MERRY CHRISTMAS!!

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!
Have a blessed time with your families!

This is a picture of the "calm" before our second snow storm.
HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

The weekend

We got up this morning to not much more snow but it was windy last night and what we did get was drifted. There were dritfs about a foot deep in places. We planned so we could head out early for Church and got there in good time only to find out it was cancelled. We did not know because I have not signed up for the church newsletter yet so we are not on the e-mail list. I don't think any of the Churches were open today. We needed gas so we got that and then went home. John did a devotional with us and we just enjoyed being together. In the afternoon we headed out across the road for a neighborhood party.

The party was nice. The hostess fed us all a yummy dinner of lasagna, bread, an italian salad ,and a sausage pie that was very good. Rumcake and cupcakes were for dessert along with punch. We then played a game with "white elephant " gifts. She bought each child there a gift of there own. We had a good time and it was nice to meet some neighbors!

It is snowing pretty hard again and the base may be closed again tomorrow, so John could be home with us. He might go in just to go through his in box, so he is not "buried" later, but he won't stay all day.

We still have our water back and are leaving a faucet running so it does not freeze again.
Thats all for our lazy Sunday!

We have water again!!!! Yeah!!

No Water!

Well I have to remember how to ruff it w/o water! Ours froze today it is so cold! When we lived at the ranch in Idaho we would lose water sometimes, so I have done it before. It is really cold and another storm is due tonight or tomorrow. Heres to "Pioneering" LOL!

We are having a second snow day today. We have not gotten much more snow but the roads are icy, a kind of chunky ice on some because the snow plows did not go down them.

I may try and run into town later. I did not go anywhere yesterday until John got home from the airport. Scott arrived safely in Florida and it was 70 degrees there at 11 o'clock at night. So he is missing our snow , but I don't think he minds.

I made sprintz cookies for the first time in a long time yesterday and they turned out yummy. Potatoe soup sounds good for our snowy day today.

Now that I am home from work and staying busy around here, I wonder how I had time for it before. Having the kids around has helped with the transition.

SNOW DAY!

Yes, it is a snow day, but this is a picture I took last night! It is so beautiful! This is looking west. Above the tree line are the Olympic mountains and you can't see it but between the trees and the mountains is the ocean!
Since it is a snow day the kids are all home, except for Scott. Dad braved the weather to take him to the airport in Seattle. He is flying to Florida to see his friends he left behind when we moved here last December. James and Emily helped make pancakes this morning. James has a bandage on his hand because he accidentally touched the wood stove this morning. Ouch!!

Here are some more pictures of snow. Right now it is coming down pretty hard. And to think I told a new friend recently that we don't get much snow on the island! LOL!

Enjoy!!!!! You can see that the stump is more buried.

SNOW!

We had our first snow of the season here on the island. It was just a few inches but it sure is pretty! Enjoy the pictures!!

Things

Hi! It has been far too long since I posted! It has been really busy around here with the move and work. But as of yesterday I no longer have a job. I was laid off/let go, what ever you want to call it! Needless to say I was/am crushed, because I truly loved my job and being back in the healthcare world. OK- we won't talk about that anymore!! On to happier topics!!

We really, really love living in this house! Here are a couple of pictures of the view! They aren't the best. I'll have to work on getting better ones.The house just feels much more like home!

THANKSGIVING was WONDERFUL!!! It is the first time in 61/2 years that all my family was at my house for a holiday dinner. We did not go and do much, other than the "endless" shopping we seemed to need to do in our small town. We had to get ready for Rachels B-day party and needed "stuff". It was just awesome spending time with family and just hanging out. Cara took most of the pictures so I do not have much to show you. There is a shot of how the men in our family "bond"!

They sit around and read together. I think they talked some! It was also fun dressing the girls up for church in dresses that Auntie Cara bought them last year. They don't look like they were having much fun but it was their idea! They sure got a lot of compliments at Church too!

It was a wonderful long weekend with family!!! I want to do it again!!

Moving!!

I have not blogged about this yet, but some of you already know that we have to move to a different house. The owner of this house is going to be forclosed on if he does not sell it SOON! They will be putting the house up for auction in about 3 months. Anyway we found a new place to live and are moving Saturday! I can't believe I am doing this again! Once we found out we were moving all the things we did not like about this house were magnified. Like only having one bathroom with a tub only, not a real shower, sink and toilet, for 6 people! We have another tiny bathroom with just a toilet and sink. This house also does not get very warm.
The house we are moving to has 2 full baths!! One has double sinks! It also has a wood stove.

The house is also on 2 1/2 acers and our neighbors have sheep and llamas. It is about a mile and a half from our current place.I think we will like it!

