To The Bat Cave!

We didn't see any bats, but it was a fun family outing! We recently learned about some nearby lava tubes dubbed Pluto's Cave that seemed like a doable family hike. They are in the vicinity of the lavender farm so we did both in the same outing. We packed some water and flashlights then set off on the trail. The kids were very excited about going in a real cave. Since they like my headlamp so much, I'd found some kid one's on clearance at Wal-Mart that they were especially excited to try out.

It was a short trail to the cave, only 1/3 of a mile. But very rocky! It dawned on us that the kids don't even own a pair sturdy shoes that fit them. They've both outgrown their tennies and like to wear their Croc's everywhere we go. They managed fine in them but their feet got very dirty. Next hike we'll definitely plan that part better.

At the end of the trail, the cave entrance was at the bottom of a little gulch accessed by a short steep path. Matt and Henry made their way down while the girls and I waited for Matt's help. They got to the bottom and walked a few steps toward the dark shadowy cave. Henry suddenly changed his mind and hightailed it back up the rocks and grabbed my hand, pulling me back down the trail to the car. After a few inquiries we deciphered "scared" and "want to go home" from his responses. Hmm. what to do.

Gradually I coaxed him back down the rocks to the cave entrance, one step at a time, assuring him we wouldn't go in we'd just look from the outside. After we got to the bottom again and he saw Daddy and Evalyn walking in the the very open yet shadowy entrance, he followed right along without any hint of his initial fear. Go figure!

It's a very open cave with several sky lights along the way. It didn't feel much tighter than a metro/subway tunnel. We only went part way into the true cave/tunnel part. This was far enough to get the feel for the place but not push the limits of our very young hikers. So we quit while we were ahead and enjoyed the fresh dust-free air when we emerged. (I discovered that bat guano and dust make me sneeze excessively. Pack of tissues or face mask for me next time!)




On the walk back to the car down the sunny hot trail, we had a little conversation about the Mormon pioneer children who traveled with their families as they came from Missouri and Illinois to find religious freedom in the Salt Lake Valley. They walked many miles a day and were often barefoot. We sang the Primary song "Pioneer Children Sang as They Walked"

Pioneer children sang as they walked and walked and walked and walked.

Pioneer children sang as they walked and walked and walked and walked.

They washed at streams and worked and played. Sundays they camped and read and prayed.

Week after week they sang as they walked and walked and walked and walked AND walked.

It's a simple song but tells the story of this great westward trek in a way young children can relate to. What kid doesn't know what it's like to be tired and forced to keep walking when all they want is to stop and rest or get a ride somehow??

It was appropriate too since that was the Saturday before Pioneer Day (a state holiday in Utah) and the next day we drove up to Ashland where our stake (regional congregational organization similar to a diocese) had a fun activity commemorating it. I'd like to say that I planned it that way but it really was coincidence.

The pony ride was the highlight and both kids did fabulous riding, at a slow walk of course. Evalyn's pony was a bit frisky, but she held on and giggled as she was jostled around in the saddle. (It brought back memories of riding our neighbors horses when I was a small girl.) There were some other fun games and relay races planned, but Matt stayed for them with H&E while I multi-tasked the day and did our Costco/gas/shopping errands while we were up there. It worked out well and we were home by 2PM to still enjoy the rest of our Saturday relaxing.

John Adams and Jumper

We just rented Jumper. It was dumb. Totally a special effects poor acting/storyline with some language/sex/violence for the PG-13 rating. Interesting concept, cool effects, I'm sure the book is much better. If it's in your queue or what not, you won't miss a thing if you pass on it.


Contrast that with the best movie, acting, content that I've seen in awhile: HBO's 7 part mini-series John Adams, now on DVD. (If you have your Costco July coupon book, there's a $10 off coupon towards the back.) It is based on the Pulitzer Prize winning book of the same name by David McCullough. I learned new things and re-learned so many simple yet amazing facts about our country's founding. I knew relatively little about John Adams before watching this. His and Abigail's relationship was so touching. Jefferson, Washington, everyone seemed so real, so authentic, exactly how I'd expect them to be. Not that I know what it was really like then, but for one thing, their teeth were falling out towards the end. They showed the shaved heads beneath the powdered wigs. I never knew the details behind some of the diplomacy that went on in Europe. Or how precarious our country was in those first few decades.

Whether you're a history buff or just like a wonderfully long love story of a man for his wife and country and family, watch this. I was skeptical as I put it in the basket per Matt's request, but I'm so glad I did. Very moving. The bonus material about making the movie was great to watch at the end. A definite must see.

The End.

You can blog on the couch...

