Autumn: The Setting, The Props, and the Players

Well, once again it's been a long passage between posts. We've been living up a STORM around here, but little of it has been festive and/or photographed. Jon and I had TWO dates in October alone, and have attended a couple of great churchy social gatherings.  Miles has been really warming up to preschool; Adele has started walking (3 steps at a time) and talking (4 words and counting).

The main energy pull in the last couple weeks, though, has been yet ANOTHER daycare change we've had to make (we just have the worst childcare luck). Fortunately, we expect this will probably be the last such transition as we've found a daycare CENTER we love and that we can afford (more's the miracle). One week in and this is the smoothest transition we've made in childcare. Of course, it's still a transition, so... blogging has fallen by the wayside.

So rather than telling too many stories, which will probably just result in a bunch more dramatically and unnecessarily capitalized words, (I'M SO TIRED), I will give you: October. The setting, props, and players. And about 100 pictures (sorry) (I need an editor).

The Setting: Blacksburg in the fall. I took these on my way to work on a couple different mornings last week.

Autumn means pink mornings.

My route to the bus stop:

I nod respectfully to the dead, who are with us and yet not with us... I tell Miles that we don't have to fear dead folks, but we do respect them and refrain from walking on their graves. I tell him we plant folks in the ground like seeds, and that if we are patient, one day, they will grow.

Which is pretty much what I think.

I arrive, off the bus.

Campus glows in the morning.

Smoulders in some places.

Take two, a Thursday:

See what I mean? Pink morning.

Have I said how much I love my commute?

Some props: Pumpkin pancakes (and pumpkin cookies) have been staples in our house int he past few weeks. Saturday morning luxury version:

Further prop: Miles has been feeling very parental lately, loving this baby (whose identity changes daily) as well as he is able. This baby receives bottles, lullabies, rides in the wrap, and long naps in the doll crib I found at a yard sale.

You need to see this video of Adele pushing Miles, you really do.

Further props: pumpkins! Miles' preschool did a field trip to a pumpkin patch.

Papa and Adele came along for the ride! Adele was apparently delighted.

The players! Their current nicknames are Small and Tiny. Small says his parents are "E-NOR-MOUS."

Papa is home with both kids 2 days a week, which gives them some happy afternoons together twice a week.

 Next up: Halloween. Get ready for some cute, that's all.

Harvest Festival

This past weekend brought us the Public Library's Fall Harvest Celebration, our second annual visit.

This year the Mill Mountain Zoo sent a delegation: a Great Horned Owl and her handler. We learned that Great Horned Owls eat skunks. I'm wondering if they can be persuaded to eat our stinkbugs.

Last year Adele was a (large) bump in my maternity sweater. This year... well, she started taking steps this week.

Miles played Hay Bale musical... bales... with the other children and with his beloved Miss Tori from storytime. He did not win a painted pumpkin this year, but he got the winning fever and wanted to play ALL the other available games. So he did take home a few (small and plastic) prizes.

Look! a hayride!

Obviously we had to go on the free hayride. I'm laughing because the horse is trying to get into the diaper bag. Bad luck, horse; for once, it was zipped up all the way.

Adele is wary of these large life forms

If you read our blog really carefully and are like, big Miles fans, you'll remember that he's developed an affinity for bluegrass music. He was pretty excited, then, to get to watch the Back Porch Cloggers perform!

Goats! Glorious goats! Miles and goats go way back. They were like the second animal name he could sign and say as a baby.

"This one's got nothing. Better move along."

Adele fearlessly slid (supported by our hands) innumerable times at the little playground.

All libraries should have playgrounds!

She has a gift for unbridled joy.

LOOK. AT. HER. You're smiling, aren't you?

Miles finished the day with a tour of a firetruck and an ambulance. He got to see where the sick people sit. We heard one on the way home and by himself this time, Miles said, "Dear God, please help the person that is sick, to be better. AAA-MEN." I prayed my own prayer, that God would deliver us from Miles ever having to see the inside of one of those for any reason other than education and fun.

Blessed

Thursday was the third Saint Francis day we've celebrated in Blacksburg, and our third Blessing of the Animals service, too. It is a service that is punctuated by barking, scampering, and other misbehavior, and yet it is, to me, one of the more peaceful services held at Christ Church. I look forward to it always.

Sometimes I think I get some of my enjoyment from watching the dog owners try to control their dogs' behavior while we read and sing. It's nice to see someone else struggling to control their creatures during a church service.

Adele happily held on to the picture of Grendel and Dragon, the same Miles held for the Blessing in 2010. Adele will happily hold anything with an image of a cat on it. They are her favorite animal and her first word. I insist that her soundless little "K.T" consonant sounds, made while pointing at images of cats, are her first word. (It may also be "Papa." I think I'd rather come in second to "Cat" than to "Papa," though>)

It's hard to get pictures of ourselves, so I have to swipe a couple of the pictures our priest took at the event. :-)

Let me tell you briefly the story of Snandy:

Snandy is an invisible dog that first emerged from the aether of imaginary friends in early summer. Snandy is frequently with us, but unnoticed, and Miles tells us later what Snandy was doing at such and such a time. He shows up in Miles' cooperatively-told bedtime stories, along with his friend, The Bactrian Camel (who works at Starbucks... this is another story).  Dogs are frequently compared to Snandy, or Miles will say that a certain dog "is a Snandy." so he's apparently a kind of ideal as well as a specific character. So far, Snandy is fairly consistent in being big but with a high bark, and in being white with large black spots (though these particulars sometimes vary). Sometimes when he wishes to incarnate Snandy for some purpose, Miles will say that one of his stuffed dogs is "pretending to be Snandy." For today, rather than pointing to an invisible pet, Miles chose to incarnate Snandy into one of Adele's stuffed dogs.

And thus, Snandy received his "invisible friend" blessing. Father Scott even included a clause that blessed Snandy's ability to chase monsters away.

Adele performs her office dutifully.

She is such a cheerful soul these days.

The family. What will it look like next year?

Saint Francis watched with an air of seeming, if distant, approval.