Orchard Girl

The Forgotten Blog

2012-01-23T08:09:00.000-08:00

Maybe this was why we lost our power.

That is mostly ice and some snow on the road.

That large branch was on the laundry room roof. Our sad birch tree will probably have to be cut down this spring.

Ice cold apples.

More of the birch tree.

Another view of the birch tree. Notice the broken top of the tree. Good thing we decided to move our cars the night before.

This morning I wrote a huge long post detailing the events of the last week. It was long and boring. So to spare my family and friends I've decided to give a shorter, hopefully less boring, version.

Two Saturdays ago it started snowing. The kids were super excited. Yay! Snow finally.

Sunday, I was disappointed church wasn't cancelled. Bumped into the curb turning into church. Car not hurt, kids think I'm a horrible snow driver. Still snowing.

Monday, no school. Mostly stopped snowing. Quick trip to Portland to stock up on supplies and spend Christmas gift cards.

Tuesday, snowing. School delayed 2 hours. Portland schools closed. Unfair. Kids build a snowman.

Wednesday, snowing hard. No school, kids rejoice. Snowman looks like a lump out in the yard. No electricity for most of the day. Generator runs pellet stove and TV.

Thursday, snow turns to rain. No school. Ice starts to build up. Kids try to make snow angels, they can't move their arms because snow is crusty. We have power.

Friday, more rain. Wake up to power going out. No school. Power lines laying in our front yard. Snow so hard we can walk on top breaking thru every now and then. Trees start breaking from weight of ice.

Saturday, scariest drive to work, EVER, and I didn't even drive. Thank you Rick. Trees and branches litter the road. Power lines down everywhere. We see flashes of light and then darkness, others are loosing their power. We are still without power. Still raining. Starts to warm up and after work roads are just wet. Basement is starting to flood, run power cord from generator to sump pump.

Sunday, no church. Snow is slowly falling. Made the kids take a quick bath in the kitchen sink. Woohoo, I know why some people would only bathe once a year. Soon after our power is back on. Hooray. Abby and I celebrate by baking cookies and brownies.

Monday, the clean up begins. Sunny! Rick took the branches off the house. All day at work I heard others tell their snow stories. What a blessing it was to own generators and to have extra food. I really missed hot water, but at least we had water, I know some people with wells who didn't have any.

Tomorrow's forecast: Snow and freezing rain. Here we go again. Rick is building a strong case for a larger generator.....hot water....

Happy Birthday Michelle

2011-04-23T22:56:00.000-07:00

Michelle is now 8! We had a fun time celebrating her birthday. She invited a few friends over for a cooking birthday party. We made mini pizzas, chopped up fruit and made a fruit dip and then decorated cupcakes. The girls all had fun using a rolling pin, hand mixer and frosting bags. On April 9th Michelle was baptized. She was so beautiful in her white dress. What a sweet girl, we are so proud of her and of her decision to be baptized.

February in Pictures

2011-02-02T07:41:00.000-08:00

My Valentine! This picture makes me smile!

Close your eyes Rannie, you may be getting one as a birthday card. I made these fun shoes as Valentines for the girls, they were so easy to make. I think they would be fun for a Cinderella party. Since the paper I used was 2 sided I didn't make the liner.

Peter's Cub Scout troop had their annual Pinewood Derby. Once again he had a cool red car, we still have a whole can of spray paint. We thought the dragons made it look fast.

Here is his car about to cross the finish line, in front of the others! This year his car won a couple races and now gets to go on to districts.

The line up, do you see the dragon racer?

The 6th graders at our Middle School have a fun section where they learn about ancient Egypt. At the end of their course they have a fun Egyptian Fair. Erin and Anna, do you remember this? One of the cool perks-wearing lots of make-up to school. Coming up with extra credit projects was a fun. Abby and her friends decided to paint pottery. During Christmas break I dropped them off at a pottery shop where they stayed all day. If they offered lodging I think they would have moved in.

Here are the fun jars the girls painted.

Abby said she wanted to make a pyramid as her second project, using cardboard and sand. I suggested rice crispy treats. (I must watch too many cake baking shows on TV). We made a total of 7 batches of marshmallow goodness, 4 on the first batch, 3 on the second. Abby lined a square box with wax paper, then we dumped the gooey mixture in and squished it into the corners. We let it cool overnight. Then decided to cut it in half, we scooped out one side so we could have a burial room, complete with mummy, jars of food, Lego warrior, and golden chariot wheels all made out of rice crispy treats or white chocolate. On the other side of the pyramid Abby painted a white chocolate burial scene, showing a person offering food to the sun god.

Everyone seemed excited by the pyramid, especially when they got to eat it. It was devoured in minutes, all that remained were crumbs, much to the delight of the janitors I'm sure.

I told Peter he gets to make the Sphinx in a couple of years.

Other fun February things: basketball. Abby said they will be studying Greece next-Toga party anyone?

A Little Help Please and a Christmas Update

2011-01-02T16:04:00.000-08:00

I just have a quick question for those with more blogging knowledge. In the past I was able to change the color of type permanently somewhere in settings or design. But now I cannot seem to find that again. With my new blog background, the regular type color doesn't show up well and I don't want to have to think about what color would show up when i finally post a better written blog post.

We have been blessed with family this Christmas. Christmas Eve Rannie, Dean, Brandy and Stevie came. We had a late dinner of Swiss Cheese Potato Soup. We quickly made a breakfast casserole to eat in the morning.

Santa came and left some super fun gifts. Then more family arrived and the fun continued. Rick's nephew Michael and his cute wife Christina arrived. We opened presents ate our amazing breakfast and started cooking Christmas dinner.

Michael taught Brady how to make Grammy K's special pie crust. I have figured out how to make her chow mien and tempura shrimp. (While eating leftovers Rick commented that the chow mien smelled perfect. Hooray!) Then Cody and his new wife Amy arrived right in time for dinner and more gifts.

We had fun with Marianne's family longer than planned. Thursday we went to a memorial service for Rick's uncle Jim who passed away Christmas Eve. We were then blessed to see more family at that gathering.

Shortly after the service my parents came to stay with us. Erin and her family came for the evening and then came back New Year's Eve.

Our house is quiet now, laundry is mostly caught up and the house seems to empty and quiet without extra family visiting. We love you all and enjoyed having you in our home!

Happy 2011

Christmas Past

2010-12-23T11:58:00.001-08:00

This photo is from our first Christmas Eve in Oregon, 1992. Mom and Dad are wearing their super cute matching jammies.

Here are the 6 of us in our cool pj's. I like the matching hats. Laurie did you come down on Christmas Day? Bottom row left to right Wendy, Erin, me. Top row left to right Anna, Mary, Sarah.

A Brithday and a Craft

2010-12-07T21:38:00.000-08:00

Please, everybody, look at me!
Today I'm five years old you see!
And after this, I won't be four,
Not ever, ever, anymore!
I won't be three- or two- or one,
For that was when I first begun.
Now I'll be five a while and then,
I'll soon be something else again!
(Marie Louise Allen)

Can you believe it? How is it possible that time can go so quickly? Cristine had a fun day, or as she told me the best day ever. We had a small party at McDonald's with a couple of friends. Then home to more cupcakes and presents.

Last year I saw a similar pillow on a fun blog. A while ago I bought some very ugly pillows with the plan to recover them for my future new couch. I have yet to get my new couch, but decided to go ahead with recovering the pillows. I wanted to be able to quickly remove the cover and put a new one on next month, so I used a button down shirt as the backing of the pillow. I should have taken a picture, maybe I'll remember tomorrow. The kids really like that the pillow has pockets.

The other pillow was made out of a sweater I thought Peter would wear. He wore it once last year for our Christmas card. The pillow cover turned out lumpy and the train is sitting too high. But we like it. I have two more pillow covers to make, I'd like to make one more snowflake and I may copy the quilting blog again and make the felt circle pillow. I just need to track down 2 more red button down shirts.

Pictures from October

2010-11-29T08:44:00.000-08:00

We went to Seattle for Halloween. Something happened to my kids and I ended up with a purple haired spider girl, a tiger, a funky witch and a little rock star. We went Trunk or Treating with Marianne and her family, wowie some of the cars/trailers/tents were decorated nicely.

A visit to Seattle dictates that one must visit the huge Cabela's store. We had fun feeding the fish, watching fish swim in the large tanks and stared at the huge number of stuffed animals. We were done shopping long before Rick, good thing they sell ice cream bars.

The park around the Space Needle has some really neat sculptures.

Look how pretty the blue sky is! Sunshine seemed to follow us in our traveling!

More fun sculptures.

At the Pike Street Market. This photo was taken right before we lost Peter. What a scary thing that was, I din't think I'd see him again.

Cristine's preschool went to the pumpkin patch. Yes that is a spider on her head, we had fun making those.

A Happy Harvest

2010-10-12T20:37:00.000-07:00

Last night we picked most of our pumpkins and winter squash. Isn't this fun. Now we need to get them cleaned up and put in our house.

This year we taught Abby how to drive a tractor. Isn't she cute concentrating while she backs up.

This is me on the forklift. I am much more comfortable on the tractor than the forklift, but I manage. Just don't expect me to be quick.

What I've bottled up so far this year: Peaches, Pears, Green Beans (woo hoo for using a pressure canner!), Tomatoes, Zucchini Relish and Salsa. The salsa is truly amazing, crossing my fingers that the next batch tastes as good!

I have learned a lot while canning this year. Here's a few things I've picked up. I miss my mother in law. Last year was so much easier having someone else to help peel and slice. Her years of experience know how were really helpful. While canning peaches I think she was nearby prompting me. Have a network of friends you can call to ask questions. I have called several ladies from church, each one has patiently walked me through whatever I ask. Yea for friends! Start with a mostly clean house. That way just one room is trashed when you finish. And finally: when your husband suggests buying the big container of cottage cheese at Costc0, do it. Pears taste so good with cottage cheese and when you have 50 jars....

Watch Out World

2010-09-13T08:55:00.000-07:00

Cristine started her 3 year of preschool. She was so excited to see her friends. While taking pictures she got a little impatient with me! Here's a look back at how much she has grown up in three years.

Cristine in 2008, not quite 3 years old.

Here she is last year, almost 4.

Same sign, this year. She has really grown up this year. As you can tell pink is still her favorite color and she still lets me put flowers in her hair.

1st Day of School 2010

2010-09-07T21:32:00.000-07:00

Can you believe it is a whole new school year? I feel like we were just taking last years pictures about a week ago.

Michelle could not wait for school to start. She said she had butterflies in her tummy this morning. She was so cute posing for her picture.

Peter was given some super cool N1ke shoes. He proudly wore them today.

Peter is now in 4th grade. When he came downstairs this morning I was surprised he wasn't wearing one of his new shirts, but he loves his Mario shirt.

Cristine will start preschool tomorrow. This will be her last year at home with me. We had so much fun spending the day together. We did a few art projects, gluing pom poms on paper. We did a science experiment, put some queen Ann's lace flowers in yellow dyed water. We also started a sewing project, which hopefully I'll finish tomorrow.

Abby started Middle School today. I really hope she has a good experience. We've been watching "The D1ary of a Wimpy Kid" all summer, ahhh middle school memories. She missed the bus this afternoon. This evening we had to figure out which bus will take her to the High School, where she'll then catch the right bus to take her home. We're both a little nervous about her riding the bus with HS students.

Everyone came home happy and were excited to go back tomorrow.

2010-08-23T21:02:00.000-07:00

Last week we went to Rockaway Beach on the Oregon Coast. We left 95 degrees and drove into the clouds, wind and cooler temperatures.

I could not believe the kids went out into the water. I barely got my toes wet and that was enough.

What a fun day. The cool weather followed us eastward as we drove home, where we were welcomed my a much cooler house.

We made personal pizzas the other day. This crust recipe came from a friend and is so easy, I love it! The kids were so excited to make their own. In the past when we make pizza, I make 2 using a box mix. This was so much easier. While eating Michelle exclaimed, "I make the best pizza ever!"

