On the S OR Coast

Happy Easter!

2011-04-26T12:07:00.000-07:00

New Camera!

2010-09-01T19:44:00.000-07:00

I have a new camera. Perhaps, this will help me to become a reformed blogger... Perhaps...

(Mary and her friend, Moriah)

(Anna and her friend, Lindsay)

The One Thing

2010-03-24T09:07:00.000-07:00

A sweet reader sent me an email asking what the One Thing in my "about me" is. My reply follows:

The One Thing is Jesus. Everything else pales in comparison to the importance of knowing Him, serving Him, following Him... being His. My responsibilities as wife, mother, friend, sister, employee, all need to be secondary to my love for Him. I have an older friend who says, "Don't sweat the small stuff... and it's ALL small stuff!" Everything but Jesus is temporary. Who I become in Him is eternal.

Such a good reminder for ME!!
Thank you for asking.

His,
Brenda

I want to know Christ and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in His suffering, becoming like Him in His death...
~Philippians 4:10

For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified.
~I Corinthians 2:2

High Desert Museum

2010-01-29T11:11:00.000-08:00

Over the Christmas holidays, we made a trip to the High Desert Museum, one of our favorite places. I took some pictures inside the Spirit of the West exhibit, where it's really dimly lit. So the pictures are not great, but the memories are bright and shiny!

See how I did that? Just blogged? I'll try to fill in some of the many things that happened in the months I was absent from this venue, but I'm mostly hoping to get back into the habit of sharing our "everydays."

Every day I will bless you and praise your name forever and ever. ~Psalm 145:2

Hello!

2009-10-29T10:31:00.000-07:00

Hello, Bloggity World!
I have neglected you so...
forgive me?

Perhaps I can pop in here more often.
There is surely plenty to share!

Love,
Me

Family Camp

2009-08-27T20:37:00.000-07:00

Our annual church Family Camp last weekend was the best ever for our family! We finally managed to last for two nights of camping and fun. It was great.

I'm amazed at how much our family is changing as the children get older. It's so much easier now to do things like camping than it has been for us in about ten years! I can see all kinds of new adventures opening up before us.

This year, we opted to let the big boys sleep in their own tent, next to ours, and the girlies were invited to share a tent with a couple of their best friends in the campsite next to ours. That left only Roger, Andrew, Micah and me in the big tent.

It was wonderful! We slept much better. Well... we slept... which was much better!

Roger was also kind enough to agree to keeping our menu super-simple, which allowed me to enjoy camping much more, rather than cooking and doing dishes all weekend. It worked out great!

We also joined forces with another family. My friend, Jeanine, who was in my high school youth group 25 years ago, and her son, Ike, camped near us and we shared food and fellowship. She is the BEST. I have never seen so many hot dogs and marshmallows in one place, outside a grocery store, before! We had a blast sitting by the fire together in the morning as everyone else slept. And SHE built the fires before I got up!

I really did have a wonderful, relaxing weekend.

I should have taken more pictures. I realized when I looked at them that I only really got one picture of Mary, for some reason. And it looks like this:

Which is, in fact, how the icy cold swimming hole made her feel. But it's a terrible picture! So I included these for her benefit:

Another terrible picture, but at least she's smiling, which she did almost the whole weekend! Here, she is chatting with friends while waiting for the evening service to start.

And this one:
Which is of the back of her cute, little head, while listening in the evening service... I guess I owe her a good photo shoot some time soon!

Noah is a master marshmallow roaster. And he usually shares the best ones with me! He's an amazing kid! He was able to enjoy LOTS of freedom at camp to go and hang out with his friends, but he stuck pretty close for the most part, because he's such a great kid!

The swimming proved to be too chilly for my swimming pool lovers. At least they played on the beach and they all gave it a try to some degree.
Micah LOVES playing in the water, but even he didn't get very wet in the river.
He did enjoy his buddy, Nathan, though. The family we camped next to has five adorable children. With us and with Jeanine and Ike, we made quite a conglomeration of little people!
This is NOT a great picture of Jeanine, and I blinded her terribly when I took it with a flash as we were sitting around the campfire in the dark. But I had to capture her snuggling my little one off to sleep as we were singing worship songs around the campfire on Saturday. Too sweet!
Daniel was the only one remotely brave enough to swim in the chilly water. We actually bribed him to swim across the river and jump off this old concrete foundation. I think he really enjoyed it... although he wouldn't have done it without "incentive."
Anna had a great time with her friends!
They made sand sculptures at the beach.
Andrew was born to camp. He LOVES playing outside and being dirty and eating junk food. He also managed to sleep until 10:00 both mornings, laying in a sleeping bag on the concrete pad where we pitched our tent. And he never once mentioned anything about it being uncomfortable. Ah, to be five again!
He also loved the swimming hole, although he shivered the entire time we were there, in spite of it being like 90 degrees outside.
None of this family fun would have been possible without my amazing man. Roger and I have loved camping together since the beginning. We are doing it very differently now than we did when it was just the two of us, but we are finding that we are entering a new phase of our family, in which camping may again become one of our favorite things to do.
I can't wait for next summer!!

..the LORD your God went ahead of you on your journey... to search out places for you to camp and to show you the way you should go. ~Deuteronomy 1:32-33

'Tis the Season!

2009-08-26T11:59:00.001-07:00

Cat fight? Barbed-wire incident? Over-zealous ex-foliating?

Nope. Just time for some good-ole blackberry picking!
(Yes, Tami, that is MY ARM! It looked fine when I was done picking. The fine scratches don't really show up until the next day... It doesn't hurt, though.)

My berry picking friend and I agreed that long, leather gloves with the finger tips cut out would be a great bit of gear for this job!

It was well worth it, though. I came home with a couple of gallons of gorgeous, juicy berries - easily my best haul of the season to date.

We made some jam. I say "we" because it was too much fun for anyone to miss.
(Jeanine ~ my jam recipe is on the back of the fruit pectin box: lots of sugar, crushed fruit, pectin. I do freezer jam, so there is no canning involved. Canning it is easy, though, if you don't have freezer space.)

The kids even enjoyed scraping the seedy pulp out of the food mill and eating it straight. No waste here!

My little jam boys needed a bath afterwards, but it was well worth the clean up to see their happy faces slurping up the healthy goodness!

Then God said, "I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food." ~Genesis 1:29

Tired Family

2009-08-15T18:36:00.001-07:00

We are having another great weekend of doing this:
And then we threw in some yard work for good measure this afternoon.

Now we are all feeling like this:
I really want to start blogging more often! Having swim meets six out of the last ten days has really wiped me out. We're headed into a swim team break, though, and this past Friday marked the end of summer swimming for the younger kids, so I'm hopeful that we are about to slow down a bit and find some kind of routine.

I'll let you know how that works out...

May the favor of the Lord our God rest upon us; establish the work of our hands for us-- yes, establish the work of our hands. ~Psalm 90:17

Fabric Give Away!

2009-08-13T16:25:00.000-07:00

Free fabric being given away here:
http://ihavetosay.typepad.com/randi/2009/08/from-my-stash-to-yours.html

Enter to win some beautiful designer quilting remnants!

Interview with a Two-year-old

2009-08-03T19:23:00.000-07:00

Terrific Twos!

This is such a great age! If you don't want to watch the whole thing, at least skip forward to around 50 seconds when he says "hunkleberries."

He keeps us smiling all day long!

Just for fun...

2009-08-02T17:33:00.000-07:00

Remember when sleeping on the floor was fun?

I will lie down and sleep in peace, for you alone, O Lord, make me dwell in safety. ~ Psalm 4:8

Too Much Cuteness

2009-07-23T16:28:00.000-07:00

Seriously, y'all. Sometimes, it's more than I can handle.

Daniel built a fire in the pit the other night, and Anna lighted it, with lots of careful "supervision."

It made Andrew feel like this when it was time to roast marshmallows.

When we ran out of hot dogs, the kids turned to roasting carrots slathered with BBQ sauce. (Which tasted surprisingly good!)

Sometimes, this happens at the end of the day.

Which invariably leads to this.

Unless, of course, this happens.

But the very best ending of all is this one.
Sometimes, there's more cuteness around here than I can even handle.

Thank you, Lord!!

Sons are a heritage from the Lord, children a reward from him. ~Psalm 127:3

Achy Breaky Heart

2009-07-21T14:43:00.000-07:00

This is the kitchen table at the house where we lived in SE Washington. I took this picture so that I could show you how cool this table is. It's a bay window pop-out on the back of the house, right next to the kitchen. Really, it's more of a booth than a table, which was so much fun and such a great space saver. I fed the kiddos here at least twice a day, usually three times, as our entire family could actually fit around this table. The very formal dining room was rarely used.

I really, truly loved this table.

I know that because when I was looking for blog fodder today and I saw this picture, I was overwhelmed with emotion. My very cheerful mood was swept away by a wave of nausea and sadness.

Of course, it's not really the table that makes my heart ache. It's all that it represents: the agonizing death of a dream, the crushing disappointment of unfulfilled hopes, the wasting of such amazing potential.

Yeah, it's all still fresher than I'd like it to be. But, surely, in some way, the Lord is using it all for His glory and ultimately for my good. Even if it feels like my life is so upside down right now.

"And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to His purpose." ~Romans 8:28

Summer on the S OR Coast

2009-07-16T16:38:00.000-07:00

It's been summer here on the Coast for a few days! Yesterday was something crazy like, maybe, 72 degrees, so the kids wanted to get out the hose and play after swimming lessons. Daniel came up with the idea of using a tarp like a Slip n Slide.

As I was holding the sprayer for the sliders, I looked down to see that Micah had decided he wanted to get a drink from the hose. Whew! I'm quite sure there is some theological metaphor in there somewhere. It seemed to make him ridiculously happy, which makes me happy, too.

A good time was had by all!

Pajama Camp

2009-07-14T19:39:00.001-07:00

Several years ago, when we lived in Gold Beach (also on the S OR Coast) our small children wanted to go camping. I think I was actually pregnant that first year. Somehow, camping seemed an insurmountable task on so many levels.

I couldn't imagine packing, loading, setting up camp, keeping little ones safe, preparing and serving and eating food, and then cleaning up. Not to mention SLEEPING, which is hard enough to do at home when pregnant and the mother of a tiny person or three.

Then there were the ramifications for the days following - the days of creeky hips and aching back and misery.

So, we came up with a compromise which has served us well for at least the past six or seven years.

Pajama Camp

Those first tender years, we actually drug the mattress from our bed out into the tent in the back yard for the night, which proved a viable compromise. Now days, we have an air mattress. From one year to the next, we always forget that neither of us sleeps when we spend the night on the air mattress. Perhaps next year we will have the foresight to drag the mattress out there again.

This is our faithful family tent in the park like setting of our back yard.

But, wait! Is that the shadowy figure of a child in the tent?

Yes! Yes it is! A PJ Camp newbie of the highest order.
"Did you say we're going to sleep in here??"

"Yippee!"

Life is good in the family tent.

Everyone plays until it is dark enough to fall asleep. (And until the parents grow hoarse from reminding them to stop giggling.)
In the end, all the children sleep wonderfully and awaken with joy, glad the warm house with the bathrooms is only a few yards away.

Perfect.

Taste and see that the LORD is good; blessed is the man who takes refuge in him. ~Psalm 34:8

Please, go read

2009-07-13T18:39:00.001-07:00

THIS.

It's exactly what I needed to read today.

Thanks, again, Diane!

From the Pool

2009-07-13T12:57:00.000-07:00

For now, this is taking up all our summer time energy:

Okay, well, all of MY summer time energy... they never seem to run out!

Rocket Launch

2009-07-12T12:23:00.000-07:00

One of the most fun things we received for Christmas this year was a couple of model rocket kits. Noah and Daniel each have one.

I think what made this the perfect time for this wonderful gift was the landscape in SE Washington. Here in SW Oregon, we'd have to make a real effort to find a place to launch rockets where they wouldn't be lost in trees and bushes and behind hills.

