Saturday, April 28, 2012

Michigan 2012

Last weekend I again had the opportunity to attend some GEMS training in Michigan. While the trip was primarily for that, I had the side benefit of being able to visit my brother and his family and meet my niece for the very first time! The GEMS workshops were so good…probably one of the best I’ve attended. It was a refreshing spiritual retreat for me and I came home filled and fueled. I am blessed and thankful for my parents, Ed, and the girls and their willingness to let me go and to pitch in and take care of things while I was gone.

Not surprisingly, most of the pictures I took on my trip are of this babe:

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…and of this handsome & hilarious boy:

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And if you’re interested, lots more pictures can be found at this link. Enjoy!

Friday, April 27, 2012

Fourteen!

Our eldest offspring turned 14 last week…I know I say this every year, but how DID that happen?

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We celebrated the Sunday before, because I was gone to my GEMS training on the actual day…we have yet to do her dessert “out” and some kind of friend get-together, but we’re in no hurry. Drawing out birthday celebrations is kind of fun!

My parents gave her a full-length mirror that my dad built…here she is, closing her eyes, and waiting for her gift to come in:

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She was pretty excited!

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I love how you can see Becca’s reflection…she looks like she’s drooling over the mirror!

Wednesday, April 18, 2012

The power of a glue gun

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2nd grade Hopi Tribe Clothespin Doll Project. Do you think I’ll get an A? Winking smile

Sunday, April 15, 2012

Easter Sunday!

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Spontaneously making heart shadows on the cement. It was so funny to see them all just do it without even talking about it…

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Ready, Set, GO! (hunt for eggs)

 

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I’ve been voted the family “Martha Stewart” since I rescued this cake from certain failure into something delicious AND pretty. Not so sure about the title, but I was happy it was tasty!

Monday, April 9, 2012

We finally made Resurrection Rolls!

I’ve heard about Resurrection Rolls for the last few years and have wanted to make them, but always was kind of reminded too “last minute” to follow through. The ingredients aren’t all “staples”, so it requires a bit of thinking ahead. This year, probably because spring break led up to Easter and we were home for all of spring break (which we often aren’t), I was able to have the ingredients on hand so that on Easter morning the girls & I could make these rolls together. They turned out great and were even yummier than I thought they would be! In case you aren’t familiar with Resurrection Rolls, here’s how it goes…

Ingredients: Refrigerated crescent rolls, large marshmallows, melted butter, cinnamon and sugar.

Unroll crescent rolls. Take one large marshmallow, which represents Jesus, and dip in the butter.

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The butter is the oil of anointing. Then roll the marshmallow in a mixture of cinnamon & sugar. These are the spices used to prepare a body for burial. Roll the marshmallow in the crescent roll (the cloths used to wrap up Jesus’ body) and be sure to seal it tightly (like the tomb was sealed). We dipped the rolls in butter and the cinnamon sugar mixture after it was wrapped up, but you don’t have to do that.

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Continue until all crescent rolls are used. Bake according to the package directions (oven is the tomb). When you bite into one, it is EMPTY! JUST LIKE JESUS’ TOMB!!

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They were delicious and meaningful! Hallelujah! The tomb is empty! He is RISEN, just as he said! And because of the sacrifice and the power of my Lord and God, I am clean and saved and free. One of my favorite Easter songs (of which there are many) has a line that says, “Death is dead, love has won, Christ has conquered; And we shall reign with Him, For He lives: Christ is risen from the dead!”

Amen and amen!

Sunday, April 8, 2012

Spring Break is over…

…which means that there are 9 weeks of school left…

…and track starts tomorrow for Sarah…

…and all kinds of crazy busy things will happen in the next 9 weeks…

…things like me going to Michigan for GEMS…Ed going to Arizona for work…Sarah turning 14…Ed, Sarah, & Bethany traveling to Texas to visit Ed’s step-dad…lots of track meets…Sarah attending Honors Band…Science Fair Experiment…Native American clothespin doll project…Mosaic team project for Sarah…field trips…Elise turning 6…GEMS Sunday…GEMS Camp…GEMS Counselor Finale…and so on…

Not to mention that our house is for sale.

