10-31-10

“Where’s the candy?” – little boy

“What can we do with a duck?” – Teen

Turned off the lights at 8:10pm after giving out over 130 costumed rubber ducks.

Maybe it’s just me getting older, but it seems like trick or treaters are getting more obnoxious. Teens in big packs or all alone are irritating. You let one kid take an extra for an absent cousin and suddenly everyone wants two – outright or sneakily. Only half the kids say Thanks or acknowledge you beyond grabbing the stuff. Why do parents think they or their BABY needs loot?

All is not lost though…

“Mom, it’s the lady with the ducks! I got another one, look!” – Girl

“This is the best thing I have ever gotten!” – A teen handing out flyers for missing children

I’ve been telling everyone that Anastasia is a teen ladybug this year, when really she’s a pirate… oops.

10-30-10

Good-bye dear!

It was odd dropping Bruce off at the airport today. Normally we’re going or I’m going, not him.

He’ll be hanging in a Reno resort for a conference.

We still packed some fun into the day, though:
- A day trip of sorts to try Bunk Sandwiches, on Bruce’s list of Portland haunts check out. Low on ambiance, great on taste!
- A stop at Powell’s City of Books. We traded in $23 of books and bought $75. All mine is gift shopping though!
- Introduced Alexander to sushi. He liked the avocado roll much better before he knew the black stuff was seaweed.

10-29-10

Finally eat candy corn. Check.
Go to work in costume. Check.
Eat myself sick. Check.
Talk like an old lady part of the day. Check.
Enjoy a Friday evening with the weekend stretching out. Check.

L to R: Donna as quarantined flu sufferer, Linda as cowgirl, Debbie with Halloween spirit, me as granny. Front: Cathy as rabid Huskies fan.

10-28-10

The candy corn strikes again!

We’re having a costume and potluck at work tomorrow. I’ve had my eye on this candy corn bark recipe, so decided to try it out. White chocolate, candy corn, dried cranberries, and mini pretzels.

The not so great part is that Safeway was sold out of candy corn! Bruce had to go to a second store for me.

I’m nervous about cutting it up. It looks yummy. I won’t taste test it until tomorrow – eating healthy for three days to be able to eat well tomorrow.

10-27-10

No candy corn in my life today. But chocolate something to avoid in the lunchroom. As I went by it to get my healthy food, fill up my water container, and toss my banana peel. So much temptation…

When I got home from work I headed straight out to the lake path to take advantage of the break in the weather. Anastasia was checking out the new super Wal-mart, Xander was biking to DQ to frivolously spend his meager cash, and Bruce declined to join me, citing the cold weather.

This has been my favorite tree this fall. Guess I missed it at its prime.

10-26-10

So the produce stand had little packets of candy corn for sale for $0.25. And caramel apples!

But I stuck to my guns and only bought the fresh fruit. No kiwi today, but asian pears were back.

Tonight the kids (plus Danny; Danny or Anthony or both are often with us it seems) had Young Life, giving Bruce and I enough time to hit Lowe’s (for our house, not the rentals!) and Starbucks (to talk about the rentals).

“Candy Corn is the only candy in the history of America that's never been advertised. And there's a reason. All of the candy corn that was ever made was made in 1911.” – Lewis Black

10-25-10

I’d really love some candy corn.

My day:
Lunch at the Indian restaurant with Pastor Mary.
Allergy shots with Xander – swollen arms this time.

Collected November rent on our vacant rental, woo-hoo.
Highlands Neighborhood Association meeting; mistaken for speaker rather than member.
Won new bread machine on e-bay. Shipping more than item cost, but total cheaper than other options.

Not a kernel of candy corn to be had. Should’ve eaten the treat bags instead of passing them to the kids.

10-24-10

I was shocked that our Sunday School count was up today, because it struck me as the perfect day to stay snuggled under the covers for as long as possible. Our weather is blustery with a storm, which takes some getting used to after all our mild (if not fantastic) weather.

I think Xander has the right idea.

10-23-10

Today was a quiet but busy day in town.

We started with a Weyerhaeuser sponsored scavenger hunt at the lake, then tried a restaurant downtown for the first time (thumbs down for food and service), then headed to the duplex to put in a garden strip. We ran out of space long before we ran out of bulbs, so guess the surplus will need to get planted at home. But it started raining on us, so another day.

“Faith sees a beautiful blossom in a bulb, a lovely garden in a seed, and a giant oak in an acorn.” -William Arthur Ward

10-22-10

Xander was filming a church fundraiser ad for Dad at Panda Express tonight. Some high school kids asked him what he was doing and he honestly replied “I don’t know.” His life is on a need to know basis, and he apparently doesn’t need to know very much.

When they got home there was more filming, including a kung fu style battle with chop sticks. Anastasia, our lover of Panda Express, prevailed and got the fortune cookie prize.

Happy Friday! May your weekend be full of fun, good food, and noble causes.

10-21-10

Odd day.

