kara

Last Friday was my mom’s very last day (ever!) of work. Of course, we all have our everyday life work of cleaning, cooking, laundry and so on. But now that she’s retired, she can choose her “work” so much more freely—quilting, sewing, gardening, reading, English-film watching, last-minute road trips, visiting family. I’m looking forward to spending more days with her, as I’m sure Sophie is, too. We celebrated her last day with dinner at, fittingly, The Schoolhouse Restaurant in Camp Dennison. Congratulations, Mom!

“Don’t simply retire from something; have something to retire to.” —Harry Emerson Fosdick

The first year Andy and I lived in Ft. Thomas, we went to the annual Ft. Thomas Jack-O-Lantern Walk. A wooded trail is lit with more than 1,000 luminaries, and hundreds of jack-o-lanterns, made by residents, line the walk. I think we were the only ones there without a child. So this year I was so excited to take Sophie.

Angel, Marty and Zoey met us for a bit. Sophie admired Zoey’s adorable lobster costume. (On Halloween her parents carried her around in a pot!)

This was the grand-prize winning jack-o-lantern.

At the end of the trail a local Realtor took everyone’s picture with a Polaroid camera (I didn’t know you could still buy film for Polaroids). Andy scanned the photo so I could include it here.

I’m grateful that we live in a town that holds such community-binding events like these. I’m hopeful we can stay.

“Autumn is marching on: even the scarecrows are wearing dead leaves.” —Otsuyu Nakagawa

Last week Sophie and I met Julie—a friend from high school whom I haven’t seen in years—and her three boys, Joseph, Nathan and Daniel for a play date at beautiful Ault Park. We had a great time and perhaps watching the boys taught Sophie to be a little less timid—she went down a large, curvy slide all by herself (although I should note it took her a l.o.n.g. time to make it down the slide). Thanks again for the invite, Julie!

“Sometimes the biggest act of courage is a small one.” —Lauren Raffo

When facing this …

I must remember this.

As when facing this …

I must remember this.

“Parents are often so busy with the physical rearing of children that they miss the glory of parenthood, just as the grandeur of the trees is lost when raking leaves.” —Marcelene Cox

“Yoga is the fountain of youth. You’re only as young as your spine is flexible.” —Bob Harper

It was important to me that Sophie got the H1N1 vaccine. I’d heard too many terrible tales from good friends whose families were struck with H1N1. I had intended on taking Sophie to the Butler County Vaccine Clinic (the closest I could find) last Friday but didn’t after learning they stopped letting people in due to overcrowding. So I called my pediatrician’s office. I explained we lived far away and that if we wanted a chance at this clinic we’d have to wake up really early Saturday morning and stand in the cold, with a lot of people. The nurse said they were no longer sure they were going to get the vaccine and that we should do whatever we can to try. So we did.

Andy and I got up at 5:30am, got ready, then woke up Sophie. We arrived at the fairgrounds at 7:15am, 45 minutes before the clinic opened. The line snaked around several buildings, the grandstands, several more buildings … a police officer told us people had been lined up since 3am. Above is Sophie early, early in the morning, not at all knowing that all this cold and waiting in line was only for a shot at the end …

I was so thankful to have Andy there. One of us would walk around the fairgrounds with her while the other would wait in line.

I was expecting to be there for hours. But once 8am hit, the line moved very quickly. And everyone was so cordial, accommodating and kind. We were back in our car around 9:15 am.

After we stopped by my parents’ house and went out for breakfast. Some may think us crazy for getting up so early and waiting in such a long, cold line. But knowing she has had the vaccine calms me. I feel better about taking her to the YMCA’s child watch. I know I’ll feel a little less worried anytime I see a runny nose. And as my cousin Lisa said, as parents, we just have to make a decision and go with it. And so we did. And honestly, I think Sophie got a kick out of getting up so early and waiting in line with lots of kids and walking up and down the grandstand steps. And sure, she cried when she got the shot. But the tears were short-lived. (I haven’t told her yet about the booster …)

“As a child, I was more afraid of tetanus shots than, for example, Dracula.” —Dave Barry

My good friend Shruti was recently in town with her daughter, Rashmi. So our friend Aimee took the day off work and the five of us hung out. Shruti and I dressed Rashmi and Sophie in shirts we bought for them in Morocco. They played on the hearth together …

until they got mad at each other.

Then Rashmi hung out with Mom while Sophie took a nap.

Rashmi loved Sophie’s slide.

And Sophie tried out one of Rashmi’s ponytail holders.

Then, we went to the park! In the last picture you can see they still hadn’t quite forgiven each other for the hearth incident.

But it was a fun day. Shruti and Rashmi, come back soon!

“I find friendship to be like wine, raw when new, ripened with age, the true old man’s milk and restorative cordial.” —Thomas Jefferson

This year we, again, went to Neltner’s Farm & Greenhouses, our favorite pumpkin patch.

Sophie loved the small animals …

especially the chickens on the goat.

We rode the horse-drawn wagon up the dirt road to the pumpkin patch.

Sophie was suddenly surrounded by her favorite thing to point on people’s porches during our walks—pumpkins!

We posed for pictures and picked three pumpkins.

On our way back to the barn we saw draft horses plowing a field.

Here Sophie’s throwing the three small gourds she picked out, too. She loves those gourds and plays with them daily. (I, in turn, try my best to keep them away from Tucker, who is anxiously waiting for a moment when no one is looking so he can eat them.)

“I would rather sit on a pumpkin, and have it all to myself, than be crowded on a velvet cushion.” —Henry David Thoreau

Sophie and I recently went on a walk and, as usual, came back home with lots of acorns and fallen leaves. So we decided to make a collage for Andy. Sophie was thrilled with the idea of using a glue stick. And oh, the joy of sticky tape! And she thoroughly enjoyed sticking—and then unsticking—the leaves (only a couple ripped). There was some coloring, too.

I loved Andy’s reaction upon receiving the gift. He said up until now, whenever he saw children’s art projects, he wasn’t sure how anyone could, well, really like them. But he loved it. Like most everything, it’s different when it’s your own child.

(It’s still on our fridge.)

“Autumn is a second spring where every leaf is a flower.” —Albert Camus

What? Too big?

“The fact is, sometimes it’s hard to walk in a single woman’s shoes. That’s why we need really special ones now and then to make the walk a little more fun.” —Jenny Bicks