Christmas 2016

Rose sang in the middle school choir for the Christmas special. See her over there on the right? Front row.

This is the first year that Lily did not take out the tree. And this is the first Christmas in our new house!

The morning of Christmas Eve.

We went to the Conrads later in the afternoon and stayed through Christmas Day.

Then the following day we celebrated Christmas with my parents. You can tell Emily doesn't like Christmas.

My dad bought a new .22 scoped rifle, so we went outside after opening gifts and took turns shooting at a cardboard target. That is the easiest gun I've ever shot; it makes you feel like a sharpshooter because it's nearly impossible to miss your target. No recoil, just precision target practice!

One of my gifts this year was this toy airplane that belonged to my Grandpa Nodland in the 1930s. It's in surprisingly good condition for being over 80 years old. It has a really gnarly metal gear wheel underneath with super sharp teeth that a rubber band would have wrapped around to turn the thin metal propellors when the wheels turn. A safe toy for any kid!

Birthday and Thanksgiving

Birthday! At our yooshuwall place.

Thanksgiving! Dave and Daphne joined us right before they moved to Huntsville. Mom and Dad weren't able to make it since Mom was still recovering. Daphne made pumpkin flan with melted caramel on top.

Halloween

Rose and Laura were the Grady twins for Halloween and they practiced speaking together in monotones and walking in step. They wore their costumes to school and the principal guessed correctly who they were! They've never seen that movie (not quite old enough for that yet, heh), but they watched the scene from The Shining enough times to get the part right. Creepy girls...

We turned the car into a shark for trunk or treat. There was a gray fin for the roof, too. The black sheet had an opening in it and kids had to reach through to get the candy.

Emily was Minne Mouse:

Emily looks scarier than the twins:

Pumpkins!

Mr. Dreadful

i see you toiling under the pale harvest moon

sad wretches laid to rest, you know it all ended so soon
for you it's just another night and business is booming
and that guy on the left was a friend, i'm assuming

you know i shouldn't smile at atrocities of this kind
the way you tip your hat and how your grin does shine
a certain flair as you work just sets my mind at ease
while you bury every last one, an end in varying degrees

well it's not up to me to judge right or wrong
but i have to wonder where have your manners gone
because i think a modest eulogy would be nice
a flattering recount of every sin and vice

whether or not they were ready to meet their fate
or find peace with their own expiration date
you have to admit that it was all in good fun
and such tales to tell when the night is done

does one dare hope to be like you someday?
giving rest of this conscience that gets in the way
and finding solace in what makes others recoil
finding peace in the smell of freshly turned soil

well get on with your work, the sun soon will creep
into hollows and valleys its rays will soon peek
with its cruel harshness burn through the veil
over our purest intentions it soon will prevail

this moon won't sail forever, you know
and all good things must come to a close
but i hope to see you again some dark eve
and maybe you'll have some new tricks up your sleeve

10.25

My cousin Jill got married in the Twin Cities and we drove up for the wedding. The fall colors were at their peak up there and it was a scenic road trip.

It's really embarrassing when Dave tries to be as cool as me. Trying to wear the same shirt and tie...

Back in Cedar Rapids we went to Bart's Farm:

Here We Go Again

Cedar Rapids is once again bracing for a large flood, although this time not as severe as the hugely destructive one that swept through in 2008. Still, the same areas will be damaged and people have been evacuated from their homes in preparation for the flood waters. Cynthia and the girls volunteered to help sandbag along 3rd Ave and then I helped sandbag on Saturday. We bagged a few dump truck loads of sand and then ran out of sand, so we began piling the sandbags around houses and businesses in the neighborhood. That went surprisingly quickly with so many volunteers helping, so we started helping people move their belongings out of their basements. It was kind of a war zone and sad to see how distressed people were since many of them had lived through the mess of the first flood. It was exhausting work, but thankfully it was cloudy and cool much of the day. And it didn't rain!

In the evening we went to Cole Herb's wedding reception at the Elk's Lodge. John and Roxi were there, too and it was great to catch up with our old neighbors. And the food was awesome!

Close

i'm so close to something
something so near to me
in the air near my fingertips
just beyond where i can see
buzzing words in my ear as i fall asleep
and in the morning so suddenly
the ghost in the corner of my eye
never where i expect it to be
it scatters the order of my thoughts
only to retreat so hastily
and ripples through cold waters
sending my ponderings into the sea

i know something now
that i didn't know then
the moment is almost upon me
but still i don't know when
it's so close

Back to School 2016

Rose started her first day of middle school at Franklin today. She's got her locker combination memorized and she's ready to go! She will go to school with her friend Laura down the street each day, so that will make the experience easier. I think she's excited about it, although she's trying to act cool, haha.

Next is Emily who goes to school an hour after Rose. If we don't get her in the car soon enough, she'll just walk to school. She's got better things to do than just stand around all day. She's in 3rd grade, you know.

Imon

Cynthia and I walked around downtown catching Pokemon for a while on Sunday and the weather was perfect. Very atypical for August and no complaints from us. There was almost no traffic anywhere and the few people we saw walking around were playing Pokemon Go like us. It has always seemed weird to me how this town shuts down on the weekends. It's not unreasonable for downtown to be quiet on a Sunday afternoon, but even most Saturdays there isn't a whole lot going on in this town. It's still funny to me that half of the traffic signals shut off at 9 pm. Unless you're going to a show, there's not much else to do, heh. You just have to make your own fun (which we're good at). Anyway, it was great to be outside!

Later in the day, Imon had a customer appreciation day at the McGrath Amphitheater, so we brought the girls and had free food grilled by Nelson's Meat Market and free ice cream, too. They got their faces painted and we watched the magic of Ryan Martin. Man, it was great to spend the day outside!

Dramatic poses: