And they said Valley Forge was cold...

For fall break, C and I (along with Gramma and Grampa) traveled to glorious Washington, D.C. to savor the sights and sounds of a resplendent autumn in our nation's capital. That was the plan, anyway. At just over 40 degrees and raining nonstop--and did I mention shearing winds?--about the only thing we savored were our winter coats. Clinging to the adage that 10-year-olds rarely notice the weather, we forged bravely on. George would have been proud.
Savoring a meatball sub before hitting the metro!

Posing by the fountain at the National Gallery of Art. (Note that C is working to supplement his allowance by dipping in to the water's bounty. Hmmm.)

The Thinker. 'nuff said.

Here C poses tentatively in front of the only Leonardo da Vinci painting to grace the entire western hemisphere. I say "tentatively" because he had just accidentally backed into it, bonking his head against the frame. Those security guards are nimble folks!

Tired but happy and finally warm... back on the plane home to Utah. Thanks, Gramma and Grampa for sponsoring a once-in-a-lifetime adventure! We didn't even mind the snoring!

A HUGE fan of HUGE fans

Anybody who knows my 10-year-old knows he is a lover of fans. The bigger, the better. Well, we elevated his autumn by taking a Sunday drive to the windmill farm just 10 miles south of home. We can see the windmills from our back yard, but they're about the size of toy tops (funny thing, perspective). As we rounded the bend to the windmill farm, C gushed an unfettered "OH. MY. GOSH." at the sight of nine monstrous behemoths churning butter in the wind. The sound they made was like jet engine turbines preparing for takeoff; rivaled only by C's glee scampering as close as possible to the barbed-wire fence that keeps us fans of fans at safe gawking distance.

How Cute Is That??

To say it right, you have to add a healthy dose of midwestern twang, with an "awrightee then" added for punctuation.

I've just returned from a fabulous weekend with my CTMH peeps in rainy Minnesota surrounded by enthusiastic stampers and scrapbookers attending our Regional Celebrations event. They come from all walks and all areas, but most were from Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Michigan. They're a sturdy stock up there, I tell ya. One attendee said, "O ya, we're tough. We raise our boys to be men up here. Heck, we raise our girls to be men!"

We enjoyed great food, a wacky Family Feud gameshow (I hosted of course, left hoarse by the final speed rounds!), and adorable projects up the ying-yang. Not sure what a ying-yang is, but we filled it to the brim, doncha know--all while sporting our sunny yellow cardigans.

Nothing says fun like a matching wardrobe! That's me with pals Tia, Monica and Sheena, three of the sunniest patches in my workaday life. How cute is that?