Anyway Saturday is the big day! We get the keys tomorrow. We will not have the internet for possibly 2 weeks. I don't know if we will survive!! LOL!! But I will be back! I promise! Think of us Saturday!!

Life gets busy!

Hi all!! I am still here!! Let me say first if all that, I Love my job!! Working again has made life busier and more challenging, but I love being back in the medical world and helping people!! Figuring out how to get everything done at home is a trick, but I am getting a system worked out.

Two of our boys started soccer and are really happy about it, but that too adds to the busyness around here! It also makes for more expense because a lot of their games are off the island. (good thing I am working now!) So more driving and gas, but the boys are enjoying it and they needed that outlet AND we enjoy watching them!

Awhile back Cara did a family photo shoot for us! She did an AWESOME job! I know she shared some on her blog, but I wanted to share some more. I have them in my computer now!

For Sandra and Baby Hayden!

A baby boy
Author: Unknown

A baby boy was created

by the hand of God above

to give the world the sweetest touch

of tenderness and love.

With the softness of a whisper,God made a baby's skin

and then designed two trusting eyes

to put the starlight in.With giggles from a waterfall

and breezes passing by,God made a baby's laughter

and a tiny, sleepy sigh.

God made the world a precious gift

more dear and pure than gold,with little toes to play with and tiny hands to hold

then brought into the sunshine a precious baby boy

All wrapped up in a rainbow of wonder, hope, and joy.

-unknown author

Congratulations on the upcoming arrival of Hayden!!! Can't wait to see what this little man looks like!! I 'am still deciding on your gift! Please e-mail me your address! cmcpherson9@hotmail.com

You are a great Mom and you are really going to enjoy having a boy!!

Love Cheri

Random FUN!

I got a funny idea off a blog I read and decided to post it. You should try this for a good laugh. You just google your first name and then "needs". Then see what you come up with. It's for REAL what I came up with...

1. Cheri needs fluency..... probably in communicating to my kids (and hubby)!! Sometimes I think I am speaking another language!

2. Cheri needs positive thoughts today..... We all could use those!!

3. Cheri needs a good nights sleep....... Always!!! There are these "little" munchkins that "appear" in our bed, that are not so little any more and take up way more space than they used too and I wake up to send them back to their bed. Somehow they are back in the morning!!

4. Cheri needs volunteers..... Another thing we could all use!! How about one to watch my kids so I can run away with my hubby for a day and night!

5. Cheri updated Cheri's needs..... Did I?? They don't change much! I needed a job and got it!

6.Cheri needs to find another lable soon...... Hmmm? I did just add the lable of Medical Assistant recently and today was called "Lovely MA" at work!

7. Cheri needs to change her image...... Into what ? I'll have to think on that!

8. Cheri needs to only to cover the cost of shipping food... How about the cost of paying for food and driving it home!! The new job will help with that!!

9. Cheri needs the same connection they do.... I wonder what kind of connection? My cell phone could use better connection sometimes!

10. Cheri needs for a medication that slows progression..... Alot of things come to mind here! What would you like to slow the progression of?

11. Cheri needs to do some facial exercises.... Hmmm! It take more muscles to frown. I don't want to be doing that!


There you go!! Now try your name! I was fun!

So far work is going very well!! The lead MA is on vacation this week and I was left " alone" on Tuesday and Thursday! It sure helps to learn how things work in our office and I think I did pretty well. There was only one provider today so it was quieter and I stocked all the patient rooms. I had to go on a hunt to find things but I think I got it done. I'll have to ask my co-worker tomorrow how I did.

Looking forward to the weekend!!

NEWS

The big news here today is, I got a job!!! I have been "sorta" looking for awhile and the one that I think will work was offered to me today.

I was offered a job a few weeks ago, but the hours were not right. They wanted me to work 7 am- 6 pm 4 days a week. I felt that was a bit much to jump into from having not worked outside the home for 7 yrs. I also want to be here in the morning to send the kids off to school. They do not really have much of a memory of me working outside the home. When I did Grandma was there or their "Aunt" Kim or Daddy. Any way this will be a big change, but we could use the extra income and like I have said before when the kids are all at school I really get lonley here alone at home. I also LOVE being a Medical Assistant and am excited to get back into it!! I am nervous too, but one of the PA's I will be working for confided to me that I have more experience than any of their Medical Assistants currently employed there. Everyone was very nice and I hope I will be a good addition to their team.

The job I was offered will be in an Internal Medicen clinic working for one Dr. and two PA's. I will work Mon- Thur 8:30- 5. I start next Tuesday. It would have been Monday but the boys trip to help Auntie Awesome has turned into a family affair. We all wanted to see Cara and she says she could use my help too. I sure hope so , she does sooo much for us, I would like to give back!!!
Anyway we are excited to see her on Monday and then I start the new job on Tuesday.

