Only One Cannoli Festival

I had planned a little outing to the Leominster Cannoli Festival last night,

but when departure time arrived, I was tired and didn't feel like going.

"Hey kids, are cannoli really worth a long drive on a cold night?"

Joy, Anna, and Todd (paraphrased): 

"Yes! Tube-shaped fried Italian pastry with sweet ricotta filling

is totally worth any effort required to obtain it!"

So we headed off to Leominster's Monument Square.

It was lit up like Christmas in October,

there was a guy in a tux crooning Frank Sinatra songs . . .

. . . and a bunch of food truck vendors were selling cannoli 

with all the usual toppings (like chocolate chips and crushed pistachios)

and a few unusual ones (like Fruity Pebbles and Cinnamon Toast Crunch).

Todd chose to try a regular cannoli with sprinkles on one end

and white chocolate chips on the other.

I went with a chocolate shell, chocolate filling, and crushed Oreos on each end.

In case it wasn't obvious, I like chocolate.

Wanna hear a geeky cannoli joke?

What does a Jedi order at an Italian bakery?

Only One Cannoli!

Hunting for Antique Water Troughs

I recently learned that our town . . .

. . . has some antique iron watering troughs

located near a few of our local landmarks.

They're over a century old, 

and most of them have been turned into planters

by the local gardening club . . .

. . . but one is still a working water fountain.

I thought it would be fun to text my family pictures of each water trough this evening,

to see if they could figure out where each one was located. 

I made sure every picture had something visible in the background

to show what part of town it was taken in.

After they found this water trough by the old train depot,

the girls stopped to take a selfie by it . . .

. . . then we watched a commuter train whoosh by

before heading off to search for the next trough by the Historical Society building

(a fitting location for it, don't you think?).

Extra-Homemade French Toast

Our chickens seem very content in their mobile coop . . .

. . . and our well-fertilized lawn seems happier this year too.

The hens lay more eggs than we need on most days,

so it's not uncommon for us to have three or four full cartons of eggs in our fridge.

Sometimes I give a dozen eggs away as a gift,

and other times I crack a bunch on a weekend morning . . .

. . . and make some superb French toast.

(Thanks to Uncle Andrew for telling me about the supernal delight

of making French toast with Trader Joe's Pumpkin Brioche.)

Subway and Purgatory

Joy and I went for a hike this morning . . .

. . . with some fellow BYU alums and their families.

Joy climbed a tree in a unique way . . .

. . . stopped for a drink on the edge of Purgatory Chasm . . .

. . . and scrupulously avoided touching that blue mushroom.

(I hear those can make you shrink.)

Then we tried on some spiffy clothes at a thrift store . . .

. . . and collaborated to create a superb sandwich at Subway.

I Spotted a Baby Snack Out Front

Here are a few fun sights I saw this week:

A tiger pumpkin hiding in our shoe cubby

Todd playing a game with his friend

at a Primary activity

Golden leaves blanketing a church parking lot

A baby snake near our garage door

(I think it's a black racer snake.)

(Also, every time I try to type the word for "legless reptile,"

my fingers want to type "snack" instead of "snake."

I guess I like snacks even more than snakes.)

Pretty, Yet Weird

Some years I let the kids pick which little pumpkins

I'll hide for them every night in October.

Other years (including this one) we don't all make it to Trader Joe's in time,

so I just buy half a dozen little gourds and let each child choose one.

Here's this year's batch.

I figured Daniel would like the grotesque, warty one.

Looks like I was right.

I bought this gourd because it's beautiful . . .

. . . but also kind of bizarre.

Anna wanted it because it's pretty,

and Todd wanted it because it's weird,

so they played Cici Tia Hawk

(our variation of Rock Paper Scissors)

to see who would get it.

Anna won, and Todd was a good sport about it.

He chose the greenish tiger pumpkin

and Joy went with the little white one I grew on our back deck.

(Huzzah for homegrown produce!)

Now that the kids are in bed,

it's time for me to go hide all of the gourds.

Hopefully I won't forget this year!

Intermission Hike

A few of the kids and I . . .

. . . decided to go for a little hike 

between General Conference sessions this afternoon.

We didn't have much time, and we didn't want to miss any talks,

so we chose the shortest route on the trail network . . .

. . . then set off to explore it.

Joy looks rather picturesque

strolling up a grassy hillock in her old-fashioned dress,

don't you think?