Texas Beginnings – July to September 2011

It is the middle of September and I found myself sitting quietly in my brown leather chair. It’s tricky for me to find those moments. The kids are both fighting colds so I canceled school today. They’re working on a new puzzle Caleb got for his birthday yesterday. So I had a few quiet moments to pray and listen to the Lord. And I was surprised by what He told me. He saved us! He sent us to Texas, in His perfect timing, to avert financial disaster for our family. He got us out in time! Our business would have hit hard times and we wouldn’t have been able to pay our rent. We would have become desperate suddenly. He saved us from disaster by moving us to Texas, and I wasn’t even aware of it. And not only that, but He started us on a new path to breathe life into our family and begin a new career path that would enliven Jon and provide more financial security, now and for the future. What if we hadn’t listened?!? What if we hadn’t obeyed the Lord immediately?!? How can God save us if we don’t listen and obey?

I really thought that obeying God and moving here was just about walking Jon through having desires and hopes and reaching for them; about learning how to live. It hadn’t even crossed my mind that God was saving us from disaster! I’m so thankful and feeling a bit overwhelmed with the goodness of our Lord. I would have never even known what we were spared had the Lord not shared that with me. How awesome is our God!!!

July was a crazy month. Jeremy, Julie, and their 3 kids arrived around midnight our first day here, after we unloaded our moving truck. It was chaos, stuff everywhere. Julie was a huge help to me! She took care of cooking duties so I could focus on unpacking. That was huge for me! And she helped unpack so much! Thank you Sister!!!!!! Jeremy was traveling all over playing shows. A few were more local and Jon played with him, along with some of our new neighbors. The kids got to really get to know each other, which was so needed. That’s the downside to family living in Kauai, you don’t get to see them as often as you would like.

Right off the bat being here I was invited to a Mary Kay party at one neighbor’s house. Another neighbor invited me to a girl’s night birthday celebrate in town. A few weeks after moving in we had a fun Mexican food night. One of my new friends decided she wanted to cook with me, so the girls took me to the grocery stores and we cooked together. Then we had a Mexican food party, played games, and had a great night. It feels good and normal to have a full house of friends. Yay! It was a nice way to break in the house.

Cousin Aaron came for a visit and took us hiking around the woods we live in. He is really good at identifying all the plants, animals, and evidence of animals out there. It was fun; hot, but fun!

My cousin Kara came for a visit and it was so nice to see her. Years seem to pass between visits. I’m glad I live so much closer to her now! We’ll get to do holidays together even! She and I had a nice girl’s day in town. We got pedicures (in massage chairs – the best!), shopped for jeans at the consignment shop, and caught up on life. I really needed that girl’s day. She got the kids gift cards to the toy store and made cake balls (cake in bite size form, rolled in chocolate) with the kids. It was a very merry un-birthday for them and they loved it!

September is our first month here in Texas of regular life and daily routines. We’ve been fighting cold after cold after cold, especially the kids. We’re just getting used to a new set of bugs and I’m sure we’ll develop immunity after awhile. Our house is functional enough to live in, although we have many corners filled with stacks of boxes and toys overflowing. We’re close to getting the boys rooms done and then the toys will have homes again, instead of being and endless messy pile that engulfs the entrance way into the house. We’ve got moulding up and painted. The bunk beds are almost done being built and are about ready to be painted. We plan to make a little stage in the room for the kids drum set that will have storage space underneath for toys. We also plan to build a wardrobe for the room since we had to knock out the closet to make enough room for their beds. It will be a really fun room when we’re done.

We’ve been enjoying our neighbors and getting to know them better. We’ve gone swimming, had BBQ’s, had date nights/babysitting trades, and the boys have gone fishing. Jon even canoed down a local river with our neighbor Justin. He took his gun because apparently there are alligators in the river. Ahhhh! No sightings though, so that’s good (if there were any sightings, Jon wisely didn’t tell me, so I’m at least under the impression they didn’t see any). We went to a get-together to watch the first game of the college football season. This town goes into crazy football frenzy mode! Just part of our new Texas life; Might as well embrace the culture :) I’m so thankful for our friends here welcoming us into their lives, including us, and making us feel at home. The Ruschs, Hamiters, Ericksons, VonGontens, & Rhodes rock!!!

The more things have started falling back into place, the more peace I feel. I’ve gotten back into the habit of cooking weeknights, except Tuesdays. Tuesdays are our go into town, deposit Jon’s paycheck, eat dinner out, and do our grocery shopping nights. I hadn’t been able to wrap by brain around cooking while our house was in chaos with unpacking and company and all. But we’re feeling much more settled, in routine, and peaceful. Right now I am on a quest to recreate Trader Joe's Chimichurri Rice. It used to be a staple in my freezer, but now I don't live by my beloved Trader Joes. I found a recipe online that will at least start me off in the right direction. I even ordered a 1 lb. bag of dried Peruvian aji panca chiles to give me the best chance at an authentic taste.

I’ve really been enjoying school with the kids. I was a little intimidated by the idea of homeschooling two kids at the same time. I thought that it would be a big process with a lot of readjusting and tweaking to make it work. I was so wrong. I did no preparation. I hadn’t even cracked open Ben’s books to see what they were like. I had no plan. I didn’t have the time or brain space up till then. I was just trying to get through our move and getting settled. I just jumped right in on our first day of schooling. I opened all the books. I made a schedule and a strategy. And, thank the Lord, it worked beautifully! We had a very successful 1st month of homeschooling 2 kids!!! I was thrilled it went so smoothly! We were organized and we had fun. Ben and I still are really enjoying learning his letters and reading books together. We've been playing all kinds of games to help lock the letter names into his brain. I'm really cherishing this time with him. There's something especially sweet about this stage. I have lots of fond memories of Caleb at this stage too :)

Caleb’s 10th birthday has been great. It started off slightly bittersweet. Both kids woke up a bit sick and he was missing his friends more than usual because of his birthday. He wasn’t really up for a birthday party because of that. We all got up early so Jon could make Caleb a special birthday breakfast and so he could open his presents. It was a nice time. We laid low most of the day because the kids were fighting little colds. Our neighbors asked Caleb over so they could give him a present. Legos and a singing card! It made him feel really cared about. Thanks Rusch Family! Then we went out to dinner at Caleb’s choice, Chuy’s, a Mexican restaurant. We let him open all the cards he’d received. He kept getting more birthday love and money as he opened each card. Thanks everyone! That was really special and meant so much to Caleb! He felt loved! He has been saving for about 2 years for a Lego Mindstorm, which is a toy that incorporates robotics and computer programming with Legos. It is $300 at the toy store and, before the birthday money he got for his birthday, he was halfway there. He was thankful that he was getting closer to his goal. And then he opened up the last card from Grandpa Artie and Grandma Cheryl. He admired the card for quite awhile. Grandma Cheryl is really good at making special cards. It even had a picture of the Mindstorm in it. Then Caleb found the check folded up in a slot in the card. There was enough money to put him well over the amount he needed! His mouth fell wide open. He was stunned; frozen in shock! We could see his wheels turning as it slowly began sinking in…he would finally be able to buy his Mindstorm after 2 years of hard work doing chores to earn money, careful saving, and lots of patience!!! We had seen one at Toys R Us, which is where we headed directly after dinner. He didn’t even want to order birthday dessert because he was too amped about getting his toy. To our disappointment, Toys R Us no longer had any in stock. But it was okay, he was a trooper, and we ordered it on Amazon from my phone as soon as we walked out of the store. He saved at least $40 by ordering in on Amazon. We got it for $270 plus a great book that will teach him how to use the toy for another $19, no tax and no shipping fees. Yay! We topped the night off with frozen yogurt and thank you calls to the Grandparents.

