How to get an ulcer in FIVE EASY STEPS!

1. Pick out a the cheapest kind of shingles you can.
2. Find out that when they talk about shingles costing $65.00 a square, that means 100 square feet.
3. Wake up on Saturday morning, and while laying in bed with a sleep fogged brain, try to guess what the square footage of your roof is. Multiply that by $65.00 and freak out when your phone says your roof is going to cost $15,600.00. Especially freak when you remember that number is NOT in the budget.
4. Go to see your husband at your property where he has been working on the house.
5. Listen as said husband tells you that the roof on the house is too huge and so we are hiring a crew to roof it.

See, it's easy! You can do it too.

Tune in for my next post on how to get rid of an ulcer in one easy step. Ok, nevermind, I'll tell you now. Talk to your husband about the roof cost, and let him tell you that you have not moved the decimal properly. You guys do the math (I was guessing 2400 sq ft). Trust me, it's a WHOLE lot nicer than what I first figured out.

PS - I said I would praise God from the rooftops for the price being less than I thought it was going to be. And then I amended it to our attic. Now I'm amending it again. I'm praising Him from my blog. What a relief to know that things aren't as expensive as I thought!

Thankful.

Yesterday a friend put something on Facebook that made me think. She had seen on a friend's status the question, "What if you woke up today with only the things you thanked God for yesterday?" It had caused her to stop and thank God and it stopped me as well. Several of the lessons at church lately have been on the necessity of thanks, bringing out the scripture that links unthankfulness with being unholy and a whole heap of other bad things. I can tell you, I didn't tell God thanks yesterday for a LOT of the things that I woke up with this morning. The health to get up with my husband at a dark hour, to have the food to feed him and my male in-laws before they went hunting. A husband that is always thanking me for the things that he could easily take for granted: doing his laundry, the dishes, grocery shopping. He always notices when I have cleaned, and tells me the house looks nice, even if I have only vacummed. (I love being able to brag on my man!) A country where I am free, a God who loves me, an enormous amount of family who accept me exactly as I am, friends who listen when I obsess over strange things and tell me to breathe, family who also happen to be friends, a job that gives me something to do during the day as well as being a good environment in which to work. Sunshine. Oh how I am thankful for sunshine. I know we don't have much of it left and I try to be careful to thank God for that enormous blessing.

Something else HUGE that has been making my heart sing lately: I wrote a post a while back about Cameron's uncle who has Lyme's disease. This sweet man has suffered for 8 years with this awful disease. Just over 5 weeks ago, he was unable to eat most things that all of us take for granted. His body would only accept certain kinds of seafood and a few different types of greens. That is what he ate for three meals a day. He was starving to death, weighing only 118 pounds. Yet, he always was positive, rarely complaining. This sweet man is SO much better today. He can eat many many things again. He can eat fruit, which he hasn't been able to eat for FIVE YEARS. He can eat grains, a food his body has rejected for months. He has gained FIFTEEN pounds in the last five weeks, and it is so obvious that he is feeling better. He has been unable to sleep right for years; he had cut holes in his mattress where his hips and shoulders would rest because they were so sensitive he couldn't stand to have the pressure on them. He has filled in the holes and can sleep normally again. His eyes are getting better: he said he has been able to go work in his shop for little bits each day. (He cannot tolerate sunshine and really cannot use his eyes much at all, they are so sensitive to light.) He has been able to walk and exercise. Oh, how we are all thanking the Lord. He has really turned things around for Uncle Brook and we get to share in the blessing.

What a great God I have today. Thank you, thank you, thank you for everything.

The Street Vacation

In these troubled economic times, Elko, Nevada has got it figured out. As a town, they have banded together to create the ultimate staycation: The Street Vacation. They have even made it a part of their municipal code in an effort to promote contentment from the too-poor-to-travel among them. So, Elko citizens: Has it succeeded? Are you vacationing on the street? What are the comforts of home that you miss while you camp on your neighbor's sidewalk? Do you resist the urge to sneak back into your own bed when you think no one is watching? Have you mastered the art of cooking over a campfire assembled from newspapers robbed from the recycling bin down the street? Did you think to bring matches or did you have to use the rubbing two sticks together method? And the most important question of all: When it comes time to vote for the people who create the laws in your town, will you pick new ones or do you think they are doing a great job of promoting unity in this time of hardship?

Please, Elko. I want to know.

Wynken, Blynken, and Nod

While I was home last weekend, my Grandma reminded me of this story that she used to read to us. It brought back such fond memories that I thought I would share it.