Pizza Crust Recipe

2 c hot water

2 T yeast

Let sit for a few minutes. Add:

2 t sugar

2 t salt

4 t olive oil

5 c flour (I substituted 1 cup with whole wheat flour!)

Mix it together. Get out your rolling pin and pizza toppings. Pull off tennis ball size lumps and let your kids go to town. (See easy, you don't have to let it raise!) Bake 450 for 10min.

It's not gourmet, it's not authentic, but we enjoyed it.

Brand New Pencils, Brand New Books

2010-08-19T22:22:00.000-07:00

Ah, the smell of fresh pencils. Aren't these neat?

The kids have been wanting to buy school supplies ever since they saw workers unpacking them at the local W-mart. Today was the day and our bill was HUGE! We bought $10 worth of homework supplies (glue, markers, pencils) the rest was class supplies- yikes!

Some of our purchases: 12 dozen pencils, 13 glue sticks, 14 folders, tissues, paper plates, napkins, zip-lock bags, 2 reams copy paper.

At the end of the school year I try to box up things that are still usable like scissors and rulers. But this year I wasn't as organized. I think we bought enough supplies to outfit several small countries.

I still have some shopping left, a small simple calculator for Abby, lunchboxes and jeans. For some reason we keep outgrowing them.

Are your class lists as huge? Next year we will have 4 in school. Any bets on what we'll spend then?

A Fishing Story

2010-07-21T07:07:00.000-07:00

We went fishing several times to a nearby reservoir. This little reservoir is only about 20 minutes away, but in all the years I have been here, I have never actually seen it. We have driven by, but never stopped. Back in May my husband and sister-in-law bought fishing licenses and not wanting to waste them, we have been fishing several times. The lake is stocked with fish each spring, so they aren't very big trout, but they are very tasty. The kids seem to enjoy it for a while, and then their attention wavers and they go exploring. When it is not raining, or too windy, it can be really fun. These photos are from the first time I was able to go.

Mt. Hood in the far background.

Peter seems to be the only one afraid of worms.

Cristine caught a ladybug.

Rick has had a great time. There were several evenings where we were huddling in the car, trying to warm up while Rick was trying to catch one more fish. I didn't get any photos of the fish, but you wouldn't have believed how big they were. They were 'this' big, and we caught lots. Actually, they were only about 6-8 inches long and my photo of them wasn't that great.

Rick's mom, Hana, passed away June 21. The photos from my nephew's wedding have become very special. We have really missed Grammy, what a sweet, fun lady!

April and May

2010-06-06T19:56:00.000-07:00

We got to go to Seattle to Rick's nephews wedding. It was cold and rainy as the couple walked out of the temple. Then the sun broke through the clouds and made picture taking more enjoyable.

When I was young, on a family vacation, my parents took us to the Seattle Temple. We spent an afternoon walking around it, enjoying the feeling of peace, the beautiful landscaping and the fun statues. While we were inside for the sealing, our kids walked around outside. They made movies with their i-pods of the beautiful grounds. The movies are funny, I think they were trying to see how long of a movie they could make. At times I think they forgot they were filming, the picture is sideways, upside down etc.

I am grateful that our children were able to be there with us. I am also proud and excited for Cody and Amy, thank you for setting such a great example for our kids!

Abby is now 11! Can you believe it? I can't believe how grown up she is, she is just beautiful. She is very excited for Middle School. Choosing which electives she wanted was really hard. I cannot believe how many different choices she had. Mountain Biking, Asian Art, Sign Language, Climbing Wall, Wind Sports, Newspaper, Oceanography, Band, French, Spanish, plus many many more. I think we had all of 5 choices.

Peter is now 9. He is very excited about the upcoming Cub Scout camp.

He asked for a Pikachu cake. Pikachu, Dinosaurs and Dragons are his favorite things.

A Month in Photos

2010-04-19T12:36:00.000-07:00

We started April with Easter and Michelle's 7th birthday. Both on the same day-How exciting is that?

Forest was so excited to help Michelle celebrate! When he saw the presents he came running in saying he was ready to unwrap his gifts.

We had our egg hunt in the back yard The kids were so fun to watch as they ran around looking for eggs.

Peter showing off his loot.

Forest was so cute. When most of the eggs were found, the kids walked in front of Forest hiding (really more like dropping) eggs quickly so he could find more.

Hey Crissy, I spy a blue egg just to your right!

Being the oldest and fastest has it's perks, Abby found the golden egg, loaded with spare change.

Peter's class went on a fun field trip to OMSI. Cristine and I met up with them there. This is Sampson, the super cool dinosaur. Peter was in heaven looking at the cool fossils. We need to take a family trip here!

These next photos were taken Sunday. The orchard is almost in full bloom. It is just beautiful right now!

I tried to get the kids to pose for me. Instead of a nice group of photos, the kids were having way too much fun joking around.

Michelle finally lost one of her top teeth. She didn't want anyone to pull it. It was so loose I thought she might swallow it.

I didn't get any photos from Saturday. But we got to spend the day with Rick's nephew Michael his wife Christina and their fun 11 year old son, Jacob. We haven't seen Mike is so long it was really fun to catch up. The kids weren't too excited about their visit until I mentioned they had a son. I wasn't sure how old he was, the kids decided that as long as he was able to walk and talk they would have fun. I think they were especially pleased when they realized he was old enough to play with. We are looking forward to many more fun visits!

With April not quite over, we are looking forward to many more fun activities.

Soup's On

2010-03-16T08:06:00.000-07:00

Rick's mom has eating a lot of soup lately. She likes that it warms her up and is easy to eat. Usually the meat is soft enough that she can chew it. I have been making lots of different soups: beef with veggies, chicken corn chowder, chicken noodle, Swiss potato cheese soup, chicken stew, beef stew, clam chowder.....We have also been buying good soups from restaurants, opening canned soup and adding water to dry packets.

I like that many of the soups I've been making can be cooked in the crock pot. But I'm getting a bit burnt out, so are my kids. Nothing sounds better to me right now than a big juicy steak. Plus I'm running out of recipes. What is your favorite soup recipe?

A Crafty Fun Time

2010-02-19T14:38:00.000-08:00

We got into the Valentine Spirit by making several fun crafts. We even had a few friends over for a craft party. The first 3 pictures are the things we made on our own. The last 3 pictures are from our crafting party. I'll try to give some quick explanations in case you may want to try some. Cristine's Valentine's all packed up, ready for school.

These are yummy pretzel sticks dipped in melted chocolate. After dipping, we carefully placed them on a parchment lined cookie sheet where sprinkles were dumped on top. I sampled quite a few and each time decided they were really tasty. We put 4-5 in cute little bags to give to the teachers. We made enough that I was able to Valentine's to my co-workers.

I saw these lolly pops on a blog, somewhere. After Christmas I found small candy canes on clearance so I bought several boxes. After carefully opening the packages we placed them on a lightly sprayed cookie sheet and baked them at 250 for 5 minutes. After removed from the oven we placed the stick and with two table knives squished the melted candy cane onto the stick. I then put it back into the oven for 2 minutes and squished the candy cane onto the stick again. After they cooled we placed them in cute bags for our friends. These were very fragile and many broken by the time we finished bagging them up.

Cupcake decorating and pink party trail mix.

Marbled paper made with shaving cream. We have made these several times and they are always fun. Spray shaving cream into a cookie sheet. Drip paint into the shaving cream. We use ink pad ink (not sure of the real name of the stuff, but it works). Use hands to lightly swirl the paint. Gloves would have been a good idea since we all ended up with purple hands. Lay your paper and top and lightly pat in down. Pull it up and with a spatula scrape off the shaving cream. Let the papers dry. Repeat. Washing the cookie sheets off outside would have been helpful too. Cut paper into heart shapes and make Valentine's.

Heart shaped crayons. Abby collected broken crayons from her classmates. We put the broken pieces into a silicone heart shaped baking thing. I placed it on a small cookie sheet and put it in the toaster oven. I set the timer for 10 minutes. I checked on them every few minutes. When the crayons looked mostly melted I turned off the toaster oven and let them sit in the warm oven. Since these were part of our party favors and I needed them to cool quickly I put them in the freezer to speed up the cooling process.

We had a lot of fun. The girls and their friends all got along well and they seemed to enjoy the crafts. We may have to try this again closer to Easter.

Sweet Things

2010-01-31T21:31:00.000-08:00

Tonight I am watching Jane Austen's Emma on Masterpiece Theater. Poor Mr. Knightley. My sweet husband is patiently watching with me, actually he is playing solitaire. But isn't it nice of him to indulge me? I need to treat myself to the boxed set of Jane Austen DVDs-I think I saw them at Costc0 a while ago. I has been a while since I've read Emma, I may have to go to the Library and check it out so I can read it again-hmm might have to treat myself to a set of Austen books.

Pride and Prejudice and Emma were my favorites. What was your favorite Austen read? One of my favorite Austen style books was Austenland by Shannon Hale. It was fun to read about a modern day Austen loving lady experience Regency England. While looking at this book on Amaz0n, I am amazed by the number of other Austen-style books that have been written. Makes me almost want to look into more of them. One of my co-workers loaned me a series of contemporary Christan-Austen styled books. I tried to read the updated Mansfield Park. Couldn't get into it. Really I am not an Austen junkie!

Back to the thought of treating myself, I am craving German Chocolate Cake. Actually, I find that I crave German chocolate cake every January. Today is my parents 41st anniversary and I recall with fondness watching my mother make this cake from scratch. This is on my list of things to try. Maybe I should have ordered the German chocolate blizzard at DQ last night! I think having a special dessert to celebrate your anniversary is so fun. For Valentine's Day I use to make Creme Brulee for Rick, until I started helping in the Floral Department. Maybe this year I'll find the time to make it, the kids always enjoyed helping to torch the sugar on top. Dessert + Fire = Extra Special. Do you have any special desserts or traditions for Holidays? Happy Anniversary Mom and Dad!

Look at Who I Got to Meet!

2010-01-18T15:15:00.000-08:00

Just wanted to quickly show off my newest nephew. Isn't he a cutie? Congratulations Erin and Bridger, he is so sweet. Thanks for living nearby so I could visit! Welcome little Westley.

Here's their first family photo. I love how Forest says his name. Love you guys!

Just How Do I Explain This?

2010-01-06T21:00:00.000-08:00

I have been called to serve on Jury Duty. During our marriage, Rick has served 3 times. This is my first time. My kids have had a hard time trying to make sense of what I will be doing. Abby asked what I was on trail for, then asked if I was a witness. Today I heard that Michelle told her friends I had to go to prison. Wonder if they'll still let me be in the PTA.

Cristine/Crafts and Candles

2009-12-12T11:55:00.000-08:00

Cristine turned 4 last week. She has been so excited about her birthday. A few weeks ago while we were driving she told me that when she turned 4 she would know how to read. Then she said that when she turned 4 she was going to learn how to ride a bike. I thought those both sounded like pretty good goals. Then she told me that when she turned 4 she was going to learn how to drive a car! I decided that she thought 4 was a magical age. Until the day after her birthday. She told me that she decided that she was going to skip 4 and just be 5. I am just loving all her fun comments!

I've been making some cute gift card/cash holders for a few lucky family members. They were super easy. First I cut out the holly leaf shapes, placed them on some card stock and sewed through them with fun red string. After sewing the leaves, I folded the card.

I folded it twice. One fold was maybe only a 1/2 of paper. I stitched up the sides a bit to hold the bottom fold. Then I painted on 3 red circles to look like berries. I used double side tape to hold the front of the card down and to keep the money or gift card inside. I thought they turned out so cute. I had planned to make our Christmas cards this way, minus the bottom fold. But haven't gotten around to that...maybe next year!