We decided a special family day was in order for Saturday in lieu of a birthday party. Caleb was too sick for any of our plans though, so we played Monopoly, watched SpongeBob, and made birthday cupcakes.

Just a few days ago the boys and I were sitting in the living room about ready to home school. Suddenly there was a wonderful display of birds out our front window. I’m really thankful for the big picture window that takes up quite of bit of our living room wall. We’ll have to get a good bird identification book. We’re pretty sure we saw a blue jay, a cardinal, and 2 or 3 other species. They were flying, perching, playing in the bird bath, and sharing their different bird sounds with us. It was spectacular! I haven’t witnessed anything quite like it since we’ve moved here. It was just a really special moment that captivated our attention. I’m really enjoying the nature of where we live. It’s impossible not to see life all around you here. We constantly see deer families (there’s probably a correct term for that), squirrels, and a variety of birds. Our first few weeks here were filled with the evening sounds of the cicadas. That was cool. But it wasn’t cool that they would bash themselves towards any light source, so trying to get into the front door at night was pretty freaky. Those cicadas are very large and very strong as they thrash and bash themselves around the porch light and front door. And there are so many of them. But that only lasted for a short time. I guess the cicada season is short. There’s so much for us to learn about the new environment we live in; plants, animals, and the ever changing weather. It’s almost impossible for me to not start singing praise songs to the Lord walking the quarter mile walk to the mail box. I like that.

Below is Caleb’s poem for one of his weekly writing assignments.

I Want to Invent a Machine

I want to invent a machine…
That can fly.
I want to invent a machine…
That can jump high.

I want to invent a machine…
That can run.
I want to invent a machine…
With a tongue.

I want to invent a machine…
That won’t lie.
I want to invent a machine…
That won’t die.

I want to invent a machine…
Who has a lot of fun.
I want to invent a machine…
Who gets my homework done.

Farewell California – July 2011

At the end of June we said our farewells to Hanford and our family. We headed down to Orange County for a final week with our friends. I expected to have a calm week with nothing to do but lounging with friends and with Jon who was done working. I was wrong. Jon’s back went out right at the beginning, and in a really severe way. I had felt like I had been a single mom for 4 months and I had to consciously adjust my expectations, because I thought I was going to have a reprieve, but Jon was laid up for most of the week. Once I adjusted my expectations, I did a lot better. We had our farewell party the day after we arrived, so we got ready for that as soon as we arrived. The farewell party for me was anything but simple. Aside from all the work to be done in preparation, it stirred up a lot of emotions for me: it was taxing to fit all of my visiting with everyone from all walks of my life into a few hours, it was extremely heartbreaking to say my good-byes, and it was super joyous to get to see everyone after 4 months away. It was a very mixed bag of emotions. The rest of our week was good; tiring, but good. It was very busy, full of activity, kids and dogs everywhere, late nights working on wedding invitations for a friend, final outings with loved ones, and long talks. Thank you Tracy & family for putting us up and all the work you put into blessing us! Thank you Amber and family for letting us use your home for our good-bye party, especially when you are such a sick pregnant lady right now! Thanks everyone who came out to see us before we moved! We love you all so much!

Both boys had taken all of the changes in our family in stride, up until our Orange County week. Ben, all of a sudden, needed lots of extra reassurance, which expressed itself in more clinginess and whininess, but also more affection and snuggles, especially with Jon.

The next day was the BIG day. The day we were going to drive away. We impulsively decided to not get an early start, but to have one final hurrah. We went to breakfast in the park with dear friends and I’m so glad we did. I needed that more focused and peaceful time with my friends! I thrive on peace. I can’t hang for too long with hectic craziness. The kids got to run around in the grass while we adults got to lounge and sip our coffee. I was really sunburned from the day before, loading the moving truck. I hadn’t planned on staying to help with loading, but I did, and I got really burned. We had a lot of help loading all of our stuff from our storage unit into our moving truck. Thanks all you burly dudes for your manly help, it meant a lot! Anyway, we lingered at the park as long as we possibly could. But then it was time to go. Bye my beloved California (which really means bye my beloved friends and all that I know and am used to and am comfortable with)….ahhhhh….I can’t believe I’m moving to Texas. I’m crazy! I’ve never lived anywhere but California! I love it there! Ahhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!! And I’m sunburned.

So we pulled out, Jon and Caleb in the moving truck, pulling our car behind them, and me and Ben in Jon’s van. We had to rig the van’s floorboard by putting a phone book under the gas pedal. My heel didn’t touch the floorboard otherwise. And off we went!

We had 3 ½ days of driving. I’ve never driven that much by myself. I did though! Yay me! Our days were full of ups and downs. I decided that it’s okay to see the ups and the downs of things. It’s part of the charm of the adventure. I tried to write down what I could in the moment. Here’s just a glimpse of our few days.


DOWN: My guts weren’t working right all week in Orange County, stress or whatever. So much so, that I had to take laxatives. And of course, the laxatives didn’t hit until we were on the road!
UP: We made it to a McDonald’s in the middle of nowhere, just in the nick of time. And bonus, I got to see my first awesome Midwest hairstyle of the trip – a combo mullet with rat’s tail :)

UP: Kids enthralled and completely entertained for 3 days with the car kits Granny put together.
DOWN: Melty crayons all over everything.
UP: Ben, a five year old, entertained himself so well the entire trip. He poured over books, worked on an alphabet turtle puzzle, and colored picture after picture. I was so impressed by his focus, perseverance, and newly acquired longer attention span. He was really developing a want to learn, so much so, that he got very disappointed that he didn’t know how to read, but I got to encourage him and tell him that was what I was going to teach him to do in kindergarten.

DOWN: Sunburned shoulders don’t mix with seat belts and sun in the window
UP: Jimmie rigging a sunshade in the driver window to protect my sunburned shoulders

DOWN: The A/C in the van only blows air when I take my foot off the gas pedal and it stops blowing when I press on the gas pedal. It’s a very hot summer so A/C is very important.
UP: Jon’s moving truck that I’m following goes really slow, so I get to take my foot off the gas pedal a lot :)

DOWN: Missed a photo opportunity with a really cool cactus (for some reason I was bummed about that – so say my notes – weird how you feel in the moment of something, but looking back seems kind of ridiculous)
UP: Found a giant dinosaur in the middle of nowhere – great photo

UP: Free library audio books that I downloaded in the hotel room onto my iPod and unlimited music on Pandora.
UP: Caleb and I listened to “Inkheart” for hour upon hour when it was his turn to ride with me.
DOWN: I couldn’t keep listening to “Inkheart” when Caleb was riding with Jon. I didn’t want him to miss any of the story.
UP: Bob Marley’s “One Love” song played and it resonated with me in that moment.

One Love (Oh, Lord!)
One Heart (Wo-ooh!)
Give thanks and praise to the Lord
And I will feel all right;
Let's get together and feel all right.
Give thanks and praise to the Lord
And I will feel all right;
Let's get together and feel all right.

DOWN: Blown tire on a busy road in Arizona
UP: God’s hand of protection! God miraculously kept us from an accident even though my van swerved severely into the other lanes on a busy road when the tire blew!

