It's October in SoCal. So while the rest of the country experiences crisp air and brilliant foliage, we get blasting, raging, hot, dry wind. The Santa Anas blew in last weekend, wreaking havoc and whipping up fires. Sunsets are gorgeous, thanks to all the dirt and ash in the air.

Now, Jewel and Matt are suffering terrible bouts of sinus trouble and allergies.

And we skimmed an entire garbage can of leaves from our pool. Fun!

Pine needles piled up around my garage door. Our Vote Yes on Prop 8 sign blew away. And here I thought someone would steal it. Jewel found it lying mangled against some bushes. We'll put it up again once the winds die down. I figure if they're gonna hate me for voting McCain/Palin, they might as well hate me for opposing g*y marriage, too. Or, wait. "Taking away equal rights." Yeah, yeah, that's what I'm voting for!

Riiiiiiight.

In other news: the twins' coughs have cleared up and Jude is making so many friends we're turning down playdate offers!

And to think I was worried.

I've got other things to worry about now. Like another leaky cracked pipe going all the way down into the slab. Which means a jackhammer gets to hang out at my house tomorrow. Oh, the joys of owning an old house.

Yeah, that hole goes straight through drywall, exterior stucco and out into open air! We get a nice day-time breeze and at night we keep the possums out by stuffing the hole with an old baby blanket.

Now all I need is a shotgun and a brindle bull-dog named Jack.

I made a discovery about myself today.

One of my front teeth is longer than the other. How did I not know this? Well, for one, I have a husband who isn't too sharp on the details. And for two, I have five children. When I do a mirror check, it's only for MAJOR catastrophes like third eyes or massive growths.

Good thing I'm not vain. Motherhood took care of that.

I did dress-up for a day out with the fam last Saturday. By "dress-up" I mean a clean shirt. The skirt was dirty, but at least it was black.

We went to the Orange County Fire Authority's Open House. Lots of cute firemen. Not that I was looking. I was there purely for the educational value. And to have our picture taken with Smokey The Bear and Sparky The Firehouse Dog!

The kids loved it, especially when they got to work a real fire-hose.

Lastly, I'm bored by Dancing With The Stars. I think it would be better if they rolled the dancing and results into one show. Two nights is too much for me. On another note, I thought Desperate Housewives was good this past Sunday. Did anyone else?