A Sister by Your Side

Lucky

2012-01-30T14:30:00.000-08:00

I am not sure how he does it, but while I am attending a conference trying to absorb good stuff into my brain, hubby is off somewhere winning contests and scoring REALLY good stuff.

Way to go, sweetie!

Can I play with it now????

It Shall Forever More Endure

2012-01-29T08:11:00.000-08:00

Could we with ink the ocean fill,
and were the skies of parchment made

Were every stalk on earth a quill,
and every man a scribe by trade ...

Best Lines

2012-01-26T17:14:00.000-08:00

I just love learning, it has been one of those conferences. Can't believe it was five years ago that we last came to this event (in Loo uh Ville). How much we have missed.

Here are the best one liners from today:

You are not growing ornamental plants, you are growing necessary plants (in other words humans cannot survive without them)

Local is the new organic.

It is not bad to be you.

fairy gardens take us on a voyage to a happy place

tango tangerine is the color of the year

feeling like a riddle

2012-01-25T10:53:00.000-08:00

I am not on the farm today, can you guess where I am?

they like these donuts here.

And horses,

Of course it is about plants, so this isn't really a hint, I just like how they look.

But here is one: this place was mentioned in last night's speech by our nation's leader.

Little Critters

2012-01-23T20:13:00.000-08:00

I've become quite attached to this little guy that my girl made for me.

Then she started a new design,

first a yellow belly,

then pink body, add stuffing,

2 little wings, then eyes

form a cute little bird.

She just makes these up from looking at pictures, critter talent!

First to Bloom

2012-01-20T14:30:00.000-08:00

I just planted potfuls of these lovely lenten roses (in my header) this week. Can't wait to see all the new soft colors I will get since these were donated from a friend! Stay tuned, I will get photos if the sun ever comes out again.

Rained In

2012-01-19T08:02:00.000-08:00

This was last month, a high water mark we hadn't seen since we moved here.

It started going over the road - yikes!

Here we are this morning, we have an island again.

In such high water our creek splits in two and the water finds another escape route.

And now it is seriously going over our driveway, what will happen by the end of the day?

There is no end in sight of this downpour!

Snow!

2012-01-18T10:03:00.000-08:00

I'm glad it actually snowed in Seattle, since they called off classes in "anticipation of snow".

And that sorta looks like my youngun sitting with her bottom in it. Hmmmm...

Distracted

2012-01-16T12:18:00.000-08:00

Sorry I have been slightly absent lately. Sometimes another project takes all my attention.

Like this one. It is over 6 minutes long, but has a big finish, thanks to my little brother. All 3 of my brothers participated along with their children and grandchildren. I included my grandpets!

Now that we finished it (all 46 of us) and have sent it off to my mom, we're excited for the joy it will bring.

A few other events of the weekend are:

The Podzilla came and gobbled up its empty cargo box.

They arrived very early for a Saturday morning.

the whole process took only one guy and his little pinky,

very cool contraption.

The barnyard has shrunk by 2 ram lambs, sold to a teenage farmer girl, who is smarter than us when it comes to sheep.

These mamas are eating up the hay pile while they wait for their newborns.

And then there is the dismal end to the Packers season, even though there were lucky game shirts in the room.

It was painful.

But my girl is good at consoling broken hearts.

Swirly

2012-01-12T11:58:00.000-08:00

Did you know that if you put drops of 2 or more shades of nail polish in water you can dip your fingers in quickly and get this?

Well, you must mask off your skin first, unless you like peeling it off later.

I must try this!

College

2012-01-09T10:50:00.000-08:00

So glad one of my girl's friends has a new camera and keeping me updated on life in Seattle.

:)

My Old Lace Curtains

2012-01-05T17:02:00.000-08:00

This girl is pretty crafty when she's home from college.

This new pot will go in her dorm room.

I might have to try this myself.

2012-01-03T10:02:00.000-08:00

Our Christmas was pretty late, and low key since we had other things going on.

But there were some pretty cool gifts that showed up. Like gifts for dorm rooms.

And gifts for kitchens.

The best part, in spite of sickness and loss, is having my family here.

So sad it must come to an end, but so thankful they could all hang out for awhile.

So thankful for each of them.

I can Handle the Change

2011-12-31T09:58:00.000-08:00

So about that new vehicle, you already know that my ride was running well over the 200,000 mile mark. An upgrade with less miles, about half in fact, was what hubby was looking for.

And he knows me so well. He knows how well I handle change...

He knows the approach that works best - small doses to avoid a meltdown.

Like silver-green to powder blue, like black door handles to painted door handles, bench seats to buckets, quick-release to store and go.

Yep, I've made the adjustment pretty well.

Sort of a "how many things can you find different in this picture?" exercise.

Proud of myself too.

My Sweet Friend

2011-12-30T21:08:00.000-08:00

There's a lot going on at my house, the kitchen and laundry room are in constant motion. It's a nuthouse actually. The POD arrived. The creek flooded. I got a new vehicle. The painting got done. We opened Christmas presents. Lots to blog about.

But today the most significant thing by far is that my dear friend just left this earth and went to heaven. Cancer.

She left behind a husband, grown children and 2 granddaughters. We got to help in a just a few small ways of ministering to the family. It was good to be there for them and know that it helped.