Breathe in. Breathe out. Repeat.

Well, before I give in to all of that, here’s a little recap of our spring break.

1. Sleeping in. 2. Cleaning.

That’s pretty much it. Oh, and a little bit of playing with friends in the neighborhood, movie watching, and coffee dates.

By the time we got to Friday, we were ready to have a break from the responsibilities of the house, so we took off for the Great White North (that’d be Canada) and explored a new park recommended by my favorite Canadian: Mill Lake Park! We had loads of fun and the relaxation was exactly what we needed. Any outing that ends with lying in the grass in the sun finding shapes in the clouds is a very good outing, for sure.

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Playing on one of 3 very cool playgrounds

 

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Look! The sun came out!

 

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Um, this bald eagle is lost I think. I wonder if they check HIS passport when he crosses the border…

 

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Always a willing model…especially when I say “Show me the window in your mouth!”

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This guy is in the right place. He’s looking for hand-outs, of course. The sign says: “Please do not feed the geese and ducks.” I’m pretty sure they get fed, though. Those were extremely domesticated birds.

 

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I believe that those tall black birds are cormorants, if I am remembering correctly from my Senior Biology days in high school. Maybe my brothers or dad can confirm or deny?

 

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Plenty of opportunities for tree climbing and making one’s mother’s heart skip a beat…

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And blooming trees, too!

 

After we had walked around the entire lake and played on all 3 playgrounds, completed the work-out circuit, climbed several trees, and the sun was out, we played Frisbee on the large grassy area, ate cookies (of course!) and laid on the grass and watched the clouds. Perfect.

Later on Good Friday we were able to attend church and spend time with friends. On Saturday Ed & I had an errand/coffee/see houses date in the morning and we all worked in the yard in the afternoon. It was a beautiful day! Today was Easter, a blessed day and will be the topic of the next blog post. Stay tuned!

Friday, April 6, 2012

House for Sale

Our house is officially for sale!! It has been a long time coming, but we are ready, if God provides a buyer, to sell and move into Lynden. If you know anyone interested in purchasing a house in Everson, please refer them to our “Everson House for Sale” website or have them give me a call. Please also pray for us as we go through this – that the stresses will be manageable and that God’s Will be made clear and be done for us in this process.

Wednesday, April 4, 2012

Guest Blogger!

Hello, this is Sarah! My mom told me that I should do a blog post on my CAMS trip, and I eagerly agreed!

For those of you who don’t know, CAMS (California Math and Science) is an optional trip for 8th graders at LC. This year, about 45 eighth graders got on an airplane and flew to the San Francisco area for four days. I had a lot of fun, and talked to more 8th graders then I normally would at school. So, here goes!!

Day One: Waking up at 4:00 am and driving on a school bus with three in a seat from Bellingham to Seattle was definitely not my favorite part of the trip. The plane ride went smoothly. We waited a while for our “Royal Coach”, (our bus) but the bus was definitely worth the wait! The seats leaned back and were super comfy. Our first stop was lunch at a park in the gorgeous sunshine. Then we headed to Intel. Intel was pretty cool, telling us all about how micro processors were made. There was also a cool touch screen showing you how detailed a micro chip really is. After Intel, we headed to the Tech Museum of Innovation, which had a lot of hands on stuff. There was an Imax theater here, which we went to. We saw “Tornado Alley” which was a documentary of a guy trying to get a recording of the inside of a tornado. They did a ton of meteorology work and built a monster car to make this dream happen. It was amazing, but gave me a major headache. We left the Tech Museum to go mini golfing, which was a ton of fun, even though I wasn’t very good at it. Finishing the day with a pizza dinner, we left for our motel. I ended up in a pretty good hotel room, with three girls I could relate to pretty well. We were planning on going swimming, but the pool was closed. We had fun anyways!

