Autumn

Ah, fall. The leaves are changing, the temperatures are dropping. AND THE WEATHER FORECAST CALLS FOR MID 80'S MOST OF THIS WEEK!! Did someone forget to tell the weathermen that it is late October?!? I guess I'll have to take it up with the Creator of the weather. Arkansas is so weird sometimes.

I actually love Fall. We are really blessed with beautiful trees around Fayetteville that put on quite a show each year. If you grew up around here, you are spoiled and probably think that this is what happens everywhere each fall. Wrong. I grew up in Oklahoma, where leaves do change... to brown. That's it, 1 color.

I do yearn for a few more yellow leaves, though. A couple of years ago, we were in Chicago in early October to see U2 on their Elevation Tour, and the maples up there turn a bright shade of yellow. It was like a scene from Dead Poet's Society. And then there was our trip to the Rockies a few weeks ago. Of course, the Aspen trees turn a beautiful shade of gold (with a few orange ones sprinkled in). In Estes Park and Boulder, there are also willow trees (I think they are willows) that turn yellow. There's nothing quite so beautiful as the sun being filtered through a tree full of yellow leaves.

I've been meaning to get out and take some pictures of the leaves, but haven't made it yet. Maybe I'll have time this week. We did take the girls to a pumpkin patch on Friday and took lots of pictures of them in front of pumpkins, so hopefully some of those will turn out nice. (Until I can cough up the money for a Canon EOS-20D digital SLR, I'm still stuck with film.) We're actually in the process of replacing some of our pictures in our family room with ones that I have taken. Don't get me wrong, I love Ansel Adams as much as the next guy, but I want to start enjoying some of the fruits of my labor over the past year and a half.

I'm planning on taking Maitlyn camping this Friday. I took her camping for the first time in Colorado this summer when we were on Sabbatical. She LOVED it. She still talks about the fire, the s'mores, the pancakes, the tent, etc. Since Elspeth is still sleeping in a crib, we don't think she is ready to sleep in a tent yet, so that leaves her and Elise at home. But, as soon as she transitions to the "big girl bed", we want to start camping as a whole family. Hopefully the weather will cooperate for a nice weekend for Maitlyn and I. Then, on Saturday, Elise and Maitlyn are going to meet us and we're planning on going on a dayhike somewhere. Hopefully the leaves will be nice and the temperatures will be sub-80's...