The girls by contrast were much more relaxed and took the time to chat with the parental units.

Kyle hosted a pizza party this evening and his friends stopped in between rounds of trick-or-treating. This photo was taken on our front porch and has not been retouched in anyway. Half of the kids in the background were airborn when I snapped the shutter.

Kyle’s friend Alex was locked out of her house so she stayed at our place until her parents got home. I was experimenting with some new lighting equipment and was able to coerce these guys into posing for me.

Nicolai and his friends organize their Halloween haul before launching into a NY Stock Exchange style trading frenzy. Undesirable candy was offered to the father.

Maya the Spy complete with her gadget belt.

When asked to change her nice clothes before working on her Halloween pumpkin, Maya opted to go topless (a behavior that will need careful monitoring in the future). Each year, we struggle with pumpkin carving tools that are designed around child safety rather than cutting efficiency. This year, after Maya traced out her design, we went to the basement and used an in-line pneumatic reciprocating saw to make quick work of the job. It took less time to carve the entire pumpkin than to write this account.

Although the rain stopped today, the wind was insane. On the way to and from my soccer match we passed numerous downed power lines and cars damaged by fallen trees. When we drove by the first time, the trunk of a tree, about three feet in diameter, was laying across the top of three cars. When I returned with my camera, the tree had been removed and two of the cars had been towed away. The wind was gusting to 55 mph which made for interesting soccer. You don’t often see a goal kick reverse direction in mid-flight. My team battled to a 0-0 tie against a good team. Kyle’s team did not fare as well, losing 2-0. Maya and I drove to Manchester, NH to pick up Jeanine who had been driven there by Susan and Rose. It is nice to have her back; we had real food for diner.

Kyle sporting his new team jersey. Weather permitting, both he and I will be in action tomorrow. When he goes to bed tonight, I am going to see if the jersey fits me. I look good in black and it already has my name on it.

We are now members at the Beede Center. It is a brand new fitness facility located across from the high school the children will be attending.

This morning I took Maya to her swimming lesson. All soccer games for the day have been cancelled due to relentless rain. Last night, Kyle had friends Seth and BenT spent the night. Sometime after 11PM, the boys made a batch of brownies. When I went down for breakfast this morning, I found half of the pan remaining. I cooked eggs for all the kids and they had the rest of the brownines for desert. Jeanine, enjoying herself in Vermont, has abdicated all rights to criticize my meal menus. The kids seemed quite happy.

Jeanine returned to Vermont with Susan this morning so I have the kids for the weekend. After rounding them all up, (Kyle had 2 soccer games, Nico had soccer practice, and Maya was on a play date) we went to the Concord-Carlisle High School football game. The boys went their own way connecting with friends. Maya and I hung out together and I explained the rules of the game. I had assumed Maya would grow bored within minutes. On the contrary, she was totally engrossed with the game, the bands, and the crowds. Fortunately the third quarter ended coincident with her bedtime and I was able to drag her away under this statute.

Today is “Spooky Trail” at work. Kids of all the employees come to work and enjoy a variety of halloween activities. Pictured here is one of the entrants in the pumpkin carving contest.

Nicolai created a beautiful pepperoni pizza. After dinner we spent hours watching home videos of the kids when they were small.

As you would expect, Jeanine’s pie was an exotic masterpiece.

Each child used their own technique for spreading the dough. Nicolai made a thick crust, Aunt Susan went ultra-thin, while I opted for a calzone.

This evening was make your own pizza night. Jeanine prepared the dough and each member of the family got to create their own pizza.

Maya showing off her new bike this morning. She has been working diligently at her piano lessons for several months with this reward in mind. Her previous bike did not have any gears and there is one hill in the neighborhood that was a big challenge without them.

We are treated to a visit by Aunt Susan and Nicolai is compelled to review her cell phone ring tone selections.

This morning I found Maya on the sofa with her pig and could not resist the overhead shot.

A parting shot as the sun begins to set. It has been another spectacular fall weekend and we were fortunate to spend so much time outdoors. Jeanine is with Kyle this evening for a church youth group activity.

Pausing to rest after we had walked around the lake. Maya collected red and black berries which she intends to crush this evening to make paint.

Late this afternoon, Maya, Jeanine and I went for a nature walk at the Old Lexington Reservoir. Earlier in the day Kyle’s team suffered a 2-0 loss to a tough opponent. It was one of those games where they dominated possession but could not find the back of the net. My team had no such problems as we cruised to a 7-1 victory against a team we had beat 2-1 earlier in the season. This win virtually guarantees our promotion to Division 1 (of 7 in our league) provided we do not get any additional yellow or red cards.

I am convinced Maya is going to follow in her father’s foot steps as an engineer. This evening, she took apart a calculator (broken by her brothers). When she had it completely apart, she put it back together perfectly. She never ceases to amaze me. Earlier in the day Nicolai’s soccer team won a narrow 1-0 victory against a team that had beated them 5-0 earlier in the season. Nico had the assist on the winning goal.

I believe this weekend is the last for peak color and I will try to move on to a new theme.

After the game, I was asked to take the annual team photo.

During halftime I noticed this pleasing arrangement of trees. I love fall in New England.

When I get a chance I am going to ask Kyle what he was doing in this defender’s armpit.

Kyle’s team earned a tough 1-0 victory this afternoon. The team is now 5-0.

My team suffered a disappointing 1-0 loss this morning against a team we had beaten soundly earlier in the season. Nicolai and his friend Joe came to the game and took photos. I did not see a lot of action today but when I was in, I played very well. Towards the end of the game, I went up for a header on a great 30-yard cross. I timed my jump perfectly and had one of the highest vertical leaps of my life. I got head and shoulders above a much taller defender and put a strong shot on goal which just missed the far corner by inches.

You really need to view this image at full resolution to appreciate the beauty of this field just down the road from our house. Maya and I went out for peanuts and orange soda after her game.

Next on the agenda was Nico’s soccer game in Wayland. While he was warming up, I found this out of the way pond on my navigation system and hiked in for the picture. Nico had a very strong game and at one point single handedly took the ball from the kick-off to inside the goal box for a shot which deflected off the goalie’s shin.