Sunny Day!

Perfect shot of my phone.

Our Sixth Anniversary

This is how we're celebrating twenty-four years together: 

Sunday night - watching the Oscars in our hotel room and having a killer time.

Monday morning: "Let's pick up the kids!" 

Then it was off to Multnomah Falls.

Side falls

My traveling companions

Then, the Portland Rose Gardens

 Frisbee in the Shakespeare Garden, because why not

The Shakespeare Garden Sundial

Bella: "Mooooom! The garden's making PUNS"

Then, lunch at Carol's Corner Cafe...

Carol's has amazing biscuits, as demonstrated by H

And finally, Buffalo Wild Wings

Time for chow

It was a busy, lovely anniversary. I'm so grateful for my wonderful man and our awesome kiddos.

🍒

Converse Happiness

Sleepy Catness

Great weather we're having!

Had so much fun playing spazoid tennis with H today. I really stink at tennis but can't help myself. 

Gallon House Covered Bridge

...near Silverton, Oregon, on Abiqua Creek. We took a personal day from going to church.

Abiqua Creek

Some of the crew. Rock throwing and general silliness

Looking down at the water

Brennan and Bella found something cool...

...a self service roadside vegetable stand.

Brennan bought an onion.

As a reward for enduring my weird covered bridge obsession, we treated the children to pizza. I can't tell you how happy I was to learn that a Pietro's existed so close by. The pizza was, as always, AWESOME, and this location has laser tag and mini golf as well. Everyone was thrilled.

Phrase of the Day: Backwoods strumpet

Awww

At an Allis-Chalmers conference they attended in the 1970s, Gran and Neenaw met Laurie Lea Schaefer, Miss America 1972. She was signing autographs, and they asked her to sign this picture for me.

I just now found it in a box of old stuff. My heart is shattering from the sweetness, knowing they were thinking of me.

At the same conference: my award-winning grandfather. I miss him something awful.

❤

Signs of Spring!

"Dearie me, Granny Tea Bread!"

I inherited some darling vintage linens from my mom. Love the red crocheted edge! 

Yo.

Trying this Instagram thing.

Oh Netflix...

...must I constantly reassure you? You're worse than a clingy boyfriend.

"Are you still watching The Office?"

"I'M HERE AREN'T I"

Later: Took R to the church for New Beginnings. Can't believe my baby will be twelve this year! 

New Beginnings with R

Obviously enjoying it

Snuggling With "Needle Feet"

My dad came up with that moniker. He loved playing with her when he visited.

"STOP PUTTING KITCHEN UTENSILS IN THE DRILL"

...yet another entry in the "Things I Hear Myself Saying To My Children" diary.

(The funniest was the vintage nutcracker.)

Lie-y Liarson

Adventures in Genealogy: today I learned that my sweet 18 year old aunt married a man who said he was 30 but was really 34, and had been married three other times before her. Puke! And thank you, Montana marriage records!

HAPPY 2016

 Just hanging around the house today.

2016 is already amazing

Starting it off right with sparkling apple
cranberry cider and of course, Mad Libs

SICK IN BED

 ... but the people are taking great care of me. Thanks, my people. (They're worth their weight in gold.)

WHY YA GOIN TO THE AIRPORT? FLYIN SOMEWHERE?

I have no idea why I was at the airport on this day - probably picking someone up or dropping someone off. But here are my feet on the famous PDX carpet.

I need a pedicure, and I'm not sure if I actually took this picture in November 2015, but hats off to me for wearing sandals in late autumn. Odds are good that it wasn't raining that day, because if there's one thing I hate, it's wet toes.

GROSS

So gacked out by my body and its lack of sleep right now. Physically I feel worthless, like a lump that takes up space. The words of Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin, "Come what may and love it," come to mind... though I'm trying to think how this advice applies to having to jump out of bed and run to the bathroom at 2:30 AM, and then not going back to sleep. EVER.

This evening, as we were eating spaghetti:
Me: However I look, it's clear to see that I love you more than you love me.
Brennan: Sounds about right.

Worthlessness proof:
Pajama selfie at 7:30 PM,
at soccer practice

Tomorrow will be a better day. 

Roses

When we first moved into this house, these poor roses were a scraggly mess - really tall, leggy, dead branches, hardly any blooms. We had a hot summer so I waited till a cool-ish day, then pruned them down to around a foot tall.

It was pretty late in the season, and I was worried that they wouldn't come back, but they have.

The cream roses look wonderful and the red ones will be opening soon.

It makes me happy :) 

Brennan's birthday is coming up, and he decided he wanted to go eat Thai food for his birthday lunch. We took a trek over to find Hubby and meet him there.

With the cool elephant carving

Cheese

Afterward we visited Finnegan's and stocked up on supplies, like a 1000 piece puzzle and a dot-to-dot book. You know, the basics.

Then it was off to Voodoo for a bucket of day-old doughnuts. It's a steal of deal. You take the risk of getting what they give you, though, and today the doughnuts were all vegan. But still good.

Later, we were out of pills, so we visited the pharmacy. 

"Pills! You gotta remember to give Bob his pills!"