Autumn in the Air

There is celebration and sadness in Philly this week. We are sad because our Phillies lost (Baseball, Mom. We were one game away from the World Series). We had joined all our neighbors at the end of our street watching the game projected up on the wall of the Perleman building, such a fun Philly experience, but when our last man struck out, the party was instantly over. The projector was unplugged, there were no pleasantries, everyone just picked up his or her own chair and headed straight home. Poor Philadelphia. On the other hand, we are celebrating the fact that Josh did not fail his finance midterm! When it came down to an all nighter the girls and I started praying really hard. Josh called after the exam me to tell me that it was actually a fun test, he did not have time to finish, but he did NOT fail. Funny that the girl who was never satisfied with less than 110% was thrilled at that report--all we have to do is graduate. ☺

Fall is in full swing in the East. The temperatures have dropped. We even pulled out our hats, scarves, and gloves. The leaves are beautiful and as you walk or drive down the street they swirl around you. For our Autumn activity this weekend we met some friends at the Chadd’s Ford Giant Pumpkin Carve, a community event where they carve giant pumpkins with chain saws. It was fun to be out in the crisp air with straw under your feet and the smell of carmel apples surrounding you. The pumpkins were fun. Jane thought they were spooky and walked around with her hand covering her mouth the whole evening.

Josh was invited to a reception for BCG this week. He had a one-on-one chat with the CEO and another with the head partner of the Dallas office about the project he worked on over the summer. He came home so excited about BCG! I thought he was going to pack his bags and head South that very minute. What a blessing it is to have a job lined up, especially a job he is so excited about.

The highlight of the week for Kate was that her Dad came to watch her gymnastics class. You know how excited Kate is about gymnastic anyway, but to have her Dad there to watch her was an unparalleled moment of bliss. She ran extra hard, jumped extra high, and smiled extra big. She was so excited to tell everyone that her “Dada” came to watch her today.

We also had a fun family outing to the car wash this week. One thing about Philly is you can’t just pull your car into the garage to vacuum it out. We hadn’t gotten around to removing the bug shield since we drove across the country so it was indeed a family effort. The girls played in the car, counting and protecting our treasure (coins for the the car wash) and “straightening things up,” while Josh and I took turns scrubbing bugs. The girls would knock on the window and ask us to wash their windows again and again. They were big fans of the pink soap. The cutest thing ever was when Josh would spray their windows. They would squeal and giggle and run to the opposite side of the car. I remember loving trips to the car wash. I guess that is just one of the delights of childhood.

On Monday of this week I took a bus down to Old City and went to a lecture by Ron Chernow about George Washington. I have been reading His Excellency, George Washington by Joseph Ellis, so when I saw this lecture was happening at the National Constitution Center I decided I had to go. I roped a few of my friends into joining me and we had a delightful night on the town. It was so fun to be intellectually stimulated again. I have been trying to brush up on American History while we are living in its midst and this was a great capstone experience. I was in my element. There was a funny moment, however, when I looked around and noticed the average age of those in attendance was not 31. Why is it that my favorite events are not necessarily targeted toward my age group? Oh well, I guess I’m a geek. It was fun to be out with some of my dear friends. We even splurged and went out for appetizers afterward at a fun restaurant in Center City and then took a cab home--we are truly city girls now! ☺

I am really enjoying listening to the conference talks again. (It was the NPR membership drive this week so it was a very convenient time to have something else to listen to.) I find it amazing how the talks address things specific to your life, and I know everyone feels that way. I felt like President Uchtdorf, Elder Oaks, and President Eyring were chatting with me about thoughts I had been having and things I had been struggling with but hadn’t expressed to anyone but God. Funny how that works. Although not every moment or every aspect of being a member of this church is a party, it is nice to be reminded by the Spirit of why we do what we do and believe what we believe. I have redoubled my efforts to stick to the “little things,” trust in God, and keep walking along the path that will bring me and my family closer to Him. The Church is True!