Between two birthdays and Thanksgiving all in the same month, Novembers are busy with celebrations around here. Because we’ve settled into life here in Oregon, our family calendar was a lot fuller this past month. I volunteered in Silas’s classroom twice and hope to do it more. His teacher’s love for her students and love… Read More Around Here
At the last minute, we decided to go to meet our friends at Plumpers Pumpkin Patch last Saturday morning. The day was sunny, and perfect for a visit to the farm. Apparently, everyone else thought so too, as it was challenging to find parking. After just a little slippage in the mud, our Rendezvous was… Read More Plumpers Pumkin Patch
July 1st was Move In Day. We filled up on waffles and coffee for breakfast and then drove to the Charlais neighborhood to get the keys to our new home. Our woodland cottage is adorable! It sits on a cul-de-sac that backs up to a greenway with a bike trail, community garden, and playground within… Read More The Day We Moved to The Shire
From Phoenix to Portland. Four days of driving. On the road to Oregon. The first day was exciting, reflective, and brutal in the desert sun. Thankfully, we landed in St. George, Utah where we were reunited with old friends. Pastor Greg and MerriEllen Wright graciously opened their home and their hearts to us. As always,… Read More On the Oregon Trail
Life crawled to a standstill in anticipation of our move from the desert. That’s one reason I haven’t posted in a while. Then life sped up to a crazy fast pace as we packed up and moved to the Pacific Northwest. That’s another reason I haven’t posted in a while. We counted down the days,… Read More Moving Out
Brynn Kathryn had her first birthday on June 4th. Happy birthday, sweet baby girl! God gifted you to Mommy & Daddy. Mommy was longing for another baby, and we were so happy when we discovered you were a little girl baby. We thank God for you and all the gentleness you’ve brought to our family.… Read More Birthday Cupcake
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 1 Peter 1:3 ESV This year we celebrated Easter. Of course, we’ve always observed Easter by attending church on… Read More Celebration of Our Living Hope
Last Thursday was my 33rd birthday. I felt known, loved, and treasured. (I also fell apart by the end of the day, but birthdays are a weird mix of emotions like that for me.) Stephen got up early and brought me back a Starbucks coffee. Then he surprised me with a present that anticipates our coming… Read More Shamrock Birthday
Peeps These are my peeps. My people. My marshmallowy sweet, squishably loveable (and often sticky) people. My peeps. Pete’s Fish & Chips Rachel was our tour guide for our first visit to Pete’s Fish & Chips in nearby Tolleson. Apparently the restaurant and downtown Tolleson had recently been given a facelift. It was super cute! Pete’s is somewhat… Read More P is for…
I think I’ve created a new holiday character. Introducing—the Valentine Ninja! Here’s the story… Back in my Utah days, my roomie Tara and I hosted a Valentine sleepover for the teen and tween girls at the school where we were teaching. That night Tara introduced us all to a “heart attack” as we forked the teen… Read More Of Valentine Ninjas and Mountain Men