My two older boys are going to watch the two younger kids while I work until school starts. I am going to pay them to make it worth their while and seem more like a job. They both are wanting to earn money. John will also be home just after 4 in the afternoon too.

Well I guess I have rambled on enough about that! Think of me Tuesday!! I will be nervous, but I am very excited!!

TOTALED!

Cara blogged about our accident, so for those of you who were curious I thought I would post some pictures of our car. They totaled it and we are now looking for a cheap replacement so we don't have a car payment.

We are all doing pretty well as far as aches and pains go. The last time I was in an accident was 1985. That one was my fault though. This one was NOT! Here are the pics!




Later I will post some pictures of our summer visitors. It has been pretty busy, but the rest of the summer will be pretty quiet!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY CARA!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY SWEET CARA BEAR!!!!!

Cara at her "real job", soon to be all day shifts!!

We Love You so very very much !!! You are an amazing, wonderful, giving, loving , AWESOME

soul!! You are every positive descriptive word in the dictionary!!

We Love Love Love YOU!!!! Have a special day even though you are working today!

Cool Web Site!

It is good to have my computer back!! While excessively surfing the other day I found a really neat web site/blog!! Some of you may have heard about it, it is http://thepioneerwoman.com/
It is just really awesome! While looking at the pictures she has posted all over her site I was imagining the she was a pioneer woman here in the NW, maybe Montana? It took me awhile to figure out where she was, but she is in Oklahoma!! I honestly did not know Oklahoma had an area the was a beautiful as her pictures, but I never left OK City much when I lived there.

Anyway check out her site and be sure to start reading her love story, "Black Heels to Tractor Wheels"! You will be hooked! I am caught up with what she has written and waiting expectantly for the next chapter! She has great recipes too!

WELCOME TO BABY ALYSSA STAR!!!! Born early this morning!!! Mommy has posted pictures already! Beautiful family!!

I'm Back!!

I got the computer back last night!! It is like having a new computer, nothing is like it was before. They were able to save the pictures and anything in our documents file, but it is just in a retreaved data file right now and not easy to access. Anything that was saved on the deasktop - ie: some homework, for easy access, is gone. Anyway we have some things to do to make it more like it was and we need to store some of the retreaved data some where else.

So good to be back!!

Dead Computer!

I am posting this from the library! My computer is down and is at the "doctor". So I will be away for awhile. I don't get into town to the library very often. I'll "see" you all soon!

Beautiful Day!

Today is just so beautiful it brought tears to my eyes!! I took some pictures to share with you.

This is my Lilac bush that is almost to full bloom. The birdhouse is attached to my clothes line.

I was able to hang out all of my laundry today. It is going to smell soooo good!!

After I hung out the wash I went for a walk on the beach and took some pictures of the view. I even sat and called a friend on my cell phone. I get reception down at the beach but not at home.

It is just really nice here today! Just the right temperature, around 70. I think it is supposed to be nice all weekend!

FUN puzzle

Here is a fun puzzle and it works!!!!

Work this out -- it is fun and 100% accurate.
>>
>>
>>> YOUR AGE BY EATING OUT
>>>
>>> Don't tell me your age;you probably would tell a falsehood anyway-but
>>> your waiter may know!
>>>
>>> YOUR AGE BY DINER & RESTAURANT MATH
>>>
>>> This is pretty neat
>>>
>>> DON'T CHEAT BY SCROLLING DOWN FIRST!
>>>
>>> It takes less than a minute. Work this out as you read .
>>> Be sure you don't read the bottom until you've worked it out!
>>> This is not one of those waste of time things, it's fun.
>>>
>>> 1. First of all, pick the number of times a week that you would like to
>>> go out to eat.
>>>
>>> (more than once but less than 10)
>>>
>>> 2. Multiply this number by 2 (just tobe bold)
>>>
>>> 3. Add 5
>>>
>>> 4. Multiply it by 50
>>>
>>> 5. If you have already had your birthday this year add 1758...
>>>
>>> If you haven't, add 1757.
>>>
>>> 6.. Now subtract the four digit yearthat you were born.
>>>
>>> You should have a three digit number
>>>
>>>
>>> The first digit of this was your original number. (I.e., How many times
>>> you want to go out to restaurants in a week.)
>>>
>>>
>>> The next two numbers are
>>>
>>> YOUR AGE ! ------ (Oh YES, it is!)
>>>
>>> THIS IS THE ONLY YEAR (2008) IT WILL EVER WORK, SO SPREAD IT AROUND
>>> WHILE IT LASTS
>>> �
>>> �

Pastor Pollock

I posted earlier about Pastor Pollock and the deleated it. Pastor Forrest and his son Preston did not survive the crash. Please keep his wife Dawn and their other five children in your prayers.

