The End (of summer) is Near

Oktoberfest and a cute girl with a weed whacker

The leaves are beginning to turn and fall from the branches in our neighborhood. This morning Dana and I celebrated our 5th anniversary. We dropped off Alex with his "steady" babysitter Priya at 9:30, which is becoming our regular routine. Then Genevieve, Dana, and I went up to Old Town to have breakfast at the Silver Grill. Genevieve was very cooperative and slept the entire time as we enjoyed a little slice of tranquility. We reminisced, reminded ourselves of how lucky we have been, and realized just how much more we value our time now! It had been at least 5 years, and probably more like 6, since we'd eaten at the Silver Grill. Back in those days we just took it for granted that we could stumble out of bed late and enjoy a nice brunch out on a Sunday morning. No kids, no babysitters, no logistical high-jumps to go through. Now every occasion such as this is a minor miracle, and prized more highly than any material gift we could have given one another this weekend.

The Fall is starting to shape up. We're heading to San Diego for Dana's 15th high school reunion next month. My folks are visiting sometime this month, and Michael and Moira are probably going to be able to make it out in early November. What a great lineup! For thanksgiving my sister and Eric are coming to visit. (Note: It is going to get a lot harder to get us to visit in the next few years, but everyone is welcome to visit us!!)