Pink Blossoms in Fall

We found a huge hydrangea on one of our walks this summer.  It's actually pruned to be a tree not a shrub and it's over 6 feet tall.  We've admired the stages it has gone through, from a honeybee haven of creamy-green flowers that smell like heaven, to this incredible pink treasure land.  Chloe wanted to preserve a memory of it's beauty with her own little face right in the middle of all those blossoms.  Fall is so pretty!

Pumpkin Farm

Monday was our day.  Perfect weather and friends who got back in town just in time to join us.  Plus Bryce's family was there too!  Here's a bit of what happened over the course of five hours together (and apart).

Gentlemen!  Start your engines!  Or at least get your legs ready for a 3 hour workout.

I tried to split my time up between the girls and boys who did separate things again this year.  The boys love the dirt track and the girls love the animals.  Ysabet and Chloe fed goats and bunnies up over the hill while I hung out with the boys at the track.

After a long separation, the corn box brought everyone together for a cooling-off resting time.  And that's where we found Bryce's family.

The kids divided up their time between their favorite places all day (dirt track, big slides, animals) but they did a few of the extra things as the ran past them.  Evan and Jed looked so silly on the trikes.

I calculated that between all four kids and lots of quarters for food, the farm goats ate $7 of our money. But it was worth it.

The boys were sweating for most of the afternoon as they rounded the dirt track for the fiftieth time.  Luckily, there was a hand-wash station with ice cold water for dunking your head in (if you're a boy, that is), so after a brief run up the hill and far away then back down again, they were recharged.  And drenched.

Chloe held her own on this track.  She kept up with the boys and raced several adults that were out there.  She is stronger and faster every year, and so proud of herself.

Towards the end, Evan challenged Aunt Bryce to a race.  I wonder who won?

We came prepared for speed on the big slides this year.  Evan and Chloe wanted to bring their small fleece blankets which are the perfect material for a zippy drop.

Before heading to the car we spotted the slingshot arena open for free and stopped to try it out.  It was much harder than it looked and Farmer Jess beat everyone every single time.

The countdown to next year's trip begins shortly after Christmas is over.

Inside & Outside

Inside  ::  playing chess, painting-by-number, setting up the Christmas village we were recently given, putting puzzles together, knotting friendship bracelets, reading The Wizard of Oz again, cuddling sleepy cats, drinking cider, drawing in journals, dreaming of Christmas!

Outside ::  raking leaves, splashing in puddles, carrying umbrellas on walks, driving RC toys all over the place, playing Panther and Mouse with all the neighbor kids, making muddy footprints, layering more each day, listening to the crows have their noisy meeting, collecting acorns, hoping we'll have one more nice day to make it to the pumpkin farm!

The Joy of Leaves

Playing in Fall

It seems that every other day is rainy this month, but when it's not raining we're trying to be outside.  The days of fall always seem like they go by in a blink unless we purpose to savor each one.  Our walks are fewer now but so very pretty.  The kids have been playing almost daily with the neighbors as they all converge in our backyard after school for hours at a time. 

And when it's just the three of us out here, I love watching Evan and Chloe 'being horses' together, practicing riding the next-size-up bikes, or playing in car city.  Evan has also been experimenting with his sling shot trying pine cones, acorns, clumps of grass, tree bark....  Acorns are his favorite, especially when they bounce off the stop signs.

We've done our best to stay positive this month with all the halloween yuk being displayed; it's our goal to look away and find something beautiful instead for our hearts to focus on.  (This is harder than ever with our next door neighbor's haunted graveyard display complete with murderous evil skeletons and such right beside our driveway.) 

The kids are counting the days till we can get to the pumpkin farm and to the last day of the month when we make the year's first pumpkin pie.  Fall really is our favorite time of year, even though it's short.

Wide Open Spaces

A Glimpse

In her mind are visions of flower fields, horse pastures, patchwork quilts, rainbows, red birds, playful puppies, cuddling kittens, colorful outfits, cloud-filled skies, feathers and all sorts of whimsical designs.  Out here in the yard she fills her doodling journal with her thoughts and pictures. Her mind spills out on paper and a glimpse of her visions are there in a notebook for all to see.