Monday, June 25, 2012

Message in a Bottle

Day 7


Our days as castaways are coming to an end. Our S.O.S. was heard and we received a message--not really in a bottle but on the laptop--that we have a closing date! Early Sunday morning I got word that the buyers were coming by for the final inspection to make sure all of the repairs were done to their satisfaction. I was getting ready for our 9:00 am church and still had the task ahead of dragging out two teenage boys and nagging them into their suits and into the car. Could we not have been given a bit more of a warning? I was told it was going to be last Tuesday. Then it was going to be Wednesday. So of course when I gave up and let things fall into post-school, summer's here, frat party mess; then I get the call that it's really happening. I looked around and noted the pizza crusts and paper plates all over the kitchen along with petrified mac and cheese in our one cruddy sauce pan and several styrofoam bowls. Not my finest hour as a homemaker. I gathered up newspapers and opened the front door to take them out to the trash. That's when I noticed the lovely gifts our resident critter catcher had left for us. Not one but TWO piles of rat remains. Ninja had a busy Saturday night. She  likes to leave the severed tail as part of the lovely presentation and if the tail is any indication, one of those rats was bigger than the cat! Added to the charm: both piles of goo were covered with ants.  


Not the front door greeting I wanted for our buyers. 

So I  got to scrape up rat guts with ants crawling up my arms all while dressed in my Sunday Best. But the good news is--things are moving forward and we sign this week! Then we get off this deserted island and head out for our next adventure.  


Sunday, June 24, 2012

Killing Time

Day Six:

Here on the island, time feels like this:


And it looks like this:

The blank spot on the wall where the clock used to be.
I look up there a dozen times a day and wonder what time it is.

We know the closing of this chapter of our lives is imminent, but someone tore out the last page of the book.
We know HOW it ends, we just don't know WHEN.
 We are at the mercy of all the other people involved in the escrow.
A real estate agent, a mortgage broker, a loan officer, a notary public, an appraiser. 
So we wait for some clue--an email, a phone call.

 A message in a bottle.



Saturday, June 23, 2012

Day Five...

...still on the island.

Checking out the local flora and fauna: 



Lovely ripe tomatoes and fresh-grown basil


went into a delicious caprese salad...
served in our fine china

This creature skulks about the island eyeing us warily.
She is a great huntress and could be the key
to our survival. So far only our dog "Friday" indulges
in the tidbits of mouse innards she leaves for us.
But if this marooning goes on too long...
who knows what we may resort to.



Friday, June 22, 2012

Mutiny on the Island

Day Four on our deserted island:


The crew have made the best of the sleeping arrangements. 

On the morning of day four, Sam awoke, stumbled sleepily into the kitchen and reached into the freezer for the Toaster Strudel. A rare treat around here which he earned for enduring to the end in seminary. He had rationed them carefully and was looking forward to one for breakfast. He stepped over to the spot where the toaster has perched faithfully  all the mornings we have lived here.
 But it was gone:

What?!

I knew we had the toaster from the cabin packed and headed to Connecticut so the extra toaster here was just that--extra. 
In a fit of efficiency I had given it away.
And pushed Sam over the edge. 
"The toaster? Really? Why the toaster? How am I supposed to toast my
toaster strudel without a toaster?!"
Luckily he is a good Scout and he devised another way to toast the strudel.
Crisis averted for the moment.

The threat of mutiny arose again a few hours later when Shane went to make toast
and noticed the missing appliance.

I feel the tension.
The crew could turn on me at any moment.
They have the dog on their side--they feed him and play fetch with him.
I am certainly outnumbered.
I shall have to keep a sharp eye out. A sharp eye.





Wednesday, June 20, 2012

Castaways

It's day three on this deserted island:

The last POD carrying the last of our belongings was hauled away on Monday. Here we are, abandoned to the mercies of a harsh real estate and financial climate. Our buyers want to buy, we of course want to sell. But we are all battling the hurricanes of red tape that California is known for. What can you do when you are in a state where the governor thought the debt was 9 billion one month and then realized it was actually 16 billion a few months later? Reason and good sense do not dwell here in the government. And that seems to have filtered down to the other bureaucracies.  So, we are doing our best to wait out the storms, and 
survive until that rescue boat arrives. 
In the meantime, we have our trusty dog Friday (or "Wilson" if you prefer the more modern version)
Defending us against the indigenous critters: 



I will fill you in on our adventures:
Mutiny!
Cannibals!
Making a radio out of coconuts!




