Fall fun

Well, I better get a fall-related blog post up, before it ceases to be fall!  Pictured above is Kenny and one of his fellow scouts learning about archeology and helping to sort some artifacts for the local archeological station.  This was one of many things Kenny was involved in this fall, including playing in the high school marching band, helping me fix the lawnmower (below):

serving as a scale for one of my work-related photos--the logs pictured below were cut from a pine plantation on our deer hunting lease (look at those growth rings!):

(he's done a little bit of deer hunting with me), and of course enjoying the festivities that accompany fall, such as carving pumpkins with the rest of the family:

All of the kids have been busy; Stephen was on a soccer club that won their particular division:

Stephen is sitting in the middle of the picture above; they played almost all their games after dark, and my cell phone camera would only produce pixelated blurs of them actually playing...

Stephen (in the hat above) also helped his mom give out Halloween candy during the annual trick-or-treating crush in our neighborhood.  We also explored around a few places this fall, including a restaurant in nearby Greenville, Mississippi, that had this big sign advertising the root beer they sold:

Hope's dad came down for a brief visit, and we went on our annual pilgrimage to get satsuma oranges and cracked pecans...we tried a new place for the pecans, and the gentleman that ran the operation cracked the pecans for us while we waited.  We were fascinated with the device (pictured below) he used to crack each pecan:

Kenny also spent quite a bit of time this fall working on his Eagle Scout rank and project, which was to revitalize and spruce up the grotto with the Virgin Mary behind our church.  Below, Kenny is adding some cedar to the arbor he constructed:

and here he is proudly posing by his nearly completed project:

In addition to the arbor, he did a lot of work (with the help of family and fellow scouts) on the landscaping around the grotto.  If it looks a little cool and raw (well, at least for Arkansas) in the pictures above, it is because it was--we've had a cooler than average fall.  Case and point--we've already been snowed on!:

We decided to visit my parents in northern Wisconsin for the Thanksgiving holiday, which they were thrilled with!  Below, dad enjoys his new chair:

Below, we spent a lot of time walking around the woods we bought from my folks this summer:

The big eastern white pine above is probably the most impressive single tree, but we love the whole parcel!  We got to visit with my sister Lisa on this trip, and her two daughters (Emma and Leila):

Both Emma and Kenny have November birthdays, so Grandma (in the background) insisted on having them have a birthday cake:

Stephen eagerly awaits his slice:

And Beth was mortified with Grandpa's cake eating enthusiasm! 

This past weekend, Stephen and I drove to Corsicana, Texas, about 6 hours west of Monticello, to watch the University of Arkansas-Monticello Boll Weevil football team play in their first post-season action (the Corsicana Bowl) in 25 years...Below, Stephen admires the venue, which was a high school football stadium:

Yes--it really is that large; they take their high school football VERY serious in Texas!

The game was entertaining; the Weevils played well, but ultimately lost to Emporia State University (out of Kansas).  The enthusiasm of the Weevils fans took the day, though--we definitely outnumbered them, and I think out-cheered them!  The picture below has a large contingent of Weevils fans from our church (St. Mark):

The head football coach, Hud Jackson, and his family have dedicated members of our parish since they arrive years ago, and it has been a great blessing to get to know them...

Well, time to start my day.