Sunsets and a few other October things

October was full of the prettiest sunsets! It seemed like every evening was more beautiful than the last. From our hill we can see the whole sky around, and I love it so much! Every night I would be inside making dinner and look out to see the mountains looking like this:

all golden and glowing. And then I'd know sunset was near. For awhile I kept thinking, "well, I can't just stop everything and go up on the hill to look at the sunset every night! Can I?" But it turns out…I could. It was worth it!

This was actually a sunrise. Equally beautiful. :)

People in front of sunset (with waving baby)

The hill is pretty in the moonlight, too. (That's Seb and a friend on their bikes up on top)

This was from a walk Sam and I took one warm Sunday morning. Everything was so golden and Fall-y.

Abe turned 18! I thought I was totally prepared for it, especially since he started college last April so I felt like I'd already mostly dealt with that milestone. It's been nice that online classes have kept him closer to home than he might otherwise have been, and he's such a great young man, and I'm so proud of all the things he's doing—so I wasn't expecting the torrent of emotions I suddenly felt the night before his birthday. I lay awake for hours, remembering and crying over I hardly know what—remembering those almost-three years when he was my only child, my little companion and friend, spending every waking hour with me (and many hours we should have been sleeping, too). News flash: watching children grow up is hard. And great. But hard.

Another pretty sunset, from a park this time (where Sam and I were eating hamburgers for our date night).

A colony of…bunny bats in Ziggy's bed? I don't know. Seb used to do this to make "carwashes" when he was little.

Junie, and Gussie in a bunny hat

Goldie, and Gussie in the stroller, walking to church (the weather has been glorious!)

Daisy and I had a picnic lunch date between Saturday General Conference Sessions (Sam and I each take one of the kids every time)…and SHE was the lunch! For this little fish. :)

Zekey in a foxy sweater

The girls spent all day planning a "party" on the hill and this was what they did: a little picnic lunch, "reading time," "singing time," and then sliding down the hill on boxes. Pretty good party if you ask me!

Reading stories with Grandpa Nielson

Another sunset! This was after one of Malachi's cross-country races (he's on a youth team) when he was running to the car to catch us…leaving without him. But we didn't! :)

It was actually very obliging of Malachi to have several cross-country races in beautiful places on beautiful evenings this month! Most of the races only allowed one spectator per runner, so I had to go alone with him, but it had the nice side effect of giving me some long quiet evenings waiting for his races to start and wandering the surrounding areas. I walked on some beautiful wooded trails and got to enjoy Fall in a way I have not otherwise had much time to do!

And here is the man himself. Not nearly as concerned as he ought to be about that pack of yellow-shirts on his tail! He is the most photo-aware runner I've had so far, and always looks at me and smiles while running by, rather than concentrating intensely and soberly on the race at hand (or should I say at foot). I like him.