Saturday, June 16, 2012

Of Good Report

In between the packing and the coming and the going and the cleaning and the organinzing, I have been trying to sneak in time to read this book:


I highly recommend it.
 Though, be fair warned--it is not the sort of book you want to read in the dentist's office if you are a cryer like me. I had to keep dabbing my eyes and pretending to have allergies (achoo! sniffle sniffle) to disguise my bawling over some very touching experiences shared by some amazing, insightful women.


Friday, June 15, 2012

Found

I am mostly finished with the packing around these parts. But I have a few decisions still to make about "pack and take" or "get rid of". I had put that off with these suits that were left in the upstairs closet--one by our currently serving missionary and the other by our recently returned missionary. I was trying to see into the future and determine if Sam might need them for a back up (it's happened before when I forgot to pick up the dry cleaning --oops!). Also in my future-gazing I was debating whether Sam would pass his older brothers in height, rendering the suits useless.
 Except in the event of a flood.
That seems to be the direction things are going--Sam passed Seth up and seems to wake up taller every day. So, I was ready to find a new home for the suits.


As I tossed them onto the chair, I saw something peeking out of the inside jacket pocket.
It was Elder Gale's last planning book. Filled with Hmong names and appointments and some funny drawings. Also in the pocket was the flight information and boarding pass for his trip home.
So I checked the other pockets and found 
his name tag, 
where he had tucked it away after his official release from missionary service.
I'm glad I discovered that missionary suit jacket time capsule before I sent it off to its next life.



Wednesday, June 13, 2012

Birthday Boy

Brand-new Baby Mason
(I just noticed that one of my FAVORITE pictures is right behind me~)

I was holding my grandson just a few minutes after I saw him born.
Shanna had him with midwives in attendance in a hundred-year-old home that is
now a birthing center.
The lights were dimmed, soft music was playing. There was a sacred feeling
of reverence in the room. It wasn't an easy birth--and if she had been in a
hospital she very likely would have had a c-section. (My daughter has a "tipped uterus" just like me and it made it difficult to dilate and slowed her progress for several hours)  But because of the inspiration and skill of the amazing women watching over her, it was a beautiful and natural birth.
I still remember the lovely smell of the essential oils they used to get the cervix to dilate the last bit--Mason came out smelling like lavender and rose. I am sharing more than I intended to here, but I can't celebrate Mason's one-year-milestone without remembering his special delivery.


Mason at Burgerville with his Daddy


So a whole year has flown by and Mr. Mason is walking and talking and keeping his parents on their toes--as any good one-year-old should.
Happy Birthday!

Monday, June 11, 2012

Another Eagle in the Nest




Sam passed his Eagle Board of Review last Saturday night.


After overseeing a very challenging project that involved many hours of planning and design and then many more hours of site preparation and then construction and the pouring of a concrete pad. He led the project to build a Cross-tie and Horse Wash Rack for a very worthy cause:


This is what it looked like when he started





He got help from family...


Some more than others...





Fearless leaders...



and fellow Scouts.



And they went the extra mile (or 5 yards--of concrete) and 
helped the Executive Director of Cornerstone pour and 
smooth a patio/driveway for the riding center as well.

It was a great opportunity for all of us to make a difference for a place that
does good for the most vulnerable of our community.

So many good people gave of their time and talents.
Several local suppliers donated equipment and building materials.
Ransom Brothers Building Supply
PIVO Equipment Rental
Home Depot
Superior Ready Mix Concrete

Our heartfelt thanks to all who helped Sam get to this point in his Scouting.



Isaiah 40:31

31 But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.










Wednesday, June 6, 2012

I Know You've All Been Dying to Know...

...how the GARDEN's doing!

I finally got the camera battery I ordered from Amazon...the same day I gave up on it and bought one at Best Buy. So I am back in business.

And look how the garden has been growing:

The pear tree blossomed--looks like there might be pears in the fall


Cheerful sunflowers...


I kind of love to overdo it when it comes to sunflowers


Luscious tomatoes...
It is very soothing to water the garden while munching on ripe, sun-warmed tomatoes. 


The corn is ready to pick.


If you plant pumpkin seeds in February in SoCal,
you get ripening pumpkins in June.



These are strawberry plants. You don't see any strawberries because Gunner thinks the strawberry patch is his personal snack bar. It took me awhile to figure out what was happening. We don't have any varmints like rabbits or moles raiding the garden because we have Gunner and Ninja on duty keeping them away. So I guess I am paying Gunner in strawberries.





Friday, June 1, 2012

Coming Soon to a Blog Near You

...an update. My main stumbling block is the sad loss of my camera battery charger. I can use my phone camera but that requires an extra step in the process of downloading pictures and that just overwhelms me when I am already up to my ears in chaos. Soooo stay tuned for:
*A Cabin Farewell
*Moving Fun
*Eagle Project Wrap-up

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 ...