November 2022

After picking up both kids at school, we returned home and noticed an unusual amount of smoke around our house.  A little from the neighbor's chimney is normal, but this seemed excessive.  Emily was worried about the animals breathing the smoke, so I went out back to see how thick it was.  That's when I saw that our yard was on fire!  In the windy conditions, it looked like it was spreading quickly.  I yelled for the kids to call 911 while I grabbed a hose.  Fortunately, I was able to put the fire out while Emily did a great job of talking to the emergency responder.  Brendan had the foresight to grab a fire extinguisher and bring it out.  We didn't need it, but it was smart thinking in case we did!  We heard the firefighters show up, so Brendan took over spraying down the spots that were still smoldering while I went and spoke to the firefighters.  Brendan noticed a singed squirrel tail hanging off the transformer, and the firefighter said the electricity can arc all the way to the ground.  We are so grateful that we returned home when we did!  Nothing but grass was damaged even though the fire had burned around 3 sides of our shed!

It's the final MTB race of the season in Fayetteville.  We had another great time and both kids finished off the season stronger than ever: Brendan placed 37th out of 66 and Emily placed 12th out of 31 contenders!

Emily had her first band concert and did a great job playing Christmas music to get us in the holiday spirit!

Finishing out November was our annual Turnbaugh / Wittenberg tradition of attending opening day at the ice rink and the lighting of the square.  Brendan lost interest a couple years back, but Emily still enjoys going.  The kids enjoyed ice skating, taking a break for some ice cream at a place we've been wanting to try, the lighting, and finally, watching the ice-skating show after the square lighting.  

October 2022

We finally made it to the "We the People" exhibit at Crystal Bridges.  They had some of the original documents from the founding of our country, and a copy of the 13th Amendment with an original signature of Abraham Lincoln!

The second MTB race for the kids was in Mountain Home.  This time Steve was able to go with us and we stayed in a hotel.  We were glad about the hotel, since it rained all night before the race.  It had been an extremely dusty racecourse, so the overnight rain was welcome.  This time, Emily came in 18th out of 28, and Brendan came in 48th out of 64.

We had a makeup day.  I will spare you the photo of me, but Emily looked cute.

Halloween!  Pumpkin carving as always.  Brendan did pretty good considering he gutted and carved his pumpkin in about 15 minutes.  After watching Hocus Pocus and Hocus Pocus 2, Emily decided she wanted to dress up as a witch for Halloween.  I had a little fun with her makeup, and she looked amazing.  She got to go out trick or treating with her friend Jane and a group of friends.

September 2022

Yes, more kayaking.  Love it when I have a companion!

On a drive out to Cave Springs, we stopped at the city park and saw this really awesome big tree.  Of course the kids had to try to climb it!

Brendan's lungs have not fully recovered from the pneumonia, so he wasn't able to participate in the first NICA mountain bike race of the season.  We decided to go and see what the races are like since we've never been to one before, and Steve volunteered to be a sweeper.  Brendan also helped out with one of the race volunteer positions.  Emily enjoyed the race atmosphere so much that she joined the mountain bike team!

Emily and I decided to run in the Worst Race Ever.  Mostly because the shirt design is so funny!  It was "5k-ish" - pretty sure it was a little less than 5k.  They offered a water stop from the "Bentonville Wastewater Plant" and had some other funny things along the race route - including an (optional) obstacle course.

Finally, the kids are feeling well enough to participate in a mountain bike race.  Unfortunately, Steve tested positive for COVID, so we had to go without him.  This one was in Hot Springs.  Practice day was very hot, but then right after they left for the ride we had a good old Arkansas downpour.  Emily wrecked and flipped over the handlebars of her bike.  She was okay but had a painful scrape/bruise on her leg.  I thought she might not want to ride in the race the next day, but she was tough and chose to ride!  We also got rained on during the night at our campsite, so we packed up some soggy gear the next morning before the races.  Brendan did well and placed 48th out of 63 boys in his morning race.  The heat was brutal, and Emily wasn't feeling well after her afternoon race.  She was worried that she would come in last place, so she was happy that she placed 20th out of 25 girls.