DOWN: Severe traffic due to a flash flood in Arizona
UP: We finally got to the front of the line of traffic and got our turn to drive though the flooded out road after a very long wait. It was kind of fun :)

DOWN: Having to find a pet friendly hotel, late at night, in whatever town we landed in after a full day of driving. One night was especially bad because we had to drive way past the point of tired, in the dark, in a storm, until we even found a town. I’m terrified of driving tired because I know I’m not immune to falling asleep driving (I did it once a long time ago)!
UP: Always finding one despite the odds. Yay God!
UP: Ben was ecstatic with the continental breakfasts at the hotels. He was in snack heaven!

UP: Writing these notes while driving the van on a deserted long windy road in Texas.
DOWN: occasional veering off the road due to writing while driving.
UP: glad for wake up tread to help me notice I’m veering off the road.

UP: Our new Texas neighbors called while we were in a hotel the last night and they said they put food in our fridge and will assemble a team to help unload our moving truck. I can’t wait to get to know these loving and generous people! I’m very excited!

We finally arrived late evening after 3 ½ days of driving. It was a long journey. We were met by two different neighbors, a stocked fridge, a nice note on our counter, and a crock pot of stew. The next day a crew was ready and unloaded our moving truck in the crazy Texan heat! What a blessing! Especially since Jon’s back was in horrible condition. What generous, kind, and wonderful people! Thank you Hamiters!!!! And thanks Tellors for the soup, it was tasty!

Hanford - June 2011

June started off with Ben’s 5th birthday. We had a fun little morning with Ben opening presents in his pj’s. He thought it was funny that Uncle David’s present was wrapped in a sock. Caleb spent the rest of the morning building all of Ben’s new Cars Lego sets for him so that Ben could play with them. Then we got a surprise call from Uncle Jeremy and Auntie Julie. They just arrived in California from Kauai to start off their summer music tour on the mainland. They were in the Bay Area and wanted to meet in the middle to celebrate Ben. We waited for Jon to get to Hanford from Southern CA and then we drove to meet up with the rest of the Hartshorns and Granny. We ended up at a little BBQ restaurant and had a fun night. We had cupcakes and the kids ran around and played out front for a long time. Then we went over to Target to spend the rest of our evening and to pick out some presents for Ben. It was great to see everyone. It had been about a year and a half since we last saw them. Those Bubbas (the twins Ethan & Shepard) have gotten so big. They were babies last time we saw them. Love you guys! Thanks for celebrating Ben with us!

May was filled with cleaning out and organizing my Mom’s house. So in June I decided to refresh my Mom’s house. I also got to help my brother check out homes to buy. He found a gorgeous 1902 Victorian house, put an offer in, and his offer got accepted. We had a little dance party and I got special bubbly in celebration. No one else wanted to share the bubbly though, so I was stuck with the whole bottle by myself :) Now I had a second project, to help my brother furnish his house and get the basic necessities. We scoured thrift stores and antique shops for furniture. We stumbled onto so many quaint little downtowns in the CA Central Valley and left with some of their treasures. I did a lot of sewing. I got David and my Dad to help me with sanding the furniture and Jon was our painter. Between all of us, Mom and Dad ended up with a cheerful and newly refreshed room with new couches, new lamps, and a refurbished coffee table, end table, bookshelf, and rocking chair; Plus new handmade pillows, a lap blanket, and valances. David ended up with a pretty good setup too. Sadly, I had to leave Hanford before I got to see everything put into his house. I’m sure it’s cute though. It was fun to have a blank slate to work with. It opens up such a broader range of possibilities.

We had a fun day outing in San Francisco with the Flores Family. I was glad we got to go there before we moved away from California. Juan was working at a convention, so we met up with Tracy and the kids in the morning. It was adorable when the kids all saw each other for the first time in months! Sam and Caleb were so happy to see each other. They were beside themselves with joy. Ben and Vida were stinkin’ cute. I got to sit on a bench with just the two of them for a little while and listen in on their conversations. They were just radiating joy being together again! We checked out Pier 39 and a magic show in the promenade. After Juan met up with us we explored the Aquarium. Ben and Vida loved when they got to touch the rays and starfish. Caleb and Sam were too cool to do that this time. We found a tasty place to get some famous clam chowder sourdough bread bowls and relax with a harbor view. It was perfect. We explored the Golden Gate Bridge and the kids got to let loose. They ran and chased and ran some more. Then we drove over to check out Ghirardelli Square at dusk. We wandered along the water front before we made it there and the kids had a blast running around at the shore. We were tired are ready to relax when we finally got our desserts. Tasty heaven! I’m so glad we got to have such a fun day with our closest friends before we moved! We love you guys so much!

Back in Hanford, Grandpa gave Caleb a science challenge to make a suspension bridge like the Golden Gate Bridge. He gave Caleb a bunch of parts and set him to work. Caleb did a great job and got a really good understanding of the science behind suspension bridges. Another time Grandpa taught Caleb about hovercrafts and they made their own version with CD’s. It was really neat.

Caleb spent a good week or two taking things apart to see how they work. Thank goodness he got everything put back together and working again, all by himself too. I'm very proud of my smart & inquisitive boy. He and Uncle David decided to tackle Uncle's CD player/radio. They didn’t get too far before they got tired of it though. I’m not sure if they even put it back together.

One night, on the goodnight phone call to Daddy, of which I can only hear Ben's side on the conversation: "Where's your bed Daddy?" "What? You have a car bed Daddy?" "Is that for real Daddy?" "I never knew you had a car bed Daddy." When we were finally back in Orange County and Ben saw that Daddy’s car bed was just Daddy’s suburban with blankets and a pillow in the back, I think he was a little bit disappointed. He had imagined something much more fun :)

Thanks for having us Mom and Dad! I truly know the Lord ordained this time for our family. The Lord wanted to refresh the people and the place. He drew us closer together. He re-established bonds and healed more than we probably know. I’m so thankful for you guys and love you fiercely!

March & April 2011

Here’s our current itinerary:
Now – June 7th : Rebecca & kids in Hanford
June 8th – June 13th : Visit to OC while Jeremy & Julie in OC
June 14th – June 23rd : Rebecca & kids in Hanford
June 24th – July 3rd : Last visit to OC

We’ll be having an open house good-bye party in the OC on Saturday June 25th. More info to come later.

July 3rd we’re leaving for Texas!!! Wow!!!

We’ll need any help we can get loading our moving truck on Saturday July 2nd and unloading our moving truck in Texas July 6th/7th.

Now on to updates:
We got my mom set up with a blog of her own to record her journey with cancer. It’s cherylower.blogspot.com. Some people had a bit of trouble leaving comments on it, so one of the posts is a tutorial explaining how to leave comments on her site if you’re interested. Otherwise, just email her directly at cherylower@yahoo.com.