And it's good to know that I still have time left with my family and to cherish it all the more.

But right now I'm crying for the pain of it all. The loss. The struggle of lives that go on without a mother, a wife, a sister, a friend.

Granny Smith and Plum Creek

2011-12-28T14:06:00.000-08:00

I may have said this before, but one of the best things we have taught our kids to do is paint!

And it's usually at Christmas when all the employees are not around.

So much so that this youngun remarked that one of his Christmas memories is, and forever will be, the smell of paint.

This girl was a huge help in selecting paint color, too big of a decision for my little brain, that's for sure.

Thanks younguns!

Last Minute Shopping

2011-12-27T08:02:00.001-08:00

Our family is having a very late Christmas celebration, with my younguns just starting out this morning in SD,

and then dipping into WY briefly,

and on to MT.
With roads this good they might just make it in two days after all.

But wait, the early traveler texts are telling me they are taking the southern route, through NE, ooh, looking good in the corn state.

Then across the lower part of WY, hopefully those snow fences are not needed this week!

I need to get those gifts bought and wrapped, it's almost the eve of Christmas for us!

Naughty Kitty

2011-12-24T08:03:00.000-08:00

I thought I had the perfect solution to all of my half-working light strings. I wrapped them around trees where you can easily redeem the working sections. Brilliant, yes?

And pretty.

Enter kitty.
I had not calculated how much fun these twinkling toys were to Mr. Finn.

"Yes, I am talking about you! I noticed some of my lights are off again this morning. Others have been re-arranged. You wouldn't happen to know anything about that, would you?"

Well, I suppose every fat cat needs a little entertainment.

Don't look at me for assistance, I'm busy fixing lights again.

And is anybody going to redeem my empty tree? We have alot to live up to based on this shot from last year!

Worthy Alleys

2011-12-22T10:05:00.000-08:00

So excited! I found this small, but large enough for more than 1 subject, alleyway in our small town. After driving through all the alleys a couple times in the past, I apparently overlooked this spot or it was facing another direction.

And I can tell you that dark-haired cutie pies dressed in bright colors look like they were made for this spot. This one is a Christmas gift so I better be careful to keep them anonymous.

This alley treasure is a Christmas gift to myself.

Not a big deal

2011-12-21T12:04:00.000-08:00

After my fully decorated Christmas tree tipped over, OH MY!, and half my outdoor lights stopped working I enjoyed the humor of these online photos that have been circulating.

This even looks like the front of my house.

It's a good thing that I have my young-uns coming soon b/c that is a happy thought indeed! And it completely makes up for the above decor disasters.

Not to mention the younguns that helped me put up all the stuff in the first place. Those same ones that are going to fix what went wrong, b/c they are, right?

Catching up with My Camera

2011-12-19T08:01:00.001-08:00

As I get ready to do another shoot today of older subjects, I remembered that I never finished sharing these cute little faces with you all. My greenhouse studio has been working pretty well.

If you look real close you can see me in their eyes. Me and my step ladder, high angles are the best! But mostly you never notice that, which is good.

Love the baby Cabela chair!

Confused

2011-12-17T15:32:00.000-08:00

Let's face it - decorating for Christmas is alot of work and frustration.

First you have to shop for a tree.

Then fiddle with the trimmings,

put up the lights

and wiggle the strings that stop working once they are wrapped around your tree.

I'm definitely glad for their help today but I'm not sure if I'm doing it for them or they're doing it for me?

Look, even my tree skirt never got totally finished, my youngest only has half her name stitched on.

It's definitely packed with lots of memories though.

Gotta love Acronyms

2011-12-15T10:06:00.000-08:00

We have been anticipating THE POD, which will eventually make its way to my house, all the way across the country.

(I didn't know it was a real acronym!)

Seeing it for real just makes me happy. Knowing I don't have to fill it makes me even more happy.

I don't do moving. the End.

Last Look

2011-12-13T20:16:00.000-08:00

Here's the whole Cabo caboodle of photos:

It is great to be home, even if the journey back left us delayed at our first stop for over 4 hours and the morning temps plunged into a deep freeze.

It is back to reality, cold and work waiting to be done. It is back to a real December.

Enjoyment

2011-12-10T20:35:00.000-08:00

Not every day in this place is sunny, like today for example. Good thing we did this yesterday:

Because it was the perfect weather for checking out lover's beach, Cortez side,

where these shots were taken
we also got our fill of good snorkeling,

and climbed through some tight spaces,

to get to the Pacific side,

which is called Divorce Beach

It's spectacular, but dangerous for swimming. And if we come back in May we can walk all the way out to the arch.

We might just do that.

Yep, we're here!

2011-12-08T20:15:00.000-08:00

Our first sunrise,

then a little beach time, the last you will see of white legs,

lots of people here as you can see by the cruise ship and many footprints

sibling swimming and
red legs and
shopping for her sweethearts.

Yay for Cabo!

She's Nineteen!

2011-12-05T06:00:00.000-08:00

Hard to believe this one is on her last year as a teenager. How weird is that?

and how weird is this photo?

Love you, sweetie, have a fabulous birthday, sorry we can't be there!

