Happy Halloween!

Halloween Antics.

Perhaps the only thing harder than trying to take a picture of a lion and an elephant in their natural habitat is maybe trying to take a picture of two toddlers dressed up like a lion and an elephant in THEIR natural habitat!

Getting ready for their first Halloween party with WMOM (Whatcom Mom's of Multiples)









...later at the party. So many treats!










(Listening to the rules of the game about to be played.)




Carving our pumkin








Trick or Treatin'

...with neighbor Bud across the street




Downtown Fairhaven. Joining good friends (Nate, Jackson and Lydia.) The streets are alive with little ghosts and goblins. We get our picture taken at the pharmacy...a tradition that goes back 50 years! (Kids are looking a little tired. We went home right after this, made a big pot of soup and settled into the night handing out treats to the other trick or treaters!)




Happy Halloween family!

Pumpkin love

Another October has found its way to us.

Its been a strange sort of autumn. 2 weeks ago, temps were dancing around the 80's. Summer it seemed, had returned for an encore performance.

Then suddenly, with the sun still taking root in the sky, the mercury dropped into the 50's during the day. Frost covered the ground at night. Summer disappeared for good and autumn seemed to take hold at last.

I of course, love this weather. It reminds me of my Midwestern upbringing. Crisp, sunny days...and extra blanket nights. Colors snap alive on maple trees. Pumpkins appear in the market places. Bright colored scarves start making appearances. I start itching for a pile of leaves to jump in. There is something so magnificent about these clear days of reds and oranges. The harvest retired, woodsmoke in the air and a nearby marching band practicing in the distance. I love it.

It doesn't last long. The real northwest autumn must eventually settle herself. The skies shift to milder tones of gray. The rain begins to fall. And sleet appears on the windshield. We become more aware of the lonely sound of foghorns in the distances, and the quieting sense of comfort a hot coffee can bring. Quirky north westerners can be heard breathing a hundred sighs of relief. "Thank goodness the rains have returned".

Sometimes I feel like I'm really out of place here.

Regardless. It was during the brilliant window of "Midwestern" autumn that Elizabeth and I took Jonas and Jember to the Stoney Ridge Pumpkin farm. Located in a nearby community, Stoney Ridge farm invites young and old to come and sample her delights every year. Upon arrival, one may experience any array of wonderment to the senses: a petting farm, a "country store", a shop serving homemade pies and ice cream, and hayrides awaiting passengers for a ride out to the pumpkin fields. We had a wonderful time. Though I must add that Jember wanted to free the rabbits and later tried to climb into the pony stalls. (She really loves animals!). Later my nature girl, surrounded by a field of pumpkins insisted on kissing as many as she could find. I'm quite serious here. Jonas got in on the action himself. He hugged a few pumpkin friends, then took to the more important matter of running here and there in the October sunshine splitting his time between finding the perfect rocks to throw and discovering which pumpkins where best for climbing.

All in all. A perfect day.

So many things to look at!


Choosing pumpkins is very focused work!


This pumpkin is quite bumpy.


Growing taller!


"Ok. 2 questions. What the heck is it? And how do I set it free?"


Elizabeth and the kids. (Love this pic). Jember is fascinated by the foilage and Jonas can't take his eyes off her camera/phone. So many buttons. Great example of their different personalities!)


"Hmmmmm. This could be the very pumpkin I've been searching for..."


Exploration of the perfect pumpkin continues.


So many pumpkins...so little time.


Waiting for the Great Pumpkin to rise up...

Fascinated by pumpkin stalks


Wheelbarrow Boy


Getting there is half the fun.

Sunshine in October and a day with my kids. Really. What could be better?

and finally...

One year ago today:






How time flies!

Stopping to smell the flowers

(Jonas and Jember are 20 months old today!)






September. Just like that, the traces of summer slip away. Ross and I find ourselves back into the chaos of our teaching jobs. I wish the words "chaos" and "teaching" didn't have to go hand in hand. But that seems to be the way it rolls in our corner of the world.

We transition into another season. Up at 6am. To work by 7am. Lisa (our wonderful nanny) shows up at 7am. The kids transition into spending at least half their day with her.

I'm happy to say my schedule has me home by noon. Well, its a hectic sort of happy. I power through 4 class periods with classes overflowing...then pack up and zoom home. Its pretty tiring, too be honest. I had this amazing image of myself as this "supermommy" rushing home to bake cookies, take outings, and lead art projects with my energetic little toddlers. Alas. Right now, the best thing I have achieved (after a week with their nap times being different from each other) is to realign their nap schedule. I did attempt to stroll with them down to the bank one afternoon, and then for a little ice cream. But, I was so pooped after the outing (and both kids were crying for a nap on the walk home) that I needed a nap myself. Sigh. So much for image as supermom.

Luckily, the weather has been gorgeous. Here are some images of the last few weekends as we embrace the last of the long summer days and greet the early days of autumn:

September blooms in Maple Falls...views from last weekend
(what can I say. We love it up here. Sue and Shirely's farm in the mountains...)















Picnic and Canoeing at Baker Lake
(Ross recognizing his dream. He gets to introduce the little ones to their first canoe float...)






And yet another weekend... A picnic at Silver Lake
(My first time ever in a kayak. I loved it...)



August 18th, 2009. An important day. We re-adopt the babies in a U.S. court.
(That's the judge in the middle. Also present was Uncle Jim ~ who donated many hours for us as our lawyer...and always supportive Aunt Linda).



So, we continue to enjoy our weekends as long as the warm weather lasts! Blogging is getting trickier. And I can't help but wonder who is really out there reading this. So...maybe let me know if you are still with me. :0) Reach out...communicate!
(leaving a comment is ok too...)

Enjoy your autumn days!

Until then ~ back to the grind.