Our front yard at Jubilee was a golf driving range and there were essentially no trees in any direction for at least half a mile. It was PERFECT for rocket launches. We enjoyed many!!

The folks at the Ranch were very interested in the rockets, too. Several of the precious folks there came up to the house to get a better view as the boys launched. The students there even wrote an article about it for the school paper. It made Noah feel like a celebrity!

(For what it's worth: I want to start blogging again, but am finding it very challenging. I thought I'd just jump in with some very old news and photos and see where things go from here... I know it's a little strange, but bear with me!)

We're Heeeeere

2009-05-24T18:36:00.000-07:00

It's been a wild couple of weeks full of company and packing and cleaning and moving and unpacking.

It's still very strange to be here, but good to be back in familiar surroundings. The house is going to be great for our family.

And we seriously have LOTS of room for company, so come and visit us soon!

We've already had our first marshmallow roast on the deck and we fed grilled hot dogs to the amazing group of people who helped us unload our moving trucks. I'm really looking forward to having people over often. It is a great house for entertaining.

I can't remember if I blogged it before and I'm too tired to look right now - we've rented and moved into the house where I grew up, lo, those gazillion years ago. This life of ours is never boring!

Muddy-Frogwater Weekend!

2009-05-11T13:57:00.000-07:00

Saturday was a wild and fun day! We set out in the morning for the Walla Walla Balloon Stampede. Everyone was excited and looking forward to seeing a sky full of hot air balloons on a gorgeous, sunny Saturday. Sadly, when we arrived at 10:00, we learned that the balloons are launched at 6:30 AM... Ack! There was not a balloon to be seen anywhere.

Plan B was to explore the festival activities at the fairgrounds. This involved watching half an hour of country line dancing and a few minutes of belly dancing, SE Washington style... Hmmm.

After indulging in a tiny bit of "fair food," Roger was inspired!

We piled back into the van and headed south. My clever husband remembered that he had noticed LOTS of frogs when he had traveled to the little town of Milton-Freewater, Oregon, to watch a basketball game. He declared that we were on a Photo-Frog-Scavenger hunt! As it turns out, there are about 40 frogs scattered around town and we set out to find them...

A wonderful time was had by all.

Here is our crew of expert frog-spotters:

Here is a slide show of the 36 frogs we found, along with the adorable spotters.

If you're ever in far NE Oregon, I highly recommend a trip to Milton-Freewater. It's a beautiful town full of gorgeous old houses, nice parks, friendly people, and LOTS of frogs!

Zip Line

2009-05-05T08:47:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, we had a long-awaited opportunity to ride the zip line here at the Ranch. Daniel wasn't too sure about the whole thing, but in the end, all the kids gave it a go. Considering the climb up the pole and the crazy jump off the platform, I was very proud of all of them!

Even little Andrew took a brave turn!

The kids reported that this was the scariest part... jumping off...

After watching for a while, this little character demanded a Swiss Seat of his own.

He wanted to climb "up there."
He didn't actually climb the pole and zip down, but we did clip him onto the line and let him slide back and forth a bit. He declared it "SCARY" and then was devastated when we took him down. Ah, so good to be two.

There was also lots of flower picking while waiting for a turn.

Anna enjoyed the actual daring ride the most, by far. She was crazy brave and zipped several times.

All in all, it was a GREAT time. The kids would have stayed and zipped all day long. Even the reluctant riders wanted to try again after watching for a while.

Noah zipped several times and I finally got a video, in spite of my camera's uncooperative afternoon. So much fun!

God's grace in the midst of crazy times. He is so very good!

Starting Over... Again...

2009-04-23T14:05:00.000-07:00

There is so much to catch up on. And right now, blogging seems like it should be pretty low on my priority list. But I wanted to be sure to mention that we are moving. Again. Back to the Southern Oregon Coast.

There is so much I could write about this.

We are so very disappointed. And, yet, we can see the tremendous way God has protected us in keeping a place for us back where we came from.

We are fully confident that God will work all things together for our good. Just as He promised.

Currently, I need to keep cramming things into boxes and cleaning and making plans, all the while keeping my precious, very excited, little ones fed and clothed and safe and happy.

Sometimes, I think it's better if I don't write it all down... Yikes!

OH, and just a footnote to The Winter of Crazy Illnesses: Roger developed an ear infection last week and about 18 hours from when it started to hurt, his ear drum ruptured. If you call to offer him sympathy, be sure he's not holding the phone to his deaf ear. =)

There's so much more to tell, but I'm not quite ready. I'll keep you posted.

Blessings,
Brenda, Queen of the Nomads

Video on Demand

2009-03-06T17:19:00.000-08:00

So, I realized a couple of days ago that it was my one year Blogiversary! And I wondered what I should do about it...

I finally came up with this idea.

For my one year Blogiversary gift, I would love to receive a comment from YOU! And, as a fun twist, I'm inviting your video requests. Let me know if there is a question you would like me to answer, or a child you would like to see perform... or if you would prefer I link to something more interesting, like Cletus Take the Reel, or the Barbecue Song.

Blogging this past year has really been a fun thing. I hope to become more consistent again, now that the crazy move has been made and Winter is almost over and the kids are not in the hospital and the roof is not leaking and, and, well, you know... Surely, we're in for a quiet spell!

Thank you to all of you who have joined me on my blogging journey. I would love to know how you found my little corner of the web, if you'd like to share!

Blessings!
~Brenda

Video Fun!

2009-03-06T10:51:00.001-08:00

I just discovered that I can make videos with the camera we installed for Skype.

Look out, World!! We're having fun now!

Snow Much Fun!

2009-03-05T18:03:00.000-08:00

A few days ago, we had the strangest little snow-squall blow through. The weather changed suddenly from sunny and calm to dark and snowing very hard. The texture of the snow was like clumps of styrofoam. In a matter of just an hour or so, there was a blanket of white covering the grass.

Of course, the kids had to scamper outside to "play" in the little skiff of snow. I assured them it wasn't enough to play in.

Boy, was I wrong!

They quickly discovered that the snow had the best texture for rolling giant snow balls. I think the intention was to make a snow man, but the individual balls got so large and heavy that they couldn't stack them.

It was really fun to see the giant lumps of snow sitting there after all the rest had melted. The snow on the ground was gone in a few hours, but the snow balls lasted for days!

Daniel's good buddy came over to play, too.

Mary rolled a gigantic snow ball that became too heavy for her to push.

Daniel and Co. were very proud of their accomplishments.

Andrew came along to help Anna when hers became too heavy to roll any further.

It was a fabulous last bit of winter.

Now we're enduring spring rain and wind and enjoying the sunny days as they come along. It feels so great to get outside more!

Finished Object

2009-03-02T19:21:00.000-08:00

I was going to title this post: F.O., which is knit blog lingo for Finished Object, but it occurred to me that someone who doesn't read knit blogs might come along and misunderstand...

Anyway, I recently completed a knitting project for the first time in ages. I've had knitting issues and had not done anything in so very long. It was thrilling to knock out this shawl in just a couple of weeks. It's a fun pattern. Not very sophisticated, knit up with worsted weight yarn and big holes, so it goes really fast, which is exactly what I was looking for.

I used up some ancient (20 year old) acrylic yarn, which is not very elegant, but is cozy and very durable. I did "kill" the acrylic by steaming it, so it is more soft and drapes more, so the holes open up a little better.

The shawl has quickly become a favorite thing to wrap up in on a cold, winter evening. I'm surprised by how much I like it. I've always wanted to knit one, but couldn't get through a complex, lace weight pattern in this season of my life.

This ended up being just right.

Oh! And I used my GORGEOUS stitch markers, graciously given to my by my generous friend, Tami, way back in this post...

Thanks again!!

Super Secretary

2009-02-24T15:12:00.000-08:00

Sweet Anna answered the phone while I was in the shower yesterday. She took this message, which she posted on the refrigerator.

Not bad for seven-year-old receptionist!

She's a keeper.

Might as well Laugh!

2009-02-24T15:06:00.000-08:00

For those of you keeping score, the labs on Mary's staph infection came back. It is resistant staph! Another first! So, we got very special antibiotics, which, thankfully are taking care of it.

When we took Mary in for her follow up appointment, Roger urged me to ask the Dr. to check my thyroid to see if it needs to be adjusted. The Dr. asked me about my symptoms and suggested that I should consider that maybe what I need is medication for "stress." Roger and I giggled about that the rest of the day and for several days afterward. Is there a pill that will make all of this easier?? I'm not sure exactly why it's so funny, but I think it's the culmination of many, many "laugh or cry" moments. We almost always choose to laugh.

"A cheerful heart is good medicine." ~Proverbs

Still Here...

2009-02-19T18:19:00.000-08:00

I've been hesitant to post lately because I don't want to sound whiny. Let's just say it's never boring here...

Only because my oldest friend, Tami, asked:

"Somehow when I read this post through the first time, I missed "one case of shingles." That can be incredibly painful (I had it when Kricket was tiny) and I'm wondering which of you got it.

I know life is certainly still busy, but I'm hoping your list of "unusuals" is shorter this month!"

Micah, sweet baby, was the one with shingles. He tolerated it surprisingly well. Yuck.

Since then, all of the kids - in succession - came down with some crazy virus which presented like strep. In fact, we took all the kids in to the Dr. for our first ever strep tests. $180 in co-pays later, we left with two little boys with ear infections and a couple of kids with stomatitis (inflamed gums,) and six kids with various stages of sore throats and fevers. The stomatitis developed into a really nasty case of classic "trench mouth." Yowzers! Let me just say, it's not something you want to get.

Just as we are almost all recovered from that fun bout of crud, Mary developed some strange little infection under the end of her thumb nail. After treating it at home for a week, we took her in to the Dr. and he cultured it and gave her antibiotics. We just got a phone call. She has a staph infection. We'll be going back to see the Dr. in the morning...

The great news is that we LOVE our new Dr. He is super available and helpful and really cheerful and fun. And he seems to be very competent. Praise the Lord for providing Dr. MacFarlan just when we needed him!

Life here is still good. We visited a church we really liked last night. It looks like we may be moving in to town sooner rather than later. So, that's keeping things interesting.

There are signs that Spring is on the way. We're able to enjoy being outside more and more as the weather gets warmer. I can hardly wait for the apple blossoms and the warm weather and to get past this winter of new germs. =)

We feel so blessed to be here, learning, growing, stretching, seeing God work in wonderful ways day by day.

Greetings!

2009-01-21T11:42:00.000-08:00

My goodness, it's been way too long since I've written here. Honestly, I've been too tired to type... not literally, but too tired to sit down and get my thoughts together in a coherent way.

Life is so very, very good here. God continues to prove Himself faithful day after day.

Life has also been very, very full for the last couple of months.

By the numbers:

Eight family members' stuff packed and moved to another state.
A couple of hundred boxes unpacked (mostly.)
Four visits from out of town guests.
Fifteen inches of snow, a 35-year snow, which mostly snowed us in for two weeks.
Two major leaks in the roof caused by ice dams.
One Christmas.
One Nasty virus working through five of six children over the course of a week (a dozen throw-ups, lots of diarrhea, three runny noses, one ear ache, one case of shingles...)
One ruptured appendix.
Five days in the hospital.
One six year old birthday.
One gas fireplace repair.
One water softening unit removed from our home.
One visit from the DishNetwork repairman.
Five super-fun evenings with new friends over for dinner.
Two new drivers licenses.
Four new license plates.
One mortgage refinance.
One new, very large job.

It's all good. This week is finally shaping up to be "normal," which is such a timely blessing. We're actually "doing school" for the third day in a row, which is so encouraging! We almost have a routine established! Wow!

God is so kind to stretch us and grow us and take us where we never imagined we could go. We are all still thrilled to be here at Jubilee. Mary is healed up and eating and playing again. We're all finding our way here. I couldn't be happier and more at peace.

But I could be more rested...

Mary's birthday, a couple of days after she came home from the hospital was fun. The kids made masks for the party.

