A Walk In The Woods

It's finally here!

Tate and I leave tomorrow!

I've been having the strangest dreams.

Anxiety?

Not about the friends I'm about to meet.

No, not that.

I guess I'm just not much of a seasoned traveler,

and not much of a fan of crowds.

(Hello, Sea-Tac airport.)

I'll miss my morning walks with Gunnar,

so I leave you a few pics of that :D

Seagull, swallow (?), stellar jay.

The biggest sunflower I think I've ever seen.

The sun just peeking over the ridge (out of sight to the right)
and touching the tops of the hills across the lake.

Ah, a peaceful morning.

The morning may seem bright...

... but it's still dark under the trees.

Getting lighter, though :D

See, the sun is up there!

Same tree... takes four pics to see the top.

A whole eco-system on top of a rock.

I love when we reach the highest (elevation) point of our walk...

... the same time the sun does.

Four trails meet.  We came on this one...

... considered this one...

... meh, not this one...

... and continued our walk on this one.

So we can break out of the woods at the top of the hill and see this :D

Yep.  That's us.

Loving the fall colors :D

And down the hill...

... to home :D

And my gorgeous dogwood tree.

Love the twisty, curly branches.

Grasshopper Days, and Another Lake Day

Grasshopper Days

For today, Monday, October 5, 2015

So, listen.  Because I'm so fabulously organized and on top of everything,

I never forget about a bunch of posts in the draft file for weeks at a time.

Right?

I mean , who does that?

Yah.

Well, actually, yah, that would be me.

So think happy fall thoughts of pumpkin spice everything,

and enjoy these photos from summer.

Because we went to the lake a bunch of times.

Outside my window...

a cool, crisp, sunny fall day - my favorite kind :D

In the photos, however, it's late August and the air is filled with smoke from the the wildfires.

Also, Naomi came to visit.

(She LOOOOVES to swim.)

The lake level is really low - so far down!

Hearing...

a blessedly quiet house.

Too quiet.

The dryer stopped, which means I need to do something with the laundry.

Tate will help.

Pondering...

the things I need to get done before Tate and I head to Arkansas.

Two days!!!

Gunnar gives Naomi a ride on the boogie board.

Praying...

our pastor is still recovering from having his tonsils out,

Tate and I will be traveling,

the other boys have a CAP bivouac next weekend and

the forecast is cold and rainy.

Warming up with Grandma.

Thankful...

so far, work continues to come in for Kerry,

Tate is doing great at school, so missing a couple days is no big deal,

Gunnar is (will be by tomorrow) all caught up and can just relax while I'm gone,

I think I have everything organized.

Probably not.

But close enough.

Two girls from my parents' church trying out the windsurfer as a paddle-board.
They don't realize they have it backwards, and are having trouble steering.

Wearing...

the grubbies I went walking in this morning,

waiting to shower and change until after laundry.

Creating...

Oh!  I can show you when I get back!

Wyatt and Tate go to see if the girls need help.
They are slowly being blown down the beach, away from the dock.

Going...

to Messiah rehearsal tonight.

I wasn't sure if I was going to do it this year because I'll be missing so many rehearsals,

but they wanted me anyway.

The girls decline help.
They could sorely have used it ;D

Reading...

re-reading a set of books by Jamie Langston Turner.

Not really a series, but the characters overlap.

Right now I'm reading

A Garden To Keep.

Learning...

to let go.

The boys are growing...

No, they're not showing off or anything...
right?

Looking forward...

to the Choates and the Hibbards!

Letting the little boys use the canoe.
The girls are still trying to get the paddle board headed back to the dock.

In the kitchen...

happily, there are lots of leftovers in the fridge :D

That will benefit Kerry, Wyatt and Gunnar while Tate and I are gone.

As usual, the younger boys spend most of their canoe time tipping it over.

In the learning rooms...

Tate is working hard on his chemistry (thankful to a friend from the chapel who is helping tutor him!)

and studying the Constitution for the next week or two.

Gunnar is graphing in Algebra - learning the difference between a direct variation,

an indirect variation, and an inverse variation.

And - coincidentally - also learning about the Consitiution.

I love when their studies overlap :D

There will be no tipping while Naomi is in the canoe :D

Around the house...

I'm just itching to get more fall decorations out,

but I think the contractor is (FINALLY!) coming to complete the window trim.

This week?  Next week?

SOON!

The Mother Load...

Here's the way it stood Saturday morning:

* wrap Sammy's gift

* get Gunnar to b'day party

* pay bills

* cards to Pastor Bert and E.K.

* wash boys' sheets

* boys remake beds

* calendar summit

* Sunday school prep

* tidy office

* wrap b'day gifts

* pay Wyatt

* rearrange dresser (move summer things down)

* help Wyatt choose classes for next quarter

* water plants

* renew Tate's WA State Parks Disability Pass

* Wyatt - reschedule orthodontist appointment

* Tate/Wyatt - mow Bill's lawn

* Gunnar - exchange dress blues for larger size (ouch!)

And there's much, much more,

but it can wait until I get back.

I just can't manage more right now.

Whew!

Noticing that...

it's finally happened.

I think Gunnar has passed me by.

I'll have to catch him barefoot to know for sure,

but I think I'm the shortest one around here.

Something to remember for later...

the way Tate and Gunnar hide the Nesquik powder from each other.

Something fun to share...

Gunnar is still talking about how much fun he had at Sammy's b'day party on Saturday.

Sammy is FOUR.

(He's the kiddo that Gunnar has babysat for two years.)

Sammy and his brother Ben really adore Gunnar,

and Gunnar loves to be the 'big boy' rather than the youngest.

Win-win!

When they're not tipping the canoe over,
they do this.

A favorite quote for today...

God does not have problems,

only plans.

Corrie ten Boom

One of my favorite things...

a full freezer.

A Bible verse...

all those places in Judges,

where the people got a GOOD judge,

and it says something like,

"And the land had peace for eighty years."

A few plans for the rest of the week...

* Monday - morning walk, homeschool, rehearsal

* Tuesday - morning walk, homeschool, boys to CAP, pack!

* Wednesday - morning walk, off to Arkansas!

A peek into my world...

well, the whole post is a peek into my summer :D

2015 Camping Trip - Day 5

We all had fun, but nobody was too disappointed

that it was time to head for home.

And we weren't in any hurry, as Naomi's mom

wouldn't be home from work until mid-afternoon.

I wouldn't mind staying at this place!

Just look at those flowers,

and in September!

One of the things I love about Leavenworth is the location.

That's the main highway heading west.

Doesn't it look kind of like there's nowhere for it to go?

But there is - up a beautiful, narrow valley.

As we got up into higher elevations,

the fall colors really started to show.

Doesn't it take your breath away?

We decided to stop up at Steven's Pass and have a look around.

Plus, with a three-year-old, you need lots of

stretch-your-legs and potty breaks.

Hope this hill will soon be covered with snow!

She was a good traveler.

As long as you enjoy several rounds of

The Itsy-Bitsy Spider.

At full volume ;D

(Still working on that "inside voice".)

Gunnar and I convinced Grandpa (not that we had to try very hard :D _

to stop for a lunch break at Zeke's, in Gold Bar.

The boys and I have been there before...

... for the enormous burgers.

This time, we brought our own lunch,

and bought milkshakes for a treat :D

Of course we explored the red caboose.

Can you see the train going over the highway in the distance?

We could hear it coming up the hill (working hard),

and we jumped off the caboose to watch it pass...

... right across the highway behind the trees.

Naomi apparently thought it was too loud,

but very exciting.

With that, we loaded up one last time

and headed home :D

And guess who wants to go camping again?