Category Archives: England

Remember, Remember the 5th of November

We’ve had a few days of showing our friends from Southern California around our parts and even took a little trip into Canada with them. I’ll share all the fun in a future post.

Time for the first Hodgepodge of November, thank you, Joyce! 

1. Besides Thanksgiving, something on your November calendar you’re looking forward to? 

We have been gifted tickets to the Nutcracker and we are also going to enjoy a performance of the Messiah in Spokane.

2. Dictionary.com’s word of the year is ‘6-7’. Huh? 

Is it even a word??? I had to consult the internet to find out it’s meaning because apparently I’m old and this particular slang is not part of my vocabulary. Is it part of yours? According to the article I read, it’s a viral term, more of an inside joke with an unclear meaning driven by social media.

What do you think?       Oye is what I think.

Dictionary. com says it’s selection each year is a ‘linguistic time capsule reflecting social trends and events, but they also admitted to being confused by ‘6-7’. Some say it means so-so and is sometimes accompanied by the up and down hand motion we associate with the phrase so-so.

What word do you think would have made a better choice? 

3. What’s a food, trend, activity, or thing people love but you think is just so-so? 

Cruising on the high seas in a little city called a cruise ship! Specialty coffee drinks. Sushi.

4. Are you a tea drinker? Hot or cold? How do you like yours and at what time of day? Do you like flavored teas or teas billed as calming, energizing, healing, etc? 

These days I’m a morning coffee drinker. I’ll enjoy teas if I go to high tea or other tea experiences but tea is not an everyday thing for me.

5. The November Hodgepodge has always included a weekly gratitude question. Here’s the question for today-what are three things that make your heart sing? 

  1. Being with family, part or whole.

2. Listening to a sermon from the Word of God. Here’s a quote I saw on Sunday at Tim Challies Blog;  

“Preaching is the miracle of God communicating himself to a fallen world through the words of a fallen man.” Brian Edwards

 “Each Sunday, he (God) communicates to fallen men through fallen men to save his people and to sanctify them. What a miracle!” Tim Challies

If you are interested in reading the whole article, click on Tim Challies Blog, above.

3. Trips to the United Kingdom.

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

We have adopted the first line of the Guy Fawkes Rhyme and repeat it on November 5th because it was on November 5th of 2022 that Greg had his stroke. By God’s providence. Greg survived and he survived well. There are lingering difficulties as we continue to live with the ‘thorn in the flesh’, but we thank God that Greg’s life was spared and trust God with our future.

Here’s some history about Guy Fawkes Bonfire Night in the UK the Rhyme is included below.

Remember, remember, the 5th of November,
Gunpowder, treason and plot.
I see no reason
Why gunpowder treason
Should ever be forgot.
Guy Fawkes, Guy Fawkes, ’twas his intent
To blow up the King and the Parliament
Three score barrels of powder below
Poor old England to overthrow
By God’s providence he was catch’d
With a dark lantern and burning match
Holler boys, holler boys, let the bells ring
Holler boys, holler boys
God save the King!

 

Hear Ye, Hear Ye, Hodgepodge

It’s another week with fresh questions for Hodgepodge Wednesday. Thank you, Joyce!

1. Do you make an effort to see/hear live music? Last time you went somewhere for the live music? 

We enjoy live music every Sunday at church.

We haven’t made an effort to enjoy live music elsewhere lately except for attending evensong while in Great Britain, Scotland or Ireland and our Church’s Children’s Musicals at Christmas.

We are looking into attending a live performance of The Messiah this year.

2.According to HGTV the colors of the year for 2026 are mostly decided. Top paint companies declare a color of the year, and decorators will incorporate that into their new year home and room designs. Here’s what’s on tap in terms of paint trends for 2026 (check out the link here to see photos)

  • Sherwin Williams-universal khaki (inspired by heavy canvas and outdoor gear)
  • Behr-hidden gem (a confident shade of teal)
  • Valspar-warm eucylyptus (a warm sliver tinted green)
  • Dutch Boy-melodious ivory (a honey tinted beige)
  • Glidden-warm mahogany (a classic brick red)
  • Krylon-matte coffee bean
  • Clark and Kensington -Hazelnut Crunch (warm reddish-brown)
  • Graham and Brown-Divine Damson (cherry red with a subtle violet undertone)
  • Dunn and Edwards-midnight garden (the green that works everywhere) 

First question-did you know there were so many different paint manufacturers?

