where the worms are so woolly

another jam-packed weekend for the westphals.

saturday we headed over to winston-salem for the als walk. we were quite surprised at how large the crowd was, easily twice as large as the walk in springfield. what was really great. thursday afternoon we found out we'd have a group of office staff walking with us. they even had t-shirts made for the event. it was great having so much support for such a worthy cause. we were both touched that everyone drove and hour and half both ways to walk. thanks everyone we truly appreciate it!!

unfortunately, i wasn't able to get any photos. we decided to bring the dogs along and i had a hard time corralling them and taking photos. i think someone did take a group photo, so hopefully i can get my hands on it sometime in the near future.

yesterday, we headed over to banner elk for the 31st annual woolly worm festival. it was a kinda cheesy event but apparently a must see/do in the area. it was a gorgeous day, so we didn't mind and actually enjoyed ourselves. (see photo above) we caught a few woolly worm races, drank some lemon shake-ups and listened to some bluegrass.

tomorrow i'm hoping to get some geocaching in. geocaching? what's that? yeah, it's been way too long since we've done any. yesterday i was hoping to get a few in while we were at the festival. unfortunately, i forgot the gps when heading out the door. i've got some new ones programmed in and if weather is permitting we'll get them done tomorrow. i wonder if there's any in jamaica. hmmmmm.

fall is finally here

we've had a busy, busy october. and it doesn't look like it's gonna slow down, at least not for a little while. last weekend we headed back to illinois to help celebrate mark's 60th birthday. a quick lowdown on where we were and who we were with.

saturday we stayed with the caraways. we visited a local pumpkin/apple farm with the kids, had a great steak dinner jason grilled up and then autumn and i proceeded to kick the boys butts in a game of trivial pursuit. we rule at 90's trivia.

sunday we headed over to jim and joyce's new abode for mark's surprise party. all of the boys were able to make it and even jay flew in from california to help celebrate. we got to see lots of family we hadn't seen in a long time, especially on aaron's mom's side. it was so great seeing everyone and meeting some new friends. matt and kristin announced that baby number two is on it's way! congrats!!

sunday evening we headed back to murphysboro to check out nate and katie's new home. it's super cute and so them! congrats to you guys! we did a little shopping monday for katie's new nieces and then headed home tuesday.

this past weekend has been packed full of activity as well. friday we went out with jill, jerome, todd and michelle for a belated birthday dinner for aaron. saturday we headed up to tweetsie railroad to check out the ghost train and all the other halloween festivities they had going on. the weather was perfect and we had a spooktacular time. today we headed up to sugar mountain for their make-shift octoberfest. rode up the chair lift for the second time this year. we laughed at how we've ridden it more without snow than with. it had gorgeous views and the leaves are in full color now. a definite plus in the high country.

here's the flickr set with all the photos we've taken so far. next week we head to winston-salem for the als walk.

gotta go. brian just texted me to play mariokart. man, i haven't played in forever.

the price is right

it's been awhile since we've gone hiking. life and moods seem to get in the way of exercise, at least for me. today we ventured up to price lake with the dogs and hiked the 2.3 mile loop around. although both of us agreed it was definitely longer than advertised. the leaves are on the cusp of change and there was a nip in the air. i love the transition and weather this time of year. inspired by jen's fall post, i took a few shroom shots on our journey.

i honestly didn't see the slug on the smallest shroom until after i downloaded the photo. i guess he needed to get a little camera time.

here's aaron's find on our hike. a mushroom waterfall. and just to let you know, we are now living with a JYD. details tomorrow.

where the elk falls

monday chad, jennaya and the boys ventured up to the high country to do a little camping. unfortunately it started pouring a little after they set up camp. we offered up the house as a shelter until the rain passed, played a little mariokart and had a little dinner. a couple hours later we all headed back over to their campsite. everything was a little damp, but we managed to get a fire going with a little boy scout recall. tepees and chimneys. aaron and i spent a couple hours chatting and catching up before we braved the heavy fog back home.

yesterday we decided to check out elk falls. chad had been there when he went to app. state years ago and we all thought it'd be a fun trip with the kids and dogs. we were quite surprised when we pulled up and cars were spilling out of the parking lot. including a church camp bus. apparently this quiet place has become a local hot spot. we all had a good time despite the crowds. it was a perfect day, even a little on the warm side. it was so great seeing jennaya and the boys. we'll have to make a trip over to greensboro soon! elk falls flickr.

billy goats

yesterday we trekked up grandfather mountain with the pooches in tow. aaron's been wanting to hit the hill all month, but due to rainy weekends we haven't been able to go til now. (plus, during the month of april it only costs local residents $1 as opposed to $14, so you know we had to go.) here's aaron and the dogs at one of the scenic overlooks. you can see the rope we used to climb up the rock, it was that steep. surprisingly, the dogs were able to climb the rock without any difficulty. they must have a little billy goat in them. unfortunately, spring hasn't quite hit the high country yet. the weather was agreeable but it wasn't as scenic as it is when everything is in bloom. probably why it only costs $1 this month.