Day Two: We left the motel and headed for the California Academy of Science. It was AMAZING!! After the long wait to get in, we headed for the mini coral reefs the Academy had. The California Academy of Science had sooo many cool things! It had its own mini rainforest, with each layer of the forest having a floor of its own. We also took the elevator to the Steinhart Aquarium, which was really cool. We could’ve spent at least another two hours there. We left the California Academy of Science, grabbed some lunch, and headed for the Golden Gate Bridge. We drove across the bridge and had some photography time with the bridge. The view of San Fran was amazing, as was the view of Alcatraz. After taking pictures, we got back on the bus, drove back over the bridge, and headed for the ExplOratorium. The ExplOratorium was so much fun. Everything there was hands on. You could create a pendulum, play with magnets, and generate electricity. We left the ExplOratorium and headed for Alcatraz. The ferry ride was fun. Me and a few friends went up to the front of the ship, and got splashed. A lot. One of the boys we were up there with got absolutely soaked! When we arrived on Alcatraz, we headed up to the cell houses to get our audio tour. You each got your own private headphones, with your own private tour. This was not a highlight of the trip for me. Pier 39, the next thing we did, was the polar opposite of Alcatraz. It was like a boardwalk mall, and I had tons of fun hanging out with my friends. Day two was lots of fun.

Day Three: The first thing we did on day three was Stanford. After seeing the magnificent sculptures, we headed for the Cathedral. The Cathedral was unbelievable. As soon as you walked in, you knew that this was not the time for laughing and joking. I was walking down a long aisle with my mouth hanging open when a friend pointed up behind me. I turned around, and my jaw just about fell out. The whole back wall of the balcony was organ pipes. Big ones and little ones. I would love to either play or hear that organ. The stained glass windows, carvings, and the mosaics were also breathtaking. After Stanford, we headed out for the San Juan Batista Mission, which was a drastic change compared to the Stanford Cathedral. While the Stanford Cathedral was just perfect, the Mission was not. If you looked closely, you could see where the painter’s hand had wavered while painting the patterns on the pillars, and I found a pencil outline. They were both so amazing. We also checked out the San Andreas Fault line. If you didn’t know it was there…you wouldn’t know it was there. It just looks like a furrow in the dirt. But then I thought of this being one tectonic plate…and that being another tectonic plate, and tectonic plates are very, very big…and it scared me a little bit. We left the Mission and drove to the Monterey Bay Aquarium. That was awesome. I’d been there once before, and the few things I remembered were exactly as I had remembered them. My favorite part of the Aquarium was the big tank, with the giant turtle, the tuna, and the Sunfish. We got dinner and Ghirardelli Chocolates at Cannery Row afterwards. Day three was awesome.

Day Four: Day four was our last day in California. The last day was also the rainiest day. We left the motel for the last time and drove to the Redwoods. We went on a short hike through the Redwoods. Those trees are HUGE!!! We fit 45 eighth graders around one of the trees, holding hands. After the Redwoods, we learned that we weren’t going to be able to go on the rides at the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk. We were all pretty disappointed. But we did go bowling, which was more enjoyable then I’d expected, and we played laser tag, which was not what I expected. I was okay at bowling, but I did horrible at laser tag. Let’s just say I got shot by 26 people…and successfully shot 2 people. I scored zero points. We walked around at the boardwalk’s gift shops for a while, and got a couple of souvenirs. We also walked around at the beach for a while. Leaving the boardwalk, we headed for a buffet. The food there was delicious! After that…it was a straight shot for the airport. Our flight got delayed an hour, and almost got delayed two hours, due to mechanical difficulties, but they thankfully fixed them in time for us to leave at 9:40 pm. We arrived at the airport at around midnight, and at school at around 2:15 am.

I had tons of fun on the CAMS trip, and I definitely encourage the future eighth graders to consider going on the trip. You can see a web album of my pictures by clicking here!

Monday, April 2, 2012

Rodeo iPhone Pics

Last week the Kindergarteners ended their study of armadillos with a good old-fashioned rodeo. Well, sort of. Elise & I had a lot of fun together with ALL the kindergarteners on the last afternoon of school before spring break began. I only had my phone along for pictures, but I think they’re pretty fun.

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At the coloring center

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Stick horse races

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A wagon ride pulled by real live horses! The first & second graders were out for recess when it was our turn for the wagon ride and as we rode around the school property the kids followed and waved and chased us. It was almost like riding on the fire truck with the championship basketball team!

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