He was a wonderful man ,very talented but humble. He will be missed greatly, as will his son. I'am at a loss for words. I still can't believe it.

Here is the recent post from the web site.

We regret to inform you, our church family, that at approximately 11 AM this morning we learned that search and rescue teams found the aircraft of Pastor Forrest Pollock in the mountains outside of Asheville, North Carolina. Pastor Pollock, 44 and his son Preston, 13, did not survive the crash. Please continue to lift up Dawn and the children during this difficult time. We grieve with hope and assurance that our Lord Jesus will lead us and carry us through these difficult times. We have lost a great brother, pastor and friend in Forrest Pollock as well as a precious little brother in Christ, Preston Pollock. We owe a great thanks to those who risked their lives, endured extreme hardship, and worked non-stop in the attempt to rescue our pastor and his son.

"For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord." Romans 8:38-39

Scotts story

I found out the story he submitted was one he orignally wrote 2 years ago when he was in 8th grade. He had a writing assignment in English. He was given an illustration with the caption "Another Place, Another Place",written under the picture. The picture was of 4 kids on a rail road hand car that had a sail. In the distance down the track was a castle. They said it did not need to be a new story, just one he had written so he submitted it. I posted it on my blog back then. Here it is again! Enjoy!!

Another Place, Another Time

He lived in the town of Blandington. In Blandington, everyone and everything was the same. The males of the little town all wore berets when ever they were out-doors, and had short-cut hair, and wore slacks with white button-up shirts, always tucked in. Every female wore the same exact modest, rather dull looking dress, and their hair was neatly trimmed above the shoulders. If anyone in Blandington had ever asked anyone else the word “individuality” meant, they would promptly be directed to the nearest dictionary, and even then not find a definition. This was just the way things were in Blandington.He wanted out. His name was Quentin. He knew that somehow, somewhere, there had to be a beyond, something outside of Blandington. You see, Quentin was like any other person in Blandington. His hair was short, he wore a beret at all times when he went out-doors, had short-cut hair, and wore slacks with white button-up shirts, always tucked in. He even pressed his slacks regularly, which was more than most boys his age did. And he never went anywhere without his beret. But despite his obedience to all the recognized protocols and dress codes, Quentin, though a mere boy of thirteen, was a free thinker.His best friend was a girl his age named Priscilla. Priscilla also followed the protocols and dress codes, and she also cared for Quentin. Though she did care for Quentin, she thought he was a pretty strange kid. And he was.Quentin heartily agreed with this statement, for Priscilla had told him this many times before. There was still one thing though, that Quentin thought himself, and that was this: through the heart of Blandington, there ran a set of railroad tracks. It merely sat there, and no one had ever seen any thing or anyone come down it, nor did they wonder…except for Quentin. One night, Quentin made up his mind to follow the tracks, wherever they may lead.“Come with me,” he said to Priscilla, who was staring at him in bewilderment, as he stood outside her bedroom window.“Why?” asked Priscilla, baffled.“Haven’t you ever wondered what those tracks are for, what travels on it, what’s at the end?” interrogated Quentin, nearly hysterical with excitement.“Quentin, it’s 11:23 at night. You’re breaking curfew! Maybe tomorrow. I have to sleep.”Quentin stared her down.“Oh, fine!” said Priscilla, giving in. “I’ll come.”Priscilla was outside with Quentin within ten minutes. It was only a two minute walk to the tracks. And so their journey began.They had been walking for about 24 minutes, and hadn’t even gotten all the way out of the town. Quentin looked at his wrist-watch. Almost midnight. He had heard many different stories about special things happening at midnight. He also knew that there was something special about these tracks.“Quentin, we should turn back. If we’ve walked for this long and haven’t gotten anywhere, what makes you think that there is anything at the end of this track?” asked Priscilla, beginning to tire of this late-night stroll.“Priscilla, tell me something,” said Quentin, patiently.“Okay,” said Priscilla, somewhat meekly.“Have you ever seen that house before? That one, with the barber’s markings?”“No, I don’t think so. The barber that we go to has different markings on it, but so what?” asked Priscilla, her interest somewhat piqued.“Well, if we haven’t gone very far yet and we already see something new, just think what all we could find at the end of the track!” elaborated Quentin. “Besides, I’ve heard that at midnight, special things happen.”Almost as if on cue, Quentin saw a dim light behind them, rapidly growing brighter. Quentin quickly pulled himself and Priscilla off the track. The light’s speed began to slow down and revealed a small sail-driven railroad car, carrying a boy that appeared to be a little older than Quentin’s and that wore a sailor’s outfit, as well as another, slightly younger looking black-skinned boy wearing a bowler. Quentin and Priscilla had never before seen anyone with black skin.“Evening folks!” greeted the boy in the sailor’s outfit. “Where are you headed?”Stammering slightly, Quentin replied, “W-we’re trying to get to the end of this track.”“Is there an end?” inquired Priscilla skeptically.“Well of course it has an end!” replied the sailor boy jovially. “But you’ll never get there by foot. Climb aboard my car with me, I’ll take you there.”Quentin eagerly climbed onto the car, pulling the measurably less enthused Priscilla behind him.