Its beginnning to look a lot like Christmas!

I love Christmas. Not for the presents, but for the joy that the presents bring.

Conor is wearing the Australian hat from Nick and Jude, Chris' parents. The hangy-down things are to keep the flies away... a must for those in Australia. Not quite essential wear here in wintery Idaho... but it looks cool!

Kevin is definitely prepared for a hot, sultry day.

I love ripping the paper. Isn't that the point?

Miss Shelley laughing at the merriment of the moment.

And a little relaxation after all the fun. It is great to have a full house at the holidays. That was my best Christmas present!

Second day of Winter

And all my children were snug in their own beds last night, and will be again for the next week. LIFE IS GOOD!

Thanksgiving 2009

I just want to take a minute to reflect on those very important folks I am so blessed to know. I hope you all had a safe and happy day.

A heartfelt thank you to my family for a memorable and emotional dinner. I love you all so much. The dinner was amazing, and being all together (except for a few loved ones across the country and world) was the greatest feeling.

Back row: Don, Mom, Ernie, Chloe, David, Brigette, Andrew, Olivia, Charlie, Alison, and Sawyer. Front row: Kevin, Ali, Sam, Skip, Hugh, Tina, Lance, Sam, and Charlie.

Me, my brother Charlie, my mom, my brother Lance, and my sister Sam.

Thanksgiving surprise

After all the surprises I received for my birthday, I decided it was my turn to do the surprising. So no one but my sister knew we were going to Virginia for Thanksgiving. So when my mother arrived today, Kevin and I went into the basement and Skyped Sam upstairs as if we were at home in Idaho.

So the stage is set... mom knows nothing. I said the connection was bad and that I would call back later. Sam loaned me a floppy hat, and I had my nephew and his girlfriend go upstairs with me, Kevin in tow with the camera. I wanted to see how long it would take for her to figure out it was me and get her reaction.

Here it is:

A perfectly executed plan. It was brilliant!

A Florida Birthday

Miss Ann celebrated her birthday with us girls in Florida this past long weekend (see Beth's blog today for more details) Ann has never had a pedicure before, so we all decided it was a good day to all go get our toes painted.

And our feet and legs massaged and pampered.

Oh that tickles!

Look at those gorgeous birthday toes!

She makes a wish and blows out the candles.

Happy Happy Birthday Ann. We love you!

We all proudly display our beautiful toes.

A beautiful day in sunny paradise.

Rainy Portland

If you choose to live in the Pacific Northwest, you probably should get used to rain.

Portland is a beautiful city. I have been coming here on occasion since my friend Cheryl moved here a couple of years ago. We discovered Portland together. It is a very eclectic, dynamic city with a great public transportation system, and tons of galleries, art museums, and cause-driven organizations to keep anyone who has an ounce of civic-mindedness busy.

We discovered the Mercy Corps Action Center today in downtown Portland. I encourage you to visit this website and peer into what we all can be doing to make a difference in our world.

Cheryl flew me to visit her for my birthday present. We have been having a grand time eating, drinking wine, and walking everywhere.

I found this quote on the PSU campus, a walkway dedicated to women. I think it speaks volumes about me (thank you Mae West)!

If you can't read it: "When caught between two evils, I generally like to take the one I never tried."

HONEY!!!!!

The bees were busy all summer, and Kevin reaped the rewards on Saturday. Unfortunately, I was not here when he chose to harvest, so we have no photos of the process. Sorry guys, you will just have to wait until next year.

The process is pretty simple. First of all he wore his new bee suit! Then he fires up the smoker that will "tame" the bees who aren't ever very excited about having their honey taken. He pulls off the top level of the hive, and removes each of the 6-8 slats that the bees built the tiny wax containers for their nectar. He puts them in our centrifugal machine (kind of like a salad spinner) but large enough to accommodate all the slats, and spins the honey out.

We now have a ton of golden bee nectar.

Lost in a Masquerade

I was Grace Kelly, and Kevin, my Prince Rainier. We didn't win any prizes, and I had to keep telling folks who I was, but we had fun, I felt beautiful, and my dress didn't fall down. All-in-all a good night's fundraiser at the Resort.

This and that

Today is our 11th anniversary. Kevin is sick and sleeping. I am trying to keep myself occupied on this fairly dreary day. So I have gone out and harvested as many ripe tomatoes, peppers, acorn squash, and butternut squash that I could find. I did find one strawberry... I popped it in my mouth within an instant of finding it, and I am sure it was the best, sweetest strawberry I have ever had!

I booked Maegan's flights home today, too. She decided not to do a whole year, but one semester as all of the other australearn students are doing. She is set to arrive home on December 2. I cannot wait!

Conor will be home, too. He is bringing his friend, Chris, with him to snowboard in powder, apparently something they don't have down under. They will both be here for Christmas.

Byron's flights are booked for a whole week around the holidays.

So what was looking at one time like a bleak and joyless Christmas is now turning into a full-family festive affair... just the kind I love! I am excited, almost to the point of getting out our Christmas ornaments, but am resisting because I am sure Kevin would have a cow. So I am off to look for Halloween decorations. That will probably be my post tomorrow.

The sun is just coming out for awhile... gotta go enjoy it while it is still there.

