The Oregon Trail

The Hunny and I at Multanomah Falls

 We spent a fantastic 6 days trekking to Oregon to visit our siblings.  The first three days are a bit of a blur to me, as I came down, for the second time in six months, with strep throat.  I was incoherently contaminating a bedroom in Brent's sweet sister Sheri's house.   Thankfully after about 36 hours the antibiotic kicked in and I was able to enjoy the end of our trip.

Unfortunately, because I am the sole photographer in the family we have no pictures from our stay in Hermiston.  But Sheri and Julian were wonderful hosts, brining the kids to parks, the nail salon, the home depot craft, out to dinner, picking blackberries...they had a wonderful time.  Julian cleaned and examined Brent's pearly whites.  

Saturday morning I attempted a run, I needed 15 but nearly collapsed with 7.  I was still not able to swallow, even though the fever had passed and the worst was over.  Sheri rode the bike along side me, and was a trooper, as I got the "on foot" tour of her little town.

By Saturday afternoon I was feeling remarkably better.  Now the trip with my side of the family began.  We started with some beautiful hikes along the Historic Columbia River Gorge Highway.

Berkeley and Emmett hitching a ride with Brent to Horsetail Falls in the Columbia River Gorge.

My parents, and Derald and his girlfriend Stacy Jo, also made the trek out to visit with Brock and Amy and meet the newest addition to their family Pierce.

Derald, the girls, me, and Daegen on the trail.

Here is a little conversation between Emmett and I as I was working on this post:

Derald and Stacy Jo

Emmett:  Mom, where is Derald's Mother?
R:  Derald's Mother?
E:  Yes Mom.  You know that girl?
R:  Bringing up a picture of StacyJo  Oh...Do you mean his girlfriend?
E:  Yes mom.  That is her.  I love her.  She is so beautiful .  She is like a princess.

I couldn't resist these three "Baldies,"  Mt. Hood included!

I can't believe how big she is getting.
She couldn't stop holding little Pierce.  

Does that little guy know how to melt hearts or what?

It is fantastic to see Derald so happy.  A fabulous girlfriend has been a long time coming.















Mount Hood was a fun Sunday morning expedition.  Unfortunately my stroller and baby carrier were left on the mountain.  I am in mourning.

Grandpa loving on the two little ladies.

Another highlight was a late night trip with Brock and Amy on their boat up the Wilamett river into the city.  We cruised down the glass river with lights, music, good conversation.  I felt like I was a young  married again.  It was liberating.  We docked the boat and walked around Portland, bought some cheesecake and had an all a round wonderful time.  The kids were at home asleep with my Mom and Dad.  

We spent a glorious afternoon barbecuing and playing in the lush cedars, redwoods, firs, stream, and general "greenery" surrounding Brock's beautiful home.  Their yard was a little haven of beauty and serenity. I was having serious house and lot envy!

We ended our trip with a great dinner with Brent's cousin Justin and his wife Trisha.  They live in the urban downtown of Portland.  We ate at a great restaurant and walked their district.   Their historic home was a charming urban counter to the solitude of the forests.  Of course another highlight was meeting their chickens.  Being the "children" in the family, they are far more pampered than ours.

We had a fantastic trip and can't wait to return next year.

Callista is Six-sational!!

The Little Bean, Pipper Dip Dip, Squeaker, Nanny, (she answers to any and all) is six-years-old.  And what a celebration we had!

Callista was set on a beach cake and a swimming party.  And these candles.  :)

Callista continues to hold the title “Loudest and Liveliest Family Member” for six years straight now.  It is an impressive feat, but her competition is not too stiff as her three siblings are rather mellow and mild mannered.  

To fight my problem with frosting, I actually frosted this cake with "tootsie rolls."  I cooked them to soft ball instead of hard ball.  We used spinach, beets, and carrots to color the frosting.  For blue I had to resort to food coloring.  The children enjoyed the flavored candy frosting.  

At the pool.

 The celebration included streamers, a fabulous party at the pool with her 2 best friends and cousins, followed by pizza, salad, cake and presents back at the house.   


She received a fancy new purple mountain bike and now officially pedals her way up the canyon in the family Bike Train.


