November

It went by fast, didn't it?

This November, Scoot turned 14.  Here he is with his apple-pie-ice-cream pie.  Yum.

George Bernard Shaw said, "We don't stop playing because we grow old; we grow old because we stop playing."  Not Scoot.  I was careful, when discussing the party with one friend's mother, to say the boys would "just be hanging out," since that's the accepted terminology for even younger kids.  But I knew, with Scoot in charge, they'd be playing.  They played badminton outside in the dark, they played board games inside, and whatever they called it, they had a good time.

The Caterpillar likes to play with fire (in a responsible way).  He has always been fascinated by Guy Fawkes Day.  This year he finally made his own Guy,

and burned it.  The night was too wet for much of a bonfire, but the paper Guy briefly lit up a jack o'lantern that was still on the porch.  I hope the Caterpillar is satisfied.

Inspired by more current events, Rollo and D2 held an election for the president of the stuffed animals.  They all came to the convention.  After a primary, Dandelionslayer facilitated a nearly-secret general vote.  The old guard, in the form of Scoot's venerable dog, Kafunga, won by a narrow margin.  He was inaugurated a couple of days later, and gave an inspiring speech with all four paws on the Bible.  The president believes in minimal government, and has avoided any scandals thus far.

The Cub Scouts had their marble tournament this month, but for various reasons, D2 didn't receive any instruction at den meetings.  The night before, his brothers tried to teach him to play.  We all agreed that shooting is pretty hard, but they showed him the best they could.  "Why don't you do it this way?" D2 asked, trying something quite different.  It fit the letter of the rules, so he did it the next day, and won. 

D2 also took charge of Thanksgiving decorations.  Besides these two turkeys, roosting in their tree (did you know they do that?), he also constructed a paper roasted turkey.  We decided the feathery crew didn't need to meet that one.

We are grateful for creativity!