Let sleeping dogs lie

It is a good day to lie around and relax. The fall rain has come, and summer seems to have officially passed.

As much as I am sad to see the warm summer go, I love to bundle up, snuggle in, and watch the weather happen outside while I am cozy inside. Apparently Christian and Rylee enjoy that, too.

Winding down for shorter days and cooler nights

Fall means pine needles. Everywhere you look, there is a yellowish-brown carpet of pine needles.

There are pine needles in my love-lies-bleeding. It is kind of funny looking. It can't stand up any more. It is all bent over, heavy from the weight of all those cascading plumes of red.

There are pine needles in all my potted plants on the patio. The harvest has come on strong, and I am putting up food in the freezer constantly. We can't eat it fast enough. There is NOTHING like a fresh tomato off the vine. I am really going to miss my tomatoes when they are done.

We cleaned all of the pine needles off the patio this afternoon. Tomorrow they will be back. I don't like them.

And Friday finally comes...

It has been a long week...

Break time!

Need I say more?

Rylee sure wanted in on the slo-mo action. But once he was in my lap, he totally did not get the relax concept, so he jumped out to chase the UPS man.

Ahhhhhh... it's a dog's life!

To hell and back

More birthday surprises!

Anne and Allen surprised me yet again with a jet trip in the heart of Hell's Canyon on the snake river in about the middle of Idaho. The biggest part of the surprise was when we met for breakfast, I thought we were just the four of us... but "OH!" Chris and Daniel, Sinnead and Vanessa popped in! What a great surprise! They had a stressful time trying to keep that secret, but I apparently didn't have my radar up, thinking all the surprises were done.

So all 8 of us set out for our new adventure... from a little town called Whitebird, we turned off the highway and proceeded 17 miles going up, over the summit, and then almost straight down a gravel road into the canyon to meet our boat.

To tell you this trip was amazing would be a huge understatement. It was absolutely gorgeous with the bluest of skies as the backdrop to the rugged canyon walls. The water was surprisingly warm.

We met our boat about 30 miles downriver from the dam. Our destination was the deepest part of the gorge, which is the deepest canyon in the U.S. at Gravel Creek, and about 5 miles downriver from the dam. We packed our lunches… there are no accommodations on this journey except for a few places with outhouses, including a couple of parks created from old homesteads. Pretty amazing to think that folks actually lived down there. No roads in, but on either side of the river are trails. One side of the river is Idaho, and the other side is Oregon.

Our big excitement, other than blasting through class three white water rapids, was stopping to watch some fishermen who had snagged a sturgeon. We waited for them to bring him to the surface. That was amazing! A HUGE fish… so prehistoric looking. It is all catch and release there, and they only use barbless hooks. It was wild watching the guide stick his arm down the fish’s throat to remove the hook.

Chris, Daniel, Vanessa, and Kevin all took the challenge to climb Sturgeon rock in the middle of the river and jump in. They provided the entertainment for everyone on board.

I would highly recommend this adventure into the beautiful wildlands of Idaho!

I didn't think you were lying...

I was just hoping.

A week ago Tuesday (Aug. 25) was my 50th birthday. I was whisked away on a winetasting adventure by my wonderful husband, and surprised by several of our friends, Lynne and Don, Kent and Becki, and Anne and Allen. I knew something was up, but all I knew was that we were going somewhere with Lynne and Don, and the name "Canada" had come up several times.

We ended up in Walla Walla at the historic Marcus Whitman Hotel. We tasted some of the most amazing wines to come out of this country. We laughed and laughed, drank and ate. The best part, of course, was spending time with the great friends who accompanied us. 

Kent kept track of the funny things we said over the course of the trip. Here are some of my printable favorites:

Ali (on Chardonnay):  "Last night I though I had enough."

 

Kevin:  "I've never been to Walla Walla."

Kent:  "I was once...but I was drunk."

Ali:  "I LOVE menopause..."

 

Lynne, talking about the Marcus Whitman Hotel:  "Back when it (the hotel) was old..."

Ali, on Kevin eating crab (Kevin is allergic):  ".....because he WON'T die, and he WILL throw up all night."

Ali, on another surprise:  "OH!!!   Oh, I've been saying that a lot...."

Lynnie, on Kevin's struggles to find a restroom at the Marcus Whitman:  "Oh, I'm sorry, Kevin.  I thought you were an idiot."

Bec, one cool morning:  "I think I'm getting a bit chilly."

Ali:  "Well then, just have a hot flash."

Lynne:  "Here, have a sip of my wine.  That should push you over the edge."

Bec:  "If you can't wait in Waitsburg, where can you wait?"

Waitress at Patit Creek Restaurant, to Allan:  "Salad dressing?"

Allen:  "Yes, please."

Kent, on breakfast at the Marcus Whitman:  "There was no pineapple on the fruit plate when I was at breakfast at the crack of dawn."

Lynne:  "I see the crack of Don every morning."

Anne:  "I wish I had me skimpy jammies on."

Lynne:  "I am officially not going to worry and stress out about this work project today."

Don:  "Then officially shut up about it...."

Ali:  "OK, now I'm ready for bed.  (Pause).  Oh God, it's only 8:30...."

Here is a sampling of our trip in photos:

Hope is the feeling that what is wanted can be had or that events will turn out for the best.