Category Archives: Family

To the Right of Middle Hodgepodge

It’s time for Wednesday Hodgepodge where Joyce asks the questions and we try to answer.

This is our middle child, Dan. Dan is Addyson and Jaymison’s daddy.

  1. August 12th is National Middle Child Day…are you a Middle Child? If not where in your family do you fall in terms of birth order? Do you hold true to the typical characteristics of oldest – middle- youngest – only child? Elaborate.

I was the youngest of 4 siblings until I was 7 and then our parents had 4 more children with #’s 7 and 8 being twins. I was very self-centered and manipulative. I worked hard at getting my way. There were lots of things I did that my older siblings didn’t do. My two older sisters were model students who got straight A’s. One of the teachers that they both had commented to me once in class that I wasn’t like my sisters. That comment didn’t sit well with me. I think my reply was something to the effect that I was my own person.

2. Tell us about a time you felt like (or you actually were) in the middle of nowhere.

On our drives to Southern California from the State of Washington there is a stretch of Interstate 5 south of Sacramento and north of Bakersfield that is so desolate and barren that you feel like you are in the middle of nowhere.

3. What’s something you’re smack in the middle of currently?

Dear is in the middle of building his shop. I will be happy when the roof is completely done. He’s 3/4 done with it. Once that is done things should move easier.

4. What’s a food you love to eat that has something delicious in the middle?

There are so many things we enjoy with delicious things in the middle. Today I will choose a burrito.

5. Share a memory from your middle school days, or junior high if that’s what your school dubbed kids somewhere between grades 6-8.

We had Elementary, Junior High and High School. Our Junior high was 7th – 9th grade. In fall of 8th grade we were in Science class when our teacher turned the TV on for us to see the news that President Kennedy had been shot in Dallas. We were all shocked. There were lots of emotions from students and teachers. It’s a day I’ll never forget. Here’s a photo of our beautiful Montebello Junior High. Sadly it has since been demolished.

6. Insert your random thought here.

Here’s a photo of our new little brother who took my place as the youngest in the family in 1958! I’m the one with two front teeth missing.

Thank you for taking the time to stop by and leaving a comment.

California Visitors

We have had some action packed days here at our Country Bungalow. I only took a few of these photos. Thank you to my niece and daughter-in-law for the rest.

Addy really enjoyed her “medium sized” 2nd cousin.

Time to enjoy the flowers and our niece’s family from California.

She loves her Daddy’s cousin, who is Addy’s 1st cousin once removed.

The whole crew for the 2nd dinner at our Country Bungalow.

Addy and Avery.

We changed venues on Friday night and met up at Dan and Jamie’s home. Reyna had lots of love from Avery.

It took 2 days but Ryan finally won Jaymison over and was able to hold him without JJ crying.

The girls enjoyed building towers and JJ enjoyed demolishing the tower!

Yum, whipped cream!

A selfie after picking raspberries in the garden and before the mosquitoes ate them up!

Good food, good fellowship, lots of laughter.

Our family visitors left for the Coast on Saturday morning at 10:00 am with a stop in Oroville on the way to visit friends. They ended up at our Coast Kids’ home sometime on Saturday evening. On Sunday our family on the Coast gathered to enjoy time together with Ryan, Michelle, Jack and Avery. We got a text with this great photo attached.

My sister Lana and her husband, Steve. Michelle, Ryan, Jack and Avery. Our kids, Andrew, Katie, Laura and Josh.

I can guarantee there was lots of good food, laughter and fellowship on the “Coast”, too.

We had some good sunshine today and after church because Dear and our son Dan were starting on the roof of the shop I decided to mow the back acres to keep an eye on them while they were up on ladders. I’ll take my sabbath rest tomorrow. I had nursery duty during church today and it was so weird to have to have a mask on and have disposable gloves on, too. Poor babes…wonder what they were thinking.

Hope you all have a good week ahead.

Dwell

Prayer for Spiritual Strength

14 For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, 15 from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, 16 that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being, 17 so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love, 18 may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, 19 and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.

20 Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, 21 to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen.

From Paul in Ephesians to Spurgeon good prayers to pray and to dwell on and in.

We have been enjoying our niece, nephew and grand nephew and grand niece here and are busy from morning until night. No time for the computer. I will catch up hopefully on Saturday.

This dessert keeps making the rounds.

Determination or…

…the many faces of mastering the marker pen lid.

I should have videoed this series because this little guys determination to take the lids off the pens was hilarious. He would yell when he finally gave up and wanted one of us to get the lid off for him.

Auntie Katie was a great helper.

