Home Court Advantage

Today we are beginning a back yard remodel.  Upon looking at this picture, you must be thinking to yourself, "I can't imagine why?!"  I mean really, who wouldn't want to frolic in that patch of moss and thinned out grass, or break their ankle in the dogs' efforts to dig to China?  (Heaven only knows what they think is down there....other than the original "shock wire" to keep them from going across the line...I think it's a revenge issue!)

Did you see the gentleman in the background?  He is dismantling this little piece of our family history.

That is a picture taken this morning of the play structure we purchased within weeks of moving into this, our first-owned home, 7 and a 1/2 years ago.  At the time (when the yard looked AMAZING after having just been landscaped with fresh sod laid down) - it was the "final piece" to my perfect home.  We purchased it from a family for a greatly reduced cost (it's a "Rainbow" play system which is top of the line) - as long as we were willing to tear it down from their residence and, of course, put it up ourselves.

It looked much better back then than it does now. 

Upon realizing, all of a sudden this morning, that it needed to come down this weekend before work begins, John begrudgingly acknowledged he needed to borrow a trailer and tear it down to haul it to the dump. 

With a bit of "Toy Story" nostalgia and sentimentality, I suggested we just take a pic and put it on Facebook to see if anyone would bite at the offer of a free play structure.  John reluctantly agreed, feeling like it wouldn't work, but appeasing me.  We went ahead and then placed it in the free section of Craigslist as well, mandating it had to be taken down this afternoon and hauled away by someone else....but hopeful it would go to some family that would find as much joy in it that it has brought to us.

Within a half hour, John had received 10 calls from folks willing to take it off our hands.  PRAISE GOD!  And, let me just tell you, John is ONE HAPPY CAMPER to not have to worry about that job.  I'm a very happy camper to know it's going to another home and not the dump, but most of all, that gentleman (Rick is his name) is a VERY HAPPY CAMPER to be able to bring home a quality play structure (once it's given a little TLC) to his two boys....aged 2 1/2 and a year.  =)  Our kids even threw in the bucket of toys in the sand area when they found that out.  =) 

I'm going to hold off in giving a complete description on what our new backyard area will become, but let's just say there's a whole lot of excitement about it.  There ought to be, because it's going to cost us quite a bit of money.  This has been something John and I have been weighing out, but just this week, it hit me why I'm willing to spend money on this, but not on other repairs crying out for help (i.e. - air conditioning system).   It goes back to the title...I want our home to have the "home court advantage" for Brayden and Mikayla.  John and I absolutely see the upcoming changes as being a huge draw for the ministry functions we have with the UO students and young adults in our life, but much more importantly to us is the huge draw it will be to our kids and their friends.  We want our home to be the place they most want to be. 

On Wednesday morning, during that hour or so alone that I have with Brayden between the time Mikayla's school starts and his school starts - out of the blue, this is what he said:

"Mom, you know what my best birthday present was?  It wasn't even something I could have asked for because there's no amount of money that could ever buy it, it's far too valuable."

(At this point, I hate to admit, I was only half listening - too engrossed in Pinterest or Facebook...and from what I heard I was already guessing the Christmas announcement of Travis and Stephie's baby as the answer - even though that had nothing to do with his birthday...yeah, I'm a really good mom)

He continued, "It's having you guys as parents.  I mean, you are the best parents in the world, and that's something so much more amazing than any birthday present I could have asked for....

He then followed up with some more cuddly comments about me as his mom....and while I was half listening it hit me that I had to immediately treasure every word coming out of that boys' mouth - memorize it and write it down quick....because, how often does a mom of a seventh grade boy ever get to hear words like that come out of her son's mouth? 

WOW!!!  And, then as I processed that over the next couple of days, it solidified in my mind that this upcoming expense will be worth it - to help insure this relationship we have with our kids stays as strong as it is.  Clearly, us providing games, toys, a trampoline or whatever are not what makes us the parents Brayden is describing - but, having those as resources to engage with our kids - or allow them a safe place to engage with others - that's a part of it.