Where Fat and Stinky becomes Adorable

2011-12-03T13:24:00.000-08:00

So this is Stella, our resident mini-pig. Once all the drugs wore off, which took about 2 days, she emerged from under 6 inches of straw and is ready for visiting hours. She has some major ouwies that are healing up from the attack but for the most part I think she is pain free.

She's small but packs a strong recognizable odor.

Her personal style is very girly as noted by her pink harness.

She also loves to come right up to you, snorting and grunting, which freaks me out a little.

A Big One

2011-12-02T16:07:00.000-08:00

Oh, my! This cat sighting yesterday was wayyyyy too close to home. Directly across the river from us!

They don't swim right?

A Pig not Well-appointed

2011-12-01T15:18:00.001-08:00

We are the keepers of a miniature pig as of yesterday, when I received a frantic call from the pig's owner. Turns out the poor dear was the victim of an attack by a pit bull. She needed a quiet, clean barn to recover in for a spell. She is super sweet but not up for a photo op just yet.

Stay tuned for pictures of Stella.

A Home well-appointed

2011-11-30T10:01:00.001-08:00

For those of you born in the fifties like me:

I came across this the other day while moving my piano and going through old music books.

I thought this view of home-making might make you smile, as it did me, another era, maybe another planet?

I remember discussions of posture while playing piano, not sure I got the lecture about sewing.

One things hasn't changed, models were skinny back then as well.

Learning to sew darts was one of my specialties, crisp, pointy and carefully trimmed.

These were days of thoroughness and detail. And drill, repeat it until you get it!

Sadly, I never advanced to scallops. I believe my downfall was buttonholes.

However, I have perfected this design with icing on cake-tops, does that count?

So thankful

2011-11-28T10:01:00.000-08:00

It was a beautiful weekend round these parts

the boys had a lovely day on the bay,

which resulted in some great family time cracking

and skype-ing with my three younguns who couldn't be with us

but stayed up for the event

am so thankful for all my gang!

Turkey Day

2011-11-24T19:01:00.000-08:00

They all made it home safe and we had a lovely relaxing time cooking and eating,

they even did the dishes!

I think they enjoyed the college break and home cooked food. Hubby gets the credit for the mashed potatoes. I couldn't face it after my nightmare of making so much fluffy taters that it filled a pickup bed.

Rosettes

2011-11-23T12:02:00.000-08:00

I remember putting my one-year-old in a deep bonnet made of crisp eyelet back in the 80's. I thought it was the cutest thing ever to be seen.

This totally takes me back to that moment. This little sweet baby had a long sweater dress with matching mittens and sweater rosettes on every piece.

And what I learned in this photo session is to stock up on noisemakers. After the first 5 minutes of trying to get her attention with my voice alone, she totally tuned me out.

Hey, Elizabeth, look at me! Hey, up here.
Clap, clap, woo hoooooooo!

Essays Done

2011-11-22T07:36:00.000-08:00

I hoped she wrapped up all those last minute assignments so she can come home a day early today!

I am off to the grocery store to load up on expired chicken for when the rest of my crew arrives and we go crabbing!

Oh, and I probably should be planning my turkey menu also. Gravy is pretty much a once a year event for me - hope I remember how to do it.

Fence Mending

2011-11-20T17:14:00.000-08:00

This boy has overstayed his welcome. At least, we think he is to blame

for this bent brace and loose fence wire.

Thank goodness he did not break through to my lamb pen, which is where he wanted to be.

While hubby fixed fence I got reacquainted with my boys.

This guy still eats from my hand, but his brother just can't quite bring himself to it.

Thumper's days here are definitely numbered, judging from the contempt I see here.

Along with his girls - they are eating a ton of food too, by the way.

Almost got it.

Violet is a messy little girl today, but she licked my hand and nuzzled me with her wet nose. She is the sweetest little thing.

I will spare you the photos because a cow's tongue is really pretty disgusting - no offense, sweetheart.

Saturated with the Season

2011-11-18T07:46:00.001-08:00

Welcome back. You're late this year, along with umbrellas, scarves and mittens.

But I am thankful to live by you.

Close Ups

2011-11-17T08:01:00.000-08:00

There are always tons of photos needed around here with all the new plants that we try. I'm sadly behind in catching up on that project.

But pretty leaf buds and petals just don't compare to baby eyelashes.

Drooling over the cuteness.

Lifts me Up

2011-11-14T10:07:00.000-08:00

Thanks to my friend, Pam, for sharing this group with me.

Modern hymn writers.

My new favorite station.

Sweet!

2011-11-11T18:11:00.000-08:00

I came home today to a nice surprise on my counter. This ball of lovely yarn was purchased in central America and shared with me by a sweet friend.

Now what shall I make with it?

Birthday

2011-11-09T07:58:00.001-08:00

Happy Birthday to my favorite 27-year-old. He can brighten up any gloomy rained-out camping trip with his fun energy - thanks to him for helping to glue our family together.

Love you, Cole!

Duh

2011-11-07T12:02:00.000-08:00

In all the hustle and bustle of paper leaves and craft beads I was packing for this past weekend I neglected a very important item for women's retreat. My Bible.

So when our speaker asked us to refer to such and such passage I said to my sweet Asian daughter, "oh no, I can't believe I forgot my Bible"

She was like, "no problem, Mom" and whipped out her I-thing and brought it right up for me.

