Fun site!

I found this site through Mormon Times and it has some really great ideas.

http://preparednotscared.blogspot.com/2010/09/soup-mix-recipe-book.html

A Small Ramble with some good luck

Dad and I decided to go get peaches again on Saturday since we are down to the last few types that are available at Saunders.  They have already started harvesting apples but our taste buds just wanted a few more peaches!  As we were passing through Lowesville (tiny town) they were having a town yard sale.  It was great fun and we got a great, new chandelier for the new Alumni house that the school is fixing up and a brand new old table for us!  It is a great table and after we pick it up I'll post some pictures.  We also had Brunswick stew made in a large kettle and amazing baked goods.  While at the baked goods stand they mentioned that the rest of their group was over at Nellie's Ford because they too were having a town yard sale.  Woohoo!  So, after going to Saunders we headed for Nellies's Ford but we took a wrong turn and ended up....way up...on the Blue Ridge Parkway.  We stopped at the visitor center to see how to get down to Nellies Ford and discovered that it was the 75th anniversary of the Parkway and there were interpreters on the "typical Blue Ridge Farm" circa 1890. We had a great time exploring and learning.  Here is the cabin and our "homeowner" with me.  9 people lived in this cabin and it is an originial cabin (moved to this spot but put on the old homes foundation).  There was a loft for the kids and Mom and Dad and baby slept downstairs.

Here is me getting istructions on how to make a broom

You make it using broom corn that you comb the seeds out of.  There are different styles for tying them and we even saw a mop that was made from the heart of the hickory tree with the layers peeled back.  It gets soft when wet! Ingenious (necessity the mother of invention?)

Here is the garden:

It has tobacco, they would have raised enough for themselves and some to trade:

Sorghum from which they squeezed the sap out of the stalks and made molasses:

and broom corn from which they made the brooms:(Dad grew some of this in Oregon)

Here's the hen house,

Barn and Pig Stye.  The hogs ran wild in the woods with all the neighbors hogs and then they brought them in to let the fat harden so it was usable before they slaughtered them. The X contraption you see was a device to keep the bears out.

The spring house for keeping things cool.  An earthquake has moved the spring

There was a root cellar and a few other things to see but this last picture is dad eating an apple he took from the tree behind him!(don't ask how I felt about that!)
It turned out to be a very fun day and we capped it off at night by attending the university's production of "Songs for a New World" which has some great songs in it!
The weather has been amazing and we are beginning to see the leaves start to change.  Sorry about the rain in Oregon! (people here aren't too happy about our drought though).

Published

I just thought you would like to know that JJ is a published author...well, journalist.  He was asked to write an article on this Blue Grass Group and their festival so I thought I would show it to you.  I tried to zoom in on the byline but it got too fuzzy.  As an added bonus you can see who spoke at SVU last week.

As for reading it, you'll just have to take a mother's word for it that it was well done!

A Family Wedding

I didn't get to go the wedding of Dad's brother Lynn but here are the photos that he brought back to help me feel a part of things.  Lynn has been alone since the death of his wife Rae and so all are excited to see him happy.
Here is Dad with his brother Chris, Sunny and Lynn, and sister Shelley,

Here are some pictures of Seth and the girls:

Various other family members at the wedding:

Tara & Shelley

Mindy,Brett,Diedra,Paul

Sarah and Paul

Christy & Jacque

Lynn Waiting for the bride:

After the wedding the John Feinauer Family got together and so here is a picture of the Oregon siblings.

Hope took some other really great pictures of the family gathering.  It looks like it was a fun day!

Everlasting Friendship

In everyone's life there are people that you come in contact with that you know you knew before and that you already have a connection to.  One of those in my life is Barb Finch. When John and I decided to purchase Curves in Newberg Barb was a member and she had applied for a job with the previouse owner and was promised a job.  When she decided to sell, the owner stopped Barb's hiring but when Barb heard that we were buying it she was the first one to congratulate me.  She wasn't asking for a job she sincerely was excited for us.  She gave me a great big hug and I knew then that I wanted her working alongside me! Her vision and mine were the same and so along with Robin Boyles we set out to build our Curves.  While working side by side we became close friends and we often spoke of our religious views to each other.  We learned about each other's families and knew each other's pains and concerns.  One day I asked if she and Clay would like to attend the Messiah that was being put on at church.  She replied, "let me talk to Clay" and the next day she told me the answer to my question was yes.  I had forgotten what the question was...it turned out it was one of the most important questions I ever asked anyone! As they say, the rest is history.  She and Clay went on a fast track to joining the church and were baptized on Easter Sunday.  Clay was baptized first, given the Aaronic priesthood, and then he Baptized Barb.  What an amazing day! One year later they were sealed in the Portland  Oregon Temple and we were able to have a reception in our home.  Our lives are forever entwined.

