Humbled

We went to Walmart this morning, and at check out found our total to be $140. 'Whoa!' I thought. Ah well; I had bought a bit of makeup, new swimsuits for the kids, some diapers and wipes, socks, tights, and new sippy cups. I also bought a mix I could pan fry for dinner, and 2 lbs. strawberries as we were passing the grocery area.

After we had lunch at Subway, eating some of the new strawberries along with the foot long we split, we got packed into the car and were on our way.

Then we passed some beggars or 'panhandlers.'

I'm somewhat embarrassed to say, I almost never stop for them. In fact, I've done almost the opposite many times, avoiding eye contact and even locking the doors a couple times.

I hear about all sorts of stories of people that actually make quite a lot of money doing what they're doing, and how they're made out to be villains because they're begging. Here is an article about panhandling in Utah, and you can see in the comments how most people feel about it...

...but this time, it wasn't just a single man or a man and woman, it was a man, his (very) pregnant wife and two small children. The daughter looked to be about Jori's age, and the son about a year younger. They were at a van, with Calfornia license plates on it. Their sign said "Please help, need food and gas." Or something like that. The man was holding the sign, and truly looked ashamed. He was staring at the ground. I would guess they were of Indian descent. (Not Native American, India Indian.)

I drove past them at first...then had a feeling that I was missing out on a teaching opportunity. So I turned back, told Jori what was happening and ran the strawberries (minus the ones we had eaten) over to them.

It was truly humbling. The kids started talking at once, excitedly, as soon as they saw the strawberries. And as I drove past, afterward, I saw the wife already eating some. I just felt...just floored. I had just spent all this money, on things that are worthwhile but...I mean how far could $140 go to someone in a truly desperate situation?

I still felt like I hadn't done enough though. I'd told Jori we were going to give some food to people in need, but she hadn't really seen it from where I'd parked.

So I flipped around AGAIN, and this time got Atticus and Jori out, each with a $5 bill in their hands. We walked over together, and gave the money to the wife and one of the kids. Each of the little ones were also eating strawberries, and looked like they'd eaten a fair number in the three minutes it took me to get back to them again.

I know there are a lot of dishonest people who ask for money out there, and that there are a lot that have addictions and even criminal histories. I know a lot of people lie. But I didn't ask this family their story; there was no need. I really don't need to know what exactly they do with that ten dollars.

Really, I just felt profoundly grateful to do something that felt really right, and with my children. It made me hope to continue to give. Even if the money is used for drugs. I read in a YA Fiction book one time, of this young man giving money to a younger man, and the girl he was with said "Why did you do that? He's only going to use it for drugs." And he said "That means he's one step closer to hitting rock bottom, which is necessary before he can start climbing up."

Also, even if the people do have criminal histories. Must be hard to get a job with a criminal history, don't you think?

And ESPECIALLY if they do have kids there with them. I do know it's manipulative to have children there, I know some people really hate that. But whether you agree with the parents, the children are real. The situation must be pretty desperate if they are being used to ask for money.

Grateful to be able to give, today.

How many jobs have you had?

In some ways...it's a good thing I'm a stay-at-home mama. Employment wise. I think I have a current resume, but I never include ALL the jobs I've had on there. I know employers don't like seeing that. But I always found it easier to find two part time jobs than one full time, when I only had 6 months I could work anyway. And I liked variety. If I was going to have a super low-paying job anyway, why not do a different one than I did last time, right?

Would you like to hear? I'd like to reminisce, so I'll share regardless. I'll start with my first:

• May 2006: Library Page for Provo City (Book sorter and shelver)
• Office Clerk at a Student Housing Property Management Company
• Waldenbooks Bookstore employee (met a boyfriend at this one)*
• Library Page (2nd time)*

• Allen's Grocery Store: Non-foods Department Employee*

• *= I worked these three at the same time. For about five months before I left for college and after I had just graduated high school, I worked 50-60 hour work weeks. Busy bee! It was made easier because I genuinely loved everyone I worked with, at all three jobs. That was crazy lucky.

• Subway Sandwich Artist (Rexburg)
• Subway Sandwich Artist (Provo, I had to get re-hired and it wasn't a transfer thing, so I think they count separate)
  
• DownEast Basics clothing store employee (Two days. SO. BORING. They'd have cameras around to make sure their employees were doing something at all times, but if there was nothing to do you had to pretend you were doing something of value. If I'm at work, I'd rather do something!)
  
  
  
  
  
  
• Library Page (3rd time)
• Daycare/Preschool Teacher
  
• Call Center Tech (Two days again, got a more preferable job)
• Gas station/movie rental place employee (liked the job, the women who worked here hated me though for some reason. Awful)
• Rock Climbing Gym employee (No pay. Ha. But I got to climb whenever I wanted, and since I wanted to learn how to climb this was nice. I don't tell most people about this job though cause I hadn't climbed before and haven't really since...it was just a fun college thang)
  
  
  
  
• Gift wrapper, during the holiday season at BYU
• BYU-Idaho Library employee
• Office Clerk at same place (so, 2nd time)
  
• Evening childcare provider for the Provo School District's ESOL program. (Best paying job I ever had...it was $11.79/hr, in June of 2011.)

Bam! 17 jobs (or 14, depending how you count it) in 5 years. Which I know isn't really something I should be proud of. But it sure gave me a nice variety! 

I also interned with the Division of Child and Family Services the summer Jori turned 1, for my BYU major requirements. That was hard, but informative. I just shadowed folks though so I didn't get paid. 

You know the only thing that I've ever really loved doing that would probably count as work, though? Thinking of career potential? Organizing. I used to have a real...pep, for it. Particularly making everything fit (well, practically) in small spaces. (Note: cleaning is a totally different thing. Cleaning involves scrubbing, wiping, etc. And Picking Up is putting things where they go. Organizing is DECIDING where they go.)  I always thought it a shame I couldn't really pursue this in the way I wanted to. Not like they offer it as a major in college, or it pays all that well. And I don't think I'd enjoy organizing for super wealthy people, with tons of space. There's no satisfaction there. 

I also have a real passion for adoption as an alternative to an abortion, and really enjoy helping people figure out where they belong (employment wise or otherwise), so I am slightly curious if any of these things ever yield an actual paycheck. I guess we'll see.

What does your work history tell about you?

Moving

One of my favorite people is moving six hours away. I'm really excited for her, I mean they have four kids and her husband is finally graduating and they got a job and even just bought a house in their soon-to-be new area...I'm just bummed to be losing a close friend. And bummed Jori's losing a couple, too. (She gets along well with their oldest and their second oldest, who is only three days younger than she is.) I wish it wasn't so hard to find friends like these ones. I was reading some Austen-y material and it says "bosom friends" frequently. I'm definitely losing that. BAH. Life. 

It was kind of funny though, in chatting she said something like "I just wish in all these moves, we could just take our favorite people from each move with us, and then all live in the same spot." And I've totally fantasized about something similar. Having all of my favorite and Sam's favorite people in one cul-de-sac or block or something, with no children being without a playmate and everyone getting along awesome. 

Sometimes being shy by nature makes making close friends particularly difficult, so when one has been found and then lost...oh bother. 

Maybe someday we'll be millionaires and can buy up a whole chunk of land somewhere beautiful and green, where jobs of all sorts of varieties are plentiful and then we can build a ton of houses after consulting with friends on what is their dream home, and then they can live in them. Perfect. 

Or maybe I'll finally learn that "Bloom where you're planted" idea. I guess we'll have to wait and see. 

Ouchie!

Atticus wins as the first Hatchling to have to visit Urgent Care. Give the kid a trophy!

He was outside, playing in the sandbox after he'd finished his breakfast, and Jori was eating her breakfast. Sam had just left for work. I thought this the perfect time to sneak away upstairs, to brush my teeth and put in contacts for the day. Then I heard him crying downstairs. So I hopped back downstairs, and he was crying, somewhat under the table and next to Jori's chair, just sitting. It really wasn't an alarming cry, any more than usual bumps and scrapes that are typical of his 20-month-old days. But then I noticed blood all over his neck...

and then where the blood originated, on his scalp...

...and promptly fainted. 

Just kidding. I handled it like a boss, I thought. I'm grateful it wasn't worse, because then I really would have been a nervous wreck. I've got one queasy stomach, lemme tell ya. But I wetted a washcloth with cold water, held it to his head and the bleeding stopped pretty quickly. His tears dried up with a mama-Atticus-blankie sandwich, as they often do. But after examining it briefly, I once again dashed upstairs to snag my phone and call mom. 

TO THE RESCUE! 