“You folks comfortable? Good, good. Full speed ahead, Jojo,” said the Sailor boy referring to the black boy at the front of the cart.“Yessir!” replied Jojo enthusiastically, with a grin across his face. With out so much as a breeze, the sail seemed to drift forward as though filled with wind. They were off.“Hang onto your beret, Quentin!” said the young sailor excitedly.“How did you know my name?” asked Quentin, bewildered. “And what’s your name? And how did that kid make the sail fill?”“Ha ha ha!” chuckled the sailor boy. “I’ve been told all about you. You’ve been expected for a long while now. And, how rude of me to not introduce myself. My name is John. And Jojo there is able to fill the sail simply because he is different and takes pride in it. I wouldn’t be surprised if you could fill the sail yourself.”“And who might you be, miss?” asked John, addressing Priscilla.Priscilla looked at John strangely. “Why don’t you know my name?” asked Priscilla.“I’m not sure. I guess you just weren’t…expected,” said John with a slightly worried, forced smile upon his face. “Let’s press on then, shall we?” The cart continued to roll along with great speed.Before long, the houses seemed to simply melt away. Soon there was nothing anywhere in sight but the track on which the foursome traveled, as well as something neither Quentin nor Priscilla had ever seen or even heard of before: the sea.Quentin could only stare in awe at the sea. He had been traveling for an hour and a half now and already, he was finding more than he ever expected. He couldn’t wait to see the end of the track, and possibly find out why Blandington was so, well, bland. And finally, why none other than himself had ever even wondered about the track. If there was an answer, he knew he’d find it there.The car had been moving swiftly now for hours, and still, the sea and the track stretched as far as the eye could see. Priscilla had long lost interest in the sea at this point, and she was beginning to get impatient.“Are we there yet?” she whined, shortly.“You jus’ gotta have patience, ma’am,” said Jojo, eyes never straying from their course.“But we’ve been traveling for hours and have gotten nowhere fast!” snapped Priscilla, still uncomfortable with Jojo’s diversity.“He’s right, though Priscilla,” said John, in his calm, ever cheery tone. He thought for a moment. Then, speaking to Jojo, “Stop the car.”The car slowed down as the sail deflated and finally came to a halt.“Wait, why are you stopping?” asked Quentin, a hint off worry in his voice.“Don’t worry, we’ll be off again before you know it,” John reassured Quentin. “Just as soon as Priscilla fills the sail again. Go ahead, Priscilla. Fill the sail”Jojo moved over and took Priscilla’s seat. Quentin was feeling a little edgy.Priscilla sat where Jojo had just been and set about filling the sail. She sat there for five minutes, willing the sail to fill with the invisible breeze. Nothing happened. Quentin took a peek at his wristwatch. Five more minutes passed. Still nothing.“Why can’t I do it?” demanded Priscilla.“Because you do not truly believe that it’s possible,” explained John, who knew exactly why. “You do not even believe that there is an end of this track to get to. You still don’t wonder about this very track on which you have been traveling for the past few hours. You were correct in saying that we’ve been getting nowhere fast. And you are the reason for that. We were not expecting you. You were never meant to travel to the end of the track. You were not born with your eyes open. This is where your journey ends.”Just then, the sea began to bubble and froth.Quentin understood what must happen, and why. He would miss Priscilla, but not as much as he thought he might. He realized that she did not belong.The water’s bubbling and frothing began to get more violent.Quentin said his final goodbyes to Priscilla. He would never see her again.The water pulled back and began to curl, forming the beginnings of a wave.Priscilla could only stare in horror. She did not quite grasp that the wave was meant to take her away, or why. She glanced at John, and then at Quentin, imploringly. John only gazed at the wave, waiting for it to carry out its purpose.The great wave crashed over the car. It pulled back out as quickly as an eagle who had just snatched up its prey. When the wave was gone, so was Priscilla.Quentin, John and Jojo were still as dry as a bone.“Well then” said John, breaking the silence. “Shall we press on?”Quentin, immediately picking his spirits back up, “Yes, let’s keep going! I want to reach the end of the track, with or without Priscilla.”“That’s the spirit!” encouraged John. “She was only slowing you down. If she had remained, you would have lost any chance of getting to the other end. She did not believe, nor does any was else back in Blandington.”Jojo began moving up to his place at the front to fill the sail.“Wait!” yelled Quentin, stopping him before he could even sit down. “I would like to fill the sail.”Jojo looked back at John, who nodded in consent. Jojo gladly stood aside and took a seat next to Quentin. Quentin eagerly sat in the drivers seat.With barely any effort at all, Quentin filled the sail with the invisible breeze. The car took off so fast that John was knocked off his feet into his seat.John was amazed at the speed that Quentin was able to create. He had never been able to make the car move at this kind of speed before.Quentin could only grin with delight. He had already forgotten about Priscilla. Within a very short time, Quentin could see a castle off in the distance.“What’s that?” he asked John.“That, Quentin, is the other end of the track. The other end of the track is not only in another place, but another time.” replied John.Quentin grinned and turned his gaze toward his wristwatch. It no longer ticked. Here there was no time. He was finally on his way. He had all the time in the world.