The boys and I have been living in Hanford with my parents since the end of February. We’ve settled in and developed as much of a routine as we can. Ben wakes up early and Grandpa gets him cereal and turns on cartoons. Caleb and I wake up a little later. I get my protein shake and water my plants in the garden while Caleb gets his breakfast. The weather here has been changing back and forth from really hot to really cold. Many of my little lettuce sprouts haven’t survived. I have a few random seedlings that are making it though. Then I sit down to enjoy my coffee in my special coffee mug that Jon got for me on our anniversary trip. I really like having something to make my coffee time my own. Next I workout to my new Wii exercise regime, EA Sports Active 2. I’m on the beginner level and I’ve started with a 9 week program. It’s getting my heart rate up and I’m enjoying it. I’m glad that it gets me to break a sweat, which I don’t like doing, but I know is good for me. It has a heart rate monitor plus a motion sensor that I strap onto my left arm and my right leg, so it can make sure I have good form. It won’t let me move on until I’ve done the amount of repetitions I am supposed to do in the way it wants me to do them. It knows…

Next, I usually make lunch for this large household, but sometimes just for me and the boys. I’m trying to incorporate more fruits and veggies into our meals. After lunch, Ben naps and Caleb does his school work. I’ve picked knitting back up again and usually get a little knitting or reading time in while Ben naps. I packed all my craft stuff for Texas, so I had to go out and re-buy some knitting tools so I could make my Mom a hat she wanted. She already had the pattern in hopes that she would get a hat out of me one day. I finished that and now I’m working on a hat for myself. Dinner’s next on the agenda and no matter what I do, there are rarely leftovers. I keep trying to make bigger and bigger dinners to allow for leftovers, but it’s just not working. I’m trying to learn how to simplify the dinner process. I tend to put too much work into my dinners and create a big mess, which makes for more cleaning work. I’m getting a little better and I’m learning. I’m also not used to eating breakfast, lunch, and dinner at home every day. I’m used to having Jon bring dinner home sometimes, especially if my blood sugar gets low and I’m not feeling up to making dinner. Here, I’m learning how to get over myself and get over how I feel. It’s good for me. After dinner we have clean up time. Really, we have clean up time frequently throughout the day. We usually have to run the dishwasher 2-3 times a day to keep up with all the dishes for all these people.

Somewhere in the day the boys and Uncle David usually have some fun play time. I’m so thankful that the boys have my brother to engage them in that way. Grandpa’s index fingers start getting a little crazy sometimes and start chasing the boys around too. It used to be “the claw” that would chase them, but “the claw” has downgraded to “the fingers.” It’s hilarious. The boys shriek with delight when they see Grandpa get that mischievous look in his eye and his index fingers get the itch to chase some boys. The boys also get some energy out racing the various bikes, scooters, and twisty car around the racetrack in the back yard. Mom had the foresight to design her backyard with a sidewalk that goes all the way around the backyard in a big circle just for her grandkids. I’m also trying to get in the habit of taking a family walk around the neighborhood at dusk.

At bedtime, we call Jon on the phone and the boys each get a turn talking with him and telling him about their day. It’s really sweet listening to their conversations. Then we put Jon on speaker and he prays for us all. I’m thankful for this time of the day. It’s almost as if Jon is tucking them into bed, which was their usual routine before. I join them in the room for my bedtime a little later, once they’ve fallen asleep. I’ve tried to go to bed a few times when they were still awake, but each time was a disaster. So I’ve learned to wait until they fall asleep first.

Of course, all of this is dependent on Mom’s doctor schedules and Dad’s work schedule. Many of her doctor appointments and treatments are in Fresno, which is a 45 minute drive from Hanford. If Dad has to work, then the boys and I take her. We’ve gotten the boys some fun car games, stories, and music. I try to get them to look out the window and enjoy the scenery. There are so many cows, goats, horses, mini horses, rivers, trains, and crops that we pass. The crops look different every time we pass. Just a few weeks ago they were covered in blooms. Now they’re green and beginning to fruit. The perk with driving Mom to Fresno is that it’s almost a guarantee that I’ll get to eat something yummy and not have to cook. Super bonus! Plus I can usually stop by Costco and Trader Joes and stock up our groceries. There isn’t another Trader Joes anywhere closer. And there isn’t a Trader Joes in Texas at all!!!! I’m enjoying my Trader Joe’s food while I can. (For those non-Californians reading this, Trader Joes is a little grocery store with really yummy products that I love.)

When Jon joins us on the weekends we’re busy finding places in the Central Valley to explore. I’m usually wiped out by the time Jon has to head back to Orange County to work. It feels like I’m living two lives; my week day life and my weekend life. It’s kind of weird and throws me off a bit. Thank goodness it’s temporary. On Jon’s last visit, we sat down to figure out our moving dates and to-do list. We realized we were running out of time. We had to change Jon’s visiting schedule from every weekend to every other weekend. We’ll all miss each other, but we know that it’s what we need to do. The Lord is leading us, and in all our scheduling and planning we’ve been keeping this verse from the Lord first and foremost:

“The heart of man plans his way, but the Lord establishes his steps.” –Proverbs 16:9

We got the letter that Jon has been accepted into Blinn College. We still have a bit more to do to get Jon completely signed up for schooling, but getting accepted is a great start. We’re almost done getting Caleb & Ben’s enrollment paper work done for homeschooling through CHEP (Community Home Education Program of Orange County) for the next school year. I’m so thankful that I’ll get to continue to use familiar curriculum for at least one more year. Caleb will be in 5th grade next year and Ben will be starting kindergarten.

Mid March Jon & I celebrated our 10th wedding anniversary. We weren’t able to be together on the actual day, and I found that day was a really challenging one for me. I was really sad. I decided that it’s okay to be sad sometimes. I went on about my day and let the sadness sit with me. That evening I got an email from Jon. He wished me a “weirdest happy 10th anniversary ever.” So true.

Jon joined us the day after our actual anniversary. We took the kids out and tried to explore nature, but all the nature parks we discovered were closed until the winter season was completely over at the end of March. So we just drove around and looked at the orchards, fields, and farm animals. We ended up in downtown Hanford and found a really yummy pizza place. We had a sweetly happy time. We were thrilled watching the pizza guys putting on a show tossing the pizza dough. The restaurant even had my favorite pear cider on tap, plus the pizza was super delicious. Yum! What a fun family afternoon. That evening, my parents watched the kids so we could have a little date. We explored the nearby town of Visalia. It’s a bit bigger than Hanford. We watched a movie and then found a brewery a short walk from the theater. We had more yummy food and a sampler of all their handcrafted beers and sodas. I really enjoyed the handcrafted sodas. Double yum! It was a relief to have such a perfectly relaxing day with my kids and husband. I needed it.

The following weekend the kids and I drove down to Orange County so the kids could celebrate their best friends’ birthdays and Jon and I could get away for a proper 10th anniversary celebration. We stayed with our dear friends Juan and Tracy for a night. And bonus…our other dear friends just moved in next door to Juan and Tracy, so we got to see lots of Don and Amber too! So now Ben’s best friend Coen lives next door to Caleb’s best friend Sam. It’s a perfect arrangement. And some of our other dear friends Jared and Claudine just happened to be over at Don and Amber’s house, so we had a great night visiting!

Jon and I headed to Laguna Beach Saturday morning while the bounce house was being tested out by all the kids. I’m really glad I got to see the kids having fun with their friends since Jon and I weren’t going to be able to be at the parties ourselves. Sam’s birthday party was that afternoon and Coen’s birthday party was the next day. I’m so thankful for the Flores family for watching our kids so we could get away. Thanks Juan and Tracy!

