As I mentioned in my monthly book blog, the last weekend of October was a stormy one! We had already planned on a low-key weekend and the weather made me appreciated being hunkered down at home even more! To fully embrace the chill weekend, I wrote different “days” on the calendar. Friday was Turkey Day. We made a small turkey breast in our crockpot along with some traditional Thanksgiving fixings. I made a favorite pumpkin cake for dessert! Yum! Saturday was Cider Day. We simmered cider in the crockpot all day long. Sunday was Pumpkin Day (it was actually National Pumpkin Day according to my phone). We carved pumpkins as a family activity. To keep the crockpot theme going, I made chili and cornbread on Sunday. It was a good eats weekend! The wild fall weather paired well with the comfort food and cozy, restful moments! I loved all our travels and adventures in October, but I equally loved our weekend at home!
Other highlights to wrap up the month?
The kids both got parts in our Christmas musical. Owen is going to play one of the lead roles and he got the part he was hoping for. He was a pretty excited kid and we’ve already been diligently practicing. He has a month to memorize all his lines! Eek! Graham didn’t want a solo despite the many efforts of our choir director… They did find a compromise, though. Graham will be part of a quintet. Coming forward with a small group was much more his speed. This is his first time stepping out of the choir for a role. Maybe next year he’ll feel up to a solo. No worries if he doesn’t. We have tried not to pressure him (even though he is a great singer).
Soccer wrapped up last Tuesday! It was a great season and, thankfully, it didn’t rain at all when we were at the soccer fields. The last one looked like it might be wet, so I focused more on the potential for rain than on the temperature. Turns out it was a freezing and I should have dressed warmer… Okay, it wasn’t freezing, but it was 42 degrees and that felt like freezing to me! We celebrated with a round of Boo Buckets at McDonalds. The kids love collecting those things. Owen has plans of hoarding them until he is an adult and selling them. He is positive they will worth something someday. We’ll see…
Thursday, we helped Jeremy set up for Fall Fest, our church’s annual harvest event. It’s a warm and dry alternative to trick-or-treating on Halloween. It poured this year for Halloween, so I know an indoor event was appreciated by our community (and myself). The set-up was fun! The boys got to test everything out and enjoy the offerings before the crowds overtook the building the next day. They enjoyed the carnival style games, inflatable bounce houses, and sampling the candy for quality control.
On Friday, the Fall Fest highlights were the free snow cones, cotton candy, and meeting the Mariner Moose! We got the official Mariner Moose mascot to do a photo opportunity at our event! The theme was PNW (think forest, animals, Big Foot) and the moose fit right. Not to mention, the Mariners almost made it to the world series, so hype around the team is pretty high right now. For not being super sportsy, the boys had their hearts set on meeting the moose. Due to weather and traffic, the moose gave us quite the scare by being late. Thankfully, he stayed late and everyone who wanted a picture got one. Our family got multiple pictures with him. I’m sure it’s a memory the boys will take into adulthood.
Now it’s November! The weather looks like it and feels like it… The wind and rain have done a decent job of removing leaves from the trees. It looks like November outside. Now that the rain has settled in, I’m looking forward to more cozy time inside! This a great month for baking, reading, board games, puzzles, and visiting with family and friends around the table. I’m excited for all November has to offer! (Especially holiday red cup at Starbucks this Thursday!)
Amy Scott's Thoughts 