Happy Halloween!

Henry was a fireman and Frances was a "love bug". Henry was very serious about his role this year...he even wanted to make sure he got a "fireman meal" before heading out. We went with our neighbor Allora...Henry's new BFF. Francie enjoyed trick or treating....so much so that she tried to take a neighbor's whole bowl of the candy....the neighbor thought she was joking...she pulled all the punches, smile....pull it harder....smile bigger...transition to a cry....stomp. Joanie brought us dinner. As you can see, she pulled out all the punches and made a "my ghost casserole". To quote her " Martha eat your heart out!""

On another bright note, Gordon came home! The kids were THRILLED. After two minutes of being home Henry pulled out Chutes and Ladders and Francie sat next to him to read a book. Good luck healing with those two and the packed agenda they have for him!

Too cute

Mark got Henry a Blazer hat last night.....so today it was all Blazer for his outfit. Love it. This is the scene this morning....I mean really....I know I am biased mother....but so cute!!!!

Pumpkin Carving

Mark went to the Blazer game ....so after we put Francie to bed, Henry and I carved the pumpkins. It is amazing the difference a year makes. This year Henry made a drawing of the what he wanted me to carve. His design was actually really cool. We then put the pumpkins on the front deck and Henry did his best ghost impersonation. Scary dude....especially with all that fog!

Half Time Show

There are times when I definitely think that my brother Andrew is channeling himself through Henry. Lately it has been happening when Henry is playing in a make-believe football or basketball game. He plays for HOURS. He does exactly what Andrew used to do, jumping everywhere, making the faces of the players, and also being the announcer in the background. He always makes me sing the national anthem before he plays -- a song that is truly piercing when I sing it. Yesterday he did a football game for 2 hours - he was sweating by the end. No joke. This afternoon he added a "half time" show to his gig. I had to take a video as it was hysterical. I will take a video "the game" sometime this week.

Run Like Hell

Mark and I ran the Run Like Hell half marathon this morning. It was bliss. Perfect weather -- cool with partial clouds, the leaves are PERFECT right now and we didn't die. Yee haw!

As a sign of our aging process, we skipped the free beer at the end and instead went to a breakfast joint we both love that is not so kid-friendly.

Gordon continues to heal and is picking up steam day by day. Katie, Mark's sister, flew up for the weekend so that made his spirits go up even more.They are thinking he will be discharged by the end of the week. Pretty amazing.

Henry is getting really excited to have him back in the house, averaging about 10 paintings a day to "decorate his room".

Good Day

Thought I would update everyone. Gordon is doing well. He is off the respirator and already looks better (he has red in his cheeks!). He is alert and thankful he made it through, grateful for the heart, and ready to fight to the fight. The staff at OHSU have been great.

They are asking us to keep the kids from being there too much given that they could pass something on to him. Both developed a cough after visiting yesterday, so we are going to steer clear to be better safe than sorry.

Because Mark was at the hospital, I took both kids to the Blazer game tonight. Hysterical. Henry made sure to wear his Oden jersey and then INSISTED that I get one for Francie. She now has a Rudy jersey (I will take pictures tomorrow). Aside from the slight scene I made trying to get two kids, three plates of food, my diaper bag, and Francie's "baby" into our seats, it went relatively well. Francie loved everything about it. Everytime they played the music to get people to cheer she thought it meant it was time for a dance party and she proceeded to head bang and crack people up around her. Henry was very focused on getting down the "new numbers" on the team. For those of you who don't know, Henry knows all the players numbers by heart. When I told him that Andre Miller picked "24", the first thing he said was "that is Kobe". (Yes, a little rain main-ish). Having three new numbers on the team threw him a bit, but I think he has it all set and is ready for the season. Go Blazers.

Gordon has a new heart

Thanks to a thoughtful and altruistic 24 year old who chose to be a donor, Gordon has a new heart. The surgery took longer than they originally thought due to Gordon's scar tissue from a previous surgery, but he made it through.

Although he is far from out of the woods, we are ecstatic he made it past this milestone!

