handcrafted goodies

some cards i made before Christmas arrived. i think they turned out pretty good





this is one i made for my friend's b-day.

back to bloggyland

we are winding up our whirlwind trip back home to ID from WA. we had a great time seeing family, celebrating Christmas, fellowshipping, eating, laughing, eating, talking, eating, playing games .... did i mention eating? we did alot of that.

so this morning we headed home. the van was packed to the gills with everything we brought minus the gifts for everyone. somehow it expanded somewhere between the 21st and the 29th. who knew?

we decided to drive down towards oregon and cut over. that way we could avoid the pass over the WA mtns. all week long it had been snowing and they were having horrible accidents, slowdowns and general all around messes. i thot it'd be better to avoid the scene.

of course, going south first instead of east added at least 2-3 hours to our already long commute home. then add on a few extra precious minutes winding around portland aimlessly, well maybe not aimlessly, we were looking for the highway that headed east. somehow i missed the exit! who me? yes, i've been known to do that ... sigh. but somehow we got on the right highway and continued on.

when we reached pendleton, the gateway to the blue mtns we had about an hour left of daylight. just enough time to get over before dusk and the ice descended onto the roadway home.

going up the mtns was fine. not great, but not bad. it was still light, the semi's were driving slowly and the roads hadn't iced over yet. so far so good ... but then as we approached the summit, the roads showed signs of recent snow. the spit of rain that had started soon became a constant drizzle of icy waterdrops. up and up we went ... the cars soon became a caravan in the one lane that wasn't too snowy or icy. there were no smarty=pants drivers passing on the left, spraying snow and dirt all over my windshield ....

unfortunately, the semi that was the leader of the caravan drove slower as the roads got worse. finally a suburu outback broke ranks and passed everyone on the left. then another car did it, and another ... for awhile, the roads were able to handle the traffic and those of us in the original right hand lane were fine, but then as the snow began to fall in earnest, my knuckles gripped the steering wheel a little bit tighter ... soon the cd player was turned off so i could concentrate on my driving .... by the time we were able to get off the highway and stop at the city of la grande oregon, i was uttering those words: "this is the LAST time i drive over the mtns in winter again!"

we found a motel, we checked in, we unpacked, we collapsed! ahhhh ....

Happy Birthday to Me

since its my special day, hubby got first born son off to school and let me sleep in--late!!! what a treat!! i absolutely LOVE sleeping in, waking up slowly, lazing in bed .... ahhhh, what a life!

today hubby is taking me out to lunch, i'm getting my weekly massage from hubby (there are a few perks being married to a massage therapist), and tonite we'll do our own Christmas celebration before leaving tomorrow.

since i'll be with family and friends for the next 10 days i will probably not have alot of time (or desire!) to blog, so if you don't see me here, just know we are having a grand time fellowshipping with our loved ones.

love to all, and Merry Christmas & Happy New Year!

monday, monday

get ready for a mishmash of thots. sorry that's alli have to offer today.

Gifts: got 99% of my shopping done! woo hoo!!! hubby needs me to take him shopping on wed. got some wrapping done last nite too. i'm ahead of the game.

Travel: on the to-do list---PACK! i like to take 2-3 days to pack so i don't forget anything. probably the only time i don't make a list. we leave on thurs.

Meals: use up the perishables this week. it will probably be alot of creative meals this week.

House: a disaster after the weekend, which is normal. so lots of sprucing up and cleaning before we leave. i hate coming home to a messy home.

Laundry: oh ya! enough said.

Weather: snow and rain in the forecast. praying for dry passes that i have to drive over.

