We wish you a Merry Halloween!

Yesterday, on a quiet sunny day in Rice Village, the Christmas season arrived like an unexpected guest in the middle of the night. Sure, the debris from Hurricane Ike (September 13th), may still be piled up at the end of your driveway, but why not forget your woes and those of the nation by shopping early?

Here is a picture of me with the "Wild Boar of Florence (and/or Rice Village)." This statue is a replica of one in Italy, into which visitors throw coins that go to charities. Here in Houston, your pennies help the Houston Zoo.

Garrett and I were startled when we went shopping on October 22nd to see Christmas decorations at the front of every store. We were especially startled at Michaels, where we were searching for fake spider webs for Garrett's Halloween costume. A sales associate told us that they were all out of fake spider webs, and instead offered us fake Christmas snow as a substitute. Um, no thanks.

I knew the seasons were changing this morning, when the temperature fell to about 60 degrees and the wind was blowing mightily. A four-year-old on the playground shrieked, "I'm freezing like I'm in Alaska!!!" I didn't have the heart to tell her what "real cold" feels like, or the courage to ask her if she could also see Russia from the top of the jungle gym.

Autumn celebrations: I passed my first Texas educator certification test in special education, and Garrett passed his first midterm as a PhD student with a score of 98%. The kids are alright!