This really should not have been such an "ah-ha" moment for me but it was. Of course there's an app for that, but my mind would have never come up with it like her mind did just then. Makes me feel so old.

And just after I upgraded my phone WITHOUT a data plan, b/c after all, there's really not any apps that I can't live without.

I was wrong. I hate that.

Crafts baby!

2011-11-06T06:42:00.000-08:00

Spent the weekend with some girls crafting and praying,

Since I was in charge of bringing the creativity, I got a little nervous about this one,
but in the end, after several hours of work, my girlfriends did me proud.

Also got to do a little knitting and chatting, here's my latest creation worn by my beautiful model.
One of the ladies took the design to a whole new level using atlas maps instead of hymnbooks and literature pages.

This little girl showed up to entertain us also.

Happy fall from retreat.

Another Fun Senior

2011-11-03T13:52:00.000-07:00

Showing these senior shots today and thought you might like to see them.

This spunky senior went with our family on a mission trip to a New Mexico reservation when she was 2 years old. How can she be graduating in just mere months??

Curious

2011-11-01T08:31:00.000-07:00

We had a lovely walk about campus last week where my son attends classes. Considering it is the closest campus any of our kids has attended, this tour was long overdue. Other than the webcam views, there are many parts of the school I had not seen.

And we discovered about 7 or 8 of these strange creations. Although billed as an art exhibit for just this month it appeared they had been planted there for much longer, with roots growing into the ground. Each one is sort of a little cave or tent design with a fancy topknot.

I will have to see if they are still there on my next visit.

Blessed

2011-10-30T20:33:00.000-07:00

So fun to see over half my clan this weekend, these guys home from their respective colleges.

And these guys home from their cruise. Can't wait to see the video from my boy's zipline adventure!

I am never doing that, just for the record.

First visit home

2011-10-29T14:05:00.000-07:00

My baby college girl came home this weekend. Here she is texting me to view her on the webcam the day before they left. I just wanted to make sure she kept good on her promise not to get a city tattoo and mohawk while she was away. Nope she's still cute as ever.

So I made pumpkin cornbread. And she made sweet roasted caramel pumpkin seeds. It's a very fallish and fabulous day around these parts.

Pumpkin Faces

2011-10-27T15:19:00.000-07:00

Ummm, even though I came home with a headache - these little kids make my day!

Been a While

2011-10-26T12:08:00.000-07:00

Just because I haven't talked about the farm for awhile, don't assume things are the same.

Because that's never the case. First of all there's "my, how you have grown!"

Hello, Flower, you are getting very handsome.

Then there's Thumper. He's back. And he brought all his girlfriends this time. He's short but he is full of attitude. I seriously hope ALL my new lambs don't inherit that nose of his.

But there's also a visiting female cow, a hungry one from the looks of it.

And then the bull was delivered. About that the time the neighbor bull decided to bust down the fence and challenge the competition.

Two bulls in the same pasture is not a good thing. Somebody always gets his feelings hurt.

Besides the feelings hubby has about fixing fence.

Thumper did his best to set things in order. He can take on any bull 3 times his size and send him running. If only I had the video of that.

But I am lucky to capture what I can for you while the farm members cooperate.

Unhappy in the Box

2011-10-24T07:48:00.000-07:00

There's new fast food in our small town. We have been watching in fascination over the past 10 days as there has always been a line of cars here. One day they even had a parking lot attendant directing traffic.

Are they giving away free food? What is the big attraction at that place? We just had to find out.

So a Sunday night provided the perfect opportunity. We entered the line of cars thinking of holiday shakes, and two-fer entrees, mouths watering.

We put in our order, no free food, however. And then we watched for the cars ahead of us to move - we watched for 10 minutes.

Which gave us more time to consider our food choices, and consider what reviews we might give in this survey.

After another 10 minutes we got this view, which made us wonder if it was any faster to choose sit-down dining. I wonder how many cars drove by while we sat in this line?

Even though the pumpkin shake was pretty yummy, I don't think hubby will be returning with me any time soon.

But he's such a great sport to take these adventures with me.

Unusual

2011-10-22T12:08:00.000-07:00

Found these left on my desk from one of my gardening employees. Can you guess what kind of pepper they are?

...

...

...

Diablo - sweet at the tip and devilishly hot at the stem, so I was told.

(Searching for this variety however states otherwise - but since the seeds came straight from the Yucatan, they can call them whatever they want. The Balloon variety seems more of a match, the pepper grows facing up - that's how I found it. Whatever!)

When I sliced them for my toasted sandwich, I tasted a bit from the sweet end. Yummy and sweet as predicted.

So I sliced up a whole bunch and popped the masterpiece in the oven. And yes, there is a reason for the name, devil peppers.

But in a good way. :)

My Favorites - and Why

2011-10-21T11:59:00.000-07:00

I put all my favorite shots to a very long song to make a video. However, I have given up trying to post it here so instead I'll just narrow it down to my absolute favorite shots from our recent trip.
We got up very early to drive 2 hours in the dark so that we could be at Glacier at sunrise - it was worth it.

This beautiful lake was hard to photograph from this angle, but it was breathtaking.

I just love prairie grasslands, especially with hubby casually strolling through them.