My Writer!!

I have to brag again about my son Scott!!
I was just reading the weekly Oak Harbor school district breifs and saw this:

WIWA Announces Contest Winners Oak Harbor student writers did well in the annual Whidbey Island WritersAssociation (WIWA) 2008 writing contest for middle school and highschools. Awards were made in poetry, fiction, and non-fiction. Winningsubmissions are displayed in a special binder at each Sno-Isle Library.Oak Harbor winners included: Grades 9 through 12: Fiction - 1st SCOTT McPHERSON (OHHS), 3rd Cristin Lode (OHHS). Non-fiction - 1st Adrianna Royal (Home Connection) Poetry - 1st Samantha Beville (OHHS), 2nd Adrianna Royal (HomeConnection), 3rd William Hammond (OHHS), HM Meijiao Jachning (OHHS).

I did not even know he was entered in a contest!! I wonder if he knows, he has not said anything! I'll surely be asking questions tonight!!

Birthday boys!

This weekend we celebrated John and James birthdays! We celebrated Johns today, this is his b-day. He likes pie alot so I made him a berry pie with 4 different berries in it, The first time I celebrated Johns birthday with him we were dating and he was turning 25. I can't believe it has been 20 yrs already!!!! I was living with my aunt at the time and she let me make him dinner. I made Chicken Cacciatore from a recipe I found in a magazine. I still have the magazine. We had only known each other a few months and this was the first time I had cooked for him and I was nervous. He kept the conversation going at dinner by telling me ALL about Robert the Bruce. Yawn!! ( I still tease him about that sometimes) He loves Robert the Bruce and William Wallace and after 20 years I have grown to enjoy hearing ALL about them. Brave Heart is one of my favorite movies!

Saturday my sister-in-law and her kids came to help celebrate James birthday.
Ten years ago Jamesy boy came into this world lickey split,- when he decided to come! Auntie Cara came to be with me because we thought it would be anytime! After spending a long weekend with me and at least 2 false alarms she had to go home on a Monday. She went with me to take Scottie to Kindergarten and then had to leave. She said her cell phone battery was dead so I could not call her. Anyway after she was gone I went to get the oil changed in our car. (everyone else was asleep at home because they had been with me at the hospital till 3 am and I was not tired anymore so I thought lets get the oil changed) While I was waiting for the car the pains started up again. Not too regular though. I went home and even went back to get Scott when he got out of school at 11:30. After I got home with Scott the pains got really hard and my Mom rushed me back to the hospital. Anyway James was here by 2 pm. He came very fast! John almost did not make it to the hospital. Auntie Cara was very sad she missed it! Anyway James has not slowed down!! He is a very sweet ,busy boy and I can't believe he is 10!!!
Here is my sister-in-law , my kids, and the cousins! It is so nice being closer to family again!!!

Fun Weekend

We really had a nice weekend !! Friday night Johns dad and step-mom arrived for a visit. This is Dad's first real "trip" in a long time. He has been going through chemo for liver and colon cancer. He finally finished the last of the harsher treatments and is getting a "maintenance" treatment every 2 weeks. If he does not do this the cancer will come back. Right now though he is clear and his markers a good. He is looking much better too and gaining some weight back (he was down to 139 and he is 6'1")



Anyway Dad wanted to see Michael march in the Holland Happenings parade Saturday. Whidbey Island was settled by dutch settlers and they celebrate every year. Michael is the handsome guy playing the blue sax!!


