October 2025

 

October has arrived and with it all things fall! I LOVE this time of year and I'm so thankful for days full of family time, warm cinnamon treats, brisk mornings on the porch, books around the fire, and fun adventures! Every now and then school is a fight with my kids, but I would say most days are special. Everyone has a chance to wake up when their bodies are ready, we slowly eat breakfast and get ready, and then we jump into our schooling. Our gathering time has been full of stories, unit studies, dance parties, and yummy snacks. Then the big kids continue with their independent studies of math, reading, and writing. 

On Wednesdays (*usually) we have co-op. We have had some really fun ones recently. Although, when are they ever not fun?! Co-op has had some issues lately, but the one thing that has remained true is that we believe in giving our children a magical education. And it's so special the things we get to learn and do together. 

Our first October co-op was all the way in Arcola, IL (about an 1.5 hour drive away) and we made sure to bring dad with us on this one. There, we visited some kind of 'tiger-king-esque' situation with a safari park full of camels, bison, emus, and other big animals and a weird personal collection of vintage toys and games. It was an odd place, but pretty fun anyway. My favorite part was when a bison was right in front of Isla's face and she was screaming to tell everyone about the common goose that she saw. That girl loves her birds.

The even weirder thing about that place is that it's in the center of Amish country. So afterwards, we ate lunch at the Amish restaurant complete with fried chicken and buttered noodles. Then we visited the bulk food store where we unloaded a small fortune on all sorts of goodies- fresh churned butter, spices, popcorn, jam, and the largest bowl. While we were there Isla and I both decided we wanted to be Amish, but maybe if running water and audiobooks were still allowed :) But seriously, I am very drawn to their lifestyle. I think the simplicity and homemaking part of it does it for me. I have since ordered an Amish cookbook and I've been reading about Amish culture :) But when there is horse and buggy parking at the local store, how can you not be suckered into that beauty?!

The next week's co-op day was all about walnuts! We met at one of the group members grandma's house where she has multiple walnut trees. We read a story, recited a poem, learned about the different uses of walnuts, ate some nutty snacks, and harvested the nuts. It was a fun day! 

And our most recent co-op was a pumpkin candle making day. The kids carved out their little pumpkins and filled them with wicks and hot wax. It ended up turning into a mom craft, but it was still cool to make something with our autumn harvest. The day was made extra special with surprise cookies and gifts for Isla's birthday. She sure has the sweetest little friends. She especially loves her "band of boys" as she calls her 3 favorite guys that basically just do whatever their leader Isla says :)

When we aren't having an at-home-school day or co-op, we take adventures! One of our adventures was to Curtis Orchard in Champaign with Nana, Pop Pop, Aunt Rah Rah, Easton, and Elouise. We picked out pumpkins, drank cider, and played. Then we went down the road to the Museum of the Grand Prairie, followed by delicious pizza. I firmly believe learning happens all the time, all around us. So exploring a new-to-us museum and the botanical gardens is just as much a part of their education as anything else. And the bonus was cousin time... we always love cousin time :)

The biggest events in October for our family are the girls's birthdays. We had a big celebration with all of our family where the girls were showered in presents. They both requested homemade pizza for lunch and warm cider. They are blessed little girls to have people that love them so well.

The next day was Eleanor's actual birthday. We started the day with donuts and presents from mom, dad, Isla, and Ewan. Then she chose to go on a hike. We triple checked that's what she wanted to do because historically she has not been the best hiker (she requires a lot of snacks and for someone to carry her), but she stuck to her guns and really wanted to hike. So we did a mini hike, but mostly played at the playground. And lo and behold, she required a lot of snacks and for her daddy to carry her. But we had a fun time anyway. Eleanor is our little ham. She's silly and really funny. She loves raccoons, "pooters" (computers), "cool" (school), pretending to be a cat, and meat (as Isla says, "she does not have a sweet tongue"). She's kind of the main boss around here and usually gets her way. We love our THREE year old Gracie girl.

The next birthday girl also woke to donuts and presents. She was most excited for her whittling kit! Then she requested we go to the pet store. We spent time looking at all the little pets and she dreamt about the day she gets to have her own small animal. Then we went to the children's museum, her other favorite place, before ending with Culvers for dinner. Isla is our sweet, smart, responsible little girl. She is her own person and always has been. She loves animals, audiobooks/stories, and her friends (especially her "band of boys" from co-op). Knowing Isla is a joy and I can't believe she's SEVEN.

At the end of the girl's birthday week we celebrated Halloween with our friends at the campground. This is our second year doing this and we all decided from here on out it's going to be a tradition. The whole campground decorates and all the kids get dressed up and trick-or-treat between campers. We cook hotdogs and s'mores, spend time with good friends, and this year we were going to spend the night! Unfortunately, after two months of a severe drought in our area it finally decided to rain. And not just a rain... but a torrential downpour. We spent time under the tents and around the fire before trick-or-treating. Everyone was still game to camp and the tents were staying dry, but then we learned we were supposed to get 40 mph winds that night so we all made the decision to pack up and head home. So we all spent 2 hours in the rain tearing down the campsite. We kept looking at each other and laughing at our predicament, but we all agreed there was no one else we'd rather do that with. We love our friends and we're thankful that we've found people that we get to do life with and truly enjoy. Even Michael had a really good time and was saying maybe we'd have our own camper next year (which really goes to show how much he likes these people ;))!

I've had people asking for an update on Ewan and his sleep. He recently got an iron infusion since his levels were severely low. He did GREAT and we were so proud of him for being so brave. I would say we've had less wakings, but we still get at least one screaming episode a night. So a little improvement, but still not normal behavior. We are waiting to see if this sticks and if that was truly what has been causing such chronic sleep deprivation. Please continue to keep his little body in your prayers, we appreciate it.

Last month was really difficult for a lot of reasons. But I can say October already has truly been like turning a new leaf. Sometimes time is the best kind of healing and I'm glad to wake up to new mercies every morning and continue forward. It helps that our days are full of goodness and sweetness. Of course, not always... we definitely have sibling arguments, frustrated parents, low patience, mistakes and missteps; but, there are so many good things in our lives too and I'm choosing to chase those joys.

And now, we wait for Halloween to get here and for the Christmas season to begin ;)