Bats in our Belfries

Last summer, in the evening, I was sitting looking up at the skylights in the cabin. I noticed lots of bats flying around up there. As you know, our cabin is a nice, new, high-quality cabin that shouldn't have bats living inside. I mentioned this to my mother, who insisted the bats didn't come from our cabin. The next evening I saw the same phenomenon in the skylight and pointed this out to my mother. Again, she said we couldn't possibly have bats. The next evening mother and I took up our post on the deck, directly in front of the peak in the roof of the cabin. We waiting and watched, straining our necks and eyes. Just when the mosquitoes were just starting to eat us alive, the bats started streaming out a tiny gap right at the top. We counted them as they came along. I used my best Count Voice (the one from Sesame Street), "One Bat, ah, ah ah!", "Two Bats, ah, ah, ah". We made it to 40 bats. Mother was shocked and appauled. Skip, our resident contractor, was dispatched shortly after we left Oregon to get rid of the bats. They started checking around and it seems they found bats across the river at the barn and in their garage at Cave Junction.

For a little Halloween gift I made this darling bat for my mother. She loved it. I just need to make her 39 more.

Disney's Halloween Haunts: Cartoon 3 (Trick-Or-Treat)

When Michael was a little boy, we had a VHS tape of this recorded from TV. He watched it over and over and over! Every year at Halloween the music from this plays through my mind and I usually end up singing the song. It's long, but it's a classic. Makes me think of my little Michael.

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins

I found this recipe in an advertisement booklet. Drew needed a treat so I made them. Then I made them again while Holly and Meg were here, because they needed a treat too. I was going to make some cream cheese frosting to put on them, but Drew said they didn't need anything. Try them and let me know what you think.

1 Cup Butter (softened)
1 Cup White Sugar
1 Cup Brown Sugar
1 Can (14 1/2 oz) Pumpkin Puree
4 Eggs

Cream the above ingredients till smooth, then add:

1 tsp Baking Soda
1 tsp Baking Powder
1/2 tsp Salt
1 tsp Cinnamon
1 tsp Ginger
1/4 tsp cloves
1/4 tsp nutmeg (put it in Ellie, it's good!)
2 Cups Flour

After mixing well, add 1 1/2 Cups Chocolate chips.

This makes 12 large muffins, or 24 regular size. Use papers or grease pan. Bake in 350 degree oven for 20 - 25 minutes, until tops spring back when you touch them.

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The Witches

October 1st is Witch Day at the Deckers. Both Drewsilla Wilma and Ruby Tuby go up to delight the children of Utah Valley for the month of October. Our witch is Ruby. She got a new outfit this year and is looking good! I stood outside and watched along with some neighbors while Drew put her up. I had my cell phone ready so I could call 911 if Drew fell off the roof. Thank goodness, no 911 this year.






Drew and Wayne put up the Williamson's witch earlier in the day. Jackie did a fabulous new costume for her. I was jealous of it's total greatness.

About 9 o'clock that night we got a phone call from Kirk Williamson. "Drew, the witch looks great..... but there's a problem.... we think it's her knees.... we think she needs some surgery. Can you come FIX IT. Of course, Drew has a freak out. He worries and frets and says it's Wayne's fault. Fixing the witch is easy when it's on the ground. Not so easy on a 20 foot pole.

So, Drew gets the great idea to borrow some scaffolding from a stucco friend and set that up under the witch to have a more stable place to stand on while working on her. So, he takes the worst helper ever, me, and off we go.

I'm here to tell you I have a new admiration for stucco guys who set up scaffolding. It's not easy. And it's a death trap. Accident waiting to happen. Drew was hanging up there like a monkey. He couldn't get the third level up there. It ran into the light post. And the helper on the ground was worthless. I did wear a hard hat.

While up a little closer, Drew noticed that one of the ribbons from the new fancy skirt had wrapped itself around the pedal, thus preventing the pedal from going around. He shouted with joy, "A wardrobe malfunction!". He was much relieved it wasn't his mechanics. Being a resourceful guy, he taped his utility knife to his very long straight edge with black tape, hung on like a monkey, and after about 57 tries, he managed to cut through the offending piece of ribbon finery.

He will be going back to do some skirt shortening another day.

Oh, and taking down scaffolding looks like a giant KERPLUNK game. I'm glad Drew didn't land in the middle of it.

Lovely Taylor

In our neighborhood, we have a wonderful group of moms. I can count on them though thick and thin. They love my children. I love their children. We share them.

Taylor is Wendy's daughter. I got to keep her for awhile this summer while Wendy was busy tending to her mom in California. I was sad to have to give her back.

Homecoming came early in American Fork. Lucky thing because Taylor got to show her very sick Boom Boom her beautiful dress, along with her beautiful whole self. I love that the whole neighborhood got to see her off. The poor boy didn't know what hit him.