Happy 4th of July

Edson barbecued steak and pork steak in the afternoon. We went back in the evening the do fireworks in the driveway. Ryder was not liking the noise or the sparks so we stayed inside with him so he could watch through the window. He was much happier playing with toys. He would venture out to see Mama, peek around the corner of the house, then say "around" which means let's go back. He is very fortunate to be able to express himself as well as he does at two. It has been so hot for the last three days that it has been hard to keep the garden watered. It is supposed to be cooling off this week. I left my camera at Amy's so I will have to post pictures next time.

Fences make good dogs

We have a whiskey barrel in the front yard for flowers, but Beau can't seem to keep out of it. He loves to dig in dirt. He nearly emptied it as soon as the ice melted a few months ago. A couple of weeks ago I planted some new flowers and added some potting soil with fertilizer in it. It lasted all of one night. I planted them in the evening. By the time I got home from work the next evening, it was emptied of the plants and half the soil. Between Beau and Teka (we are keeping her while Amy, Edson and the kids are on vacation to Disneyland), it was cleaned out and most of the plants were completely gone. I managed to salvage two, but there were dumped out again the next day. Lesson learned. I put up wire fencing around the barrel. I have watched Beau stand up on his tippy toes to see if he can figure out how to get in there. Since he couldn't he dug another hole in the yard. He also likes to dig up the hens and chickens in the flower beds. Just one every now and then. He always leaves his treasures on the door step. Perhaps he's part cat.

School is out and Jim is volunteering at the Senior Center. He goes down every weekday morning. He has even started Wii bowling down there. He won't play at home because our tv is not as big. I guess that means we will have to get a larger one with a flat screen.

Stake Conference

I am still very excited that Elder Dallin H. Oaks shook my hand twice yesterday. He arrived 45 minutes early so he could wander through the chapel and gym to shake hands with everyone. We were in the 2nd row in the gym even though I went to save Jim a seat two hours before it started. There was a really good turnout. We also shook hands with Elder Merrill of the seventy.

Spring in the gorge . . finally

It is definitely time to switch to spring pictures. The longer days are allowing more walking time after work. Sometimes we walk the neighborhood with the dogs, but my favorite is walking riverfront trial. It is so peaceful and relaxing near the water. Of course, we do share the trail with bicycles, roller bladers and dog walkers. When we take Beau, he thinks he is the biggest dog on the block. He is almost as big as Buttons now. He was supposed to be much smaller.
We finally got Jim enrolled at the Portland VA. He is going to have a consultation with their pain clinic to see if there is something else that can be done for the pain in his foot. It has been a long, exhausting year searching for something that will alleviate at least some the the pain. It puts such a damper on everything for him.
I have been knitting socks lately. They are easy to stick in my purse so I can work on them when I have to wait for appointments, etc.
Tomorrow after work, the tomatoes, tomatillos and cucumbers are going into the garden. We may need to expand our gardening this year since produce is getting more expensive. I do love home grown tomatoes. Our grape arbor is doing really well. We are going to take the fence across the backyard down and replace it before it falls down.
Now for the ten things I love.
1. Do I get to count my grandchildren as the first 8 items? Okay, I'll just lump them together.
2. My kids.
3. Gardening.
4. Miss Julia books.
5. Fat Free Strawberry ice cream.
6. Sunshine and relaxing in my adirondack chair.
7. Hour long massages (I had one Saturday. My insurance reimburses half the cost.)
8. Chocolate.
9. Sleeping in.
10. My husband and his sense of humor. He also has very kissable lips. (No I am not too old to be thinking about things like that!)
11. Shoes that don't hurt my feet.
I am thinking I may retire earlier than originally planned. Six years is sounding much better than ten. My biggest excitement lately is when the Wii told me I was no longer obese, just overweight.

And Snows and Snows . . .

The gorge is closed on both sides of the river. Marcus decided not to go to work last night because he didn't want to get stuck in Portland for Christmas. It is still snowing today. The bishop decided just to have sacrament meeting at 11:00 and only if we feel totally safe in getting out. It took me two hours of leaf blowing the snow to get the car and pathways cleared yesterday. Freddies was a madhouse yesterday. Of course Jim and I got separated in the entry foyer. I stopped to put change in the SA kettle and he was gone. It took about an hour to find him. People we know kept saying they had seen him, but I couldn't find him until he had Cheryl page me to the nutrition center. Fun times. Mark next door shoveled the sidewalk in front and the steps up to the house this morning. I though Harmony would like the view of the birdbath/barbecue. We made end up with more than two feet today. School was cancelled so I stayed home Thursday and Friday to get Jim to his appointments and to keep Mom from trying to drive with just all weather tires. After what happened to Daddy three years ago, I don't want her taking any chances. We got three boxes off to Guam last week. Hopefully we won't have a repeat of gifts arriving 6 weeks late. I still have more boxes to send, but they are not Christmas stuff. I will be baking goodies to take to work tomorrow to share with a couple of offices in our area of the building. I hope I can get there from here tomorrow. I really don't want to walk that far. Tomorrow our days start getting longer. :)

It snowed and snowed and snowed

The forecast was right on the mark. It has been snowing for 3 days and will continue through Christmas. In a brief break yesterday, I cleared the walk up to the front door. This morning it is as high as the step up to the front door. Beau liked it yesterday, but not so much at this depth. He chose the flower bed instead.

These are pictures I took this morning so you can envy our 20 degree weather and winter wonderland.

Snow in the forecast

Snow is in the forecast this week. I knew it was cold the last couple of days, but with some warm days before that. We got our roof fixed yesterday. The stove pipe is completely gone. It was really rusted. We took the dogs for a walk yesterday and it was comfortable in shirt sleeves for me. Jim had his heavy jacket, gloves, and hat to keep him warm. Later, we went for a walk with Amy and the kids on riverfront trail. By that time, it was getting pretty cold. Christmas activities are rapidly approaching. Grandma's workshop has got to get in high gear. I did get the tree up today. I like to let the grandchildren decorate it. It is so much fun to watch them enjoy each ornament.