Marshes - these tall grasses are so soothing, just try to be worried looking at this.

Even though we missed the sunrise at this spot, I still caught a little bit of the early light color.

When I worked here one college summer, this was the view that we always saw returning from our 1 day off, getting ready for another 6-day shift at the dining room. Hi George!

And this was the lake where we went water skiing on our day off.

Thanks to this beautiful beast for letting me take his picture right below the tower.

So glad I zoomed in on this, b/c when I looked it up at home, turns out there is a wooden ladder up there dating back to the 1800's. Zoom in, you can see it right in the middle of the shot.

Not only was the view of the tower amazing as we hiked around the base, but the views out were also fabulous and eerie.

One of our favorite side trips - we have never traveled it before, this road climbs up over the 9000' mark.

Yellowstone is so big, you can't ever see all of it in one day, but mud pots are always so full of color.

So happy we got morning glimpses of the rugged Tetons. A snowstorm quickly followed.

Early morning in the eastern part of our state reminded us that it is not winter yet.

Scary!

2011-10-20T12:05:00.000-07:00

One hour with some of my favorite little people in the corn maze - check!

One of the Last Fine Fall Days at the coast

2011-10-17T19:58:00.000-07:00

Unexpected

2011-10-14T09:58:00.000-07:00

This photo session almost got rained out, it's that time of year. But we had bright pretty light - yay!

And there was a pet I didn't know about - he turned out to be a lover - slurp!

A first for Me

2011-10-12T08:05:00.000-07:00

I got to photograph my nephew and his hot car when I was back home.

Isn't he so cute? Especially with his little sister in the shot.

But then he took me for a ride in it on this lonely road, at a speed never before experienced by me.

I still haven't quite recovered.

Where Have I Been all This Time?

2011-10-10T08:01:00.000-07:00

In addition to documenting and working the shrub line in our recent garden center visits,

I couldn't help but browse the other parts of GC's across the midwest. And guess what? The terrariums of the 70's have been reborn - they're called "fairy gardens".

A new sort of miniature garden space, with a complete line of wire furniture and arbor accessories to pinch your pocketbook. I did not know about this - what else have I been missing out there?

I love this stone planter, but you could just use an old bird bath.

So when I got to my sweet aunt's house, the uber plantswoman, I had to ask her if she had heard of this latest craze.

At which point, she smiled and showed me this:

With a real fairy of course, (is that a bee-hive?)

who has her own mini birdbath

and mini wheelbarrow.

Love it.

Love her.

Crochet Progress

2011-10-08T07:21:00.000-07:00

I am pleased with my girl's progress these last weeks in spite of busy job, new home, etc.

Awesome

2011-10-06T08:34:00.000-07:00

Spent the night in a cozy mountain cabin tucked under a warm comforter. Dined on mountain elk chili and cornbread. This morning we were blessed with misty glimpses of fresh snow in the Tetons just a fewdays before the whole place shuts down for winter.

Shortly after that the rain and clouds have totally socked in the views .

But, oh golden aspen, I have not had my fill of you.

Sunrise Sunset

2011-10-05T06:56:00.000-07:00

We are having such a lovely time traveling. Yesterday I had my heart set on seeing the sun rise over the Badlands. But not all sunrise time predictions can be trusted and we were an hour late. Big bad bummer.

It was still beautiful in its own bad way and I took tons of photos - too many to download in aa late night motel room so will get to that later.

The missed photo ops were more than redeemed however when we realized we were just in time for sunset at Devil's Tower, including the hike around the base. And I am embarassed to say i only now realized that is not reallly hollow inside. I was quite gullible when E.T. first came out.

And things really haven't changed much.

Cute Kids Take#2

2011-10-03T19:30:00.000-07:00

Cute Kids Take#1

2011-09-30T06:24:00.000-07:00

We have spent alot of time with family this weekend. That means there is not much time for posting, even if there was a good connection available, which there isn't. sorry bout that!

But we enjoyed seeing the newest member of the extended family, and updates on all the rest!

The Source

2011-09-28T06:00:00.000-07:00

This was so amazing, a natl. park visible from the freeway exit.
and then a late day stop at itasca, where fall has arrived.

Yes, the source looks a little bit contrived with those carefully laid boulders, but in the 30s that was acceptable.

A marshy, inaccessible river source just wasn't pretty and wouldn't do in those days so they tidied it up a bit.

Still one of my favorite places!

A First

2011-09-25T20:09:00.000-07:00

In all our trips to the MW we have never had the opportunity to visit this great park.

And we almost didn't get to on this trip either. They shut down things early for winter up here, especially where there are roads that need lots of repair. But getting up before dawn and driving lots of extra miles got us to these lovely spots today.

Did you know there is actually a Hudson divide, which is in addition to our continental divide?

This lake drains down to the Hudson Bay, whereas most of our continental divide separates water that going to the Atlantic or Pacific.

Next time we come we are going to hike to the peak that is the convergence of all three - cool!
The rest of our day was spent traversing this very large state. And when you get to the town of circle with very little gas in your tank, you are thrilled that ONE of the precious few gas stations in town are open! Hallelujah!

College Move-In #3, Check!