Jon and I had a perfect romantic weekend in Laguna! And I mean perfect! We lucked out by getting the last ocean view hotel room with Jacuzzi tub at our hotel. Thank you Lord. My favorite was falling asleep listening to the rhythmic roar of the ocean next to my hubby. I really treasured my time with Jon because it’s a gift, and it’s sparse in my life right now. We walked around a ton and explored so many places we’ve never been to in Laguna, even though we’ve been there so many times. We especially enjoyed our night out at Tabu Grill; a friendly, fancy, and eclectic restaurant. It was absolutely the best meal we’ve ever had in our lives. And that is saying something because we’ve been fortunate to have eaten in a lot of gourmet restaurants over our many years in Orange County. That’s something that I’ll miss when we move. We found a little locals only kind of dive restaurant for breakfast; The Penguin café. It was so nonchalant and tasty that we had to go back for breakfast the next day too. Strolling around one afternoon we stumbled upon an art fair. I loved the pottery and Jon let me pick a beautiful handmade glazed mug and vase as mementos of our wonderful 10th anniversary weekend. I couldn’t have asked for two more perfect days.

As we drove back towards our kids and friends, we stopped off at Studio Suzan, a local jeweler who makes really distinctive and unique jewelry. Jon’s gift to me was to let me pick out something special to commemorate our 10th anniversary. Having never been before, I was a little overwhelmed in the show room with figuring out what I liked and what I liked the most. But they were so nice and helpful. I’ve never done anything like that before. It was so fun! I got a gorgeous pearl bracelet with an antique Roman coin on it and pearl earrings. The extra fun part is that you can purchase more pieces from Suzan and most everything links together to create multiple ways of wearing your jewelry. Eventually my beautiful bracelet can become a necklace. I felt loved and indulged in. That’s a good feeling.

I am so thankful I married Jon. He is perfect for me. So much has happened in our lives in the last 10 years of marriage. Wow! God has grown us up so much in those 10 years. And now we’re starting such a new adventure together. I can’t even imagine what our lives will look like in the next 10 years. And I’m so glad about that. I’m glad we can have adventures together and thrive; that we can enjoy life and the world around us. I’m glad we’re teaching our kids that by example.

The next three weeks were very eventful for Jon and very uneventful for me and the boys. Jeremy, Jon’s brother came to Orange County. He gathered his band, which included Jon on the bass, and they played shows all over the OC for the first weekend/week. Then they flew to Washington State to play a conference and play at a handful of churches. Jon really enjoyed having so much time with his brother, a couple close college friends, and his cousin Aaron. Jon loves playing music. He’s told me that he has an easier time connecting with the Lord when he’s playing music and specifically his brother’s worship music. They were playing music from Jeremy’s latest release “Glory Tumbles Out,” a beautiful worship album. Check him out at jeremyhartshorn.com. One highlight was the night Jon, Jeremy, and the band played at our alma mater, Vanguard University of Southern California, for the Lobbypalooza Reunion Show. It was broadcast live online, so all of us here in Hanford got to watch. It was so fun! I got to see two other friends, Eric Kennedy and Andy Struck, also perform, plus some friends in the audience. The camera cut Jon out from view for most of their set, so the kids and I watched with anticipation for glimpses of Jon playing. It was so fun!

Not much happened here in Hanford for the three weeks Jon was away. One night my brother took me and the kids out to dinner at a very authentic Mexican restaurant. They were out of all meat except head and tongue that evening. It was a cash only place and we didn’t have any cash, so we had to leave. David was still set on going back to treat us to the experience of lengua tostadas with him: Lengua=tongue. Caleb and I weren’t fans of the idea, but I decided we would be brave and give it a try. Caleb wasn’t fond of my idea. So we got cash, went back, and tried it. Ben obliviously ate his and Caleb obediently ate his one parentally required bite. He looked green the whole time we were in the restaurant. He couldn’t even enjoy his orange Mexican soda until we were back home eating our knock off Albertos carne asada tacos we picked up for second dinner. I surprisingly thought that my lengua tostada was okay. I probably wouldn’t choose lengua again on my own, but it really tasted okay, especially chopped up like it was. Caleb was so overwhelmed with the whole experience that he purposely excluded mentioning our culinary adventure to Jon in our evening phone call. He just wanted to put it all behind him. Oh my sweet, and slightly traumatized, son. I love you.

Another night my brother decided to try to make tiramisu from scratch. It tasted so delicious! Turns out mascarpone cheese is really expensive, but oh so delicious. The downside to serving a dessert with caffeinated coffee in it to small children after dinner is a loooonnnng night with no sleep for a little bouncing Ben and a very tired mama.

Caleb developed an interest in my knitting and asked me if I would teach him. How great is that! We got him his own yarn and needles and he went to it. He was a quicker study than any adult I’ve ever taught, and I’ve taught a lot of people. He really notices when he makes a mistake, which is really hard to do when you’re new to knitting. I get to help him correct his mistakes because he catches them immediately. His scarf looks great.

After his 3 weeks away, the first weekend that Jon came up was packed full of family fun. We went to a park along the Kings River. The boys climbed trees and we all soaked our feet in the ice cold river. The next day we explored Bravo Farms. They make a variety of cheeses, have tastings of their cheeses, have the tallest tree house I’ve ever seen, have an assortment of animals you can feed, have an ice cream shop, and lots of random diverse decor all over. We started climbing the tree house, but after we got about a floor and a half up, Caleb decided it was too risky and that we should go back down. I sooo agreed with him from the moment I set my foot inside, but didn’t want to say anything, because I didn’t want to pass any fear along to the kids. The stair steps were all wonky and uneven. I just didn’t feel safe. Apparently neither did Caleb. Ben’s favorite was feeding the animals. He loved it so much. We did it over and over and over again. He was so cute though and he really enjoyed himself. Bravo Farms did have a tasty burrito in their café made with their own chipotle cheese. We shared the burrito to save room to try the sandwiches from the guy who turned his truck into a smoke house and sells super tasty BBQ from the roadside. Random, random, random…but fun.

We celebrated Easter with a spontaneous trip exploring Yosemite. Jon and the kids had never been before and I haven’t been since I was a child. I’m really glad we got a trip in before we moved away. We enjoyed the scenic rolling green hill country spotted with happy cows that we passed as we drove on our way. The scene changed very dramatically once we entered Yosemite. It was breathtaking. John Muir called Yosemite “nature’s cathedral.” We completely agreed and we felt so appreciative of the indescribable beauty given to us by our amazing Creator. We were thankful that we could remember the Lord’s sacrifice for our sins and His glorious resurrection in such a spiritually moving place.

I finished my month off burning a lot of calories working in the garage. One way I’ve found that I can help out at my parent’s home has been to help them go through rooms, cabinets, etc. to clean things out and organize what’s left. So we ended our month with a very productive garage sale and a nice, clean, organized home.

January & February 2011

So much has happened in our lives in these last 2 months. Some of you have heard directly, others indirectly, and some of you not at all. So here is the story…

About 4 ½ years ago, the Lord began a huge healing in our lives. He opened our eyes up to the deep down root issues of what was broken in us as individuals and in our marriage. He weeded that out of us. He sent Jon out to the desert to find our Lord and wrestle with Him. And Jon did find him. So much amazing healing happened in us during that very intense time. The Lord was speaking so specifically, clearly, and unrelentingly to me. It was awesome and exhausting. We began learning new ways to live; healthy ways. We sold our condo and began looking for a new place to live.

The Lord blessed us with a house to rent, with room for the kids to live abundantly and to have space to be kids. He made it very clear that it came from Him, it was a gift for Jon specifically, and He was blessing us with it. He wanted us to share it and bless others with it as well. We had 3 ½ wonderful years there. God did some light pruning on us, but it was a very peaceful and joyful time. God taught us to focus on abiding in Him and to trust Him in new ways, deeper ways. Near the end of 2010 I began to think about the soft and gentle time with the Lord I’d had in those years and I began to wonder why the Lord wasn’t talking to me in the same way He did at our last house. I just settled on accepting that the Lord must talk to me in different ways at different times in my life. I was okay with that.

