Westwoods

Family becomes real and important when you are experiencing it, while others you know personally, don't have it. At our house, we have started a Christmas Eve tradition of emptying our stockings after a delicious Christmas supper and then later in the evening, we make room in our already crowded living room for the air mattress, blankets, and pillows, after which, we move in for a family sleepover.  We started doing this when the kids were little.  This year, there was one person on the recliner, two on couches, and two on the air mattress.  Christmas Eve, as we settled into our sleepover;  We told the children about a co-worker who is all alone this Christmas.  This is a person who has gone through divorce in the last year, and who also struggles with alcohol and depression.  Prior to this, the children had been excited about what they'd find in their stockings and the real gifts they were planning to open in the morning..  After our true story, t...

   This evening we watched old family movies of when these great big kids were babies or much littler....I became ever so nostalgic with these photos so fresh in my mind.  These were taken last night before our Christmas program given by the school children.  Laife is going to be fifteen very soon.  He's becoming quite handsome in his old age. Victoria just got newer, more grown-up frames.  She is looking so beautiful and elegant to me.  Of course, I am rather prejudice.  Shaunti is still my baby although, I rarely get the chubby armed hugs I used to be smothered with.  She's turning into a fine young lady as well.  I sure love those kiddies. What can I say about this rather fortyish looking couple?  We are still madly in love with each other, though in an entirely different way than eighteen years ago.  I think it's better now. I think Bruce thinks so too. :)     The whole school wishing you a "Merry Chr...

What a week and weekend!  This one will prove to be even more challenging because of the Christmas rush.  I plan to help Bruce with packages every day this week. Last week we signed papers and finally finished the deal of selling our house on Oxford.  And then, we paid a bunch of bills.  And drove to Moses Lake to upgrade our vehicle. And took the kids shopping a whole day.  Plus, the regular job.  So what I'm saying, things were wonderful and crazy.  Quite.   And of course, through it all, my brain is working on writing things and processing life.  It's some kind of illness, I am sure, to have to write all your thoughts down to be at peace.   I try to be light and fluffy, hoping it will all just go away. It doesn't.  I've been thinking about writers and styles.  Bruce and I had the usual conversation on our way to Moses Lake about successful authors and how they got to be that way.  This discussion is usual...

                 One morning this week, I was inspired to   make my own reed diffuser.                  I had all the stuff I was needing... apricot oil, tangerine essential oil, bamboo skewers,   an old brown bottle, and my favorite incense sticks...                                                                             1st- the apricot oil...about 4 oz. in bottle       and then the tangerine essential oil.. about 2 oz.    bamboo skewers plus one incense stick to add a little  earthiness...     It fits perfectly on my new bathroom shelf...  It smells beautiful but not strong yet. In a week or so, I'll add another interesting essenti...

This fairy tale is one of Hans Christian Andersen's. It is also one of those I like.  Most fairy tales are filled with unrealistic creatures, such as animals talking, or about a wood land nymph leaning against a giant mushroom on a bed of moss, or little wisps leading you through a haunted forest right to a pot of gold.  I like this one, because it depicts people so well. ( I also have a thing for "Horton Hears a Who" by Dr. Seuss, so I may not be the best judge. That's another subject for another time...) I recently reread The Emperors New Clothes to Shaunti and was again made aware of peoples' weaknesses and how we in general, are not able to see ourselves for who we truly are. The Emperors weakness was: He liked new clothes and he liked to wear them and show them off. Maybe he was insecure about things and this was his way of dealing with it.  I don't know, the story doesn't say. But, I recognize, we being people, have weaknesses like this as well. ...

This Christmas season, I had the idea I was going to be original and decorate with mostly white and a dash of red.  On Thanksgiving morning we hung a shelf in the living room and the kids and I began our endeavors. We got it sort of accomplished, but by Saturday, my shelf fell off the wall three times and we gave up.   That same afternoon, Bruce sent Laife out to the tool shed to make a shelf out of rough pine.   Laife wanted me to leave it alone, but I insisted it must be painted white and did so promptly.  It turned out quite smashing.    I found out I wasn't original though.  I went to looking at other peoples ideas on blogs and such and guess what I found a lot of?  Yes.  White with a dash of red.  I was telling this to Bruce as I redecorated with my new shelf and he said," So now you're taking pictures so you can blog what's already been done and show all your people how cool you are?"  Was that scoffing me?  I said to ...

     A day after a holiday makes for a crazy day at the Post Office; especially when Christmas is lurking in the near future and all the companies want to sell their seeds, gadgets, electronics, hunting gear, clothing, and fragrances. This makes for a lot of catalogs and magazines.  One would think that in this epidemic of Internet browsing, they could do without the paper version, but that isn't the way it works.  What actually happens is:  if you browse and order via the Internet, your name gets put on a mailing list and you get even more paper mail.  At the Post Office, we call it job security.        Meanwhile, a customer now and then puts a note in the mailbox requesting we not deliver any 'junk mail'.  Think about that, if even three customers asks us to throw their junk mail for them, out of almost five hundred mailboxes....well, you get the picture.  We would be in the building sorting mail and not actually delive...

The title was just an attention grabber because it may be something of which I do strive, but rarely pull it off completely.  Sometimes, there's a struggle.  Most importantly, I do eventually get there and know we are blessed above and beyond what we deserve.                          HAPPY THANKSGIVING...                      MAY YOU FIND A MOMENT TO READ AND FLOP ON YOUR COUCH. Lately, I've been preaching to myself about trying to present the real picture instead of making sure things are glossy and perfect first.  I know my eye naturally enjoys beautiful things but I think it would be refreshing to see normal and real instead of all the "fixing and editing" we do before presenting it. Whatever "it" may be.  That's why I'm letting you see this wall of words with a view of my son's gun rack and bed.  I'm trying to inspire you with the ...

He's the kind of guy that goes and goes.  He's driven. He doesn't stop to meditate or process; this isn't one of his characteristics.  He sees a need, he fills it.  An opportunity is available to be of use, he signs up for it.  Although he recognizes that life is busy, busier than normal, he knows it will pass.. To get frantic or weary, isn't a thought he has.  He sees life in the moment, choosing to make use of every minute.  He looks at it as if "times-a-wasting";  his attitude is, "Let's do this thing". Behind all the action, his wife stops and processes life as it comes, constantly.  She fears many things:  being forgotten as a wife, that she won't get the attention she thinks she needs, that he will spend too much time with another "team" and because of the type of environment he is in, she's afraid of losing his heart  for another.  She worries what the kids are going to remember about Dad being gone helping others...

   A bit rainy this year.  Usually we have snow too.  This is what you first see when entering the sale.              The apple butter being stirred by William and his family.  We sell lots of that!                                       Steve and Betty Hofer come over from Montana and do the kettle corn.                                                The cashiers line...this year we kept three couples busy full time...                                         plus two other people taking money for the food line...                    The kids crafts brou...

                                      Toria helped a great deal yesterday with the cinn rolls                                Space was limited at this house so I got tricky and rolled out two in one   This old clunker was parked in my basement.  Dad brought it backed fixed, when we moved here but I never tried it till yesterday.  It made terrible noises, but got me through at least five batches of  5 cup recipes.                                  Also, this old oven works quite well... I can't bake a lot at a time                                  but she works!               ...