Category Archives: Family

Friday Snow Day

On Friday Katie, Laura and Addy built snowmen while JJ napped. They went to the garden to dig up the carrots for the noses!

Daniel put on the snow plow attachment and plowed the mile long drive for our travels to and from their home at the top of their mountain.

Our kids are more than halfway on their journey home expecting arrival before dark. I’ll have a few photo loaded posts to memorialize our 4th Annual Hunting Weekend.

The guys had a new experience this year hunting in the snow…

Last year Josh got his buck and this year it was Dan.

Looking forward to seeing what been going on with your blogs these past few days. I’m way behind…

Catch Up Day

On Friday the twenty third of October we got enough snow for Laura, Katie and Addy to build a couple snowmen while Jaymison napped.

At home the morning after I took this shot of our backyard to document the fact that we got closer to 6 inches instead of the 4-1/2 inches predicted.

A lot has melted already and soon all the white layers will be gone till the next snowfall. Our kids will be on the road heading back West later this morning or early afternoon. It’s a catch up day for me. Hope all is well where you are…

Departure and Arrivals

After being in Washington state for 3 full weeks it was time to put the Washington State sticker on Wholly Rollin’s travel map.

Thursday morning the 22nd of October was departure day for this dear family and their rig.

Thursday was a beautiful Fall day but our grass area under the truck tires was soggy and soft and the back wheels of the truck were spinning in the mud. Oye.

Dear came to the rescue with his 4 wheel drive truck and a heavy duty chain.

Success!

The truck and rig were free to continue on the Wholly Rollin adventure on to Kennewick, Washington and then into Oregon.

It was a privilege to enjoy my brother’s family for an extended period of time.

Until we meet again may God continue to direct your paths and bless your journey.

On this same morning Josh and Laura departed from the west side of the Cascades on their journey to Colville for our annual Hunting weekend, a 5-1/2 hour trip. Little did any of us know that Providence would allow an intersection of our eastward travelers with our westward departed travelers! On their way on I-90 Wholly Rollin pulled off at the Sprague Rest Area just as Josh and Laura were passing Ritzville which is 20 miles west of Sprague. Leonard and Mandy decided to text Josh and Laura to see where they were on their journey and to both traveling groups delight they were able to meet up at the Sprague Rest Area.

A photo op some conversation and then both groups hit the road again for their final destinations.

So long, farewell, auf Wiedersehen, goodbye!

Josh and Laura arrived to our place a little before four and these two couldn’t be happier to see their Uncle and Auntie. And then at 6:30 pm Uncle Andrew and Auntie Katie arrived and there was more excitement. We are anticipating a full weekend of fun and fellowship.

As I type on this Friday morning the snow is gently falling here in Colville. This was a surprise forecast this week and it will make hunting and family photo taking a little more interesting than usual. Our hunting crew were up on the mountain by six thirty AM this Friday morning.

 

I took the above photo yesterday in the morning.

And here’s the view this morning Friday October 23rd!

Happy Friday everyone!

Corn Maze 2020

On Sunday after church and lunch we decided the Corn Maze would be a fun adventure with my brother and his kids. Their dear mom was on an adventure of her own for a couple days.

This is not an easy maze and we were scratching our heads for a while until we finally figured out the map.

There were 8 markers and strange but true we ended up finding #8 first and worked our way backwards with some zig zags thrown in.

Me and my brother 2020!

I’m adding this quote from part of the devotional Drawing Near by John MacArthur: Living a Joyous Life…

“God’s Word is a lamp to your feet and a light to your path (Psalm 119:105). It guides you through the difficult mazes of life and gives your life eternal significance. Don’t live simply for your own pleasures. Your life has a high and holy purpose, and each day can be filled with joy as you see that purpose unfold.”

Yesterday the concrete guys showed up bright and early and the first cement mixer arrived at 7:45 AM. What a busy day. The Concrete is setting and we even managed to get some handprints in, too. Photos to follow soon. Have a great Tuesday!