Yes, I’m married to a former painter and his first job was with his father in a painting business.

Which color on the list most appeals to you in terms of your own decorating style?

Decorating style is not a term that I would use for me or my home. 🙂 The base color in our home is Khaki Shadow with white trim.

Do you have plans to do any painting in your home in the coming year, and if so might you choose a color from this list? 

The only plan is to complete some areas that were started awhile back. Just a little trim here and there.

Now, forget painting walls, which color name appeals to you most? 

Hidden gem is appealing.

3. What’s something in your life you have to do-watch-or participate in that’s about as exciting as ‘watching paint dry’? 

For this one, I’m going with drying my hair.

4 . Tuesday, October 14th is/was National Dessert day…did you/will you celebrate? Tell us how? What’s your absolute favorite dessert. Yes, just one. I know!! 

I would pick roolyete. A traditional nut roll our mom made and we have now duplicated. I like pastries that have a soft chew to them. Here’s the recipe.

5. Perhaps today is the day I will…

Sort through my clothes and purge.

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

Tuesday October 14th was also Charlie Kirk Day. It was a day to wear red in remembrance of this young man who would have been 32 on that day and I was happy to participate.

We also watched the White House ceremony to honor Charlie Kirk’s memory with President Trump awarding him the Medal of Freedom, posthumously.

Stand Like the Brave ~ Hymn

Stand Like the Brave

O Christ­ian, awake! ’tis the Mas­ter’s com­mand;
With hel­met and shield, and a sword in thy hand,
To meet the bold tempt­er, go, fear­less­ly go,
Then stand like the brave, with thy face to the foe.

Refrain

Stand like the brave, stand like the brave,
Stand like the brave, with thy face to the foe.

The cause of thy Mas­ter with vi­gor de­fend;
Be watch­ful, be zea­lous, and fight to the end;
Wherever He leads thee, go, val­iant­ly go,
Then stand like the brave, with thy face to the foe.

Refrain

Press on, nev­er doubt­ing, thy cap­tain is near,
With grace to sup­ply, and with com­fort to cheer;
His love like a stream in the de­sert will flow;
Then stand like the brave, with thy face to the foe.

Refrain

Words: Fanny Crosby, 1886.

All Hail the Power of Jesus’ Name ~ Hymn

All Hail the Power of Jesus’ Name!

All hail the power of Jesus’ name!
Let angels prostrate fall;
Bring forth the royal diadem,
And crown Him Lord of all.
Bring forth the royal diadem,
And crown Him Lord of all.

Let highborn seraphs tune the lyre,
And as they tune it, fall
Before His face who tunes their choir,
And crown Him Lord of all.
Before His face who tunes their choir,
And crown Him Lord of all.

Crown Him, ye morning stars of light,
Who fixed this floating ball;
Now hail the strength of Israel’s might,
And crown Him Lord of all.
Now hail the strength of Israel’s might,
And crown Him Lord of all.

Crown Him, ye martyrs of your God,
Who from His altar call;
Extol the Stem of Jesse’s rod,
And crown Him Lord of all.
Extol the Stem of Jesse’s rod,
And crown Him Lord of all.

Ye seed of Israel’s chosen race,
Ye ransomed from the fall,
Hail Him who saves you by His grace,
And crown Him Lord of all.
Hail Him who saves you by His grace,
And crown Him Lord of all.

Hail Him, ye heirs of David’s line,
Whom David Lord did call,
The God incarnate, Man divine,
And crown Him Lord of all,
The God incarnate, Man divine,
And crown Him Lord of all.

Sinners, whose love can ne’er forget
The wormwood and the gall,
Go spread your trophies at His feet,
And crown Him Lord of all.
Go spread your trophies at His feet,
And crown Him Lord of all.