2011-09-23T13:16:00.000-07:00

It was a tight fit but we got everything in this little car (plus two friends cars!)

Then we got it all moved in, and yes she is on the 6th floor, BUT there's a parking lot on the back that lines up with the 6th floor, think Seattle, think hills!
Her room is really sweet, with a BFF view out the window!

The whole place is pretty sweet, all of us in this mass of parenthood are feeling OK about it.

And she's off, we're thankful and confident it is going to be a wonderful adventure!

Sniff!

Can't Decide

2011-09-21T07:29:00.000-07:00

Which of these lamps would look better in MY bedroom?

This one from B's room,

or this one from A's room?

Of course I will also need a well-lighted sewing room, hmmm....

It's almost here!

Change

2011-09-18T21:52:00.000-07:00

I think we just ate our last child-delivered Sunday night pizza.

Guess we will have to start paying for that service from now on...

College Move-In #2, Check

2011-09-16T21:17:00.000-07:00

Even though classes don't start for a week or so, it was important to move-in today.

To meet the roommate's family,

and claim your bunk - the last one to get a space will probably get rained on by the window this winter

I thought I was past my need to tuck him in and help him decide where to place the shelves,

the bins and the clothes - seriously, I have the Perfect place for Everything -

but no, I'm not. Pretty sure I will never outgrow that.

This girl is likely to make me wait in the car next week at her dorm. And just thinking about hauling it all up to the 6th floor makes me want to agree with her.

College Move-In #1, Check!

2011-09-15T08:13:00.000-07:00

It was so great having a friend waiting when my girl arrived on campus, well, actually at a hotel for the first night (they're required to be there one day but the dorms aren't available till the next- not too convenient...)

So there was alot of luggage to move from here to there and then move it again tomorrow.

And they're off - an exciting adventure just waiting for them. Blessings to April and Tian.

Fall is in the Air, but It is Still Summer Here

2011-09-13T21:12:00.000-07:00

Since college hasn't started yet, these Seattle bound kids decided to throw a party.

Slicing and chopping,

it's a fondue party

with Gruyere, yum!

It's amazing how many of them are still around or attending school locally.

Next the whip cream game, of course - my dog loves this one

And then skyp-ing with college kids already out of state.

I'm going to bed now, somebody turn out the lights, please.

Guess Who Flies In Today?

2011-09-12T07:30:00.000-07:00

She will spend a couple nights with us and then she's off to the university. We're excited!!

Cute things

2011-09-10T16:50:00.000-07:00

Just returned from visiting our very cute great-babies,

toddlers,

puppies and

little boys. I have to say they are pretty cute.

This little one is definitely a 3rd child, she can hold her own and give a misbehaving doggie the what-for in scolding toddler language.

You tell'em, Brookie!

It was a weekend of grandpas and great-grandpas.

We also took a little side-trip up the famous Cabbage Hill.

for a special house-warming party.

(Check out the new table - so lovely!)

Last of all, the men in her life helped to get the back door ready for winter!

Ok, that was alot of driving and we're thankful for safety and glad to be home once again.

Wild Things

2011-09-08T17:31:00.000-07:00

I have awesome wildlife skills - the other day when I was wandering through the woods, I got this shot of a 2 day old fawn...

Don't believe me?

OK, truthfully these guys were in the fenced deer area of our friends' house. But I did take the photos myself.

They are worried about this baby b/c he was born so late in the season, might not be ready for winter. Poor little darling...

Ida Ho!

2011-09-07T19:29:00.000-07:00

When my youngun set off on her road trip it was late in the day

which doesn't give parents a warm, fuzzy feeling.

They assured us they had everything under control,

they thought about food, I know this girl is organized thankfully.

But then I got to see the pictures, I am glad this is an Eastern Oregon road

They stopped for alot of this, which made them really late getting anywhere,

so we insisted they stop at this sweet little house for the night

so that they had some daylight for driving into the mountains

and into the canyon of the grandma who they are visiting

I think she's sort of an Annie Oakley grandma judging from her arsenal

she's also a very tough granny to live in a place that has freezing temps in the middle of summer and a driveway that is 15 minutes long off a lonely road

This little ranch was filled with fun,

4-wheelin,
(I'm going to pretend I didn't see this one).

fishing,

hiking,
bear hunting,

and other ranch activities

Seriously, I'm so glad she could take this trip before they all choose separate paths for the future.

My boys

2011-09-06T19:17:00.000-07:00

According to hubby, when you're as feisty as these two boys you can't be picky about how your haircut turns out.
We haven't seen the actual eye sockets of this dark man in about two years. If I could just spend a little more time with him I think he would let me straighten out those bangs.

I know it's pretty embarrassing for him. And look at those knee caps, oh dear....

Hopefully their wool will grow in fast before the winter cold gets here.

Hard Work

2011-09-05T13:15:00.000-07:00

My hubby really knows how to put the "labor" in the Labor Day weekend.

I had to go rescue him so he didn't overdo it.

Besides, we just got invited to a party - hooray!

Colors of Fall

2011-09-02T16:00:00.000-07:00

I have never had these before, they require patience, it's September, after all

Oh, my!

What has hubby been feeding these?

Road Trip

2011-09-01T07:35:00.000-07:00

Our last little bird to leave the nest has run off with friends on a road trip. This is the last place she could text me to give me a dutiful update.

