Pumpkin Carving

Ah, Fall.  Portland is so colorful right now and the leaves are making their way to the ground in preparation for winter.  It hasn't been too cold yet, but it has been wet.  We haven't been able to go to the pumpkin patch or apple picking because its been too rainy on the weekends when we're all home.  So, we had to settle on pumpkins from the local market for our carving pleasure.

We got together with our home community to carve pumpkins.  It was great fun and there was a lot of creativity going on!

A Moment Like This

It's no secret that parenting Jeremiah has been a challenge, from the day he was born.  He's overall a great kid--has a big heart, loves to help others, is super smart, and comes up with some interesting ideas.  But, he has some behavioral challenges that have been difficult to manage all these years, and sometimes its difficult to find things to applaud him on.

Yesterday, while at Costco as a family, the kids were going from sample to sample, wanting to try all those processed foods they were pushing, which I don't buy or keep in the house.  It's fun for them (and us too, I admit) and it's like a little treat for all of us.  Well, it was crowded and the employees were having a hard time keeping up with the demand for samples, so there was a lot of waiting at each station.  Peter and I kind of hung back and watched as they were waiting for salmon burgers to be finished.  There was another girl, about Jeremiah's age, waiting with them.  We watched the employee take the burger off the skillet and cut it up and place it into cups one at a time.  I remember thinking, "Oh, Jeremiah, show some patience and some chivalry, and let the little girl grab hers before you."  And, as I was thinking that, I watched as he motioned for the girl to take her sample first while the employee divvied out more.  And then, he proceeded to grab one for himself (and yes, he let Alayna have her sample first, as well).  I was so, so, so proud in that moment!  For a lot of reasons; the patience he displayed, the kind attitude he showed a stranger, denying himself for the benefit of another.  Oh, it made my heart smile.  I was sure to tell him right away when he made his way back to us, just how proud I was of this little act of kindness.  And I decided to post something about it here, so I have it to look back on when we are facing those challenging moments.

Way to go, J!

Time for a Quickie

Things are CRAZY busy right now and about to get worse with clinicals starting this week and midterm in 2 weeks, so I thought I'd squeeze in a quick blog before all that.  There isn't much to "catch up" on.  Everyone is still doing well and busy with school, work, and activities.  Fall is here and we've had our first few days of rain this week.  One of those days was a teacher planning day, so the kids were off school.  Peter decided to take them to an indoor climbing gym (while I stayed at home and studied--boo).  They had a blast.  We haven't done anything else worth blogging about (as expected), but I expect some stuff will be coming up in the next few weeks (pumpkin patch, apple picking, Halloween, and a visit from my parents are all happening in that time).  I hope to find time to blog about those fun activities!

Fall colors!