These are our ice candles. Each winter we have a week or two of below freezing weather. During the day we place plastic containers with water out to freeze. Then at night we invert them, add a candle and light it. They are beautiful. I love seeing them when we go outside.

Count Your Blessings

2009-11-29T21:25:00.000-08:00

Last year 3 out of our 4 kids had field trips to the pumpkin patch. This year Cristine was the only one to go. We had a fun time running through the corn maze, seeing the crazy pumpkin art and drinking apple cider. Somehow we never found the time to take the older kids. Much of October and November were spent making apple cider. My stomach hurts a bit from all that I have consumed.

This picture was taken on Thanksgiving. After feasting the kids enjoyed playing on my computer and on the Wii. Forest was right in there enjoying himself.

We also put together a puzzle. This on was put together in record time. We finished it just after midnight. We really enjoy the time spent gathered around the table, hunting for the missing pieces. Everyone helped out, even for just a few minutes.

I wanted to show my fall mantle. The plaque hanging above the fire place says: Count Your Blessings. We made the leaf garland a couple weeks ago. During Family Home Evening we were each given a leaf where we wrote what we were thankful for. Those leaves were then tied on to the garland. Rick's mom, Hana, even wrote on one.

I want to send out a huge thank you to everyone who helped out with our meal. The turkey, cooked by Rick was perfect, so good that we decided to cook another one the next day. Marianne, Dean and Erin were huge helps in the kitchen. Hana was even coerced into making chow mein and tempura shrimp. Someday, really, I will figure out the 3 day process of making chow mein. Actually it may become a lost tradition. But I'm still thinking about those shrimp, yum! I may be able to make the tempura, but someone else is going to have to fry them, that popping oil scares me. What a fun holiday, my heart is full of gratitude.

1st day of School

2009-09-13T14:38:00.000-07:00

School finally started here in Oregon. The kids were very excited for the school year to begin. Cristine is now in her second year of preschool.

Michelle is in 1st grade.

Peter is in 3rd grade.

Abby is now in 5th grade.

Here are all the excited happy kids, waiting to meet their new teachers.

Just Peachy

2009-08-17T12:44:00.000-07:00

Our first box of peaches didn't make it into jars, we ate them instead. Last Monday we picked several boxes. By Friday most were ready to can. Due to the mess the cherry juice made, I decided to try canning outside. I think this made the process easier in some ways, but harder in others. I kept forgetting things and had to run back inside for them. Hopefully next time I'll be better prepared. Next on the canning list: tomatoes, green beans, zucchini relish, Bartlett pears...

The sticky part.

The setup.

The end result. What do you think? Blue ribbon at the fair? I think the water was boiling a bit too hard, they seem to be floating more than my second batch.

My Attempt to Become Self Reliant

2009-07-26T20:49:00.000-07:00

Every summer I tell Rick that "this" year I am actually going to start canning. With all the pears, peaches, cherries, tomatoes and other veggies we grow around here some may think I should already be elbow deep in fruit peels and sugar syrup. Instead, I find reasons and excuses as to why I avoid it. This year I am determined to bottle up some fruit, boy that sounds familiar doesn't it?

Growing up I watched my mom can a number of different things. It seemed that as the temperature in the kitchen went up, so did my mom's temperament, sorry mom! Maybe that is why I avoid it...

My mother-in-law, until the last few years, was a one woman canning machine. She would put up quarts of green beans, pickled garlic, tomatoes, the best canned peaches-ever and the most beautiful canned pears. Every year she would win stacks of ribbons from the county fair. She also won a few trophies for her amazing pears. Several times I asked if I could help her, hoping to pick up her secrets in the process, only to arrive at her house at the 6am we agreed upon to find that she had already finished up. She was unable to sleep and started to can in the wee house of the morning.

Friday, I decided to throw caution to the wind and make some cherry juice. I picked a couple bowls of cherries, washed them and then threw them into my juicer thing. A little while later I was rewarded with 4 beautiful bottles of deep red juice. Since it was still fairly early in the day and the house wasn't too hot, I decided to make a couple more bottles. Lets just say I shouldn't have tempted fate. While in the other room I started to hear a sizzling noise so I quickly dashed back into the kitchen and found the hose leading out of my juicer had detached. Cherry juice had sprayed all over the floor, rivers had run down the face of the oven and huge puddles were burning on the stove top. I quickly wiped it all up making a sticker mess and continued with my juicing. I ended up with 9 bottles of juice and a somewhat sticky-free floor. Will I attempt to actually can something? Maybe. A friend just dropped off a huge box of fresh peaches.

88 Birthday Wishes

2009-07-19T19:36:00.000-07:00

Hana turned 88 this week. This is a big birthday according to Japanese custom. The person turning 88 is supposed to wear RED. (if anyone can explain the purpose and meaning behind this, please leave a comment) The money lei was a gift from her brother and sister in law. Tied to it is $88. Our kids thought that was really cool.

Rick's siblings all pitched in to help with the event, decorating tables, cleaning up the yard, prepping food, etc. Thank you for your help!

We had fun chatting and getting reacquainted with family members.

Happy Birthday Grammy K.

4th of July

2009-07-07T08:37:00.000-07:00

Hope everyone had a good 4th of July weekend. We watched a parade, baked in the sun, waded in the river, ate yummy food and too much candy, then watched a fun firework show. How was your weekend?

Peter's Baptism

2009-07-01T08:20:00.000-07:00

Peter's baptism actually happened a couple months ago. It was a small, sweet event. Sadly my Erin and Bridger and my parents were unable to make it.

Cross Your Fingers

2009-04-26T13:59:00.000-07:00

LUCKY

Lately we have been quite lucky, so lucky that I've been thinking about going out and buying a lottery ticket just to prove it.

In January we found out that Abby and Peter won the Cavity Free Awards from their dentist. The secretary said that they have never had siblings win in the same month. Peter won a super cool penguin, Abby received a $25 gift certificate to our favorite local toy store.

A couple weeks ago we found out that Michelle won the monthly birthday drawing, from the same super cool toy store. She received a fun t-shirt and a $75 gift certificate. What a fun shopping trip that was! (Couldn't find the picture of her in the newspaper and the photo of a photo didn't turn out well)

Friday night was our school's carnival. After several tries at the Hostess Hop (cake walk) Cristine won a cupcake. During the raffle ticket drawing I held mine with anxious hands. Could I continue the tradition? Would my I make my family proud? Then I heard it...33153...my number. I won the Twilight Bo0k Series. Woo Hoo, then rats, I already own them. When I walked to the raffle table the lady behind me said that she had really hoped to win them. So we made a quick switch. Instead of vampires I got 2 cookbooks. Hello, Cupcake! and Katie Brown's Weekends. I haven't looked through the Weekend's book, but we've already used a couple ideas from the cupcake book.

Yesterday on the way to the Little League Opening Ceremony, Michelle picked me a 2 leaf clover. She said I was halfway lucky. She was right. The raffle tickets I'd bought for baseball were losers. Luck only lasts so long.

How Quickly Time Flies!

2009-04-20T21:24:00.000-07:00

Lately my computer time has become very limited. It seems that whenever I sit down, several little people seem to crowed me off. I don't have too many pictures either. Let's just say I've been slacking the last couple months. Much has been happening though. Here's a quick recap...

January: My workers are all happy since they received their w-2 forms back in January, despite quick=books best efforts to defy me. Our orchard filing cabinet is cleaned out with fresh new files.

February: I survived the Valentine's Day rush...although Mother's Day is in the Horizon...

March: Spring Break, a trip to the zoo, we got rained out, pictures to follow sometime in the future. A fun visit from Uncle Nathan. He made Abby the neatest Ukulele her Uku-stra teacher was very impressed!

April: birthday season in now in full swing. Happy Birthday Michelle back on April 4th. Sorry you puked on the day of your friend party, but we did reschedule and have it last Saturday. A quick trip to La Grand to my sweet Grandmother's funeral. Although it was a sad time, I enjoyed seeing almost all of my sisters and cousins. Hanging out in the church gym was lots of fun, I wish we all lived closer. Easter, fun egg hunts, lots of chocolate and a surprise dinner guest, Mary, who had flight problems.

In March we went to Parkdale to visit with our friend Tommy. As soon as we got out of the car most of the chickens took off running, you got it, across the road. Which then called for my kids to ask over and over again....Why did the chickens cross the road?...

Apparently the rooster knew the joke and decided it was safer to stay by the water pan.

Be My Valentine

2009-02-14T07:58:00.000-08:00

This was my project for the week. I made all three a fun skirt, at the hem I added buttons and cut cute hearts to button on. I got my idea from this blog: http://mayamade.blogspot.com/2009/02/all-buttoned-up.html Abby said that yesterday at school kids kept coming up to her telling her they loved her skirt and oh here's a heart. The hearts didn't stay on too well. I may quickly stitch them on tonight so they don't fall off all over the church tomorrow.

New Year's Resolutions

2008-12-31T11:51:00.000-08:00

For Christmas Abby was given a digital camera. She has wanted one FOREVER! Yesterday we went in to Portland to spend some of our Christmas money. Our first stop was the Portland Temple. While I was in the Distribution Center the kids and Grammy K. walked around. Abby took all of these beautiful pictures. My New Year's Resolution is to visit here more often.

Happy 2009!

Christmas Pajamas (1 of 2 posts!)

2008-12-19T22:20:00.000-08:00

I found these pictures the other day, cleaning out some old boxes of stuff I can't get rid of. My scanner is not hooked up, I can never really get it to work, so I took pictures of them. They are not the best quality, but my kids have had a lot of fun looking at them. (Erin you were so young and cute! You are about 9 months older than Christine in these photos!)

The photos are mostly from Christmas Eve 1991. I was home from BYU for the holidays. Not pictured is Laurie, I think she spent Christmas in Utah that year. This was our last holiday season in Modesto, CA. (next year I think all us McBride girls should get together to make our own Mr and Mrs. Clause heads!)

More lovely pajama pictures, Laurie gave me these HOTT jammies. Wendy, what's with the blue leg?

Another fun pj photo. Do you get yourself and spouse matching pj's? Will he wear them?

Do you get your kids new pajamas each year for Christmas? Do they match? Do you sew them? Do you open them up on Christmas Eve?

While growing up, for most years at least, I can answer yes. Do I sew my kids pajamas? No, I have a pattern for some pj bottoms, but have yet to try it. Do we give pj's? Usually. Do they match? Only if buying the same brand is considered matching. Do we open them on Christmas Eve? If I can remember which package they are. This year my mother-in-law wanted to get the kids something they could use, so I helped her pick out fun pj's. But since I'm not giving them, the kids won't be opening them until Christmas Day. Should I substitute anything else, or just ignore the tradition of one gift on Christmas Eve?

I'm not sure if I've ever taken pictures of my kids with their new pajamas. I think that will be my tradition this year, take a photo of the kids together in their new pj's!

Read on, I have another post!

Pictures from the last couple weeks

2008-12-19T22:03:00.001-08:00

Santa's workshop. Mom, don't look too closely! But if you want to learn how to make some cool birds go here.

Abby and her uke.

Michelle on the xylophone. Peter's concert pictures didn't turn out as well.

This morning's view from my window.

First day of snow play. This picture makes me wish I hadn't already ordered Christmas photo cards.

Crsitine's Birthday

2008-12-14T07:57:00.000-08:00

We had Cristine's birthday party at Pietro's Pizza last Friday. Erin, Bridger and Forest joined us for the exciting event. (hey little guy, your birthday is coming up!)

Cristine was so excited by this gift, more dress up clothes!

The other day I asked Cristine to change out of her favorite dress up outfit so we could go to the store. A few minutes later she came downstairs wearing her clothes over the top of her ballerina dress, but she didn't quite get it all tucked in. She is wearing a mullet, business in the front.

Party in the back! How did my sweet little girl suddenly turn 3?