So, I'm sitting outside under the awning while Evalyn is playing in the water. Linnea had been splashing around with her, but was getting tired so I put her down for a nap. Henry was still sleeping. I get settled back in my patio chair then Evalyn announces she's done and wants to come in. I'm a little slow to respond since this is the first time I've been on the computer going through blogs all week. The following conversation takes place:

**********
E: "Hey Holly, I'm getting tie-erd. I want to go inside and watch a show and eat a graham cracker. Let's watch Max and Ruby!"

M: "Mmmhmm. sounds good. Just put your dry clothes back on and hang up your swimsuit."

(tap a tap a tap. chitter chatter from Evalyn)

E:"Come on Mom! You can blog on the couch."

M:"Okay sweetie." (smiling at her new vocabulary as I get up.)

E:"I'll go get the graham cracker and you find a spot on the couch and get the show put on. How does that sound?"

M:"That sounds great."

E:"I think I want two graham crackers actually..."

************

This little conversation made me grin so I had to capture it. These are her literal sentences. It was even funnier to me since I'd been very busy doing things around the house all day but she made it seem like all I'd been doing was "blogging". I guess she assessed the situation and figured out how to play it to her advantage. :) The show choice was also very random because we haven't watched Max and Ruby for a few months at least.

Lavender Fields Forever

This past Friday we went to some nearby lavender fields. We are big fans of lavender in all it's forms. Matt and I stopped at our first one during part of our honeymoon on the San Juan Islands. Pelindaba Lavender Farms wasn't in bloom when we were there, but they had an excellent store and beautiful grounds, of course.

The next one we visited was in Pennsylvania the summer Evalyn turned one. This was during their festival so there was food for sale, classes on growing lavender, a walking tour of the farm, etc. The place was just getting started and the setting was a field off of a country road with the rolling Catoctins surrounding the valley. It was fun realizing that the girls were about the same age in these two shots.




A few years later we find ourselves near Mt Shasta Lavender Farms, so of course we had to visit while the little purple flowers were blooming. We drove toward the east side of the Shasta Valley, near the town of Weed, down a country highway and up a long winding driveway. It was a gorgeous morning, the heavy smoke had lifted slightly but there was still a white screen to the mountain views. As we drove along the same route we've taken our out of town friends and family, we laughed that we STILL couldn't see the mountain from this point!



The setting was stunning. The whole Valley spread out with it's fields of hay and alfalfa and grazing pastures. Mt Shasta was amazing even shrouded in smoke. A very tranquil place to spend the morning, indeed. The kids were drawn to the water fountain and sandy pathways. In the center a little labyrinth maze drew them in as well. It was oh so lovely breathing in the scents and gazing at the views, sipping lavender lemonade and taking a bajillion pictures. Maybe next year we'll coordinate outfits and hire a photographer to take some family shots there. (Wanna fly out Kellie??) I was hoping to catch Linnea taking some steps, but no such luck. She's on the verge!

A Friend In Need

The sister of a friend of mine is looking to adopt a baby. She and her husband have been trying for awhile and have just started down this new path. Read their story here. If you know of anyone in a situation that could help, please contact them through their blog. Thanks for taking time to think on this.

Quilting Again

This past week I went to a quilting class and started a new project. It's from a kit called Arista's Walk (click Arista's Walk from Category List). I wasn't in love for the fabrics but I liked the design, so even though I was a little late arriving, I quickly chose some shades of blue and grey fat quarters and did a crash refresher course on starting a quilt (It's been a few years). The class meets 3 times over the next 3 months, so my homework is to get all 80 blocks (!!) pieced before the middle of August. The next class is arranging them in the right gradient of lights to darks. After the blocks are sewn together, you use some sort of template to make a huge circle in the middle, then rotate that piece so you have a reverse gradient in the middle. That part doesn't sound so easy, but I'm sure it'll be fun learning!



They are all identical blocks, so it's not that technical and I can chain each step as I go along. The pattern is one big square, cut from 20 fat quarters randomly stacked, evened out and squared (that was the tricky part!). The big square is then cut into 4 smaller squares. Each of those are cut into three strips and the center strip into 3 parts so you have a small center square. The final step is to "shuffle" the center piece in each stack so you'll have 80 unique blocks. 1st stack: move the top square to the bottom, 2nd stack: move the top 5 to the bottom, 3rd: the top 10, 4th: move the top 15.



The fun part about this design is discovering what each block will look like as I move along. Which prints/solids will match up with the others? Will those two favorites get paired together? My skills are very rusty though and my original cuts weren't perfectly straight. I can see already that things are a not very square, but I didn't have high hopes for that anyway. I'm just looking to have a whole quilt finished and usable instead of fabrics on the shelf!





