I haven't written in quite some time (
as I was reminded by my dear Aunt- ....Hi Aunt Penny;)😀
My friend told me recently that when gratefulness fills your mind, then there is little room for despair. Without going into details, there have been some hard moments mixed in with the good ones.
But, I will write about the good things that have taken place in our family these past months, because there are many.
Amidst the chaos, (aka chipped base board paint and guinea pig debris) John often reminds that "these are the good ol' days," the ones we will look back on someday. Ah, yes. I know he is right.
I'll back it up to Christmas. Yes, Christmas.
Our Christmas tree this year was, well, less than exciting. Oregon is usually known for it's stellar trees, but the abnormal heat wave this summer squelched the prospect of a lush, full tree. After wandering around looking for a flourishing tree, we settled. However, from what I heard from others in this area, we weren't the only ones who lamented our lack of foliage in the living room.
Besides, we had to barricade the tree anyways with chairs or else Lucy would eat the ornaments and rip open the gifts sitting under it. 😏
My parents came out for Christmas this year, and although Evie had a bad cold... (who gave it to grandpa..who eventually gave it to Grandma....)we still managed to have a bit of fun.
We spent one day at the Evergreen air and space museum and went bowling one afternoon.
Christmas Eve also included our tradition of Grandpa reading the Night Before Christmas to the kids.
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| High excitement anticipating Santa's arrival |
Christmas break also included a ton of cookie baking.
One afternoon I came in from the garage. I heard an absurd sound coming from the kitchen. Upon entering, I caught Lucy finishing off the last of the frosted gingerbread cookies we had just finished baking.
She scurried away, guiltily, as I swept up all the evidence of crumbs she left on the floor. There must have been 25 cookies on that tray. This however, wasn't the last time she managed to eat a large amount of baked goods. Despite our best efforts to place cookies in the middle of kitchen island, she somehow found her way to the them several times, eating with panicked fervor.
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But Lucy can do no wrong in the eyes on her daddy.........
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Christmas break also brought moments of rest and peace.
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| Lucy got spade right after Thanksgiving...hence the donut around her neck. |
I had to reassure John that we were doing the right thing 😉
I taught the kids how to string popcorn chains in hopes to further embellish our little, withering tree.
Not all of our Christmas creations were successful...........I can NEVER get these graham cracker houses right.
Like every year, Christmas also means Evelyn's birthday. This year was an extra special one because my dear daughter has entered the double digits. She's officially a decade old.
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| She really wanted to see Sing 2 for her birthday, so we spent the afternoon at the theatre. |
There have been many moments when I gaze at her and marvel at the beautiful young lady she is becoming. She has never been one to play with toys or dolls; she much rather spend her timing doing something productive, especially when it can bless someone else.
Lately she's been using her spare moments to bake. Evelyn looks up recipes on line and produces these beautiful culinary creations! Her ambition is always to drop it off for other people, most of the time for the elderly lady down the street, or a newly widowed man in the next cul-de-sac. She truly has compassion and love for people and shows it through what she creates for them.
This year for Christmas, she insisted on buying materials to make each woman in the family a special candle. She worked long hours in the kitchen melting wax cubes in glass bottles while adding just the right amount of fragrance.
Her greatest delight during the holiday season was being able to present each candle to the recipients; however, she had to send several home with Grandma to deliver to the Aunts she would not see this year.
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| TEN! |
This girl is growing up, and I find myself wanting to savor my time with her. We recently started watching the series "Anne of Green Gables" together.
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| Her hover board is one of her prized gifts for Christmas this year. |
She is doing great in the accelerated reading group at school, reading "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe." This year in 4th grade the focus in history is on the pioneers of Oregon and the West. The students choose a historical character to research, and then they write a report. At the end of the term, they portray their character in a performance at school.
She selected Annie Oakley. I am more excited about her assignment than she is!
4th grade is such a big year for Oregon history. They are supposed to take some amazing field trips this year. However, because everything is still COVID cancelled around here 😒, John and I decided to make our own day trip to Astoria one Saturday to see some of the sights together with the family.
We ventured to Fort Clatsop, the winter home of Lewis and Clark.
We made a stop at the famous 100 year old ship wreck, the Peter Iredale, on the coast.
We explored Fort Stevens, wandering the damp chambers and climbing on the old guns, imagining what it would have been like to be a solider her in the World Wars.
