Reformation Day

My knights in shining armor guarding their fair lady.

Little Lady was a fair maiden, but after she took the tulle off her crown,

she told everyone she was a queen.

Digging Badger and Crazy Fox prepared to defend the castle.

The boys and the Zookeeper in the final stages of sword construction. Everyone was a little tired here. They were really having fun, it just wasn't captured on film.

Apple Picking

The kids and I went apple picking today and we had so much fun. We went to a small u-pick orchard. The favorite job was holding the huge picking basket. . .

. . . until it was full.

The orchard has an ongoing contest for the largest apple picked. We didn't know about it until we took our load of apples to be weighed, but Digging Badger's came in at 12 ounces. Little Lady and Crazy Fox both had an apple that weighed 12.5 ounces.

Along with her big apple, Little Lady had one baby apple that she held onto all morning. I bet it is going to be tart!

Crazy Fox was very good at finding any defects on the apples, before he picked them.

We picked Golden Delicious, Rome and Crisp Red apples. We sampled them on the way home and they are wonderful. We are planning on making applesauce, an apple cake and some apple crisps for the freezer.

Anyone can count the number of seeds in an apple,

but only God can count the number of apples in a seed.

~Robert Schuller~

First of Fall

Autumn is a second spring when every flower is a leaf.
~Author Unknown ~

We celebrated the first day of our favorite season with a bike ride along the Boise River.

I have loved this bridge since the first time I saw it. The bridge itself is not all that much to look at, but just the idea of a single lane, truss bridge feels like small town living. Maybe it's because I drive over this bridge to get to one of my dearest friend's home. Or, maybe it's because my dad always slows down to look at old bridges and barns when he drives. Whatever it is, I always enjoy driving over it, riding over it, or sitting under it. The weather was perfect today. Everything was clean from the weekend's rain storm. The sky was beautifully blue with bright, white clouds floating overhead. This was all framed by trees speckled with golden and red leaves.

We took a break under the bridge to play on the bank of the river.

Little Lady built a sand castle.

Crazy Fox found a big stick and some old fishing line and fished the river a bit.Digging Badger just had fun running in the sand and being outside.Here's little Lady and me with the new bike trailer.

(She loves riding along with me and talked the entire time we were riding.)
How beautifully the leaves grow old. How full of light and color their last days.

~John Burroughs ~