Thank goodness my mom lives 8 minutes away. She arrived soon, evaluated it, and stayed with Jori when I took my little man to the Springville Urgent Care. 

Poor lad received four staples, but it's only for a week so I think he will live. I got him and Jori sodas on the ride home, and he was delighted enough with his Root Beer I think he thought the injury worth it.

It's like when I was a teenager, my mom would always take me to Arby's after orthodontist appointments. Sometimes, for some sweet curly fries, sacrifices have to be made. 

Hatchlings, as of March 2015

Ok. Children update.

ATTICUS:

• Loves nursery. He's been old enough all the month of March, but I started taking him (and staying with him) in February. In fact he often cries when we pick him up, because the leaders are blowing bubbles at the end and he loves that.
  
• He LOVES balls. Jori enjoyed them too at his age, but his very favorite thing to do is to find a ball to kick around, or imitate whatever sport he most recently saw...
• ...probably tied with finding a stick to wave around like a mad man. Things get dangerous when this boy has a stick. Or some other object that is that long, skinny shape: a plastic golf putter works well, a broom handle...yeah, it's best to make sure you're outside and no person is close when this boy is armed. 
  
  
  
  
• He loves being outside.
  
• He loves animals, all his favorite stories are with animals in them. He especially loves horses and has a couple horse toys that he carries around frequently, but cats and dogs are awesome too, to him.
• He loves feeling hair when he's sad, or falling asleep. Mine or his own. Just sensory that way I guess.
  Nap hair!
• He loves getting shoes put on, and wearing hats and hoods. We discovered this one day when he had a shirt with a hood on it, and I put the hood up. He loved it, and the rest of the week motioned for me to put a hood on his head. So we started doing hats. Now that we're out of beanie season, we've begun letting him wear a little baseball cap his size. 
  
• He also loves wearing this monkey leash thing we have. He just doesn't always love me holding on to the other end. But he loves it being buckled onto his torso. His little monkey buddy.
  
  
  
  
• He says "mah!" when he gives me kisses, because I say "muah!" So cute.
• He LOVES his sister. He wants to be just like her, and follows her around all over the place. He gives her hugs and kisses more than me. And he even tries to comfort her when she's sad, sometimes...
• ...though sometimes the reason she's sad is because he bit her. He tends to do that when he gets particularly frustrated. Not quite as badly as he once did, but it still does happen.
• His verbal development is coming right along. It's really taken off a lot more over the past couple months, right around when he hit 18 months. He'll imitate pretty well now. My favorite of his words is 'coot,' aka cute. He has learned to say that when we read stories or see pictures of little babies, puppies or kittens. I love hearing that little 'coot'! 
• Speaking of babies, he loves babies. He has a cousin, my brother Nate's daughter Lily, who was born in November and he gets to see her a lot of the time on Sundays. He'll say 'baby,' and try to hug them and snuggle them. He'll put his head down on her when he does get to be near her. It just warms my heart!
  
• He is allergic to milk. We found this out after he threw up nearly every day in November and December, and had almost constant diarrhea. We first tested him for celiac disease, but when that came up negative the pediatrician said it's probably dairy. So since we eliminated that, the throwing up stopped and that has been a huge relief. It's been a pretty easy transition honestly, they have so many imitation dairy products out there. So we just have separate items of everything for him: milk, cheese, yogurt, even ice cream now. And he likes them fine. 
• He CAN be a real sassafras. He doesn't like to wear his bib, and we fight about it at a lot of meals. He has a great scowl face, it's hard not to laugh when he is scowling. He'll look back after starting to wander away when we're out places, as if to say "Look what IIIII'mmm doing!!", smile and then turn around a corner, out of sight. But these things seem pretty typical of a 19 month old. 
• He sometimes really hates getting into his car seat. These are not my favorite moments. 
  
• He is much more a daddy's boy than a mama's boy, and it's hard to get him to leave daddy's side when he's around.
• 
• He still drools nearly all the time. He started at about 3 months, and it had nothing to do with teething; finally around a year the 'I'm just drooling for the heck of it' drooling stopped, I think, but then he really did start teething and the drool started right back up again. So I don't blink at how wet his shirts get these days. It's just our normal!
• He was never a binkie baby, but LOVES his special blankie his grandma Hatch made for him. Both my kids have been this way. When either of them gets hurt, the blankie is a huge comfort; and it's next to essential for falling asleep.
• I call him: Atticus, Atto, Gentleman, Handsome, Atti Cakes, Mister, Buddy, Little Man, Atti Hugh, Atters, and Bumblebee most frequently.

