October passed in a flash. Here are the highlights.
Thanks to Groupon, I got to take a class with some of my coworkers friends. We created some cool glass trinket dishes. My friend Joan was a bit flustered by the activity, because (she says) creativity isn’t her thing. I was surprised because this evening seemed so relaxing and fun for me. I jumped right in to the glass fusing process and didn’t struggle with it at all. This isn’t a brag or a boast – it’s a “Yay God” moment because I love how He makes each of us with different passions and tendencies. Seeing Joan out of her element was a good reminder that I don’t often get out of my element. Joan said next time she’ll plan a basketball evening for us (she is a high school coach) so she can be in her comfort zone. Now THAT will definitely put me out of mine!
And speaking of Joan, this photo brings me such immense joy. It was taken on her 50th birthday. Our Campus Pastor and the Technical Arts Director used rolls of aluminum foil to cover her desk to “celebrate.” Joan was less-than-pleased, and I was laughing my head off. It was so great! This photo is still saved on my phone and every now and then, I look at it to get a giggle.
In my office, Thursday is a special day. It has turned in to Chick-fil-A Thursday. Someone makes a CFA run and brings it back to the office where we circle up the church’s soft seating in the lobby and share lunch together. I know this sounds silly (and makes me sound like a huge wuss who is desperate for social time [which is true]), but Thursday lunches are now a highlight of my work weeks. On this particular Thursday, we borrowed the cow costume and made a video in the office like the Geico commercial that is currently popular (the one with the camel walking through office cubicles talking about Hump Day). Our video was a hoot!
Jackson is enjoying Cub Scouts very much. Our whole family went to a day-long outing that included archery, shooting, fire making and knot tying stations, plus a bicycle obstacle course. We had lots of fun together, even though we got rained on and ended up with two hungry/crabby kids at the end. By this stage of parenting, I’m learning to expect that every time we go out.
Katie made the honor roll for the first quarter of 5th grade. We are proud of our brilliant daughter!
I wrote a little bit about our October trip to Disney World and Venice Beach, Florida. There is really too much to detail, so I’ll sum it up by saying I’m glad we went to Disney but there’s really no need to return. It was one of those trips our family wanted to take at least once, but it wasn’t the be-all-end-all vacation to end all vacations. (I’d rather load up an R.V. for our next vacation and hit the road without any structure or deadlines – or even lines, for that matter.) To be honest, the beach was more fun for us than Disney, but I don’t regret our Disney visit at all.
One of the cooler moments for us at Disney World was when we were walking through TomorrowLand and looked up to see our best friend’s name in the sky. I loved seeing a few other families take notice of it and pull out their cameras to capture the moment, too.
This photo is my favorite from our beach pictures. Jackson and I were floating in the water and playing our usual game of kissing and then throwing our heads back and shouting, “mwah!” I really really love this photo!
I also like this moment from our flight home. Katie cuddled up to me in the last row of the plane (dude, it is NOISY!) and read her book with her head on my lap.
Right after our nice vacation, I was scheduled for a biopsy which resulted in a cryoplasty procedure. I wouldn’t normally post about this on my blog, ya know… but it’s one of those things I’m including because the sole purpose of my blog is to detail my life for my kids. When Mom died, many pieces of her history died with her. There’s a lot I don’t know and wish I did. So posting this photo is a note for my daughter’s future reference, as much as for my own.
“So, this one time, I hit my mother-in-law’s car…” Sounds like the start of a bad joke, doesn’t it? Except it isn’t a joke, although she was gracious enough to laugh about it and shrug it off. And I know this photo shows it wasn’t a big dent, but I still feel really bad for hitting my mother-in-law’s car. I was trying to go around it and pull into my garage, but (apparently) didn’t give a wide enough berth. Ugh.
Dan got tickets from a coworker and we went to a St. Louis Blues game in October. We haven’t been to a game in a few years, and it was fun to see the crazy fans and hockey brutes on the team. Hockey is a fun game, and fast-paced too.
Also in St. Louis sports, the Cardinals made it to the World Series. Even though they ultimately lost to the (very beardy) Boston Red Sox, our town still loves them – and our boy was so excited to cheer them on: “Go Cardinals. We know you can win.”
My job has undergone innumerable changes this year. One of the most recent changes is the addition of Saturday worship services at the campus where I work. We had a rehearsal the week before we went “live,” and the staff and volunteers attended the closed rehearsal. There was no kids ministry, so all the kids were in the service with us. It was a cool change for me to worship with my kids and see them enjoy “big church.” I peeked at Jackson during the prayer, and this is what I saw. Sweet!
October means our annual visit to the local pumpkin patch.
I captured this moment when Jackson asked if he could brush Katie’s hair after her shower.
Flowers from Dan, just because.
The Mizzou Tigers are having a fantastic season. My kids are cheering them on!
Katie decided to be Dorothy from The Wizard of Oz for Halloween. I think the best part of the costume was she wore a dress (which is rare these days) AND I got to braid her hair (also rare).
After getting Jedi training at Hollywood Studios at Disney World, Jackson decided to be a Jedi for Halloween. Grandma made the brown robe for him, and I bought $10 boots from Walmart. The rest of the outfit was cobbled together from home and our neighbors closet (thanks for the belt, Sheryl!).
I had no desire to carve pumpkins this year, so I let the kids loose with Sharpies and markers. Two of our young neighbors were hanging out the night we decided to do this, so they colored some pictures too.
Coworkers/friends from our church had a bunch of us over for dinner one night. This photo is NOT their house; it’s a neighbor’s house. But I had to include it because that is THE biggest inflatable pumpkin I’ve ever seen.
Our kids’ school has two class parties each year: a Fall Party and a Valentine Party. I got to attend both kids’ parties on Halloween, and enjoyed watching the kids be all wiggly and the teachers be their fantastic selves.
And then, there was Trick-or-Treating with our neighbors. I look at this photo and see ghosts – and not because of the holiday! I see ghosts of the little toddlers and babies these kids used to be. I remember the costumes that were cuddly and sweet (Tigger, Mickey Mouse and Buzz Lightyear) instead of the scary ones that have appeared more recently (zombie Prom queens, zombie soccer players, the headless horseman, ninjas). If these kiddos have changed, does this mean *I* have too?!
At the last minute, Katie and I turned her Sharpied pumpkin into a new creation. I can’t remember where I saw this idea online, but it isn’t my original idea. It turned out pretty cute, though. And a spider pumpkin is easier than you’d ever guess!
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