It's been a WOO PIG!-type fall...

If you're not from Arkansas, you probably won't get the "WOO PIG" reference, but it is part of the "call" of the Arkansas Razorback sports teams (those from the University of Arkansas-Fayetteville, at least).  At the beginning of September, we had a chance to get some first-row seats (courtesy of University of Arkansas Extension) to the Arkansas-Rice University football game.  On a blisteringly hot and sunny Saturday afternoon, we got quite a spectacle:

The above picture was taken from our seats--we were quite literally in the first row, behind the Rice University team's bench!  We got a great view of the action both on and off of the field:

The view was often obstructed by players, coaches, security staff, cheerleaders, news people, etc., but a great way to see the action!  It was hot and loud, and the Razorbacks team trailed much of the first part of the game, but eventually took the lead and ended up winning handily.

A cold front passed through by that evening, bringing heavy rain but cooling temps, and by the next morning (Sunday) our trip to a local landmark--the War Eagle Mill--was much more pleasant weather-wise.  We had an excellent breakfast in the upper floor of this mill:

and enjoyed a nice view of the historic iron bridge that spans the nearby river:

On our way back to Monticello, we stopped at several places along the world-famous Buffalo River, in the national park along this stream.  Below, Stephen enjoys splashing through the channel and looking for rocks to skip:

The bluffs along this river can be hundreds of feet tall, and are part of why this became the US's first "National River" Park:

If you ever get to northern Arkansas, make sure to enjoy the rolling hills and low mountains, plus the spectacular rivers like the Buffalo--Stephen sure does!:

Fall also means junior high and high school football, and for us this year, Stephen plays baritone in the 8th grade band...which means we go to many of these home games to watch Stephen play:

Beth isn't in band, but she is helping out the band instructors by watching their toddler during the half-time performances, when having the baby on hand is a chore for them:

(Rachel, the little girl, is nowhere near as skeptical of Beth as she appears in the photo!).  In 8th grade, they are only just starting to get the band used to marching on the field, so the line-up in the picture below is just of them standing in place playing:

Next year they'll start real marching...

We have also decided to embark on our next big house project...Installing new cabinets in our kitchen!  The ones in there were there when we bought the house nearly 20 years ago, and they are really starting to decline...  To start this project, we widened the opening into our kitchen:

We then restructured our kitchen pantry area:

The new pantry is now largely finished but still needs some lighting and doors...

Meanwhile, our lil' media darling Beth continues to shine in her TV experiences for 4-H:

I think this is at least the third time she's been on the local news (and all for good things!).  Our evenings--even with our TV star--are still pretty quiet...often dominated by board games:

(I dominated this game of Trivial Pursuit, by the way!!).  Our fall flowers, such as these surprise lilies in our front year, are in full bloom now:

and they even get visits by extra-large pollinators:

(Beth was dressed up for one of her school's homecoming week spirit days).  This past weekend we joined a number of other people to participate in an "Archeolympics" at Toltec Mounds Archeological State Park near Little Rock, and Bragg Family South (plus Stephen's friend Zeke) all competed in various events with archeology themes:

Without getting into too many details...it was a long and tiring but successful day, with Stephen taking 2nd place overall with the spearthrowing using an atlatl (55 meters, or over 180 feet, in distance!), beating me (at about 165 feet) and most of a bunch of college students.  We also took first in a trivia contest, and took second overall--not bad for our first Archeolympics!

And finally, tonight, I'll leave you with a more graceful final picture of Beth, just after we finished a brief photoshoot this morning:

So pretty and even elegant!