From Donna
The beginning of October was spent at our homestead and we were very thankful for the cool, dry weather. Our quest was to continue to improve our basic living conditions in order to spend more time in that area. We installed a bathroom, insulated the ceiling and the walls and connected the kitchen and bathroom plumbing to the drainage system, among many other things.The final touches are waiting for a future opportunity. The insulation of the loft area makes a huge difference in the temperatures below. As for the horticulture, we harvested boxes of dried-on-the-vine raisins, which are super sweet, although they are seeded. The trees were also heavily laden with quinces and persimmons. which were promptly turned into jam. We also learned how to remove the new shoots which are growing at the ground level of the olive trees, resulting in hours of free exercise in the fresh air! The trees look handsome indeed and we are looking forward to the olive harvest in November!
In other latitudes, this month dear Zach turned a big 8 on his Birthday! He is now in second grade, reading up a storm and getting really good on the soccer field, He is a lightning bolt of energy not to be taken lightly, scoring amazing goals in every match! Riley is enjoying her pre-kindergarten class, especially arts and crafts and singing! Donna also enjoyed a very happy birthday with family in Portugal. She is fighting hard to keep her energy level high in order to keep up with all the activity and so thankful for all the young people in her life!
Over in Macau Joana has featured in a locally produced film called “Dreaming Girls.” It was released in the cinema in Lisboeta this month. This is the first time Joana has appeared on the big screen and the film seems to have gotten good reviews. Joana has also made a short documentary about the film and has appeared in several magazines as well. Kudos to you Joana! Still in Macau, Benjamim has performed at the popular Lusofonia annual event. He featured his own songs and included Portuguese favorites as well! The performance was a great success!
Jorge has taken a trip to Macau in order to take care of WP business and some legal papers.
Assorted images from this month:
