Was it windy where you live?

I am amazed at how different the weather can be along the lakeshore compared to places just a few miles inland. The temperatures tend to be cooler and the conditions are sometimes more extreme when coming from the west off of the lake. Last night there were wind gusts reported to be near 60 miles an hour just north of our house. Apparently I was tired enough to sleep through the thrashing of leaves and swirling winds. When I woke up this morning Tim informed me we had lost power at two separate occasions and that a tree had fallen on top of our swing set. I guess it is time to get the chainsaw out again, ugh!

Can I do some chores?

While I made dinner tonight Leah asked if she could do the chores that she assigned herself yesterday. I love the fact that she wanted to help out and I praised her for making the suggestion herself. Unfortunately what was an innocent desire to help quickly turned to worry, then sadness, and finally frustration. First, as Leah was cleaning the windows one of the decorative slats came off. After that I found her using a liquid cleaner (not designed for wood) on our dining room table. Changing jobs, Leah proceeded to sweep the kitchen floor sparking an interest in Elizabeth. Because the broom was being used Elizabeth grabbed a feather duster to help dust. Ironically, Leah did not want to have her sister help out so she told Elizabeth to stop cleaning. That caused a huge uproar between the two of them. I feel bad that Elizabeth only got to clean the doorknobs before the confrontation. Hopefully next time Leah will be more willing to have her sister help her out too.

Have you seen my monkey?

Elizabeth came home today with a Webkinz Jr. monkey. Tim's mom bought it for her as a friend to snuggle with during nap time at her house. Right now it is on "vacation" until it returns to its real home on Wednesday. Such a silly monkey!

Did you find her?

Last night after work Tim drove north to his dad's property to go bow hunting. Just before dusk he spotted a doe near his tree stand and took a shot. When he went to track the deer down the darkness combined with the wet leaves kept him from finding her. Still dejected this morning, Tim made the long trek back to the woods to try again to locate her in the daylight. To his dismay and the doe's delight he came home empty handed.

How do you spell fun?

R-A-I-N. This afternoon while Elizabeth took a nap Leah had a blast splashing in the downpour. I could hear her as she walked around spelling F-U-N over and over again. Such a silly girl!

Where will the 2016 Olympics be held?

It was a bummer to hear that the city of Chicago lost the bid to host the 2016 summer Olympics. I had already planned to make the short trip back "home" to attend the gymnastics and swimming events. Maybe I'll just have to schedule vacation plans to Rio instead.

Did you see the spider and the pumpkin?

There is a neat little market between our house and school. Last year the farmer who owns the property created a spider and pumpkin made out of hay. Each day as Leah, Elizabeth and I would drive passed the site the girls would comment about them. Even a few weeks ago Elizabeth asked when we would see them again. Naturally when Leah and I approached the market yesterday we were excited to find that the spider and pumpkin had returned. Before heading to school this morning I grabbed my camera so we could snag a photo on our way home. The lady at the market was so friendly. We collected 5 free mini pumpkins (3 that were painted by her daughters) and a half gallon of apple cider. She told us to return and take as many pictures as we wanted. Now we'll be looking for our hay friends everyday for the rest of October!