So, stay tuned for "remodel" pictures - I'm excited - and for sure, it's time - and as far as I'm concerned, it will be "worth it".   

Pinterest Reviews

I've already addressed the fact that I am a Pinterest follower.  It really is such a cool concept - and I find myself wandering for great amounts of time through all sorts of topics, tracking back to new people and blogs to follow.

With all the recipes I have for sweets and desserts, I've laughingly addressed my Pinterest Favorite Recipes board as my "menu for Heaven" - in that there's no way I could ever make all those foods, but more importantly - EAT them, without major ramifications to my "earthly body"!  But, it sure is fun looking.  =)

Practically speaking, it's been fun to search out recipes for next year's Harlow Auction Desserts.  I think I found one for sure, as the morning after posting it, I had an email indicating 36 different people had repinned it.  Given the secret to having your dessert get picked early is picking a taste that appeals to a wide audience and looks pretty....I think it might be a winner.  You can get a an advanced preview here.

There were two recipes I did give a try last week that were not sweets.  I tried the supposed Copycat to PF Chang's Lettuce Wraps recipe and then a slower cooker recipe for Orange Chicken.

The Lettuce Wrap recipe was TIME CONSUMING....it made me realize that the price for this famous appetizer in the restaurant might not be too far off base considering the vast array of ingredients and chopping time for it all.  It was kind of fun for me to put together for my Thursday Night Ladies, though, so to that degree it was a gratifying experiment.  However, it took a visit to 3 stores to accumulate all the ingredients.  It took a couple of hours to put together.  And while the texture and look were pretty "spot-on", the taste was just slightly off.  It might have been the brands of different sauces I used.

The Orange Chicken was kind of fun as it inspired a deep fryer purchase from Walmart.  I spent all of $9 on the fryer and $4.50 for a mini Cuisinart style chopper....major clearance finds!   So, once again I ended up with a result with the perfect consistency (after boiling the sauce up a bit more in a skillet).  However, I was not a fan of the very strong orange concentrate taste.  If you try it for yourself, I'd suggest halving the concentrate in it.

Tonight I tried this.  Slow cooking pork tenderloin in root beer, pretty strange right?  But, upon reading about it, apparently it works as an amazing tenderizer.  The kids both loved it, though next time I'll probably use a little less sauce (about one standard size container of bbq sauce).  As for the tenderloin, I used Costco's Kirkland brand, sold in a four-pack in their meat section.  Good stuff!

On to Pinterest cleaning inspirations.

Yesterday, I tried this to clean my couches.  Ours are brown, so they've definitely hid dirt and wear much better than any in our past.  But, the "after" effect was noticeable, and it was really a rather painless process to complete.

I also purchased some Dawn and hydrogen peroxide to give this a try on some favorite white tank tops and t-shirts that have gotten dingy.  Instead of spot-cleaning, I put a pile of about 8 items in my sink and just let them soak for a couple of hours.  I then transferred the pile into my washing machine (minus any additional detergent) and hit the rinse cycle.   I bet you might guess where I'm going with this.... =)  That much Dawn in a high efficiency front load washing machine is not a good idea.  Even after a couple of repeat cycles, it was still loaded with foamy suds.  On the positive side, Mikayla and Christina had a blast pulling it out and playing with it (pretty clean fun to let them indulge in....not to mention they helped rid the machine of it).  I ended up transferring the whole load to the bathtub and rinsed it under the shower for a while.  That was the trick, as the last run through the washing machine was successful.   As for results, yes, a lot brighter, but not all the "armpit stains" disappeared completely.  I'm not sure if it was worth all the effort, but it was worth a shot to try.

How about any of you other readers out there, any personal test-run of popular Pinterest ideas you have to review?

Happy Valentines Day!

I saw this idea on Pinterest....looked easy enough to make for the kids this morning with a tube of Pillsbury Orange Rolls.