Somewhere in those valleys and mountains, there is a ranch with lots of fun things to ride, hot springs nearby with hiking, and with friends soon to disperse.

Yay for senior road trips - I'm just a little jealous.

33 Years!

2011-08-30T12:09:00.000-07:00

Correction - there is nothing like sitting at an outside table with my sweetheart of 33 years - which will happen tonight if all goes as planned. At the lake, if it's not too cool and breezy.

And so I give you this, an artsy shot of us taken by my lovely neice on our recent vacation. It would be more lovely if I wasn't pulling such a face, trying to ignore my churning insides. I really did enjoy the boatride, when I could distract myself.

But hubby was feeling fine and also skiing very fine that day.

I am so lucky to have him - happy anniversary, dear!

Once Again

2011-08-29T07:56:00.000-07:00

In between watching hurricane news and attending a wedding, we also did our usual last weekend of August activity.

Although I have to admit I only got in one day at the tradeshow. The first day I had to wait for a tour at home to finish and never made it up there until it was over. The last day we had to skip most of it for a wedding.

But I was just in time for dinner - at one of my favorite restaurants with outdoor seating. There is nothing like a warm August night, good food and relaxing with business friends until dark.

Thankful

2011-08-27T19:37:00.000-07:00

The storm has left the area where my dear ones have now gone to bed, hoping all their ice cream doesn't melt before the power gets restored.

Since I could get live streaming TV from their local stations online, I could text them with what was going on around their city. So ironic, isn't it?

Hopefully there's a beach left in the wake of their monster storm.

Jittery

2011-08-26T11:01:00.000-07:00

Yes, of course, I'm watching webcams around my East coast kiddos, this one and this one to the north of them, another one to the west and probably the first hit will be this and this one .

Fully expecting most of these will go down with what they are predicting, as this camera close by is already offline this morning.

I know they're in a pretty safe area, several miles inland and on relatively high ground.

Hoping and praying it will not be so bad as expected.

How Now, Little Cow

2011-08-25T20:48:00.000-07:00

Flower has been naughty lately, he's figured out what cows like to do best.

Wooo Hoooo, I'm free to explore the world!

Not so fast, little Flower, someone is catching up with you.

He can run like the wind already

but not so smart that he didn't give away his escape plan,

and it will be promptly repaired.

Yikes!

2011-08-24T08:19:00.000-07:00

I never expected to get this text from my girl yesterday:

"We just had an earthquake!"

That only happens once in a century where they live.

And within the same week a major hurricane is pointed right at them. But she assures me they are prepared b/c she is stocking up on oreos and peanut butter. Yep, trained her well.

Pray with me for all the Eastern folks to be safe this week.

Keeps growing on Me

2011-08-22T11:54:00.000-07:00

I just finished working on this photo session of two families. And I'm finding out that each time I work though this, I use more and more black and white, or variations thereof. It's a shame to lose the color in certain shots of course. But in so many cases I just love it better with less color - sort of takes it down to the bones of composition. And eliminates so many distractions, like red pickups in the background. And adds drama - I love drama, on other people that is!

Meanwhile we're still on the Farm

2011-08-19T10:06:00.000-07:00

I've had a chance to observe something new on the farm - the usual scramble for the morning feeding has gotten pretty intense. And dusty.

Life has changed for everyone in the farmyard, even these gentle hoofs.

He's big and he can seriously underline the term, "bully".

He showed up while we were away, apparently by jumping the fence and evidently to get closer to our beautiful blondes.

But no sooner than when he entered our farmyard did he realize that maybe life was better on the other side of the fence after all. Then he proceeded to cry all night about it.

If he had done his math he would know that there were more girls where he came from. Silly bull.

Hee hee

2011-08-17T15:52:00.000-07:00

Going through all the photos from our last few weeks and this one of hubby and his sister just really makes me laugh.

Especially since I was so sick in the boat while all this wild fun was happening.

Just Keep Swimming

2011-08-16T20:16:00.000-07:00

That has been the shared phrase for middle girl and me today. She and her hubby as they begin to make their way across the continent, not having much certainty about the near future. But knowing what needs to be done today and focusing on that for now.

It's a pretty good outlook for me too. I have to wonder at this stage of the game, what next? Not really too sure about that, but for now I know it's time to take the leaf out of the table.

Updated Eyeballs

2011-08-15T08:03:00.001-07:00

A long overdue update has been done to my webcam list. Those cameras drop offline in the dead of winter in some climates.

Actually I was hoping that my request to put a webcam on campus had finally been honored in Idaho. Sadly the best we can still do is a glimpse of the airport.

But on the bright side, the college of my youngest has already addressed the plight of college mothers everywhere and pointed a webcam directly at a central gathering place on campus. Now I can keep a close eye on her!

Still Unpacking

2011-08-13T07:43:00.000-07:00

Little time to chat this morning, but here's what going on in the Professor VE's cute little house:

(check out the cute window treatments made from my Grandma's hankies, awwww...

Happy Anniversary!

2011-08-11T05:28:00.000-07:00

Wow, can you believe it has been five years already?

Bless you guys!! Have a fabulous time celebrating!

