November 11

Jim Betz (WWII Era)

Bill Holton (WWII Era)

Tom Mollohan (Vietnam Era)

All wars didn't end on November 11, 1918 as hoped. President Wilson shared in 1919 that November 11 would be Armistice Day (Armistice: an agreement made by opposing sides in a war to stop fighting for a certain time; a truce. ~ defined by Google): 

"To us in America, the reflections of Armistice Day will be filled with solemn pride in heroism of those who died in the country's service and with gratitude for the victory, both because of the thing from which it has freed us and because of the opportunity it has given America to show her sympathy with peace and justice in the councils of the nations . . . "

In May of 1938, November 11 was made a national holiday as Armistice Day. In 1954, it became a day to honor American veterans of all wars.

There are many more in the family, from greater grandfathers to uncles and cousins, to honor and share our appreciation for but I couldn't in any way round up all the photos of the extensive list. :-) Either way, their impacts were and are huge.We are eternally grateful.

Vanessa made the picture above today for her teacher Mrs. Ming to give to her husband as a thank you for serving our country.

Fall Cleanup

 With a week of warmer temps, pumpkins collapsed within a couple days and Daddy squeezed in getting the leaves to the street. Thankful for the warmer temps to prepare for colder days!

Vanessa didn't like me taking a picture of the pumpkins above. I reminded her that we knew it was temporary and how fast the mold grew was intriguing. She had heard a couple friends describe how theirs did the same thing a few days before. I think she felt our pumpkins might hold up longer, so it was a hard reality to accept. :-)

 Zane knows I love bright red leaves. While I was inside cleaning out junk, he was loading the mailbox with all the red leaves he could find. When I came out he ran some to me. Big kisses!

Zane told me recently that I don't need to hug him and kiss him every time he does something well. I told him I can't help it but if he really hopes I will stop, I will. He changed his mind pretty quickly "Okay, you can show me."

Where's Vanessa?!

Three's a Crowd or Too Close for Comfort?

Either way, it's obvious we can squeeze in more.  And I hear three's a party! :-) For my children, your mother is referencing 80's sitcoms while poking fun at the closeness you two crave.

Halloweenies

These kids . . . :-)

All Hallows' Eve

The costume ball at the library was bittersweet. By this time Zane had switched back to wanting to be a Power Ranger. He played all the games and made all the crafts. His only disappointment was that they didn't hand out more candy. As we were leaving he complained about it a tad. I changed the topic to how it was his last costume ball there. In a sad tone he was like "Really? That was my last one at the library?"

To balance Vanessa's fun Halloween activities at school, I promised Zane a trip to the zoo. We went on a day it was basically empty. It was very enjoyable to move at our pace and to hear him explore and question so many things.

The apes were intrigued by Zane. I think his sitting quietly on the ledge in his black hoodie made them feel very comfortable, so they kept coming up to him.

While waiting on the four or five riders to wrap up their ride so we could get on, Zane chose a specific horse he wanted. When it was our turn he ran straight for it. He climbed up and as we waited for the guy to start us on the empty ride, I noticed that Zane's horse had been restored by a Mr. Betts. Cool.