Woops! Forgot a Few Things!

I somehow missed a few posts about Christmas and New Year's. Ok, going back...

J's brother K got home from his mission in Colombia December 18th, and J and I flew into SEA to greet him. R made a welcome home banner, and M got balloons. We met K down by the baggage claim (an ironically good place to meet up with family, no?) and when we yelled "Welcome Home K!" The whole crowed of people waiting for their bags clapped and cheered too! It was so neat! We had a good little visit with everyone, then caught the next flight home to PDX.

Just four days later we were all back together to spend Christmas in Sequim with J's family. It was a lot of fun having the whole family together. A&J&co were up from the Bay Area, R was home from school, K just back from his mission, and everyone was healthy and happy. We had a great time playing with the kidos. I spent most of my time sward fighting with Ev, dancing with C to her new Taylor Swift Red CD, or coloring with Juju by the fire while watching cartoons. M got some really fun frosting and candies for us all to decorate gingerbread men. We played with our Christmas gifts, went target shooting, and had a great time together. With all 11 of us home, it was a warm and busy Christmas!

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We went to Cle Elum for New Year's, and had a great time. Mom and I played with the horses, even though the temp was in the teens. In the winter it is better to ride the draft horses. They are stronger and taller for walking through the deep snow, and warmer and more comfortable to ride without a saddle so you don't freeze.

 Mom on Abby at River Bend

 Me on Jake

Tia out in the pasture.

Peter running in the snow. 

 
Leta and Kyle came up the 31st and Leta and I went ridding. We all stayed up playing games, watching movies, doing puzzles, and eating much-too-yummy food. At midnight we set off a few fireworks. What a great way to start the new year!

 Mom's AMAZING chocolate cheesecake. I can't even begin to tell you how good this was! It was worth taking a picture of just so I can remember the taste when I look at it. 

Bucket List -Oil Painting!

When I was little I was able to have family that really appreciated art. My mom did leather tooling, gingerbread houses (2 story creations that are better than anything you see in store window displays!) crafting, and often took us to local plays and music in the park. She was an art docent at our school, and would take us to see local art exhibits where friends had pieces on display. We would enter our own little pieces in the fair, and always spent half of our day at the fair touring the 3 buildings full of entries. My grandmother had her paintings and drawings in most of the rooms of her house, and encouraged R and I to really give it a try. I would often sit with Nan in the afternoons and watch Joy of Painting with Bob Ross, I found him magical! Here are some clips of him painting mountains and trees.

Well, while I was at the ranch April 5th, I was able to finally try my hand at a Bob Ross style oil painting! One of the missionaries serving there, use to have a painting studio where he gave lessons. I was lucky enough to be invited over for a lesson of my own!

Elder Curfew had the board and everything all ready for me. He would show me how on the right side of the board, and then I got to do the left side myself.

 Here I am adding my "happy little tree!"

Leta and I had just got back from horseback riding, and she came along and watched and took these pictures for me. Thank you Leta! And thank you Elder Curfew, this is an opportunity I always wanted, and will never forget!

April 4-8, 2013

April 4-9th I spent at my folks at the ranch. It was great being home, and enjoying the early spring days there. I flew into Seattle, where Mom picked me up. We stopped off by the temple to pick up some missionaries that needed a ride, and this is what the trees looked like there.

When we got to the ranch mom's daffodils were blooming and it was beautiful! Then it got cold again overnight. This is what it looked like out my bedroom window when I woke up the 7th.

And this is what it looked like on the 8th!

Banner and Caleb are best buds.

It was a great visit. Mom and I cleaned up the tack rooms, played with the horses, and enjoyed conference. 

~SPRING~

If you know me, you know how I get spring-fever, that it's my favorite time of year, and Easter, my favorite holiday. If you don't want to read some silly ramblings I suggest you skipp ahead now, because I'm going to tell you exactly why I love spring/Easter. (---Skip ahead now)

Easter is like Christmas, just when it is nicer outside. We still celebrate Christ's life, and the hope and salvation he offers, but we can celebrate it out in the sunshine (instead of trapped indoors like we are in prison). Easter, the time of hope, rebirth, new life, flowers, and sweet baby animals (instead of black-ice, frostbite, and blobby snowmen that melt and distort, when everything is dead). A time for new dresses and saddles (rather than wet parkas and muddy boots). We still get candy like Halloween and Christmas, but at Easter it is more often than not, chocolate (that's all we really want anyway). It is still acceptable to give gifts, but rather than being forced by society and commercialism, they can be gifts from the heart. People don't go into debt, and we can still enjoy the time together just as much. The food (a least in my family) is always just as good, but is enjoyed without somehow gaining those10lbs. I mean, don't get me wrong, Christmas is great! What else would get us through those dark oppressive mid-winter days? We need all the cheer we can get that time of year, we make the best of it, but to me, it's a place holder - a pacifier, until the real season for celebrating comes along. I appreciate winter, and Christmas, but mostly because those dark cold days make spring that much brighter and warmer.

(---Begin reading here) I decided to make some little Easter treats to take to some friends (visiting teaching too). I sprouted wheat in paper cups and put a plastic egg with an Easter scripture and some chocolates inside. They came out great so I made a few to place around our apartment too. The cats loved it, they munched on the grass while I munched the chocolate.

In the spring I always love it when the violets come out, they are one of the first tings to bloom here, and they remind me so much of Nan and when we lived with her. I have some violets that I got from Aunt Judy's yard growing in a pot and put a few blooms in one of Nan's little vases to help ward off the last of my S.A.D. (seasonal affective disorder/winter blues) during the rainy spring days. I was surprised how much it helped.

Crazy Cat Lady

Ok, I am just going to be the crazy cat lady you all know I am, and post all my cat pictures in one post. Fritz is the orange tabby, Marsh is the gray tabby.

 

February 7th

I made this cake for J's birthday. I know everyone has birthdays, but I love having a special day to celebrate him and that he is in my life.

Looking Back

Mom put together a little book for Nan with family pictures and it came out great. Here are two pictures of Nan's house that she included in the book. I loved living there, and these pictures bring back a flood of good memories.

Pictures from Christmas Season 2012

This last Christmas was a wonderful one. I had planned ahead, so all the shopping was done way ahead of time removing most of my holiday stress. A visit to the temple on the 11th was also a good way to start the holiday.

We were able to pick up the perfect tree at the lot on the corner from us at a good price, bring it home and decorate it and the house all in one evening. I think this is the cat's favorite time of year!

This year, since I was somehow ahead on my holiday to-do list, I decided to try stringing cranberries, something I have wanted to do since I was a kid. (BUCKET LIST!)

Of course I had some furry help with this project.

Each year I try to work on my photography skills and take a picture of J and I for our Christmas cards. I thought it would be neat to take one in front of our tree this year. It was also nice and cozy inside, and last year I drug J out in the cold for our picture. Problem was, the lighting stunk, the angle made the tree look small, and the cats kept getting in the way. I quickly realized it was not going to work so we took one last silly one and gave up the idea.

You can still see Marsh's tail in front of J's arm.

J was a good sport and said he would go with me over to the park and let me mess with my camera. It was actually a pretty nice day, and I got a few good shots.