Hit Refresh

2011-08-10T06:37:00.000-07:00

So good to be home, sleeping on my own memory foam.

I just hope my travel-sick tummy can handle a strong cup of Joe this morning. I'm going to need it to face the final day of packing and cleaning for my eldest. I'm feeling well enough that I can't use the sick excuse to bail on her. Besides, she and her baby sister single-handedly (or is it double-handedly? ) packed up my household 3 years ago when I went AWOL. I have some redeeming to do.

But first, a moment to soak up this sunrise.

I'm so glad "His mercies are new every morning"

Can You see Them?

2011-08-07T14:26:00.000-07:00

My sweet ones are here today, tell me if you spot them.

Hope they are having a fabulous time visiting this amazing place.

Special Day

2011-08-06T20:38:00.000-07:00

Bringing you fast-breaking glimpses from the wedding today of our handsome nephew,

the groom:

and his lovely bride:

I totally enjoyed the ceremony that followed b/c someone else took the photos of that

It was great to connect with everyone, these events are full of cousins,

grandpas,

and grandmas

ringbearers with bubbles,

actually alot of guests with bubbles,

and slow dances

Congrats to Nate and Heather!

It's a Wild Ride

2011-08-05T13:23:00.000-07:00

When hubby's family get together it's a fun time indeed. And when I heard my brother-in-law also had a new bike I was sure there would be some ride offers. Offers which I was already prepping excuses to turn down. I really don't like motorcycles.

But never did I imagine that my 87-year-old mother-in-law would be this brave. She wins the award in my book.

Prettier than the Inspiration

2011-08-04T07:22:00.000-07:00

It has been so fun watching this masterpiece take shape. Turning out better than I imagined, my girl is carefully working these lovely garden flowers into a very unique throw. She has to make up the connecting stitches as she goes along.

Sadly, this will be one-of-a-kind design. She is not taking orders.

I'm going to have to make a special trip out there to see the final result. Not that I will need any excuses to go for a visit, of course.

Making Hay

2011-08-03T07:45:00.000-07:00

When hubby told the boys it was time to make some hay, he got mixed reactions

some were not too excited,

but getting a new JD hat from the farmer's wife is pretty exciting. Faa-aarr-rrrm living is the life for me!

Our boys are troopers, even on a hot day. They got the barn all filled up for the winter.

Truthfully, neither of them grew up on a farm. But I did! And this sight brings back so many fun memories for me, the girl who had all brothers and didn't have to really do any "outside" work.

It was the one time my dad actually let me drive a small farm tractor connected to a pulley and drive about 10 yards in reverse to raise the hay bales into the haymow. I loved doing that so much. Then later we would hunt for nests of kittens in the bales and play endless hours with neighbor kids on the huge mountain of hay.

2 times 2 times 2

2011-08-02T07:30:00.000-07:00

Since I'm making these sweet families wait until I return from my next trip, here's a sneak peek of my desktop just for them.

This double family session was chock full of pre-school energy!

Lovely

2011-08-01T07:46:00.000-07:00

I told you she is not a fan of photos - so we take what we get around here. Just love it when my girls show this special affection for one another.

But she is a fan of parties, and we had a fitting one. So glad I made TWO cakes since the first one disintegrated when I tried to turn it out onto a plate. Proper cooling time should not be overlooked, even when you are late for church.

This one turned out great and with whip cream and caramel rum sauce drizzled over top it was "quite fabulous" as one gentleman guest put it.

A good variety of friends topped it off nicely

Happy Birthday to Firstborn!

2011-07-31T08:18:00.000-07:00

Because she's a writer and not into photos, today's post will attempt to bring a poem for my girl's birthday - not one I have written, because that would be scary. And probably not one from great lit b/c searching for that on the web almost wiped out my hard drive with a nasty virus, yikes! And not one I stole from her birthday card b/c that would be really cheesy.

But this is a poem SHE wrote to teach her students about a poetry form called paradelle. The first stanza has a pair of repeating lines and then two finishing lines that use all the words from the first 4 lines, only one time each.

Two more stanzas use the same pattern. Then the last stanza must use all the words written so far, but only once each. Isn't that cool? But even better, this is a poem she wrote for her sophomores because she wanted to show them how much she cared, and THAT is what makes her a great teacher:

A Paradelle for the Sophomores

Waiting to begin again, I say a goodbye.
Waiting to begin again, I say a goodbye.
Bittersweet and short is this time.
Bittersweet and short is this time.
This is bittersweet to say: a short goodbye
And I begin waiting time again.

Bright children with starry artless eyes.
Bright children with starry artless eyes.
Affection wells in my heart for you.
Affection wells in my heart for you.
Bright my heart starry affection in you
For artless children with eyes' wells.

To unknown futures our paths will soon diverge.
To unknown futures our paths will soon diverge.
Go with wisdom and dreams, dear souls.
Go with wisdom and dreams, dear souls.
Soon dreams dear paths will go unknown
And souls diverge with our futures to wisdom.

Bittersweet diverge our heart-bright eyes
With unknown affection waiting for artless wisdom.
I will soon begin a starry time
With my soul's futures and dreams again
Goodbye wells in short paths, to go
And say, this is to you, dear children.
-DVE

Now I need to bake a cake - tonight a PARTY is underway.