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IT'S FRIDAY, MY FAVORITE DAY!!

The month of September is over and fall is definitely in the air! We had our first wind and rain storm this week and I spent some time cleaning up all the yard debris afterwards. I guess this is just the beginning as rumor has it we are in for another wet and windy winter. I am not looking forward to that and we are already making plans for a visit to the warm sunshine of Arizona next spring.

Last weekend was filled with socializing. We invited a couple of steamboat friends, Norm and Jeannette Davis from Astoria for dinner last Friday evening. We had been to their home last summer and so we were returning the favor. I fixed flat iron steak, ricotta and fresh carrots from the garden and I made a caramel apple/walnut spice bunt cake for dessert. Most of the cake stuck while I was trying to remove it from the pan but I "glued" it together with some frosting and it tasted delicious just the same. Saturday afternoon we attended a birthday party for Taylor Kahrs who turned three. We had a nice group of friends with a potluck and hamburgers. Taylor's grandparents were not there (Des and Donna are on a trip) so Dave sent "guilt" pictures of the event all night long to them. The weather managed to stay dry for the party but later the wind came up and it turned cold and wet on Sunday.

Sunday afternoon, we drove into Portland and after picking up my older sister Judy, we met our other sister Jeanne and her husband Bob, who flew in from Arizona on their way to Seattle for a conference. Over lunch we got to see all her pictures from Scotland she had taken and she handed out gifts that she had brought us. She gave me a tea cozy and a refrigerator magnet and a book on the Bell clan for Dave. It was a short visit as they had rented a car and were driving the rest of the way to Seattle that evening. After lunch, Dave and I dropped Judy off and stopped by to see Lara and her family. We got caught up with the latest from them before we headed for home.

We received two photos this week that we thought we would share. One is of our 12-year old granddaughter Ashtin who is now wearing braces. Look at that smile - not many kids can look that good with braces! The other is of our 6-year old granddaughter Jaysa who just lost one of her front teeth (just before school pictures). The tooth wasn't quite ready to come out on Sunday when we were there but this week it finally was loose enough to pull a day later. That will be a picture to always remember.

I have been fighting allergies all week. Every time I would go outside to work in the yard, my eyes would water and nose would run. I don't know what I am allergic to but it sure wants to keep me indoors. I thought after our big storm that the rain would have calmed things down but no such luck. Our garden club went on a garden tour on Tuesday but I just didn't feel like being outdoors so I didn't go. Instead, I had the excuse to sit around and read and take a nap or two. I have been reading a good book this week called "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo". The book has been out for some time but I have been busy all summer long and didn't have the time to read. I understand the movie will be out sometime in December and I am looking forward to seeing it.

We're still waiting and watching to see what will happen with the NBA labor situation. Right now, the owners have locked out the players and until they can work things out, no one is getting paid - including us! Since those games are a big part of our annual income, we really have our fingers crossed that we won't miss too many more games. They have already canceled three of the exhibition games and we really don't want to lose any more. By this time next week, we may have a better idea if and when this is going to work out.