Barb and Clay moved to El Paso Texas in July of 2007 and in October we sold Curves and then moved to Virginia. 
It has been three years since we have seen each other and last week we got together again!  We have one of those friendships that when you are together it is like no time has passed.
We went to DC and saw the sites and talked and talked and talked!
 Here we are at the Lincoln Memorial:

Abe & Us

We saw all the major monuments and then headed out to Maryland where we went to the DC Temple visitor center and watched the Joseph Smith movie together (and cried together!). We wandered all over looking for a hotel and finally ended up in Silver Spring at the same hotel Dad and I had recently stayed in.  In the morning we did some window shopping, ate at a great Irish cafe and then went to the Temple to do a session.  It was very special to both of us and we loved being in the celestial room together.(We cried there too!)  It was the first time Barb has been able to do a session since her beloved Clay passed away so we were glad we were together.

After Church on Sunday I took Barb on a little tour of the beautiful Blue Ridge Parkway that is in the mountains just behind Buena Vista.

We promised each other that we won't let three years go by again!  How grateful I am to my Heavenly Father that he is so aware of each of us and our needs that he puts special friends in our lives to help us along our way!

Must see video! Happy Birthday Jack

Here are two precious videos from Jack's 1st birthday party! First: The cupcake:

Next Comes the Ice Cream!

Celebration time!

Last week the students returned for the beginning of the new school year and we have 100 more students than last year!  It is a good problem to have but it has it's challenges with getting everyone into limited housing, helping everyone get their finances finished and calming down parents who are leaving their children for the first time.  On Thursday I gave out all the tissues in my office!  We were open 8-6 three days this week and were busy every moment we were open but on Friday we closed at 4 to celebrate the end of the audit and the end of a successful week and headed to a beautiful house at Lake Anna about 2 hrs away.  The business office team went there last year and since we have combined the business office and the financial aid office into Student Financial Services this year we were invited to join in.  The home had plenty of room for all of us and we shared meal duty so it worked out great.  What a wonderful break it was!

Friday night after we arrived and got situated I went down and just sat on the dock and listened to the peaceful sounds of night on a lake.  It reminded me of the sounds of my parents home on Barrett Creek and then I looked up at the gorgeous starry sky and thought of all the nights I stood on our deck or on our roof in Newberg and stared up at those same stars.  It made me homesick for both places and yet at the same time brought me peace.  Our minds and bodies need that peace every so often just to help us handle the hustle of daily life.  I often used to go to the Oregon Coast to get that feeling and to refresh my soul.  I have a card that says "I go to the sea to breathe" and that holds true for any quiet spot with water for me!

The next morning Dad and I were in charge of breakfast and so he made his famous Crepes (he has an amazing crepe "platform" that makes them even better than he used to with a frying pan) and we brought along his great homemade granola.  Both were a huge hit!  We had fresh peaches, blueberries and strawberries to top them with and all enjoyed their fill.

After breakfast we went out onto the water!  It was a perfect day temperature wise with no humidity and clear blue sky.  Dad and I rode a jet ski and later were pulled behind one on a tube. Today my body is upset that I didn't remember how old and out of shape I am!   It was fun and a tad scary.  I was worried I would fall off and then not be able to get back in!  Today I am a little stiff having used muscles that have been idle for a very long time !Here are some pictures of Dad on one of his rides that he took after our initial one.

There was a huge deck that was great for sitting and eating and watching the water.

People used the tubes for lounging too!

And there was even a cool baby floatation device!

And nifty water guns!

We finished off our day with the first annual Stufin Awards (Student Financial Services).  The Committee (Tilly and Tricia) decided who would get what and Tilly made the cute piggy bank trophies!

All of us had a wonderful, relaxing time!