Did I ever tell you . . .

Did I ever tell you how much I love Fall? I can't get enough of the warm colored leaves coupled with the cool breeze that blows through them. I especially love the giant Maple tree in our front yard that turns from from green, to yellow, to a brilliant red before the leaves rain down to our lawn.

This next shot is taken at the trunk looking up the same Maple tree

Then the beauty turns into fun when the girls get to run into big crunchy piles with full force. There isn't enough leaves on the ground quite yet, but we know the day will come when we get to declare leaf wars and have jumping contests.

I also love the food that comes with the change of the seasons. From cold sandwiches, fresh fruit, and salads - to Minnesota "Hot Dishes", meals from a crock pot and warm apple crisp. I have been slacking in the "baking" department, but I vow to bake with my girls this weekend!


Fall also brings my favorite fashions, which consist of chunky knit sweaters (great for hiding the couple of extra pounds put on by Fall eating) and cute jeans. I also trade in my flip flops for boots made of leather - painted toe nails and freshly filed heels no longer necessary :) It is a time where you can get out and enjoy the cool weather without having to worry about the enormous amount of clothing one has to wear in the coming months - no hats, or mittens, or scarves, or snow boots, or face masks, or long-johns, or snow pants or down coats to pile on - just you, only less layered.

Yes my friends, Fall is almost perfect. The weather, the colors, the activities, the food, the fashion - what more could one season offer? The only thing that screws up it's perfectness is . . . school . . . just kidding (kind-of).

Cheers to Fall and all it has to offer!

throw another shrimp on the barbie

For those of you who keep up with this blog, or have talked to me in the last few weeks, you know what a whirlwind of a Fall we have had. From illness to illness, it just seems to keep coming. Well . . . we just had another curve ball thrown in our direction.



About a week ago while I was giving Ella a bath, I noticed a bump protruding out of her neck right where an Adam's Apple would be. While feeling it, my stomach did an instant somersault because what I was feeling could only be described as . . .a lump. This word is often associated with very dangerous medical findings. I tried to tell myself that it was probably just a swollen lymph node or gland, and to not be a "crazy hypochondriac" mother, but I couldn't help but worry about . . . I can't even say it . . . but it starts with a C.



I called our doctor the very next day and scheduled an appointment for that afternoon. While I was teaching, I was a ball of nerves, wondering if I could have caught this sooner. The thoughts were screaming through my mind as if someone was yelling in my ear with a bull horn. That appointment couldn't come soon enough.



When the doctor was examining her, he immediately said that since it wasn't a hard lump, it didn't worry him (WHEW!!!). I felt the million pound weight lift off my shoulders and immediately vowed never to take my children's good health for granted ever again! Although the lump did not seem dangerous, he was still referring us on to an Ear, Nose and Throat Specialist, to look into it further.



Two appointments with an ENT and one ultrasound later, we found out that Ella has a Thyroglossal Duct Cyst. Unfortunately it can't just be drained like other cysts, because it would just redevelop, so it will need to be surgically removed. The cyst is also connected to a duct and part of her hyoid bone, so all of those things will need to be taken out as well. It all sounds a little scary, but the doctor assured me that patients do very well with this procedure and are back to normal in about 2 weeks.



I have never had to experience what it is like to have a child in surgery. I would be lying if I told you that I wasn't nervous about it all. But I can tell you one thing for sure, I will take a surgery over the worst-case-scenario ANY DAY!

The Orchard

Yesterday was a perfect Fall day - buckets of sunshine with just the slightest breath of a cool breeze every now and then, along with the views of newly turning leaves with colors of yellow, orange, plum and red. After all the rain storms and dreary days of the past week, yesterday seemed like the start of something new. We Adolphson's felt it was the start of a healthier family! Ella was feeling much better and was down to just a couple of preventative nebulizer treatments a day, and Claire seemed to be a little perkier as well. So we decided to take advantage of this fantastic day and headed out to the Apple Jack Orchard!






When the girls piled out of the van, they were thrilled to see so many fun activities!







We started at the pumpkin patch











Then we headed over to the land of the giant pumpkins. The Orchard was sponsoring a contest for the local pumpkins that had reached the morbidly obese stage of growth. These things were massive!











Then it was time for a Cow Train ride. Oh, so cute and so fun!







