What an awesome October everyone in Wisconsin has
enjoyed! The fall colors were fabulous,
the weather warm (for October) and just all-over fine. Mark and Hilde enjoyed frequent trips to
various lovely spots, like Lake Emily, Lake Sherwood, Horicon Wildlife Refuge,
Hartman Creek, and a conservancy area by West Bend. Wisconsin put on quite a show this year, not
the most brilliant colors, but a slow segue from one highlight to another.
The garden is finally finished in Rudolph, with squashes and
pumpkins gathered in and the last of the peppers and eggplants enjoyed. All the fencing has been pulled out (this is
major exercise), rolled up and the posts extracted from the heavy clay. It has been fun sharing the squash and
pumpkins with family and friends, plus baking up some of the special pumpkin
recipes. Harvest time is a wonderful
time. The only thing NOT so enjoyable is
butchering chickens, but Mark and Hilde managed that on a chilly morning and
now the freezers are packed with goodness.
The fall raspberries continued to yield sweetness through October, with
no hard freeze!
With the fine weather, traveling was a pleasure and having
people come to Rudolph was great. Alana
and Justin brought little Thomas to meet us, John and Evie came for a weekend
and Mark and Hilde stuffed in a short visit to Sussex to see Jim, Kayme and
their lively brood. Rhiannon played
Jesus Loves Me…she is doing so well at music and reading. John and Evie’s visit surrounded the
celebration of life for Evie’s grandfather, John Webb, who truly had a life to
celebrate. The memorial services were
filled with musical talent from his descendants.
While Hilde was canning, jamming and baking up all the
goodies, Mark was dealing with a different sort of harvest. The First Law Group building was sold as of
the end of October and the six partners met, discussed and finally decided their
practices would work best in a new set-up.
The exact format, location and other details are still being worked on. All
Hilde asks is that last year’s lawsuit, which has gone up on appeal, does NOT
result in another December in rural Iowa!
There was another happy addition to the clan as Hilde’s
niece Rachel had a sweet little daughter named Elliana Rae. Jim and Kayme’s Rowan turned FOUR in
October---she is the most cuddly sweetheart, with a big smile. Hope that your fall has been this much fun!