I was trying to think back to when I started quilting and was drawing a blank until I called my mom and picked her brain. We narrowed it down to her visiting Matt and I in the fall of 2003. I made a baby blanket for the first grandbaby/niece and then took a class to make this pretty 3-D wall hanging. (It is pieced but needs still needs a binding and backing and all that jazz.) I've collected a sizable stash and several quilting books, but somehow having children has limited my free time and I've circled from hobby to hobby in the interim. But I always bounce back!

Mainly I needed a scheduled class to get me out of the house instead of sitting in the office/hobby room on my "night off" trying to decided which unfinished project I should finish. So I decided to start another project of course! :D

The Prisoner Shall Go Free

This is Henry's crib tent. He's slept in it since he was just over a year old and mastered climbing out. It's been a lifesaver for us, knowing that our sweet yet mischievous boy is not wandering about the house early in the morning shoving random things in the toaster oven or VCR/DVD slot, let alone falling down the stairs in our last house. The inside mesh kept pacis from falling out at night. Mostly though it's made bedtime a breeze. No agency whatsoever. Once your zipped in, sleep is the best option.

It has seen better days. The zipper pull broke off forever ago and in recent months the tears in the thin fabric have become irreparable (I've tried). The time had come to free our little fellow from his "cage". The big test was going out of town and seeing how he did there. He was great. No major mischief beyond unplugging the alarm clock and playing in the closet.

So we took it off after a couple more nights of unzipped tent success. Our little man is now sleeping in his almost big boy bed! Losing the paci is the next major step for him. Sadly, his sole remaining and beloved pink paci is in about the same shape as the worn crib tent: cracked shield and torn nipple. It will be a much different game weaning him off that!

He isn't completely free though. His cage is simply enlarged to the Henry-proofed room with reversed door knob: bookshelf bolted to wall, locked bifold closet doors with clothes dresser inside [previous tipping incident plus NO desire to refold and putaway clothes every morning. also it is an IKEA MALM dresser so it's ability to wishstand Henry using it as a jungle gym is dubious at best], outlet protectors, no nightlight (he just unplugs it anyway), all thin metallic obects removed in case he does pull a cover off. That might sound kinda harsh, but he has plenty of toys and stuffed animals to occupy himself with. (One of which he uses as a step stool to turn the light on.) And we do check in on him frequently.

One week into non-crib tent bedtime: last night was the first of the "didn't fall asleep right away times" (ie the other nights he went right to sleep because he was exhausted from not taking his afternoon nap so he was begging for his paci the instant dinner was over) that he climbed into his crib to fall asleep after he was done playing with his trains and other things. Two hours later than we were hoping. But that's progress!

Fun with Cousins

The rest of the long weekend was full of simple fun stuff. In bullet and photo form:

*a special stop to get donuts. Evalyn and I went here on a mother daughter outing the first time we were in town and now she asks to "go get donuts at the donut store" whenever we come up.



*riding the Riverfront Carousel. this is a fabulous recreated carousel where each horse was hand carved from basswood especially for this venue and has a name and story behind it. Troy is one Seahorse Dawn, Henry on Bondo and Eva on GJ. Makes it twice the fun.



*playing at the adjacent Riverfront Park. we didn't plan the outing very well and should've bought the sub sandwich lunch before arriving at the park/carousel and had the little picnic there rather than eating a very late lunch after it all. oh well!



*playing Settlers of Zarahemla (based on Settlers of Catan) more than a few times, Quiddler, and Boggle.

*the kids swinging on the oh so favorite oak tree swings. there are only two so it is a big exercise in sharing for them all. Evalyn and Troy were buddies all weekend.



*watching Henry and Troy interact more and remembering they really are only a year apart. their crazy boy antics also made us realize that the long held assumption of "crazy personality combination" between Troy (3.5) and Ben (4.5) was really just boys being boys. since they are way outnumbered by girls in the family, this was a significant revelation. :D Troy's cool "action" dinosaurs were a big hit with Henry. I snapped this shot of his innovated play of having the "sharptooth" eating the "Go Fishing" fishies.



*learning that another BOY will finally join the family! My brother Adam and his wife are expecting him to join their two girls in November. yay!

*playing at the Gilbert House Children's Museum in lieu of driving to the zoo in Portland. this was still a fun alternative since April had an appointment come up and gas being what it is. the first Tuesday of the month is very discounted so we were hoping to take advantage of that. next time!

Independence Day in Independence, Oregon

Fourth of July has always been one of my favorite holidays. It's been awhile since I'd celebrated it with my family, so we decided to drive up to Oregon. As it turned out, Matt had a last minute business trip to SLC for a few days following the long weekend, so I opted to stay in Salem to play with the little cousins and my sisters. It was a nice change of pace where we weren't trying to squeeze so many things into a few days.