JORI: 

• Loves puzzles. I 'puzzled' myself for a while, at wondering what to tell people to get her as a favorite toy. She enjoys pretty much all of them, but didn't have any she'd play with more than others or was really passionate about. But these days, puzzles are just that. So we buy a 24-piece puzzle most every time we're at D.I. She loves them.
  
• She also loves reading stories, and watching movies. These three activities are probably her favorite things to do. (I'm to blame for the movies, I love them too...but I try to limit her viewing, honest.)
  
• She can be a real 'mini-mama,' which I actually really appreciate. Like if I don't know where Atticus is in the house, I can ask her to go find him and make sure he's safe, and she's happy to oblige. She also likes to help me in the kitchen a lot. 
• On that same topic, when she has a task at hand, a job to do, she hums while she sets about doing it. Like I asked her yesterday to go get fresh undies on after she went to the bathroom, and she "hmm Hmm"d her way upstairs, did it and marched back, humming the same thing. It's really cute.
  
• She can be both shy and a leader. It's interesting. She loves other kids, but doesn't always know what to say to them right away. But once she's comfortable, she loves being followed around. (I guess another word for that is bossy...but that seems so harsh. We talk about how she can invite people to follow, but not force. It's a work in progress.) She certainly can be more disobedient, and more adventurous, when she has a buddy in tow. It gives her confidence, I think. 
  
• I do think in general she's a peacemaker with a friends...when she has one that wants the pink thing that she got, she'll hand it over; or the other day she had a friend that wanted to swing when she'd just run over to the one swing available, and even though it was her idea first she smiled and moved away to avoid a showdown. This isn't ALWAYS the case...but probably more often than not is.
  
• She's still a very overall enthusiastic child. Other than the past couple autumns putting her in gymnastics classes, we haven't done any classes with her, but every time I suggest something she says "Yes! That would be so fun!" And acts all excited, whatever it is. She loves having things to get excited about, and look forward to I think. Just like me. 
• She loves her baby brother a lot, and likes looking out for him. She likes him following her around, most of the time. She gets frustrated when he doesn't feel like it and she wants him to, and also the opposite like when she's building something and he destroys it. (This happens most frequently when she's trying to do a puzzle, or put train tracks together, and he comes and messes it up. Poor kid.)
• She's got a great imagination. Next to the puzzles and stories, the most frequent way I see her playing is by taking random little things (dice, pieces of chalk, sticks, chicken nuggets) and pretending they're alive, then coming up with elaborate conversations they're having. (I googled it, it's called anthropomorphism?) So fun to watch. 
  
• Besides the anthropomorphism, she also shows her imagination with the random things she decides to educate me on. On a close to daily basis, she'll say "Mom, did you know pine cones eat feathers?" Or something equally random. She told my mom a couple weeks ago, "When little girls give gifts to women, it fills their hearts with love." Sometimes they're true, usually they're quite silly...always they're enjoyable. Along this line, she likes to speak for little girls everywhere. She's the spokeswoman. Just so you know.
  
• Jori also frequently narrates her actions. This is especially common when she's feeling upset. She'll say "And she dashed away!" or some other word she newly learned, and I'll faintly hear her in a different room, continuing the narrative. 
• I think for the most part, Jori is a cautious child. Maybe because I'm overprotective, so I try to teach her stranger danger and that we have to hold hands in parking lots, etc. etc., but if she's heard there's a chance something could hurt her or be dangerous she really does avoid it. Or even sometimes when she hasn't been told it's dangerous, but she thinks so anyway. Like the vacuum. 
  
