Outtake

We could not have positioned that lamp more perfectly above Mike's head if we'd tried. :)

Reunited

When we were in Eden, Mike got to see his childhood friend Brian for the first time in 20-ish years.  (We met Brian's two boys as well.)

Their treasured memories were about throwing rocks at each other, shooting their BB guns, and overturning a riding mower (which they were riding on at the time, up a too-steep hill).  This...explains a lot about the differences between Mike's and my childrearing styles. :)

To the Patch

Yesterday was a beautiful day for Kelkenberg Farms (which of course was why it was packed!)  We ended up not having as much time there as usual, because we went in between gymnastics in the morning and Jake's birthday party in the afternoon.  But it was still enough time for the boys to play in the sandbox and for us to get our pumpkins from the patch!  (James wanted to pick out the biggest one, and Matthew also picked a big one but then swapped it out for an adorable littler one.)

Mattie was a bit disappointed that they didn't have the rope-making going on (he'd missed it last year because there was a big line due to a birthday party).  But it didn't bother him too much, and he and Mike did get to enjoy the fresh-cooked doughnuts!

They also didn't have the pumpkin-washing station set up, so Matthew opened his own pumpkin-washing shop when we got home. :)

Follow the pumpkin-brick road

It turns out Kelkenberg and Spoth are owned by the same family -- Mike met the grandmother at Spoth's, and she told him to say hi to the other family members. :)

Pumpkin Fix

 Thanks to uncooperative weekend weather, illness, and so on, we had not yet been able to do our usual fall pumpkin patching!  But on Friday, we went just down the road to Spoth's for a little pumpkin fun. :)

He Did It!

 Mattie has gotten the hang of riding a bike, all by himself, no training wheels!  He really stuck with it!  (And yes, he'll be wearing a helmet now that we're back home.)

Fris-Kid

 James might have liked frisbee even more than cribbage!