Just Wondering

2008-11-19T20:41:00.000-08:00

Have you ever felt like emptying your child's dresser and just leaving them with one outfit? In the evening putting in a pair of pj's then in the mornings putting in another outfit? Would that solve my problems of straightening out drawers and picking up clean clothes from the floor? Would it keep my almost 3 year old from changing outfits several times a day? Would I have to hide the dress up clothes too?

Book Club

2008-11-14T07:20:00.000-08:00

Our ward has had a book club for a number of years. I have tried to go as often as possible. Most of the time I am working and unable to attend. Two months ago I was able to go for the first time in about a year. When they were discussing where they would meet the next few months, my hand shot up and I blurted out that November would be a good month for me. My first thought were that a deadline would help to get a few things cleaned up around here. My second thought was how can I gracefully back out.

Last week I worked on a few cleaning projects, which was a good thing since I was sick on Wednesday and wasn't able to clean as much as I had hoped. Rain prevented us from doing much outside. But the outhouse that was positioned close to the house during a short time of septic tank troubles was finally moved. (First impressions are a good thing, and I didn't want anyone thinking that we didn't have indoor plumbing).

People came bearing lots of desserts, friendships were renewed and our book was discussed. We read (OK, I didn't finish my assignment, but should be able to today) Left To Tell by Immaculee Ilibagiza. http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Left-to-Tell/Immaculee-Ilibagiza/e/9781401908966 This was quite an incredible book, I enjoyed the comments made by those visiting.

Next month we are reading Dickens, A Christmas Carol. This one I have already read and we'll be going to someone else's home.

Phew, I survived.

2008-11-07T22:15:00.000-08:00

Christmas is just around the corner, unbelievable until you walk into a W-mart where they already have Christmas music playing. Rick's family gets very specific about gifts and wish lists. I have always had a hard time spelling out what I want, because
A. I feel embarrassed to actually ask for something specific.
B. I can never think of anything I really want.
C. I dislike knowing what I am getting, I like surprises.
My sister-in-law Rannie always gets me the coolest most surprising fun crafty gifts, they make me want to shop with her. And she doesn't shop from my want list. Other family members need help in choosing gifts. Over the years I've come to appreciate those lists, how handy is it to know that so and so likes black socks and someone else wants season 2 of Northern Exposure.

Every year I am very slow in getting my list together. This year I've decided to start early. I've decided to come up with my wish list now. Instead of telling the family I need silicone muffin pans I want to gather up a cool, fun, surprising, exciting list of what I want/need. (ok, this is sounding a bit selfish, but family members are asking and I have a good idea what my kids want-like) Maybe if I write my list now, I'll forget what I asked for by Christmas time. Here's the problem, aside from having Clean H0use come in and clean/organize/paint, I have no ideas as to what I want. Any ideas? What do you want for Christmas? What do your kids want for Christmas? Keep it clean, or I'll delete it.
Happy Holidays
Heather

Halloween Pictures

2008-11-05T10:03:00.000-08:00

Halloween pictures this year was met with a few unwilling participants. They wanted to get on to the good part...the candy. I quickly snapped a few shots, so we could get on our way.

This year I made 3! costumes. Abby wanted to be a wizard, we found this cool purple fabric with spider webs and made an easy cape. She is trying (being forced) to show off the material and didn't want her smiling face to be seen.

Michelle and Cristine were both Little Red Ridding Hood. I think their capes turned out pretty well. (Hopefully when I enter one into the fair, next year, the judges will be kinder then they were to the kimono. Hello it's a Halloween costume, it just has to stay together while you go trick-or-treating, for example look at the ones found at W-mart).

Peter wanted to be a pirate looking for his lost loot. He must have found it since his bag was so heavy.

Cristine wasn't into the picture taking either. In this photo she is wondering why her bag is so flat and empty.

Other than the photo shoot, we had a fun night. The weather was mild, coats were not required, I think that was a first! The rain held off until the next day. Erin, Bridger and Forest met up with us, then came back and stayed the night. Another family joined us for dinner after trick-or-treating. We had yummy chili and bone breadsticks. http://jas.familyfun.go.com/recipefinder/display?id=50576 We played cards and Settlers of Zarahemlia while the kids ran around eating too much candy. I think Halloween should be on a Friday night every year!

Harvest Post 2- FINALLY

2008-10-31T08:11:00.000-07:00

These two pictures were taken from our driveway the other morning. The pink one was taken first, as I raced to school to get the kids to school on time. The first one, really second in order, was taken on the way home.

We have had the most amazing beautiful fall I ever seen. I think it has something to do with not having much rain. One customer told me that this was the most colorful, beautiful fall he'd seen in 20 years. Since I've only lived here for 16, that makes sense. The rain started last night, just in time for Halloween.

I know I left you waiting, but here, finally, are pictures of my new tractor. Isn't it pretty? This little orange tractor is so zippy. Forward and Reverse are in on pedal-so no more shifting.

This is my other reason for liking this tractor so much, the seat. But not the seat part, the behind the seat part.

See that, the seat has a secret compartment, just wide enough to hold a book. Perfect for those slow moments when no one has need of my kickin tractor skilz. Books read during harvest 3. By the way this is all top secret, mr. farming husband gets a bit grouchy if he finds me out reading.

My back up tractor drivers gave it their approval. They both liked the no shifting thing, not having to use a clutch rocks. One even told me that the cup holder was muy bueno, he was never seen very far from his can of coke. Cup holders on a tractor, almost makes work like a joy ride.

Harvest Post, more pictures to follow

2008-10-18T11:19:00.000-07:00

Ah, Harvest. Remember my cool John Deere tractor? It has been replaced. I was sad when Rick sold MY tractor, but I have learned to love my new tractor. It is all shiny and ORANGE, phew it is bright. (you'll have to wait for photos, they are on the other computer).

Harvest is now over and payroll is finished! Now it is time to clean up, organize and get ready for Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas. Those holidays are sneaking up on me!

Next week all the kids have field trips-how is that possible? The three little kids are each going to a pumpkin patch-different days of course. Abby is going to the Maryhill Museum of Art-this one I want go to. If I go to one or two does that mean I'm required to attend all 4?

Autumn Fun

2008-09-24T19:12:00.000-07:00

Our last few weeks have been packed full. My youngest sister Erin, her husband Bridger and their cute little guy Forest moved to the Portland area. We've been able to spend a couple days with them and look forward to holidays, hikes, bbq's, zoo trips, coast camping trips etc. It is exciting to have family nearby again!
In between helping them move in, wood cuts, huckleberry picking and awaiting harvest to resume, I decided to start decorating for fall.
My fall decorating ended before I changed out our cherry blossom twigs. I have looked all over town trying to find a fun fall idea for the giant vases. We may glued orange and yellow tissue paper on twigs if I can't find anything better.

One of the hard thing about living with my mother in law is working around and with all of her many nick knacks. A few things I decided were too springy and was able to put them away. I think the Asian vases are too huge to try to move. I'm not too sure which season the Buddha statue would look best in. He too is quite heavy and I haven't been able to figure out a place I can move him without hurting any one's feelings.

Bringing Bling to Lunch

2008-09-08T08:17:00.000-07:00

Last year Abby and Michelle picked out the same backpacks. At the time it was no big deal, Michelle kept her backpack mostly in her room and Abby's was kept downstairs with her school stuff in it. Fast forward to this school year. The backpacks were still in good shape, so we decided not to buy new ones. The 2nd day of school I put Abby's lunch in Michelle's backpack. Abby was called to the office to switch lunches with Michelle. Michelle didn't realize they were the exact same lunch. I had planned to buy new lunchboxes, since ours were smelling pretty funky. While debating whether to buy spider-man or insulated boxes, I had the thought to iron on the kids names. I zipped back to the craft section and found some fun iron-on styles. It took a bit longer than the instructions to get the letters to stick, the flap is quite thick and took a while for the heat of the iron to get through it. After putting the kids names on the lunch boxes I then put an A and M on the two girls backpacks. Now each morning I just have to match the right name to the right initial-way easier than guessing. Today was day 2 of my brilliant plan, in my still sleepy state I was able to quickly get the right lunch to the right backpack. Plus the letters are still attached and the kids thought they were very cool.

1st day of School

2008-09-04T07:48:00.000-07:00

The big three.
Michelle-Kindergartner and her super fun teacher Miss V.
Peter-2nd grader
Abby-4th grader
Cristine-preschooler

School started for us on Tuesday. Everyone was so excited, me included. Michelle and I hung out together before class started, while Abby and Peter were off to greeting their friends. We read a couple books in the library as we watched all the kids running around. She then told me that Abby said she could not say "hi" to her when they saw each other around the school. Is being in 4th grade like being in middle school? I told Michelle it was her job to wave, shout and hug her big sister whenever she could. The house was so quiet when I got home, then it was almost tomb like after Cristine left for preschool.

Everyone likes their teachers and enjoyed the first couple days. Abby's been busy with homework. Today they took money for hot lunch since we were already running a bit late. Here's to a great school year!

Our Garden, Weeds and All

2008-08-28T15:45:00.000-07:00

Take a look at all those weeds! So far we've had a pretty good harvest.

Fighting Fire Blight or the Blight of Our Summer Vacation

2008-08-19T20:12:00.000-07:00

When school starts and the kids start comparing their summer vacations, our kids will probably rank pretty low in the coolness factor. At least twice a week, sometimes about daily we have been out helping Rick cut Fire Blight. Our job is to help Rick spot the dying branches, hand him the pruning sheers, spray denatured alcohol on the sheers after he's made his cut. Help him manhandle the ladder and pick up the branches he has cut. Cutting out all the fire blight is important, if left untreated it can kill the tree. Insects are attracted to the sticky sap and spread the bacteria to other trees. So far we have cut down about 25 trees. We have also cut the tops out of many trees. Rick said that this is the worst he has seen it in many years. One of our neighbors estimated that she has lost over 50% of her crop. We were out last night and will probably be out cutting another day this week. These photos are from last Thursday, one of the hottest days of our summer. It was also Rick's birthday. I tried to get some good photos, but the sun was too high, and I needed to get to work. It is very important to look up into the trees to spot the fire blight.
Cristine likes to work in style.
After cutting the diseased branches we load it onto a trailer. When it is full, we unload it onto our burn pile. When we have a big enough pile we get to have a hot dog roast.
Can you spot the fire blight in this photo?
Rick scaling the ladder. Happy Birthday!

Hiking the Gorge

2008-08-13T12:12:00.000-07:00

Last Saturday, Rick was asked to help dismantle girls camp. We decided we did not want to stay home, so we headed up the Gorge. Our first stop was the Bonneville Fish Hatchery. We fed the baby salmon and stood in amazement while watching the huge sturgeon swim by. We then drove to the other side of the freeway and hiked Wahclella Falls. This was a great hike for the kids, it was only a mile long, with some steep parts and a very cool bridge spanning a deep ravine. The waterfalls along the way and at the end of the hike were beautiful. Had the weather been a bit warmer, I think we may have stopped to splash around.
Taken on the cool bridge, Cristine was a little afraid, since there were small gaps between the boards on the bridge. But we all made it across safely.

Wahclella Falls
After our fun hike we drove through Cascade Locks, trying to decide if we wanted an ice cream from the cute little diner. When we saw all the cars and the huge line of people, we decided drive back to town and visit the local D@iry Queen. This photo was taken at DQ, showing Peter's recently lost tooth. The other top tooth is quite loose and will probably be out by the start of school.

Book Recommendations

2008-08-07T09:40:00.000-07:00

I found this website this morning, I think I vaguely heard about it from someone.

Have you tried it? Opinions?

http://www.whatshouldireadnext.com/search

Did you register? Did it give you good ideas for your next book?

I think I'll try registering this evening, I'll update later.

What should I read next has been my theme lately.

