A deep purple Ralph Lauren jumper with a pleated bottom for $3.65. Gymboree pink overalls with a purple flower print for $3. You just can't beat it!

I'm kind of snotty about the used clothes I buy. My friend R loves to take me to Goodwill and Value Village (a non-charitable thrift store here), and she finds some really cheap clothes for her son. But I won't buy just anything. I don't so much care for the name brands (although I did buy the Ralph Lauren jumper more because it was Ralph Lauren than for any other reason; when else am I going to be able to afford such a ritzy label?!), except when I know it means quality. I don't buy Carter's just to buy Carter's; I like to buy Carter's when I can because it will last through not just Grace but the next two kids we have. But I also like Okie-Dokie, JC Penney's brand, for the same reason.

Actually, my favorite brand for kids' clothes right now is Greendog, which can be found at Macy's. They have the cutest styles for little girls!! I just can't resist them when they're on sale.

But I digress.

R will buy things that I won't touch. I'm sorry, but I'm not going to buy a ratty blanket sleeper that has been through six kids just because it's only 99 cents. I am willing to spend $3 or $5 on something at the consignment store or thrift store because it's still much less than it would be at the mall. But I want it to at least look new, or just barely used. I don't want Grace looking like a ragamuffin.

R's always giving me these looks like, "Why are you spending so much on clothes for Grace??" when she gets all her son's clothes from garage sales or thrift stores. I refuse to feel guilty. Kurt and I can afford to buy new clothes on sale or gently used clothes from the consignment store. Maybe she's just jealous because she can't. I know she would shit a brick if she found out I spent $36 (on ten items!!!) at the consignment store today. But it's really none of her business. I'm just proud of myself for spending $36 on clothes that would probably have cost me three or four times that, if I had bought them at the mall.

I do have to admit that I enjoy buying clothes for Gracie too much. I myself can't stand to wear the same outfit within one week, so I guess I sort of project that onto Gracie. I look at an outfit that just came out of the wash and think to myself, "She just wore that two days ago... she should wear something else!"

What I think I will do is go through the stuff that I bought for Grace that she's grown out of. I'll get rid of the stuff that I thought I would like that really didn't pan out in practice because if I didn't like it on Grace, I'm not going to like it on my next kid. I'll most likely consign it; that way I can feed my addiction for more new clothes!