Bruce got served a subpoena related to the robbery.
I went to the eye doctor and chose new glasses frames.
I actually read FB updates for the first time in ages.
I successfully avoided the sweets at work that call my name so ruthlessly.
An evening out (on a Thursday!) for Murder at the Mansion. Photo is me with characters (murder suspects?) Veronica and Priscilla (AKA Lorraine).

Almost Friday!

10-20-10

I’m tired. I want to climb into bed. I want to feel better. I want things to go away.

This is my early morning week. Tuesday was to Rainier, WA by 8am, today was to PeEll, WA by 8am, and tomorrow is to a meeting in my building by 7:30am.

I go to bed early, but can’t go to sleep early.

I’m emotionally tired too. Unmet expectations, big decisions, things unsettled for too long. And the holidays are coming fast!

But, had a wonderful walk around the lake this evening. Even CNN had a “Sunny Seattle” on their weather map today. The sunshine brings peace and contentment even if life doesn’t.

10-19-10

Today were the last football games of the Mustang season. Both the 7th and 8th grade teams won. Here’s Xander lining up for a play. I want to growl when I look at the photo.

It was a gorgeous day for a game; I didn’t even need a coat! Hated to leave early, but was really glad to finally get a lease signed!

10-18-10

We’ve owned our first rental for just over six months now, and we’ve written five leases for it.

The first one that got translated into Spanish, the one for the guy who fled town, the one for the sisters who decided it bothered their allergies, the one for the family that we were excited about but they fell off the face of the earth, and the update tonight for our latest promising candidate.

Praying that this one works out or we get a clue on what to do differently.

10-17-10

The weekend’s over already? Can I have a do over?

It went OK, but too fast, and too little sleep. And still no signed lease. And a really sick kid.

Finally got a lull to bake Bruce his birthday pumpkin crisp. And he's determined to eat the whole pan tongiht!

10-16-10

The day started out laid back and limbo, but we managed to fill it right up!

We had planned to lay low today and head to Portland tomorrow, but our rental business seems to rearrange out plans a lot.

So Shannon and I walked most of the lake and checked out yet another Longview Mexican restaurant for lunch. Then we four Fischer’s headed south, the back seat not as excited as the front. We got Anastasia’s broken iTouch replaced, used our Kohl’s bucks before they expire, and did two “daytrip” activities – Cargo for Mom and Fuddruckers for Dad.

Cargo is a store I read about in the AAA magazine and wanted to explore. The article said they look for the unusual, like life size terra cotta pigs. Bruce called it a Asian Archie MacPhee’s, and that about sums it up.

Bruce has been wanting to dine at Fuddruckers. I thought it was an ice cream parlor, but it is very similar to the now defunct but much loved Flakey Jakes. Everyone wants to go back there again, yum!

10-15-10

Happy Friday!

When I asked my co-workers what weekend plans they had, I heard about winterizing before the weather turns.

My first reaction is that the Longview Fischer’s aren’t smart enough to winterize. Our soccer chairs will sit out in the weather all winter.

But then I saw on my home to do list “Bring in roosters & chicks”. I guess we do have at least one winterization task. So I pulled them up and put them in the garage tonight.

10-14-10

My work day was squeezed on both ends today – dentist appointment in the morning and Xander’s football game in the afternoon.

Maybe I should have stayed at work a bit longer – I was so cold out on the field that I left after the third quarter. I’ve always been a fair weather sports fan, and winter seems to be setting in.

I’ve given up on following the game and just try to follow Xander for photos. I get a lot of his back end. If he’s not huddling, standing on the sidelines, or running away from me, he’s getting into position or is way out on the edge of the field. I liked this almost action shot.

“Don’t suck” – Pep talk from Dad

10-13-10

I sniffled my way through the day with a stomach ache, but by quitting time felt well enough to hit the produce stand, meet potential rental tenants, and go to church for Simple Supper.

The hamburger dinner gave me a new stomach ache, but tonight I got two weeks of Beth Moore Bible study done (in my preschool classroom with the animals cheering me on!). She’s walking us through drawing a faith timeline. Will be interesting to compare to the one I built in the mid 90’s.

Beth’s observation struck me: We cannot have a drive-thru relationship with God and expect to behold His glory. But I'll admit that some days even the drive-thru connections are hard for me, much less the full course immersion.

10-12-10

Bits from my day:

Five hours of grueling plan reviews in Vancouver, including detailed discussions of ocean going fish, acres displaced by wind turbines, and how workers comp costs can be so high.

“I still remember it clearly but today it's been 20 years ago since I opened a door in the dorms and first saw Michele. That was a good day.”

– Bruce’s Facebook status

LONGVIEW: 4 bed, 1 bath, 1100 sq ft, hookups, detached garage. New paint/floor. 381 29th. $825/$500. Avail now. No smoking. Call or text 355-7X5X
- potential newspaper ad for our rental, written this evening

Lower Columbia College, taking our community Higher & Higher. The Scholarship Social is a by-invitation event to honor donors and their scholarship recipients.
- attended to help represent Weyerhaeuser, a $20,000 donor

Time to take an Ibuprofin and go to bed.

