November Already
I can hardly remember what we did this weekend, much less months ago. September, Zac’s birthday, not a big one, at the end of the month. He got a Lego Millennium Falcon set and put it together with help from Lex. We went camping with friends to celebrate, to Virginia Beach. We found hundreds of beached horseshoe crabs, file clams, skates egg cases, and I swam in the ocean. It rained some, but was wonderful.
10/4 was our anniversary. We always get Mekong to celebrate. Nine years married, and we dated for five before that, almost to the day. A long time.
Two days later, my dad turned 83. Born in 1928, now he has an iPad. A lot of change in his lifetime.
Mid October we flew to Montreal for the Çingleton conference. It was a fantastic trip. Lex and I met some of the folks who made our favorite iOS apps possible at the first night cocktail party. During the day we went to the Biosphere and Biodome. And we were thoughtfully invited to the banquet… The ITHQ delivered “The Royal Menu” with wine pairings, based on what some folks named William and Kate had prepared when they took a culinary course there, apparently. It was amazing. We had all day Sunday and Monday for family exploring the botanical gardens, Insectarium, around the old port, and the Centre des Sciences. Spectacular.
After we got back, and mostly unpacked, Grandpa Joe and Mimi drove out from Indiana for a visit. They arrived on the Friday we had our dog Django neutered, and drove directly to Central Montessori where we were participating in a chili cook off and silent auction. The next day there was a birthday party for a little girl in Lex’s class, followed by home improvement projects, a trip to the park to drive RC trucks and helicopters, and lots of fun grandparent adventures.
Monday they installed our new gas fireplace. It looks terrific.
Wednesday was Diwali, and there were delicious treats to celebrate at my work. Indian food is my all time favorite. I was still not eating much, since the following day was the final weigh-in for our Skinny O Lantern contest. Everyone throws in $20, winner take all. This was my third win in a row, and I’m retiring. Lost 45 pounds and won a total of about $700.
