Whew!

I'll tell ya, September and October fill up so fast with things to do. That's one of the reasons I love this time of year. There is always a craft fair or a festival or a fall bazaar or something going on, and I like to go to all of them.

Now if the temperatures would just drop back down to normal for this time of year, everything would be hunky-dorry.

We've opened a Teen Center at our church. There was no place for teenagers to go after school on this side of town, and there is a high school across the street from us, so last year the congregation raised enough funds to redo the youth lounge, the gym, plus some repairs to the church itself. The first week we had 10 kids show up. The second week we had 43, then last week we had 60! That's a lot of teenagers. I volunteer on Wednesday afternoons, originally to tutor English, but I'm really more of a "stand there and look like an adult" chaperone. It's early in the school year, so the kids don't have a lot of homework, but as the year goes on, they'll have to spend an hour studying before they can play ball in the gym or games or whatever. I don't mind telling you I'm a bit intimidated. I don't hang around kids all that often, let along 50 of them with raging hormones. But I think it's important to have it, so I'll hang in there.

I've also started a Prayer Shawl Ministry at our church. We have lots of knitters and crocheters, so we're making shawls for people who need a little warmth and comforting. I said I would never chair a committee again, but here I am. I didn't even realize I was doing it. My hand went up without my even knowing it. But it's been easy so far.

So, I’m in a knitting frenzy, which make me very happy. In addition to the shawls, I'm making a poncho for me, an afghan for Al’s mom, hats for Al’s family, squares for the coolest scarf ever, fingerless arm warmer thingies, and if I can, I’d like to make a couple of other gifts for Christmas. But my fingers can move only so fast.

I was at Target for some grocery shopping because it is one of 2 stores that carry the granola, the only granola, Al likes. I started putting my stuff on the conveyer belt to check out and noticed that the young woman in front of me was only getting Southern Comfort and Cheez-Its. Aaaahhh, the days when all I needed at the store was a bottle of whisky and a snack. Now it’s yogurt, granola, and bags of salad that I really hope aren’t tainted with E. Coli.

We spent Saturday afternoon and evening hanging out with some friends at their campsite in Iowa. It was such a wonderful way to spend the day, just hanging out with friends, drinking a beer, grilling some steaks, watching the sun set over the lake, laughing at the kids playing games, and melting marshmallows over the fire for s'mores. Mmmmmmmmm s'mores. I could get used to that.

Before the camping, I went to a craft fair, a huge craft fair. One of the first booths I saw was a nice older couple selling breads and cookies for $5 and I thought, "You now, I really should support them." So I bought some challah or egg bread and used it to make French Toast. It was soooooo good. I grated a little nutmeg and dropped a little vanilla into the egg mixture then cooked the slices in butter. So decadent and so yummy. That's a good start to the day.
And somewhere in the midst of all of this I'm finding time to read. Yes, several of them have been about knitting, but that counts! I also read Death of a Village by MC Beaton, my favorite Hamish MacBeth mysteries and right now I'm listening to Don't Know Much About the Bible because, we'll, I don't, and I'm on a non-fiction kick. I also just started Dog Days by John Katz. It's a follow up to Dogs of Bedlam Farm. How could I resist this cover?



Next up, the write ups of our South Dakota trip with pictures.