10-11-10

Just when we thought we had partied enough, Bruce’s birthday falls on a Monday!

More football games, bending the healthy weekday rules for hot dogs potatoes & cheese and lemon cake, and lots of Facebook well wishers.

“Happy Birthday. Hopefully there's some Taco Time in store for you today.” – Jeremiah Smith

“Hey! Guess what?! It's your Birthday! So I'm telling you that you gonna have fun or I'll send my ninja clan over there and you WILL have loads of fun :^)” – Ethan Winters

Happy birthday dear!

10-10-10

Look who’s dancing with the bride!

I was not familiar with the tradition of the money dance, but thought it was great fun.

Wikipedia:
During a money dance, male guests pay to dance briefly with the bride, and sometimes female guests pay to dance with the groom. Some consider this a way for the bride and groom to have face time with their guests.

Xander danced with Tina and Anastasia danced with Will. We enjoyed sharing the day with them and relatives from New York and Hawaii (and Portland and Seattle!) and will remember their 10.10.10 anniversary!

10-09-10

It crossed my mind to send my family north and stay home in a quiet house this weekend to rest and recover from this bug.

That may have left me better equipped to face another Monday, but I would have missed out on several opportunities to reconnect with various relatives.

So while the others got drenched at the Husky stadium, I had a lovely visit with G&G. We played several games of marbles, racing around the home made board to try to stop Grama's winning streak.

10-08-10

On the mend, back out on the town.

Made it through another week, actually turning the corner and feeling better today.

Will have to try not to overdue it this weekend, with all our busy plans.

Tonight Bruce enjoys a cream cheese pumpkin muffin at Starbucks while I enjoy my weight being down 5 pounds by eating well this week after a few weeks of binge eating.

10-07-10

When I don’t feel good, I lay awake in bed, on the couch, or even on the floor, methodically walking through what I need to do when I next get up, and the most efficient way to get through the routine, to get back to the bed, couch, or floor as quickly as possible.

My last spurt of energy of the day:
- Restroom
- Print lease documents
- Slice pear
- Take NyQuil
- Blog, almost forgot the blog

I decided I like this photo of the fruit bowl best. It looks the way I feel. Blurry.

10-06-10

My turn.

To reach for the drugs. Not work a full day. Ignore the treadmill and all my other big plans for the evening.

You know it’s time to wrap up and head home when the industrial carpet at the office starts looking comfortable enough to crawl up on for a short rest…

And with another snap of the fingers priorities are rearranged again. God's cruel way of forcing me to slow down.

10-05-10

Spice boy is back on his feet today.

“Everything is better with sharp cheddar.” – Xander’s chant while the microwave melts his quesadilla

The clock turns 8pm and you can find Xander in the kitchen making a snack.

“We’re having hot dog pie on Friday night!” – Xander, who always asks what’s for dinner when he clearly reads ahead on the meal plan.

No matter what is on the menu, Xander wants to add jalapeños, seasoning salt, or Tabasco sauce.

10-04-10

We have a case of the yuckies going around our house.

Anastasia seems to be the only one who still has energy. Xander is down for the count, missed school today.

I’ve been feeling subpar for weeks, but it never hits me hard enough to knock me over. Hopefully it won’t, if I keep eating citrus, sleeping well, and pushing through it.

Bruce and I need some energy. Our newest tenant literally skipped town on us, so it is back to the application process. Learning as we go... just keep repeating "it's people not property that pay the rent"... or don't pay...

10-03-10

Halloween prep? Nope. Anastasia got recruited to play a mole in a Sunday School skit.

Today was a lazy Sunday, probably closer to what a Sabbath should truly be. Evidently, too laid back to even write much of a blog entry!

10-02-10

Our plans for today fell away, so we made new plans…

SHOPPING! We went down to Clackamas. Got:
Outfits for the kids to wear to the wedding next weekend
A start to outfits for fall photos
Halloween costume (Xander decided not to dress up this year, so just Anastasia)
Lunch at my favorite restaurant, Chipolte’s

Dessert at Ben & Jerry's. Coffee Buzz Buzz Buzz is yum yum yum.
A freezer full of bread at Dave’s Killer Bread and Bob’s Red Mill

Girls enjoyed the outing, boys not as much.

Ended the day out to dinner with friends; Bruce and I branched out and shared a sushi plate.

10-01-10

October means many things to me:
- Bruce’s birthday month
- The end of fixing up and fretting over our four bedroom rental
- Things starting to ease at work as we start reviewing instead of building 2011 financial plans
- The end of another quarter

So it’s time to photograph and reflect on books read in the past 3 months.

Some people say they are too busy to exercise or to read. For me they are like brushing my teeth – something I make time for because it ahs to be done.

Favorites of the 16 books read third quarter: Thirteen Reasons Why, The Shack, and a toss up between Savannah by the Sea and Summer on Blossom Street for summer reads.

Happy Friday! Hoping to curl up with a book a bit this weekend…