• She can be a real sassafras, too. I heard the term "threenager" the other day, and it makes me laugh. It can be so true. Pouting is fairly common, and her wallowing in self pity has become worse as she's gotten older. Like she'll make a conscious effort sometimes, to stay sad and upset about something way over the fact. Kids. Arg.
• She's really a very adaptable child for the most part though, I think. I really strongly feel that this is a huge blessing, and was intentional on Heavenly Father's part, making our oldest this way. (I think the oldest's example is often followed by younger siblings, especially when they're really young.) Because we've moved a lot since getting married, and even since Jori was born. When we were in four different homes in four consecutive months, from the time she was 19 1/2 months old to 23 1/2, she didn't struggle when she had a new nursery to go to each different month. And when a toy is really destroyed, and I say "well, this one we can't repair," she just accepts it and doesn't fuss. And most of the time, when I've said we'll do something that day but then don't end up doing it, as long as I explain why we've had a change in plans she accepts that. What a blessing this is to me, with my forgetful memory and lack of time management! Even when I've talked about how some day we'll move again, as long as I point out that we will have a wonderful new home to live in, she just repeats it in a cheerful voice. 
• That's right! I should mention: she is still often my mimic. I think she just trusts me completely, trusts my words. So if she asks a question and I answer it, she'll repeat the answer word for word like it's fact. (Over daddy's words sometimes, I'm afraid. I guess it balances out: Atticus is a real daddy's boy, Jori's loyalty leans more toward my side. But there's a time for everything.) 
• I call her: Jori, Jori Pori, Ladybug, Little Lady, Sweet Pea, Sunshine, Bugaboo, Beautiful, Missy, Dear, and Gooseberry (when she's being silly) most often. 

Overall...I feel tremendously blessed, to have the kids I do. I hope everyone feels that way! I certainly do.

Favorite people

I'm an introvert. I feel like this is obvious. I'm also fairly shy, which keeps me from getting to know a lot of people. But I sure admire some people from a slight distance, and really commit some favorites to my heart. With some people, it's everything about them, some it's one thing in particular, and some it's just one distinct moment that stands out in my mind. But I watch these people in person, or read about them, and smile. I kind of want to share some of my inspirations. So I'll just start with two huge ones:

1.) Marjorie Pay Hinckley. If you don't yet know, our daughter Jori was named after this awesome lady. (We just dropped the last letter and the first syllable.) Oh, how I love this woman. I can feel her warmth in quotes of hers, seriously. I'm sure she wasn't always happy but she sure seemed to find the positive in situations, and keep that sunshine warming those around her. Weird coincidence: Sam's boss is Gordon B. Hinckley's nephew, so they knew Marjorie personally. I'm super jealous. I aspire to be like this elect lady. She seemed to have her head on all the things that did matter and not on any that didn't. Here's a favorite quote: 

“I don't want to drive up to the pearly gates in a shiny sports car, wearing beautifully, tailored clothes, my hair expertly coiffed, and with long, perfectly manicured fingernails.
I want to drive up in a station wagon that has mud on the wheels from taking kids to scout camp.
I want to be there with a smudge of peanut butter on my shirt from making sandwiches for a sick neighbor's children.
I want to be there with a little dirt under my fingernails from helping to weed someone's garden.
I want to be there with children's sticky kisses on my cheeks and the tears of a friend on my shoulder.
I want the Lord to know I was really here and that I really lived.” 

Oh, she is such a gem. I hope I do get to meet her someday, and hope I don't feel I'm not interesting enough to keep her company. 

2.) Atticus Finch. Yes, I know, I know. He's fictional. And it's probably overdone. But I want to explain why I love and admire this man, and why I wanted to name our son after him. (Sam hadn't read or seen "To Kill a Mockingbird" until after we'd already named him.)

Yes, he makes a stand against racism in a time and place where it was socially unacceptable. Of course, this is inspiring. But I feel like what he did was more broad than that. I don't only take away from his actions a stand against racism: I take his actions as a stand against anything that is wrong, regardless of public sentiment. Regardless of what everyone is determining is right or wrong, regardless of what will happen to him, regardless of what is popular. He stands for what he knows is truth. 

And greatest of all, to me, is that he knew before he even began that he was going to fail. It's in the book, in a conversation he's having with his brother. It's such a powerful passage, their conversation. Atticus reveals he didn't ask for this case, which makes you think perhaps it wasn't a battle that he necessarily was ready to charge into. But it comes to him, and ready or not he knows his duty and rises to it. And then he also reveals, quite simply, that he will not succeed. He knows this clear back in December, when the trial didn't actually take place in the court until the summer. (I think...correct me if I'm wrong, I don't have a copy handy.)

That is so, so inspiring to me. It's always wonderful (and extremely challenging) to fight for what's right, regardless of popular opinion. And it's even harder to fight, knowing there is strong opposition to your own position. But knowing you're going to fail? And doing it anyway? Because the message is important enough, the cause is great enough? What an inspiration. 

So these are two of my inspirations. What/who are some of yours?