Prayer for our sons and grandson and other young men in our lives from the third chapter of Proverbs:

The Rewards of Wisdom

1 My son, do not forget my teaching,
But let your heart keep my commandments;
2 For length of days and years of life
And peace they will add to you.
3 Do not let kindness and truth leave you;
Bind them around your neck,
Write them on the tablet of your heart.
4 So you will find favor and good repute
In the sight of God and man.
5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart
And do not lean on your own understanding.
6 In all your ways acknowledge Him,
And He will make your paths straight.
7 Do not be wise in your own eyes;
Fear the Lord and turn away from evil.
8 It will be healing to your body
And refreshment to your bones.
9 Honor the Lord from your wealth
And from the first of all your produce;
10 So your barns will be filled with plenty
And your vats will overflow with new wine.
11 My son, do not reject the discipline of the Lord
Or loathe His reproof,
12 For whom the Lord loves He reproves,
Even as a father corrects the son in whom he delights.

13 How blessed is the man who finds wisdom
And the man who gains understanding.
14 For her profit is better than the profit of silver
And her gain better than fine gold.
15 She is more precious than jewels;
And nothing you desire compares with her.
16 Long life is in her right hand;
In her left hand are riches and honor.
17 Her ways are pleasant ways
And all her paths are peace.
18 She is a tree of life to those who take hold of her,
And happy are all who hold her fast.
19 The Lord by wisdom founded the earth,
By understanding He established the heavens.
20 By His knowledge the deeps were broken up
And the skies drip with dew.
21 My son, let them not vanish from your sight;
Keep sound wisdom and discretion,
22 So they will be life to your soul
And adornment to your neck.
23 Then you will walk in your way securely
And your foot will not stumble.
24 When you lie down, you will not be afraid;
When you lie down, your sleep will be sweet.
25 Do not be afraid of sudden fear
Nor of the onslaught of the wicked when it comes;
26 For the Lord will be your confidence
And will keep your foot from being caught.

Lumberjack Take Two!

For the summer lumberjack redo party the sleeves were cut off the flannel shirts. Jaymison Joshua turned one on April 16th right in the middle of COVID-19’s isolation restrictions. On Sunday since the family were all together in Colville a party redo was scheduled for JJ. We had Addy’s on the day before. For Addy’s party we were served lunch and for JJ’s party we were served brunch.

Jaymison warms up slowly to people he doesn’t see often so Katie and Andrew had their work cut out for them to win him over.

Uncle Joshie and Auntie Lolo have been able to travel more and spend enough time with Jaymison so he is more comfortable with them.

Granny Great, Mommy, JJ, and Granny, four generations on Jamie’s side of the family.

Great Uncle Scott and Aunt Rhonda have not been able to be around enough for JJ to be on his best behavior with them. We called in the stabilizer…mommy for the next photo.

Baba and Gramps enjoy seeing our little lumberjack as much as possible. It’s been so good to live in the same town!

Jaymison loves music, singing and dancing so he was very engaged and moving back and forth while we all sang Happy Birthday to him!

For Jaymison’s re-do party his parents served brunch with pancakes, waffles, bacon, little smokies, and his Granny and Addy made a pull apart Monkey Bread for his birthday cake.

Jaymison loves anything with long handles like brooms and mops so Gramps and Baba bought him some garden tools and he’s enjoyed them.

While he wasn’t using them this boat crew used them to row row row their boat and we all joined in with a round in song. Fun!

The boat crew could pretend while JJ used his gifts elsewhere.

Jaymison Joshua and Joshua enjoying chillin on the porch swing.

It was such a full weekend enjoying these celebrations and time with loved ones.

We have a 4th of July event with Jamie’s family that we are looking forward to. What are your plans for the 4th?

 

Daniel the Tiger, Take 2

Be forewarned that there is a photo overload in this post. Not apologizing just forewarning.

This time around Addy’s aunties and uncles could attend her party redo!

And we could all be close and personal with hugs galore.

Addy helped to decorate her second birthday cake. I think she helped with her first cake, too.

Addy’s re-do party landed on Dan and Jamie’s 5th Anniversary, June 27th, 2020.

Addy’s friend was able to attend her party re-do. The party was in Addy’s front yard which looks like a park.

Addy’s Granny and Granny Great made this 4 generation party great!

Addy is surrounded by those who love her and those she loves, too, like…

…Great Uncle Scott and Rhonda.

Little brother had a blast as long as he was in the arms of those he knows best.

Expressions galore…

For the most part there was good social distancing.

After a while more chairs were moved to shady spots.

We remembered the party game after all the guests left.

Our daughter in law was very creative with all the Daniel the Tiger party accessories. The Daniel the Tiger Trolley has given Addy and Jaymison lots of great creative play opportunities.

Lots of good Daniel the Tiger themed food for us to enjoy.

All in all our birthday girl was happy and pleased with all the festivities before, during and after her party.

We all were so happy to finally be together for the proper celebration of your 3rd birthday dear Addyson May! You are loved by so many and cared for in wonderful ways by your mommy, daddy, brother and family. Baba and Gramps love you dearly.