Then January came and the Lord’s clear and specific voice came with it in full force. He began requiring me to obey Him in new ways. He gave me words to share with individual people and groups. He had me come against fear and hate in others with His love. He had me tell people their value to Him. What’s so weird about this is that I’m terrible at “words.” I have the hardest time accessing the right words in my brain at the right time. I’m very cut and dry. I’m orderly. The Lord used me in such tender and soft ways; ways that are not mine, but His. The Lord also had me hold my tongue a lot. To be obedient to take all my words to Him before I spoke, and there was a lot I was required to hold back. In all of this, the Lord was requiring me to stand in meekness. Meekness means strength under control. Meekness means to curb the “natural” desires to rebel, fight, have your own way, push ourselves forward, defend ourselves, etc. and to instead submit to the Lord in obedience to His will. The end of January brought a sense of completion for me in these things the Lord was asking me to do.

Practically the moment all that ended, the Lord started something new in Jon and me. The Lord delved deep into us both again. He showed us aspects of ourselves that He wanted to bring healing into. It took me by such surprise. I thought those things had been dealt with. But the Lord knows better and took us deeper. In part, what the Lord showed us is that deep in Jon was a survival mode that was ingrained in him. It prevented Jon from living fully and dwelling on the joys in his life. Instead, it caused Jon to subconsciously feel burdened by life and to focus on just getting through the day. Our wonderful and sweet Lord began transforming Jon. Our Lord took that survival mode out of my husband and left room for Jon to have space to want and to desire; to have a new hope. To have space in his brain to think about what he wants out of life…to LIVE…and to live fully!

So we’re moving to Texas for Jon to go back to school to study forestry. Within a very short two weeks, from the first moment that the Lord brought up the areas that needed healing, we had a plan with many of the pieces in place. And these pieces fell into place so effortlessly, that we know it’s the hand of the Lord in our lives and in this plan. Jon has a job secured at a cabinet shop. We’ll be renting Grandma Jean’s house, which is a three bedroom house for $800 a month. We own a little one bedroom house next door that brings in $400 a month, so we’ll only have to pay $400 out of our own pocket! Grandma is on her way to move to Kauai. Thank you so much Grandma and Aloha! We’re in the process of applying to Blinn College (the local junior college in Bryan, Texas) and having Jon’s Vanguard University transcripts sent. After completing his general education, Jon intends to apply to Texas A&M for their forestry program. We anticipate all the schooling will take about 3-5 years overall. And after that…who knows where we’ll end up.

There are so many aspects about our new adventure that excite me. I’m so excited that Jon is beginning a new career which down the road will breathe a lot of life into him. I’m excited that the boys will be living in a house in the woods with creeks, ponds, and wild life. They’ll have room to explore and be boys in a way that they can’t in Orange County. I’m excited that they can go down the street by themselves and see if their friends can play. I’m excited that there are friends down the street for them to play with! I know that this place will build into the boys a self confidence and independence they wouldn’t get in Orange County either. I’m excited that we’ll be surrounded by wonderful people in our new neighborhood and I can’t wait to get to know them better. I’m excited because, in my heart, I know we’re already loved out there and that my family will immediately be welcomed, cared about, and invested in. I’m also excited that our new situation will likely allow us to completely settle/pay off the last of our debt and that we will no longer be adding to our debt since we will no longer be self-employed. Yay!

The Lord told me that there was going to be a final piece that would complete things and solidify “the plan.” I thought that was going to be a word from a random person who would walk up to Jon and say, “Hey, the Lord told me you’re supposed to move and go back to school.” We got a call from my mom on a Sunday afternoon, just two weeks into the whirlwind we were already caught up in. She told us that she just found out she has breast cancer. Bizarrely, none of us were worried. She’s not even worried. We knew this was the final piece the Lord prepared us for. There is a wonderful peace that passes understanding covering us. Praise the Lord!

We immediately began preparing to move out of our house so that the kids and I could move to Hanford to take care of my mom. Jon will stay in Southern California working and living out of his suburban. We packed up our house in one week. It was a crazy week! Really a crazy few weeks counting the crazy stuff the two weeks before. In such a short amount of time, while Jon was still working normal days, we had to figure out what would fit in a moving truck to put into storage for Texas, pack for 4 months of living and homeschooling in Hanford, figure out what Jon would need while living like a homeless man, and get rid of what was left. We had wonderful help packing and moving from many wonderful friends! For now, Jon is of the mind that he mostly wants to spend some good time alone in the evenings, but we’ve been so blessed by the numerous offers of places for Jon to stay, offers of help in any way that we need, and encouraging notes and phone calls. Thank you all so much!

Before we left Costa Mesa, we were blessed that Caleb got one final ocean trip in with his best friend Sam and some quality Dad time. Caleb really enjoyed talking with the scientist on board about all the microscopic sea creatures they pulled up in a sample of the ocean floor. The outing was featured in the Orange County Register online.

http://m.ocregister.com/articles/whales-289933-dana-festival.html?pic=0

While the big boys and dads were enjoying the ocean, Tracy and I took the little ones to the Santa Ana Zoo. It was so refreshing to do something fun after all the crazy moving we’d been consumed with. We’d been living/camping out in our house for a week with absolutely nothing in it, not even beds. We enjoyed it and certainly made the best of it, but it was nice to get out and do something fun.

We also had time to squeeze in an 80’s birthday party to celebrate our friend Claudine’s birthday. It was so much fun! Happy birthday Clu!

As I’m writing this, I’ve been living in Hanford for just over a week. Jon came up for the first weekend and it was so wonderful to reunite after only a week apart. We’re thankful for this allotment of time we’ve been given these next 4 months. It will be a time for Jon to fast family life and focus on the Lord and on himself; so that he can start our new adventure freshly focused and grounded in the Lord. It will be a time for me, our kids, my parents, and my brother (who also is living at my parent’s home) to spend really good time together, to bond closer, and to just really enjoy each other. And the extra bonus is that we’re saving quite a bit of money by not having a large rent to pay for the next 4 months.

The first Monday that we were in Hanford, we went wig shopping with my mom. First we went to a little place in a strip mall. There were creepy mannequin heads everywhere and lots of ugly hair. The owner of the shop ended up helping my mom try on quite a few wigs. We found one we liked okay, but decided to keep an appointment we had at another shop. Thank goodness we did. It turned out to be a really classy private studio with the most wonderfully kind lady. It was such a better experience! She was so caring and welcoming. She gave us so much helpful information. The kids were welcomed and the mannequins weren’t creepy.

So many of the wigs looked fabulous on Mom. It was hard to narrow it down. But we did and we purchased a really cute medium length wig & a long one too. It was a really fun day, tiring (we were at it for 4 ½ hours), but fun. It was nice to do it before Mom’s first chemo appointment. Ben, about halfway through our visit, spotted a hot pink short wig on top of a really tall cabinet, and he kept quietly and insistently pulling on me. Finally I asked him what he wanted. He really wanted Grandma to try on the hot pick wig and he wouldn’t let up until we agreed. Before we left, Mom tried it on and the grin and joy on Ben’s face was precious. We all cracked up and especially enjoyed those moments. We couldn’t convince the boys to try it on, which is just fine. I tried on a fun pink tinsel wig. It was great! So, we'll see how she feels after the chemotherapy. These next two weeks will let us know how she reacts to the treatment. Keep the prayers coming! Pray for peaceful hearts here. Pray that the Lord sustains Jon, the boys, and me through this time of being apart and outside of our normal day to day living & friendships. Pray that the Lord sustains, comforts, and holds up my mom through the chemotherapy. Pray that my mom's cancer shrinks & shrinks, & shrinks. I feel like the Lord told me that the cancer will shrink each time we pray together, so I'm standing on that.

