Happy Birthday Duane

Imagine, 1967 - gosh I was 20 young years when I delivered you on Holy Saturday.  Your Aunt Maureen was born on Ash Wednesday.  When the nurse brought you to me on Easter Sunday, she'd taped bunny ears to your head.  That was back in the days before we had cameras attached to our phone and took pictures of everything - no picture only a memory.

Imagine - you and me, snuggled in the hospital bed - so happy together!  Happy Together by the Turtles was the most popular song when you were born!  What did I know about being a Mom?  Not much - although I did know a little about babies and how to take care of them.  But I was so happy Mom agreed to stay after Easter, with Maureen, and take the night shift.  We took lots of pictures of you and Maureen together in those early years....




















I love telling the story about being pregnant at the same time my mom was with her last child!

We did our best to keep you safe, but one unlucky day the coffee table won and you suffered a horrible black eye.  Gratefully we did not have to take you to the E.R. and subject ourselves to an investigation from Child Protective Services.  I don't remember people taking about CPS back then.  Happily you recovered from this and other childhood accidents.

We also tried to ensure that you had opportunity to love various pets over the years.  Our first family pet, a parakeet named Zeke, was given to us by your Dad's school principal.   Zeke could say "Pretty Bird Zeke," when prompted.  You opened the cage door one spring day and he flew out into our yard.  We put an ad in the local paper and miraculously someone found him and returned him to us.

We had our share of hampsters, cats, and dogs after Zeke went to bird heaven.  You developed a love for Snoopy, the Peanuts dog, and faithfully read all Charles Schultz books ever published by the time you were in the 6th Grade.

We also tried to teach you the value of work outside, which became more miserable for you as you developed an allergy to grass when you were in high school.

Karen begged us for her own dog after we took Kasha, our Norwegian Elkhound to a farm where she could run.  We all fell in love with Barney, our beloved cocker spaniel!  He came to live with us in 1980 and went to doggie heaven in 1989.  See the red Datsun truck in the picture?  Don't tell anyone, but we let you drive it before you even had a license because you had some lawn mowing jobs and that cash was important to feed your computer habit!

I tried to find a picture of you with the Apple Computer surprise at Christmas time, 198l, but could only find a picture of your room at Stimson Hall, probably taken in 1987 or 1988.  

 Imagine your joy on your 13th birthday when your Dad gave you your very own special cereal bowl!

Imagine our joy watching you in the Civic Theatre production of Oliver and watching you become a great trombone player in the CHS marching band!

Lots of things have changed since 1981....

You've taken a bride and started a family

You've become a father

You like to wear hats

And make Grandma's Christmas Cookies

And search for just the right picture

And dress up in funny costumes!

And be a kid again with the Simpsons!

And teach Colin about the magic of electricity!

And spend hours making a Minecraft Cake for Colin's 8th birthday

Your life became so much more than I imagined that Easter day 46 years ago.    You are a successful computer scientist, an attentive son, and a devoted family man.  You are kind and sensitive to children and your elders.  You are patient with the technically challenged.  You appreciate God's creation and wait for the just right picture to express what you see.  I never imagined that you would be interested in family history or would try so many family recipes.  I'm grateful you invite me on your family trips, hikes, and birthday celebrations.  You've expressed your delight over the years when you've discovered I've saved legos, books, toys, and newspaper articles.  You may have inherited some of my "saving" genes because you've saved old radios and computer equipment.  Did you ever imagine you'd be teaching your son how to write code and program the Apple IIe that's now 30 years old?

It's a wonderful gift you have - the ability to teach others what you know with incredible patience!

Happy Birthday Duane

Mt. St. Helen's Vacation

Duane and Anne invited me to join them for a little spring break get-away. I debated because my calendar was full of all sorts of volunteer obligations. But after making soup for my friend, Jean, who had bunion surgery, soup for the Wednesday Family Promise Dinner, soup for the Normal Hill Churches Lenten Luncheons, and dinner for Fred and Karen, I decided I was entitled to a some time away from the kitchen. Besides I did five loads of laundry for a sweet young family with a two-week old baby. I didn't sleep much last night, just fussing about disappointing Betty who'd asked me to serve soup today and typing up minutes from the BOG meeting. I kept saying to myself, "you'll be able to sleep in the car." And I did today, with a little sunshine streaming through the window. Duane chose a route he'd never driven before. We had lunch in Othello and then headed toward Yakima. We enjoyed driving through the agriculture areas, watching workers apple prune trees, and checking wires for hops. I appreciated the farmers who identified the kind of apple trees. Each variety grows differently and Duane and I notice how short the trees were - maybe to making picking that much easier. Some tree branches are trellised on wires. The trip over White Pass delighted us with views of snow capped mountains and eventually Mt. Rainier - the top buried in soft clouds. We got out for pictures and it was so warm. Anne thought it was more difficult to breathe, but I think it's only about 1,000' higher than Moscow's elevation.

