I Have Much To Be Thankful For

Though I am constantly occasionally whining dreaming about "my" farm in Northern Idaho, ( you know, the one I don't have but still wish I did), I do realize that my home here in Oregon is a gift.  The house will probably always need something else repaired, maintained, or replaced but what house doesn't?

There are blessings all around me when I just take the time to look.  This picture is of the back of our property.  The trees are enormous and it's a very peaceful place to wander.

And when my wandering spirit gets it's fill, I can come back and visit with "The Girls".  My how they've grown!

Then a sweet snuggle with this old guy -

Or a game of catch with this little one.

I can do a little bird watching -




Or forge a new trail through the Ivy.

This year we found something amazing in the Ivy.  A small bird had built her nest in the Ivy on the ground! Have you ever heard of a bird nest on the ground?  We never have.  It certainly left us scratching  our heads.  Tim put a fence around it so the dogs couldn't get to it and we would not accidentally step on it.  If you click on the picture below (twice) you will see the eggs in the nest.  It is almost dead center in the picture.

With the spring comes the Peonies.  They are gorgeous and I don't have to touch them.  God takes care of them.  I told you I was blessed :)

I love color.  Lot's of color.  I think it's because we live under grey skies for so much of the year.  This is the beautiful hanging basket my son brought over for Mother's Day (even though I was in California).
 

What a sweetheart.

Thanks for stopping by!

Home Safe

Thank you for your prayers - they worked!  My flight to California was fine and getting through security was uneventful.  Praise God!!!  I had a great visit with my folks and my little sister.  She is 16 years younger than I am and we didn't grow up together.  We didn't really bond as sisters until she was trying to conceive her first child.  Now we are joined at the heart.  I miss her already.

The highlight of the trip was a visit to the Richard M. Nixon Presidential Library and Museum in Yorba Linda.  I don't know what I expected but it turned out to be fabulous.  I love history and the place was full of it.  There is even a piece of the Berlin Wall.  Amazing.


This is the entrance to the building.

This fountain in the parking lot is quite large as you can see by comparison with the car in the photo.

Inside the main door is the Presidential Seal and the gift shop.  You buy your ticket there and begin your tour on the other side of the shop.

Tim and I are big fans of the "National Treasure" movies so I was delighted to find a reproduction of the Resolute Desk outside the gift shop.

Did you know that you can order one for your own office?  Me neither, but it's true.

Also on the grounds is the birthplace of Richard Nixon, which I will show you later.  But this is a scale model inside the museum. 

Outside is a shallow reflecting pool that spans the length of the corridor.  The building is a U shape and this is the center.

At the end is an area used for "events" such as weddings or political fundraising, etc.
Here it looks like they are getting ready for a wedding.  Behind the chairs you can see the birth home.  Along the path to the old house we passed by the graves of Mr. and Mrs. Nixon.

This is the birthplace and it was a small, humble home for a large family.  Flash photography was not allowed so most of my pictures did not turn out.

My biggest interest, of course, was the kitchen, and here it is.  You could stir a pot on the stove and wash a dish at the same time.   At the far end of the picture is the icebox, next to the back door.  (My apologies to the lady tourist in front of me. She backed into the shot as I pushed the button!).

Directly across from the sink is the stove.  This is one of the few pieces in the house that is not original.  It would have been similar though.  Behind the right shoulder of the "tourist-man-with-a-beard" is another doorway.  It goes into what they called the pantry.  I took some pictures but they were too fuzzy to share.  It was a small room with another counter top and cabinets below.  That was the only built in part.

After leaving the little house we visited the final display.  This is "Marine One", the Presidential helicopter, retired of course.  We were able to walk all the way through it with a tour guide but no pictures were allowed.  He said the current "Marine One" is the same model so it is a security thing :)  Believe it or not this chopper seats 16 people, a pilot and co-pilot, has a bathroom and a wet bar!

Even though I had a good time it is great to be home.

Thanks for stopping by!



Help! I Have to Fly!

My parents live in Southern California and have been asking me for months to come for a visit.  I have put it off as long as I can, and now will be flying on Saturday for a week long visit.  When TSA began their new offensive groping and the X-ray machines came into play, I swore I would NEVER fly again.  But how can I say no to my aging parents?  They even paid for the ticket!  Neither are in really good health, they are both cancer survivors.  I would never forgive myself if something happened and I missed out on spending time with them simply because of the TSA.  So I am going to "bite the bullet" and fly. You might say a prayer for me.

Thanks for stopping by.  I'll be back in about ten days.

First Trip To The LDS Cannery

For months we have wanted to go to the LDS Cannery in Portland.  They are open to non-members on Tuesday and Thursday every week.  I have been furloughed one week per month since last June, so I am able to go to the cannery during my "off" week.  Tim, however, had to schedule a day off work to go with me.  Yesterday was the big day. 

I printed off the order form and we filled it out before we went.  We thought we knew what to expect since we watched the You-Tube video on using the equipment.  But when we went inside they took our order form and we could see the canning room was full of people.  We thought we would just have to wait our turn.  Then a man asked Tim to help box orders around the other side of the room.  He said sure, and off he went.  Another man asked me if I would wash and sterilize the big tubs they use in the canning room.  I agreed and he showed me where the big sink was.

Every time I finished a load of tubs they brought me another one.  Finally I asked the man how much longer he thought it would be before we got to go in the canning room.  He smiled and began explaining how things work there.  He told me that all of the orders had been sent into the canning room and the folks in there were canning everyone's orders.  He said that all the people that have orders are either inside the room canning, or outside filling orders and helping out in other ways. 

That made total sense when I thought about it.  It was much easier for them to can all of the orders for one product (like dry milk) at one time, then move on to the next item.

All in all we had a very good time. It was a rewarding experience to be able to give help where needed, especially since others were doing the canning of our order for us.  I am looking forward to going back.  I don't know when that will be because it is not easy for Tim to get a Tuesday or Thursday off work.

So, our home storage pantry is looking much better these days!  We still have a long ways to go, but I am feeling much better now that the shelves are filling up.

Thanks for stopping by!