Pumpkin Carving

Last night we carved pumpkins. Here are the results:

Pumpkin Patch

We went to a pumpkin patch this past Saturday. It was pretty fun, though they didn't actually have the pumpkins on the vine, which led me to believe that they brought the pumpkins in on a flatbed. None the less, they had tons of farm animals and a country store. We were able to get a couple of pumpkins and enjoy a nice sunny fall afternoon.

Orcas Island Vacation

We just got back from our much needed vacation to Orcas Island. We had such a great time and the weather was perfect. We spent 4 days hanging out on the beach in front of our cabin chatting, collecting cool rocks, amusing ourselves and playing with the dogs. It was a great place to go to relax and spend time together. Alice and Charlie were perfect on the trip. They just ran and explored. We also realized that Alice is larger than a deer. Enjoy some of our pictures.

This is our cabin that we stayed in. It is the perfect size for us and had a kitchen and fireplace. That made the evenings really nice. We were able to make a good dinner and then have a fire and relax. There was no TV which was exactly what we were looking for. We played lots of Yahtzee (Matt had 4 yahtzee's in one game!) and gin rummy, though we have different rules so after many compromises I am not even sure what you would call what we were playing.

When we first got the beach Charlie and Alice were running everywhere. By day two this was how they spent their afternoons. We took two dog beds to the beach for them since is was a rocky beach and they managed to snuggle on them perfectly. They were pretty tired and happy by the end of this trip.

Ready for Winter

Alice is ready for winter!

A True Picture of Courage

I think Hopsalot believes that she is the size of a horse and Alice acts more like a mouse. It is a pretty funny relationship between these two.

The Market is done!

The farmers' market finished up this past Saturday after 22 weeks of festivities. I really did enjoy doing the market this past season. It was really interesting to see what farmers' and growers brought to the market- not to mention some fabulous people watching. Matt sold snow cones the entire market which was fun. He enjoyed being part of the market and it was nice to have him there each week. Because of his product, his entire client base was under the age of 10, which made for some pretty funny stories when we got home. One little girl was so excited she ran into his table as she sprinted over. Too funny!

Fall Day

I was driving home from work today and it was pouring down rain and rather cold outside. I realized that fall has arrived. I couldn't resist stopping at the farm I always pass to take a few pictures. It kind of seemed to come full circle with the season. Last year at this time Matt and I were still living in Ellensburg with no plans to move to Portland just yet- though wishing to go somewhere. Here now, living in Portland, the change of season at the farm means more to me. My last farmers' market is this Saturday. I have watched lettuce and cherries arrive, then berries of all kinds soon followed by corn, peppers, tomatoes and now pumpkins and squash. The change of season has come to have more bearing on my days than I ever would have expected and in many ways marks the passage of time in a more earth centric way. The steady rain at the farm today in someway visually marked the passage of time for me. It makes me excited for leaves changing, having my Saturday's back to spend with Matt, fires in the fireplace, "special" hot chocolate drinks, going to bed at 8:30pm because it has already been dark for 4 hours, the dogs growing and getting a little wiser with age, time with family and excitement that words can't describe when that first snowflake falls for the winter. Yet somehow the farm reminds me that spring will come once again with a steady rain and cherries on the horizon. It's a cycle of time that gives such a sense of wonderment.