 We have a great room at the Best Western - really comfy beds and lots of space for computers and TV watching. Even the remote control is stored in a little bag with wipes to get rid of any germs.

Colin and I got quite comfortable with our electronic devices.....

Friday we drove to Mount St. Helens Volcanic Monument via Toledo, WA. Anne grew up in Toledo, Ohio, and got really excited when she saw the signs for Toledo. The small town seemed delightful, painted walls and all.

 The trip to Mount St. Helens was beautiful. We'd hoped the clouds would totally disappear, but they never did. However, we were able to walk outdoors and enjoy the 50 degree weather without our umbrellas. The small hikes provided lots of time to enjoy the wetlands, be awed by the new landscape and all the loving attempts to preserve the land around the volcano. As devastating as the volcano was, the gift of nature is that it rebuilds itself. Out of chaos comes order and new beauty.

 Colin loved walking in the snow at one of the  viewpoints that had not been plowed.

Throughout the Monument we saw evidence of the $9 Million Reforestation Project by Weyerhauser.  Looking at these trees made us feel a little dizzy - like our eyes were not quite in focus.  

 The clouds are beautiful, but prevented us from seeing the top of Mount St. Helens

 We were disappointed because the Forest Learning Center was closed near Coldwater Lake

I found the frog sounds fascinating.

 Lots of maps and displays throughout  the Mount St. Helens Monument

Duane appeared disappointed that he could not get the great pictures he'd hoped to see around the mountain. But we enjoyed just being in nature and learning about the historic events of May, 1980. Colin carefully chose his souvenirs with the $8.00 Dad gave him - a bag of beautiful rocks, a medallion for his walking stick, and a coffee mug with pictures of the volcano.

 Nice use of our taxpayer's money - the boardwalks!

I really liked the hike around the visitor's center - lots of ducks and new life - are these lily pads springing up?

We had hoped to check out early and stay in the Tri Cities Saturday night, but we could not cancel our reservations at this lovely Best Western Hotel, so we tried to figure out what was close by that might be fun. We found some hiking ideas in Nisqually Wildlife Refuge. It was a little chilly Saturday morning, but we managed to hike around this great refuge and see lots of ducks and a bald eagle.

Anne and Colin ran into someone with great binoculars and they were able to see a great horned owl. he also finished a little workbook so he got a badge and proudly wore it all day.

A highlight of the day was our lunch at MAC 'N MORE in Lacey. Anne loved the Potato Chip Nachos so much she wrote a review for the restaurant on the YELP website!

The rainy weather lent itself to staying in for the afternoon, watching Harry Potter movies non-stop on the ABC family channel, swimming, working out in the gym, and lots of napping, which I really enjoyed. Duane and I walked to Denny's and picked up salads for our dinner and yummy chocolate milk shakes. Colin spent lots of time playing Pokemon on his Ninentendo DS.

We left Chehalis early Sunday morning,  found winter weather over Snowqualmie Pass, but made it home in time for Colin to enjoy a play date with his friend, Zachary.  And I got to enjoy Bradleigh and Jacob's piano recital and John's birthday celebration!

Happy Birthday John

Just a few pictures this year....  John's Mom made a yummy chocolate cake shaped like a big heart.

Nothing shows love and joy more than John's delight in the attention from, Joey, his parent's dog.

Happy Birthday, John

Palouse River Hike

The Lewiston Hiking Club bi-montly hiking season began today with members enjoying a muddy start, but warm weather and lively conversation along the Palouse River near Colfax.  The organizers admit this hike is flat, flat and the perfect hike for early March.  Scott and Carol invited me to ride to Colfax with them and I felt lots of excitement when they told me we'd be picking up Mary Aegerter in Uniontown.  Mary wrote a hiking column for the Tribune in the 1990's and she's the author of the hiking book, "Hike Lewis and Clark's Idaho."

