Seasons Change, If Only in Name

We read and see that autumn’s crisp snap has fully returned Back East. Out here, the mild conditions have returned. While the calendar tells us that fall is here, only a very few leaves have begun to turn, and the air only carries subtle hints that the season has changed. Still, the signs are there, even if currently the fall has come in name only. We had a more varied week, with back to school nights, a wedding, construction, and a birthday to celebrate.

On Tuesday while Landon was at school, Hallie took Eliza to the library for a shapes-themed story time. Eliza made a diamond-shaped kite of her own to take home.

In the evening, the parents went to back-to-school night at both kids’ schools, stopping off at Rite-Aid in between for some Thrifty ice cream. Yumm-O!

On Wednesday morning, Hallie and her friend Marie from church went to a Moms Meet Store Tour at Whole Foods Market in Oxnard where they learned about shopping for organic, wallet-friendly meals. Plus, they got a goody bag!

On Friday, Mike’s sister Emily married Michael, her fiancé, at the superior court in Van Nuys. We’re proud of all the progress she has made over the last year and are happy to welcome another Mike into the family!

This trip was our first to LA since moving back to California, and as the topic of families was the theme of the day, we took advantage of being in the general area to go down to the Los Angeles Temple, where we were sealed to Eliza in 2011, stopping first at Diddy Riese in Westwood for ice cream sandwiches.

Since last we went, the temple visitors’ center has had a major face lift. The kids made a beeline for the little neighborhood exhibit that had digital coloring pages and other age-appropriate media. It’s a far cry from the days where all we had was a theater with short films like The Mailbox and Johnny Lingo (now available anytime at all on YouTube).

We left the temple just as rush hour traffic had gotten into full gear on the 405, so we decided to take the scenic route home, following Sunset Boulevard through Brentwood and the Pacific Palisades before veering down through Malibu and taking PCH along the coast. Views of the winding canyons, the upscale homes, and the blue Pacific beat tail lights by a long shot, cost us no extra time, and only added about five miles to our trip.     

(Not our pic, but you get the idea.)

On Saturday morning, Hallie took Landon shopping bright and early before Mike took the kids to meet Grandpa O. at Lowe’s in Simi, where they built fire trucks.

After visiting with the grands, they came back home, and we decorated a bit for the fall. While some leaves are turning, about the only autumn color we have is what we have hanging from the walls.

On Sunday, we celebrated Grandma M’s birthday after church with taco salads and chocolate chip cookies. The kids showed off their swinging skills and got thoroughly wound up. Fortunately, this meant they went right to sleep at the end of day.