First thing Friday my early-rising-Evalyn and I went to the flag raising and breakfast at the church with April and her kids while Matt stayed home with sleeping H&L (we'd gotten in late the night before). Later that morning, Heather's family joined ours to drive down and watch the parade in the small town of Independence just south and over the Willamette River from my parents house. The kids had fun watching the floats, horses, balloons, cars and collecting the occasional candy that was thrown their way. No marching band though. What's with that??





Heather's family headed back to town while we explored the Western Days Festival and scoped out a good spot for the whole clan to gather later than evening. I had a couple of yummy authentic tacos and Matt enjoyed a plate of teriyaki chicken and noodles. I also tried a fruit cup Latino style: watermelon, cucumber, mango with salt and cayenne pepper. Very refreshing! It was the first time since leaving Maryland that we were in the ethnic minority, I think. : )




We drove home very slowly so the kids would nap in the car and regrouped a few hours later before packing up the picnic dinner and gear for the show on the river. This was a first for the Moore family since our tradition for watching the fireworks in Independence usually involved parking along the road next to the blueberry fields on the other side of the river but never venturing into the crowded streets of parking madness that would entail seeing the fireworks closeup in the riverside park. I was determined this year to see them how they were meant to be seen!

It worked out great. April's family and ours caravaned there and snagged the last two $5 parking spots within easy walking distance and quick departure post-fireworks. We loaded 3 strollers worth of kids and gear and wheeled cooler down the hill and chose an ideal spot not too far from the crazy playground but near the Umpqua Ice Cream vendor. :) Heather's van with Gma and Gpa were just a few minutes behind us.





The playground was a nightmare for losing kids, but also a good distraction for the long wait. We had to have a strict one-to-one ratio to keep an eye on the kids and employed the buddy system with 1-to-2 ratio for the oldest ones. (Last year one of the little boys in our group in MD wandered off so I was on high alert for this. He was only missing for 10 or 15 minutes but what seemed like an eternity til he was found with another family nearby.) We played some pile on daddy, ring around the rosy, wait in line at the scary port-a-potties, stand in the crazy long Umpqua Ice Cream line that was well worth the wait (chocolate peanut butter and rocky road in a waffle cone=bliss), sit and chat while trying in vain to corral the children within the circle of blankets and chairs and strollers.





The chaos was worth the wait. A great show with an awesome finale. The little girls were covering their ears the whole time and were very ready for the end when it finally came. It was such a nice feeling having all my nearby family in one spot to celebrate the holiday the way we'd been wanting to for awhile. (Well, minus Caleb who took a side job at Diamond Lake helping set off the fireworks show there. A chance our dear pyromaniac didn't want to pass on!) My camera battery died (really need to replace it) so I borrowed my moms for the kids watching the fireworks shots. Still need to get those and see if any turned out.

Memory Game

a few friends have this on their blog and I haven't done a meme in awhile. so here goes!


1. As a comment on my blog, leave one memory that you and I had together. It doesn't matter if you knew me a little or a lot, anything you remember!

2. Next, re-post these instructions on your blog and see how many people leave a memory about you. It's actually pretty funny to see the responses. If you leave a memory about me, I'll assume you're playing the game and I'll come to your blog and leave one about you.

Smoky Skies

As I'm sure you've all heard in the news, there are a lot of forest fires burning in California at present. We are constantly aware of this since the skies have been filled with smoke for almost two weeks now. June 20 was when the lightning storm blew in and the fires over the mountains from us have yet to be contained.




The "Siskiyou Complex" (another link here) and "Shasta-Trinity Complex" are the two most contributing to our hazy skies. We haven't seen Mt. Shasta in awhile. The sun is a deep red every morning and evening. The acrid smell in the air and billowing clouds the first few days kept flashing vivid memories through my mind from my childhood growing up on the edge of the Los Padres National Forest many miles south of here where another wildfire is also raging away right now. Bomber planes (water/flame retardant planes) helicopters, ash falling from the sky, walking with our dog on her leash thinking of what things I'd get from our house if we had to evacuate. After it was all over, driving by the burned hillsides just a few miles down the road from us. Whenever we'd see the enormous billowing black clouds with tinges of orangey grey we knew another fire was raging away. Ironically enough, we lived "next door"/adjacent to the local forestry/CDF station so we felt like there was a certain measure of safety there! We could hear the radio calls from down the way and I'm sure my parents cued in to those more then we did.

It's been an interesting reality check, that's for sure. Since moving here I'm constantly having flashbacks to my early childhood: wildflowers and weeds along the road, a certain view of the hillsides, smells in the air, a manzanita shrub, lizards darting under a rock, scrub oak slanting down the hillsides. Not sure what to make of it all the time. So I just remember, and make a note of it.



So, Happy Independence Day! Be careful with your fireworks. Around the state there will be a lot of canceled shows from what I hear. But the reality is, the larger shows sponsored and put on by local fire stations are much safer than people setting them off in their own driveways. Let's hope for the best!