After the parade James and Emily wanted to ride the Ferris Wheel. They really liked it! They had never been on one before.
After that we went to Coupeville WA, 9 miles down the island, and went to a farmers market, had lunch and ice cream cones ,and looked in the shops. That was quite a bit of walking for Dad so we went home so he could nap. Emily and Michael took grandma Joyce down to the beach. The rest of us napped and read until time to eat dinner. After dinner we had a yummy birthday carrot cake Joyce had bought for an early celebration of James and Johns b-days which are next week.



Sunday the boys took grandpa across the road to the woods to shoot BB guns . Joyce and I sat on the porch and drank coffee and enjoyed the view. They headed for home around 11 am . At little later the family went to a soup fellowship lunch at our Sunday School teachers house. They were glad we made it since we didn't go to church earlier in the day. We had a nice time getting to know everyone. There were some really yummy soups too!

Scottie part 2

This is one of Scottie's B-day presents . Now that we are back in the NW John wants to take the boys hunting again. We will have to see if they can find the time. The next two pictures are from the lip sync contest Scott was in at his school on his b-day. He did a good job. Sorry the pictures are not very good! I can't remember the song title. I think it was a Muse song. He likes Muse alot! All the kids did a good job. It was a fundraiser for the class of 2010.

Scottie

HAPPY BIRTHDAY SCOTTIE!!!! WE LOVE YOU!!!
Today 16 years ago at 4:20 am, my first born came into this world!! The day I offically became a Mommy! I can't believe he is 16 already! How time flies! He came into this world at 7lb11oz and 19 1/2" and is now a strapping 6'2", 210lb man child. He is an amazing young man, full of creativity and imagination, loving ,respectful, and smart! He blesses our family daily!!

I wanted to post some baby pictures of him but I am not able to figure it out for some reason. I scanned them in but they would not post.I'll keep trying!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY SWEET SCOTTIE!!!!!!

Bonding

My parents were here for a visit this past week. We had a great visit!! One of the special things about the visit is that my Mom was able to do some bonding with Emily. Because we have lived so far away for almost 7yrs. ( she was 8mos old when we moved away) Emily has not been able to be around my parents much. My boys all were around them more when they were little. Anyway Emily is kind of in a shy stage right now also and so it has been hard for us to get her to interact well with others. This week she had some quality time with Grandma and I think we turned a corner. They read together every night and Mom did some sewing for her. The activity she really enjoyed was planting flowers and strawberries. I am glad they had so much fun doing this!!

Baby Heros

I saw the following article today on Focus of the Family web site. Anyway my baby making days are over but if I were still having babies this is something I would do. Donating cord blood or saving it was not an option when I was having babies. At least it was not an option readily offered, I never heard about it then, but it is now becoming much more popular and well known.

Anyway just though I'd share this! Enjoy!


by Sherry Graf

No parent forgets bringing a child into the world. I remember feeling elated to be a part of the miracle of new life. As I held each of my children for the first time, I knew that they, too, only minutes old, were potentially giving life to someone else. Months before they were born, my husband and I decided to donate their umbilical-cord blood, which is a rich source of stem cells.

Those stem cells could save someone’s life.

1. Donating umbilical-cord blood is a small way to take a stand against embryonic stem-cell research. Though we couldn’t stop researchers from destroying embryos at the local university, we could show our community there is another way to treat diseases. More than 70 diseases are being successfully treated with cord-blood stem cells. Researchers have been unable to do the same with embryonic stem cells. In fact, there has yet to be a single human disease successfully treated with embryonic stem cells.

2. It is free and easy to donate. Before delivering our baby, we completed some medical history forms to ensure the cells would be safe to use in research. Minutes after the delivery, my husband cut the cord and the doctor collected the blood using a kit provided by the company receiving the donation. Then we contacted the company to pick up the donation and a sample of my blood from the hospital.

3. Cord-blood stem cells provide hope for patients suffering from life-altering disease. The company we chose to receive the donation registered the stem cells on several international donor lists. We are excited that someone can have hope for a cure because of a simple, painless procedure done in the delivery room.

At my post-delivery checkup, I gave my doctor a stack of brochures on donating umbilical cord blood, hoping she would inform other patients of this option. After delivering my second son, I sent another brochure to the doctor who delivered him because she was interested in learning about donations. I also wrote an article for my church newsletter, and I share my experience when friends become pregnant.

This journey started as one way I could take a stand against the destruction of young human life for research. It ended with the birth of two boys who I hope someday will be somebody’s little heroes.

Sherry Graf is a mother of two in South Dakota.

Easter

Here is some interesting Easter trivia!

The date of this coming Easter is quite early this year, but I didn't know the details shown below.

