Visitors

C and B from Tacoma have been here for a visit this week before heading on to the East Coast. They hunkered down here for an extra day to wait out a storm on Cabbage Hill and another that is due in the Rockies. Next week they will spend a few days at Kansas State University with grandson M, then finish their journey to R and E's in Delaware.

Looks Can Be Deceiving

It looks like spring is coming to Athena, but what my camera did not focus on were the snowflakes coming down all around my daffodils!

Il Divo

The group il Divo, the Coliseum in Rome, Amazing Grace, a sunset, bagpipes, amazing harmony & resonance...it all gives me chills. Treat yourself to the following updated link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mMVxzEueJ6A

Hi, Bella!

On our way home from the beach we stopped at Uncle L & D's house for a visit. Daughters J & S joined us and, after a tour of all the wonderful remodelling work, we continued our chatting at a nearby Olive Garden restaurant. It was nice to touch base again, but the time went much too quickly. Below are some pictures sent to us by L earlier, before the deck was finished. D's gift for horticulture is definitely evident in the landscaping!

That's Bella in the driveway.

Our Lenten Retreat

Don and I had a chance to take off to the beach for four nights while daughter, D, stayed with Mom. Actually, she offered to give us a date night, which we daydreamed about stretching into a weekend, and then suddenly goaded into a week-long escape when we saw low rates and a window of opportunity. So we served pancakes, ham & eggs at the church Shrove Tuesday dinner and then took off without looking back on Ash Wednesday morning.

We took plenty to amuse ourselves, figuring that the weather would be too cold to go out much. Our room promised a view overlooking the ocean so we could watch the waves, storms, and seagulls and hear the roar of the ocean as Don read and worked crosswords and I knitted, scrapbooked, and read Harry Potter for the third time. This picture, however, gives witness to the fact that we made it onto the beach after all. Wednesday night we arrived amid a storm that blew us around and randomly dumped a truckload of hail on our heads as we pulled in, but the following day was beautiful. I cannot seem to resist the sand and water. It lures me like a hummingbird to a blossom. I also admit to being unable to resist picking up shells and rocks and treasuring them as if they were diamonds. Yes, bare feet and wet pants are a credible sign that I left the beach a happy person. Below are some of my other accomplishments.

Here is some of the booty we brought home. There are oil paints are from Art Media in Portland and other goodies from the Outlet Mall in Lincoln City.

This little Main Street store is the only place where we buy taffy because they make it fresh weekly. Several times we've been there on the day when the taffy was being pulled by the machines.

Thank you, D, for the much needed respite in one of our favorite places! This sunset's for you.

Winter Getaway

Here are some images of the coast between Newport and Lincoln City, including Boiler Bay and Yaquina Bay. Most of the pictures, however, were taken on our favorite strip of beach in Lincoln City. (Note: If the video takes too long to load, click the title, Winter Getaway, to link to a different slide show.)

Clowning Around

My time in the first grade room came to an end on the 100th day of school. I didn’t realize that this was such a big deal, but every class was keeping count and celebrated in some way. It had been a busy week. The previous Thursday had been our Valentines Day party, which was the first one I’d hosted on my own. (It is a much different experience from the teacher’s point of view than it ever was from a parent’s perspective.) Then we had a four day weekend because of a Friday inservice and Presidents’ Day on the following Monday. This meant cramming five days of reading lessons into four for both weeks while also finding time to make posters for an upcoming school carnival and plan 100-day activities. Added to this was my desire to prepare the next week’s lessons for the returning teacher.

The carnival posters turned out simple, but cute, which seems to be becoming my mantra. I led the students sequentially through the steps of drawing a clown outline, then they filled in the details. The first picture shows a couple results before I added the carnival information at the bottom of each poster.

Digging through a file, I found a few cute things to do for our 100 day celebration and it ended up being a nice way to finish. Besides getting a coloring packet to work on in their spare time, I numbered 100 Reeses miniature candies and hid them around the room while the kids were having lunch. When they came in, they hunted for them and placed each one on a numbered paper. These became their snack at the end of the day. Then, for math, we made Fruit Loop necklaces sorted into 10 groups of 10 Fruit Loops according to color.

I will miss the simplicity with which young children are entertained. Why do we make life so complicated when we get older? It has been a privilege working with this group of first graders. They have taught me much.