03-31-14

Took a trip to Wal-mart this evening, needed some cheap stuff for the rentals.

The toilet paper holder is too far away from the toilet to reach and the wall is not good for hanging a second one.  Normally we buy the $14 freestanding silver holders, but they get taken or trashed.  As Anastasia likes to say, "this is why we can't have nice things."

So here's our latest $3 experiment.

03-30-14

We spent the day in Seattle today, with ole' college friends visiting from California.  We tromped all around the Pike Place Market and the waterfront with Bruce playing tour guide.  The weather was finally nice enough to ride the ferris wheel.

03-29-14

Meet my newest piece of jewelry.

We celebrated a belated Valentine’s Day Friday.

Bruce had a friend set up a fake coffee date for me, there were flowers there when I showed up, then Bruce showed up and we enjoyed a date and a new bovine friend.

Feeling loved.

03-27-14

“The wedding ring goes on the left ring finger because it is the only finger with a vein that connects to the heart.” – Unknown

Bruce took my rings to get them cleaned.  I feel naked without them!  He was teasing me about how teeny tiny my fingers are.

“Marriage requires a person to prepare 4 types of "Rings": Engagement Ring wedding ring, Suffering, Enduring.” - Unknown

03-26-14

Weyerhaeuser wrapped up their annual diaper drive today.

It will be awhile before we know if the company wide goal of one million diapers was met, but our local Timberlands group brought in 17,000 diapers of all brands and sizes!

Watch a cute motivating video by clicking here. 

03-25-14

Getting old or working hard?  Working hard.  Thankful to be rehabbing our smallest unit, but there are downsides, like tight places with the paint brush.

03-24-14

Not sick, but not well either.  Stuck in the middle.

Xander, on the other hand, is clearly unwell.  But looking nice with his short haircut.

Cutting down the expectations of what I get done in a day.

03-23-14

I got birthday wishes via Facebook, via snail mail, and notes left on our door sign at the retreat center.  Feel like I could use a weekend to recover from the weekend, but nice birthday.

03-22-14

It was unlucky that we were at Cannon Beach the first weekend of spring break for Oregon schools, but we lucked out that the weather was fantastic.  Normally we don’t spend much time at the beach, but we walked over a mile on the sand this year, watching the dogs, people, and scenery.

03-21-14

Vacation day Friday, yay!  Spent the morning getting ready for the weekend, then moseyed down to Cannon Beach.  I could post another photo of coffee art, but here’s Bruce kicking off the Marriage Retreat.

03-20-14

Anastasia's boyfriend Ethyn seems to be a bit of an artist.  The coffee bean in the center was a surprise.  Running around getting ready for retreat, stopped to visit the kiddos working their sift at the Bean.  Catching up on the day over coffee, niece Molly on Facebook...

03-19-14

Anastasia had her braces put on today.  Suddenly she believes in ibuprofen... We wish it had been years earlier, but we don't always (often?) have much control over timing (anything?).  

03-18-14

And so another tennis season begins.  Anastasia’s first match was tonight.  All of the girls are looking pretty green, will be fun to see the progress this season.  

03-17-14

If you leave a Christmas decoration up long enough, it becomes a St Patrick's Day decoration!  People around me are enjoying corned beef, too bad it's meatless Monday here!

03-16-14

Quiet day at home for everyone except Anastasia.  Look who'd like his allowance early so he can afford to go get a haircut.

03-15-14

It is becoming a tradition for me to defrost and eat my Christmas fruitcake near my birthday.

At Christmastime there are so many other treats to indulge in, so I freeze my treasured fruitcake.  I normally try to lose the holiday weight after the new year, so it doesn't get defrosted for awhile.

We'll be at Cannon Beach for my actual birthday, so this weekend seemed to be the perfect time to enjoy all those yummy candied fruits and nuts.  Thanks Grama!

03-14-14

Friday evening, snuggled up on the couch watching the final episodes of a season of the Wire.  

03-13-14

Our plum trees are in bloom, on our block and all over town.  Striking to walk outside in the morning and see the sunrise in the background.

03-12-13

Bruce and I started our morning at the Highlands Network Cafe, a fundraiser breakfast and chance for me to talk to the community about adopt-a-block.  It was a blast.  I had to fold my hands or they would move in big gestures and knock over the water glasses.

03-11-14

What a gorgeous weather day!  Our ornamental plum trees are in bloom, the sun is shining, and Bruce and I went for long walks.  Didn't even need the jacket in the afternoon.  Nice day to take vacation.

03-09-14

Big excitement for the day was assessing our foot arches at Wal-mart.  And the rain stopped long enough to play tennis for a bit.  Otherwise a perfect quiet day at home.

03-08-14

Today was a Highlands centered rainy day.

In the morning I went out with the graffiti clean-up crew to paint tagged garage doors.  The gangs are battling with spray paint, 61 properties had graffiti.  Note the cat; he was super friendly and followed us around all morning.

In the afternoon we went to our adopted block and handed out fresh smoke detector batteries and reminded people to change their clocks forward.

“Never doubt that a small group of committed people can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.” - Margaret Mead

03-07-14

The Applebee’s bar and a concert at the Bean seemed like a good way to end this hideous week.  Tenant drama, a caved in ceiling, and dealing with insurance adjusters; the rental fun never ends.  The kids helped out with an evening Shamrock 5K – what great weather today, the sunshine makes everything seem better.  TGIF.  And happy Hug An Engineer Day!

03-06-14

"Is that an owl?"

I hear that a lot when people notice my purse.  Yes, it is.

A wise old owl sat on an oak;

The more he saw the less he spoke;

The less he spoke the more he heard;

Why aren’t we like that wise old bird?

-Charles M Schulz

03-05-14

Xander has a cool new trophy/plaque to add to his collection, for winning the tennis tournament last month.  Way to go!

03-04-13

Relay for Life team captain meeting tonight.  And Anastasia is a team captain this year.  Most of the meeting was reviewing new state laws for raffles, what a mess.  She got recognized for wearing purple, I got recognized for being on my team for over five years.

03-03-14

I have two ferns in my life, one at home and one at work.  Both seem a little unkempt and neglected.  But still kickin’.

03-02-14

I cannot remember the last time I gave myself a manicure, but this evening I trimmed and painted them.  Weekends without major plans are great for getting big and little things done, and for slowing the pace down.

03-01-14

Operation feed the boy.

Xander’s appetite has been voracious lately.  This morning I worked on hunting (for) and gathering less expensive higher quality foods to restock the shelves.  I made a batch of multigrain cereal.  We hit the bread store and got 12 loaves of dollar bread, with lots of whole grains and nuts, plus bagels and English muffins.  We got some nutritional yeast to add flavor and texture to kale chips and recipes.  We stopped to get more fruit since our fruit bowl gets depleted so fast.  Caesar flavored SnapPea Crisps, he may like those.  And we got the 40 tortilla family size package.

“Did you get any jam?” – Xander’s reaction

Ok, check, got a four pound tub of jam from Cash & Carry on afternoon outings.