Easter is always the 1st Sunday after the 1st full moon after the Spring Equinox (which is March 20). This dating of Easter is based on the lunar calendar that Hebrew people used to identify passover, which is why it moves around on our Roman calendar.

Here's the interesting info. This year is the earliest Easter any of us will ever see the rest of our lives! And only the most elderly of our population have ever seen it this early (95 years old or above!). And none of us have ever, or will ever, see it a day earlier! Here's the facts:

1) The next time Easter will be this early (March 23) will be the year 2228 (220 years from now). The last time it was this early was 1913 (so if you're 95 or older, you are the only ones that were around for that!).

2) The next time it will be a day earlier, March 22, will be in the year 2285 (277 years from now). The last time it was on March 22 was 1818. So, no one alive today has or will ever see it any earlier than this year!

Interesting, huh! That means Johns ,Grandma Nora was only 11 days old the last time Easter came this early....Not that she would ever be old! She just celebrated her 95th B-day!

Wishing you all a very Blessed and Happy Easter.

Movie Answers

Here are the answers to the Movie guesses;

1. Top Gun

2. Brave Heart

3. Somewhere in Time

4. Forest Gump

5. Rob Roy

6. Princess Diaries

7. Message in a Bottle

8. Open Range

9.Notebook

10. A Walk to Remember

I know there are a lot of chick flicks!!!!

Bakeries

Today Aola mentioned that she found a new bakery and it got me to thinking about bakeries.

Our family has a tradition of finding a special bakery near where we live. We did not really find one in Florida because they do not really have any that "fit the bill". At least not that we could find. There were some special cookies at Disney World that we had to get when we went there.



When John was little his family went to the Black Diamond Bakery http://www.blackdiamondbakery.com/ He took me there when we were dating, but I don't think we have taken the kids there.



When we first married and lived in Ellensburg we went to the Cle Elum Bakery. They do not have a web site but here is a very old picture of it.

When we moved to Wenatchee we went to a bakery in Levenworth WA. A wonderful Barvarian themed town. http://www.leavenworth.org/ The Bakery was called Home Fires Bakery

http://www.homefiresbakery.com/ We had a family picture taken outside this bakery on their property one year .

When we lived in Omak we went to a bakery in Twisp WA called Cinnnamon Twisp Bakery

http://www.cinnamontwisp.com/

Most of our bakery memories have been in Washington. We found a neat bakery when we lived in Virginia but I can't remember the name of it.

When we lived in Germany there were bakeries everywhere!!! YUM!!! Anyway this is our bakery history! Now we just need to find a special one around here!

Movies!!!

Several blog friends are doing this! Post quotes from 10 favorite movies and people try to guess what movies they are. Go here http://imdb.com/ to serch out quotes.

1. I feel the need .... the need for speed!

2. You see? Death comes to us all. But before it comes to you, know this: your blood dies with you. A child who is not of your line grows in my belly. Your son will not sit long on the throne. I swear it!

3.The man of my dreams has almost faded now. The one I have created in my mind. The sort of man each woman dreams of, in the deepest and most secret reaches of her heart. I can almost see him now before me. What would I say to him if he were really here? "Forgive me. I have never known this feeling. I have lived without it all my life. Is it any wonder, then, I failed to recognise you? You, who brought it to me for the first time. Is there any way that I can tell you how my life has changed? Any way at all to let you know what sweetness you have given me? There is so much to say. I cannot find the words. Except for these: I love you". Such would I say to him if he were really here.

4.That's all I have to say about that.

5. I will think on you dead, until my husband makes you so. And then I will think on you no more.

6.Shut up!

7. If some lives form a perfect circle, others take shape in ways we cannot predict or always understand. Loss has been part of my journey. But it has also shown me what is precious. So has love for which I can only be grateful.

8.Well, if I'm gonna get killed, I got a hankerin' to soothe my sweet tooth.

9.So it's not gonna be easy. It's going to be really hard; we're gonna have to work at this everyday, but I want to do that because I want you. I want all of you, forever, everyday. You and me... everyday.

10.How can you see places like this... and have moments like this and not believe?


There are so many it was hard to choose!

Boys Playing!

Here are some pictures of 2 of my boys outside playing. It was fun to watch! They did not play outside very often in FL. It was too hot most of the time! Here they are out playing in 40 degree weather. They were sword fighting with wooden swords their Dad had made them. Some that had been in storage. Dad will have to make some more because they have broken a few. They did temporarily repair them with good ol duct tape. My kids love duct tape!

Boys will be boys!!! Across the road is some woods and they go there with John and "hunt". They actually take their BB guns and target pratice. It is just neat to see them playing together OUTSIDE!!!