Sunday, August 31, 2008

A Little Domestic Bliss

Shayla and I made these delicious bread sticks to go with our lasagne. Our cozy cabin smelled so good! The recipe was a little complicated but they turned out yummy...we sprinkled garlic salt on them instead of plain salt. I got the recipe from my Bon Appetit cookbook:
Crusty Breadsticks with Rosemary
(Spencer was here and he said:"I don't really like to think of my food as 'crusty'. Crunchy, maybe, or crispy. But CRUSTY just seems wrong!")

Here Kitty, Kitty, Kitty


This was in a drawer in the pantry of our cabin. Tucked away with about twenty mousetraps-- all of it was covered in mouse droppings.
It's hard to tell in this picture, but the cat used to have whiskers made of twine--but the mice chewed them off! They also nibbled around the ears and face... revenge is sweet!
But, now we have real cats guarding the place and the cats are ahead about 6-0 ...it's hard to distinguish how many mice are represented in the pile of innards that are so nicely placed on our doorstep with the various limbs and heads arranged around it. Our cats don't just bring home the game-- they are committed to PRESENTATION!
And not a sign of any mice in the cabin anymore!




Friday, August 22, 2008

"I'll Need to do the Laundry First"

Here's a favorite poem. I have it laminated and keep it displayed in my laundry room. I made sure I packed it in a safe place so I could put it up right away in the new place:

An Unfinished Woman
Here am I Lord,
The dishes barely done and night long since fallen,
The children would not go to bed
And would not go--
And now they are gone.
Gone to places of their own with children of their own
Who will not go to bed and will not go--
And I have taught them what I could and
They have learned the things they would
And now they've gone their way alone to learn the rest
Most on their own.

And I remain, not half spent
And I remain, not yet content,
So much to do, so much to learn,
My past mistakes make stepping-stones,
Not millstones great around my neck but
Stones to guide my searching feet--
And I must search; I'm incomplete.

I watch my years go tumbling by
And I must use them better, I
Have yet so much to learn and do
Before I can return to You.
The hour is late. The night comes on,
My celestial self I would become.
Ah! What wisdom thou gavest to mortal life--I
As sister, mother, daughter, wife--
In earthly roles have seen Thy face.
In my womanly life Thy heavenly place
Is taught through humble tasks and pain.
So, if royal robes I would obtain,
To wear as all Thy glories burst--
I'll need to do the laundry first."

By Jaroldeen Asplund Edwards (mother of 12)

Wednesday, August 20, 2008

A Minor Setback

Dad got the phone call yesterday. The job went to the other guy. It's a little discouraging for us but we are still confident that the Lord has a plan and we will work like everything depends on us and pray like everything depends on Him. It's such a blessing that we sold the house and we don't have those expenses worrying us. It is also nice that Dad has this place to keep him busy in between job interviews.

Sunday, August 17, 2008

Dinner Conversation

Spencer flew into to town for a few weeks yesterday and we celebrated his 18th Birthday with his dinner of choice: Wah Hing Chinese food (we love their food but try not think of the sanitary conditions in the kitchen there!) We had one container of food we didn't recognize and began to speculate as to what it might be.
Shayla: Is it chicken or fish?
Me: Maybe we got someone else's order by mistake.
Dad: It's probably cat.
Seth: Yeah...filet MEOW!
Everyone: (Choking on our fried rice) laughing hysterically.

Saturday, August 9, 2008

He Needed That Like a Hole in the Head

Your Dad (AKA Andy) has to go in from time to time to have little bits of himself carved away due to skin cancer (the benign kind--luckily!)... and let me just take a moment to give you the MOM LECTURE about using sunscreen and avoiding the sun!! Anyway-- back to our subject:
Yesterday he had to go in and get a pretty big chunk taken out of his head-- usually he gets a little band-aid and he's on his way. But this time, it was stitches and really big bandage. So big, it looks like a yarmulke. He's been a little woosy as he tried to come home and continue his home improvement projects liking nothing happened. You know dad: "I'm fine! I've got work to do!" so we are trying to keep him from sharp objects and heavy machinery. I gotta go-- he may be trying to install a toilet under the influence of strong pain meds!

Wednesday, August 6, 2008

Shane, Seth and Stuart: Adventure on the Washougal

Just a quick story: The above three decided to go tubing on the Washougal--we went to Les Schwab and got some inner-tubes and they had me drive up the Washougal River Road and drop them off at a spot that they thought would give them a fun tubing adventure for an hour or so and they would end up in front of the cabin. Shane had a lifejacket on and they promised to be careful etc. etc. And off they went. I took Shayla and ran some errands and 3 hours later we got home and they were nowhere in sight. They had mentioned they would stop at any good swimming holes and play for awhile, so I thought maybe they just lost track of time.

Long story short-- they showed up 51/2 hours after I dropped them off. Soaked, exhausted and starving. Stuart dragged himself up to the porch first. He started telling me everything that had happened (wild rapids, long walks in shallow water, being dashed against rocks). Still, no sign of Seth or Shane. Stuart insisted they were right behind him. Finally, Seth emerged from the trees. He said, "I don't know why we thought that was such a great idea!" Then, at last, here comes Shane. He struggles up the bank, sloshes up to the porch and says: "THAT SUCKED!" And that pretty much summed it up. Though, they spent the rest of the evening and into the night regaling us with stories of their Great Adventure On the Washougal. I'm sure we will hear of it for years to come. (Who needs TV when you have stuff like that to talk about!?)

Hitch-hiking On the Information Highway

I'm sitting in Panera Bread, trying to stay connected to my world. I love the cabin and all of the wildlife and wilderness, but I have to admit, I miss the internet! I am borrowing Shayla's laptop for some quick e-mail and blog time while the kids are at Mutual.

We are starting to feel a little more civilized now that we have replaced the smelly old carpet. (Shane: "The new carpet is sooo soft and I LOVE the new carpet smell!") Dad has been slaving away fixing the high priority problems as quickly as he can--toilets first, then kitchen sink, then light fixtures that won't turn on. It has been a great adventure and we are settling in one box at a time.

We call the master bedroom the Bat Cave because every night when we turn out the lights, a bat or two emerges from the rafters to swoop around the room. Dad leaps out of bed and grabs a broom and smacks the poor bat out of the air and then beats it senseless. Then he flings it off the balcony.

I'll try to get some pictures on here so you can follow our home improvement progress. That is if I don't get kicked out of Panera for taking an hour and a half to eat a cup of soup!

Happy Birthday Scott!

 It has been awhile since I updated this little family scrapbook on the internet. I like to pop over here from time to time and look at our ...