Callista spent her birthday wearing a special pin Happy Birthday pin I made for her.  It was sparkly and very prominent.  All day at school, piano lessons and gymnastics she was the star of the show and received ample attention.






She also enjoyed a special outing with Mimi, from which she returned laden with wonderful toys and clothes and loves.  Not to be left out, Brent and I snitched her away for a special lunch together at Kneaders, her favorite restaurant.  

Cake with Dad.

This little girl is the life and death of me.  She drives me to joy and tears.  She convinced me at six years old she would grow out of her intense habit of "squeaking."  
Hmmm....I will keep you posted on that one.  Passion just exudes out of Pip.



She clamors for more gymnastics.  Sometimes I am almost bonkers, as she seems to be upside down the entire time we are trying to do spelling and piano.  Her toes point straight up into the sky and she is certain it helps her "think better."  At any moment she tries to rope anyone she can in to listen to her play the piano.  Her current solo "Popcorn Popping," is a blessing and curse in our house.  It is very difficult but has as much pizazz as she does.  


She adores little children and they in turn squeal in delight for her, but also sometimes run for mom if she her enthusiasm gets a little carried away.   


Callista never fails to search me out at night to snuggle.  No matter which bed I may be trying to hide in, she finds me and snuggles tight. 

Stubbed toes, pulled hair, and anything equally severe (or not so) result in piercing shrieking, which I still signal inside me a vision of her writhing somewhere in excruciating pain from a life threatening injury.  There are no minor incidents with Callista.

Ready for school.  Home and "Abroad."

Her personality is at times baffling.  Her interview with her teacher at the elementary school before school began was unfathomable to me.   The poor thing was shaking with fright.  Her tongue began to swell and her speech slurred.  It was like every light bulb in her brain turned off.  Typical responses to questions included, "I don't know," and  "Uhhhh..."  My ego nosedived on the spot.  My star student choked.  My math whiz, reading pro, memorizing maniac....what happened?  I could just see the teacher in her head  "Oh boy, another awkward homeschooler."  I kept hissing to Callista to snap out of the baby talk, to no avail.  


It was an interesting way to start off the school year.  However, her teacher assured me she is eager and anxious to participate and well liked by all the children in her class after the first 2 weeks.  She is only there for 2 hours in the morning, but thankfully the jitters are gone and Callista seems to be shining through.


The elementary school isn't everything she dreamed it would be.  This helped scrape my ego off the floor.  She loves math, history, and anything which requires me to read to her.

I can't help but mention another family trademark with the Nan.  She has a miniature bladder.  Roadtrips can be excruciatingly frustrating with her.  We have even tried to get her to use a diaper, when it has been 4 stops already.  But she freezes up.  (I know.  This is quite cruel of us as parents.   I can't help thinking of the poor astronaut woman in her car with her diaper.)  


I treasure how attached Callista is to me.  The most attached of all my children.  Of course, this endears me to her immensely.  

Posing in front of Mt Hood

We love you Callista and are so proud of you!  Happy Sixth Birthday!!!!

The Summer that Wasn't

I guess it was...but it was sooo short!

"Snaggle-tooth," "Hunny" or "Fat," whichever you choose to call her (she will answer to them all) is growing like crazy.

An endearing "snuggle-side" has blossomed in Berkeley.  She has turned into a little lover, nuzzling in with anyone, and everyone at any chance she gets.  This makes her the second baby in a row who knows how to win people over in a flash.

She cleans too.

Her locomotive strategies include cruising, a single handed bum scoot, and the occasional traditional crawl.  Still no walking, but I'm not worried.  It will come soon enough.  Her single word is "uh-oh."  At least she has one word.  All that fluid in her ears makes hearing and balance a little tough.  We are weighing the cost-benefit of ear tubes.

Brent celebrated a birthday, as did his mom.  At this point he is pretty agile.  He is quite a cruiser as well.  We haven't taken to calling him "The Fat."  Maybe next year he'll fit the bill?  Four to forty.  Scary stuff.  Middle-age is now undeniable.

Brent's mom has been spending several weeks in town.  We love having her around.  But our hearts are still raw for Papa.

