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We’ve just arrived at our pretty little camp spot in Asheville. There is a tree right outside our window that all sorts of autumn colors. It’s a beautiful place to spend Thanksgiving.

I have just decided to give Ingrid and I this week off from school : ) !!! I love being a teacher, but it takes up the majority of my day and then I have to scramble to squeeze in everything else. A break will be wonderful.

These pics are from the past couple of days. Ingrid and Peach both got new hats, as I was suddenly in a knitting mood again. There are some robots that Ingrid and Andrew made together. The little hangers were made by Ingrid one day after she saw a pattern my mom had sent us.

Ingrid earned her 7th Junior Ranger badge yesterday, at Smoky Mountains National Park. Even though she enjoys completing the Junior Ranger activity book, she’s been reluctant lately to turn in her work and get the badge, because the rangers usually grill her on the information, and the one yesterday was pretty tough on Ingrid. Fortunately though Andrew had bought a little surprise for Ingrid for when she got her badge, so she was motivated to go through with it (see “Pigwidgen” the little owl below). She passed with flying colors and I could see that she was proud of herself afterward.

We didn’t spend much time in the park, just one long afternoon riding the tandem plus a couple of hours the following day, but ironically we got stuck on a crazy twisty little road today on our way out, and got to see more of the backcountry! Ingrid really enjoyed walking through the 100+ year old cabins and churches that were scattered along the bike ride. And I felt happy to be on the bike again, riding through the peaceful little hills and valleys of the Smoky Mountains.

We are fully into Harry Potter still, in the midst of the 5th book. Ingrid has taken to writing with a quill that she made from my peacock feather (see below). We look for excuses to go out in the car so we can listen to the book. I don’t know what we’ll do when we’ve reached the end of the series… Ingrid says we’ll do it all over again!

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Christmas came a little early this year for Ingrid and I. We were perusing the kitchen aisle at the local Target when we came across a series of specialty appliances by Sunbeam: a donut maker, cupcake maker, and a mini pie baker! Yes that’s right, it bakes little pies! I happen to love pies so I bought it.

So basically you make a simple dough and freeze the leftovers for next time. Cook whatever filling you’re in the mood for, which took me about ten minutes since it was such a small amount. Then roll the dough and cut out pie tops and bottoms with their nifty little cutter, pour in filling, and close the lid. In 6-7 minutes you have some adorable little pies!!!

The first time we made blueberry and apple pies. Second time chicken pot pies. Both absolutely delish and just the right serving size.

Then yesterday we sewed ourselves a new pet snake using a very realistic pleather from Joann’s Fabrics. Filled it with a combo of stuffing and beans. Not bad for a $2 project. And Ingrid loves it- she has turned to a snake lover now that we’re 5 books deep into the Harry Potter series.

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Finally, she needed it badly! Ingrid was excited to take her in the tub with her, as she has no other doll that can take a real bath without being ruined. Peach is technically a Waldorf doll, and if you look on the internet Waldorf dolls are never supposed to be submerged. But, I found a site where a woman who makes them does it all the time and that was good enough for me. After the initial nervousness, I was very happy to see how well Peach turned out, and I’ll wash her this way every time. Surface cleaning just doesn’t cut it here.

Later on I took Ingrid to the local library where they were holding their weekly “Kid Zone” hour, which turned out to be about making animals out of various autumn leaves. Ingrid LOVED it! I loved it too, since it was free and low key, and there were about 15 other kids her age there. Two little girls came up right away and introduced themselves to Ingrid and I got a little time to browse a magazine. Sweet!

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