Here are a kitty, lady bug, and golden retriever:

Here are the cute faces behind the masks:
Mary decorated her own cake with a couple of containers of colored sugar. It was very pretty... and very crunchy. Just the way we like it! Sort of like eating cake at the beach.

Thank you so much to all who have been praying for Mary. It was a wild ride, but she seems none the worse for wear now that it is over. We are so thankful!

I'll try to post more often. I have lots of great pictures to share and daily adventures, too!

Ahhhhhh...

2009-01-05T11:26:00.000-08:00

It's been a couple of rough days for Mary, but I am delighted to report that she is doing much better!

She actually smiled for the first time in days and is starting to be interested in eating and drinking, too. She hadn't eaten anything for three days, so I'm expecting the food will begin to give her a bit more energy.

Thank you for praying. It's been pretty tough for my little sweetie.

This morning the surgeon told us that it had been an especially bad perforation and migh take a few extra days to stop hurting.

As for me, I'm so thankful that I grabbed a toothbrush on my way out the door on Saturday night... but I'm really looking forwaard to a shower!

Thank you, again for your prayers.

New Adventures

2009-01-04T10:53:00.000-08:00

I'm actually posting from my cell phone!
Which would be much cooler if I weren't sitting in a room on the pediatrics unit at Kennewick General Hospital.
MARY HAD HER APPENDIX REMOVED THIS MORNING!

I KNOW! CRAZY, HUH?

Her appendix was perforated, so it looks like we will be here for a few days.

She's just been out of sugery for about an hour, but she's doing great. She's feeling so much better than before!

Life just never seems to get dull around here...

Prayers for a quick, uncomplicated recovery are appreciated. Also for smooth logistics with the rest of the family, work, weather, etc.

I should have plenty of time to post in the next few days... if my thumbs don't fall off.

God is good!

Happy New Year!

2009-01-02T13:55:00.001-08:00

Wow! A new year is upon us.

I know... I'm not the first to notice, but sometimes it takes me a while to catch up.

Life has been full and busy here. Since last I wrote, the virus that made sweet Daniel puke in the night has worked it's way around through five of the six children, scattering some puke here, an ear ache there, a cough and runny nose for that one. You know, just general viral yuckiness.

The snow has been spectacular, as well! We enjoyed a couple of weeks of fantastic, cold, fluffy snow. I have some great pictures, which I'll get uploaded eventually.

When the snow melted a bit on our roof and then the temperatures stayed low for so long, we sustained some ice damage to the roof of the home where we are living. This resulted in lots of drywall damage in the garage - luckily that's all the damage there - and soggy carpet in the boys' room. It took us a while to figure out that leak. Who expects a leak to dampen the floor of a second story room, without dripping from the ceiling?? Strange stuff.

And, of course, we had a lovely Christmas. We were snowed in and unable to attend any church services, which was disappointing, but we had a great time opening presents and celebrating together here at home.

All that to say, it's been a very full couple of weeks. Sleep has been often-interrupted, children are suffering a bit with cabin fever. Life has been good and crazy.

At the beginning of the really cold weather (single digits for several days and nights in a row,) I got out the felted mittens I knitted a couple of winters ago and had Micah try on the smallest ones. They are a perfect fit! So sweet! And he loved them... until we actually went out to the car and then he summarily tugged them off and did NOT want them back on. I also found the pair of mittens that didn't felt evenly, which I had made into slippers and put those on him at the same time.

While he was delighting in them, I seized the opportunity to grab a few photos of his cuteness.

Funny how photo shoots with toddlers always seem to end this way.

Blessings on your New Year!

Ack!

2008-12-21T00:56:00.000-08:00

Middle of the night posting is rarely a good sign.

Have you ever been awakened by the sound of liquid being dumped on the carpet in your bedroom at 12:30 am?

I have.

Now I'm up, praying that everyone sleeps through the rest of the night.

Me: I'm so sorry you're sick, pal.
Him: I'm not sick. I just threw up a little.
Me: Oh good. Hey, next time, how 'bout you head straight for the bathroom if you need to throw up, rather than coming to my room to tell me first, 'k?
Him: Okay. Sorry about that.
Me: It's okay, just keep your bowl handy the rest of then night.

Ah. I guess I should be happy that it's been so long since he's thrown up that he forgot the procedure. Clearly, we were due.

The toddler just found me. I heard his delicious little footsteps on the tile before I saw his sleepy face.

Oh how I love all the parts of being a mom. Some parts are just a bit more lovely than others.

It's actually nice to be up this night. We're being hit with the second big, artic snow storm! It started snowing a couple of hours ago, just after we got back from town. The air is filled with the tiniest snow flakes imaginable and they sparkle! It's like it's snowing silver glitter. So beautiful!

We'll likely be snowed in for a few days, as this is supposed to be a much bigger dump than the five or so inches we had already.

Hopefully, I won't spend our snow days scrubbing carpet and washing pukey laundry.

Although, even pukey laundry is more pleasant with a clean blanket of snow covering the world.

Good night!

Can't Stop Giggling...

2008-12-19T15:23:00.000-08:00

Every time I think about this story on the Yarn Harlot's blog, I find myself giggling quietly to myself. It's just what this tired mama needs on a crazy day.

Fallen and Can't get Up

Blessings on your day!

Snow Days

2008-12-15T15:48:00.000-08:00

So, here is pictorial evidence of the beautiful, light, fluffy, COLD blanket that has covered the Ranch and the region and beyond, apparently.

The Ducklings have been having a grand time playing in it.

It's so very cold. Which means everyone stays delightfully dry.

However, I wonder how long I should let them stay out.

Ack! Uncharted territory!

We're finding our way and having a grand time of it.

I can't handle the cuteness of these pants!

The cute extra kids are our new neighbors and fantastic playmates.

Daniel and JJ are cut from the same cloth. They have WAY too much fun together!

Warming their hands around the "campfire."

We're staying warm and cozy and figuring out how to make all the parts fit together in our new routine.

It's all good.

Mmmmm... Christmas

2008-12-13T18:08:00.000-08:00

In case anyone's keeping score, yes, it's snowing! Sadly, it has not been sticking. Today was cold and rainy/snowy - slushy, I guess.

But, tonight it's supposed to start getting c.o.l.d. Hopefully, we'll wake up to a little snow on the ground. Enough to play in would be fantastic! We'll see. The forecast still holds out hope for more later in the week.

But, the more pressing issue:

We went to town yesterday and stocked up on groceries. Today, I realized that we forgot to buy chocolate! Ack! We have chocolate chips and cocoa powder, so, clearly, I will have to get to work and make them into something snackable. (Sure it's a word!)

Therefore, I bring you...

Super Easy, Super Tasty, Quick and Simple Fudge

Combine
12 oz. (2 Cups) Semi-sweet chocolate chips
with
1 Cup Butter
Microwave for about a minute, until it's all melty

In another bowl,
Beat
2 Eggs
Mix in
1 Pound Powdered Sugar

Combine the contents of the two bowls and mix well.
Stir in 1/3 teaspoon Vanilla.

Pour the fudge into a wax paper lined 8x8 pan
Refrigerate at least two hours

Cut into tiny pieces and nibble away!

I guarantee this fudge will turn out right every time and will taste great, without the need for tricky stove-top cooking or special ingredients.

Enjoy!!

Blogging about the Weather

2008-12-12T13:52:00.000-08:00

I know, not the most thrilling topic at first glance...

But take a look at this and tell me what you see:

Could we be headed for a white Christmas??

That would be a real thrill for this formerly coastal family.

Of course, I left out the part of the forecast that says the high on Tuesday will be EIGHT degrees. That may be thrilling in a whole other way...

We're off to Walla Walla (the town so nice they named it twice) this afternoon to get my Washington drivers license and get some groceries in anticipation of the week of cold/snowy weather ahead. The road into the ranch is not one that would be a fun drive in winter weather. We'll also go watch the Ranch Boys play a basketball game while we're in town.

I'm telling you. We are learning to get lots done when we're in town, now that we're out in the boonies. At least, we try... I think this is our fifth trip to the DMV. Ack!

Life is good.

We made it!

2008-12-08T19:20:00.000-08:00

If you've been here before, you might notice I've changed up my header a wee bit. I really can't be "on the S OR Coast" any longer, now that I'm... well... NOT.

I'm still toying with the title. What do you think?

The picture is of the sunset here, as viewed from the widows at the back of our house. Every sunset since we arrived has been amazing.

I have so much to tell, but I'm still in a daze with all the change and all the unpacking and organizing and all the finding places to put things.

It's a good daze, though. God is clearly in it!

I feel sure I'll be back soon with more details.

Family News

2008-11-24T16:41:00.000-08:00

Dearest Friends and Family,

I write to you today with gratitude in my heart for all that God is doing for our family. I am truly exhausted with moving preparations - we load the truck on Wednesday! - but I wanted to take a moment to give you the Readers Digest version of our story, for those of you who haven't heard.

When Roger and I met, we were both serving full time in residential ministries to kids. After a time, God moved us away from that work, but we always believed we'd return to it one day. As time went on and the Lord moved Roger up into positions of greater and greater responsibility, we began to dream that one day we might even be blessed to lead a residential ministry to children. As we transitioned from one job to the next, watching the Lord prepare us for the next thing, we always looked for an opportunity to move back into professional ministry. The door never opened.

Last spring, Roger got a call, completely out of the blue, from an executive search firm. They were looking for an Executive Director for a ministry to troubled boys in Southeast Washington. Someone in Arkansas had given them Roger's name and they wondered if he was interested.

To condense the next six months: We weren't interested. We were content here in North Bend. We weren't planning to move again for at least five years. But God had another plan. He prompted Roger to continue taking "one more step" in the process. Finally, in early September, we traveled to Washington to visit Jubilee Youth Ranch. Even then, we didn't expect to take the job. Following that visit, God continued to make our path to Jubilee straight. Every time we had a question or a concern, it was answered before we asked. Every time we had a conversation about the reasons we wouldn't go, God would speak the very same words back to us through others, without their knowledge. He led clearly, He led gently. Ultimately, we realized that this is what we had been waiting for. It is an amazing opportunity!

The Ranch is located near Prescott, Washington, surrounded by wheat fields and 5,000 acres of apple orchards, near the Snake River. It was founded by a few families who wanted to start a ministry to troubled youth. They built the facilities and have been waiting for the right person to come and lead the ministry. Right now, there are about 25 boys there. Most of the staff live on campus. We will be provided with a beautiful home on the edge of campus. The Board of Directors are amazing people who love the Lord and are eager to do His work. There are foundations laid for housing for around 200 boys. We'll be attending church and shopping, etc, in Walla Walla, about 30 minutes away, and the Tri Cities, about 45 minutes away.

I'd be more than happy to answer any questions you might have! We are very excited about making this move and very eager to see what God is going to do. It is a thrilling task and a daunting challenge that reminds us constantly of our need to be completely dependent on God for wisdom and courage. Please, pray for us! We'll do our best to keep in touch and would love to see any of you come for a visit to our little spot in the country.

Happy Birthday!

2008-11-08T13:12:00.000-08:00

Happy Birthday, Amy!

I'm so glad you were born.

(wow! that's a lot of candles!)

A Great Take on Election Day

2008-11-04T11:23:00.000-08:00

It's interesting and fun for me to watch the results of "election day" roll in.

But here's a much more important take on
Election Day.

Click over and enjoy!

Too Funny to Keep to Myself

2008-11-03T13:52:00.000-08:00

Another blogger suggested this.

Type "Brenda needs" into Google and see what comes up. I didn't expect much and found myself cracking up in front of my computer...

Give it a try with your name! Let's see what you need!

1. Brenda needs love and strength to pull herself out
-ain't that the truth!

2. Brenda needs her medication
-more on that later (see #11)

3. Brenda needs a partner
-who knows how to pack a family of eight for a a move to another state!

4. Brenda needs a $37000 DSLR
-wouldn't that be something! Think I'd take better pictures??

5. Brenda needs a chocolate chip cookie
-mmmm...

6. Brenda needs a (ahem) supportive undergarment...
-got that covered, thank you very much.

7. Brenda needs to conduct herself as an adult woman
-um, yeah. I'll work on that... or not...

8. Brenda needs continuing medical care
-there are these bumps on my head...

9. Brenda needs lots of space
-to stack all of her moving boxes.

10. Brenda needs more from Sonny.
-who's Sonny? and what does he have to offer that I might want more of??

I was going to do ten, but I can't stop!

