Playing with pumpkins and knives

The annual pumpkin carving at the Porter house. Dad is the official pumpkin gutter for all those who are grossed out by pumpkin innards. Everyone, however, is required to stick their hand in to feel the cool slimey stuff. We are ready for Halloween . . . we are hoping for a "rain-less" night!

Brandon's Teacher Says . . .

This was a truly crazy Wednesday, but it was interrupted by a nice email from one of Brandon's teachers. This is what she said:

"I just wanted to take the time to tell you how much I enjoy & appreciate having Brandon in Advanced Video Production. He is so creative & such a dedicated student. I also appreciate his laid-back, polite manner. Brandon is a GREAT kid! I know he is going to accomplish amazing things in his life."

It made my day!

Two weekends ago Dan and I were going to the temple on a Saturday night. We were in need of a babysitter for Joseph. The girls had plans with friends, and Brandon and a (cute) young woman from our ward were studying German at our house. Dan and I devised a plan which would allow everyone to still have a fun evening, but provide a babysitter for us so we could go to the temple.

Dan proposed to Brandon and his friend that we would pay for them to take Joseph to the movie (Where the Wild Things Are.) They agreed, maybe somewhat reluctantly on Brandon's part. I'm sure going to the movie with his little brother wasn't top on his list of things to do that evening.

On the other hand, when Joseph heard the plan, he was ecstatic. His eyes grew as round as saucers and he said, "I have to get ready!" A few minutes later he came down the stairs wearing his full Sunday suit, including white shirt and tie, black socks, and Sunday shoes. "Oh, honey," I said, "let's save your Sunday suit for Sunday. Just wear normal clothes." Joseph ran back up the stairs and returned a few minutes later.

His new outfit still included the blue suit jacket, but he had swapped out the white dress shirt for a blue-striped dress shirt, no tie, khaki pants, with Sunday shoes. He looked downright dapper, if not still a little overdressed for the movies. When I pointed out that fact, he said very seriously, "These are not my church clothes, Mom. These are my going-to-the-movie-with- Brandon clothes." What could I say, really.

As I was gathering my bags and preparing to go out the door, Joseph said over and over, "I'll be good at the movie, Mom. I'll have fun. Bye! I love you!"

I hope that Brandon was able to step back from the annoyance of having a little brother tag along on a date to savor how precious it is to have a little guy so thrilled to be spending time with him. The "date" was a huge success, at least as far as Joseph was concerned. Popcorn, Slurpee, spending time with Brandon . . . . perfect.

Pumpkin Patch

There are some great perks to living where we live. Vancouver is beautifully green, with a small town and rural feel (even though it is only 10 minutes from Portland). Within a few minutes of our home we can see horses, cows, llamas, sheep, chickens, etc. Some of my favorite spots are the Christmas tree farms (with trees of all sizes, from one foot tall to 9 feet tall) and the pumpkin patches. I don't remember ever going to a "real" pumpkin patch before we moved here.

Last Saturday we made our fourth annual pilgrimage to the Bi-Zi Farms Pumpkin Patch/Carnival. We lucked out, and experienced absolutely perfect fall weather . . . crisp and cool, yet sunny and dry. As we arrived, bluegrass music was playing on the stage. The kids climbed a hay bale tower, rode tiny tractors, ran through a small maze, and then a large corn maze, sent pumpkins flying across a field using a cool "pumpkin launcher," visited the farm animal petting zoo, ground corn to feed to the animals, and pressed apple cider.
On the hay bale tower.

Launching pumpkins, using a huge (20 foot) slingshot.
The goal of the pumpkin launch is to get your pumpkin into the barrel of water in the distance. Bailey's pumpkin landed on the ground, but then bounced in!
Joseph checked out Thanksgiving dinner.
Aubrey had quite a conversation with this very friendly animal.The kids like the big corn maze much more than Dan and I like it. We always feel instinctively panicked, as we are lost and trying to find our way out. It doesn't help when half our group runs around and gets lost separately. Somehow, we all made it out!

Next we rode on a cart pulled by a tractor to the pumpkin fields. There are acres and acres of pumpkin fields, stretching almost as far as we could see. Most years the fields are muddy, but this year there had been no rain in weeks, so the fields were dry. After we unloaded from the cart, we each began our earnest search for the perfect pumpkin. It's serious business, you know. The girls walk around until they find the pumpkin which has been "waiting" for them.
Riding the tractor past the corn maze to the pumpkin patch.


Good for us - we remembered to bring grocery bags with which to carry back our pumpkins. Because these are not cleaned, neatly stacked grocery store pumpkins. These are on-the-vine, covered in dirt clods, authentic pumpkins. And, we have discovered in past years, holding them on the cart ride back tends to make us covered in dirt, also!

