A Fabulous Fall (or is it Autumn?) Break

Is it "Autumn" or is it "Fall"? Knowing I would regret it, I Googled "four seasons". After wading through references to a band and a hotel chain, I found what I was looking for- sort of. The season we're currently experiencing can be called either. The word "Autumn" has been used for centuries... "Fall" became more of a slang term for the season during the time the US was becoming a nation. Thus, the US is the main country in the world who uses the word "Fall". Personally, I think "Autumn" sounds more elegant- maybe I'll try to bring it back!

"Autumn" and football go together. Now, we live in a college town and its very much a football town. Our kids have been to Marshall University football games before. Louie grew up in Charleston and trekked to Morgantown as a kid to see WVU play. It's a whole different atmosphere- some good and some bad, depending on how far away you are from the student section- and Louie wanted Garrett and Hannah to experience it. We were fortunate enough to be given tickets and a premium parking pass for the day and we headed north. We saw some unbelievable tailgating that day. Hannah actually liked watching the game the best and Garrett was amused by the theatrics and the band's choice of pep songs.

Another "Autumn" ritual in our lives is Apple Butter Weekend. Our entire church is invited out to the Booth's farm to eat, play and make apple butter. It's also a reunion of sorts when we see friends who come into town for the weekend. Friday night there was football in the field, hot dogs to roast, tractor rides and lots of good conversation.

Working as an aide in a Kindergarten class has its perks. All our field trips center around Community Helpers and this week we took a field trip to the Fire Department. I planned the day but it turned out far better than I expected. We started the morning with 2 fire fighters talking to us about fire safety, but by the end, we had 6 fire fighters along on a tour of the firehouse. They really seemed to enjoy our kids and one even leaned over as we were preparing to leave and whispered, "Can we show you just one more thing?" We left cookies and muffins with them and a beautiful framed flag the kids made out of construction paper and presented to them.

Working every day has been a little hard to get used to. It's a lot to keep track of and still stay on top of things at home... and still find time to just "be" with my family. So, when we find little opportunities to hang out, we snatch them. Last week, a string quartet from the Huntington Symphony Orchestra visited our school. They offered free tickets to their season's opening night. Garrett and I headed downtown to the Keith-Albee theater and took in a great concert. That theater holds a special place in my heart. Generations of my family have gone to movies and shows there... Louie and I went there on our first date (I still have the ticket stub!)... and sitting in the balcony is the coolest experience. I was also impressed that Garrett actually knew the names of several of the movements they played. And to top off the evening, there was a cello solo which I loved! (The cello is my favorite instrument)

As "Autumn" has unfolded, we've come to the end of another volleyball season. It was short and sweet. Last week, we had a home game and it was Senior Night for three of Garrett's classmates. The middle school and high school teams played, so Hannah and Becca had back to back games. Louie and Garrett provided music and sound for the night. It was a nice evening.

(Aren't they cute?)

Garrett is stretching his creative muscles this "Autumn" by performing in the community theater production of "Little Shop of Horrors". He plays the role of the flesh-eating plant. (Ha!) It's an odd comedy and he's got some famous lines like, "Feed me Seymour". The show opens Halloween weekend and runs for two weekends.

We spent Sunday afternoon celebrating with our friends as their son Blake received his Eagle Scout Award. This was such a huge accomplishment and took so many years- yeah, Blake!

Yesterday may have been a regular day to you, but to me, it was monumental. It was my hubby's 41st birthday. I'm tempted to get very sentimental here- I could tell you that there was a time when I wondered if he would live past the age of 40 after his open heart surgery... I could tell you that there was a time when I wondered if our marriage would survive to our 40s... but instead I'll just praise God for how things are today. Today, I'm celebrating that God in his providence knew exactly what I needed (even when I didn't know what I needed) in a spouse. I'm celebrating that God has protected Louie's physical life again and again. I'm celebrating the fact that Louie is healthier today than he's been in a very long time. I'm celebrating the fact that our marriage is healthier than its ever been. I'm celebrating every little quirk that goes along with Louie- its who God created him to be and I really wouldn't have him any other way.