Fall Summary

Fall time is a beautiful time of year...I always have mixed feelings about it though. But whatever. I'm happy it's over either way, looking forward to what a new year will bring!

This fall,

Jori took that one gymnastics class offered by the Provo Recreation Center, just like she did last fall. 

This time she was in the 3-4 year old class. She loved it! She had a hard time sitting still long enough to wait her turn though, she was always zipping around. My mom came to the last class to watch, and she laughed and told me she's just like I was. :)

Sam surprised me with an awesome early anniversary celebration in September. We decided having a December 29th anniversary is always hard to celebrate, so we'd start celebrating it on a random day in the year. And this one was our fifth, so we wanted to do something a little bit bigger than we normally have done. So Sam surprised me with an overnight excursion to Park City.

We ate at this yummy restaurant (where I ordered a ridiculous blue drink on accident, I swear the server treated us differently after they brought out that elixir obviously intended for six year olds), enjoyed walking around the shops (including a visit to the Family History Center, which really just added a spiritual boost I hadn't thought we'd needed), got dessert, and the next morning went zip lining! 

 

(The above people aren't us: Sam lost the selfies he took of us immediately before zip lining. But I'm sure we looked similar to them. I was really loud, I'll tell you that much. I like to hoot and holler when I'm in an adrenaline rush.)

I'm so grateful I have such a sweet husband who takes care of me and the kids so well. It's easy to forget how good I have it sometimes. Silly.

I love Halloween, and this year we had a Halloween party with the kids of some of our friends. We had a great time playing "Pin the Bow-tie on Mr.Bones," doing a mummy craft, having a "Ghost hunt" in the backyard (akin to an Easter Egg hunt), and eating snacks. It was kind of weird though, because we had it on the 18th or thereabouts and so it felt like Halloween was already over for a full two weeks before it really was.

Jori and Atticus got to dress up three different times: at our ward trunk-or-treat, at Sam's work's trick-or-treating, and just doing normal trick or treating. And btw, I'm super bummed because Sam took all these sweet pics on his phone, and then lost them all when he replaced his phone because of a problem with the screen. So the ones I'm using are random. :( But...I spent all this time working on a Hello Kitty costume for the record, and that was the one she wore to Sam's work. Which worked out great because it wasn't all that comfortable and that meant she didn't have to wear it too long, but I was still satisfied because of my aforementioned time spent. :)

And our street was HOPPING this year with trick or treaters! It was crazy. I turned off our porch light at like 8:15 cause I was tired of it and we were having to recycle candy from Sam's work's trick or treating by then, anyway. 

We also celebrated Sam's 28th birthday on November 8th, and it was a pretty funny experience honestly. We were in Idaho and I hadn't made any plans for cake, so I used a mix they had in their pantry. But it was four years old, so it didn't rise all the way. Jori also wanted it to be green frosting. So it was this super flat, dense, carrot cake with green frosting. Doesn't that sound delicious?

My friend Rachael and her two sons stayed with us for the first two weeks of November (though we were gone for that weekend of Sam's birthday and left the house to her), and we sure enjoyed their company! Sam joked about how it was like being a polygamist and coming home to his two wives: he'd sit at the head of the table and each one of us on one side of the table and everything. And they made a big impression on Jori, she tells me regularly when she was a grown-up she had three kids and their names were Rachael, Ashton and Bentley (their names). I'm really excited that Rachael has now found a place in Kaysville, has a car again, and a part-time job babysitting for her half-sister-in-law's-sister all lined up. Divorce is awful but I'm excited about what the new year will bring to my friend, and was truly touched at some of the ways Heavenly Father blessed her through people around her, particularly for Christmas. But that's not really my story to tell. :)

We celebrated Thanksgiving with my family this year, having been with Sam's for the past two Thanksgivings in a row. We even remembered to do the traditional field goal kicking contest afterward, at a high school. I didn't do so hot but had fun participating all the same. Unfortunately we didn't have any pictures taken on our camera or Sam's phone, mainly because I broke the camera... :(. My brother Nate did have some taken, but their computer died after the pictures had been uploaded there and they still need to be retrieved from the hard drive...eventually, I'll share pictures is what I'm saying. Doesn't seem like an emergency to me.

And that concludes our fall! I have unofficially declared the seasons to be from December-February Winter, March-May Spring, June-August Summer and September-November Fall, regardless of solstice nonsense. So December will have to be in a different post.