11. Brenda needs to stabilize those emotions with a little Zoloft or something
- need I say more?

12. Brenda needs help eating, dressing, bathing and going to the bathroom.
-actually, I have way too much help with all of the above!

13. Brenda needs moral support
-more, please!

14. Brenda needs to practise Decorum
-certainly not at Cubbies!

15. Brenda needs some prayers
-bring 'em on!

16. Brenda needs to know how the mystery ends
- so very, very true.

17. Brenda needs to get her things moved
-to SE Washington.

18. Brenda needs To Shape Up, Come Clean And Stop Feeling Sorry For Herself
- just as soon as I manage #17.

19. Brenda needs help
- ack!

20. Brenda needs a makeover!
-no comment.

So much truth from such a random source... [wink]

From Under the Pile,
Brenda

Rejoice!

2008-10-24T10:39:00.000-07:00

My heart is singing this morning with my dear friend, Amy!

Together, and with the angels, we are singing, "Hallelujah! God is good!"

Remember a week ago, when I posted this about my friend who was longing for her baby, who was waiting on the other side of the world?

Today, I can report to you with great joy that Amy has received her referral approval and is now the official (though not yet legal) mother of this sweet Chinese girl, Elisabeth.

For those of you who wonder, yes, this is Amy of the pie crust, Amy of the granola inspiration, Amy of the sweet comments.

She has waited 105 long days for this great news, which finally arrived this morning. Lord willing, she'll have her baby girl in arms before Christmas.

Congratulations to your precious family, Amy. Our prayers have been answered and your sweet daughter will be home before you know it. I can't wait to see her dancing with Abby in pink princess dresses!

"God sets the lonely in families, he leads forth the prisoners with singing." -Psalm 68:6

So glad Elisabeth will be with her family soon and that the prison doors of this long wait are swinging wide open at last!

I can't stop smiling!

Going Under

2008-10-21T14:27:00.000-07:00

It's funny how my "season of life" impacts my perspective on so many things, including my relationship with the Lord.

A few of you commented along the lines of how it takes purposeful work to go deep. To stay below the surface requires a concerted effort to swim down.

When I picture going deep and escaping the turmoil of the surface for the depths of His peace,
I picture... sinking. It's a complete, surrendered, letting go. I give up my will to survive and to keep myself afloat and then I find myself
sinking...
sinking...
sinking...
down into the quiet, dark, calm, peaceful places.

I remember the seasons of my life when I would work hard to go deep. When I would dive and kick and swim purposefully toward the depths.

For now, I am content to surrender to gravity.

Surely, my season for vigorous swimming will come around again, in due time.

"He tends his flock like a shepherd: He gathers the lambs in his arms and carries them close to his heart; he gently leads those that have young." Isaiah 40:11

Peace

2008-10-20T11:39:00.001-07:00

A quick devotional this morning reminded me of this beautiful illustration.

At the surface of the ocean, there are waves, and wind, and glaring sun, and the noisy voices of gulls and the pull of the tide. But as you go deeper, down far below the surface, the noise and the turbulence and the heat fade away. Down deep, there is peace, and calm, and quiet.

My heart's desire is to live below the surface. To delve deep into Christ and abide in Him in such a way that I am sheltered from the noise and the heat and the turbulence of circumstances, fully engulfed in His peace.

"...the peace which passes understanding will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus."

Peace.

Lord of the Details

2008-10-19T19:30:00.001-07:00

God is SO GOOD.

Throughout this crazy process of turning our lives upside down, He has been so very kind and so very faithful and so very gentle. Each insurmountable obstacle is simply cleared away, making way for us to follow Him.

Today, it was the cats. My sweet friend, whom I've known since high school, texted me today to say that the kitties are welcome at her house.

I know, it seems like a small thing. But it's not.

All the shelters are full. All the animal rescues are full. No one wants to "freecycle" them.

"What," we wondered, "will we do with these precious pets?"

And, making the stakes so much higher, we have certain children who are attached to certain cats. Letting the kitties go into some uncertain circumstance was a painful thought for them.

Now, we can know that the cats reside with friends. And we can come and visit them when we are in town.

When I told the kids tonight, they all heaved sighs of relief and a burden was lifted from all of our shoulders.

God is SO GOOD. He is so very kind.

If He is for us, who can be against us?

Long Distance Relationship

2008-10-17T13:40:00.000-07:00

I have a friend.
She is loving and kind.
And a faithful blog reader. =)
Right now, her sweet baby girl is on the other side of the planet.
This is not the way it should be.
She has been so very patient
for so very long.

Will you please pray with me for her?

I'm praying that God grants her
the peace that passes understanding,
that He would keep her far-away little one
in the palm of His hand,
that He would fill her house
with peace and joy while she waits.

And, most of all,
that her little one would be
in her arms VERY SOON.

He is so good!

(It would be great if you would leave my friend a word of encouragement in the comments...
Thanks!)

Jubilee!

2008-10-15T15:57:00.000-07:00

God calling our family to move to Southeast Washington, completely unexpectedly, has been such an amazing experience. I want to chronicle some of it here, but my brain is so very overloaded right now with keeping my daily life running and preparing to move. The balance between the important and the urgent has never been more challenging.

Here's a quick tid-bit on a busy Awana-Wednesday.

When the "executive search organization" first contacted Roger and sent a profile of the ministry and the job description, included in the many pages was this statement of the vision of Jubilee Youth Ranch. It touched my heart. Enjoy.

The biblical vision of Jubilee focuses on the outsider - the weak, the defenseless, the marginalized and the outcast. It was a social ideal designed to prevent the creation of a permanent class of poor people. The ones on the outside were given the opportunity and tools for a comeback.

A society ultimately is judged by its attention to its weakest members, those with their unused potential on the outside of the common life. The goal of Jubilee is to bring the excluded inside, building a holistic supporting community in which the poor person can grow and gradually move from dependency to relative stability as contributing members of the families and communities in which they live.

The Jubilee vision desires to nurture the spirit of the residents of Jubilee Youth Ranch. Jubilee is an investment restoring wholeness to young boys with broken lives, broken relationships with God, self, and others. The program addresses broad areas that affect the quality of life. Our programs focus on housing, social, personal, spiritual and vocational development, with the goal of living a life of meaning and purpose as followers of Jesus Christ.

A Little Sad

2008-10-14T10:58:00.000-07:00

I just went to post a listing on freecycle for our cats. I had thought that I was totally fine with giving them up in the move. In fact, don't tell the kids, but I was kind of happy to be free of the cat-care burden,
small as it is.

However, just now, when I was writing about our sweet kitties, who need a new home...
I felt a little sad.

Ack! I love my cats!

Darn it.

We can't take them to Washington, as we'll be living in a really nice house, provided by the Ranch and wouldn't want to have pets inside. AND, they can't live outside, as cats are frequently eaten by coyotes at the Ranch. So, clearly, they need a new, safe, loving home.

I just didn't expect to miss them.

Anyhoo...

Anyone need a couple of beautiful kitties??

From the S OR Coast

2008-10-06T10:10:00.000-07:00

So... We have BIG NEWS here at the House of Coast...

We're MOVING. Yes, it's strange, but true. Once again, we made plans.. and God LAUGHED.

It's a long and wonder-filled story, but I don't have time to write it all down right now. I just wanted to get the word out and to post a few pictures. We'll be moving to Jubilee Youth Ranch in Southeast Washington (near Walla Walla and Pasco/Kennewick/Richland) at the end of November. Roger will start work there on December first as the new Executive Director. Jubilee is a ministry that seeks to give a fresh start to disadvantaged boys.

Truly, this is a dream come true. Roger and I met when we were both working in these kind of ministries and always believed that God would lead us back into this work. We just didn't expect it to be now, when we're comfortably settled here. We've always looked for this opportunity whenever it was time to do something new. This time, the opportunity came looking for us.

Rejoice with us as we move back into full time ministry and make a new home in the corner of Washington.

I guess I'll have to come up with a new name for the blog...

These are pictures I lifted off the internet to give you a peek at where we'll be:

The Ranch is an oasis in a valley among the rolling hills of sage brush and wheat.

The founders planted lots of trees which will be great for shade as they grow larger and lend a picturesque quality to the place.

The buildings in this picture are administration/school and one of the dorms and some staff housing in the background.

This is a better shot of the admin building. In the distance, you can see the apple orchards that back up to the ranch. We'll be nestled among the largest apple orchard in the world (6000 acres.) I can hardly wait for the blossoms in the spring!

This is the house which the ranch has genrously provided for the Executive Director's family. We'll be moving in here and living on campus. All that green grass in the front yard... a driving range! I guess we'll all be brushing up on our golf swing.

I'd better stop putting off the start of this Monday. There is so much to do and the process and the future seem a little overwhelming some times. Surely, God will give us the grace to do what He has called us to do.

"We have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us." 2 Corinthians 4:7

Our California Adventure

2008-09-22T20:26:00.000-07:00

In August, we trekked south to the Red Bluff area of California for our annual pilgrimage to see our dear friends. We always plan to go on the weekend of Ide Adobe Days, which is a fun celebration at a local state park.

I'm just now getting the pictures of that fantastic weekend up on the blog. Enjoy!

Micah fell hopelessly in love with my sweet friend, Susanna. Who can blame him? She is so much fun!!

There's nothing better than ice cold lemonade on a hot day.

There were two guys with instruments making great music all afternoon near the shade tree where we set up our headquarters in the grass.

Daniel sat down, first thing when we arrived, for an old fashoned shave.

The girls enjoyed making corn husk dolls with the help of patient docents.

Noah is slipping into the ranks of young adulthood, as evidenced by the fact that this is the only picture I took of him all day... rats. I'll do better next time! (He's making a candle.)

Anna made dolls, too.

Daniel's favorite part was running around with his good buddy.

They even tried their hand at the cross cut saw.

Everyone enjoyed the candle making. We came home with many interesting candles.

Mary liked the horse.

Here, Andrew and Mary are playing an old fashioned game where you try to pull the other person off of the box.

There was home made ice cream, too!

Andrew's favorite things were making candles (he made several) and washing clothes by hand... who would have thought?

All in all, it was a magical day full of fun and fellowship. Relaxing under the big oak trees with good friends on a hot summer day felt like the best vacation ever. The kids had a blast trying out all the activities and collecting souvenirs.

We are so blessed to be able to enjoy such bounty. And to come home with such great memories!

I Just Keep Pie-ling It On

2008-09-20T19:26:00.000-07:00

Who knew a pie crust recipe could change my life?

This afternoon, Roger ran the peeler/slicer/corer for "thank you pies" for the lady who gave us all the apples.

Then, Anna and Mary insisted on doing enough more apples to make a pie for US.

I used up all the pie crust I had put in the freezer the other day and I ended up with this:
Which we ate after dinner.

And I made these:
Which are unbaked, frozen pies for the apple lady.

But the really important part...

Roger said the apple pie may have been the BEST HE'S EVER EATEN.

Y'all, Roger grew up in the South. I have learned, since marrying him, to make great fried chicken and mashed potatoes with the skins on and all manner of other yummy Southern food. But I've never, in fourteen and a half years, been able to get the pie right.

All I can say is,
"Whoo-hoo!"

Thanks again, Amy!!

(Oh, and I have resigned myself to the fact that pie is now part of my life... and I may some day weigh 300 pounds... but what a way to get there!)

Such a Good Day

2008-09-19T23:10:00.001-07:00

God has been so patiently, quietly teaching me new things in that way that He does. This has been the week I've been dreaming of for so long. We're settling back into a fall routine, recovering from the busyness of summer and refocusing on home and all the simple pleasures and productive pursuits to be found here.

