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IslandWood's Howl-o-ween event was a success. Attached are a couple photos taken by Robert Dashiell, one of our volunteers and docents. Our kitchen team carved the funny-face and owl-shaped pumpkins.

Last night, we went to the Bainbridge Pumpkin Walk, and carved jack-o-lanterns with Jake. I carved this one in honor of a party today at Wacky Nut Horse Farm. Photoshop did it justice:

Coming off the ferry, Ben ran into our State Representative Christine Rolfes who introduced him to Governor Chris Gregoire, who was campaigning for re-election:

Back on Labor Day weekend, a group of friends started what we hope will be an annual outdoors tradition. We started easy - kayaking from Fort Ward on Bainbridge to Manchester State Park. Admittedly, it was a 15-minute kayak trip, but with eight parents watching six kids (nine kids by next year!) it seemed the appropriate degree of difficulty. Next year - noise proof cabins! Here is a link to more photos of the trip - all taken on Jessica Henderson's camera.

Yesterday morning, Jake announced "Daddy - Deer!" and pointed to our backyard. We were treated to two young bucks who were practicing their jousting skills (one lost an antler and got a bit bloody). It was a really low-light situation, so the pictures didn't turn out that great...but this one at least paints the picture. I love our back yard!

We found a tree with big scary scratches on it, just 100 feet from our front door - what could have made them? A bear marking its territory? A cougar sharpening its claws? A visit from our friend Mark Jordahl (who is an expert tracker and naturalist) revealed the answer - the gouges were made by a deer (a buck) scraping its antlers.

How do we know? The scrapes were made with an upward motion, which is typical of antlers. Bear and cougar claw marks would typically be downward unless they were climbing the tree. A few minutes after Mark paid us a house visit, another friend - Stan Rullman (who is also an expert tracker and naturalist) - came to the same unprompted conclusion. See detail of scratches below.

Dad took Jake to the pumpkin patch on Bainbridge, where we found lots of great pumpkins and a very impressive tractor.

Bainbridge is prone to power outages, because our power lines are above ground and there are a lot of trees to fall down on them. But, this week the region was socked by a major wind storm that caused a massive power outage throughout Seattle (not just us folks who live in the woods). Over 700,000 people lost power. Of course, our home was no exception.

For three nights with below-freezing temperatures, our little family huddled under extra comforters while our home got down to 48 degrees. We lost some of our tropical fish and some of our food from the freezer...but otherwise we are none too worse for the wear.

Last week, I flew in a sea plane for the first time! It picked us up in Blakely Harbor at a friend's dock, and we flew up to Orcas (in the San Juan Islands) for the day. The flight took 45 minutes vs. 5+ hours by car. Flying over the Puget Sound area...there's so much water and so many trees everywhere! It's remarkable how green it all is, and I feel lucky to live in such a beautiful part of the world. Here are a few snapshots from the day including a foggy view of a ferry in the morning; the space needle at the end of the day; and an aerial of IslandWood's bog and marsh.

For the last couple of years, Ben and the IslandWood team have ridden in the Island's Chilly Hilly Bike Ride. The ride features thousands of riders (many from Seattle) and takes place over a 33 mile course with 2,675 feet of climbs. Set in February, the name says it all! Shown here is a picture of Ben and his IslandWood co-rider WaqWaq (Lushootseed for "Frog") enjoying the race.