Unscripted October Moments

October 2020

How quicky time pass us by. I wrote down in my agenda about, "how quickly October seem to come around". This is the reason why I try my best to live intentionally. To not live life with haste. To live in the present. To document life from the ordinary mundane moments to fun outings. And this is why I don't ever rush time by saying, "oh, I wish it was Friday, or I wish it was summer, or I wish it was Christmas break". Because I know better. When you think that way it prevents you from living in the present moment.

There's a pumpkin patch about five minutes from our house. Around early October is when you spot a tractor pulling a wagon filled with a huge load of pumpkins driving from their pumpkin patch to several blocks down the road toward their farm store. These were huge pumpkins.

For a few months I began to notice my eyes becoming a little blurry and burn when I read so, Jacob and I both went to see the optometrist. We got our eyes checked and we were both prescribed reading glasses, unfortunately. Fast forward six years to today and we still think having to rely on reading glasses to look at small print is a big inconvenience. I'm still not used to the idea of having reading glasses.

It is such a de-stresser to me to take the backroads whenever possible when I'm feeling overburdened. Driving along pine trees and seeing farm animals lifts my spirits, more so when it is cloudy. I'm keenly aware of my surroundings, observant, and I'm very detailed oriented so at times too much mental overload tends to cause overwhelm. Thankfully, I also know healthy ways on how to relax and decompress.  

This girl, wherever I go especially when I rest, she's sure to follow and lay next to me. I love her fur. She's got a very soft coat. I like to say she's my comfort animal because she feels so familiar to me. She's very patient when I'm holding her and loving on her. I wish she was just as loving towards other cats though.

For those of us that appreciate cloudy weather this scene never gets old. I get excited about cloudy weather as if this type of weather hardly happens, but we know that cloudy weather is a staple in the PNW, still it gets me every time. 

The above cloudy weather brought on a storm. It rained hard late at night which caused a power outage. Power came back on around 5:00 am. I'm glad it did because a cookie bake was planned on this Saturday. 

Riley enjoys helping his dad bake cookies. Sydna grabbing some lunch.

Now adding the icing. I failed to write down what type of cookies they made so I don't have a clue what they're called but I'm sure they were tasty.

This one I know. It was pumpkin cheesecake with crumble. It looks amazing! and I'm sure it was. 

Lila looking pretty.

I had a birthday in October. Riley had the day off for school. After a delicious breakfast we headed N to Redmond and Woodenville. We like taking the scenic route. 

The gorgeous colors of autumn leaves just beg to be displayed.

One of the coziest things to do when it's cloudy and cold is to curl up on the couch and watch a good movie.

After a while though I do feel the need to get up and move around, so we went on a long walk around a couple of neighborhoods.

Spotted these two pretty flowers.

Slow living isn't about doing less; it's about being present in everything you do. It's about connecting deeply with loved ones, nature, and the quiet beauty of daily life. 

This time it was Lila who wanted to sit near me. She's giving me side eye. I love her furry paws. 

Taking the back roads near our home just so I can look at these beauties. Such gorgeous trees.

Nathan dressed up as Bob Ross. So silly.

All ready to head out to a Halloween party.

The devotional book I was reading at the time. (I read it as a book not one devotion a day.) This devotion really caught my attention. We should all heed what it's talking about. We cannot do life on our own. At some point we have to realize that we cannot do life without God.

October was a fun month. It is my favorite month of the year. Anytime I can spend time by the water is always a relaxing enjoyable time for me.

Our lives are made up of time, and the quality of

our existence depends on our wise use of the moments we are given.

October Fun

October 2020

I'm glad I have this space where I can document pieces of our life. I hope my children will find it fun and comforting to come and read once they're old. I wish my mom would have documented parts of her life ... from her youth and young adult life. I would have loved to have seen things she was interested in back then, homelife and everyday outfits.

Carving a pumpkin can be such hard work but the end result is usually worth it (as long as one doesn't mess it up, lol).

My daughter's cat Lila was curious about the pumpkin smell, so she jumped on the table and began sniffing.

She gave the pumpkin a few licks and she was done with it. 

So, Riley hollowed out the pumpkin and Jacob carved it for him. Dad's are the best!

I like to make Halloween fun and special for my children. One of our favorite treats is a cookie cake. I make sure to buy one every time. 

And another family favorite for Halloween is ordering pizza and wings for dinner.