At the same time, we pray for the family that lost someone and only hope that some comfort and peace can be found in the fact that their loved one's heart gave Gordon, a wonderful father and grandfather, a chance for a longer life.

Thanks everyone so much for your prayers and continued support.

Transplant Call Came In .....

Gordon, Mark's dad, just got the call tonight that there is a heart for him. So.....he is on the way to the hospital. Please send your prayers.

Plumper Pumpkin Patch

We took the kids and Grandpa Gordon to pick pumpkins at wonderful, family-run farm. The afternoon started off with a bang with Henry riding a horse for his first time. Dusty treated him well and you would think he was the lone ranger...yee haw. They even had fun stuff for grown ups...ok Mark... like the pumpkin shooter and the pumpkin sling. Why do men loving throwing things so that they land and blow up? All in all, it was a perfect fall afternoon.

Apple Festival

Yesterday was a GORGEOUS day so we went to a local nursery that has a "Apple Festival". It is great for kids. You get to try over 30 different kinds of apples, paint pumpkins, and go on a scavenger hunt around the nursery. By chance, we ran into Josh and Jack at the entrance and had a great "play date" at the nursery. My favorite part was probably when Francie tried the apple cider. WOW. It was like a whole new world was opened. She drank the cup in one big gulp (again....I wonder who she takes after?) and then crushed the cup (frat girl style) and lunged forward to get another. Hysterical. Henry and Jack LOVED the carts for hauling the plants. They were very, very serious about pulling "their load". Sometimes so serious they managed to take out a few young children, adults, etc.

Farmers Market Field Trip

Henry's school did a field trip to the downtown farmers market.Of course Henry's favorite part was riding the Max (train) down there. It was perfect fall weather and well....farmers markets are one of my FAVORITE things. Each child was supposed to pick something to buy and bring back for "observation time". Some kids picked things that were very unique and intersting looking ...artichoke flowers, romano cauliflower, kohrabi. True to form, Henry picked a pepper (one of his favorite things to eat)....but it was a purple pepper. He said his favorite part of the adventure was playing chase with his friends in the grass area by farmers market. Gotta love it when their favorite part of a trip is something they can do anywhere.

Hood River Heaven

We went to Hood River this weekend. We went raspberry and apple picking on a great farm that even had an area where you could pet the animals. Then we parked the car at my sister's place and walked around town only to discover the "Hop Fest" (aka Brewfest) was going on. It had a "kid zone" and the band from our wedding was playing. Can you say heaven? Mark and I were in sheer bliss drinking really good beer, dancing with the kids, and looking out at the amazing views. About an hour in a torrential rain storm came and wakened us to reality that perhaps we should take Francie home for a nap (think the "god above" were worried we would stay there all night). This morning we went to a classic small town diner where Francie proceeded to tackle a normal sized breakfast plate (that girl can chow! wonder who she takes after?). Classy. She also discovered the male barbie at Jenny's place and instantly was attached...interesting....she only bangs the female barbies on the table, but now that she found a male barbie she treats it lovingly....hmmmm. Mark and I both got to go on runs along the creek with the crisp fall air keeping us cool...seriously, could it get better? The day ended perfectly with my sister and her husband and kids coming back into town and we were were able to have dinner with them before heading home. Thanks Jenny and Fritz for the idyllic weekend.

Manzanita....with the Girls

This last weekend Brookie came down and I had the joy(!!!!) of spending the whole weekend with girlfriends (thanks Mark for the best birthday present of giving me a weekend away!). Friday night Brookie and I went out with Aryne and then Saturday a group of us went down to Manzanita. Once I got over the urge to constantly look for the kids on the beach, I had the best time. The weather was amazing, we went to spa, and most importantly...we let our inner rockstars out. Let's just say what happens in Manzanita stays in Manzanita. TO give you a hint, I was genuinely confused when the bartender decided to close the bar shortly after we came in.....mind you, I was wearing Henry's fireman hat and we were begging the kitchen - that had been closed for 2 hours - to open for us to make tater tots. Sunday night the kids got some quality time with Brookie - one of their favorite people in the world. She so needs to move back to Portland......