Here’s a parade of pictures from our past few months that I want to remember. We celebrated autumn with a trip to the Oregon Heritage Farm‘s apple festival and with a backyard bonfire–complete with a hot chocolate toast! This was the first year we decorated the porch for Halloween and dressed up with the kids.… Read More Celebrations
At the start of summer break, I was pretty pumped with my creative approach to making the summer fun by giving it a summer camp flavor. I christened it “Camp Explore.” I posted our daily routine in camp lingo. For example, clean rooms became cabin inspection. There were a few new things I added to… Read More Camp Explore
Fall in Oregon is dazzling! This October has been dry, warm, and sunny–especially compared to last year. By now, most of the leaves are either gone or have turned brown, but it’s been a beauty of a season! We explored Sauvie Island (an island in the Columbia River) one weekend. Though it’s just across the river… Read More Autumn Activities
Cape Disappointment did NOT disappoint! It was a fantastic weekend with friends. Since this was our first family tent-camping trip, I compiled a packing list from this mom’s blog and added my own ideas too. I’m happy to say that we brought pretty much everything we needed–although I would definitely bring more paper towels, Styrofoam cups,… Read More Cape Disappointment Camping
Cheese has long been one of our delights, hobbies, interests, indulgences. Stephen decided to try his hand at cheesemaking, so he ordered a starter kit off of Amazon. Early in September he gave it a go, following this tutorial. Cheese curds were a lot of work! He used one gallon of milk, and created a fun… Read More Say, “Cheese!”
Mom and Dad Moody came for five days before Christmas! We introduced them to the meaty deliciousness that is Miracle Mile Delicatessen and then drove up to a lookout on South Mountain. The road to the summit was closed due to storm damage, but the view was still impressive. Silas was thrilled to be “climbing” on a… Read More Christmas Collages
Our Thanksgiving weekend was full of get-togethers and activities, so we reserved Thanksgiving Day for just us five at home. Wednesday night was the annual Pie and Praise at church. I took my signature sugar cream pie, and we remembered how last year’s Pie & Praise was the first service we held in our new… Read More Thanksgiving Weekend
Making tamales at Christmastime is a Hispanic family tradition. It’s a long and involved process, so it makes for a great bonding experience for family and friends. This year a friend from church invited some of us to make tamales with her, and I thought it would be fun to learn how to make them… Read More Christmas Tamales
The other night I went grocery shopping by myself. Yes, you read that right–by myself. No babies. Alone. Solo. How did I accomplish this amazing feat? Well, I thought I’d write you a little “how-to” manual just in case you’d like to try it sometime. 1. Climb into your vehicle with only your purse, shopping… Read More Just Me. By Myself.
How do you like your dogs? Have you ever tried cutting them in a spiral before grilling? A while ago Stephen sent me this video tutorial that shows just how easy it is to do. So, I thought we could try it this past weekend. It was a cool experiment! First, skewer the hot dog… Read More Spiral-Cut Hot Dogs