Pumpkin goodness

When I was in my youth, we'd frequently have waffles on the weekends. Sometimes we'd get a special treat, particularly in fall, and have pumpkin waffles. As the days got shorter and colder and it was even more difficult to get out of a warm bed on Saturday morning, the smell of pumpkin, cinnamon, and nutmeg would eventually pull me out of bed. It was a method I much preferred to forcing me up for the day than the one favored in December: Blasting of a Bing Crosby or Ann Murray Christmas album over and over and over again.

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We had a full weekend that featured among other things, perfect fall weather. On Saturday, we went to the Augsburg homecoming football game and watched the Auggies (yes, they are really called that) handedly defeat the Oles (from St. Olaf, yes, they are really called that). Meredith and Elaine liked watching the action on the field. Elaine would clap along with the crowd to be part of the excitement. During the fourth quarter the girls got a little antsy and starting playing around with a little ball. Meredith took a swift kick at it and landed it in some poor woman's face 15 feet away. (Apologies were quickly offered.)

From the football game came the ArtiCulture opening. ArtiCulture is a local visual arts education nonprofit. Meredith has taken a couple classes there and celebrated her fourth birthday there. I've been volunteering with them a bit in recent weeks. They have an awesome new space on Franklin Ave which we got to tour.

On Saturday night, Jen went out to party and sing karaoke and eat some fabulous homemade Indian food. She didn't have a drip of alcohol to drink because she had to drive back in forth to Maplewood, but had so much fun she was a little loopy afterwards.

Sunday morning featured pumpkin waffles. Both Meredith and Elaine ate them up quickly; though Elaine seemed to prefer the whip cream topping to the waffle itself. Since I had leftover purred pumpkin I made some pumpkin cookies that I now need to get rid of lest I gain back some weight. After waffles, we packed up and went apple picking in near Jordan with friends. Meredith got a pony ride in too!

In the afternoon, Jen and I drove back to Minneapolis to see a play at the Jungle Theater. It was a Mamet piece, A Life In the Theater. I definitely recommend it for some excellent acting. Afterwards we drove back to the 'burbs to procure the kids. We returned to Minneapolis to have dinner with the neighbors. The only problem was that both Elaine and Meredith had fallen asleep before dinner. Despite multiple sincere efforts, neither one stirred. I eventually gave up and let them sleep. Apparently they both had an active weekend. The two girls proceeded to sleep a full 13 hours! They arose Monday morning no worse for the wear and ready to face the week.

Meredith's first shiner

Meredith is a tough girl. Like many preschoolers she gets lots of bumps and bruises, but usually doesn't let injuries get in her way of having fun. Sometimes though a spectacular injury occurs.

The below picture was taken the day after Meredith suffered from a football drill gone bad when she collided with her sister who had snuck on to the drill course. Both girls were howling at first, but Elaine calmed down quickly and suffered no visible injury.

Meredith, on the other hand, had part of her face sticking out. After some ice, a consult with the family doctor (Grandpa Kerry), and some rest, the swelling decreased. It will be a while before the black eye disappears. Meredith assures us that she still loves football.

Bona fide

Last Friday Jen was admitted to the Minnesota bar. In what has seemed like a long, convoluted process, she's finally a bona fide attorney licensed to practice law in the state of Minnesota. Her folks came up to see her swearing in/admission ceremony and related festivities, as well as spend lots of fun time with the rest of the family.

We got to take a tour of Meredith's school, played Candyland and Uno, enjoyed fall weather, and went to the Augsburg football game.

PICTURES










After the bar admission at the RiverCentre in St. Paul.











Meredith took the opportunity to go on the field after the Augsburg win to see the players up close.

Football!

Meredith is officially a football fan. Tonight we attended the Augsburg College season opener; vigilant past readers will remember that our next-door neighbor is the head coach there, and we have all been swept up in all the preparation for the season.

Meredith and I had a great time. Derek (who is the one who actually knows about football, having grown up in Green Bay) stayed home with Elaine. One would think that I would know enough about football to satisfy a four-year-old, but it was a three-hour interrogation: why did they stop? whose turn is it? why are we clapping? who is that? did we win? Mer was working so hard to understand the game. And she loved cheering "Go Auggies!," giving the mascot a high-five, and watching the game intently through the chain-link fence. She also ate a great deal of popcorn, shared with Jr., with a big sweatshirt wrapped around both of them as it got colder. The funniest part, though, was the first time-out. "Why did they get a time out?" Mer demanded. "What did the gold team DO?!"

-JRR