So back in the beginning of the month, John took a long weekend to travel to Cleveland for a writing conference. It's a great opportunity for him to connect with other writers and it really fuels his creative spirit, so the boys and I sent him off dark and early on a Thursday morning. (His flight was at 6:30 a.m. departing from an airport an hour away. He got up at 4 and left by 4:30. Edward actually heard him heading down the stairs and called out for one last kiss good-bye.)
That weekend happened to be the "bye" weekend for the Hawkeye football team. This meant that EVERY single event for the fall was scheduled then. It also happened to be our first blast of cold with high temperatures only in the 40s. (We turned the heat on this weekend.) Daniel and I bundled up in down coats and a blanket to watch Edward's soccer game Saturday morning. Then it was home for some soup for lunch before heading back out to the Northside Oktoberfest, a new tradition in town, which was very fun last year, but definitely felt the chill this year.
Don't get me wrong--we still had fun. Just not quite as enticing to guzzle root beer when your hands are as frosty as your mug. (This event is held in conjunction with a brew fest and includes a soda fest for the kids.)
From there we headed over to Daniel's school for the annual Harvest Fest--also an outdoor event. I blatantly ignored the food assignment based on last name, making the executive decision that an event running from 2-4 p.m. did not require a main dish. One pan of pumpkin bars could be divided between this event and another party that evening. And besides, who's going to say No to cream cheese frosting? No one at this party, that's for sure! The Willowwind fest had games for the kids and a short music performance from each class. All three pre-school classes kicked things off with a little song and dance. We were then told that the K-6th grades would each have a song and the program would end with a second song from the pre-schoolers. Um. No. Note to school: do not make your shortest-attention-span, least-patient pupils wait the longest. We ditched the program and headed home to warm up a bit.
Then it was off to our friends the Jordans' for another Oktoberfest. We were all a bit worn out from the day and I may or may not have threatened to leave before dinner was served. We made it though and had a great time, including two firsts for the boys: a three-legged race and bobbing for apples. Yes, bobbing in a water bucket, outside in 40-degree weather. Daniel of course soaked his shirt, but they both came up with apples, thanks to some generous stems.
Oh, and Daniel's assessment of the three-legged race: "We tied our legs together and had to run to the fence and back. We fell down a lot."
Sunday was our 12th anniversary, but with John away all weekend, we didn't think it would be right to get a babysitter and head out by ourselves. We planned an evening at home with a delicious lasagna dinner. We were all very happy to welcome John home mid-afternoon. This four-day absence was our trial run for a much bigger trip later in the month.