Today, I had the joy of spending the afternoon with a godly, sweet friend who has that wonderful eternal perspective that is so rare and precious. We always talk non stop when we're together and then feel like there is so much more to say at the end of the day. And so very little, if any, of it is idle chatter.

On this particular occasion, we made apple sauce while we talked. I may have mentioned here before that our family is blessed with friends who share more apples with us than we know what to do with every year. I always try to get lots of the apples put up as sauce, so that we can enjoy it all year long. I also share lots of apples with my friends for their families. The dear friend who joined me today had not canned apple sauce before, so I had the joy of showing her just how easy it can be and then sending her home with beautiful jars of healthy goodness. It was a delightful day. Together, we made four gallons of apple sauce.

But, more importantly, we shared our hearts and spurred one another on toward love and good deeds.

I feel so abundantly blessed.

Regarding Pie

2008-09-18T15:41:00.000-07:00

There has been some serious falling down in the Low Carbohydrate Diet Department, thanks to Amy's Pie Crust...

I already told you about the blackberry:

Which was met with rave reviews by my toughest critics:

Today, an $.87 pumpkin from The Walmarts became this...

It's the best pumpkin pie I've ever tasted. In fact, it's so good that I decided to wait an extra day or two to become skinny again.

I made the mistake of reading the sweetened condensed milk can label.

TWO HUNDRED TWENTY grams of carbs from that ingredient alone. Wow!

I'll just have to feed the rest to my kids - QUICK!

Thanks again, Amy!

Oh, and by the way, I made the crust yesterday and I quadrupled the recipe, divided it into eight portions and froze them. This morning, I got one out and let it warm up a little on the counter and rolled it out between sheets of plastic wrap. It's just as fantastic as it was on the blackberry pie! I'm guessing you could keep it in the freezer for a while.

You know... just in case a small pumpkin falls into your cart at The Walmarts.

Recipes!

2008-09-17T10:07:00.000-07:00

Whew! The last couple of weeks have been very full.

We managed to get started with swim team and flag football and Awana and the Boy Scout popcorn sale last week. In the middle of it all, we picked apples at a friend's house, so I've been busy making applesauce.

In all, it's been really a great week and I'm feeling like it's really good to be headed into fall and back into a busy groove of activities and home school and home making. We're all looking forward to STAYING HOME for a few weeks or even months!

Part of my flurry of activity has been spending LOTS of time in the kitchen. In the process, I've enjoyed some old tried-and-true recipes and discovered some new ones, too.

The most amazing and thrilling kitchen discovery came courtesy of my friend, Amy. The same Amy who inspired me to post my granola recipe, which has been the cause of the vast majority of visits to my blog. Thanks, Amy! [Waving]

Anyway, my super-duper husband goes to Amy's house once a month for church deacons meetings. And Amy always serves some yummy dessert. A few times, Amy has served PIE... mmmmmm... Roger is a pie lover. I don't make pie much because I've never been able to get a handle on making a good pie crust. I have tried very hard, but to no avail. [insert sad face] After eating Amy's pie, Roger kept reporting that she does, in fact, make the best pie crust EVER. I had asked her for her secret before and she'd told me, but I'd never really taken time to try it. And, honestly, I figured it probably wouldn't work as well for me. I had tried so many recipes and methods.

When we went to pick apples last week, our friend also allowed us to pick blackberries from the edge of her field. The kids were determined to pick enough to make a pie.

So, when I got home, I called Amy and asked for her super great pie crust recipe. She gave it to me... and she gave me permission to share it with all of you!

Let me just say, here and now, that this recipe makes the most tender, flaky declicious pie crust I have ever tasted. In fact, when I served it to my kids and asked them if they liked the crust, they actually said that the crust tasted better than the blackberry part of the pie! AND they ate all the crust, where normally they just eat the pie filling and leave the crust - even in restaurants.

YOU MUST TRY THIS RECIPE.

Amy's World Famous Pie Crust

With two knives or a pastry cutter or a fork or something,
Combine:
1 C Room Temperature Shortening
2 C Flour
1 t salt

With a fork, stir in:
6 T HOT water

The dough will be very sticky.
Refrigerate or freeze the dough until it is firm enough to handle and roll out.

Really, it's THAT GOOD.

My Quick and Easy Applesaucing Method:

Quarter and core a giant pot of apples.
Add several cups of water.
Simmer until very soft.
Run apples through the food processor.
Can in a boiling water bath for 20 minutes.

I've done 28 quarts so far... I still have lots of apples to go...

I've also been making home made pizza a lot since I found this crust recipe on someone's blog...

ack! I can't remember where I found it in order to give credit.

Pizza Crust

Combine:
2 1/2 C Flour
1 T Baking Powder
1 t salt
1 T oil
1 C Water

Roll to fit a large cookie sheet or pizza pan. Top, bake.

I found that baking the crust at 425* for about 7 minutes before adding the toppings and baking for another 15 minutes works well.

I've been using a pizza cheese blend, which I can get for a great price at Cash and Carry and Ragu spaghetti sauce from a giant container I buy at Walmart.

Most satisfying: I can make this pizza and serve it in less time than it takes to order and pick one up from Papa Murphy's and for a fraction of the cost... and it tastes great!

Today, I also used this amazing multi-purpose roll dough from Wintercreek to make Monkey Bread for Roger's object lesson at Awana tonight. This dough has never failed me and I've used it MANY ways! You must try it. It's easy and fool proof and yummy. What more could you ask for?? Tami is one of my oldest friends... I mean longest-lasting, not OLD... and her blog is well worth perusing for great ideas and fun stories.

I'm off to spend more time in the kitchen. Have a great day!

Good Morning!

2008-09-09T07:09:00.000-07:00

We're back from our crazy whirlwind road trip (something like 30 hours in the car over six days.) It feels great to be home, but ACK! the mess and the laundry and the clutter and the exhaustion! Wow!

This week, we kick off the Boy Scout popcorn sale - an activity of epic proportions for Noah, swim team for Noah and Anna, flag football for Daniel, and Awana for all of us - I'm the Cubbies director, Ack!

Thankfully, it all starts tomorrow, so today is a glorious reprieve between the crazy road trip and the crazy home life. I'll be unpacking and laundering and organizing and cooking and cleaning and preparing for Cubbies and resisting the urge to nap.

"The earth is the Lord's and everything in it." - including me.

Ack!

2008-09-02T14:52:00.001-07:00

Just when I thought I might have a sane day...

Roger called to tell me that one of his employee's house burned down and they lost everything. He asked if I could pull together some hand-me-downs for their four year old girl.
Of course, I didn't hesitate to jump in and start sorting things out for her.

The problem is that on my "list of things to do" it says: Sort Clothes.

This is because clothing has been multiplying like bunnies in every corner of our closets, and attic, and storage room. I've been needing to pull it all out and go through it and organize it into something useful and get rid of what we don't need to keep. Thankfully, there's less to go through and organize now. Unfortunately, finding everything and going through it took a few hours. Of course, being a wee bit swamped is a very small thing in comparison to losing your home and all you own.

We have so much to be thankful for!

I need to be packing for a road trip. There won't be much blogging here for a few days... those great pictures will have to wait!

Except for this one. I took it self-portrait-style at the beach on Saturday. I'm so happy with how it turned out! I didn't even cut our heads or ears or chins off!

See you next week!

The Aquarium

2008-09-01T20:10:00.001-07:00

Ahhhh...

I got a snazzy new camera cable set-up.

I realize I've been a slothful blogger this summer, but I'm hoping to do some catching up and then to blog more regularly.

This weekend we decided to run up to the Oregon Coast Aquarium. We have a season pass, since it only costs a few dollars more than getting into the aquarium once for our family. So, we try to go at least twice a year.

It was great fun! The weather was perfect and they've added a few new things since we were there last.

One new feature was a small children's play area. It consisted of several animal statues for the kids to climb on. What a hit! They loved it!

Here's Anna(7) under a turtle.

And Andrew (newly 4) on top of the same turtle.

And, of course, Daniel(8) jumping off of the turtle.

The seals and sea lions were entertaining as always.

Noah(11) enjoyed the sea otters. (I almost got that perfect boy and otter shot...)

Mary(5) is an animal lover and had a great time all around.
Andrew and Mary enjoyed seeing the otters swim under water.

And there were these strange creatures in the "Odd Waters" exhibit...

I managed to get away from the aquarium with no pictures of Micah(17 mos) since he spent the afternoon in Roger's backpack. But he did shoot me a cheesy grin this afternoon while he was drawing. What a ham!
Pictures of California, Family Camp, the County Fair, and a trip to the beach coming soon... I hope...

Photo Challenged

2008-08-19T20:18:00.000-07:00

We had a FANTASTIC weekend with our dear friends in Northern California.

The weather was FANTASTICALLY hot(113*), which we were pleasantly surprised to find was quite tolerable.

There was the usual FANTASTIC array of things to do at Ide Adobe Day, which is the anchor for our annual pilgrimage.

All in all, it was a wonderful chance to pick up where we left off with our friends. Everyone behaved well and tolerated the heat and the long hours in the van and the close proximity to one another beautifully.

Most of all, I had a great time with my amazing, beautiful, strong, caring, joyous friend.

As a bonus, the baby took to her instantly. We wondered if he remembered her from a year ago. He spent the whole weekend following her around and sitting on her lap and laughing at her antics.

The bad news is that I got LOADS of great pictures... well, that's the good part... the bad part is that when I attempted (note the term: attempted) to plug my camera into my computer to download all the FANTASTIC pictures, my camera cable wouldn't plug in to my camera. It seems to be, technically speaking, "goobered."

So, until I can get another cable, I won't be able to share photographic evidence of the adorableness of my offspring and our friends and the wonder that is Ide Adobe Day.

In the mean time, my to-do list is a mile long and not shrinking like I want it to. I'd better get back to it!

Pictures to come soon...

Court of Honor

2008-08-13T18:47:00.000-07:00

Monday night was our Boy Scout Troop's second Court of Honor. It's a very special evening, when the young men are given all the awards they've earned.

Noah(11) shined.

He is a very goal-oriented boy and Boy Scouts gives him well-defined, attainable goals to work toward.

He is excelling.

It was so much fun to see him receive three rank advancements, moving all the way up to First Class.

He also earned five merit badges, two of which are on the list of those required for Eagle Scout.

As he grows in stature and wisdom, I can see him growing in skill and competence and confidence.

He has learned so much and worked so hard this first year of Scouting.

Our hope as parents has always been that our children would begin to show growth toward young-adulthood by the time they turned 12. Noah is well on his way.

He's certainly not all grown up, but we can at least see that he will be one day!

Since the last Court of Honor in February, the boys have enjoyed an overnight campout at Camp Baker, a night at the Scout Cabin, Spring Camporee, a week of Boy Scout summer camp, an overnight on the field after a Eugene Emeralds baseball game, a five mile hike, installed crosses at a local cemetery for Memorial Day, completed Jr. Sailing School, served at a Lion's Club basketball tournament, and enjoyed many troop meetings on Monday evenings.

Noah has earned his Tenderfoot, Second Class, and First Class rank.

And has earned, in total, eight merit badges:
Chemistry
Small Boat Sailing
Swimming
First Aid
Mammal Study
Indian Lore
Leatherwork
Landscape Architecture

Great job, son!

Keep up the good work!

Barbecue Review

2008-08-07T17:24:00.000-07:00

I came across this gem over at Smockity Frocks.

When my Ducklings watched it, Girlfriend(7) asked if the song were true. From my fond memories of living in the South for a few years, I can say with confidence,

"Yes, darlin', it's all true."

Truthfully, my very favorite barbecue in the whole wide world comes from the illustrious eateries of a glorious land called Dollywood.
Who would've thunk it?

(Although I linked you to the BBQ place at Dollywood, I still love to eat at Aunt Granny's, just because of the name.)

Enjoy!

Wow. That makes me super homesick for East Tennessee. There's no better music than bluegrass!