The Full Circle Annual Horsin' Around Rodeo was the guaranteed hit.  I am keeping an open invitation to all my friends to join us each year.  I keep preparing my mom my crew will keep growing.  This year it was fun to have my two running gals Melody and Marie with their families.  

Here we are lazying around in the hayloft.  We left the rolling to others.

Watching Calf Wrestling in the shade.

Panning for Gold with Mimi

Grabbing dollar bills from the sheep

Emmett, Maggie and Daniel

Here Melody, Char, Me, and John are preparing to wrestle a steer.  Melody was an animal!  Dad is about to let him loose.

She doesn't look into the smooching but she is.  

 The rodeo also boasted some spirited volleyball this year, which was a fun addition.

Grandpa had a hotel in Provo for the night, so we enjoyed a private pool party with Grandma and Grandpa.

School begins in full force this week.  The schedule you see below took a bundle of hours to pull together.  However, I think it is in working shape.  Our first run throughs have been successful.

I will try to give some more breakdown in the future.

	Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday	Saturday
School Ends	2:20	3:20	2:00	4:00	11:45 or 2:20
6 am	Ellery:  Vest              Brent:  Wake, Shower, Breakfast					Free Time  Family Time
6:30	Ellery:  Dressed, Hair, Bed Made, Teeth, Prayers, Breakfast Callista:  Dressed, Hair, Bed Made, Teeth, Prayers, Breakfast, Lunch Packed
7 am	Ellery:  Flute Practice              Callista:  Piano Practice with Mom  Emmett:  Dressed, Hair, Bed Made, Teeth, Prayers, Breakfast
7:40	Family Scripture Reading			PE with Dad
7:55	Memorization, Poems, Read Aloud with Family
8:10	Spelling/Phonics and Reading with Mom and Callista				Ellery Spelling Test
9 am	Ellery:  Piano Practicing              Callista:  Cascade					Ellery Gym Callista Private  11-12 pm
9:45	Emmett Gym Ellery Finish Piano or Computers	Ellery Piano	Emmett Gym / Mom Errands Ellery Finish Piano Larisa Arrives	Ellery Piano
10:15	Ellery and Mom Latin		Russian  with Larisa	Ellery and Mom Latin
10:30	Ellery and Mom Singapore Math			Music	Typing
11:10	Lunch  and Free Time		Lunch and Free Time with Larisa	Shiller or Saxon Math  with Callista and Ellery
11:45	Ellery: Spanish Callista:  Singapore Math with Mom
12 pm				Math Cont.	Lunch with Dad Mom to Yoga	Free Time  Family Time
12:30	Writing with Callista and Ellery			12:15 Lunch
1 pm	History and Science Ellery, Mom and Callista		Ellery Art Class Callista Russian Mom with kids	Writing Group all Children	History and Science Ellery, Mom and Callista or Field Trip
2 pm			Ellery and Callista  Piano Lessons Emmett Larisa
2:20	Free Time Snack Time	Quiet Reading Callista Homework		Flute Lesson  Callista Homework	Free Time
3:20		Free Time  Ellery Activity Day 3:45-5 Every Other Week		Quiet Reading
4 pm	Gymnastics 4:15-7:15  Ellery  4:15-6:45 Callista		Gymnastics 4:15-7:15  Ellery  4:15-6:45 Callista	Free Time
5 pm				Babysitter Night   Dinner with Babysitter
5:30		Ellery Sewing Class
6:30		Dinner
7:30	Dinner	Family Home Evening	Dinner	In Bed Family Scriptures
8 pm	In Bed Reading with Mom Lights out 8:30

First Recital, First Concerto

Firsts always bring anxiety, anticipation, and a big dose of mystery.  Especially with our little wild card Callista.  She reads like whiz, does math like a brainiac, but can't recite an entirely memorized talk in front of a crowd for the life of her.  For her first piano recital performance, I had no idea what to expect.

This is what happened...

She nailed it!  We were so proud of her.  Especially considering her nerves in front of large audiences.  She counted and was as cute as can be.  According to her teacher, she saved the recital for the beginners.

Ellery prepared a Concerto in only 6 months, which is really quite a memorization feat.  This is Concerto Romantique, Movement 3 by Katharine Rollins.  At about 3 minutes in listen for her Cantabile, an especially beautiful portion, at 4:30 or so her cadenza solo, and then grand finale!