When Brayden came in, he said, "Oh cute, 'Moustache Rolls'"....

Uh close, but not quite!

Happy Valentines Day everyone!

Restoring My Soul

If you look closely at the bottom of this plaque, you'll see "Sunriver Restores My Soul"...the rest of the history lesson is lost on me - that's all that resonated with me.

We are here for a mere 36 hours, but already, my soul feels restored.  The snow blanketing the ground, the smell of the pine, and the feel of the brilliant sunshine.....sigh.  Not to mention the hot tub which is one of the best we've come across in the houses we've rented from around here, set at an ideal 103 degrees - perfect to spend vast amounts of time reading from my Kindle. 

We are here as a perk from John's work, as he is currently making an appearance at an Oregon Dental Association conference in Sisters*.  He left around 7 this morning, and he'll be back by around 1, earning our stay.  To keep me, Sydney, and the kids company, we brought along the Whites, and Michele and the girls.   We'll have to check out at 11am tomorrow, but the journey is worth it.

So, here's to making the best of our short stay in Central Oregon, and savoring every little minute.

*  With the mention of Oregon Dental Association and the reference to John working for Tyson Steele Marketing, I feel like now might be a good time to clarify what it is John does for a career.  He works with "Tyson Steele", the person, who created a marketing company used for higher-end dental practices.  It is a very small company that runs out of a Victorian-style house-converted-into-office in downtown Eugene.  They employ around 8 folks at any given time.  John is the VP of Sales - meaning, he's the one who follows up on all leads and determines if potential clients would be good fits for the services Tyson Steele (the company) has to offer.   That's a simplified explanation...it's certainly never a career John ever would have dreamed of aspiring too, but it is a PERFECT fit for his skill-set and occupational giftedness. 

Lane County Historical Museum

In the fourth grade curriculum at our kids' school, the Oregon Trail is a very big deal.  The whole second half of the year is dedicated towards activities including a ho-down, simulations, reports, and creating miniature "wagons" with all the supplies needed.

To kick off the curriculum, a field trip is planned to the Lane County Historical Museum.  It's just across town from the school, and for the short hour and a half we were there, I feel like they did an excellent job giving the kids a real taste of what the journey along the Oregon Trail was like and what the day of a pioneer would include.  I had gone when Brayden was in fourth grade - his experience was a little longer and more tedious, so today was a pleasant surprise.

Also, Mikayla was asked to be one of ten "actors" to be part of the enactments of what a day would look like.  It gave me plenty of photo ops.

The Party That I Hosted but Didn't Attend

Superbowl 46!  Woo hoo!  For the third year in a row, we had Heather and Kaela take over the social reigns in putting out the invites to create an environment ready to party...

Where the pumpkin-carving party is primarily aimed to the college students, this event is primarily aimed to those out of college - that 20's age group that often gets lost in the mix.

We decided to repeat last year's offerings of Mexican fare.  Taco meat is an easy one to keep warm in the crock pots, making it ideal for the kind of party where folks will be grazing for hours on end.  Based on these tables, it's that lots of extra food was brought by all the folks that came to visit. 

This picture was taken during the first half - when not everyone had even shown up yet!

At halftime, it was time for some football.  It's the biggest street game we've ever had, that is for sure!

The view post half-time.  Nope, not an inch of carpet to spare - I think we definitely exceeded the capacity in our home (all told, John counted 42 people that came)!

Suzie's husband, Lance, guessed the score of the game PERFECTLY!  Way to go Lance (he also caught the winning touchdown in the halftime game!)

Nice T-bow pose, Brayden....these folks were the last of the crew to leave.