Photography Blog

2008-08-06T13:15:00.000-07:00

Diane's amazing zoo photography inspired me to post a few particularly spectacular shots of my own this afternoon. I am a little jealous of her skills, but I'll try not to be intimidated as I share my best work. Some people are just more gifted than others.

Enjoy!

(As with Diane's remarkable pictures, all of these are straight out of the camera, unedited.)

This is Sunshine(5) swimming in her first ever mini swim meet. She did so well! I wanted to capture the moment for posterity. I couldn't be more proud. She couldn't even swim eight weeks ago. Great job, Sunshine!

Girlfriend(7) swam well, too, this is the ONLY picture I got of her today. Good thing it's such a great shot!

Here, Sunshine is racing freestyle, which she won. Amazing form! Amazing timing!

I also got some great shots of The Boy Scout(11) racing in the mini meet. Freestyle:

Great arm action!

Super start!

D(8) also has shown great improvement this summer. Isn't his butterfly stroke impressive?

Seriously, Diane's pictures are way better than mine, you really should go check them out.

Joy in the Journey

2008-08-05T15:13:00.001-07:00

Right at this moment, this is going on in my quiet house:

(No, he's not really reading, just enjoying a book.)

It's a very peaceful afternoon, in spite of the cold, cloudy weather. Yesterday, we did some serious housekeeping and it leaves me feeling so much more on top of things today.

Ahhh...

In the "random" category, I bring you this tid bit:
We went to the restaurant supply store the other day and wanted to pick up a better dispenser for soy sauce. The best option I found was a squeeze bottle, which came in a six pack. When we got home, Girlfriend(7) and I set about thinking of things to put in the bottles. When it was all said and done, I found this oddly satisfying:

Such an illusion of order! So easily created!
(For the curious: BBQ, lemon juice, soy sauce, mayo, ranch, Italian.)

A couple of weeks ago, we ventured out to the County Fair where a good time was had by all and I snapped a bunch of fun pictures. For the moment, this is all I have time to show you. Consider it the Gratuitous Sprout Photo for the day.

Isn't he scrumptious?! Yes, we're still hopelessly smitten.

And a random eyeball. Sunshine's(5) eyeball, to be exact. No particular reason... do I need a reason?

Good News for You!

2008-07-29T13:31:00.001-07:00

Since the birth of my sweet Sunshine, I have been a member of an on line group called MOMYS. The name is an acronym for Mothers of Many Young Siblings. All the ladies in the group have, or have had at some point, four children under the age of nine at the same time.

It's a wonderful group of Christian ladies who encourage one another on so many levels. The practical wisdom of these few thousand ladies is immense.

A couple of years ago, some of the ladies decided to organize a cook book of MOMYS recipes. Over 1600 recipes were collected from the MOMYS and compiled into a huge, amazing cook book. There is an amazing array of foods represented and all the recipes are family favorites.

The first printing was 1500 copies and sold out very quickly. Due to all the requests for more copies, the ladies who first compiled it are having it reprinted. You can pre-order here from Marmee Dear. The expected price for this HUGE book is around $35.

The best ever home made brownie recipe is in this book - well worth the price all by itself!

Gloomy

2008-07-29T09:26:00.000-07:00

Ack! Send sunshine, stat!

It's cold and rainy here this morning. Somehow, I am supposed to get motivated and get the Ducklings ready to go to swimming and then I'm supposed to sit and watch them swim... outdoors... when it's 50 degrees and rainy...

All I can think about is whether I can stand to wait until the end of next week, when swimming is over, to GET OUT OF HERE and go someplace warm.

In fairness, yesterday was 63 and beautiful.

I just can't stop expecting it to be summer. You would think that growing up here would have conditioned me to think of this weather as "normal." Unfortunately, just a few years living in other places has wrecked my coastal innocence. I remember saying as a child that it was the best place to live, because it was never too hot in the summer or too cold in the winter. Which is so very true.

Anyhoo, thanks for letting me get that off my chest. Tomorrow is supposed to be back to 64, with afternoon sun.

I think I'll go change into sneakers. My feet are cold.

More Summer Fun

2008-07-25T13:18:00.000-07:00

It's quiet here for a brief window of time, so I thought I'd get the rest of our summer fun photos up here.

Fourth of July Weekend, we attended a parade in a small town down the coast, picnicked with friends in Gold Beach, saw fireworks here in town, BBQ'd with Generous Grandmother at her house, and saw fireworks in a nearby town. The kids' favorite part was lighting a few fireworks of our own in Grandmother's driveway:

Smoke bombs are exciting and interactive!

The Scoutmaster let the Ducklings try their hand at lighting things on fire.

They are all wonderfully cautious. (Oregon has very restrictive fireworks laws. You'd have to really work at it to hurt yourself with anything that's legal here.)

The Sprout wasn't sure what to think about all the noise and smoke and fire. Grandmother reassured him that it was all so much fun!

In June, The Boyscout attended a Junior Sailing School at the local yacht club. At the end of the week, we all got to go out to the lake for a big regatta. The sailboats were beautiful!

How many 11 year olds do you know who can do this? I'm so proud of him!

They raced around a course marked out with buoys. It was challenging in the changing wind conditions and having to go in different directions, with, against, and across the wind. He did great!

The rest of the Ducklings had a fun day, watching the sailing and playing in the woods and on the beach. D(8) likes to make funny faces.

Girlfriend is looking more and more grown up. Ack!

Sisters.

The Scoutmaster helped out with the sailing school and was down on the dock to watch the race and cheer our boy on.

Sprouty Goodness:

Around home, we've been enjoying the occasional sunny day and playing together when we're not busy running around. D has charmed The Sprout into cuddling with him sometimes.

Girlfriend and D tried out this sidewalk paint (equal parts corn starch and water, with food coloring,) which I read about here. It was really fun! It's a little harder to wash off than chalk, but a fun change of pace.

The Scoutmaster and company tie dyed these cool shirts for the Troop to wear to Boy Scout Camp. (He looks a little tired after being at camp for a week... I wonder why??)

Sweet neighbors gave us another bag of fantastic hand-me-downs the other day. My one of a kind Sunshine put this outfit together. I think she looks very country. Line dance, anyone?

Oh, and she tried these on while The Scoutmaster was away at camp. I guess it made her feel close to him...

The strawberries we planted in our flowerbed this spring have taken off nicely. This is the very first handful of berries we picked. There have been many more since! Yummy!

Summer is, as usual, flying by. We've had such lame weather here this year that it makes it seem even more like I've blinked and missed summer. Thankfully, we typically have some of our best weather in August and September. I'm hoping there are still some sunny days to play outside in our near future.

For now, we have a couple more weeks of swimming lessons, Cub Scout camp, Church Family Camp, a trip to visit friends in California, and a few other fun events on the calendar to look forward to.

Enjoy every minute!

Catching Up

2008-07-22T15:00:00.000-07:00

I had a few minutes this afternoon (ignoring the laundry and dishes...) to look over the pictures I've taken of our summer fun. I'm waaaay behind in putting them up here on the blog, so I've decided to drop a couple of picture-heavy posts in the next couple of days.

If you have no interest in seeing my adorable children being adorable, divert your eyes now!

First, we did some of this:

Strawberry Freezer Jam

And we have done lots of this:

Swimming Lessons

While the bigger kids swim, The Sprout and I do this:

And sometimes he does this:

One glorious weekend was spent at Sunriver doing this:

Can you see Girlfriend going down the water slide?

"Hey, brother! Look at me!"

Playing with toys by the pool:

Climbing on a tower at the outdoor mall:

Reaching the top!

The Scoutmaster bought Coke floats at the soda fountain!

Smoky the Bear was there, too!

Sweet Sunshine took this "pet snail" with her everywhere. Isn't he cute!?

Lots more to come from Jr. Sailing School and the weekend of the Fourth!

Happy Summer!

Well, HELLO!

2008-07-18T13:06:00.000-07:00

Who knew all of three of you were still out there keeping an eye on my little bloggy world?

Thank you for your kind comments about my happy kitchen project!

As a token of my appreciation, I will share this moment of vacation-y scrumptiousness:

The Bambino(3) LOVED the wading pool when we went to Sunriver last month. He especially liked the fountain in the middle. The Scoutmaster caught him mid-shower.

It was a very good day.

Blogworthy!

2008-07-17T19:58:00.000-07:00

The Scoutmaster and the Boy Scout have been off at Boy Scout camp this week. They're having a great time!

Meanwhile, back at the House of Coast, I took on the fun task of painting the kitchen. I just finished. I LOVE IT! It makes me disproportionately happy. Now I'm itching to paint the rest of the house, pronto! Thankfully, this should be the most challenging room, dealing with all of the cabinets and windows. Ack! The cutting-in!

You can see a picture of what it looked like before (blah!) here.

I'm not sure if the color is just right in the pictures, but it's close. It's a really nice, deep orange. I might take another picture tomorrow in the daylight.

In case you were wondering: Yes. The Scoutmaster approved the color before he left. In fact, I was on the verge of wimping out and he went to the store and bought the orange I really wanted. He's the best!

I chose the color using the awesome tools at the Sherwin-Williams website, by the way. It was really fun to try different colors on the wall and to get a feel for what they would look like.

Sorry, Tami, I don't mean to cause you project-envy. I'm sure the Engineer will let you paint something when he gets back!

Summer Slowdown...

2008-07-05T09:29:00.000-07:00

Ack! So sorry I've been conspicuously absent from the blog lately. Summer is keeping me busier than usual and I'm finding it difficult to sit down and process pictures, much less coherent thoughts.

We are having a really nice summer. The Ducklings are swimming every day. We finally had a return to summer weather after a week of miserable clouds and cold. We spent the Fourth with good friends and family. Boy Scout Camp is zooming into view, with my high school reunion right on its heels.

I love summer! This year I find myself struggling to balance everything and get it all done in a day, but I'm hoping to find some kind of rhythm soon... although it's not likely. Soon enough, swimming will be done and we can return to some sense of "normal." Hopefully, by then, I'll have it all together. Ha!

Love,
Brenda

Not Such a Baby anymore.

2008-06-25T15:33:00.000-07:00

While on vacation this weekend, we spent some time at a really nice swimming pool. The weather didn't cooperate, but the pool was beautiful. It has a large pool with a slide for the swimmers and a huge wading pool with a fountain for the littles.

The Boy Scout, D, and Girlfriend swam until they'd had all they could take. Girlfriend conquered the slide, now that she is swimming so well.

Sunshine and The Bambino were super happy in the wading pool. I'll share some great pictures of all the wet Ducklings later.

The Sprout hung out with The Scoutmaster and me. Before long, he was feeling quite confident and comfortable in the new surroundings and he began toddling around exploring. He is at such a fun age right now. He's so much fun to watch. Everything delights him and he loves to entertain us. We've always loved the 15 month stage.

It's all so bittersweet, watching the baby grow up. We love every new, joyful thing he does, but we know it will pass all too quickly.

We are all, here at the House of Coast, hopelessly smitten with this little man.

Summer!

2008-06-24T14:29:00.001-07:00

Summer has swung into high gear here at the House of Coast!

I just downloaded a bunch of great pictures from my camera and got them backed up, but it will take me a few days to get some edited for sharing. Lots of fun stuff!

We were away for the weekend and had a wonderful time relaxing as a family. None of us wanted to come home. But good things awaited here, too.

Today we had swimming and The Boy Scout started Jr. Sailing School out at the lake and we have a little girlie friend over for all day. The energy level is running very high - the kids' not mine! And we are enjoying the sunny, windy coast day.

In Central Oregon over the weekend, my sweet girlies found these wild irises and buttercups way out in the woods and brought me a few as a gift. I hated to throw them out when we left to come home, but knew they wouldn't survive the trip. So I took a picture.

Back soon with more!

Good Morning!

2008-06-18T06:53:00.000-07:00

Just popping in to say that the S OR Coast has not fallen off into the ocean.

We had a fabulous, busy weekend of All Star Baseball games and Father's Day BBQ.