We had an early dinner so we could go back to a local pumpkin patch and do the corn maze. 

It was nice that it wasn't too busy. We started out quite sure of ourselves thinking that we would know which direction to take but .....

.... we soon realized that we were lost. We let Riley lead, so he thought it was hilarious that we didn't know which way to go.

So, dad had to take over leading. 

I on the other hand like to hang back a bit to take in the moment, look for bugs on the corn stalks, birds in the sky when they do happen to fly by, and as I rounded a corner I looked up and spotted Mt. Rainier. She's a giant!

Still lost by the looks of it. Ha ha!!

Eventually we found our way out. That was a fun time. It was now time to get home to get Riley ready to go trick or treating.

I don't recall what his costume was called but it was an ugly scary one. He was obviously happy with it. 

Oh, the jack o'lantern on the right was the one Jacob carved for Riley. It turned out looking good. Good job dad!

We walked about four blocks. Not many people were giving out candy because of the pandemic, but he got enough to be satisfied.

After we checked his candy and he ate a few we settled down on the couch and watched "It's a great pumpkin, Charlie Brown". A family favorite!

Memories, one of the few things that can never be taken away from us. Make lots of them (and document them).

They chose me from my brothers: "that's the nicest one", they said. And they

carved me out a face and put a candle in my head. And they set me on the doorstep,

and the night was dark and wild; and when they lit the candle then I smiled and smiled and smiled.

Halloween 2019

October 31, 2019

Orange evening sky a day before Halloween. Very fitting.

We carve our pumpkins a day or two before Halloween. It's messy work but a fun activity. 

And it takes serious concentration trying to remove the small cutout pieces.

I love sugar cookies. I'm well aware that it's not everyone's favorite, it certainly isn't for Jacob or Nathan but Riley will enjoy some with me. I rarely buy them though because I would finish them real quick. And I love making those skull brownies. The outside is crunchy but moist on the inside. So good with a glass of milk. And we also love onion dip, it's very addicting which is why I rarely make it.  

We usually have pizza and wings on Halloween. Riley enjoying a few sweets before heading out since he wasn't able to have candy at night (too late for sugar).

It was a cold Halloween as usual. Taking pictures before heading out. 

Sophie looking real nice with her Halloween pom pom collar. She likes it, doesn't try to take it off at all.

Candy, treats and sugary sweets

a bowl of candy, a bag of treats, a dish

of tasty, sugary sweets, knock I do,  then 

knock some more, trick or treat we call at your door.

Halloween 2018

Traditions continue.
Pumpkin carving is fun but it also takes creativity and some elbow grease. My arms get tired from creating the top hole especially when the pumpkin is large. We typically carve our pumpkins the day before Halloween.

This time I remembered to put out a large bowl to collect the pumpkin guts so there would be minimal mess. Sydna took part in the activity. Nathan had to work.
As usual, Jacob makes everything a competition ... even though the rest of us were taking our time, Jacob was the one who finished gutting out his pumpkin first.

I try to make it fun for our family and I get a kick out of seeing the trick or treaters walk up the steps to our porch and comment on the decorations. Sometimes the little kids get scared but their desire for candy is stronger than the skeleton hanging above their heads, so they still collect their candy and quickly walk away.

For school on Halloween Riley dressed up as Michael Jackson. He told us that he showed his class some dance moves, lol. So funny! I would have loved to have seen that.

He looks so cute! and he was especially happy that his dad came along with me to pick him up from school. For several years now Jacob has taken half the day off from work on Halloween. He helps me prepare the treats and we usually order wings and pizza ... so we're out and about picking up our orders.

We invited my in-laws. Jacob also made chili to go along with the wings. I don't eat chili. I was content with eating the wings.

Sydna typically passes out the candy while Jacob and I take Riley trick or treating. This time around my in-laws were nice enough to help out with passing out the candy as well.

At night Riley dressed up as a phantom with glowing eyes. He looks funny!

I like Halloween but I don't dress up for it. I just wore my Michael Myers shirt.

I don't even know what the pumpkin on the top right was supposed to be. I believe that was Riley's but a piece broke off, lol!

Once home Jacob goes through Riley's candy bag and takes out the hard candies and the weird looking ones. This time around Riley got a few interesting things. He got a fortune cookie (what in the world??!! LOL) and a popcorn ball. Funny.

The jack o'lantern chuckled then winked his funny

eye, "I would rather be a pumpkin-face than be inside a pie!"