Not Even Winter Yet

Brrr....It's cold here! It got down to the 20s last night, and when that wind blows, it is bitter! I tried to take Quinn to the park today, but I could only stand it for about 15 minutes. Even in a big jacket, the wind was too frigid. Tomorrow is supposed to almost 60 degrees, and we have a playdate planned for the warmest part of the day with Maureen and her daughter Sarah and Karen and her two kids. I've met Karen at two different playdates so far and I have yet to meet her kids. The new park Maureen found is so great. There are two separate playgrounds, one for big kids and one for little, a little river, swings (like romantic couples' swings), bathrooms (woohoo), picnic tables, and walking paths. The little kids' playground is completely gated in, so that's safe. We have a lot of fun with Maureen and Sarah. Sarah is just a couple months younger than Quinn, so they get along (or at least, they play with the same things: trash, acorns, gravel).
Yesterday was Jalal's day off, and we took advantage of it by spending just about the whole day out. We did a lot of shopping, mostly for Christmas. It is really nice to have some of our Christmas shopping done. We also found a tool set and a log holder for the fireplace, which we have been using almost every night. We switched to real logs instead of the Duraflame logs, and they give off so much more heat and light, not to mention a nicer smell. It is so cool to hang out in front of the fireplace on a cold night. We had my friend Leah and her husband Brayden (spelling?) over for dinner last week. We've been trying to do that for almost six months it seems. Neither of us had met Brayden. We had a great time. Jalal made his famous tacos and fried the shells himself. Leah finally remembered Quinn's birthday present, which he is playing with right now. It's a Fisher Price toy train that has three balls that spin around or spit out the back. He's obsessed. Good choice, Leah! Oh yeah, and I got a new job! I haven't had any work yet, but I got a job as a freelance proofreader for a company in California that does 24/7 tutoring and proofreading. I was one of 20 chosen out of 500 resumes submitted, so I'm very proud of myself. Well, I'm going to get going. Jalal's almost home and I've got to finish dinner. Love, Us.