Our peaceful spot

We are so lucky to get to visit the Oregon Coast a few times a year to stay in a beach house in Depoe Bay.

There is something about this part of the coast that just speaks to me. When the waves hit the towering cliffs of volcanic rock they splash dramatically. The dense forest grows almost to the edge of the cliffs. There are winding paths through the towering trees which I swear are magical - an enchanted forest. The contrast between the aquamarine blue ocean, deep brown-black cliffs, and green trees takes my breath away every time. When I walk along the paths which overlook the ocean I revel in sensory overload - the magnificent sights, the smell of the saltwater, the feel of the cool wind on my face, the sound of the waves crashing, the feeling of peace which permeates the area. When I am there, I am bursting with gratitude for the beauty around me and the life I am living.

For many years we have had a favorite reading bench along the ocean. It is the place I go in my mind when I need to relax. It is sweeter still because my kids like to hang out there with me. We carry our books (Aubrey also likes to bring her sketchbooks and pastels) and walk slowly from the beach house to "our" bench. Sometimes we read aloud, sometimes silently. Whenever possible, Dan and I will sneak away to watch the sunset from the bench. The only thing that makes our ocean reading spot ever better is nibbling on a little bit of Fuddy Duddy Fudge while reading and watching the waves, but that's a topic for another post . . . .

On our way to our bench along the ocean, June 2009.

Thoughts on acclimation and a talent show

Aubrey and her friend performing in the school play.

Yesterday morning Joseph and I walked into Aubrey's school to see her perform in a talent show. Uncharacteristically, there were no clouds in the sky and the sun was bright. Joseph scrunched up his eyes and covered them with both hands, walking blindly all the way into the school. He is not a fan of bright sunlight in the morning, maybe because he is a true Washington boy.

A few years ago I wouldn't have believed this, but my definition of perfect weather has changed. We lived in Arizona for 8 years, and then in Utah, so we were accustomed to some serious summer heat. When we first moved to Washington in August three years ago, I was amazed how cool it was, in AUGUST, especially in the evening.

Recently the daytime high has been about 65 - 70 degrees, and it has been slightly overcast but not rainy. To me, that is my new perfect. Once the thermometer climbs into the 80s or above, we all swelter and complain mightily. When the sun shines brightly we are a little shocked and we scramble to find sunglasses we haven't used for months. So, I guess we have acclimated have become true Washingtonians.

Joseph and I have been spending hours outside every day, puttering around the garden, playing at the park, or walking/big wheel riding. Like Goldilocks, I have appreciated the "just right" weather - not too hot, not too cold! We are headed to the beach for the weekend, so we can only hope for more of the same.

Did you know that the children of Dan and Tiffany (who sing very quietly to spare the listeners) sing beautifully? Brandon was in the school musical this last year (Seussical), Bailey recently performed with a great school choir (singing and dancing . . .), Joseph sings superhero songs at the top of his lungs while in the grocery store or riding his Big Wheel, AND yesterday Aubrey and her best friend Emily sang "You've Got a Friend in Me" in the school talent show. They bought matching outfits, and looked cute and sounded great. We're thinking that our kids definitely inherited their singing ability from their grandparents . . .

Our little superhero

I don't know how this happened, but our Joseph is completely obsessed with everything superhero. He wore the same Superman shirt (with cape) to preschool almost every day this last year. He would only change out of it to become Spiderman, Ironman, Batman, a Star Wars guy, or Indiana Jones. Oh, and his underwear MUST coordinate with the outfit (such as Ironman costume with Ironman underwear).

He lives his life from the point of view of a superhero. All around him are bad guys to wrestle and people to save. To my chagrin, he is magnetically drawn to every superhero movie in our house. While they are fun for his 17 year old brother, I think they are too violent for a 4 year old! I told Joseph that he couldn't watch the movies because they are too violent, and he told me that I don't understand. He said, "Mom, superheroes aren't scared."

It's a stage, I know it is. And somehow it helps my little guy, who feels powerless in some key areas of his life, feel in control and invincible. For now, I guess I will just enjoy watching my little Superman race around the house with an earnest desire to save the world!

More of Memory Lane . . .

I am still trying to catch up with documenting a few of the events so far this year. First, Easter 2009. It was rainy, of course. What else would it be in Washington?