Heather

2008-08-04T09:49:00.000-07:00

Our ward had a camp out at Lost Lake. Although I've been there many times for bbq's and picnics I have never camped there. What a beautiful place. The only thing I could have improved was the bathrooms. Why haven't they upgraded to flushy toilets? Cristine and her super good friend. They had so much fun playing together.
Peter enjoyed fishing and roasting marshmellows.
A rare picture of me. (All of our camping pictures were taken by Abby)
Well almost all the pictures were taken by Abby.
Michelle roasting a marshmellow. Crissy eating a raw one.
While Abby, Peter and Rick went out fishing, Michelle Cristine and I went on a walk around the lake. I really wish I had taken my camera, when we had gotten most of the way around the lake, we had a beautiful view of Mt. Hood, pink from the sunset. http://lostlakeresort.org/about.php I also managed to read most of the Twilight series before we returned home, just in time for the 4th book to come out.
The potluck Friday night was incredible. Rick bbq'd several tri-tips and deep fried a turkey, which was the best one he's ever done (we'll see if he can do a repeat this Thanksgiving). There wasn't a huge turn out, but we had fun getting to know the families who camped with us. Next year I plan to pack 2 air mattresses so I don't end up on the ground again.

Birthday Girl

2008-07-15T22:28:00.000-07:00

My mother-in-law, Hana had her birthday today, she turned 87 today!

A few things you may not know about Hana:

She loves Elvis. She even went with one of her daughters to a concert. This was in his later years, her daughter thought he looked a bit fat in his jumpsuit.

Dark chocolate is her secret indulgence. She has a few bags of Dove Dark Chocolate hiding in the freezer. Sometimes she even shares it with me. When I see Dove chocolates on sale, I stock up for her.

She is a knitting and crocheting maniac. For her birthday her daughter brought her a bag of netting to be made into kitchen scrubbers. She blew through the stash in about 2 days, making several scrubbers. She makes hats and booties for newborns at the hospital. Each of our babies wore hats and booties home from the hospital that she had knitted. I've also kept a few sets for our grandbabies to wear. Rick's niece and nephews each have sets for when they start having babies.

She loves to enter canned goods in the county fair. She use to can a lot, but has slowed down the last few years. Each summer she would take a box full of peaches, pears, green beans, pickled garlic, tomatoes and other perfectly packed preserves to the fair office. Later we would have to go to the fair to find out how her items did. Most years she dominated the categories. She has a shelf full of trophies she proudly displays. For several years we had a friendly competition in the freezer jam section, for some reason I would take 2nd to her 1st. One year we made our jam together, same berries, same sugar, same jars and she won. Last week we made jam together, I may have to see if my jam finally beats hers.*

I hope Hana had a fun birthday. She had phone calls from her friends and kids, nice cards in the mail. and a beautiful floral arrangement from a daughter. We took her out to pizza and had a couple of her friends meet us there. The kids made fun cards and a yummy cake. The oven at Pietro's broke down or something and it took forever to get our pizza, but everyone seemed to enjoy just chatting, so I think it went well.

Birdhouses, Bikes and Bubbles

2008-07-13T15:29:00.000-07:00

For school this week we, painted. Yes, that is a smiley on the birdhouse.

The kids have been riding their bikes a lot this summer. Peter is great at riding on our dirt roads and driveways.

Michelle is telling Rick all the reasons why she needs a 2-wheeler. She must have been convincing because yesterday we went to the bike shop and got her a super cute pink and purple bike-with streamers-need to get some photos of her on it.
We've also been busy blowing bubbles. I think we have tried most every brand and style of bubbles and bubble wands, large, small, no spill, gazillion bubbles etc. Rick's sister bought these for our kids, bubble wands for use at W-mart. I thought they were great. Your hand stays dry and you get lots of large bubbles, two important factors for me.

Summer School

2008-06-29T15:30:00.000-07:00

Self Portraits
Fun flying fish project

4th of July t-shirts Abby's shirt.

Our 'classroom'.
Michelle in the classroom
Another view of the classroom.

My kids love school and playing school. On the days that I work, I give Abby a class plan and she is the substitute teacher. She loves to be in charge. My mother in law's house has a neat 2nd floor landing we've taken over as our school room. The mess bugs her, but we try to keep it neat.

A few of our recent activities: We studied fish and then made a fun craft flying fish. We each had a package of m and m's we counted and then made a graph showing how many of each color was in each bag. We made self portraits. Last week we had a t-shirt making party. Six friends came to decorate t-shirts for the 4th of July. We also made strawberry freezer jam. For exercises we've been jumping rope, playing in the sprinklers and throwing water balloons.

Upcoming activities: more freezer jam, first the kids get to help pick the berries. Sewing scripture bags using placemats. We will also study birds and then paint cute bird houses I found at the dollar store. We've blown lots of bubbles, but I want to add food coloring and blow them onto paper. I have a fun science book with lots of neat experiments we plan to use in the upcoming weeks.

Abby and Peter also have jobs. They get up each morning at 6am to help change sprinklers. Then we go back out in the evening to change them again. They have also been out almost daily to help Rick with other farm related activities.

Here are a couple fun websites I've been using:http://kidscraftweekly.com/ , http://www.starfall.com/ , http://www.funbrain.com/

for some reason blogger is not letting me put spaces between my paragraphs-sorry

Laundry Update

2008-06-25T07:24:00.000-07:00

The sheets have been saved. The shorts, too. The waist band is very stiff and feels like it may be quite scratchy, but they were salvageable. The blanket was not. I could not get very much of the gaak out of it. It looked like a snail threw up all over the blanket. It was an older down blanket and most of the down had moved to the bottom edges, we decided we could sacrifice it.

Note:
It is not a good idea to type "removing gaak from clothing" into your search engine. Lot of strange things come up.

A Little Laundry Help Please!

2008-06-22T17:03:00.000-07:00

No, I'm not going to ask you to help fold or put it away. Instead I need a bit of wisdom and advice.

Last night in celebration of my birthday, we went to a fun local pizza place. While there, we let the kids play the super cool video games. Peter spent a fist full of tokens trying to win a teddy bear for me. Michelle and Cristine tended to play the games with bright flashing lights, while Abby earned enough tickets to buy herself a million small erasers and a bucket of gaak (or is it slime or snot?). Much fun was had playing with that oozing sticky stuff.

When we arrived home, the kids were put through the bedtime routine and hustled off to bed. The gaak, supposedly, was placed on a dresser. This morning when Peter climbed out of bed, the slime was all over his sheets, blanket and shorts, reminiscent of special effects used in alien movies. Except aliens weren't blown to bits and the slime wasn't stuck on his face and hair.

Here's the questions: How in the heck do you get the slimy stuff out of fabric? I've washed it once. The sheets look pretty good, they were washed in warm water. The down blanket and shorts, both dark colors, were washed in cold water. The gaak is still firmly attached to those. Should I wash them again, but with warm water or give it up as a lost cause?

End of the School Year Photos

2008-06-17T19:03:00.000-07:00

This is what we made for the teachers; we wrapped mini roses in wrapping paper. We cut out a paper flower and wrote "Thank you for helping me grow". We taped those to skewers and poked them into the plants.
Peter's class went to the Portland Zoo. We rode a train. I now know why people hold their breath when driving through a tunnel. Steam engines stink. You hold your breath so you don't breath in any of the yucky air.

He also rode an 'elephant'. Not quite the cool elephant we rode at the San Diego Zoo, hey sisters anyone have a photo of that?

The zoo has a fun dinosaur exhibit for the summer. The dinosaur move and make noise. When Peter saw the T-rex, he ran right up to it, it's his favorite, as soon as he got close, it growled really loud and scared Peter. He jumped and ran back to me. A little girl in a stroller started crying and had to be carried out. Maybe it was too life like.
Hey buddy, cool dinosaur.
Watch for this one, he spits.

Abby's music teacher chose her to sing with a trio at the school concert. She was so excited. She did a great job. It was a fun bluesy song from the Wiz. She has a great bluesy, jazzy voice.

We've had a fun school year. The last two weeks have been out of control. 3 field trips, roller skating, class breakfasts and pj day, field day, clean out your desk day. etc. I'm tired and looking forward to a day of sleeping in before my friend and I start jogging at 6am.

Let's Hear It

2008-05-30T09:09:00.000-07:00

Since I haven't taken the time to blog lately, I thought I'd ask all of you to help me out. I need some fresh ideas. So give me your tips on:

Laundry, how do you motivate yourself to put it away once it is folded?
Potty training
Fun summer activity ideas
Exercising tips and motivation
Healthy eating, quick snacks, family favorites
Photograph organization, do you scrapbook, put them in albums or throw them in a box?
Waking up, how do you get yourself out of bed, do you jump out quickly ready for the day or slowly wake up?

OK, let's hear them. Any other ideas that you may have, feel free to comment.

Abby's Field Trip

2008-05-07T22:26:00.000-07:00

Last week I got to go with Abby's class on a field trip. It is fun to live in an area where these amazing sites are just minutes from our home.

The Vista House at Crown Point.
Picture of the class, teachers and parents at the Vista House.

Giant sturgeon at the Bonneville Fish Hatchery. This guy said he wanted me to take him home for a BBQ.
Upper Horse Tail Falls. This was a quick hike. I'd like to try this with the family. It is a little steep, but beautiful. The trail takes you behind this waterfall.
Multnomah Falls is just beautiful. Whenever we drive by on I-84, I always try to take take a look at it.
Abby at Benson bridge, (notice it in the above photo) watching as the water cascades down the lower falls.

I had a great time, the bus ride was loud (note, next month for Peter's zoo trip take a pair of ear plugs). Each stop was quick, but our guide from the Portland Audubon Society, was very knowledgeable and kept the kids interested. Every year I vow to hike the gorge more, but we usually only make one or two hikes. This summer I'd like to try a few more hikes, anyone want to meet up at Eagle Creek?

Peter's Birthday Celebration

2008-05-03T08:17:00.000-07:00

Peter turned 7 on May 2. We survived the last birthday of the season.
This was taken out in our orchard. The trees are beautiful now, maybe tomorrow after church I'll be able to get some good pictures of the kids. Please please no rain.

Abby turns 9 & Visitors Part 2

2008-04-30T21:36:00.000-07:00

Abby turned 9 on April 24. This is her funky new outfit.
For her birthday, we decorated t-shirts, the more paint the better.
The loot.

Visiting us from Thailand was Rick's cousin Theresa and her super cute daughter Hisako.

We also went bowling. Got to love those shoes!

Michelle showing her moves. Peter loved bowling. He can beat us everytime on the wii. He beats us in real life too.
Abby and a friend begging to open the gifts.

Visitors Part 1

2008-04-18T19:20:00.000-07:00

This week were were lucky to have my mom visit from Utah. Sarah and Iris decided to come join in the fun.
Iris is so cute. My kids had so much fun playing with her.

14 Years!

2008-04-08T22:15:00.000-07:00

Today, April 8, is our 14th Wedding Anniversary. Happy Anniversary Rick, I love you! I don't seem to take too many pictures of him, something I need to try harder at! This is the only one I have on this computer. The kids were each given a 9 tile puzzle for Michelle's birthday. Rick is trying to help Peter solve his puzzle. After he finished Peter's, he then worked on Michelle's, Cristine's and Abby's, then Cristine's again and again and again. She likes to mess up the picture. He is amazing man, I enjoy watching him as he works and plays. This weekend, I was asked to hold several pieces of steel while he was welding. I thought about taking his picture, showing all the sparks flying around him, but my hands were busy, the camera was inside and I didn't want any stray sparks to land on my camera like they did on my arm.

Happy Birthday (tomorrow) Mom! I love you. Looking forward to your visit next week!

Michelle's Birthday and Technology

2008-04-07T17:18:00.001-07:00

Michelle turned 5 on Friday. How did my sweet little girl grow up so quickly?
Standing in front of the birthday sign we hung on her bedroom door.
Some of our fun decorations. Doesn't that paper lamp look neat next to my mother-in-laws tile print?