To end our perfect afternoon, Joseph and Aubrey rode ponies. Joseph was thrilled, Aubrey was a little bit "I'm too old for this, but whatever pleases you, Mom."
It was a fantastic way to spend a fall Saturday afternoon. We were just in time, too. Starting the very next day, it started to rain, and it still hasn't let up. Winter is upon us!

Seasons

I really love fall. I love the crispness in the air, the vibrant colors in the leaves, the trips to the pumpkin patch, the unspoken promise that fun holiday times are coming. Each fall I am amazed at how much I love fall. Fall is really a kind gift, because we all know that winter is coming, bringing a dramatic change in weather, but for now we can pretend that it will always be so crystal-clear, crisp, and beautiful.

But I really love summer, too. The lazy days, abundance of growing things, smell of suncreen, playing outside at night when it is still warm, hanging out together.

And spring is perenially my favorite. The renewal after the darkness, the smell of rich soil and planting small things which will become big, pastel colors on the trees and bushes, marveling as greenness returns everywhere, the triumph of surviving something difficult.

I even have some fondness for winter. It drives us inside together. The glowing fireplace, warm soups, comfy socks and sweaters, the smell of cinnamon and cloves, the feeling that we are creating a haven of light in a dark and blustery world. And, of course the sacred and family feel of holidays.

I am aware that that there is a lesson here for me. Each season is unique, necessary, and full of gifts. It doesn't do any good to look past this season to the virtues of the next or back at the last season longingly. The joy is in savoring and appreciating the now.

I am not a pioneer

I would have made a lousy pioneer woman. Our microwave bit the dust this week, so we have been microwave-less until I could find time to shop for a new one. I'm not sure I realized how much we depend on that particular appliance. Let's have popcorn! Oh, wait, how DOES one make popcorn without the microwave? Let's reheat leftovers. Oh, wait, that will take 20 minutes after the oven heats up. Hot chocolate on a cold morning? Oh, wait, we have to boil water on the stovetop. I know it's silly, because obviously people survived before microwaves. But, I have realized that I quite like convenience.

Comfort Food Conference Weekend

Question: How many carbs and how much sugar can one family consume in one weekend? Answer: If it's General Conference weekend, A LOT.

Dan and I have tried to make General Conference weekend something our kids look forward to and enjoy. We try not to plan anything else for Saturday and Sunday so we can watch all of the sessions, which are broadcast on BYUTV. We set up the family room with beanbags, blankets, and comfy chairs, and we make lots of food. Cinnamon rolls, apple crisp, our favorite broccoli soup, delicious chips and dips, pork chops, banana pudding, etc. Oh, and don't forget the bag of candy to be used as (very effective) bribery. It's a good thing we don't eat like this all year, but our semi-annual comfort foods tradition is a lot of fun.

We try to have fun games and activities that help the kids to listen/stay occupied during Conference. The three youngest kids did Conference activity books and play-dough, and Joseph did a matching game with the apostle's pictures.
We discovered something new which really worked for us. We didn't make it up - I read about someone else doing this with their family. We printed off pictures of the 15 General Authorities and posted them around the fireplace, which is right below the TV. During each talk, Joseph tried to match one of the pictures with the speaker. He thought this was fun, but was really confused at first when the speakers were NOT wearing the same ties as their picture.

Spur of the moment, we decided to write down the speaker's main message and have Joseph post it next to the picture. This proved to be really helpful for all of us. We were able to look over the pictures and labels and see "themes" emerging in the Conference, and it has been easier to remember who spoke about what. Monday night for Family Night we sat in the front of the fireplace and talked about our favorite talks. In the past when we have tried to do a "Conference review" we struggled to remember much about specific talks/speakers. Having the visual cues seemed to really help us. So, this activity is a keeper! Bailey with her play-dough creation - a statue of Quentin L. Cook!
Aubrey with her pretty realistic-looking play-dough food.
Brandon made this Banana dessert for us, using the Ellefsen's recipe.

The "spiritual food" from Conference was even better. It was just what I needed. There were so many great messages. A few of my favorites: Elder Bednar's talk about strengthening our families, and Elder Holland's testimony about the Book of Mormon. The Tabernacle Choir's rendition of "O Divine Redeemer" on Sunday was gorgeous. That is one of my very favorite pieces of music, and I felt the spirit so strong when I listened to it. As a family, we interpreted an overall theme of Conference as being "God loves us so much and we should love others, especially our family, the same way."

Watch out on the sidewalks

Oh, what a difference a year makes. Joseph's preschool holds a trike-a-thon every fall. The teachers draw a "track" in the parking lot with chalk and the kids ride a bike, trike, scooter, etc. for as many laps as possible in 15 minutes. Last year, he very tentatively and cautiously participated in the race. He was new to tricycle riding and rode slowly on a sturdy trike, looking at me for support every few seconds.