While the little girls were on their ride around the strawberry patch, Farmer Carl had to check out the field. After kicking the crop around awhile, he gave it his nod of approval.







Then it was time for the biggest event of the day . . . the corn maze. This corn maze is not for the faint-of-heart. It was 5 acres of corn with a intricate design cleared out for it's adventurists. A small map was provided along with some clues to help you out along the way.







We started out with our spirits high, but soon found out that this would be a challenging venture . . . and the deluxe travel system stroller was not helping our cause at all.







. . . but Claire didn't seem to mind the bumpy ride too much :)







After many, "I think we're lost" and "Are we ever going to find our way out?" comments, Carl's map-reading skills paid off when he led us out of the sea of corn!







After our big victory, we decided to head over to the big red barn for a fresh hand-dipped Carmel apple.







Victory is sooooo sweet







We sat down in the shade on the river's bank and enjoyed every bite.








Then we were off to see what else the Orchard had to offer.





















Ella took a ride on a pony that looked almost identical to Jocie's old pony, Jasper. It made me wish he was still around for the other two girls. We miss him.







Before we left, we hit up the gift shop and bought enough Honey Crisp apples to last us for a while. Washington apples have nothing on a Minnesota Honey Crisp (yes John and Beth - that is a challenge!!).










This little day trip was much needed for us all. It gave us a chance to have a little family fun after all of our yucky illnesses. I can't tell you how healing it was for me to watch my family have fun during the best season of the year. Thank you Apple Jacks Orchard!

Our ABC's

These past few weeks have been very trying. Since the first week of school all the way through the third week, we have had illness running rampid through our home. At school, Ella has been learning all about the alphabet and it's 26 letters. If I were trying to teach someone the alphabet by telling them what our family has been dealing these past few weeks, this is what it would sound like:

A is for Asthma
B is for Bowel issues
C is for Croup
D is for Drugs
E is for Exhausted
F is for Follow-up appointments
G is for Giving love
H is for Head aches
I is for Inhaler
J is for "Jesus, help us!"
K is for Kleenex
L is for Laying low
M is for Missing work
N is for Nebulizer
O is for Oxygen levels are low
P is for Puke
Q is for Quarantine
R is for Rest
S is for Snot
T is for Thermometer
U is for "U have got to be kidding!"
V is for Video watching
W is for Wheezing
X is for X-Ray of the chest
Y is for Yucky
Z is for Zzzzzzzzz's

Yes, we have been through A LOT these past few weeks. Out of the 13 days of school, Carl and I have missed a total of 6 days combined! Unreal. I just hope our little ones get better soon. It has been so sad watching them suffer :( Thank goodness Jocie hasn't been hit (yet).

Here's hoping that week 4 is a healthy one!

Running to the beat of her own drum

On Saturday, I had to set my alarm to go off before the 7:00 hour. I wasn't all that happy with such a notion, but I knew it was for a good cause. Jocie had decided to run in a 2 mile race with her friend Amanda to help raise money for our church's Fall Festival. I can't remember being all that lazy of a kid (mom and dad - you might disagree), but I know that I didn't ever get up early on a Saturday morning to run 2 miles when I was eleven!

It was an awesome autumn morning with more sun than clouds and a cool crisp in the air.

Jocie told me that she likes running, but she doesn't like right before the race starts because she gets pretty nervous. I think you can see that written on her face! I even caught her cracking her knuckles . . . this is one of Jocie's dead give-a-ways of either being nervous or lying . . .

And their off!

The girls make a nice, confident start.

After seeing the girls off, I raced over to the Middle School so I could see them in action. The guy leading the pack is a friend of mine. Schmitty used to be one of our school social workers and the founder of the Pinewood (Staff) Running Club. He is a fantastic runner and an even better person. When ever I see him, he always greets me with, "Hey! Double A!" as he runs/skips/hops/schuffles by. I am pretty sure he is referring to my initials . . . but he could also be referring to something else . . . nah. He's not like that :)

The girls don't look too nervous here!

They both sprint through the finish! Gotta love the competitiveness!

Nice work girls! I can't wait until I get to rejoin the running world. Who knows, maybe I will be sprinting next to them at St. Henry's Fall Festival 2011.

Oh . . . it's coming!