Wynken, Blynken, and Nod (Dutch Lullaby)
by Eugene Field (1850-1895)
 
Wynken, Blynken, and Nod one night
   Sailed off in a wooden shoe---
Sailed on a river of crystal light,
   Into a sea of dew.
"Where are you going, and what do you wish?"
   The old moon asked the three.
"We have come to fish for the herring fish
   That live in this beautiful sea;
   Nets of silver and gold have we!"
                     Said Wynken,
                     Blynken,
                     And Nod.
 
The old moon laughed and sang a song,
   As they rocked in the wooden shoe,
And the wind that sped them all night long
   Ruffled the waves of dew.
The little stars were the herring fish
   That lived in that beautiful sea---
"Now cast your nets wherever you wish---
   Never afeard are we";
   So cried the stars to the fishermen three:
                     Wynken,
                     Blynken,
                     And Nod.
 
All night long their nets they threw
   To the stars in the twinkling foam---
Then down from the skies came the wooden shoe,
   Bringing the fishermen home;
'T was all so pretty a sail it seemed
   As if it could not be,
And some folks thought 't was a dream they 'd dreamed
   Of sailing that beautiful sea---
   But I shall name you the fishermen three:
                     Wynken,
                     Blynken,
                     And Nod.
 
Wynken and Blynken are two little eyes,
   And Nod is a little head,
And the wooden shoe that sailed the skies
   Is a wee one's trundle-bed.
So shut your eyes while mother sings
   Of wonderful sights that be,
And you shall see the beautiful things
   As you rock in the misty sea,
   Where the old shoe rocked the fishermen three:
                     Wynken,
                     Blynken,
                     And Nod.

Summer 2011- part 2

So last time we spoke, I showed you pictures of the OK June wedding. And I sadly confessed that we had taken no pictures of the bride. Somehow, though, we got three pictures of this. It's a good thing they had hired a real photographer to capture their special day!

Well, hello, Rusty's ear. I would not be able to survive without photographic documentation of your ear to hold me through my homesickness.

I also forgot to share our self-portrait from Glacier with you. We are going to perfect the art of self-portraits someday. Until then, you'll just have to suffer through our amateur photography. I mean really - when we take 3 pictures of Rusty's ear and none of the bride, you gotta know that we are not very good at this.

Cheese!

After our trip to OK, it was back to the grind stone for all of us. Poor Wesley - the weather was too cold almost the whole time he was here for any water activity. I think he maybe jumped in the lake once. It's warmer now. It got up to a whole 90 degrees! We did get to do some hiking, he rode dirt bikes with the boys, we rode our bicycles around the neighborhood, and he enjoyed lots of Taco Bell. Methinks my cooking skills could use some improvement.

Daddy came to visit at the end of July and stayed with us for a week. Sadly, I took no pictures. We spent an afternoon trying to pick huckleberries, only to discover that since it had been so cold, they were all very green and smallish. Too bad. Daddy also got to experience our huge two block farmer's market. I don't think he was terribly impressed.

A couple of weekends ago, we went camping with Hubby's family. We had a very gorgeous campsite.

I actually stood in the river to take the picture. I had my shoes on, so I was able to stand it for a couple of minutes before my feet were aching from the cold. I'm a wimp.

We were surrounded by huge old growth cedars. So beautiful.

I spent most of the days relaxing in the camp with my Kindle. I loved it. Cameron did take me on a brief dirt bike ride and that was fun too.

We saw a lot of wildlife in the camp. (My MIL spent the days relaxing with me.) There was a game trail not very far away and we saw many deer on it. We also saw a mink in the water one day.

He's kinda hard to see, but look right in the middle of the picture. He had just either caught a fish or picked up the fish guts that were in the river from the fish caught the previous night. He's a fuzzy ball that blends in with the rocks.

Again look in the middle of the picture. He is stretched out (a side view) swimming. I didn't think I had gotten any picture of him until I zoomed in, that is how well he blends.

This little deer was pretty fearless. See the huge tree behind him? I had snuck up behind a huge tree a ways in front of him and zoomed way in. He just stopped and posed and let me take his picture over and over again.

Told you he was posing.