Joseph hates to get his picture taken. He won't stand still for the picture and won't smile without making a silly face. So, to get an Easter morning picture, Brandon held him and twirled him around to face the camera. It's the best we could do!

In March we were so lucky to be able to see the musical

"Wicked" in Portland. We are a musical-loving family, and this was one of our favorites. It was fantastic!








The girls both performed two songs at their piano recital in June. They did a great job!

All about Bailey

This posting is dedicated to my sweet 12 year old daughter. We celebrated her birthday last Saturday, and it was a fabulous day! She started the day with her favorite breakfast in bed: homemade waffles with berries and whipped cream AND bacon.

Breakfast in bed, followed by opening presents with the family hanging out on the bed.

One of Bailey's new favorite music artists: Taylor Swift.

Supplies for our upcoming cake decorating classes. Bailey is addicted to the Food Network cake decorating shows!

We got our nails done at a spa and then headed to the mall. We had an appointment at the Clinique counter. There she learned about skin care and how to apply some subtle makeup.

The pedicure with the massage chair was great!

We shopped for some things for her while at the mall, ate lunch, and then left for home to get ready for a birthday party. It was wonderful to spend time with her!

On Sunday she graduated from Primary. In our ward, they make it really fun. The graduating girl is escorted out of the Primary room by the Beehive class, walking on a red carpet, as everyone sings "Called to Serve" (they walk when the chorus begins: onward, ever onward . . .). She also was presented her Faith in God award. Then she attended YW for the first time.

There is so much I could say about our wonderful Bailey, but I will limit myself to 12, in honor of the big birthday.

1. Bailey, I love your enthusiasm and zest for life. You like to be involved and active, and you have a great amount of energy.

2. I appreciate your honesty. I know that what you tell me is the truth. Integrity means so much.

3. I love the way that we can talk and have fun together, especially now that you are becoming a teenager. I think the teen years are going to be great!

4. I am glad you like to read so much and that we like to read many of the same books.

5. I am grateful that you are kind and compassionate toward others.

6. I am impressed by your attention to detail. You never forget names, faces, and other details. This is not something your inherited from me!

7. I admire your desire to learn new skills. Right now you want to learn to decorate cakes. It will be fun to take our cake decorating class and learn together.

8. I appreciate your dedication to learning and schoolwork. I never have to remind you about a school project or assignment. You are always right on top of it, and you always strive to do well in school.

9. I love to read your writing - you have a gift for sharing things verbally or in writing.

10. I am glad you have persisted with piano lessons, even though you tell me all the time that you hate it and I am so mean for making you take lessons. You are sounding great, and I just know that someday you will THANK me for making you continue lessons (and then you will make your own children take lessons).

11. You are great with younger kids and are a fantastic older sister. I know that you are going to be in high demand as a babysitter in the neighborhood. We will have to schedule far in advance to get you as our babysitter!

12. I am so grateful that you desire to make good choices and continue to develop your testimony.

I love you, Bailey!

On of my favorite things . . .

This time of year, after I get Brandon off to Seminary at 6 a.m. and before the rest of the crew awakens and needs me, I love to walk for a few minutes in my gardens. The sun is rising over the dewy plants and grass. Everything looks fresh and new. I love to look for new garden surprises. Because I plant mostly perennials, something is always not yet in bloom, coming into bloom, perfectly in bloom, or fading away. I think that is cool.

It doesn't bother me if my garden looks a little exuberantly messy. While I strive for some symmetry, I have nothing against experimenting with new plants or groupings. In fact, I love to throw things in the ground to see what they will become. Sometimes the plants and plantings are dismal failures. And sometimes I have to edit myself and prune things back. I'm sure I will never win any gardening awards, and what I find beautiful in my garden may not be noteworthy to others. But, my plants make me very happy! I feel like I learn a little more about gardening and what works just by trying something new every year.