 I've visited her website www.hikingfromhere.com/ many times.  She told us about all the hiking trips she's already planned so we felt lucky that she could join us today.  Her stories are fascinating.  She talked about hiking into a trailhead in Oregon just so she wouldn't have to drive a windy, bumpy road.  She mentioned bringing fresh fruit to a young woman who manages a lookout near Lostine, Oregon.  And guess what else she does?  Knits at least 20 pair of socks a year.  As we were driving to Colfax she pulled out her knitting bag.  "I am not good at just sitting," she said.  She knits in the car, at home, around a campfire, sitting by a river, or at a meeting.  I immediately fell in love with this woman!!

Margey,  unknown, Cam, and Mary!

The actual hiking is great exercise and wonderful for the physical body, but I also enjoy the social aspect of these hikes.  I met Joan and Cheresse, both from Oregon, who only became friends after their families moved here.  These women are major gardeners who also can tons of home made salsa each year.  Joan lives in the former Pike home, on a big hillside, and her garden is totally terraced to fit the hillside.  We said over and over again, "what a small world."

Joan and Cheresse

Appreciating the basalt rock formations along the Palouse River

Margey hikes and backpacks with Sue, the daughter of one of my favorite residents, Catherine.  Sue and Margey both recently retired and are finding new life outside work by enjoying many overnight hiking trips.  I have so much to learn from these active women who know how to do retirement.  I'm honestly not so sure about back packing.  I think I'm too old to sleep on the ground.  Other fun facts from these women - they make their own snacks, such as dehydrated yogurt, hummus, and dried apples.  I'm inspired by those who don't eat meat and insist on growing their own food!  I enjoyed everything about the day, including a long nap when I got home.

Spring Bike Ride

T'was a glorious day in Lewiston - 55 degree weather, full sun - just the perfect day for the first bike ride of the year.  I picked up Marcia and my old bike and noticed the tires were really flat.  Luckily that bike has the old-fashioned, traditional tires and tubes that can be pumped up at a gas station.  We found air at Zip Trip, and, although it took us awhile, Marcia and I managed to get air in the tires all by ourselves.  We were only a little late meeting Regina at the Southway Boat Ramp.  Unfortunately, we noticed Regina's back tire was really low on air so we loaded her bike up and headed back to Zip Trip and once again amazed ourselves that we managed to get air into the tires...

Off we went, along the levee, just absolutely enjoying the warm day, the friendly walkers, the birds and ducks, and squeals of children playing on the playground.  Regina and Marcia are my walking friends and we soon learned that bike riding, one behind the other, does not lend itself to much chit chat.  We rode out to the Clearwater Bridge, stopping only once for a water break.  We solved the chit-chat problem by making plans to ride our bikes into downtown Lewiston for lunch and take advantage of one of the unique new bike racks surrounding our soon to be opened Library.

As we were loading up our bikes we heard, "Hi Grandma - what are you doing here?"  Regina's granddaughter, Karlee, and her friend, Bailie Copeland, met for a run and we talked them into taking a picture of all three of us.

I'm feeling so blessed to have such great, health-conscious friends!

Wonderful smells

I spent two nights last week at the Davenport Hotel, attending a leadership training.  Gratefully, Emeritus covered the cost of the hotel and all the meals.  Everything about this grand hotel is superb - from the valet parking attendants to the coffee servers!  I noticed the fragrance of lilies and roses when we walked through the front doors.  The flower shop, placed strategically near the entrance, greets people and lets the customers experience the beginning of a great experience.  The rooms exude history, comfort, and hospitality.  Every night new packages of soft peanut brittle sit on the bedside table.  Customers can peruse the gift shop and purchase beds, bedding, towels, shampoo, and lotion - all the things that make the sleepover a wonderful experience.

I loved the lotion - found out the fragrance - verbena!  Now I wished I'd have forked over the $20!

Capturing a fragrance and pushing it out over the internet, blog-o-sphere, is not possible - maybe that's a goal for some geek to figure out how to make that happen over smart phones and IPads!

I wish I could take credit for the fragrance wafting from a simple pot on my stove this morning, but alas, I found it on Pintrest. Trust me, the smell overwhelms the house and even when the pot no longer simmers, the fragrance lingers.  It helps that my rosemary plant, on the south side of my house, flourished all winter!  Try it!

"You know that wonderful smell when you walk into Williams Sonoma?  Here’s how to get it:  water, sliced lemon, 3 springs of fresh rosemary and about a teaspoon of vanilla.  Simmer on the stove."