Michelle was so excited for her birthday. She woke up at 6am, came into our room to tell us it was her Birthday. We hugged her and talked to her about the day she was born and other fun memories we have. At 6:30am the rest of the kids came into bed with us and we all told fun Michelle stories. Did you know she loves to play puppies?

Michelle had preschool, but Abby and Peter did not have school, it was grade preparation day (?), so they went wild with the balloons and crepe paper. When I arrived home from work, we quickly made a cake, ate dinner and celebrated Michelle's special day.

*******
My cell phone decided that yesterday should have been the start of daylight savings. This morning, I use it as my alarm clock, it woke me up at 5am. I didn't realize what time it actually was until after I woke everyone up and went downstairs to start breakfast. I finally looked at the clock on the stove, then looked at the clock on the microwave. I went back upstairs and told everyone to get back in bed. We then slept for 2 hours and I drove everyone to school, which then made me late for work. At 11am as a co-worker clocked in, I told her that she didn't start until 11am. I then realized it was 11am and not 10am as I thought. I still am very confused as to what time it is today. I should be serving dinner, it's 5:30pm, but I haven't started it yet.
Rick asked why I didn't notice how dark it was outside, I told him I don't open my eyes until I shower. He also said I shouldn't be so dependant on technology, but without it, I would sleep until 8am. Hopefully technology worked better for you today!

28 Days of Fun! UPDATED

2008-04-03T08:18:00.000-07:00

Michelle told me this morning that we are all human beans. Because we are all human and from way up high we look like beans, kind of pink.

**********

Preparations are in high gear as we get ready for our 28 Days of Celebration.
I was going to link the pink letters to my post last April, but that seems too much for me this morning, so just imagine lots of shopping and gift wrapping.

Today Michelle and I are going to have a Mommy and Me date. My plan is to take her to a fun toy store in town, giving her a $5 limit, and let her pick something out. For dessert we plan to see if Mike's Ice Cream is open (Please be open, she's been wanting to go there for months).

-Mike's Ice Cream was not open. Rats! They did not have a sign on the door saying if they were just closed for the day, or still closed since the road in front of it is torn up. We improvised by going to Dairy Queen instead. Yummy, but lacking the fun atmosphere of Mike's.

Tomorrow night Rick's sister, Marianne and her family will be coming to watch Conference and Party.

Happy Birthday to everyone whose birthday's are coming up: Michelle, Abby, Peter, Mom, Erin, Brady, Stevie, Katie, Iris, Emily and anyone I may have missed!

UPDATE -Mike's Ice Cream was not open. RATS! Not sure if they just closed for the day or still closed for the winter since the road is torn up. We improvised by going to Dairy Queen, yummy but lacking the fun atmosphere.

Spring Break in Oregon

2008-03-30T14:58:00.000-07:00

While my little sister Wendy and her family got to go to warm beaches and water slides on their spring break. Ours wasn't as exciting and much colder. This is what the last several days have looked like. Thank you Rick for taking the pictures for me!

Our Easter Experience

2008-03-26T15:07:00.000-07:00

Easter this year had extra meaning. Rick's aunt, Chiyoko passed away last Tuesday, March 18th. We were sad to see her go, but know that she is finally free from the intense pain she was having. We were able to share our testimonies of Christ and the Resurrection with our kids as we talked about being able to see auntie Chiyoko once again. The Easter Bunny came with all his fun goodies to remind us that life does go on.
Fun cracker carrots the Easter Bunny added to the baskets.

Recreating our Easter Egg Hunt-ours actually took place Sunday inside. These photos were taken yesterday before Chiyoko's funeral.

Need to remember not to take pictures with such bad shadows.

Quick Thoughts

2008-03-11T10:21:00.000-07:00

I returned to work about a month ago. My mother-in-laws home, which we are now residing in, has suffered. I find that I am a great housekeeper when that is my only job. But once I returned to work, things have gone downhill. My laundry, which was once about nonexistent has exploded. I vacuum only once a week, without the same zest I previously had. Dusting has been left for another time, please don't look at the mantle or the ceiling fan. I've only been spot mopping the kitchen, and sweeping only when necessary. Kids toys seem to be everywhere except the boxes they should be in.

Super-mom-cook-housekeeper I am not. Staying afloat is my new goal. Maybe I'll try to get to that dusting today. Tending to the needs of my family, keeping peace with my mother-in-law and watching Rick's aunt Chiyoko slowly decline occupies much of my day. Adding a part-time job seems almost overwhelming, but it is nice to have a break from some of those I spend time with.

I was going to post a picture of Chiyoko and Hana, but blogger won't let me today. Maybe in a couple of weeks I'll get around to it, probably about the same time I decide to dust.

2008-02-29T11:28:00.000-08:00

Finally New Flooring!

2008-02-18T20:56:00.000-08:00

I've been waiting a couple of years for this. Ahh, excitement. Too bad we're not living in our house to enjoy our new floors.

Random Pictures

2008-01-23T09:35:00.000-08:00

Snow fun
One of my (many) attempts for Christmas cards.

Cristine turns 2!

Peter and Grammy watching tv

What 2 looks like
Michelle's favorite Christmas gift. Thank you Grammy McBride!
More snow fun

New Year+New Life= Crazyness

2008-01-11T12:45:00.000-08:00

It has been forever since I last blogged. My mother-in-law, Hana, hurt her back the beginning of November. She is now doing so much better, but while she was recovering, we moved in with her. I've taken a leave of absence from work so I can care for her and Rick's aunt who is also living at my mother-in-laws. Cooking, cleaning and caring for 8 people is a huge undertaking. Rick's aunt, Chiyoko, is in a hospital bed, requiring quite a bit of care. Hospice workers, nurses, meals on wheels, therapists, preschool carpooling and trips to the bus stop take up most of our days.

Things are going well, I like the routine with the kids back in school. Planning and cooking most meals has been rough. I really need some menu ideas. Trying to decide what stuff of ours to take over, what to do with the rest of our stuff and what to do with our house has been a challenge. Making room for our stuff has also been a challenge.

Soon we should have computer access at our new residence.
Happy New Year
Heather

Christmas Ideas

2007-11-23T22:54:00.000-08:00

Last year a customer who I've known, casually, for years brought me the neatest gift. She made a batch of sugar cookie dough, which she rolled out on parchment paper and then loosely wrapped it around an empty paper towel roll. She then wrapped the log in a piece of cling wrap to keep it fresh. She tied a couple of cookie cutters to the bundle, with a cute note telling me that she knew how hard it was to find time to make cookies while working.

Why I loved this gift:
#1 I didn't have to mix the dough myself and it was ready to cut into shapes.
#2 When I received the gift, we already had tons of other goodies, so I threw the bundle in the freezer and later when we were bored and starving for something sweet, we got it out and made cookies.
#3 This lady, who I barely know, took the time to make something that was so appreciated. It was thoughtful, usable and didn't clutter up my house, plus it made 4 kids and one busy mom super happy.

This year I plan to make several cookie dough logs to take to my busy friends and to several ladies who are on my Visiting Teaching route.

This is my Mom's Sugar Cookie Recipe, my kids are huge fans of these!
2 1/2 c flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp nutmeg
1/2 c butter or shortening
1 c sugar
2 eggs, well beaten
1 T. milk

sift flour, baking powder, salt and nutmeg together. (I have never done this). Cream butter and sugar. Mix eggs and milk. Add eggs and milk to butter mixture. Add dry ingredients. Chill dough. Roll 1/4 inch thick. Cut out cookies. Bake on an ungreased cookie sheet at 375 for 8-10 minutes. Cool. Frost cookies

*The nutmeg gives these cookies a special taste. Rick isn't a huge fan of that flavor, so I cut it down to 1/2tsp of nutmeg.

2007-11-21T07:43:00.000-08:00

Foggy mornings, colored paper Indians and Pilgrims jammed into backpacks, 2 inches of snow, melting. Shopping lists crossed off, refrigerator crammed full of things to cook and bake. Bedding washed for out of town guests, one more bathroom to scrub. Hungry kids drooling over the pie. One more day. Let the Feasting Begin! Happy Thanksgiving

HALLOWEEN

2007-11-01T21:34:00.000-07:00

Here' are the kids, anxious to start Trick or Treating. This year my mother-in-law came with us, I think she enjoyed going with us. This was the first year I can recall that there wasn't any rain, wind or freezing temperature. Two layers of pj's under the costumes were all we needed to wear this year. The jackets stayed in the car, people were able to tell that the kids were dressed up.
This is the one and only costume I made this year. I think it turned out beautifully. The silk fabric was so slick, combined with a slippery lining and even more slick satin blanket binding. At the care center one older man was really impressed by Abby's costume. I told him that I made it myself. He said it was too bad that none of the Japanese elderly people were around to enjoy it. I told him we brought our own and introduced him to Hana.
Abby has asked to keep this out so she can play dress-up with it. I would like to put it away in our costume box. What would you suggest?
We stopped by the Fire Station for candy, Peter was so excited to tell the Fireman that he was a firefighter. The Fireman barely responded, Peter was a bit disappointed by his lack of enthusiasm.

Michelle was so excited for Halloween, every morning for the last week or so she'd ask me if she could wear her pumpkin costume and go get candy.
Cristine was a cute ladybug. This was the last time we saw her hat and pink sock, not sure why she has it on her hand. She was a big hit with the patients at the Care Centers we visited.
Somehow she keeps finding candy, I think it is all hidden away, then I find her with a lollipop in her mouth. I need to go look for candy hiding places in the kids room.

Pictures, Now with Words

2007-10-20T14:00:00.000-07:00

We made these candles the other day. I cut out the letters, B,O,O out of some dark colored paper, then glued them to the back of white tissue paper. We then wrapped them around some jelly jars and glued the ends together. Later we put candles inside and lit them. The burnt edges were purely accidental, one stray match caught the tissue paper on fire, we decided we liked the effect and made the others match. The kids had a fun time helping, plus it was very easy and low mess!
Michelle's class when to the pumpkin patch on Tuesday. Notice her cute new hair cut?
Crissy really enjoyed sitting on pumpkins, her back side was pretty muddy by the time we got home.

Get to Work, Part 2 of Harvest

2007-10-17T22:50:00.000-07:00

My mother in law came out the last few days of harvest to help us pick our forrelle pears. She is a work horse. After taking this photo, she told me to stop taking pictures and get to work. She also kept telling me that every pear we pick is one our workers didn't have to pick. My thoughts were the exact opposite, every pear they picked was one less I had to pick. Did I mention I had a horrible cold and felt like and elephant was sitting on my chest?
Here she is again, this time she is picking from the top of a 10 foot ladder. I'm above her standing on a 12 foot ladder. Once again I wasn't picking, just taking pictures and enjoying our beautiful view.
Yesterday Abby came running into the house, so excited because she was picked as "Wildcat of the Week". Her school picks one boy and girl from each grade to be the Wildcat of the Week. The school takes a picture and interviews the student asking them their likes and dislikes. One of Abby's likes....High Sch00l Musical. We watched it many times this summer. My kids are obsessed. Abby saved up money to buy the cd. In the photo above, she is dancing to her favorite music. One small coincidence; their school is called Eastside, while ours is West and both have Wildcats as their mascots.

Harvest-Part 1

2007-10-01T22:29:00.000-07:00

Here's a few photos from our harvest. I took pictures of most varieties of pears we grow, but you'll have to imagine how beautiful our Bartlett pears were this year. D'Anjou pears. These are hard to figure out when they are ripe, but if you get it right, heaven! A few weeks ago, we went to a small local restaurant. I ordered the pear and Gorgonzola cheese salad, with pine nuts and arugula. It was so good, much better than the main dish I ordered. Need to figure out what type of salad dressing to use, think I may make this for dinner tomorrow night.
Bosc pears. I think these are beautiful, sleek looking. I have a recipe for blanched pears with chocolate sauce. One of these years I'll get around to actually making it.
Forrelle pears. This was only our third actual harvest of these pears, we planted them when Abby was a baby. They are smaller than the other pears we grow and a pain to pick! It always seems like we will pick these forever since it takes so many to fill a bin, but in reality, it only took 5 days.