Little Pend Oreille National Wildlife Refuge

Thursday afternoon on the road to Little Pend Oreille we saw a field full of deer and fawns. These are just a few of the number. It was unusual enough that we stopped the car to take some photos.

 Pend Oreille (pond oh-RAY).

The French name comes from fur trappers and it means “hangs from ears.” That comes from the round shell earring worn by male and female Pend d’Oreille/Kalispel tribe members.

We stopped at the Refuge Headquarters and had a little walk down to the river…

The water was icy!

My youngest brother’s family, Leonard, Mandy, Hope and Andrew.

Flying by the seat of our pants we decided to take the auto tour and see where it would lead us.

We didn’t spot any beavers.

McDowell Lake was impressive and we were treated to 2 bald eagles flying over the lake.

It was a nice loop through the refuge with places to stop along the way. Two Eagles, a squirrel, a deer, and some Canadian Geese were the only critters we spied this time around.

It was a beautiful afternoon for a drive and we finished off the day with dinner at our Colville kids’ home.

Today is a busy day at our Country Bungalow. Addy and JJ are arriving with their dad in the morning while their momma holds a canning class for some friends. Special tour planned in the afternoon and then dinner here with a Greek style Leg of Lamb off the Traeger. Life is rich…

Friday Finale

While I was back in Colville recuperating from my solo drive home from the “Coast” it was Russian cooking day in Bothell. (October 9th, 2020)

The gals had fun cooking up a big pot of Borsch and making Blintzes in sister Lana’s kitchen.

Later in the evening the crew gathered for this classic Russian meal at Steve and Lana’s.

The night before was Italian night at Josh and Laura’s and these family shots were taken.

The oldest in our family and the youngest, twins.

Our Father’s dying wish…“Stay together, love each other.”

Sweet Hodgepodge

Sweet Southern livin Jo has come up with questions for Wednesday Hodgepodge.
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1. Let’s start things off right…Wednesday is National Dessert Day. What are we having? How often do you  make/serve dessert? Store bought or from scratch?
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We can have my signature Creamy Cheesecake, pictured above…
or a family favorite; Peanut Butter/Butterscotch Rice Krispy bars
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or in the cake realm; Another family favorite, Applesauce Spice Cake.
We added a new favorite in 2020, Strawberry Ice Cream Cake.
Lately I only make a dessert when we are having company. I made this Ice Cream Cake yesterday for dessert after our Raclette meal that we introduced to my brother’s family.
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I like scratch desserts but am not opposed to store bought. In fact see question #3 for something I always buy instead of bake.
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2. Slow as molasses, icing on the cake, that’s the way the cookie crumbles, have your cake and eat it too, half-baked idea, that takes the cake…which phrase might be applied to something in your life in recent days? Explain.
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I’m going with icing on the cake. Since my brother’s family (originally from Texas) landed in the Pacific Northwest on their RV journeys around the USA some other members of our family gathered here, too, and we were able to have a mini family reunion of sorts.

My sister Kathy sitting to my left is now our matriarch. Four out of 8 siblings plus two spouses and eleven cousins rounded out the group for a few days of food and fun.

3. Something that’s ‘easy as pie’ for you to do?

Sticking with the pie theme here I’m confessing that making pie is not in my wheelhouse. It is not something easy for me and I choose to avoid it by buying good quality pies in the frozen section of the grocery store and popping them in my oven! So ‘easy as pie’ is not a phrase that pertains to me.

4. Are you someone who likes to ‘sugarcoat’ news you think might not be well received, or are you more of a tell it like it is and let the chips fall where they may? Do you like to receive your news the same way you give it?

Please don’t sugar coat it. Get it out now and let me know what’s up! I’m a tell it like it is person. Don’t beat around the bush, either.