Thankful Thursday

today i'm dedicating my blog to my mom. here are a few pics and a few thots of how i'm thankful for her.



here she is with her precious cat, tawny.




joe and grandma at the falls.


i'm thankful that my mom raised me to love the Lord and follow Him. she not only taught me with words, but showed me by her example of godly living. i saw her reading her bible, praying in her bedroom, i heard her singing to the Lord even tho she never thot she had that great of a voice. i saw her serving her family and her n'bors and her church. she reached out to the less fortunate and brought home all kinds of interesting people she met.

my mom loved to read and instilled in me a love for books and words. she read to me and helped me learn to read for myself. she encouraged me by taking me on weekly library runs to fill my shelves with wonderful books to read.

my mom also loved to play tennis and to take long walks. when the family went outdoors she joined in too. she would get her hands in the dirt and enjoyed gardening in our yard. of course, she left lots of weeding for us girls--thanks mom!

i'm thankful that as i grew up, our relationship grew as well. as adults we are not just mother and daughter, but friends. we enjoy one another's company. we talk on the phone, we email, and when we are together we laugh and hug and spend lots of time at starbucks.

i'm looking forward to going home for Christmas and spending time with this wonderful woman i call mom.

i finished daisy's winter coat

i finally finished daisy's fleece winter coat. after these pics were taken i added some more velcro so it would be a little tighter. it was pretty loose in this shot.

isnt' it cute?

Winter Wonderland

our first real snow came this weekend, with more that came today. we have about 2 inches now and if it stays as cold as they say, we may have some slick ice on the roads tonite and tomorrow.

here are some photos i took.



our porch




hubby sweeping the walkway









these are our n'bors houses, aren't they great?

the Father's Arms

this is your monday seedstory from my archives. my mom is still battling cancer, so pray for her if you think of it.


our daisy is a bit of a scaredy cat. a couple weeks ago she heard something in the middle of the night and barked her head off. she sleeps downstairs by herself, so when she gets scared she doesn't have anyone to run to.

last nite, i heard a big ol truck making a racket driving down the road. it might have been a fire engine .... anyway, daisy heard it too. but instead of barking, she found a slight opening in the door to our room and tiptoed in. she came to my side of the bed and gently put her paws up on the bed. i could tell she was asking if she could come up. so what's a mom to do when one of her family is wanting to be comforted? i let her come up. she immediately sought out my arms and cuddled as close as she could. i wrapped my arm around her and she settled down and went to sleep.

as i was laying in bed, pondering daisy's actions, it occured to me that dont' we do the same when we are faced with a scary situation. we look for comfort and warm arms to hold us. i found out last week that my mom had a suspicious looking mammogram. they have scheduled a biopsy for later this week. we talked for a bit and she assured me that she is trusting the Lord whatever the outcome. she has sought out the comfort of the Father's arms.

i marvel at my mom's peace in the face of another health scare. and yet, i know that it isn't of her own strength, but the Lord working in and thru her. she has followed Him all her life and knows Him as her Father. she is a reminder and a role model for me when troubles come into my own life. i can run to the things of the world for comfort, or i can run to the Father's arms. they are always open to recieve his children. like daisy, i can sleep peacefully while hidden in the arms of my Father.

Psalms 91 Those who live in the shelter of the Most High will find rest in the shadow of the Almighty. This I declare about the Lord: He alone is my refuge, my place of safety; he is my God, and I trust him. For he will rescue you from every trap and protect you from deadly disease. He will cover you with his feathers. He will shelter you with his wings. His faithful promises are your armor and protection.

Postscript: August 27th

the results of my mom's biopsy showed 2 cancerous tumors. so now she and the ones who love her get to lean into the Father's arms even more. while we know her ultimate destination is assured, its not always fun to go thru the journey. i am praying for many more healthy years with her, but we are not assured even one more day on this planet.

i thank you for your prayers in advance for my mom and for our family as we walk thru this with her.

reminded again how much i need to rest in the Father's arms, gail

am i a scrooge?

i haven't put up any Christmas decorations. after thanksgiving, i told myself i could take a week or so and recover from the delicious turkey and other scrumptious yummies. plus our first born son had his b-day the day before so we were recovering from his festivities as well.

during this past 10 days tho, i haven't been in a christmas-y mood. i've seen alot of Christmas joy on other blogs and it delights my heart, but i haven't wanted to participate. which is totally unlike me! Christmas is my fav time of year. but i'm still battling the depression that's been lurking under the covers of my life. so while i deal with that, i've given myself permission to not do all the Christmas stuff we (i) usually do. and you know what? it is sooooooooooooo FREE-ING!!! i don't feel the heavy burden to do a "martha stewart" holiday this year. i have no plans for baking a multitude of goodies, i have 3 snowmen i may put up somewhere, i dug out my Christmas cd's and that's enough for me. we've been watching Christmas specials on tv, and i've been enjoying the decorations when we go out and about, but i have no desire to spend time, energy and perhaps money to make my place a showpiece for the 3 of us.