Summer swimming started on Monday and has caused me to have to shift into a different gear in order to get school and chores and cooking and cleaning and playing all to fit together gracefully into each day. I think the investment of extra energy this week is paying off, though. I can feel a nice summer groove starting to form, which was my goal for this week. Hopefully, I can get everyone into a routine that will work for the next eight weeks, at least!

Oh, and we finally got a sunny day yesterday after weeks and weeks and weeks of gloom and rain and cold. Hallelujah!! It was such a treat to be outside and to be WARM. Saturday is the first day of summer. I can finally start to see it from here.

(For those of you with actual summer, our high yesterday was something like 65.)

(Oops, I just checked and the official high for yesterday was 59. It just FELT like 65... Ah, summer on the Oregon Coast.)

Food Blog?

2008-06-13T17:04:00.000-07:00

It seems like all I blog about is food lately. Hope you don't mind!

Thanks to Tami's inspiration, we combined the fresh, local strawberries with the homemade granola and some vanilla yogurt. It was a breakfast to remember!

The older kids seized the opportunity to work on the baby's sign language skills. I think he's mastered "more, please."

This afternoon, we picked up our first box of produce from The Farm. Everyone was very excited to see what was in it!

Because of the cool, wet Spring, this first box was pretty light. It had two kinds of lettuce, spinach, radishes, bok choy and some organic strawberry preserves.

I wondered how we'd do with the radishes and bok choy.

I need not have worried.

They ate the radishes with joy - even the tops!

And then they discovered the Bok Choi. (Which is apparently some kind of Chinese cabbage.)

I turned my back for a moment and when I looked back, there was this:

Now they're sneaking off with handfuls of lettuce and mouthfuls of spinach when they are supposed to be cleaning up the house.

I guess we won't have too much trouble using up the produce in the boxes this summer! It's all so fresh and tasty. This is truly veggies at their best.

Drop by for a salad, if you're in the neighborhood!

But don't count on getting any bok choi.

It feels like the House of Coast has been invaded by rabbits! Send pork chops, stat!

A Taste of Summer

2008-06-12T10:20:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, my sweet mother spotted some fresh, local strawberries at the farmers' market downtown. She knows how we treasure them, so she brought us a flat! Whoo-hoo!

The Ducklings have been eating them and I stemmed a bunch and put them in the fridge yesterday. I'm trying to decide whether to make jam. We are almost out of strawberry jam from last year, but these are so yummy, I want to eat them all fresh!

I' m sure I'll end up doing some jam, but this morning, I mashed some and served them over whole wheat pancakes. Since we had some Cool Whip left over from strawberry short cake a few days ago, I even added a dollop to make it extra special.

I think the Ducklings approved. They all wanted their picture taken with their plate of pancakes.

By the way, can you spot the "rookie mistake" in this photo of The Sprout?

Ahhhhh.... Summer!

Chimichanga Party!

2008-06-10T17:49:00.001-07:00

This afternoon, a dream came to fruition. I finally got to use my HUGE new kitchen for a cooking party!

Two dear, beautiful, generous, talented, lovely friends of mine brought their offspring (five boys, one girl, ages 3 to 11) to our home to make a triple batch of chimichangas.

It was great fun!

After the moms got the ingredients prepared, we rallied the 12 children together in the kitchen and began an amazing assembly line that looked something like this:

My sweet friend was right in the middle of it! We moms took on the job of folding all the chimi's as fast as the children would assemble them. Whew!

A good time was had by all...

Some of the children got down right silly.

But the moms remained serious and dignified at all times.

In the end, we had about 140 delicious, tortilla-wrapped packages for the freezer!

Comically, I'd never eaten a chimichanga before today. My two friends, however, love them and I trust completely in their good taste.

After the party was over and the dust had settled, the Ducklings and I baked and ate some chimichagas for dinner. I. am. in. love. with chimichangas! Yum!

Thank you, sweet friends! We need to do this again soon!

Helllooo??

2008-06-06T14:40:00.000-07:00

I'm scrolling through my blog list and I think,

"Oh, someone else blogged about chores today. I wonder if it was in response to what I wrote today about our chores."

Then I realize that I'm looking at the list of posts for my own blog.

Ahem...

Chores

2008-06-06T09:14:00.000-07:00

I'm still amazed, a year later, how the addition of a little person to our family and moving to a new house can turn things upside down. It's a good kind of crazy, mostly.

In the past year, one thing that has really slipped through the cracks is housekeeping.

I like that word, it reminds me of those ladies who keep hotel rooms all shiny clean.
In fact, it makes me want to holler for someone from that department.

"HOUSEKEEPING!"

So, ideally, my crack team of highly skilled Ducklings do a really good job of keeping the house cleaner and tidier than I could possibly do on my own. However, they are NOT spontaneous neat-niks. Which means it falls to me to instruct, remind, cajole, bribe, I mean reward, discipline, schedule, delegate, etc.

I have fallen down on this particular job.

The last two weeks, however, we have made a fresh start. A new chore chart has found its way onto the refrigerator and we are doing a much better job of keeping on top of the mess which is caused by living.

In my "system" the older Ducklings have specific chores to accomplish a couple of times a day. The littles are supposed to assist them, giving the olders an opportunity to learn to delegate and direct. It all works really well, as long as I keep everyone motivated.

The other day I came into the kitchen and saw this:

The Bambino(3) had taken it upon himself to clean the kitchen counter without being asked.

His technique may not have been perfect. And I'm pretty sure the counter was cleaner before he started.

But, these are the rare and precious moments that make all the hard work of training my little people oh-so-worth-it.

Thank you, Lord, for tiny glimmers of hope for the future and incremental progress!

I like to imagine that some day we'll all work together in glorious harmony, with great maturity, both theirs and mine.

The Gym (for Tami)

2008-06-03T15:59:00.001-07:00

Only because you wanted to know:

I've been visiting here:
for a few weeks now.

As to how I manage to find the time, it really comes down to juggling the need for sleep with the need for exercise.

(Picture me juggling a king sized mattress, a chicken leg, and a barbell.)

I am really only able to exercise first thing in the morning.
I just can't abide the idea of getting ready for the day and then working out and then needing to shower and start all over again.

So, I get up in time to go to the gym and be back before The Scoutmaster has to leave for work.

Ideally, this means leaving the house about 6:30am. Lately, with The Sprout cutting teeth and running a fever, it means leaving the house around 7:30.

The problem with leaving later is that when I get back, everyone is up and ready to rumble. They are starving and busy and need to be directed, supervised, fed, etc. So, sometimes it takes me a while to break away for a shower.

Only (and always) on those days do people randomly knock on my door at 9:30am.

Perhaps, this is a good strategy for getting more folks to drop by for a visit...

I really like a couple of things about this particular "gym."

One is that it is open 24/7. I have a pass code that I punch in to the door and I can get in any time.
Another is that it is almost always deserted when I go there. I'm not sure how they are staying in business, frankly, but I LOVE it!
Also, they have a circuit of resistance machines, which gives a full body workout, with cardio benefits. It only takes a few minutes to do the circuit.
They also have an infrared sauna. This is a nice way to sweat while NOT working out. It makes me feel like I worked out when I was too tired to do much. This was especially nice before I discovered:
I AM HOOKED on the elliptical machine. About a year ago, I took up running (google: couch potato to 5K running plan.) I really liked it, but after a few weeks my hips started to hurt really badly. So, I had to give it up in order to be able to walk and sleep, which are unavoidably important in my life. The elliptical is like running without impact. I tried one about 15 years ago and hated it. So, I didn't want to try it again. Now, I'm loving it and hopeful that it will help me get my metabolism moving and rebuild some long-lost muscle.

So, there you have it.

Any questions?

A Visit to the Farm

2008-06-02T13:41:00.000-07:00

It was a lovely weekend! The weather could have been better on Saturday, but great fun was had by all the Coast Family anyway.

When we lived in the Willamette Valley seven years ago and The Scoutmaster was working at Boy Scout summer camp, I was always on the lookout for fun things to do with my itty-bitty Ducklings. One weekend, I happened upon an announcement in the newspaper. Winter Green Farm was having an open house. So, I loaded up my three little ones - Girlfriend was just a few weeks old - and headed out to visit The Farm.

As it turned out, it was a wonderful afternoon. We went on a hayride tour of the farm and saw cows and chickens and goats and helped make scarecrows. Back then, The Boy Scout(now 11, then 4) and D(now 8, then 1) looked something like this:

Those pictures totally crack me up!

The Farm is a community, cooperative sort of thinggy, technically. Which means, that people can buy a "share" of the crop each year. Ever since that visit, back in 2001, we've wanted to buy a share, but time, money, frequent moves, etc, have always rendered it inconvenient.

This year, we decided to take the plunge! That means, starting June 13, we'll be getting a box of produce from the farm every week through the summer. The box will have an assortment of whatever is ripe that week. The boxes will be delivered to our town so that we can pick them up on Friday afternoons.

As a person who loves the idea of having a farm, or at least a garden, this thrills me! I admit, I am easily thrilled.

Saturday was the annual Spring Potluck at The Farm. So, we loaded up all six of Ducklings and hauled them off to see The Farm.

(I'll have to post some time about the perils of taking this crew to a potluck.)

Again, we took a hayride tour of The Farm and saw where our veggies are growing. We got to run our hands through some lovely compost and visit the new calves. D and the Girls helped paint a mural for The Farm. All in all, it was lovely.

Picnicing:

Painting:

Running around like crazy people:

The hayride:
Nearly two hours later, we left our new very "green" friends (Did I mention it's all organic?) and headed on into the city. To balance all that recycling and the vegan potluck, we had dinner at Chuck E Cheese.

We're nothing if not complex.

Many of the Ducklings fell asleep on the way home. It was a wonderful end to a wonderful day.

(Aunt B: The Sprout is wearing the sweater I made for The Bambino from your famous pattern. I LOVE IT!)

Friday Already?

2008-05-30T20:32:00.000-07:00

Wow! The week has flown by.

The Wee Sprout (13mo's) is sick. He's been running a fever off and on all week and cutting his first two molars.

So, I've been holding him a lot. Which is good,
except for typing. And blogging.

But it's been a good week. D played two great baseball games. I was able to attend the baby shower of a dear friend and encourage another friend in need.

The weekend holds great promise.

God is on His Throne.

Chocolate ice cream is in the freezer.

All is well.

Have a great weekend!

(By the way, did you all check out the Sprout video in the previous post? Is it just me, or is that the cutest baby ever??)

Great Music!

2008-05-27T14:06:00.000-07:00

A couple of months ago, Shannon at Rocks in My Dryer posted an announcement that a brand new CD would be given to the first 100 bloggers to respond to Matt Maher's website. He is a new artist and Shannon assured us that his music is wonderful. So, I skeddadled over to the give away page, assuming MANY bloggers would beat me to the punch... but, hooray! I was among the first 100! I gave them my snail mail address and waited and wondered.

Several weeks ago, the CD came in the mail. It's my current favorite music. I really enjoy Matt's voice and his upbeat style. His clever lyrics make me smile and stick in my head, which is a great combination! I even took it to the gym the other day and it's as good for working out as it is for doing housework.

In short, his music makes my family feel like this:

(Note: Super cute Sprout video)

And, more importantly, it reminds me that in fact,

HIS GRACE IS ENOUGH

Check it out!

Hey, I just clicked around on his home page, looking for lyrics to copy over here and I noticed that you can listen to the entire album for free through his site! Very cool. I would recommend a particular song, but I like them all so much, I can't pick a favorite.

Enjoy!

Early Reading Skills

2008-05-27T10:43:00.000-07:00

The Bambino(3) picking up a classic yellow #2 pencil,
holds it up before me and points carefully
to the tiny black words imprinted on the side.

"N, O, P. That spells Boy Scouts!"

Ah, a prodigy in our midst.
I can tell my work with him will be easy.

