Bauman's Harvest Festival

I had to write a note to excuse Kari from the last bit of her symphonic band retreat so that we could still have our fall fun. She had been dreading this retreat, but she ended up having a great time and was surprised when she was kinda sad to leave that night instead of spending the night. I went up that night and helped with dinner then stayed until late that night so I could bring her home. I asked if she wanted to stay, but she said no, that she'd rather be with us. :)

We spent our annual fall family day at Bauman's Harvest Festival, a pretty amazing place that Tiffany has dubbed "the Disneyland of pumpkin patches." The weather was beautiful, and we had a wonderful day together doing all the fun things (jumping pillow, laser tag, slides, wooden maze, corn maze, dark maze, hay ride, apple-tasting) and eating all the yummy things (cider donuts--yum!). Once again, this day was one of my very favorites with my family.

Fall Happenings

We've gone to a few Barlow football games at the new stadium. It's so nice! Parking is an issue, as they still have portable classrooms taking up a large portion of the parking lot, but we have to get there early anyway because Kari has to be there by 6pm for pep band. The Rasmussens have to be there even earlier for Katelin with dance, so we always have someone to sit by and chat with. Those nights have been fun.

I attended a 3 hour parent meeting with Kari to start driver's ed and learned some updated driving techniques and tips. The statistics convinced me even more that this was a good thing for our kids to do!

The new school year brings so much paperwork and so many forms to fill out. I came home from a meeting one night and found Greg doing some of that parent homework, and I was so grateful!

My dad grew some ginormous pumpkins this year, and of course, our kids drew the numbers for the largest ones. :-) We have a big fall porch display this year. I love it!

We got a box of huge Honeycrisp apples from Burns farm and have been enjoying apples and pumpkin treats, too, now that fall has truly set in.

Greg and I were in charge of the maze again for the Harvest Hustle. We discovered some mice had gotten into the big bucket of stakes that were stored in an outbuilding at West Orient. Mice were flying out when they pulled stakes out of the bin! Most escaped, but one met his demise between pieces of wood. Joel took it to the woods for us. :-)

I went the eye doctor and got some new glasses, so the kids can't make fun of me anymore for my 25 year old wire-rimmed frames.

Kari's feet were hurting her when she was running, so she drove us to downdown Portland to a fancy running shoe store and got fitted for shoes that are just right for her. It took us 20 minutes to find a parking spot, and while I was nervous, she did a great job maneuvering the narrow streets in our big ol' minivan. Should have driven the Civic!

We bought the Tundra from Mom and Dad M. this month, too, and I spent an hour and a half at the DMV getting a new title. There's a very good reason Disney chose the sloth as the DMV characters in Zootopia. I kept thinking of that movie as I was sitting there, waiting all morning. Kari will be driving the Civic come December. We are a 3-car family now!

One other big thing for me this fall is representing West Orient on the boundary committee. We meet every Tuesday for two hours until mid November. The principal asked if I'd do it, and I decided I could. It's been a fascinating process so far--lots of tension and emotion and lots of insights into the workings of the district and all the principals.

I've done a fair amount of subbing already, too--8 times in September and 8 scheduled in October, as well. I've been fighting allergies the last couple weeks and haven't been feeling great. My body threw in the towel yesterday, and I've got my first sinus infection of the season. I'll have a nice, red nose for when I sub at Barlow tomorrow. Oh well!

Kari and I finished a fall puzzle last week. She worked on it with me during study breaks. I'm thinking of busting out another puzzle. It's one of my favorite things to do these days when I need to relax and stop "doing." I especially like working on a puzzle while listening to an audiobook.

It'll be Thanksgiving and Christmas before we know it! Time, slow down a bit!

Start of a new school year

September flew by, and we're already halfway through October. Most of the kids have had a smooth start to the school year. Joel started out strong as a WOMS leader at school and doing the morning announcements. He received a Wolverine Award already! Aubrey is rockin' middle school with confidence and good grades. Grant is doing well and seems to be enjoying his second year with Mrs. Horner. I was able to sub for his class twice this last month, which was fun. I love getting to see what his day is like. He also started water polo, and is absolutely LOVING it. Kari is doing well but has not felt like things are going smoothly. She really does have a lot on her plate and has a very full, demanding schedule right now. She's taking AP U.S. History, running cross country, taking piano lessons, playing in Symphonic Band, taking driver's ed, going to FCA on Tuesdays before school, going to Bible study at 6:15am on Friday mornings, going to youth group on Wednesdays, and trying to get homework in between all of that. It's a lot! Having to play in the pep band for all the home football games was a bitter pill for her to swallow, but she said this last week that "it's getting better."

#8 throwing is Grant

First Days of School

Summer came to a close with a Wilson hike up on the Top Spur trail and then a pool party/BBQ with Eric and Leah, cousins, Mom and Dad M., and Kate.

Grant and Aubrey had the same first day of school. Grant rode with the Heaths since I couldn't be in two places at once and had already committed to driving Aubrey and her friends to their first day of middle school. I admit, I felt sad not walking Grant in for his first day. I've walked my kids into East Orient Elementary every year for the last 10 years. Maybe I will again next year, or maybe that's the end of that tradition. He was happy to be walking in with friends, so at least Grant was happy. He has the same teacher as last year and half of last year's class with him, so he was comfortable going in on his own.

Aubrey, Abby, and Viola were excited and nervous. Aubrey was more excited than nervous, though. She was ready to rock middle school!

Joel went to school that day, too, but not as a student. He went as a WOMS leader and helped the sixth graders and teachers with that first day, giving tours and assisting with whatever they needed. It's nice to know Aubrey has her big brother there with her.

I took Kari, Kylee, and Kate to Jazzy Bagel and then to the Sugar Cube to make their last day of summer memorable and special. They helped me make first-day-of-school cookies, too. That's a tradition I don't think we'll give up just yet.

Kari and Joel had their first days of school the following day on Wednesday. I drove Kari and three of her friends to school early that morning. They were a bundle of nerves and excitement, too, but more nerves and dread than excitement. Walking in together made them all feel better, I think.

Later that morning I drove Joel and Aubrey to school. First day jitters were gone by that point.

Kari had a cross country meet at Barlow's new track and stadium on that first day, which was fun. We heard everyone's reports on the day when we got home from the meet. First days went well!