This year he was off and riding the moment the kids were set free to ride. He quickly zoomed to the front of the pack, where he and a good friend held the lead for the entire "race." He took each corner at a breakneck speed, not even slowing when he yelled triumphantly, "I am so fast!" It is really great to see how far his motor skills have come in the last year!



Looking behind him at the competition.

how many laps did I do, Mom? 14? Awesome.
Whew - that was hard work. Good thing it's time for snacks.

Whirlwind Vancouver Tour

My parents were in town for a few hours last week. They were on their way to spend a week at the Oregon Coast, but had a few hours available before they met up with friends. Joseph and I picked them up from the airport. I had really debated what we could do during those few hours which would be fun and meaningful. Anything with lots of walking was definitely out, as Mom recently seriously injured her foot while in Europe, and is still in a "walking boot." The kids would all be in school during the hours they were visiting, and Dan would be at work.

The night before they arrived it occurred to me that we could visit all the kids on their school lunch breaks and then meet up with Dan for lunch. The next morning I made some cookies before heading to the airport. (The cookies were inadvertently "healthier." I made the cookies in the middle of the morning rush hour, and found that evening that almost half of the butter which was supposed to be in the recipe was still sitting in a bowl in the microwave. Oh well.) We would visit each of the kids and take them a treat at lunchtime. Our schedule was tight, as the kid's lunches were about half an hour apart, but we would at least have a few minutes to visit.

Joseph and I raced to the airport and met Grandma and Grandpa at the curbside. First on our agenda, embarrassing the high schooler. Really, what could be better for a senior in high school than to have your parents, grandparents, and little brother show up at school to hug you and bring you cookies? Oh, and Mom had a camera and insisted on taking pictures. It's all right - I think Brandon's "coolness" factor didn't take too much of a hit, especially since he shared cookies with his friends.
Sorry, Dad, somehow I caught you between smiles!

Next, we drove 5 miles to Aubrey's school. We visited with her for a few minutes in the front lobby of her school. Aubrey was on her way to lunch, where she was to be the coveted "lunch helper." Apparently all fourth graders vie to be the one to clean trays, do dishes, and pick up garbage, especially since they are rewarded with a treat. Hmmmm, so strange that she isn't equally excited to do these chores at home!
Joseph brought three changes of clothes for our trip around town. He constantly changed in the car from Batman costume to Batman incognito costumes (aka regular clothes).

Next, we drove to downtown Vancouver to Bailey's school. We caught her just as she was going to lunch. On this particular day she was preparing to perform as a part of a salsa dancing group for a visiting guest from Cuba. This year the entire school is focusing on the theme of Cuban music and art.

Posing in front of Cuban art in the lobby of her school.

Finally, we drove to a restaurant across the street from Dan's office. We had a delicious lunch and a nice visit. By this point Joseph was getting bored, so he borrowed my camera and took pictures. He was the photographer for this picture of Dan:
After lunch we looked at the koi in a pond outside the restaurant and enjoyed the gorgeous fall weather.
We bid Dan farewell and drove to Tigard, near Portland, where Mom and Dad met up with their good friends.

It was wonderful to see them, hug them, talk to them, and spend a few precious hours!

Our Opera Review (fans of the opera should stop reading now)

Dan and I attended the opera La Boheme last Friday night. My good friend is in the opera orchestra, so we decided to give it a try. We love most things that involve music, and especially love musicals, but had never been to an opera. Quite honestly, the prospect of attending a show completely in an unfamiliar language has always worried me. I wasn't sure if I could follow the story line. This opera (maybe all operas, for all I know) had a screen above the stage with a translation of the Italian words being sung. We were happy to see this, as we knew this would help us follow the story better.

Here's the thing - there really wasn't a story. The plot was immensely thin. What we know now is that opera is ALL about the music. The music was beautiful. The orchestra did a fantastic job, as did the opera performers. However, Dan and I agree that opera moves VERY slowly, as the main characters sing beautiful arias about EVERYTHING. No sentence is too mundane that it can't be dragged out for several minutes of singing. So, needless to say, not much happens.
Afterward Dan summed up the plot like this: "Starving artist meets girl, kisses her. Girl is sick, girl is dying, starving artist and friends fulfill her dying wish and buy her a muff."

We were far too cheap to spring for the expensive seats on the main floor, so we were in the second balcony. We had worried that this would make it difficult to see all the action on the stage. As it turns out, it was easy, as there really wasn't much action.

It was an adventure, and we're always up for adventure. We have to admit that we liked the musical "Wicked" (which we saw in the same auditorium last spring) much, much more. And, of course, nothing comes close to the inspirational, complex, and beautiful musical, Les Miserables!