(Bonus discovery: a sleeping bat in one of the chambers!)
We climbed to the top of Astoria column. The view at the top was spectacular. It was a clear and sunny January day.
The kids took turns throwing little airplanes off the top.
We then crossed the Astoria bridge and hiked to Cape Disappointment, a bay that was mistakenly identified as the mouth of the Columbia River by a British trader in 1788. Lewis and Clark ended their journey here as well in 1805. Now stands an old light house and a beautiful view of the ocean.
Perhaps the favorite stop of the day was our final meal, a Texas Roadhouse. The kids were amazed, (and slightly nervous) about eating peanuts and simply tossing the shells on the ground.
It was a long, cherished day, one that I think Evelyn will remember more than if she went with her classmates.
Now I'll tell you the story about the two newest members of our family, Chocolate and Chip, our little guinea pigs...
One week, John was gone for a few days in Colorado. His return flight was cancelled, so the kids and I had the weekend before us. I decided to be "fun mom" and drive downtown to an advertised "reptile pet exhibit."
50% of the kids were excited about this, but I was too intrigued not to go. So, on that sunny January Saturday the kids loaded into the mini van, and I drove them to a hotel near the airport where the exhibit was set up.
What I saw there horrified me.
Containers and boxes of snakes, lizards, frogs and bugs filled the tables of the crowded rooms. I simply couldn't wrap my mind around the fact that people actually bought these critters for pets! The boys wanted a lizard, but the thought of having to have live bugs constantly on hand in order to feed them gave me nightmares. That was a hard "no." My intent was to simply go and look.
However, as we strolled around the creepy room, we came across a woman in the corner selling guinea pigs. Yes, guinea pigs at a reptile fair.😏 I'm not sure how or why she was there; my kids immediately flocked to her (she was a welcome sight amongst the scaley critters!)
She had several baby guinea pigs in a box and she eagerly allowed my kids to hold them, claiming that guiena pigs were the most wonderful pets-affectionate, social and easy to care for. Immediately, the begging and pleading began, and I found myself up against FIVE people who really felt like life would be so much better with this little rodent in our home. Evelyn said she would spend all her own money on it. Levi also piped up and promised that he too would use his Christmas money from grandparents.
Now if you know Levi, this is such an out of character proclamation. Levi is the notorious saver of the family. I haven't ever seen him spend his money on anything over the years. He has hundreds of dollar stuffed away in an envelope, claiming there is "nothing he really wants." Now however, this child was pleading with me for one of these guinea pigs!
"You know, " the guinea pig lady started, "guinea pigs are much happier when they have a friend. I'll give you one for $30.00....or TWO for $50."
"PLEEEEEESE mom." The energy in the room was intensifying.
It all happened so fast, but suddenly we had two little furry creatures in Tupperware containers. Caleb began crying because he now decided he really wanted a guinea pig too! I hesitated for a moment. His sincerity was intense, but ultimately when I really considered it, I thought that going from no guinea pigs to three guinea pigs was a little much (especially since John had no idea that this was happening yet)😬
I assured Caleb that there would be plenty of guinea pigs to go around; we paid the lady and took home Chocolate and Chip.
Over the next few days we established their habitat. Lucy warmed right up to them, licking them squarely on the face. Evelyn had to remind me several times not to call them gerbils!
They are strange little things, making weird noses and chasing each other around the cage.
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| Curious, but kind. |
Towards the end of the month, I took off for a much anticipated week in Arizona with my two aunts, my mother and my grandma. We do these girls trips every few years and this one couldn't come at a better time, as January in Portland has been rather grey and rainy.
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| I haven't been on a horse in over a decade. |
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| An afternoon in Sedona. |
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| Electric bike riding in Scottsdale. |
John held down the fort on the Homefront just fine. In fact, I think Lucy in particular was living her best life; she apparently took over my side of the bed.
I mentioned earlier that this month brought some hard things, and one of these things was the passing of my Dad's mom-my grandma and the kids' great grandma.
I'd like to end this post with honoring her.
My children have good memories of visiting her whenever we were in Chicago.
Evelyn especially shared a special relationship with her.
She always spoiled my kids with little trinkets and gifts, and I know she loved them deeply. They were the joy of her life in these final years.
So on we go, into February, finding the joy in each day and relishing the noise and mess of the good ol' days.