We celebrated simply- like every other Sunday. We went to church and spent time with friends. We ate and laughed. Louie and I actually had a few minutes alone to look each other in the eye. Becca made her daddy a homemade card that told him how much she loved and appreciated him. I bought him a new pair of jeans that actually fit. (The same size he wore when we got married) A simple day- but exactly what he wanted.

This week, we have an "Autumn" Break from school- a whole week off. Of course, I have a to-do list of things that have fallen to the back burner. The kids will be helping me around the house... they just don't know it! But I also have a book I'm already hooked on that I'll have my nose in every day. Sometimes we just really need a break and I'm not going to take this week for granted but instead, try to soak every minute up.

It Must Be Fall

One of the things that you can count on during the Fall in the Gaunch house is Volleyball Season. Hannah has played volleyball since 6th grade. Those early years were... rough, to say the least. As a matter of fact, I'm not sure if Hannah even played in a game her entire first season. Now, she's payed her dues and practiced hard, attending volleyball camp in the summer. Hannah may be short- but she's feisty! She's a member of the high school team and their season is underway. Last week was their first game in the new Covenant School gym.

The Fall also means Grandparents Day at Covenant School. It's a really special day when grandparents can come to a breakfast, have their picture professionally taken with their grandchild, see an assembly, and then visit their grandchild's classroom. This was actually the first time in 7 years of being at Covenant that I've been to Grandparents Day- parents aren't invited, but as a faculty member, I was working. If you've ever had your five year old child on stage at church performing in front of a crowd, you know the anxiety you can feel. Multiply that by 17 and that's what I felt that day with my Kindergarten class. Of course they did great and I was so proud. My class recited a poem, sang 2 songs, said their ABCs in the cutest way and then said their memory verse (Proverbs 3:5-6....with motions!). Garrett had a speaking part as well, Hannah helped shuttle little kids to their grandparents for pictures and Becca played the trumpet for the first time in public.

As we wrapped up Grandparents Day, Hannah had a Fall event to get ready for. She went with her boyfriend, Connor, to the Cabell-Midland High School Homecoming Dance. A certain amount of primping was involved... and I MUST tell you about the dress. She went with a friend to scout out possibilities and then came back to the mall with me (and money) in tow. She tried on several but the one she really liked was on a clearance rack because it was damaged. We were on the phone with stores within 100 miles and no one had that particular dress. She tried it on for me anyway and I was surprised that it simply was snagged. Someone had tried it on and their ring had caused a snag diagonally across the entire dress. I told Hannah that I was sure it could be streamed out at the dry cleaners- it was $10. Yep, $10!!! So we got it and yes, after 5 seconds in the hands of the sweet ladies at George's Dry Cleaners, the notorious snag was invisible and I had just "snagged" the deal of the century. Louie celebrated by buying Hannah a new pair of shoes!

Doesn't she look.... beautiful? And.... older than 16? Do you see the snag? Me neither!

This was her first non-Christian school dance and I'm glad she had some friends from church and from church camp to hang out with, along with Connor who goes to our church, too.

Now I have been accused of making people cry lately with my blog (not my intention- its just where I am right now), so I will switch gears before things get sappy.

Louie loves to cook. Anyone who knows him knows that messing around in the kitchen is a stress reliever for him. So he traveled to an insurance agency in Logan today and he always takes those ladies something to eat. Today it was a new concoction called Cake Balls. Sound crazy? It's basically crumbled up cake mixed with icing then formed into bite sized balls and frozen. Then you dip them in chocolate. Personally, I think they should be called Sugar Bombs. You can use any cake mix, any frosting and any kind of dipping chocolate to make lots of varieties. The ladies requested red velvet cake with cream cheese icing, dipped in white chocolate. I was going to take a picture, but this was all that was left when I got home! Oh, well- I didn't need it anyway!

A College Visit Road Trip

Last weekend, I hit the road with Garrett and Hannah and headed north. We went to visit Wheaton College which is located just outside the city of Chicago. This was Garrett's 4th college visit and Hannah's 1st. It was a nine hour drive through parts of Kentucky, Ohio, Indiana and Illinois. The bulk of our drive was across the open country of Indiana. This was the view from our window for about 4 hours... booooring!

