Week in Review

Our game room roof is leaking again, especially around the skylights, so with winter coming, Stace and Violet climbed up to re-seal things again.

We went to Colleen and Rigo's for dinner, and our archers got some practice in.

Friday was Veterans Day, and for the first time in years, we went to the city's ceremony at our Veterans Plaza. 

Stace, Violet and I played Bananagrams the other night, and Violet got me set up. When I turned my tiles over, this is what I found. 

Ummmm I think the odds of this happening naturally are REALLY low.

And on Monday, I watched Ellie for a couple of hours. She set up her Bluey friends before we walked them over to the park. 
 

Cats

 We've had some extra animals around the house lately - some unwanted ones. The girls have been hearing rats on the roof of the playroom/game room for months, and, even worse, we SAW one a couple of times in the garage. So, out went the traps, and we actually caught several in a couple of days. 

The other morning, I spotted this guy, dead on the mulch. Perhaps he got caught in the trap, survived and escaped and succumbed to his injuries? Not sure, and Spencer didn't seem to care to find out. (If you can't spot the rat, it's just to the left of Spencer's tail.)

Oh, to nap like a cat! Particularly, Sebastian.

Sometimes, you're so thirsty, you've gotta lick the condensation off the windows.

Halloween Fun

On Halloween, Cora broke out the red contacts she last wore three years ago.  So creepy!

She also learned to tie a necktie. 

Liana and her parents came over for the evening, along with Melanie, Nick, Ellie and Grandpa.

Here are the big girls - Ellie was already out trick or treating. Violet is a character from her favorite video game, Genshin Impact, while Cora is a and Liana is a pirate.

Violet is wearing high-heeled boots and a cool pendant she made herself, while Cora is wearing my old suit from when I was a working woman.

Colleen brought over her traditional desserts - witch finger shortbread cookies, and a gorgeously decorated spider web chocolate-peanut butter rice krispy treat.

Stace set up the Dracucar and the firepit, so the men could hang out in the front yard while the ladies went around the neighborhood. It was a lovely evening!

 

More Archery

With the summer heat mercifully behind us, Violet has been able to get back to her mounted archery lessons.

October is a very busy month at Gilchrist Farm, with lots of harvest/pumpkin festival fun, and the main ground we use has turned into a parking lot. So, Natalie got creative, and created a walking course in the river bed.

Violet's normal horse Dixie didn't take to the course, so Violet got to ride Natalie's horse Poncho this week. He's a pretty boy, and a lot more lively!

You can kind of see one of the targets behind Violet here, on the left side of the stream bed.

We've also been going out to the city's archery range lately too. What a great facility, and free of charge!

Here, Violet is using her new quiver.

I'm very glad she has a hobby she enjoys!
 

Trunk or Treat

Here's Stace's annual entry to the Trunk or Treat festivities: Dracucar!

Stace went all out and repainted the cornhole board, to go with the car.

It's fun that Ellie is now old enough to enjoy Trunk or Treat, and Melanie was able to bring her. Here, she's getting candy from Pirate Colleen after walking the plank. 

We thought the Gravity Falls-themed trunk was fun.

 

Tidbits

We have a big national and local election in November, and my friend Suverna is running for our school board. I know she'll make an excellent board member if she's elected, so I've been helping her out a bit with her campaign.

We recently purchased a solar generator system, for backup power in the case of emergencies. I've been doing a lot of research on the many brands and types, and we settled on this kit, which came with everything we needed. It came charged up about 1/3 of the way to full, and with the panels, charged up in a few hours.

Last week, I had lunch with my friend Jenn at Chuy's, a Mexican place that's been around forever, but I hadn't been to since shortly after high school. 

It was so good, I took Stace back on Tuesday, for Taco Tuesday specials and the Dodgers playoff game.

Good thing we did - by the next week, the Dodgers were knocked out of the playoffs early, and Chuy's shut permanently! After being open for decades...

Stace was feeling creative, and knocked up this little wheelbarrow, similar to ones his dad has made.

We had a Sunday evening firepit, and roasted a few marshmallows. It was lovely.
 

I took the girls to the Filipino grocery store on Sunday, to buy more dried boba for making drinks at home, along with more ramen. We then went to a new boba place in Canyon Country. Pricey but tasty!

Yosemite: Day 3

On Monday morning, Stace, Violet and I went back to the river for some quiet time and so that Violet could paint. What a lovely time!

Stace is hard to see here, but he's in the grass on the left side of the photo, doing his own pencil sketch of Half Dome.

Vi on the left, I'm on the right. Yes, she's reached my height, maybe a little more! And check out that Half Dome!

Here is Violet's finished watercolor - I'm in love!
 

We packed up and headed out. On our way home, we stopped in Tulare so Stace could get an up-close look at these random WWII planes at a strip on the side of the freeway.

And we also stopped at a local coffee shop for a caffeinated treat. These little tidbits are some of my favorite parts of road trips. 

All told, we had a GREAT time together and I'm so glad we were able to make this trip happen!

Yosemite: Day 2

On Sunday morning, Stace and I were up earlyish, having our hot drinks and oatmeal (thankful our tent cabin had a heater and an outlet for an electric kettle). 

Then, Stace and Violet went down to the river

Later, we all took our bikes out and rode on the trails to some of the nature centers and hiking spots. 

Along the way, we stopped to admire this little bear, as he wandered a bit too close to the campground for some visitors' comfort. A lady was yelling and banging on a pot, which is understandable, since you can't let young bears get used to being close to tents and little kids. 

We relaxed for a bit and had a snack overlooking the river; Cora climbed down and sat on the big boulder across from Violet. She's in the photo but is hard to see.

We also went into the nature center nearby and checked out the exhibits. This was near the start of the Mist Trail, which we did on our last trip but decided to skip this time. 

More wildlife! These guys were so cute, and unafraid. There were four, though I think there are only three in the photo.

We then continued on our ride, stopping later at Yosemite Village for another snack and walk around the big market. We also went through the old Yosemite Cemetery, and the Ansel Adams Gallery, where we bought Violet a travel watercolor set.

We proceeded to Yosemite Falls, but since it's autumn, there wasn't much water coming down.

Then, we agreed that the girls could ride back to the tent cabin to relax.

 

Stace and I carried on a little further, finding another nice vantage point to enjoy the river and all the scenery.

We found a sandy beach where kids in bathing suits were braving the cold water. Stace thought he'd join them, though very briefly.

Riding home!

When we got back, Stace and Cora went to order a pizza for dinner, while I got showered. The toilet and shower blocks are very well kept, and stocked with shampoo and body wash. So, it's all shared facilities like any campground, but a step up from most I've been to!

We aren't sure why we couldn't get the auto-timer photo to come out clearly, and we tried a couple of times. But you get the idea - we had our dinner outside the cabin, and later went for another walk around Curry Village before retiring for more card games in the cabin.