So Colter and Anni took off into the night on their bikes–one dressed as a dice and the other, a wee pretty little witch. It's their first halloween without their parents in tow so I fretted the whole time they were gone. They came back safe though and we had a great Halloween meal with their favorite finger foods: pigs in a blanket, hot wings, cheezy nachos and potato skins. All in all, we had a good, safe, evening. Life is good.

I was in Afton today and kept thinking about the "old" places. We don't go there often anymore and it took a design project to bring me back. I decided to pull out my camera and started taking pictures. Anyone remember this?

You know, we really don't have anything that we need that badly. There are a lot of things we want, to be sure, but – hey, we all want a lot more than we really need or should have. But the Holidays are coming up and I suppose that part of all the cheer and good tidings involve gift-giving. So, in the spirit of the Season, here is a list of what we would like for Christmas: a whole lotta money. That, of course, is not realistic so here is our other list ...

Jud & Pen -
 *** 10-cup Zojirushi rice cooker (MODEL NS-PC18)
 *** Lacross Digital Atomic Alarm Clock/Temp/Forecast (MODEL WS-8157U-IT-CH)
 *** Buttery theater popcorn (as in a lot!)
 *** Nice standard pillows and white pillowcases (no down)
 *** Anchor Hocking 4pc 2 &3 qt Baking Dish Set with Lids

Colter -
 *** a kick in the pants (just kidding!)
 *** Lego Lots (check out eBay.com) - not the larger Duplo's or MegaBloks
 *** New Ray Toys 1:60 UH-60 Black Hawk Mede-Vac (Amazon.com)
 *** New Ray Toys 1:60 D/C UH-60 Black Hawk Helicopter (Amazon.com)
 *** New Ray Toys 1:55 D/C AH-64 Apache Helicopter (Amazon.com)
 *** New Ray Toys 1:32 M1 Abrams Tank (check out Amazon.com)

Annika -
 *** any 1 or 2 Littlest Pet Shop LPSO Virtual Pets
 *** Annual Gold Explorer subscription to www.dizzywood.com (online kids game)
 *** iTunes Gift Card
 *** WalMart Gift Card
 *** WebKinz Dog

We do our best to recycle and conserve. Well...okay...mom does her best to recycle and conserve. The kids, not so much. But we don't need to be hard-core about it. Just conscious. I may die tomorrow, but I'd like to know I did my little bit part to leave something behind that's good for the benefit of my kids. So here's the poop. You know all those fashion magazines you have lying around in the house? Take them to your neighbor, the dentist's office, your clotheshorse friends.