Then, we stopped in Gary, Indiana at a park so that the kids could see Lake Michigan up close and personal. You could see Chicago at a distance.

It was cool and windy and that water was a bit chilly. Can you tell by the look on Garret's face?

We drove into Chicago past the White Sox stadium and the Sears (I mean 'Willis') Tower. I've never been so glad for that GPS! Six lanes of traffic with road construction. We made it through and headed toward the burbs. The next morning, Louie's aunt and uncle who live outside Chicago picked us up at the hotel. We spent the day with them, and Louie's cousin Jenny, her husband Jason and their daughter, Emma who is in Kindergarten. We ate at Red Robin (yum!) and they brought me a sundae (it WAS still my birthday month after all and they have a cool birthday song there).

We got to spend some time in a little neighboring community with a riverwalk and the best little candy shoppe you've ever seen- they were making homemade caramel corn in the window. Then, that evening I went to take the kids to the college. Wheaton offers an overnight stay in the dorm as a cool experience for visiting high school students.

The next morning, I met up with the kids in the dining hall and I had to laugh. They were SO tired. Well, there's your first lesson from the college visit. Stay up late and you will be tired the next day. The other thing was that Garrett was terribly impressed by the dining hall. And I have to admit- the food was good. Then we took the college tour.

Wheaton's motto is "For Christ and His Kingdom". It's a nondenominational, liberal arts Christian college. I like that its an academically rigorous school and Garrett loved that they have a brand new science building. He even got to sit in on a college chemistry class. I think it was a good relaity check- he has a lot to learn.

We sat in on a chapel service while we were there. Monday, Wednesday and Friday mornings for an hour, all students drop what they're doing and gather for an informal service. They have guest speakers and music. It's less of a sermon and more of a devotion. Apparently, they tend to be more serious at the beginning of the semester (the president of World Vision was there 2 weeks ago) and more light hearted as the semester nears the end and students are stressed (the creator of Veggie Tales is coming in early December). They also have a lot of hidden gems on campus like the Billy Graham Center and the Wade Center. The BG Center (Billy Graham was a Wheaton Grad) hosts a lot of events and has an awesome museum. The Wade Center was established because a Wheaton professor was friends with C. S. Lewis and when he died, Lewis donated a lot of his writings and personal possessions, including his desk and pen, to the college. There is even his personal wardrobe that was the inspiration for the one in the Narnia series! The center also has RR Tolkien's desk where he penned the Lord of the Rings series. Cool, huh?

After the tour and an orientation session where we got down to the nitty, gritty about applications, tuition and scholarships, Garrett had an interview with an admissions counselor. He has officially applied to Wheaton and he will hear back from them in December. We ended our day with a brand new experience- deep dish pizza. It was really different than any pizza I've ever had before. Not sure if I like it or not- the jury's still out on that one. Then it was back in the car for another nine hours driving back through the corn fields of Indiana. Hannah handled the trip well as you can see.

I'm really glad I got to take this trip with Garrett and Hannah. In some ways it was really strange and new- dropping my kids off at a college dorm? Since when are they that old? But in some ways, this trip was just like so many of the road trips I took them on when they were little. As I drove and listened to them interact, talking back and forth. Or as I watched their personalities shine through as we experienced new things together... it was just the same as when they were preschoolers!

They've been very much like twins since Hannah was born. Just twelve months apart, they were pushed in the same stroller, went to preschool together, were always in the same class at church , went to the same school and for the last several years have had many classes together. As we drove toward Wheaton, Hannah said she wanted to go to college where Garrett went. But on the way home, Garrett was more convinced that Wheaton was his #1 choice and Hannah was convinced that she didn't like it for her (too cold among other things). I cannot imagine them apart from each other. They've walked side by side for so long. But I know that the day will come- soon- when God may have them going in different directions in order to accomplish His will in their lives. Until then, I'm glad they had this weekend to walk side by side a little while longer.