It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year...

It's Sunday night, and I have lots of old, half-written blogs I could finish, but instead I'm going to leave you with a few photos of this year's holiday fair.  As is typical, I didn't take many photos, because I was so busy (egad!) having fun!  Seems to be a trend lately....

(

(This is the "Jack and the Beanstalk" gingerbread scene made by the first-graders and their eight-grade 'buddies.'  Jack is climbing down the beanstalk, and the giant's foot is peeking through the cotton candy clouds.)

After each holiday fair, after the kids are asleep, we always reflect on the holiday fairs of years past, and marvel at our growing place in this community we have chosen for our children and our family.  On this day filled with singing, music, celebration and goodwill, we feel so lucky to have landed here, surrounded by the closeness of friends that warm our hearts year after year.

Someday soon the girls will get sick of candle-dipping, and making jump ropes.  They won't care about the marionette show, and will spend more time running with their friends than hanging around with us.

But no matter how old we get, the third Saturday in November will always be a magical day...

Let the holidays begin!

So Much Better Than Raking...

This is why things don't happen very quickly around here; why our lawn is -still, and eternally- covered with leaves; why we haven't turned over our garden for next year or planted any bulbs; why the fallen trees haven't yet been cut:

Opa!

Priorities.

And more priorities.

(And this photo is the reason why my husband should never be allowed to hold the camera; why I should never let the new girl cut my hair; why I shouldn't eat so much cake; why I should stop hanging out with the pretty ladies...)

Happy Birthday Chrissy!  Happy Rest of Your Life Together Lisa Mo and Keegan!  Here's to all the friends everywhere that make us realize what is truly important in life!

An Extra Hour

I hope everyone enjoyed their extra hour as much as I did!

Surveying the Damage

What we lost:

Everything in our chest freezer.  All the long days and late nights we put into picking, chopping, blending, and freezing and all the excitement we had thinking about the dark days in winter when those summer flavors would taste so good, have - quite literally - melted away.  It is such bitter irony that the same temperatures which caused us to freeze our arses off were just high enough to wreak havoc on our food stores in the next room over.  This afternoon I bought produce at a grocery store for the first time in...I don't even remember when the last time was.  Honestly, it was depressing.  But at least it wasn't a bumper crop (the hurricane and heavy rains in the spring took care of that), and we'll find a way to work around it.  We've still got our canned stuff, lots of fermented goods, and a nice winter farmer's market.  (And a pressure canner has just moved to the top of my Christmas list...)

What we found:

After throwing everything in our refrigerator away (far fewer emotions here) we were left with these four items.  Not such bad things to be left with when you really think about it...

Not bad at all.

(After waiting for the downed trees and electrical wires to be cleared from the roads, the kids were finally able to trick-or-treat tonight!  Not quite the same as doing it on Halloween itself, but a celebration just the same.  And in light of this celebration, I think I'll wait and survey the damage on our bank account tomorrow...)