Bins of anjou pears waiting for me to haul in.
This is my tractor. Isn't it cute? I love to race around the orchard on this. I think the workers like to laugh at me as I bump along. I'm probably not as fast and efficient as some people, but they tolerate me, my tractor and my broken Spanish.
Anjou Pears in a bin.

Harvest was great this year. We had more workers than last year, I only picked had to pick the last 4 days, which was great. The weather was nice the entire time, which was a blessing, picking in the rain stinks!

Get ready, more harvest pictures to come!

More Photos

2007-09-07T19:18:00.000-07:00

Michelle started preschool Wednesday. She said preschool was so fun and wanted to go again.
Michelle busy at school.

+++++Sprinkler Changing Time

All summer we have been moving sprinkler lines. Over the last few years we've been putting in more permanent lines, which now allows us a break between when we have to irrigate. These pictures are from Monday, probably the last time we'll use our hand lines for the year.

The kids usually enjoy helping, especially on a nice warm day! Peter loves the sprinklers. He likes to help set up the line then runs down to last pipe and take out the end plug. He fills it up with water, dumps it out, fills it again. Then he drops the end plug and runs off. When we get to the end of the line to hook it up, we then have to search for the end plug-what fun!
Most mornings I try to get up early so I can go out by myself. A little exercise, a little peace and quiet, what more can I ask for?

First Day of School and other photos

2007-09-04T21:10:00.001-07:00

Things have been crazy busy around here. Grampy McBride came up for a visit. Peter lost his first tooth. School started today, Abby started 3rd grade, Peter 1st. Michelle starts preschool tomorrow. Here are a few pictures from it all.

Blackberry Picking with Cousins

2007-08-26T20:15:00.000-07:00

We were able to spend the afternoon with Anna's kids Juddah and Zion. To pass the time we walked down to our neighbor's pond to pick some blackberries. Juddah has the most amazing blue eyes and a cute dimple.
Zion wanted to ride Abby's bike.
Everyone had a good time playing and picking berries. Our dog, Bingo, had a great time (we should have named him Blackberry!). He enjoyed eating the berries from the vine and from the kids bowls. We only ended up taking home about 4 cups of berries.

Cristine liked picking the berries, the thorns didn't seem to bother her.
Zion didn't bother with a bowl, he just ate all the ones he picked. Crissy held onto a bowl, but all of her berries went straight to her tummy.

We had a fun time playing with the boys and look forward to spending more time with them.

1 Berry 2 Berry Pick me a Huckleberry

2007-08-16T22:24:00.000-07:00

Looking for otters at Otter Lake. This picture was taken just before Michelle got her foot stuck in the gooey mud.
What a cutie!
whoops sideways

That's what we're looking for.
Do you see the little huckleberry.
Rick's feeling a bit tired after picking berries all day, maybe he's feeling old since yester day was his birthday.

cheese
I'm your Huckleberry.
Hana actually let me take a picture of her, usually I'm only able to take pictures of her back.

Yesterday we decided to head up to the woods to pick some huckleberries. The berries were plentiful, but small. We had a fun time romping in the woods trying to fill our buckets. I've been waiting for these berries-can't wait for huckleberry pie and huckleberry milkshakes and huckleberry pancakes.....maybe we should take another trip to the woods and get more!

What's Baking?

2007-08-01T20:36:00.000-07:00

I worked a few hours on Sunday, but managed to leave early. Sundays always seem like a good day to bake, a tradition I picked up from my dad. He enjoys making desserts and often made fudge on Sundays. That sounds SO good right now, how I'd like to have my spoon ready to scrape out the bowl. Instead of fudge, I decided to make cherry pie. It is Rick's favorite, plus my freezer is full of pie cherries.

Today I mixed up a double batch of zucchini bread. My garden is full of zucchini, we've eaten it bbq'd, steamed, fried, cooked with bacon and egg plant (also from our garden). I've frozen some to make bread with this winter. But everytime I look there is more. So tonight when it cools a bit more, I've got to put the batter in the oven. My mother-in-law makes a zucchini relish which is the secret ingredient in her potato salad. She's made a batch or two, but I think it is time for me to get over my avoidance of canning. Until then I am in great need of zucchini recipes.

Highlights from the Last Week

2007-08-01T14:50:00.000-07:00

Read and Finished Harry Potter-now want to start the entire series again, but not sure if I can survive long with only 4 hours of sleep a night.

Entered aprons, kids drawings, pears, cookies and veggies into the Hood River County Fair. The kids made $10 each. I made a piddly $2. We went to the Fair last Wednesday night. Rick had a church meeting, I asked if he would take Cristine, but he declined. Why did I have to take all of them to my Primary Meetings? Anyway I took all four. We had a great time, met up with some friends, they watched Cristine so I could go on a few rides. The fair is small but fun, same rides, same exhibits, same scary ride operators and great food! Love the taco stands!

Friday I decided to change the sheets on our bed. I think we must be the last people on earth to still have a water bed. While lifting the mattress to tuck in the sheet, the seam split and water poured out. Rick helped me drain the mattress, then we threw it out the window. Later that day we went to Portland to pick out a new mattress. We decided on a Sleep Number bed. We are now sleeping on an air mattress and awaiting the arrival of our new bed. For now we will be using our old 70's style frame, but the plan is to eventually upgrade to a newer bed, preferably one with storage under it! It is exciting to get a new bed, but it wiped out my kitchen flooring money. We are now going to go with bamboo flooring instead of the more expensive hard-wood we've been looking at.

Also in new furniture news, we were given a new futon for our family room. Our old old couch finally found it's way to the burn pile.

This morning I asked Peter to drink the last bit of milk left in the plastic gallon. I handed him a glass and the almost empty jug. I turned back to see him drinking from the jug. Once finished, he wiped his hand across his mouth and exclaimed, "I drank that just like Daddy drinks orange juice." Glad we're teaching our kids such good habits!

2007-07-23T21:28:00.000-07:00

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MARY! Today is my sister Mary's birthday. I was 5 when she was a baby, I couldn't believe that something so small and cute could be alive. My mom would lay her to sleep in a wicker bassinet. I liked to peek over the side to touch her and then I'd quickly pinch her to make sure it was a real baby and run off while hearing her cry.

I like to think that I helped influence Mary in becoming the great person that she is, but I think I caused more tears and torment than I should have. On her first day of junior high, Mary, Wendy and I joined a few friends at Denny's for breakfast. After a quick barely edible meal, we rushed across town to take Mary to the Jr. High. I thought I was being a cool, fun older sister, but we rode in my friend's topless jeep, causing Mary's hair to stand on end. Probably wasn't the way she'd planned to start the year.

Mary, I thought about calling you today, but with your problem phones, I couldn't remember which one was working. Hope you have a fun camping trip. Happy Birthday, I love you! No, I did not forget about your birthday, I just wasn't able to blog until 10pm.
Heather

Couple of Answers

2007-07-19T08:40:00.000-07:00

Here's a picture of our trailer stuck on the side of the road. If you look closely to the right, you can see Abby and Peter.

Our camping trip was fun, I did not loose track of any of our kids. But while I was on a potty trip, Cristine wandered into the neighboring camper area. We had two families join us on our trip, making a total o 10 kids. The kids had a great time running around playing, yelling, laughing, crying, fighting, playing again. We'd put the kids to bed and then stay up playing phase 10 and talking. We must have stayed up too late, been too loud or our kids must have annoyed the neighbors because on Sunday morning someone left a nasty note on our car. The note said something to the effect: You folks are rude and inconsiderate campers. What a way to end a fun trip. Maybe had they mentioned something earlier we could have been quieter or something.

One of the reasons we like this place is how it is set up, there is a lot of space between camping areas with lots of brush. Different than some of the places we've been to on the Oregon coast where you are packed in like sardines. We think of it like leaving the country to go camping only to end up in the city.

The dog did not go camping with us. A friend from work took him home with her for the weekend. The dog is home with us once again. It seems to be ours now. Still no name.

8 Things About Me

2007-07-12T08:00:00.000-07:00

Deanne at Fragile Flower tagged me to list 8 things you didn't know about me. Since I couldn't get these pictures to work yesterday, I'm going to try to combine the two. 1. This cute puppy adopted our home Sunday. I need to take him to the vet to see if he has a chip. But he came without a tag or collar. Can we keep him? The kids are in love. Need some name ideas!
2. Instead of helping Cristine climb, I grabbed my camera and took pictures of her stuck climbing our play structure.

3. We made fun shirts for the kids to wear in the HR parade. I also made fun hats, but the kids were too hot or maybe to embarrassed? to wear them.
4. While at the port enjoying BBQ and friends, Michelle was lured off by the tinkling of the Ice Cream truck. Peter and I were at the suburban getting clean clothes and heard the ice cream man mention a lost girl. Couldn't be mine, they were busy playing with new friends. Several minutes later a family brought her to our picnic area. I had no idea she had been missing! (bad mommy!) I received a great lecture from people who don't know me on how to be a better parent. They claimed she didn't know her way back and took her all around trying to find her family. The ice cream truck was only 20 feet from our picnic area, and we'd been walking around all day. I think if they hadn't stepped in, she could have made it back just fine. Was Michelle upset-no, she was upset that she didn't have any money for ice cream and the driver wouldn't give her a free sample
5. I love to use my new camera to take pictures of my kids, this one included. Well at least the ones I have with me, not the ones I'm trying to loose (that's a joke people)

6. We tried to leave on a camping trip yesterday, only to get a mile from town, stopped by a blow out on the trailer. The spare tire's valve stem was bad, so Rick left Abby, Peter and myself on the side of the road, with the trailer, while he went home to fix the spare. We sat on a towel in the grassy area watching cars, trucks and trains speed by. With a trailer full of food we ate Popsicles and chips, counted trucks and told stories. Rick came back after a while, put the fixed spare tire on and we headed back home for the night. We are now waiting for him to return from Les Schwabs with a new spare tire (changing the shredded old tire into a new spare) so we can return on our way.

7. I haven't changed out of my jammies yet, it 9am, we're supposed to be ready to go, but I'm feeling lazy and decided to update my blog instead.

8. At this moment, I've decided it is time to move, check spell check once more, post my new post and take a shower.

Be back Sunday

Heather

The Pits

2007-07-05T22:29:00.000-07:00

For the last couple of weeks while I've been out changing sprinklers, I've been stopping by our Lappin cherry tree. I've been testing them to see how ripe they are. During the last few days they have gotten so sweet. I like to pick a handful to eat while I continue with my sprinkler changing duties. Our pie cherries are now ripe, and waiting for me to pick, pit and freeze.

I love cherries. So does Abby, Michelle and Cristine. Cristine likes to drool the dark pink juice onto her shirts to show everyone her love of cherries. Peter likes to help pick them, but won't even attempt a bite. Abby, Michelle and I have been having pit spitting contests. Growing up, we'd stand outside and see who could spit their pit across the deck into a whole that was cut out for the water valve. I think it was pretty even as to who won those contests, we all seemed to have enough spitting force (hot air?) to shoot them to the opposite side.

As I walk through the orchard eating cherries and spitting pits, I think about my sisters. When I get to the last cherry, instead of spitting the pit, I keep it in my mouth. We also have contests to see who could keep the cherry pit in their mouth the longest. It seemed that Wendy could hold her pit for hours. I think she always won. So today, with a cherry pit tucked in my cheek, I want to wish my little sister Wendy the Happiest of Birthdays. Here's to you, may you continue to hold cherry pits in your mouth for hours and then spit them clear across your Lanai (did I spell that right?). Love your guts and pits!