The current status report on my mom is that the cancer has not spread to any part of her body & it has not gone into her lymph nodes. This is really unusual because she has a very large mass that is stage 3, fast growing, and aggressive cancer. So, praise God for that! Her treatment plan is also unusual. They normally do an immediate mastectomy in a case like hers, followed by chemotherapy and radiation. For her they're doing chemotherapy first to reduce the size, then surgery, and then radiation. I pray that she only has to get a lumpectomy or nothing! That would be so much better! The doctors have said that's not an option, but we'll see...God is good, God is big, and God is amazing at doing the “unusual”!

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 is my focus today, this week, the next 4 months, and the rest of my life.

"Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you."

Galatians 6:9-10 was really encouraging for me in a moment when I was feeling overwhelmed and overly tired. I’m holding onto this verse for myself over these next 4 months.

"And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up. So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith."

The verse I’m holding onto for my Mom is Isaiah 43:2.

"When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers,they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through fire you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you.”

December 2010

December has been a busy and relaxing month, all in one. The boys were in a couple performances and were adorably cute in both. First Caleb had a Winter Music Concert to show all he’s learned in his home school music class and band. Sam Flores and a few others of Caleb’s home school friends also performed with him in the choir and tone chimes. I thought Caleb might be nervous, but he wasn’t at all. He truly enjoyed performing. He said that playing his trumpet was his favorite part. Caleb is the only one of his close friends old enough to be in the band. That starts at 4th grade. He’s come so far in the few months he’s been learning the trumpet. I’m really proud of him. He sang a few songs in the choir and played a couple songs on the tone chimes too. I really enjoy the tone chimes. They’re so soothing and just make me smile. Granny and Uncle Jeremy got to watch too! We were really fortunate that Jeremy happened to be in town recording. After the show we went out to Ruby’s for some celebratory milkshakes with the Flores family. Caleb and Sam each got a whole shake to themselves for the first time! They were in ice cream heaven!!!

Then Caleb and Ben were both in the children’s Christmas performance of Wise Guys and Starry Skies at our church. Caleb was a camel boy and Ben was a star. They have worked so hard for months, practicing, memorizing songs, and practicing some more. The show was great. Ben seemed oblivious about what movements he was supposed to be doing, but he sang and looked super cute! Caleb did great! All his practice paid off. He was all smiles (except when he had to take a photo with his mom after the show) and glad that his best friend Sam came to watch.

Juan wanted to surprise Tracy with a surprise birthday dinner in Laguna with her friends at sunset. I was so pleased that we could be a part of that. And the best part is that Jon and I got a date in the daytime! Juan dropped his kids off with us in the early afternoon so he could take Tracy down to Laguna early and surprise her with an art class. Then we took our kids and Juan & Tracy’s kids down to another friend’s house. She watched all of our kids, plus her own four kids, from 3pm until the late hours of the night! Thanks so much Morena!!!! It was so weird and amazing for Jon and me to be driving down to Laguna in the day time with no kids. What a great gift! We had so much fun that night and the sunset was breathtaking from our view at the restaurant. Good friends, good food, good view! Can’t get much better than that!

The last two months our home school friends and I have done a fun and educational event at my house. They were such a hit that the ladies have decided that we’re going to make it an official monthly event now. Hopefully all the hands on stuff that the kids are learning will be super memorable and more likely to stick in their little heads. This month we decided to do an International Christmas theme. Each family chose a country and presented its Christmas traditions and brought a traditional Christmas food from that country. Caleb chose Australia because he liked that it’s summer there in December. He also liked their legend that Santa gives the reindeer a break and lets 6 white boomers (kangaroos) pull his sleigh over Australia. Caleb gave a verbal presentation, read an Australian Christmas song, and had everyone sing an Australian version of Jingle Bells together. It was great! We made Pavlova for our food, which is a traditional Australia Christmas dessert. It was a hit and everyone gobbled it up! It’s kind of crunchy/wafer-ish on the outside and marshmallowy on the inside. It’s topped with freshly whipped cream and fruit. Hanukkah, Germany, England, and Mexico were also represented. Then the kids made gingerbread houses out of milk cartons, graham crackers, icing, & lots of candy. They had so much fun…especially eating the houses up when they were done!

We had an early Christmas with Granny before she flew off to Kauai for the holidays. The boys had so much fun opening early presents and they loved every minute of it.

Then my parents came down to stay at Melanie’s apartment while she was gone. I hope they enjoyed their beachy Christmas vacation. Too bad it was pouring rain their whole trip. Oh well. The one afternoon that the rain let up I decided to take my parents and the kids to Roger’s Gardens. I love that place and I’ve wanted to take the kids; they’ve never been at Christmas time. We spent a lot of time watching the train and I soaked up a lot of the Christmas cheer.

I enjoyed the couple weeks of rain and my parents’ visit. It so seldom rains here and I loved the warm coziness of my home, my Christmas tree, and my fireplace this month. I’m also glad for the break of having to water all my herbs and pepper plants outside every day.

One evening, my home school mom friends and I got together without our kids for the very first time! My mom came over for a bit too. How fun to have her close by for things like this. We each brought a tasty appetizer to share and passed around the wine glasses. I even got my mom to taste almond champagne. Then we had an impromptu chocolate tasting. I have a set of dark chocolate that I’ve been waiting for a year for Trader Joes to get back in stock, as it’s a seasonal item. There are eight different dark chocolates, each from a different country, and each with a distinctly different taste: earthy, grassy, fruity, flowery, nutty, dry, rich…yum – I like them all. We read the descriptions of each and passed them around for everyone to take a nibble. It was so fun! Then I taught the ladies to make cute little fabric covered magnets. We were going to have one of the other ladies teach us to make peanut brittle as well, but it was almost 1am, and we had run out of time. So we did a part two and a couple ladies came over the next day to learn the fine art of peanut brittle. Yum!

Christmas morning was filled with warmth, love, and sausage balls. Without Granny here to make her traditional Christmas morning snack, I had to do the job. I got them ready to stick into the oven the night before, so that Christmas morning I could concentrate on getting our Christmas feast into the slow cooker. The sausage balls turned out yummy, thankfully. The kids loved their presents. We really missed all of our extended family, especially our Texas family (I still call you all our Texas family even though you live in Kauai). But the upside was that the kids got to open each present one by one. Then they got to set up each toy and really check it out before we moved onto the next person’s turn. I really enjoyed the lazy pace we had. I only made one present this year and Ben was the lucky recipient. I made him a puppet theater and then bought him a bunch of puppets to play with. Both boys are having so much fun with it and we enjoy watching their imaginative shows. For our Christmas feast, I deviated from the traditional and made rosemary French beef dips slow cooked all day and served with au jus. Then I made Pavlova for dessert. It was so tasty and still festive for the season.

We gave Caleb an Ipod dock for Christmas. Now the boys can listen to music in their room, and they do, and they love it! It makes me so glad. Caleb has been listening to his favorite band over and over again, The Bear Hug Band. He saw them perform at Calvary Chapel during VBS (Vacation Bible School) over the summer and he was thrilled to get the CD for Christmas. We gave Ben the first Psalty the Singing Songbook CD for one of his Christmas presents. So far the boys haven't latched onto that because they can't stop playing the Bear Hug Band. They jump and dance all around their room when it's playing. So cute!