Let every tribe and every tongue
Before Him prostrate fall
And shout in universal song
The crownèd Lord of all.
And shout in universal song
The crownèd Lord of all.

O that, with yonder sacred throng,
We at His feet may fall,
Join in the everlasting song,
And crown Him Lord of all,
Join in the everlasting song,
And crown Him Lord of all!

Words: Edward Perronet, 1726-1792.

Farewell to April Hodgepodge

Alton to Cotswolds 323

Speaking of time, this ancient clock is from Wells Cathedral in Wells, England.

Wow! The 600th edition of Wednesday Hodgepodge with thanks to Joyce From This Side of the Pond!

My random thought today will be the finale of the A to Z  April challenge. We are on the last day of April and the last letter of the alphabet, but first, the Hodgepodge…

1. My very first edition of The Wednesday Hodgepodge was published on November 10, 2010 (linked here if you’re curious). Tell us something about your life from that era. 

I think my first Hodgepodge with consistency afterwards was in 2017.

This was from my post on November 6th, 2010.

This is our daughter in front of the Bridal shop in Bellevue, Washington where we just purchased her wedding dress. Very sentimental and personal with plenty of emotion attached!

A wedding is afoot at our house but because our daughter is marrying a Marine who will soon be in Active duty we do not know what date we can choose for the event yet. It will be sometime in the next year in the meantime we are preparing what we can because we might have very little notice for the actual event.

Andrew and Katie ended up getting married at the Justice of the Peace in Jacksonville, North Carolina on March 11, 2011. We had their formal wedding ceremony one year later on March 11, 2012 in Seattle.

2. What’s a song you love that relates to time in some way? 

The DC talk version of this song is the one we prefer over the original because of the changes from “Never been a sinner, never sinned, but I have a friend in Jesus” to the more accurate “You know that I’m a sinner, we’ve all sinned, but I have a friend in Jesus.”

3. May is nearly upon us. When did you last need to yell ‘MAY DAY-MAY DAY!!’? 

My MAY DAY-MAY-DAY was on November 5th, 2022 when I realized my husband was having a stroke and I sent off the mayday ‘help me’ call to God, 9-1-1, and our local son here in Colville. The Fire Chief of our district was the first to appear at our door, then the ambulance and then our son (who was a distance away working close to the Canadian border). God knew my May-Day needs well before and helped us all through this experience.

4. How do you feel about food trucks? Is this a dining experience you enjoy?  Do you have a favorite What’s something you’ve ordered from a food truck? 

In years past before a Seattle Sounders Soccer game we would make our way to the taco truck for street tacos. So good.

Nowadays we have a fish truck that shows up in Colville every so often and they have the best Clam Chowder. Delicious.

I am a fan of good food trucks.

5. We’re bidding farewell to April…what are three adjectives you might use to describe the month you’re leaving behind. 

Joyous birthday celebrations for our grandson and son-in-law.

Glorious rejoicing because of our Risen Savior.

Tedious weeds are popping up like wildfire.

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

Z is for Zebras at the Zoo in Dallas a Zillion years ago.

We were visiting our youngest niece and her parents in 2010

A favorite Z song…

Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah

Zip a dee doo-dah, zip a dee ay
My, oh my, what a wonderful day.
Plenty of sunshine headed my way.
Zip a dee doo-dah, zip a dee ay

Mister bluebird on my shoulder
It’s the truth, it’s actual.
Everything is satisfactual.

Zip a dee doo-dah, zip a dee ay
Wonderful feelin’.
Wonderful day.

Lyrics by Ray Gilbert and Allie Wrubel.

From the Postal Museum in Washington D.C. in 2011.

Whew! Thank you to all who came along with me on the A to Z challenge and thank you fellow Hodgepodgers for your visit today.

In May I will be posting a past tea room tea experience or current one each day except on  Wednesdays, Thursdays and Sundays. It is very possible these posts will have to continue into June.

Purple Bliss Hodgepodge

It’s time for Wednesday Hodgepodge and Jo has the questions for us to consider.

