Point Reyes

On our last day, we took a drive to this unforgettable lighthouse. It's way out there! The drive is maybe 19 miles of windy roads in with nothing but rolling green hills, cows, and a few historic farms along the way. Then it's a 1/2 mile walk with the ocean far below to this staircase of 300 steps. All the while, I soaked it in...the sunlight, the invigorating cool breeze, and the smell of the ocean. Loved it...and could have sat for hours just taking it in. Ordinarily, this being one of the foggiest areas, we were blessed with an incredibly clear day. One thing missing...Kent. Wish he could have been there. Hopefully someday!

Trip to CA/NV

It should be fairly easy to pack for a one week trip where you can wash and run to the store if absolutely necessary. Somehow I managed to make it a two day ordeal and our living room looked like a packing zone. DJ, Levi, Kade, and I flew out to San Francisco and drove up to Reno to see family. Here...Levi talks to Grandpa Wayne and Grandma Betty the day before we left.

I couldn't have managed the trip (with two children under 2 years of age) without my Aunt Chris. We had a few interesting moments figuring out just how to carry babies, put shoes back on, pull our carry-ons, and hang on to our water bottles. By the time it was over, we thought we could do it again quite easily. :) It was fun to spend time with her. Here...we are with my mom's mom. We celebrated her birthday and enjoyed the day with her coming and going. I hope I'm like her someday... in the way she was and is always involved in her grandchildren's lives. She and Grandpa showed up for as many of our graduations, birthdays, and special events as they possibly could. They also drove all the way out to VT to see me because they were "already in Minnesota anyway." :)

In Reno, I got to see my dad's mom twice. I'm always inspired by her sweetness and appreciative attitude. It's also obvious she's been around kids a lot (she used to teach school and raised three boys.) Even though she needs a lot of extra care lately, she was entirely amazing in the way she noticed what was going on with my active boys! I loved spending time with her and being reminded of the beautiful memories we have of our growing up days with her and Grandad up at Tahoe...the hikes, beach picnic lunches, swimming lessons, boating, working alongside them, playing dominoes together, admiring her huge vegetable garden and greenhouse full of flowers, eating special homemade snacks, and especially her enthusiasm for a lots of hugs!

The schedule went out the window. I decided to just let Levi sleep wherever and whenever we were at the time. Sometimes that meant a day of fun and then a nap at 5 pm. On our second day, this is where he spent the dinner hour while we ate at Marie Callenders with grandma. He didn't wake up until we put him back in the car.

My parents took the boys to a nearby zoo and also took them on all the rides.

2

Can a mom resign? I'm not one to post lots of personal stuff on here, but today...I need to write something to whomever may read this. Do you ever feel like God is asking you to be somebody you're not? Moses crossed my mind as I was struggling with this late into the night. I think I might feel a little like Moses when he was asked to go to Pharaoh. So I ask God to help change me. I don't really have any concept of how to change ME, but I'm trusting that He can. I'm trying to trust that He can. I'm also remembering how real and transparent David was in the Psalms as he talked to God. This is how I'm trying to pray. I have to. So if you happen to read this post, would you mention me in your prayers? If you do, please post it. It'd really encourage me right now. I'm not without hope, but feel like it'd be awesome to have others praying for what's on my heart right now. Thank you!!

Bemidji Retreat

The weekend was warmer than usual, and we enjoyed a great time in Bemidji at their annual retreat. There were games, food, singing, fellowship, and preaching. We managed to get little sleep and had a wonderful time with Ken and Abbi and other old friends.

I caught this photo of Malia and friends during lunch at the retreat. It truly was beautiful outside!

Good times with friends!!

I love this picture! The boys enjoyed their doughnuts over a game of Candyland. How appropriate!

Malia whooping them in Dutch Blitz. (Actually, I have no idea who won, but I know my girls can be fast...it's dangerous!)

DJ is 7!

DJ celebrated yesterday with four friends from the church. We've always had a family birthday party until this year, but Grandma Carol still made it. Construction was the theme. We started with lego building, then took a trip to Home Depot for their kids' Saturday projects. Lunch consisted of lots of chunks of food that could be used to build (toothpicks included). Kent took them all on a hike outdoors to search for a geo-cache (each of them "found" a screwdriver and candy bar to take home). What fun! Seven and eight year olds can be sooo creative and have great attention spans (sometimes! anyway).

Yum, yummy bread

I've discovered a wonderful bread recipe for Oatmeal Sun Bread in a cookbook that features whole grain bakeries. Unfortunately, I don't have a picture, but if you like nutty, hearty bread, you'll enjoy this!

Oatmeal Sun Bread

Makes - 2 Loaves

Make sure you have:

3 cups warm water
1 Tbl. yeast
1/4 cup honey
3 cups hard whole wheat flour
1/3 cup rye flour
1/2 cup rolled oats
1/3 cup corn meal
1 Tbl. soy flour (I've never had this on hand so I skipped it)
1/2 cup sunflower seeds
2 Tbl. safflower oil (I used canola)
1 Tbl. salt
3 more cups hard whole wheat flour

1. Dissolve the yeast in the water. Add the honey. Mix in the 3 cups whole wheat flour and beat 100 times (I think this is the reason the bread isn't super heavy) Let rise 20 minutes.

2. Add remaining ingredients, reserving 1 cup of the whole wheat flour. (Tonight I had to put extra in)

3. Knead the dough until it is elastic, adding the remaining flour only if necessary. Cover and let rise to double.

4. Punch down and shape into 2 loaves. Let rise to double again in oiled bread pans. I shaped mine into round loaves on a flat pan, brushed them with beaten egg yolk and sprinkled sunflower seeds on top. This gives them a nice brown, glossy? appearance.

5. Bake at 350 for 40-45 minutes.

Winter highlights

Tana turned 17 this month! We had a few friends over and celebrated her life.

I managed to get library passes for a trip to MN Zoo. We had a great day and saw lots of animals...while staying inside most of the time! I love that about this zoo...all the indoor stuff is perfect for our cold winters.

We took a trip to see Kent's mom and Bud. This saddle was in a Sunday school classroom and it was a favorite seat for our boys!

When Kylee was here we made gingerbread trains. The trip to the bulk candy section at Cub was almost as fun as decorating the trains!