Since I couldn't find a picture of a cherry pit, or one of us spitting cherries I thought I'd give you Ten-time Cherry Pit Spit Champ "Pellet Gun" Krause, July 1997. Wonder whatever happened to ol' P. Gunny Krause. Wendy, I think he's blowing you a birthday pit kiss.
Heather

Craft Time and a Family Reunion

2007-07-01T21:40:00.000-07:00

Abby's apron "peace out"
Abby showing Peter's apron
Abby wearing Michelle's apron. Could we get a new pose please?
After having our kids fight over the same apron each time we bake anything I decided it was time to have a sewing lesson. We found some fun fabric at JoAnn's and bought quilt binding for the ties (thank you Mary for the fast edging idea!). The kids helped cut the fabric and pushed the pedal while I steered the fabric. They were so excited by the finished results they wore them all day.

Grandma McBride with Grandma Weimer
Grandma Weimer with a few of her many grandkids
Look at that pouty face!

Grandma Weimer with a few of her great grandkids
Celebrating Grandma's 90th birthday
Since I took several days off so we could go to Erin's wedding, work was a little reluctant to give me more time off. I had a kind co-worker agree to work for me on Saturday so we could race over to La Grande, Oregon. We had lots of fun swimming with my cousins and their kids. We were able to spend more time with Grammy McBride, Erin and Bridger. We were also able to celebrate Grandma Weimer's 90th birthday. It was so fun to see a few of my cousins and meet their families. Uncle Brent taught everyone a fun new card game, but we left in the middle of the game, and I didn't really figure it out. These reunions are always such a fun event, hopefully at the next reunion in 2 years more of us will be able to attend.

Note to Peter, please don't ride the merry go round after eating lots of chocolate cake.

Guess Who Stopped by our House!

2007-06-25T07:52:00.000-07:00

Mr. and Mrs. Field! They came by just in time for a dinner. We ate spice girl bread (love that recipe Wendy!), sugar snap peas (from Rick's aunt's garden), and grilled steel head, which Rick caught and bbq for us. (He caught it last summer, not Sunday during church :)

They are a cute, fun couple. Today they are taking the 3 older kids to play in the Columbia River. It is so fun to have family visit; note to other family members....start visiting-Rick will bbq for you!

First Fruits of the Season

2007-06-08T22:49:00.000-07:00

Our strawberries are getting ripe! We've now picked a couple baskets full of the beautiful red berries. Yesterday I took some to work, they were a hot commodity. Too bad no one had anything worth trading for. Today we made 2 batches of freezer jam and froze a bag of crushed berries to make jam later in the year. We also made scones and topped them with strawberries and whipping cream. What a yummy treat! My fingers are stained a lovely shade of pink in preparation for tomorrows harvest. Tomorrow's treat: strawberry pie!

What did I do with my scan card? I would have taken pictures of my cute berry pickers and jam makers but couldn't find it anywhere. Note to self: find card or buy a new one before trip to Utah!

That Magical Age!

2007-06-03T14:15:00.000-07:00

18 Months!
Today Cristine reached the magical age where she is suddenly able to attend the Nursery at Church. Since I am already in the Nursery, she's been attending for the last 8 months. This morning another assistant was called, so I decided to attend Relief Society. Crissy was great, and didn't get upset when I left the room. Now hopefully she'll continue to enjoy it on her own!

Planting Trees

2007-05-31T18:53:00.000-07:00

We replanted a few dead pear trees. This became a whole family effort. Earlier in the year, Rick cut down several trees, then he borrowed a neighbor's excavator and pulled the stumps out. We were asked to pick up the roots, and then we helped with the planting. Picture description: #1 stretching the measuring tape, so the tree is centered in a straight line with the other trees. #2 Peter testing out the dirt. #3 Michelle helping with the root removal, playing air guitar? #4 Current size of our pears. #5 The view from our orchard #6 ground after tree was removed, with roots for us to pick up #7 looking down a row. #8 Cristine sampling the snacks.

Updates

2007-05-30T11:08:00.000-07:00

Here's a few more pictures. The first one is taken on a large old growth tree stump. The third picture is of Peter and my sister in law, Marianne, if you look closely you can see Abby's flaming marshmallow.

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Bread update

I guess I am that sort of friend. I mentioned I was trying to make a batch of bread. After going to the store to pick up baking soda, I finished the loaf. Peter, Michelle and Cristine loved it. Abby didn't like the chocolate chips I'd added. I got rid of 3 sacks of bread, instead of giving them to friends, I threw them away. Yesterday I made my second batch, but I don't think I'll make any more. I can make very good bread all on my own, without having some stinky stuff telling me when I need to bake. So I think I'll stick to my own recipes for banana, zucchini or pear bread. Any bets if Peter will eat them if I add chocolate chips?

Clamming Pictures

2007-05-23T19:40:00.000-07:00

We went clam digging, again. This time I took my camera. These pictures show the beach where we get oysters, Rick shucking oysters, Peter playing in the muck. Abby and Michelle helping, and the steamer clams we brought home. In the last picture, if you enlarge it, there is a small rock at the edge of the water, that is where we dig for clams. More pictures to follow.

Am I really that good of a friend?

2007-05-17T21:46:00.000-07:00

10 days ago a friend gave me a ziplock bag filled with a stinky gooey mass. She said it was Amish Friendship Bread. She also said it was alive and needed to be squished daily and fed on day 5. Several years ago another friend gave me some. I forgot to squish it, then later used a metal spoon. I was worried I'd killed it, so I gave as a peace offering to the coyotes that roam behind our house. Now that I'm a mom, I've been able to keep a few things alive, so I thought I'd give this bread a try. I mixed a bowl full of ingredients to make a coffee cake like thing, but I forgot to buy baking soda, hopefully it will survive the night in my fridge. Now have 3 new 'babies' that need to find a home, are you a good enough friend to keep them alive?

Mother's Day

2007-05-12T23:29:00.000-07:00

Happy Mother's Day to TWO amazing women. Mom, I love you, thank you and Dad for driving all the way up here to visit us. It was so fun to see you, you really helped to make the day special for Abby.

Hana, thank you for being such a great Mother-in-law.

I love you both!

Heather

ps I've changed the comment section, so my mom (or others) can now leave thoughts.

Seeds and Water

2007-05-11T21:54:00.000-07:00

Today I got off work at 2:30pm, just in time to meet the kids at the bus stop. After relaxing for a bit, we went to a local gardening center to buy seeds and plants for our garden. The kids had a fun time pulling the wagons around, and I enjoyed looking at all the beautiful plants and flowers. We stuck to our task, and just bought things for our garden, although we did have fun picking out some different varieties. We came home with tomato plants, zucchini plants, including one called an eight ball zucchini. We bought my favorite squash, sweet dumpling, Japanese eggplant, Japanese cucumber and edamame (soybeans). We bought radish seeds, Michelle found a variety called Easter Egg, showing colorful radishes so we bought those. Abby picked out our carrots, orange plus a rainbow kind. Peter found some giant sunflower seeds and stayed away from the vegetables, just like at dinner. We also purchased green beans, beets, green onions seeds. I think that is all. What are you planting? Did we miss anything?

Before we left, Peter was playing with a sink full of water. When we got home, he and Michelle went back to their pond. I noticed a LOT of water on the floor, and got after them for splashing so much. We got out towels and started drying it up, but I couldn't figure out why it was coming out of the cabinet. We then realized the sink was leaking. I quickly drained the water in it, and cleaned out all the junk in the cabinet and began sopping up the water. I showed Rick the sink when he got home, and he took it apart. For some reason the 'plumbers putty' dissolved and was allowing water to seep through. The sink full of water didn't help the problem, but the thing had probably been leaking small amounts of water. We patched up one side of the sink, checked on the other side and decided it too was leaking. Rick is now fixing the other side of the kitchen sink. Why would the putty be leaking when it's only been used for less than 2 years? Thank goodness for Rick, I wonder how much a plumber would charge for after hours on a Friday night?

Abby's Day

2007-05-08T07:39:00.000-07:00

Abby, showing her new church dress.
Abby before her Baptism

Michelle and Zion
Anna, Zion and Juddah
Our family

Grampy and Grammy and the grandkids
Peter and Juddah
Cristine

Rick and Abby

Abby was Baptised on Saturday, May 5th. Several family members were able to attend. Rick's sister and her family from WA, my sister Anna and her 2 boys, also from WA. My parents from UT. Grammy K. was there along with her sister.

Abby was so excited. She radiated happiness. Our Bishop's wife made a cute memory album, she included pictures from the day along with hand written notes from those in attendance. We've enjoyed reading them. Thank you to everyone who was able to come, you really helped make the day special!

Welcome to the Digital World

2007-04-27T21:42:00.000-07:00

I have been wanting a digital camera forever, almost as long as I've wanted new kitchen flooring (which we should be ordering in the next few weeks). Rick has an amazing professional type camera, which has really intimidated me, not to mention the weight of it, that thing is a beast. Anyway, after looking at them online, and holding one at Best Buy, we found it at Costco (Rick's favoritest store). It was a package deal, including 2 lenses and a camera bag. When we got home, we looked it up online and saved ourselves $30 by getting it at Costco. Not the huge deal we thought, but that's fine by me. I've been playing with it a little, and Rick took a few pictures at Abby's party. Now I need to figure out how to get the pictures from my camera to the computer.

Birthday Wishes

2007-04-25T11:35:00.000-07:00

I mentioned in the last post that 3 of our 4 kids were having birthdays. Yesterday we celebrated Abby's 8th birthday. Tomorrow night we continue the celebration by having a party with several friends at Pietro's Pizza. Then on May 5th, Abby will be getting baptised. I can't believe that my little girl is now 8. Time goes amazingly fast! Fun presents-20 questions electronic game, an electronic tomigochi (sp?), a cute dress to wear to her Baptism and more!

Michelle turned 4 on April 4th. We had a fun family party, Michelle was so cute and her excitement was contagious. She kept telling me that I needed to take her shopping for a birthday present. Fun presents-a new tea set, a cute outfit, princess books and more!

Peter can barely wait for his birthday next week. He keeps telling me his birthday is on May seventh, sounds quite similar to second. He also keeps mentioning all his friends names as a subtle hint as to who needs to be invited to his party. I need to finish shopping for him, must buy more train tracks, Thomas is in need.

After having a small party at MacDonald's a large party at Pietro's tomorrow, I'm feeling rather birthday-ed out. Any ideas for an easy friend Party for Peter?

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Last week we went clam digging, again. Rick is planning to go again in May. We got to spend an afternoon with Anna and her cute boys. Rick's sister, Marianne, her husband Dean and one of their sons, Brady came out the next day. It is so fun to be able to see family!

Here is my to do list. I need a bit of motivation since the nap is calling to me!

laundry, finishing washing, fold, PUT IT AWAY!
straighten up
get kids papers sorted and put away. (it's fun when teachers send home all their work for the past quarter, but wow, that's a lot to deal with at once!)
Clean, cook and freeze large clams
take a shower (to wash off the clam smell)
take a nap
get to work on time (2pm!)
6pm, rush home from work
make dinner
help Abby with homework
give kids a bath
read to kids
put kids to bed

YIKES too much to do. Maybe I'll take a nap first!

28 Days of Celebration

2007-04-03T21:53:00.000-07:00

Woo hooo, let the parties begin! Tomorrow is the first of many celebrations for our family. It seems that most of our family has a birthday in the next few weeks. This is what our calendar looks like, my family (mom, sister, nieces) will be in pink, Rick's family (niece and nephew) will be in blue, our kids will be in red.

April
4-Michelle's Birthday(4), Brady's Birthday (19), Katie's Birthday (1!)
5-Iris's Birthday (2)
6-Stevanie's (16) Birthday
8-Our 13 Anniversary!!! Easter
9-Grammy McBride's Birthday
15-Erin's Birthday (19)
24-Abby's Birthday (8)
26-Emily's Birthday (6)
May
2-Peter's Birthday (6)

Hey family, if I've missed anyone or put a wrong date, let me know!