There is something so gratifying and really actually spiritual about planting something from seed or small seedling and watching it grow into something beautiful. Sometimes I think it represents for me what I'm trying to do as a parent. The soil at our house is heavy clay, so I have to work in some good compost and peat moss before plants will flourish. Sometimes I have been lazy and just top dressed the planting with compost rather than digging down deep and mixing in the good stuff. The plants in this insufficiently prepared soil have languished. I bought an expensive clematis at a gardening show, didn't take the time to prepare the soil correctly, and now every day while I do dishes in the kitchen I look at out what happens when you don't give a plant what it needs - the clematis looks faded and stunted. I think that's a lesson for me as a parent. When we prepare a good foundation by making the best possible "growing" environment, our kids have a better chance of thriving.

It takes years to see (or hopefully see) the results of what I'm trying to do as a mom. But I can see results of my efforts as a gardener within months or a season. And that gives me hope and shows me that the little things, the preparation, the hard work . . . it all pays off with something beautiful.


The picture above shows a clematis which has been breathtaking, but is now fading, delphinium in their glory, and several more plants on their way to being great.

I planted these two mini rhododendron tree/bushes under our Japanese Maple in the front. I love to sit on the porch and look at their rich color. As a happy gardening surprise, the lupine blooms at the same time, and mirrors the same color.

The roses just bloomed today - wow!

Trip to D.C.

The end of March 2009 we traveled as a family to Washington D.C. and Williamsburg, Virginia. It was an amazing trip! We were all fascinated by the history of our great country (maybe with the exception of Joseph, who mostly liked riding the Metro). We were there during the blooming of the cherry blossoms on the National Mall. We loved the Smithsonian Museums, the Archives, the Lincoln Memorial, and so much more in D.C. In Virginia we enjoyed going back to Colonial days in Williamsburg and even further back when we visited the Jamestown Colony. We also saw the Yorktown Battlefield. There was so much to see in both areas - we will have to go again sometime!

It's Super Colonial Boy!

In Williamsburg, Aubrey stopped to observe an artist painting a picture of the Governor's Mansion. The very nice artist allowed her to add some of the details to his painting!

The weather was nice, but WINDY during our stay in D.C.!

2009 . . . so far

In the interest of playing catch-up, I am going to document a few of our favorite moments so far this year.



Joseph and Brandon making cookies together. I love to see my boys doing things together. They have always had a special bond. Joseph thinks the world of Brandon!





This winter we had unusual weather for this area - 20 days of snow! It was fun . . . most of the time. We were housebound for a week with roads were too slick to traverse. We finally put on chains and inched along to the grocery store.

Joseph and me having a picnic on our kitchen floor. I think kids at ages 3 and 4 are so much fun - full of imagination and zest for life.

Valentine's Dinner '09. We always have a fun meal where everything is pink, red, or heart-shaped!

To be continued . . .

Silver Falls

On Monday of Memorial Day weekend we drove to Salem, OR (about an hour and a half away) to hike at a wonderful place called Silver Falls. There are 10 waterfalls along a path in a beautiful rain forest. Friends in the ward hiked with us. We took a picnic lunch and lots of treats to bribe tired and grumpy children. Happily, even Joseph walked the entire hike. In fact, often he was at the head of the pack! We are ready for much more hiking this summer - we live in such a beautiful part of the world!

Memorial Day

We had a great time on Memorial Day. On Saturday we visited the north side of Mt. St. Helens. We had previously explored the south side, which has some cool lava caves and tubes to crawl through. This time we saw several visitors centers, including the Johnston Observatory, which has a fabulous view of the crater. Because Mt. St. Helens dumped ash on my hometown in 1980, it was a particularly interesting trip for me. The volcano is visible from our home in Vancouver and only about an hour away!

Here we go . . .

I am going to attempt to join the blogging world. My daughter has been urging me to follow through on my half-hearted promise to maintain a family blog. I am feeling the need to better document our lives at this point. Years ago I was an avid scrapbooker, but that has fallen by the wayside with Joseph's birth. I have a perpetual nagging sense of guilt for not documenting glimpses of our busy lives so we can reflect on them in the future. In general, life just seems to fly by now - our kids range from age 17 to 4, and keeping up with their needs and activities seems to take all available time.

Also, we live far from our wonderful family and many treasured friends. We have enjoyed reading the blogs of friends and family in far-off states, and feel a closer connection with them.

So, we will try! Well, I will do my best to write a few thoughts and post some pictures. If the blog looks good, that will be entirely due to the efforts of Bailey, who will be the creative director for the blog!