What we've been up to...

My, my, my, it is a busy time of year!  Wait--isn't that what I said in December when Christmas was coming?  ;o) 

Ok, it is almost ALWAYS busy around here.  In the last week and a half since I posted, we have been dedicating ourselves to school.  Let me back up:  I loved Celeste's near-perfect timing (my only regret is that she didn't come a little earlier so she would have more time with grandma and grandpa).  With a baby due in early November I was all set to have a full month of va-ca (autocorrect wanted me to type "ca-ca" which is about right also) and then a full month of holiday festivities before re-committing myself to my normal mothering duties.

So here we are: back in the swing of things.  I worked HARD at school the first week of January, only to be disappointed by what we did not finish.  So I worked HARDER at school the next week, and we did great!

But…that meant not much time on line.  I'll see what I can get done today before another full week.

Christmas Fun Day (Post 2 of 2)

After visiting Santa, we were off to dinner at one of our favorite restaurants, Deschutes Brewpub:

elk burger

Christmas Fun Day (Post 1 of 2)

Every December, we take off for Portland for an afternoon:

Walking to Macy's

In front of the Christmas tree in
"Portland's Livingroom"
Pioneer Courthouse Square

We made it to Santa at Macy's!
Everyone got a turn on his lap.

The old monorail--the lawyers took it out of commission,
something about a "safety hazard."  Personally, I thought it
was a great idea to lock kids up and suspend them
from the ceiling….

Someone liked the train display.

Yarn Bombing!!

Benson Bubblers

A quick ride on Max

Stay tuned for part deux of our Christmas Fun Day….

6 years ago today

Six years ago today I delivered my 4th child, little Mary Rose.  We gave her that name because I was due to have her in June, which would've been the time of the Rose Festival in Portland.

She had died in utero at around 15 weeks.  We had the amazing experience of a natural delivery, which meant that Marcus and I got to see, touch, and hold our little girl.  It is something I'll never forget.

For those of you who have lost babies, you know that time really does help.  I'm missing my sweet Mary Rose, but God had more gifts in store for me.  One year later I had Gemma…then later Sedric…and now Celeste.  This doesn't lessen my love for Mary Rose but it sure helped to take the raw pain away.  Now I look back with gratitude for the short time I had with her, and we know she's at perfect peace as our advocate in heaven.

Mary Rose -- 1/8/2009

All-Purpose Cleaner recipe

I've had multiple requests for my cleaner recipe (Erica asked a few years ago, and Nicole just recently asked after she saw me using it to clean up after Emmett, who vomited after "choking on a nut").  Here it is!!

Heavy-Duty All-Purpose Cleaner

1 Tablespoon white vinegar

1 Tablespoon Borax

1 Tablespoon dish detergent

1 gallon warm water

I mix this by the gallon and fill our squirt bottles with it.  We have probably 8 bottles scattered around the house!  This cleaner is for surfaces AND glass, so I have the kids use it for everything.  I like that it doesn't have harsh chemicals, and it's so cheap that I don't mind having so many bottles around.  Originally this recipe was used to save money (back when we were knee-deep in the Dave Ramsey plan) but even now that we're debt-free and in better financial shape, I still refuse to spend big bucks on cleaners!

Disclaimer: Marcus prefers the scented Method cleaners so yes, you will find those in our house also…but you won't find ME using them!!!  ;o)

Two parties in one day!

One Sunday in December, we hosted TWO parties in one day!

The first party was my annual Christmas luncheon with my Altar Society ladies.  I've been a part of the St. Teresa circle for about 10 years now (maybe more??) and I love it!!  There is so much piety, knowledge, and humor in these ladies.  I've learned a lot over the years, about raising large families and life on a farm and all the history behind the major parish families (some might call it "gossip" but I prefer "history").  This day, inspired by the recent wind storm, they told stories about the 1962 Columbus Day storm.  Amazing!  They had first-hand accounts of trying to find safety for their families in the middle of tornado-type winds, and living without electricity for almost 2 weeks.  SO glad our storm this year was tiny!!

St. Matthew Altar Society, St. Teresa Circle

Our next party was a small gathering of 17 which just means that it was our normal family dinner (minus Uncle Brian, who was sick).  We were supposed to go to Uncle Brian/Auntie Coley's house for Nicole's birthday celebration, but with the host sick in bed we had to make other plans.  Marcus and I had everyone over here to our home and had a great party.  :o)

Marcus told us to "act normal."

Happy Birthday, Auntie Coley!

Our Lady of Guadalupe

Here's a glimpse of our Our Lady of Guadalupe celebration in our home:

(By the way, Marcus pointed out that I am very wise to be delaying my posts, so that criminals don't know when we are away from the house like they would know if I'm on facebook/twitter/instagram.  ha ha ha)

first time trying Tres Leche cake--yum!
(this was the cake that didn't make it to the oven when our
power went out the day before)