This was one full Saturday and our Sunday would be the re-do of Jaymison’s 1st birthday. It was a party animal weekend. Next up will be the photo overload of our Lumberjack Jaymison’s party part 2!

Catching My Breath…

We’ve enjoyed some nonstop fun since Friday afternoon and I’ll need to catch my breath before I can share all the activity. So good to have our little family reunited for the first time since Christmas.

(Not in any particular order for this post)

Seeing Auntie Katie and Uncle Andrew for the first time in 6 months.

Enjoying a Baba and JJ tradition of singing Row, Row, Row Your Boat with hand motions.

Three generations.

We had a mix of weather this weekend, cloudy, wet, bright, dark, sunny, showers, thunder, warm, and dry. So far we are lower in Yellow Jacket and Wasp swarms and higher in mosquitoes.

Hopefully I can come around and see what you’ve been up to soon.

Coast Family Reunited

What a treat to enjoy time at Josh and Laura’s home on the west side of the Cascades. It had been 6 months since we visited on the “Coast”.

My sister and her husband joined us on Saturday afternoon for a meal and early Father’s Day celebration for Dear.

We had good walks, good talks, watched an online church service together, ate a lot of good food and played cards. Josh and Dear enjoyed shopping at Cabella’s and another favorite store of theirs. The Girls were able to shop at Business Costco and Hobby Lobby.

Laura found the recipe for this cake and she and Katie baked it on Saturday. Cake recipe coming later this week.

Our kids on the East Side sent us a photo from their walk, too.

We made it home safe and sound from the Coast on Monday taking a new route home. I’ll be catching up with blogs soon. Lots of scenes from the road to share. Hope you are all well.

Road Tripping

Be back soon to visiting your blogs. Enjoying quality time with our family on the west side of the Cascade Mountain Range. This side of the mountains is still in Stage Two of the COVID-19 re-entry guidelines. Our town in the northeastern corner of Washington State is in Stage 3. Uploading photos has been so wonderful here in broadband dream land. See you soon!

Photo taken somewhere along highway two in Central Washington heading east towards the Cascade Mountain Range.

Some Gave All ~Memorial Day Hodgpodge

1. The US of A celebrated Memorial Day this past Monday. Does your family have any military ties? If so, tell us about them.

We do not have any family member who died in combat but we do have Veterans. Our daughter has educated us on the difference between Memorial Day and Veteran’s Day. Memorial Day is not a day to honor anyone who has served but it is for military members who have died in combat. Our son in law is a non-active Marine who served two tours of duty in Afghanistan. He saw some of his Marine buddies die. The collage above shows Marines who were serving the same time as Andrew and who died while serving. These are those who we honor on Memorial Day. My father in law served in World War II. My brother in law served in Viet Nam and it took a toll on his life. My father-in-law and brother-in-law are both buried at the same cemetery, Riverside National Cemetery in California. They were buried 30 years apart. 

2. Cole slaw, potato salad, baked beans, potato chips, mac and cheese, macaroni salad…your favorite BBQ side? How many of these do you make from scratch vs. buying from the deli?

Does opening up a can or a box qualify as scratch? 🙂 I enjoy potato salad from scratch but I’ll go for Coleslaw from the deli. I have never made potato chips. I’ve doctored up a can of beans. 

3.  I enjoyed asking this question back when the Hodgepodge was a regular thing…Lake Superior State University posts a list each year of words they think should be banished from the Queen’s English for misuse, overuse, and/or general uselessness. The 2020 list includes-quid pro quo, artisanal, curated, influencer, literally, I mean, living my best life, mouthful (word used by foodies to describe texture of food in their mouth), chirp (basically an insult, you can read more on the website), jelly (short for jealous), totes (short for totally), vibe, and OK Boomer (internet response from millenial to older generation).

Of the words/phrases listed which would you most like to see ‘banned’?

Well I’m happy to say I haven’t heard most of these. Something about Living my best life doesn’t ring true to me. It seems like something that comes out of the mouth of health and wealth false teachers/charlatans.

4. I’m sure next year’s list will be filled with words springing out of this weird season we’re all in currently. What word or phrase associated with the Corona would you be happy to hear less often?

“Social Distancing” “Self Quarantine”

5.  The month of May wraps up in just a few days. Bid her adieu in ten words or less.

May, thank you for opening welcome doors back to normal. 

6. Insert your own random thought here.

Here in Northeastern Washington where the population is low and the COVID-19 numbers are low, too, we have some normalcy returning. Dear and I went to a local eatery on Sunday for a burger and it felt as if things were normal in the establishment except for a table here and there that they had a sign on that said “Governor’s Table”. Made us chuckle. Something that is not normal yet is my COVID-19 hair. Oye and ouch. My mop needs a lot of help!

Photo from Mother’s Day with some gifts from our kids.

Thank you to Joyce for asking the questions and managing Hodgepodge.