we aren't having anyone over this year and we are going back home for the holidays. so we wont' be here to open gifts under a tree so we don't even have a tree up. my son has special needs and is totatlly fine with this, my husband is vision impaired and doesn't see alot anyway so hasn't mentioned the lack of decorations, and i'm fine with it too. i'm not saying that i will do this every year, but for this year it's OK. it feels weird. but it feels like a load has been lifted too.

with the new found time and energy, i am sewing up little gifties for friends and family to take with us on our trip. i am enjoying the calm bits of time i can carve out in front of my sewing machine. i am not frantic with anxiety wondering if i'm going to get everything done. it is relaxing at my house as i'm not stressing out my husband with my long to-do list.

most of all i'm really glad that this year, our Christmas will be all aboutcelebrating Christ's birth with family and friends we will see, visit, and fellowship with while we are back in WA. a simple holiday celebrating the real reason for the season with loved ones. and if that makes me a scrooge, the so be it! Merry Christmas!

Pics from My Archive

since i have no original thots today i'm stealing this idea from alanna over at An Undeserved Life.



my fav pic of my boys.



don't ya just love seeing a boy enjoy his favorite meal?



a cute pic of his new haircut



joe and dad playing on a balmy winter day



last winter. we have no snow here yet, i keep hoping!



joe at his most gleeful self. he is so fun to have around.

sick day # 2

the school called yesterday morning. so i went and picked up joe and brought him home. he has a nasty deep cough and a runny nose. he was lethargic until about 5pm. today he woke up with the same symptoms. sigh ...

why does my life stand still when there's a sick child at home? i'm barely keeping up with the laundry, dishes, and putting healthy meals on the table. every thing else is on hold while the man-child is snuggling under the covers watching cartoons.

so until the man-child is on the mend and back at school, the Christmas shoppe, the writing nook, the blogger stuff will all be on hold.

hope all your family members are healthy this day!

the car wash

here's another seedstory for your monday morning. as i was looking over which one to publish, i chose this one for myself as well as for you, dear reader. my mom is in the middle of fighting breast cancer. she has just started radiation, but has a bad infection that won't go away. that is not good. but God is good, and i need to remind myself each moment that He is sovereign and is in control of the outcome in my mom's life. i have a little saying in my kitchen that reminds me that "God is in control" as i remember that truth, i can pray in perfect peace for my mom and her situation.

we have been saying we need to get the car washed ever since we got home from vacation. finally, this morning we had a moment to do so. daisy, our jack russell was with us. she is still a puppy and we have only had her a little over a month. this was her first trip thru the car wash with us.

daisy is a needy dog. she was found wandering around home depot by my girlfriend and tho we love her dearly, she is a bit high strung. even when we are not going thru a car wash she wants to be right next to us or even on our laps. she doesn't seem to understand that a dog her size on a driver's lap just isn't going to happen.

the workers started to soap up the windshield and soon they were spraying all the windows. daisy wasn't sure what to make of all the water and noise. she crowded close to me and tried to get on my lap. instead, michael scooped her up into his arms and held her tight. she nestled into his arms, trembling as the big machines started to swish the cloth strips around and over our van.

"though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil; for thou art with me."

there is great comfort knowing that the Lord is with us thru the valleys we go thru. whether they are scary car washes, stays in the hospital for some unknown illness, or some other unsettling situation, we can draw close to the Father, knowing that He will pick us up and comfort us, walk with us through the valley and that we don't have to fear any evil. sounds good to me!

I Won, I Won!!!

monica over at the homespun heart was giving away a wonderful Christmas garland, i put my name in the drawing, and i won!!! woohoo!!! this is my first win from the bloggy world and i'm so excited. its always nice to get a gift in the mail.

monica is a creative and thrifty gal so hop on over and check out her blog. she has 2 adorable little girls too that will steal your heart.