5. Something you did recently that made you feel like a ‘smart cookie’?

Driving for over 6 hours by myself from Bothell to Colville with stops at the Home Depot and Costco in Spokane. I was smart to bring a book on CD to listen to. That makes the hours go by quicker for me and keeps me awake. For this trip I listened to “The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe read by Michael York, delightful.

6. Insert your own random thought here.

 

Looking forward to our Western Larches (Tamarack) to turn golden.

October is a busy busy month here at Our Country Bungalow. Still ahead is our annual family hunting weekend and this year we are throwing in our first professional family photo shoot. It’s been fun coming up with a clothing theme so we look a bit coordinated. For the majority of the days in October all of our guestrooms are full to the brim.

Market Day

On Tuesday some of the crew had a shopping day in Woodinville and then we re-grouped with a couple carloads going downtown on the way to deliver Melissa to the airport. She had to fly home on Tuesday for work responsibilities.

My sister Kathy and I stayed behind. We picked up Katie who was done with her workday and enjoyed lunch together at La Corona our favorite Mexican joint on the west side of the Cascades. Sadly because of COVID our favorite waitress only gets 3 days of work and Tuesday was not her day. After lunch we shopped for some dinner items and headed back to Josh and Laura’s to relax before we started cooking dinner. Taco night with pies for dessert.

A very random shot of the clean up after dinner.

On Tuesday night I was feeling under the weather so I made the decision to stay away from the rest of the family gatherings on Wednesday and planned to drive back home on Thursday morning instead of Friday. Even though I didn’t get the chance to see Liliana at La Corona on Tuesday I was able to see her on Wednesday and it was good to get caught up with her and the owner of La Corona. It’s not an easy time for restaurant owners and their waitstaff.

It was good to see Lily!

Wednesday was pumpkin patch day for the rest of the crew.

Are you going to a Pumpkin Patch this year and do you have a Corn Maze near you?

Back in Colville we had our first good frost and this week is bringing more freezing temps so we’ve disconnected all our hoses, closed the crawl space vents, and rolled up the patio cover cloth. On a dry day I’ll be clearing out all the beds and our burn pile will be stacked and ready for the burn ban to be lifted.

Happy Thanksgiving Day to our Canadian neighbors and Happy Columbus Day here in the USA!

Over the Columbia and Through the Cascades…

…to fa-mi-lies homes we go.

We arrived at sister Lana’s and BIL Steve’s house about 5:30 in the afternoon on Monday the 5th of October where dinner would be delivered by the family crew staying at our son Josh and DIL Laura’s.  My sister Kathy’s family was staying at Josh and Laura’s home. My brother Leonard’s family would be staying at Steve and Lana’s for their time on that side of the mountains. I would be staying with our daughter Katie and her hubby Andrew.

Our crew that drove the 400 miles brought a special cabbage salsa our Daughter in law Jamie made for our meal together. We all enjoyed it with chips as an appetizer. Sadly our Colville kids could not make the trip this time around. Addy was disappointed that I would be seeing Auntie LoLo but she could not. Everyone found a spot to sit and enjoy their chili, cornbread, honey butter, and fruit salad.

This was the beginning of several days packed with activities, meals together and many good conversations.

Family on the Trail

I’m posting some of our gatherings in order of happenings here for the sake of history.

Before we headed to meet up with extended family on the Westside of the mountains we had some good times together in our neck of the woods with my brother’s family who are Wholly Rollin around the USA. On Saturday the 3rd of October we enjoyed breakfast together and after breakfast we hit the Rotary Trail to get some exercise.

We were still experiencing smoky skies this past weekend and the beginning of the week.

Jaymison warmed up to my brother in record time for him.

After naps on Saturday everyone gathered at our place again for dinner.

On Sunday we enjoyed dinner at Dan and Jamie’s and had a tour of their garden.

On Monday morning the kids had their home schooling (History Lesson outside) before we hit the road to the Western side of the Cascades to meet up with more family.

My brother’s family is still on the West side of the Cascades and I’m back home on the Eastside. Hope to catch up with your blogs soon.