It's been a couple of weeks since I got on here. Though there haven't been any major events, we have still been our normal active selves. Silver Mountain opens this weekend and we are all excited to begin the season. This also means that we will probably have at least one ski picture every week for the next several months. It's just what we do. Until then though, here is a recap of what we have been up to.

Campus tour: We went down to University of Idaho in Moscow and walked around the campus. We went into most of the buildings, looked at the bulletin boards, peaked into classrooms and laboratories. We took a walk down Greek row, through the on-campus dorms, over to the campus bookstore, and then to a pizza place where we watched a football game on tv (UI happened to be playing). We imagined what life might be like for some of the kids if they were going to school here- where they would live, what buildings they might spend time in, and what things they would do for fun. It was a neat day, but kind of crazy to think about. Ev will be a senior next year and college isn't that far in our future. We'll try, over the next year or so, to visit several campuses so that when the time comes there will be some idea of what to expect.

Attic project: We are getting close with the attic in Wallace. We have gone up once as a family, and a couple of times with just Rach and me to work on it. Spending the night up there still feels like a vacation every time and we always have fun. We will probably finish the walls and ceiling next time we go up and will be ready to install carpet. It's actually very exciting. One kind-of unexpected turn of events is when we showed up one day to find one of our attic windows broken out. We put a board over it and got an estimate for a new one. This was just before we left to NYC last month. Well, that little detour turned out in the best way possible with us getting new big picture windows for very little cost due to some kind of energy-efficient-rebate-by-the-state-of-Idaho sort of deal. Neat! We are planning a nice reading nook around these windows, as they have a great view over Wallace and the Silver Valley.

The last two things were our last two weekends.

Other things that seem sort of significant(ish): Trampoline park. Ev/Addy band trip to Pullman (WSU). Maren choir concert. Car repairs. New oven. Fun new clothes for Rach and me. Getting ready for ski season. Playing in church with Ev. Rachel ordained a Deacon. Dad/Maren date to makeup tutorial. Addy/Ev super busy with band stuff. We never see Ev anymore because she is always either busy with school or going to concerts. Movie date with Rachel. It's always cold and dark and wet and gloomy but also a little bit cozy. 

Have a good week!

Halloween Night. Maren was gone at a sleepover. Ev was in CDA with friends. Jack, Addy, and Lindsey were out in various parts of town, each with separate groups of friends. Rach and I looked at each other- what do grown-ups do on Halloween? This is the first time in a very long time that we had no kids around on this night. There was no rush to assemble costumes or end-of-the-night candy exchange. Our family is growing up. We handed out candy and had a good night, but it was a little odd, and Lindsey was the only other person in the house when we finally went to bed.

The kids all had a good time. Ev poked some holes in a shirt in a weak attempt at creating a zombie costume, but really spent the majority of the night just hanging out at friends' houses. The others did dress up, but were all pretty much on their own with the costume thing.

Here are some photos:

These photos were taken a week before up in Kellogg. Addy is "The Night." Her best friend is a vampire, who can only exist in "the night," so that's kind of cute. Lindsey is a...Skeleton queen...or something?

Maren is a ghost. So was her friend, so that went together. Jackson is an anime character named Himiko Toga. He is NOT SAILOR MOON! SAILOR MOON DOESN'T CARRY A KNIFE- OBVIOUSLY!!! He worked really hard to make this costume himself, and was super proud of it. Also, it takes a very secure guy to hang out all night with your friends while wearing a skirt.

Besides Halloween night we have been pretty quiet around here- maybe recovering a little from our amazing trip to New York. 

Well- as I say that, I realize that Rachel traveled to Seattle for work, and interpreted a Halloween play that was the result of a flurry of activity on her part. Her and I also went out to see a play at the Civic Theater, and the whole family plus one friend saw the Broadway tour of Come From Away. We went to Kellogg for a Halloween celebration up in the Silver Valley, Jack and I got a ton of stuff done around the house to get things ready for winter, and Addy and Evelyn are missing school tomorrow for a big Jazz band competition that has caused no small amount of stress. 

So, yeah- relatively quiet.

Have a good week!

Are we overdoing the theater thing? Between us all, we have seen SEVEN shows in the last two weeks. This was the third time I have seen Come From Away, but I still love the show because it validates my own worldview that people are essentially good and will come together in times of crisis. "A candle's in the window and the kettle's always on" seems like a much more positive way to live than "stock up on ammo, hunker down, and don't tread too closely." Maybe I've always been a Newfoundlander at heart and I just feel defensive because I live in North Idaho.

An Enemy of the People- classic Arthur Miller.

Macbeth in all its Shakespearian glory. Rachel had a friend in this, and really, the actors did a great job. Especially as they tried to put some life into the archaic language of the play. Bravo. However- I think I'll share out loud the popular opinion that nobody will actually say in polite company- I don't love Shakespeare. I have tried. I have read all of his most acclaimed works- a few of them multiple times. I have seen the plays performed, and I have taken university-level classes devoted to both his poetry and his prose. And yet, as foundational as it is, I still think it is outdated and, to be frank, a little boring.