One afternoon after Christmas, my parents and I drove down to Laguna Beach in search of the Pottery Shack. It was a place my mom loved to visit years ago. Jon & I had a chance to check it out early in our marriage and I remember loving it. Well…we found it…parked the car…walked over…saw the big statue in front that says Pottery Shack…and then learned that the store closed in 2004. Now there is a restaurant and a bunch of small shops all fit into the space of the old shack. It was a little bit sad, although I kind of want to go back and try that restaurant. The patio looks very cozy. We walked through all the little shops and then walked down to the beach. The boys climbed some rocks we found and we all had a nice little refreshing moment. There is just something about the ocean that is like a reset button…a fresh start.

November 2010

We've updated photo albums for November. It seems that we keep ending up taking photos with the cameras in our phones because I seldom take my camera with me these days. So if you’re confused about the grainy looking photos, that’s the reason, but better grainy pictures than no pictures. As I mentioned in my last post, there are a few short videos I put in a new video album, also taken with our phones. I hope they play okay for you. If they seem to pause too much, just let them buffer (pause it until the bar at the bottom makes it all the way to the right. Enjoy!

We started the month off with a big multi family garage sale in our front yard. The funny thing is that we weren’t selling anything, just hosting. We did make up a big, yummy breakfast for our friends. Ummm…pumpkin waffles with apple cider syrup!

Caleb’s school had its annual Art Fair. It’s kind of like their version of a back to school night. This year’s theme was the Wild West and the kids had a blast playing all the games. They even learned some square dancing. Caleb was so resistant to the dancing, but his mean ol’ mom made him. I saw a smile sneak out a few times while we were dancing, so I know it was worth it. Vida, on the other hand, was a dancing machine! She sure can boogie for a girl barely three.

One Sunday morning we decided to check out a new park begin developed in Irvine, the Orange County Great Park. We’d been there once at night a few months ago for a free summer in the park concert, The Blind Boys of Alabama. It was so fun! The former Marine Corps Air Station El Toro is being transformed into the first great metropolitan park of the 21st Century. The park spans more than 1,300 acres (nearly twice the size of New York’s Central Park). It is in the early phases of development and will likely be most enjoyed by our grandkids (weird thought). But there is still plenty to enjoy for our little family now. We ate some shave ice and delicious crepes from the food trucks, took a few spins on the carousel, let the kids go nuts enjoying the huge climbing rocks and tunnels that make up the kids rock playground, and perused the farmer’s market. We spent the most time pouring over the garden beds. There are twelve large themed garden beds in total, including an “Ethnic Garden,” “Fruit Salad Garden,” and a “Sensory Garden,” that introduce you to some new and interesting produce, plant life, and gardening techniques. My mind was spinning with all the things I want to implement in my own backyard. They also have a big compost teaching area. Ben liked peeking under the tarp at all the worms in the compost. We didn’t go on the world’s largest helium balloon. Caleb is still warming up to the idea. The Great Park Balloon is the Orange County Great Park’s first major attraction. All flights are free and it has the ability to hold up to 25 to 30 passengers, and soar up to 400 feet above the surrounding landscape. All in all, it was an unexpected and entertaining morning.

We hosted 14 kids for 5 hours for a big Thanksgiving home school event. Can you believe it! All the moms pitched in, so I wasn’t alone. We read the Pilgrims story, made a turkey craft, had the kids test fruit for vitamin C levels to help the Pilgrims fight scurvy, did an Indian trails math lesson, made butter from heavy cream by shaking it for a long time, and smeared the delicious butter over freshly made corn bread and gobbled it up. We talked about how the Indians helped the Pilgrims be more successful with their crops by planting fish into the ground with their seeds. So the kids also got to plant corn seeds with a fish into dirt. Then they ate it up! Don’t worry, it was really candy “seeds”, gummy “fish”, pudding “dirt”, & crushed cookies “top soil.”

One Saturday, while Jon had to work, I enjoyed one of those rare times that I got to just do something for myself...I started making a snuggly quilt, just for me. Although I'm sure it will be an unusual moment indeed when I won't have little snuggle bugs cozying up to me :)

Another weekend we decided to just go for a drive. We ended up at The Ocean Institute in Dana Point. I was impressed by the friendly and knowledgeable staff. They really made the experience come alive for the boys. I think the most memorable lesson the boys participated in was a lesson about pollution run-off into the ocean. They also really enjoyed checking out the plankton and life cycles of brine shrimp in the microscope lab. The highlight for me was when we stumbled upon the scenic walk to the Dana Point tide pools. It was a very chilly and windy day. We were bundled up, surrounded by beauty, climbing rocks, and exploring nature together. It made me really happy.

We spent Thanksgiving with my brother and parents in Hanford. We had a great time. Ben enjoyed helping Grandma make yummy apple pies on a stick and Caleb enjoyed his special craft time with Grandma. Uncle David and Jon played Legos with the boys for hours and seemed to have just as much fun as the kids. We played games, ate a bountiful meal, and watched The Simpsons Movie together. Weirdly, my dad saved that movie especially for Jon to enjoy, and we all did. I fell asleep right at the end though. I guess that’s what happens when you wake up at 4am to drive to Hanford Thanksgiving Day.

We left for home the next afternoon and ended up taking an impulsive side trip. We went to check out the Giant Forest in the Sequoia National Park. I love impulsive side trips! On our way up the mountain we got stopped for about 40 minutes because the road was down to one lane and an emergency vehicle had to rush down the mountain. So we decided to make the best of it and we got out of the car to play in the snow at the side of the road. Ben was thrilled because he finally got to make and throw the snowball he had been going on and on about in the car. He had been worried he wouldn’t get a chance to enjoy the snow. While we were playing, we saw a wild bear! It was off in the distance and just ambling about. It was a thrill! The road finally opened up and we made it up to the sequoia trees and General Sherman (the largest tree in the world). They were breathtaking. We arrived just about at sunset. What little light was left was filtered by the trees. It was a gorgeous sight; not so good for taking pictures, but great for living in the moment. There was snow and ice everywhere. Jon and the boys even got to slide down multiple flights of steps back to the car because they were completely iced over and no longer resembled steps. I was the first to find out that you couldn’t walk down them, even if you held the rail really tight. Ben was delighted getting to sit on Jon’s lap for the ride. Our dog did fantastic traipsing about in the snow, which was a pleasant surprise. Our detour ended up adding 7 hours to our 4 hour ride home, but it was definitely worth it.

Jon and Caleb spent the Saturday after Thanksgiving starting their new project in the shop. They’re building two loft beds (kind of like the top part of a bunk bed, but not so high up). That way Ben and Caleb will each get a new bed and a secret fort underneath. They got a lot accomplished, but there’s still much more to be done.

After church on Sunday, we went to Granny’s (Melanie’s) for dinner, conversation, games, and PIE!!!! Yum Yum! We had a great time and then came home to fall into bed.

Ooh! I’m pleased to share that we finally have our heater fixed in the house after 2 frigid years with no indoor heat!!!! Yay!!!! I'm not bundled up like an Eskimo in my own home :) This is big news people.

November was a good month and we’re thankful for all of you, our family and our friends. Thanks for being a part of our lives. Thanks for your prayers and time and love! We love you all!!!!