1. What’s a lesson you’ve learned from a mistake?  

Don’t judge a book by it’s cover. I’ve made this mistake more than once. I hope I’m learning more and more to get to know a person before I give them a wrong label in my head. Talking to and getting to know someone is a better approach.

2. Do you salt food while you’re cooking or let diners add their own?  What’s a food you think must be salted? Do you like pepper? 

I do season food as I’m cooking. Avocado tastes best to me salted. Yes, I do like pepper, too.

3. What was the last gathering you attended and what did you do there? 

I’m answering these questions on Sunday. We attended church this morning. On this particular Sunday Greg and I were serving by greeting all those who came through the door for the early service. We have other ‘greeter’ responsibilities during the service. Before Sunday School we switch off with the second service greeters and we are free to attend the adult fellowship hour. During the fellowship hour we learned and discussed one of the attributes of God, Everlasting.

4. Your favorite shade of purple?

I enjoy every shade of purple and every purple flower.

What’s your favorite purple flower? 

 

One of my favorites is purple wisteria. The photos above were taken at the Japanese Gardens in Seattle.  Other favorites are lilac, clematis and hydrangeas and of course lavender.

5. Share a favorite spring travel memory. 

In April of 2004 we took our daughter on a trip to England and Scotland for her graduation gift. It was a wonderful trip and a favorite to remember. We traveled to sites with history of her literary favorites like Tolkien, Lewis, Austen, Rowling, and we threw in a little Monty Python, too. We stayed in Cheltenham, Sheffield, York, Edinburgh and London venturing out to take in nearby cities and sites.

A field of daffodils on the grounds of Chatsworth House ( Pride and Prejudice Pemberley)

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Clip clopping with coconuts at Castle Doune with Monty Python.

6. Insert your own random thought here. 

Speaking of purple, we have 3 graduates in our family from the University of Washington, Greg, Katie and Andrew. Primary Purple and gold are the school colors. Little did Katie know in this photo that she’d graduate from the same University as her father and then her husband, too.

Love Divine, All Loves Excelling ~ Hymn

Love Divine, All Loves Excelling

Love di­vine, all loves ex­cel­ling,
Joy of Heav’n to earth come down;
Fix in us thy hum­ble dwell­ing;
All thy faith­ful mer­cies crown!
Jesus, Thou art all com­pas­sion,
Pure un­bound­ed love Thou art;
Visit us with Thy sal­va­tion;
Enter ev­ery trem­bling heart.

Breathe, O breathe Thy lov­ing Spir­it,
Into ev­ery trou­bled breast!
Let us all in Thee in­her­it;
Let us find that se­cond rest.
Take away our bent to sin­ning;
Alpha and Ome­ga be;
End of faith, as its be­gin­ning,
Set our hearts at li­ber­ty.

Come, Al­migh­ty to de­liv­er,
Let us all Thy life re­ceive;
Suddenly re­turn and ne­ver,
Never more Thy tem­ples leave.
Thee we would be al­ways bless­ing,
Serve Thee as Thy hosts above,
Pray and praise Thee with­out ceas­ing,
Glory in Thy per­fect love.

Finish, then, Thy new cre­ation;
Pure and spot­less let us be.
Let us see Thy great sal­va­tion
Perfectly re­stored in Thee;
Changed from glo­ry in­to glo­ry,
Till in Heav’n we take our place,
Till we cast our crowns be­fore Thee,
Lost in won­der, love, and praise.

Words: Charles Wesley, 1747.

Fifty Years and Counting…

Today Dear and I are celebrating the day we got married fifty years ago. We were married on a Friday evening in Southern California. Our 50th anniversary lands on a Friday, too.

Sharing lots of photos from our years together.

Greg and I on stage in England. We are on the right in this photo.

We met at a church parking lot where Greg was singing in a contemporary Christian Band that my best friend auditioned for. I went to the concerts she was singing in with the group and that is how Greg and I met. Later the group needed an alto so I auditioned and joined the group, too. We fell in love while traveling with this group.

Dating, Engagement party and early marriage collage.

