Prayers Needed

Many of you know my cousin Dean has renal disease. He's been on dialysis for many years now, waiting and praying for a matching donor. Recently a friend of his mom's decided to donate her kidney to him. They are currently undergoing the final stages of compatibility testing, but so far everything is going perfectly.

Keep them both in your thoughts and prayers.

The Pumpkin Patch

A friend mentioned going to a pumpkin patch today, so we decided to meet her there and enjoy a wonderful day outside. The weather was beautiful - sunny and cool with lots of beautiful fall leaves.

Kendra was adorable, as usual, but not all that impressed. We had fun taking pictures (click here for more) of her and wandering around the farm. She is starting to react more and more to the world around her - giggles and smiles when she enjoys something, tears when she doesn't. Her personality is fast developing, and I know you're all shocked, but she is an opinionated little girl!

I Don't Wanna Go To Work

Happy Thanksgiving, Canadians!

We have a few Canadian friends up here, and they wanted to throw a traditional Canadian Thanksgiving Day party (a day early to fit work schedules). The problem? They had a one bedroom condo. The solution? Use our house! We had a ball (and yes, that is a moose head we hung on our wall!)

Jeremy did all the cooking, Nicole did all the set-up and helped us clean. I made my first ever cheesecake - a light, pumpkin and maple confection that turned out amazingly good. Dan fried up some donut holes a la Tim Horton's, and threw together some tasty Philo dough/brie/apple raisin bites that were also very yummy as appetizers.

The rest of the amazing meal was all Jeremy, and he outdid himself. Creamy Butternut Squash Soup, spicy turkey, pork loin seasoned to perfection, mashed potatoes, yams, green beans with bacon, and a sweet/spicy stuffing that was beyond perfect. Great job, Jeremy!!

We ended up with nine people, five of whom we had never met, and had a wonderful time. The dogs were not as impressed. They were locked up until after dinner, much to their dismay. Baby gate my big toe - it's a doggie prison!

Grandpa and His Girl

Dad is once again back in St. Louis. We had a wonderful visit with him, and I think he enjoyed every moment of it as well. It took him a while to get used to a tiny baby, but he enjoyed playing with his new granddaughter. I can't wait to see the two of them together again at Christmas!

As an aside, we have come to conclusion that our faithful dog Otis believes Baby Girl is the worst thing to ever enter his life. When she starts to cry, he will get up and leave the room - often throwing disapproving stares over his shoulder. If we get up in the middle of the night to feed her, he follows us into her room but as soon as we pick her up he huffs back out and goes back to sleep. Crazy dog.

Let The Races Begin!

Dad's in town this week, so we decided to do something different - and Dan found the perfect fit. The Port Townsend Kinetic Skulpture Race. We had a wonderful time! The weather was perfect and the people crazy. People from all over design these crazy "skulptures" that they race across land, water and mud. Some were more successful than others, but they all had fun.

We watched the "stump speeches" as the entrants tried to win the popular vote, promising everything from "an egg on every plate" to no "foul name calling" and everything in between. Apparently the theme for this year involved chickens and every skulpture had a rubber chicken included in it. We stayed for the beginning of the race and watched as they plunged into the icey water of Puget Sound. Click here for more pictures of the event.

After the craziness (and chill wind blowing off the water) we headed to a nice micro-brewery for some warm, yummy food and a tasty beverage. The food was to-die-for good, although eaten a bit hastily since Little One decided she was also hungry. A crying baby does not make a pleasant dining experience. I managed to keep her quiet by bouncing her on my knee, but do you have any idea how hard it is to eat clam chowder while bouncing a baby?

We spent a few more hours wandering the streets and shops of this quaint village, then took the ferry back home. After a fantastic Chef Dan prepared steak dinner, we are all worn out and ready for bed.