~The BeAuTiEs of FALL~

I have absolutely loved Fall this year!  Last year I think we had one week of Fall and then went straight into Winter.  But this year we have had several weeks of beautiful crisp, sunny weather.  I couldn't ask for anything better!  Okay maybe I could, but bottom line this weather is good for the soul.  :)  I just wish we could hang onto it forever.

Our Relief Society planned an activity today for the mom's and their children because the kids were out of school today.  We went to the apple orchard near our house and picked apples, then went back to the church and made pies and caramel apples.  Wow, the simple joys of life truly make it all worthwhile.  The kids and I had such a great time enjoying the beauty of this earth that Heavenly Father has blessed us with and the companionship of so many wonderful women and children in our ward.  I had such a fun time taking pictures of the kids.  Parker is in the phase of the goofy just-take-the-picture-so-I-can-get-out-of-here smile.  I need to figure out a way to get him to give me his funny genuine smile, but until then, we get the forced, irritated smile.  Haha!  Chase really enjoyed getting out and exploring the orchard.  He picked up a few nasty rotten apples, but no harm done.  What a great day!

FROGS RULE AND DOGS DROOL!

Ragnar Race

Phil got ambitious enough to sign up for a race in August.  What cracks me up / amazes me about Phil is his ability to not really train for races and manage not only to make it through it, but to do a great job as well.  He "trained" (as in ran a handful of times in no consistent fashion) prior to the race, but 2 weeks before he got a really bad blister on his foot and wasn't able to run at all until the actual race.  The Ragnar Race is an overnight relay race complete with 192 miles and 12 teammates.  They each take 3 legs of about 4-6 miles each.  It took place in Wisconsin and Minnesota, ending in Minneapolis.  Unfortunately we didn't get to see him race, but we heard from his teammates that he did awesome.  His team named themselves "Ragnar Road Kill."  His first leg was in the dead heat (90 somethin' degrees) and thick humidity of the day.   Brutal.  His second leg was in the middle of the night and was his favorite leg, feeling cooler and full of energy.  His last leg was midday the next day.  Apparently the smell in the car was horrific as you could only imagine.  He had a great time!  I have a feeling he'll be doing more.  :)

Tiger On Track