Lousy photo from one of my bridal showers with my mom and Greg’s mom.img560

The rehearsal for our wedding ceremony. Our officiant Andrew Semenchuk turned 99 this week!

December – When December’s snows fall fast, marry and your love will last.

Our wedding day…

img568I love this photo of my dear maternal grandmother and me. She was a gem.

img567My maternal grandmother, my mom and me.

img566Our sweet and oldest niece was at our wedding. Her mom and dad were our matron of honor and best man.

My sisters on our wedding day. Kathy, kneeling on the left, also got married in 1974.

img578My paternal grandparents came to the wedding, too. This was not a given and we were pleased that they came.

img576This is Dear’s paternal grandmother and she was not able to travel to the wedding but she visited us in our first apartment.

img570Here we are heading off to our honeymoon.

Our first apartment in West L.A. We were in it for less than a year. The great thing about this apartment was that it was 2 buildings down from a grocery store and easy to get last minute items we needed for a meal.

Our first home with a mortgage in Huntington Beach across the street from my sister Vera and Nick, 1975. Greg tiled the entry.

Early in our marriage with Greg’s side of the family before we had children.

My first pregnancy and our first son, Joshua.

Almost 2 years to the day after Josh was born, our second son, Daniel, was born.

Our boys were born while we lived in our second home in Huntington Beach.

Three generations of Bayles Boys!

1985 in Arizona on a bicycling trip. I was pregnant with Katie.

Our sweet surprise, Katie, was born in 1985.

On our move from California to Washington state we stopped in Yuba City to drop off Greg’s mom Verna who would join us later in our home in Bothell. Aunt Carol supervised our three on the horse.

Our first camping trip after we moved to Washington State with our friends who were a big part of the motivation for our move. Rainier in the background.

The University of Washington years. We were able to get tickets to the Rose Bowl Championship game in 1992.

Josh and Laura’s wedding in 2001

Edinburgh 2006

2008

From 2007-to early 2010 Greg and I walked the shore of Emma Wood State Beach every Saturday morning when we were living in Camarillo.

My birthday in 2009 at Tam O’Shanter in Los Angeles.

My 60th birthday in 2011.

Katie’s wedding in 2012.

England 2013

England in 2014 for our 40th Anniversary

Dan and Jamie 2015

First granddaughter

First Grandson

We’ve walked together as man and wife for 50 years. We lived in Los Angeles in 1974-75, Huntington Beach 1975-1984, and Ventura 1984-1988 in California. We moved to Washington State in 1988 and lived in Bothell 1988-1997, Kirkland 1997-1998, Kenmore 1998-2018 and now Colville since 2018. We lived temporarily in Camarillo, California from 2006-2010 while still owning our home in Kenmore.

I was a file clerk when we got married and then a school teacher until Josh was born. Greg was a painting contractor with his dad when we got married. When our sons were young Greg got a job with an aggregate company which prompted our move to Ventura where he ran heavy equipment in a quarry. Katie was born in Ventura and Greg was encouraged to finish his education and he decided to take some science courses to see if Pharmacy would be a good fit for him.

We moved to Washington State so he could finish his schooling at the University of Washington and then apply to Pharmacy school. While Greg was in school in Seattle I started a cleaning business for homes during the day and a dental and medical office at night. He finished his courses in 1992 but went on to a year of residency at Overlake Hospital in Bellevue before moving into the Biotec industry dispensing medical information on therapies or treatments that the companies he worked for discovered. One of the big names you might be familiar with is Enbrel. After his residency was over I retired from the cleaning business.

I homeschooled Katie for a couple years and when she went back to public school in 7th grade, I substitute taught for a few years.  Greg continued in the Biotec realm until he retired in 2019. We are happily retired in the country in the small town of Colville with Dan, Jamie and our Grandchildren close by. Our ‘Coast’ kids have the freedom to visit us several times a year and we like to visit them, too.

Here we are in Kenmore, Scotland with Josh and Laura giving a nod to Kenmore, Washington where we lived for 20 years.