So, what you didn't see in any of these pictures - was a picture of me.  There's a reason for that.  I was in the bedroom lying as still as possible.  The headache that I'd been battling since Tuesday, decided to pull out its full arsenal and literally wiped me out.   Kaela arrived early, and I'd hoped to just disappear in the bedroom and wake up about 15 minutes before party start time (2pm) - leaving her and the family with the minimal last minute chores left over.  However, after taking a mini nap and then getting up to get dressed up, it quickly became clear with the shaky hands and nauseousness, that this wasn't going to work.  My one hold-out for hope was that I'd called Mom earlier to see if she could stop by after the movie her and Dad went to watch.  She did show up around 3, and for sure, helped the situation, but by then, my body was so far gone in terms of pain overload that I didn't stand a chance at quick recovery.  I know it pained Mom to see me like that....I so hate inconveniencing her life to run to my rescue - and yet, I know she'd do it in a heartbeat.  I just wish it wasn't necessary.

By about 9pm, I'd dozed just enough to recognize that I'd wake up the next morning feeling significantly better.  I'd conquered the worst of it.  Honestly, this week (culminating in the total despair that was yesterday) had really taken its toll.  I was able to keep the issue at bay through most of the week with medicine and ice, but that's a bit like a victim being given a restraining order from an attacker.  Theoretically, you know its not supposed to "get you", but the haunting of it being "just around the corner" is always there.  (Not to mention, often the medicine just doesn't do the trick).  One of the best pieces I've read regarding physical pain was posted here.  It just isn't a whole lot of fun.

Fortunately, I saw Mom again this morning, and I'm doing SIGNIFICANTLY better.  Thank you, Lord.  Yesterday, I really succumbed to the fear of the what-ifs, the how longs, the how oftens.  If I'd even had the ability or energy to cry, I would have done a lot of it - instead it was a lot of stillness.  A lot of thinking.  A lot of listening to raucous laughter - which is just what I wanted, but a constant reminder of what was being robbed of me - and how many moments of my future would also be robbed.

God doesn't give us what we need to handle for the future, he just promises it in the moment.  He got me through yesterday, and I need to trust He'll get me through anything else much worse than that in the future.  However, I do have a new determination to pick up those physical therapy exercises and see if I can't regain some control over this demon.  Something's gotta give, and I'm determined it's not going to be my future attendance at the very party I'm supposed to host....

Reunited...and It Feels So Good!

Sometimes I'm a little naive, is that song lyric used for my post title inappropriate? =)

If you count all the women in this picture - you will find a Perfect Ten....all of our past "Tuesday Night Ladies" and current "Thursday Night Ladies" - together again.  Courtney (front row, second in from the left) is up at OHSU in med school, but skipped out on Friday's classed to make it down to see us and spend her birthday (4th) weekend at home.  Elaina (cuddled next to me in the back row), has a birthday on the 5th.  It was perfect, then, that EVERYONE could be in attendance Thursday night, even after a trip down Kimmie's stairs had her and Elaina late as they had to take a trip to the doctor's office en route to my house.  (Fortunately, it was just a sprain for Kimmie - you can see her right ankle (far left) taped up a bit).

A few things I notice from this picture.  1.) Our fireplace is not a good backdrop as the white is so marred by the soot.  That's why Mikayla and I spent about two hours today repainting it white....my gosh, it looks so good now....we need another reunion so we can do a picture re-do!!!  2.)  Stephie looks positively "glowy" these days, huh?  (far right).  On Monday, she'll be at 12 weeks....woo hoo, girl, you look good pregnant!!!  And finally #3.)  I am ONE BLESSED GIRL to have these amazing, gorgeous (on the outside and INSIDE) ladies in my life.

Happy Girls Seeing "Happy Feet 2"

As I'm sure I've mentioned before, my daughter is not much of a "playdate enthusiast".  In yet another demonstration of how she takes after her mama, Mikayla likes her downtime at home.  She is happily social at school, and does fine when invited to hang out at others' house - but if she were to plan her time in advance, she'd probably prefer a day without after-school plans vs. one that included activities and friends.

