Yes! The house is FINALLY under controll enough that I can once again blog without guilt!
Which means that I can add purty pictures to the blog! Check it out:
Yesterday Brian and I spent the second half of General Conference driving the family down to the grandparents’ house in Provo. We decided to take the scenic route, going out to Park City, then down through Midway and ending with the spectacular Alpine Loop, a winding road that takes you through the aspen-and-evergreen forests of Mt. Timpanogos. We saw many, many scenic vistas, and many, many people taking photos of them. Playing Spot-the-Tripod became something of a sport. Alas, most of MY photos didn’t turn out so well, and the one above doesn’t quite capture the Beethoven’s-Ninth-Symphony-Esque-Grandiosity of it all. Let’s just say that a few days ago I was moping about, missing autumn on the East Coast, but now I don’t feel that way at all. Hurrah for snowcapped mountain peaks!
Here’s another spectacular photo, although you may not appreciate it as much as I do:
This is Eleanor’s first-ever attempt at writing her name! Well, her first two attempts, really. She’s very interested in reading and writing, which is a big change of pace compared to Jeffrey. Jeffrey, at age six, still needs to be prodded with a hot iron just to pick up a pencil, while Ella’s diving into the whole alphabet thing full on.
Eleanor and I were so excited about her name-writing that we had to celebrate with some Pumpkin Brains:
“Pumpkin Brains” is just the name we give on of my family’s favorite Halloween treats. You mix dry-roasted peanuts and candy corn together, and eat them together in the same bite. The resulting combination tastes a LOT like a Baby Ruth bar and is mega-addictive. Before I discovered Pumpkin Brains, I simply could not understand the appeal of candy corn (on its own, it is rather oo-ugh) but nowadays I usually insist on hunting down the Brach’s brand candy corn. (Oh, so far superior to every other brand. I can only find it at Target.) Getting the correct 2:1 peanut-to-candy ratio is, needless to say, essential.
Casa Camisas 
Hooray for E-L-E-A-N-O-R!
Beth will write the E-T-H part of her name, but insists on having someone else write the B, because “it’s too hawd.” So I really, really do appreciate the lovely Rs on that page.
When I was a kid we spent nearly every Sunday afternoon (okay, probably not, but it sure seemed that way to me) in the car going for scenic drives. The Alpine Loop was and remains one of my dad’s favorites. To capture the full spirit of what we were doing, keep in mind that my dad was (and still is) the proud owner of one of SLC’s first VW rabbit convertibles.
Yup. That’s why I had short hair as a kid.
I MISS PUMPKIN BRAINS! Good reminder. I’m going shopping.
And I love the picture. Ah!
i just put both candy corn and dry roasted peanuts on my grocery list…
Are you doing Nanowrimo this year? I’m contemplating whether or not to do it and was trying to recruit other
victimspeople to do it with me.You’re the second person who has asked. To tell the truth, I’m in the middle of a manuscript and am reluctant to part with it for a whole month. BUT — I’m willing to sign up just to have the motivation to nail out that next draft. So, the support’s there, if you need it.