Work In Progress

Well, I took the plunge last week and got braces put on my teeth. I will have them on for 14-18 months. I'm still feeling very crowded and tender in my mouth. I have to select what I eat carefully, but I'm hoping my teeth will settle down soon. I know it will be worth it, but so far, it's been quite a hassle.
If you can't really see anything, that's the idea. I've got clear ones on my front upper teeth. The rest are old-fashioned metal ones. I wanted to do invisalign, but my tooth rotation made them unsuitable. Oh well, I guess I can't have everything, right?

Memorial Day Hike

We went to Silver Falls on Memorial Day this year with my sisters family and our folks.


The water felt very cold to me, but the kids played after lunch for a long time.

Does anyone see a future rock-climber here?

Savannah has a lot to say these days, and grandparents make such good listeners.

My Super Hero!

There were lots of convenient resting spots along the trail, even though sometimes we had to squeeze a bit!

Opal Creek Hike

We like to hike a lot in the summer.
Just a week or two ago we went to Opal Creek, near Detroit.

There's an abandoned mine by the side of the trail, complete with spooky drippy ceilings and dark murky tunnels. You can see that the tunnel is blocked off about 10 ft. inside the entrance.

There is also an abandoned mill by this beautiful "Waterfall of the Children".

There are some seriously tall trees in this part of the forest. It has been protected, so the old growth is still there, the water is crystal clear, it's absolutely beautiful!

We spent the walk back from the mill pretending there were faeries bathing in the streams and resting on the mossy banks, flying to and from their hidden houses. We even think we saw Peter Pan's secret hideout up a rocky, mossy cliff.

my church bag

I've been wanting a new bag for my scriptures for a while now. My old one didn't fit the standard works and my lesson books all together. I also wanted a bag that would be hands free and not flop around my arm like a purse would. Here is the result of my efforts.

I designed this as a messenger-type bag with a flap that goes over the top to keep out rain and keep in various little bits and pieces.

I added a liner and some pockets along the back side. It holds pen, pencil, hymnal, and chapstick, etc.

Here it is, stuffed with all my churchy type things, ready to go! It's got a flat bottom so it stands up by itself when it's filled.

Fish

Montana received a goldfish as a birthday gift. This is our first experience with any aquatic lifeforms in our home. Anna and Savannah decided the fish needed a thorough inspection before being fully approved as a member of the household. You see Savannah even had on appropriate clothing in case she needed to get into the bowl with the fish. Apparently, s/he passed muster, because the happy little thing is zipping around it's bowl this very moment.

A.C. GIlbert House

Last week for a field trip, we went to a children's museum here in Salem. It consists of three victorian houses with different exhibits in each room. One of my favorites is the darkroom. You can dance and jump and it has different ways of showing your image back to you. Sometimes this way, sometimes as a kaleidescope, sometimes slowly fading, sometimes quick. It's very fun!
Another favorite room is the bubble room. The floor has mats so no matter how drippy things get, no one slips. There are several tables and contraptions to play with and test out different shapes of bubbles. You can even "beam yourself up" inside a bubble column, if you've got the skills.
Alena was particularly adept at making giant bubbles with a hula hoop. You can see Montana, Erik, Djeryd and MyLiege on the left side of Alena and Emma in the lower right corner. It was hard to walk away from this fun room.

Life is not a destination, but a Journey...

. . . enjoy the journey. I've recently become vaguely discontent with my life. My sister says it's because I turned thirty last year. I suddenly feel like I should behave and look like a grown-up, at least most of the time. Like actually wearing makeup to the grocery store and going beyond wardrobe basics to something with a bit of flair. I am intimidated by these ideas and don't know where to go, but I now have a sort of road map for me. My sister lent me a book called The Total Mom Makeover. It's a six-week deal. I'm on day 2. I tend to shy away from deep self-reflection, but I'm going to force myself to go through the exercises each day in hopes that I'll come out at the other end a better person and more happy to be me (not that I don't like being me, just that I could be happier with myself).