It's a bittersweet thing, then, when she finds her friendship circle growing (due to an incredibly "stacked" class of very sweet and social girls) and more of these friends are asking her to visit their homes for playdates.  With every playdate she attends, I tally up a mental checklist of all the dates we need to reciprocate.  We were getting a bit behind, so I suggested to Mikayla that we take care of them all in one fell swoop by taking a group of girls to go see "Happy Feet 2" at the Dollar Theater.  Easy peasy for me, a fun outing for them - and I feel a little bit less guilty for being a slacker in reciprocating playdates.

In the picture below - from left to right:
"new friend" Meg, Mikayla, BF Kenady, Piper, "new friend" Harley, and Anika (Kenady's sister)
And for the record, I did not suggest that they sit on the floor of the dirty theater....they did that all on their own.

The only sour note out of this experience was some hurt feelings that resulted from folks that weren't invited.  Oh crud.... One girl in particular had a real hard time that she was not asked to attend, and it turned into a big drama by Friday afternoon.  Mikayla was crying, sad that she was upset.  There's an extra complication in that the mom of this girl happens to be someone I know and have had my own experiences surrounding hurt feelings with.   Ughhhh, this could get messy.

Fortunately, through a series of Facebook Message conversations - the first worded on my FB account to the girl's account by Mikayla was an apology - and then a dialogue between the mom and I today.  I am SO THANKFUL to report that while we may have struggled in the past, we definitely are on the same playing field today wanting to look out for our daughters, but not over-coddling them to believe they'll always be in the mix of every invite.  I was able to clear up a rumor that the only reason this girl wasn't invited was because of our past issues (it absolutely was not a factor, it had more to do with a potential conflict with her daughter and one of the other girls we had to reciprocate playdates with) - and to be able to say that with a clear heart felt good.  I'm also happy that this girl and my daughter ARE friends - she's a special girl that I've had a fondness for ever since she was born.

So, while this experience may have caused concern for Mikayla - and yes, a few tears, it proved to me that while "drama" will always be part of life, sometimes time can do a lot to repair - and over the years - with a huge dose of God's grace and a little maturity, it does get easier to handle.

Introducing Yet Another Miracle

Let me quickly point out, this is not a picture of our baby.  No, I am not pregnant.  However, our BFF's, Travis and Stephanie are....and I have been dying to share this news since finding out on Christmas night.

More to come soon in terms of details - because there are a whole lot to share....but for now I must pick up six fourth grade girls to take them all to see "Happy Feet 2".  But, I wanted to at least post the picture and the announcement.....

Just "Bounce"

This is an interesting weekend for us.  Yesterday I drove up to Dallas to pick up Michele and Michael's kiddos as they were headed to a retreat with their church's high school group in Sunriver.  With today being a "no school" day, it left for a day to occupy five kids by myself - without losing it or letting my house get absolutely trashed. 

Earlier this week, Mikayla began a new once-a-week class at a gynmastics/trampoline warehouse with Christina and Erica.  The facility is called "Bounce" and Mikayla enjoyed the experience so much that she "jumped' (ha ha!) at the chance to participate in an open gym today.  At first, I figured the boys would prefer to go to a movie while the girls went there, but as it turned out, they opted to go with the girls once they found out I wouldn't be attending the movie with them (sweet, huh?....not too grown up yet!).  As it turned out, all five of the kids, plus Amy's three kiddos, had a blast at the two hour open gym.

I actually have to say, though, despite all the fun, I did breathe a sigh of relief when the two hours were up that no injuries resulted for any of the 8 of them.  WHEW!!!

After those two hours of watching THEM exercise, I'd worked up an appetite so I coerced them all to join me in giving "Five Guys" a try at a franchise that just opened up around the corner.  Pretty much made myself sick gorging on the fries....but it was so good....

Tonight through tomorrow, John is at a leadership retreat so I'll still be flying solo in terms of keeping the kids entertained.  Fortunately, not a lot is required by me these days in keeping these five occupied.  Such a different story from when they were little....