Jonathan, in his dinnertime prayer, described it with many more superlatives and much more enthusiasm, but it was, indeed a fun day. It began, as usual, with Jonathan and Noah coming to my room at 7:00. They said they'd actually been here earlier but had retreated because they could tell by looking under the door that my light was not on, but I did not hear them, possibly because I'd been up past midnight writing yesterday's update.
We had fun with craft projects, reading books, and talking with Dad-o over the computer, but the main event of the day was a Harvest Festival in Londonderry, New Hampshire, where Jon was playing trombone in a jazz band concert. It was the best kind of concert to attend with five young children: Although the musicians were sheltered in a barn, the door was wide open and the volume sufficient that it was best heard from outside, where there were set up all sorts of booths with informative exhibits and games for kids. Jonathan roamed freely and garnered all sorts of candy and prizes, including one for first place in a doughnut-eating contest. Not an all-you-can-eat kind, but one where the doughut is suspended from a string and you must eat it without using your hands. I didn't get a picture of the winner, but Faith came in second when it was her turn:
After the concert was over and the kids had exhausted the games, if not quite themselves, we walked to a nearby church and picked apples, having first received permission, of course. It's an untended orchard, so the apples had not been sprayed, making them (1) safe to eat, right off the tree, (2) not pretty like grocery store apples, and (3) very nostalgic for me, as I grew up delighting in apples from such trees.
Finally, it was time to go home ... or so we thought. But on the way home we passed a fire department open house, and how could a firefighter's family resist? Big trucks to climb in, ladders to watch in action (but alas, not to climb), hoses to spray, uniforms to don, and plastic helmets to bring home. Joy, who wears her "fire shirt" as often as she can, and is frequently heard to say, "Bye! I going on a fire call!" loved this part of the show:
Jeremiah enjoyed himself, too, except for the beginning and the end: in his car seat on the rides there and back he pretty much either screamed or slept, with far too little of the latter. So we were all glad to get home, enjoy a take-out Chinese dinner, and take advantage of an early bedtime. Except, of course, that it's already late and I'm still writing this ... but it won't be midnight this time!