This post is just scratching the surface of our 50 years of marriage and all the experiences and opportunities that God opened up to us. We were both Born Again Christians when we married and have been in the Sanctification process these past 50 years. Our life with Christ has progressed with some mountain tops and valleys but has always gone forward bit by bit as we choose obedience instead of our self-centered bents. Some of those bents are easier to identify than others. We’ve been members of Bible teaching churches all our years. Evangelical Free church in Huntington Beach, Bible Fellowship Church in Ventura, Sunrise Christian Fellowship in Seattle and Edmonds, Evangelical Free Church Conejo Valley,  Northshore Baptist Church in Kirkland, and now First Baptist Church Colville. We attend and we serve.

This post doesn’t cover any of the friends that God has surrounded us with who have sharpened us like iron sharpens iron. Friends who have helped us grow in the Lord. Friends that were by our side for so many life experiences. Friends that God graciously put in our lives. That will have to be another post.

As my dear old Pop would say we are so thankful to God for all He “did to us” these fifty years! Thank you God for what you did to us” was my pop’s prayer. Thank you, LORD God Almighty for bringing us together in our marriage covenant. You have given us peace and joy through the hard times and good times. You continue to lay your hand upon us and lead us beside still waters.

We already had a wonderful anniversary celebration in Walla Walla with our family of ten but that doesn’t stop us from continuing our celebration today. We are having a small overnight getaway in Idaho to celebrate our actual day. The photo above is our celebration meal at Parallel 47, a restaurant in Hayden, Idaho. The food was so satisfying. After dinner we walked the Christmas lights boardwalk at the Coeur d’Alene Resort.

We trust God for the future of our marriage and thank Him for his lovingkindness and mercy in our individual lives and as husband and wife.

Thank you, Dear Readers, for making it to the end of this long post.

A Significant Hodgepodge

If it’s Wednesday it must be time for the Hodgepodge. Thank you, Joyce for the questions!

1. How did you meet your significant other? If you don’t have a significant other, tell us how you met your best friend. 

We met at a church where this Christian singing group was performing. Greg was in the group and my best friend became a part of the group. I went with my friend to her first performance with the group and met Greg there. Later when they needed to replace an alto in the group, I auditioned and became part of the group. We are on the far right in both of these photos while on tour in England. The sign that got chopped off in the photo above says Jesus is Alive Today. In England we sang in schools during their religious education classes. In the evening we would sing in a church or community center. Our relationship blossomed during our 70’s Christian Rock band tours of England.

Here I am being mobbed for my autograph by young girls at one of the schools we performed at.

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During our tours in England we’d have a holiday week after 3 weeks of singing at least 3 times a day across parts of England. This photo of Greg is from when we were on holiday at the end of our concert series.

2. It’s Department Store Day (October 16)…do you still shop in department stores? If not do you miss that kind of shopping experience? Do you have a favorite department store? Any fun memories of department store shopping when you were a child? 

Living in the country my department store experience is limited to Wal-Mart. I don’t have childhood memories in a department store. When we lived on the other side of the Cascade Mountain Range my favorite department store was Fred Meyer. I suppose Costco is a type of department store or at least it fits the definition. That is a store we always stop at when we travel south to Spokane.

3. Something you’re currently nuts about? 

I love Autumn/Fall. I’m enjoying the change in weather and all the fall color that is showing. I love soup weather.

4. What’s your favorite nut and is there a favorite recipe where this nut is used? 

I enjoy nuts and my favorite nut in recipes is the walnut. Our mom’s Russian Nut Roll (Roolyet) is my favorite.

Our Mom’s Roolyet (Russian Nut Roll)

 

5. On Wednesday we officially reach the ’70 days until Christmas’ mark. Have you purchased any gifts? If you don’t celebrate Christmas then how about Hanukkah presents? 

I have purchased a few things. While in Scotland, I bought a couple of new ornaments for the tree, too.

6. Insert your own random thought here.  

Me and my guy waiting for our charter flight to England in 1973.

My photo sharing site is giving me grief again so it might be a while before I can post more from our travels in Scotland. These kinds of problems are never easy for me to solve. OYE!