On Wednesday when we walked out of piano lessons, Ellery said, "Mom I am learning the rest of Forget Me Not, to surprise my teacher!"  This morning after practicing she spontaneously looked at me and said, "Mom, thanks so much for working with me on my practicing."  I think like Amy Chua says in her memoirs Battle Hymn of a Tiger Mom, we don't love anything until we are good at it.  Ellery's love for music is starting to mature, in many ways I think it is a direct result of her rapid progression and the recognition she receives.

We consider music to be an invaluable life long skill for our children.  It brings out the "Tiger Mom" in me, but I don't think I will have regrets.

It isn't tough to see when this little Honey is all tuckered out.

We have also taken to calling her "The Fat."  Because she really is ridiculously fat.  

Strolling

I never knew how much help an eight year old could be.  The helper bug bit Ellery and I love it!

Maggie and Berkeley out for a stroll!

Peanut Butter Super Seed Energy Bars

Peanut Butter Super Seed Energy Bars

The last year has taken a toll on my creative cooking juices.  I've generated hardly any new recipes.  Difficult pregnancy, sick baby, sick children, 4 children :), homeschooling full time, it all adds up.  But with the kids at Summer Camp last week, and the grocery bills climbing K2, I decided I needed to start stocking my freezer with homemade snacks again.  Let's face it, buying healthy snacks is ridiculously expensive.  All those Lara and Art's Bars from Costco add up fast!

This recipe is an easy adaptation of my Peanut Butter and Honey Delights.  You could mix and match your favorite seeds or puffed grains.  I liked the millet because of the size.  The kamut, and brown rice puffs seemed to overwhelming for the bar.  The response to these bars has been fantastic.  Try them out and let me know what you think.  Brent loves these as a mid-morning snack or after work-out bar.  They are also easy to make vegan by substituting ground flax for the eggs.

 Peanut Butter Super Seed Energy Bars

1 c extra virgin coconut oil (could substitute olive oil or butter partially or completely)

1 c natural peanut butter (unsweetened)

1 c honey (or other natural sweetener of your choice, click for some ideas: the beauty of the peanut butter base is that anything works well)

1 t baking soda

1 t baking powder

2 eggs (powdered or fresh) or 2 T ground flax

1 t vanilla

3 c freshly ground whole grain flour

1/2 c raw pumpkin seeds

1/2 c raw sunflower seeds

1/2 c raw chia seeds

1 c puffed millet

Chocolate Fudge Frosting

1/4 c cocoa powder

1/4 c pure grade B maple syrup

1 T coconut  oil or butter (optional)

1/4 t vanilla

dash of salt

Mix all ingredients, excluding flour and seeds, until smooth. Add flour and mix gently. You may have to reduce flour or add more depending on the dough consistency. Add seeds.  The dough will be firm, you may have to knead the seeds in.  

Line a 9x13 cookie sheet with parchment paper.  Press dough onto sheet 1/4-1/2 inch thick, using a rolling pin as necessary.  Use a pizza cutter and score dough into desired bar size.  Bake at 375 degrees for 10-15 minutes.

Remove from oven.  Use pizza cutter to cut bars along original scoring.  Spread a very thin layer of Chocolate Fudge Frosting.  Allow to cool on wire rack.  When cool, individually wrap each bar in plastic wrap and store in the freezer.  Makes two 9x13 pans.

Happy Fourth of July

The girls and neighbor Gracie, enjoying the festivities of "Cul de Sac of Fire!"

 "Cul de Sac of Fire" with the neighbors and the Rain Drops

Earlier in the day shooting off our splurge of the Flying Parachute Men

We brought all three 4 wheelers up to my parents.  Here little Robert is enjoying the mini ride.

Emmett and Grandpa mowing the lawn.  I love how my Dad lets Emmett swerve wherever he wants.  

Emmett big heart came directly from my father.  My parents property is so idyllic.  They are never allowed to move!

We didn't get to defend our tournament title, but Brent and Mark and Bruce enjoyed a little peppering.

The fireworks show at Grandma and Grandpa's