[wink]

Kitchen Day

2008-05-25T19:27:00.000-07:00

Into the freezer today:
Four lasagnas
Four bags of cooked brown rice
Four pints of cooked black eyed peas
Two quarts of cooked mixed soup beans
Three home made burritos

Into the cupboard:
A double batch of granola

Into the fridge:
2 1/4 cups of whipped, doubled butter
One large slow-cooked roast beef for BBQ beef
One pan of Sleepin' In Omlette, minus the onion rolls

Feels GREAT!

A New Dress

2008-05-24T13:47:00.001-07:00

With The Scoutmaster off training Boy Scout leaders this weekend, I was able to let the urgent (laundry, dishes, feeding the children, etc.) fade into the background a little so that I could take time to work on a project with Girlfriend(7.)

She's been asking for some new Spring/Summer dresses, since she has outgrown all of hers from last year AND she's been itching to do some more sewing since I helped her sew her first tote bag a few weeks ago.

In anticipation of the weekend, we made a mad dash trip to Walmart on Thursday. Before we went, I picked out the simplest pattern I could find online and hoped they'd have it at the store. Thankfully, it was right there waiting for us! Girlfriend deliberated for some time over all the fabric choices. In the end, she settled on this amazing green print seersucker. She loves it!

I was so pleasantly surprised to find how competent she is, once again. She is also delightfully teachable. She was patient and hung on my every word of instruction. It was actually really fun to work with her! I can imagine that in a few years we can sew side-by-side and really be a great team.

For me, it's a dream come true.

I'm so grateful that she's so enthusiastic and determined. It would be easy for me to blow right by her in my haste to keep up with life, but she is always there, persistently asking, asking, asking. God made her just right for me!

How about that cute dress!?

She wanted to finish it this morning,
so that she could wear it to a birthday party today.

I'm in love!

Beautiful. Inside and out.

Midnight

2008-05-22T11:40:00.000-07:00

"So I will dance with Cinderella
While she is here in my arms
'Cause I know something
The prince never knew
Oh I will dance with Cinderella
I don't want to miss even one song
'Cause all too soon
The clock will strike midnight
And she'll be gone"

-Steven Curtis Chapman

In my sympathy for the Chapman family, I can't help but give thanks that God gave Steven this insight before "midnight" came for his little Cinderella.

I'm so thankful, too, that we do not grieve without hope.

Come quickly, Lord Jesus!

Commentary on Cuteness

2008-05-20T14:53:00.000-07:00

Me: Sometimes I wonder about you, sweet little monkey-boy.

The Bambino(3): Me too, Mom.

Thrilled and Terrified

2008-05-20T11:46:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, The Sprout(13 mo's) was playing outside, which is his favorite thing to do in the whole wide world. He loves to romp around in the backyard with the big kids. And he's amazingly resilient. He falls down a lot. And he gets knocked down (accidentally) regularly. But he doesn't care. He just pops right back up and keeps going.

Climbing around on the bottom of the slide keeps him busy for an amazing amount of time.

Yesterday, Sunshine(5) was at the top of the slide. As The Sprout was noodling around at the bottom, she invited him to come UP.

He thought that was a great idea! So, he started trying to figure out how to climb up the steep slide. Each step brought him GREAT satisfaction!

Sometimes, there were setbacks.

But he was undaunted.
My very determined little boy kept at this for at least 30 minutes, which is for-ev-er to a toddler.
And he did not give up.

Eventually, he came up with a winning strategy. And, with Sunshine and D(8) both cheering him on from the top, he began to make steady progress.

His sweet little monkey toes gripped the surface and his strong fingers hung on tight and his gaze was fixed steadily upward.

And then... he reached the top!

Oh, the sheer unbridled joy of that moment! He scampered on to the platform with the biggest grin. I'm quite sure he stood two inches taller.

Then his sister sat him down on the slide and he zoomed back down to the bottom.

Without missing a beat, he flipped himself over and headed right back to the top.

This mama's heart is filled with pride and dazzled by his persistence and competence and delighted by his joy.

And just a little afraid to see what he'll discover he can climb next!

2008-05-19T10:20:00.000-07:00

Life's been flying by at breakneck speed lately. And I've been feeling like I can't keep up! This weekend was a wonderful break for me. Not that I lay around and did nothing all weekend. On the contrary, I was super productive! It's just that I had time to settle in and do some of the important things, with fewer urgent things hounding me from dawn 'til dusk.

I think that's the challenge for me right now. There is truly so much in my life that is urgent, so many things that I cannot put off until later. So, now that I'm somewhat caught up, I'm trying to focus more on being in the moment, not frittering away my time, using my energy for important things.

Girlfriend took this picture of me with her new camera.

This is where I sit A LOT. From here, I blog, and plan, and check math lessons, and surf, and feed the baby. My desk is centrally located in the dining room, which opens into the kitchen, and right by the front door. The hallway between the bedrooms and the living room and the family room runs right by my left shoulder. Headquarters. It's a great spot!

PS. It's another sunny day here! I am so ready for summer. Thank you, Lord!

Lovely Day

2008-05-17T22:59:00.000-07:00

The weather here on the Southern Oregon Coast has been fantastic three days in a row!

I had such a busy week.

Today, I had a glorious, quiet day at home!

Not only was I able to focus on getting some long-overdue chores done,
but I had a precious friend over for a visit this evening.

My bathrooms are clean, my kitchen floor is not sticky, the laundry is all done.

We had home made ice cream for dinner, courtesy of my friend!

Everyone is sleeping now.

I'm off to join them!

Ah, peace. What a lovely day!

Checking In

2008-05-16T21:31:00.001-07:00

Sorry I've been neglecting the blog.

In case you're wondering if I've fallen off the edge of the earth...

Not so much.

You know how when you're juggling

And one of the balls comes down and knocks you on the head?

Pretty much like that.

I'll be back when my eyes stop crossing and I can make coherent sentences.

Until then...
my heart will go on singing.

Until then, with joy I'll carry on.

Until the day I reach that holy city.

Until the day God calls me home!

Ha! See that! My long term memory is still intact!

Name that hymn.

Mother/Daughter Tea

2008-05-13T14:38:00.000-07:00

This time every year since I was knee-high, and probably even before that, our church has gathered for a Mother/Daughter Tea. I remember going with my mom and her mom and now I take my little girls.

This year, the theme had to do with memories. My sweet Girlfriend(7) was one of three young girls who was asked to share a favorite vacation memory.

She planned and prepared and practiced. She wrote out her memory in her own hand, with no help from me at all. Her joy and enthusiasm were a beautiful thing.

The event went off without a hitch. She was masterful with the microphone. She read her story loudly and clearly.

She is beautiful and I am so proud!

Adventures in Lint

2008-05-12T14:40:00.001-07:00

The innocent-looking Sprout(13 mo's)
is becoming quicker,
more nimble,
more curious by the day.

I am becoming older,
slower,
and less keen by the day.

The combination of the two
results in situations like this,
which are bound to arise from time to time.

Observe: the tiny, plastic, toy cell phone is approximately the perfect size to fit in the slot where the lint trap resides in the clothes dryer.

(Keepin' it real alert! Please, disregard the melted crayon clump which will have to be removed with a chisel, now that it has been melted and heat-sealed to the inside of the left corner of the lint trap.)

Next, observe me, Obliviouswoman, removing the lint trap from the clothes dryer to clean it, prior to loading the dryer with wet laundry.

Here, we see in his natural habitat, one adorable toddler, appearing innocent and content.

Here, we see said toddler looking smug and amused with himself.

This, is the tool which is able to retrieve a tiny, plastic, toy cell phone from a very narrow lint trap opening.

(The crevice tool on the vacuum cleaner is not long enough, in case you were wondering.)

Ta-da!

I tell you, that boy is quick as a wink!

Good think he's so cute.

And sweet.

And happy.

And cuddly.

And smart.

And patient.

And hilarious.

And... he keeps my problem-solving skills sharp, which is an awesome bonus!

Perhaps I should stick to loading the dryer when he's doing this:

Presents!

2008-05-10T13:55:00.000-07:00

Hooray!

I got a package in the mail today from a dear friend.

Tami and I have been friends since Junior High.

That's 25 years! Wow!

Thank you, Tami, for the special package.

I needed a little pick-me-up today and this is such a treat!

I technically won these treasures in a contest on her blog, which hearkened back to our college days, when we used to call in and win prizes on the local, Christian radio station.

It's appropriate that the gifts are both knitting related, too, since Tami is the one who taught me to knit, way back when we were just kids, knitting tacky sweaters with cheap acrylic.

(Now, we knit tasteful items with cheap cotton and wool.)

It's been so much fun to have a peek into her life and to share some of mine as we cross paths in Bloggityville.

Go pay her a visit on Winter Creek!

It's Baseball Season!

2008-05-09T15:32:00.000-07:00

Take me out in my PARKA.

Take me out in the WIND.

(This picture cracks me up. The Second Baseman looks to me like he's praying.)
Bring me a blanket and stocking cap.

I need one that has built-in ear flaps.

Oh it's freeze, freeze, freeze for the Pirates.

If it's too cold we'll go home.

'Cause it's cold, windy, miserable
at the old ball game!

Actually, we had a great time at the baseball game last night.
D played very, very well. He even caught an infield fly, which is very unusual for his league. His whole team played really well. There were lots of hits and some good fielding. It was really fun to watch!

It was, however, COLD. The wind was blowing right off the bay and it was about 45 degrees. We all huddled together for warmth and laughed about "The Boys of Summer." Apparently, the first game, which we missed, was called on account of frozen players. My sweet friend told me that the boys were positively blue when the coaches decided they'd had enough.

Makes me feel better about missing the first game of the season.

The team had a super time. They chant for each other from the bench and congratulate each other with abandon when a good play is made. It's a thing of beauty.

The preschool herd had a nice grassy area to play in there, too. I think they had as much fun as the ball players. I ended up with a lovely bouquet tucked into the velcro of my coat sleeve.

All in all, it was a perfect Spring evening on the Southern Oregon Coast.

Bring on global warming!

Self Aware

2008-05-09T08:29:00.000-07:00

From The Indignant Bambino(3):

"Mom, D(8) didn't act like Jesus!
He's acting like ME!"

Hello!

2008-05-08T11:59:00.000-07:00

We had a great time in Eugene!

Now, I'm in the midst of

Operation Restore Order.

Chaos abounds.

Grace Abounds!

Back later!

GSP

2008-05-05T13:08:00.000-07:00

Oh, look!

A Gratuitous Sprout Photo to distract you from the pitiful rambling below!

Look! Stunning blue eyes!

Now, move along, nothing to see here...

On the S OR Coast

Happy Easter!

New Camera!

The One Thing

High Desert Museum

Hello!

Family Camp

'Tis the Season!

Tired Family

Fabric Give Away!

Interview with a Two-year-old

Just for fun...

Too Much Cuteness

Achy Breaky Heart

Summer on the S OR Coast

Pajama Camp

Please, go read

From the Pool

Rocket Launch

We're Heeeeere

Muddy-Frogwater Weekend!

Zip Line

Starting Over... Again...

Video on Demand

More Video Fun!

Video Fun!

Snow Much Fun!

Finished Object

Super Secretary

Might as well Laugh!

Still Here...

Greetings!

Ahhhhhh...

New Adventures

Happy New Year!

Ack!

Can't Stop Giggling...

Snow Days

Mmmmm... Christmas

Blogging about the Weather

We made it!

Family News

Happy Birthday!

A Great Take on Election Day

Too Funny to Keep to Myself

Rejoice!

Going Under

Peace

Lord of the Details

Long Distance Relationship

Jubilee!

A Little Sad

From the S OR Coast

Our California Adventure

I Just Keep Pie-ling It On

Such a Good Day

Regarding Pie

Recipes!

Good Morning!

Ack!

The Aquarium

Photo Challenged

Court of Honor

Barbecue Review

Photography Blog

Joy in the Journey

Good News for You!

Gloomy

More Summer Fun

Catching Up

Well, HELLO!

Blogworthy!

Summer Slowdown...

Not Such a Baby anymore.

Summer!

Good Morning!

Food Blog?

A Taste of Summer

Chimichanga Party!

Helllooo??