There were several things to be thankful for in that camping trip. That I didn't actually get *sick* when I was getting carsick from the winding roads we had to take to get there. That we didn't end up carpooling with Hubs bro. That is a thankful thing because the last morning, (his parents left on Sat and we stayed until Sunday) when his bro started his truck to hook it up to the camper so that things would be packed when they came back from the fishing they had planned, the truck made a bad noise and oil spewed EVERYWHERE. Thankfully, it wasn't as bad as it looked. He had recently changed his oil and apparently got a faulty filter. The seal blew and the pressure was such that it spewed oil straight up. I spent the day relaxing in camp while Hubs and his bro drove the 40 miles into town where, thankfully, there was a Napa open. Oil filter and change later, it was time to pack up and drive the 3 hours home. I'm thankful his filter blew in camp and not on the road. And I'm thankful we all made it home safely.

This past Friday Hubs and I camped out at our property, which we have fondly dubbed Poppity Acres. Or I have in memory of good times as a kid, and Hubs is indulging me. It was cold at night, but fun to be snug inside our tent in the basement. His family and some friends showed up in the morning and we (ok, they) got busy doing the last prep work so the trusses could go up. We ran out of time before they actually got the trusses in place, but the boys are working on it again this evening. Wanna see pictures?

This was our basement before the walls.

The front door with the trusses set on top of the roof.

I thought this was way cool. I laid down on the living room floor and took a pic of the trusses.

The view from my living room window.

There is a flock of turkeys that lives on our property. Here is evidence.

There's our summer for you. I hope we have a few more weeks of summer before fall arrives.

Summer 2011 - part 1

I didn't do very well at sharing our summer with you all as we went along, and now that we almost to fall, I thought I had better get busy! At the beginning of the summer, (the end of May), Misti and Bob and Wesley came to see us. Hubs and I took them and his brothers and a friend over to Glacier National Park for the weekend. It was still pretty chilly but that couldn't hide the gorgeous-ness.

I'm not sure if you can take a bad picture of scenery like this. Note the snow. And the green tint to the water. I hear the minerals from glacier runoff cause that.

I was trying to take an action shot of Bob and Wes skipping rocks. I'm not sure what Cameron is doing in the background.

See that speck? That is a mountain goat. It is in the middle of that cliff. I have no idea how it got there, but I sure would've liked to have seen it get out!

Bob gingerly made his way to this rock without even getting wet. He is studiously ignoring me taking a picture of him.

I neglected to take pictures of the cute little cabins we stayed in, but you can use your imagination. They were small and loggy and cozy. We had a good time.

Fast forward a couple of weeks, and we were home to OK for my brother's wedding. It was beautiful. The wedding, that is. OK was WARM.

With a couple of the goyls (aka girls). I was making shish kabobs for the girls while the guys were at the bachelor party.

Wedding spot. So pretty.

I just realized that we didn't get a pic of the wedding party with the bride. Wedding pictures fail!

Do you remember the story of the Little Engine That Could? Well, right now, I'm going to think I can right to bed and finish this post another day. Yes, I am leaving you hanging, but since you have been hanging all summer, I think you can handle it!

Lately...

My brother Wesley spent the oh-so-short summer with us. Am I the only one who can't believe it's already August??? Wesley went home this week. My dad came to visit for about a week and then they drove home together. I was sad to see them go. Cameron knew this. He brought me these at work on Tuesday.

Isn't he the best husband?

Our house is coming right along. The basement is framed in, and all of the exterior walls on the main floor are up, excluding the garage walls. Cameron has been taking pictures of the progress on his phone, but I have yet to get them off so I can share them with you all.

A peek inside my head: At work, there are little things that annoy me. The sleepier I am, the more things there are. Things like people sneezing really loudly. We are set up in a very classroom like environment. Rows and columns of desks, all facing the boss's office. Back to the annoyances: I realized something profound one day. Me being annoyed is pretty selfish. I'm sure you're thinking, "duh! Being annoyed is definitely something you experience yourself." No, I mean, the root of being annoyed is wishing they would stop sneezing really loudly, for instance. Seriously, can't you just hold it in? The loss of brain cells resulting from all that pressure in your head is definitely worth it to keep from annoying me! See what I'm saying? I wish they would change their behavior because I don't like it. So this is the conversation that I had with myself. "Self, get over yourself!" Myself is working on it. There are still things that annoy me, but I'm coming to grips with ignoring them. Now, aren't you glad that I shared this profound realization with you? You're welcome!

I found out today that an acquaintance lost her son in the helicopter crash in Afghanistan last night. I felt a little bit silly crying when I had never met him, and don't know this woman well, but I can imagine a little of the grief she and her family, as well as the other 30 families of the men (and maybe women) who were on that helicopter. I have been praying nonstop for comfort and peace and strength for these families. Please, won't you pray with me? Thank you.