Xin Nian Kuai Le! Lunar New Year came early this year, so on the heels of the Christmas holidays we opted to keep our celebration super simple. I figured decor …
Blog Posts
Twenty years ago I stumbled into the real estate business… a year prior, in 2001, Husband and I were lawfully wed in June, my folks purchased a new home shortly …
Summer sped by in a blur of baseball, beach trips, and barbeque… Firstborn spent another season working hard & playing hard, juggling full-time hours at the local amusement park with …
For our family’s summer vacation this year we cruised north to the “last frontier” of the US, to tick a new state off our list: Alaska! This year we were …
After a year-long engagement followed by a two-year hiatus, Baby Sister fiiiiiinally had her dream wedding… she and her saintly hubby made it legal two summers ago but had to …
In our house, when a kid hits double digits they earn a trip with Daddy to somewhere special, fun, and top secret. When Firstborn turned ten she flew to Texas …
I was recently gifted a copy of an incredible dual memoir and new release, Love & Genetics. Once finally unearthed from my seemingly bottomless to-be-read stack, I devoured it in …
Beginning 17 years ago when our first baby was due on his birthdate, Handsome Husband has graciously shared his birthday. Firstborn arrived late, but they’ll forever be birthday buddies. This …
To celebrate my dad turning sixty recently, we rented a giant passenger van and bumbled down the freeway to a nearby drive-thru safari park for a leisurely Sunday adventure. With …
I affectionately refer to my hubby as The Juggernaut, of comic book fame, because the guy NEVER. STOPS. MOVING. Running his business is demanding and tends to strap him to …
Now that they’re “traditional school” students, my kids are enjoying some new perks of their education. Most recently, our girls attended the highschool’s homecoming dance. Dates were obtained, dresses were …
Chinese [Lunar] New Year heralded the Year of the Tiger, and our family celebrated with a traditional themed feast featuring Tiger Shrimp, Orange Chicken, Sweet & Sour Pork (heavy on …
I’m a touch tardy in uploading our recent Christmas memories, but that’s only because it was a joyous season full of festivity that stretched out for weeks. ‘Twas a happy …
We’ve just returned from a wee little piggyback onto my much older sister’s family Disney vacay. They’re hard-core Mouseketeers and do a full week in the parks, but we joined …
Towards the end of summer, Handsome Husband and I decided to tackle another big project. We purchased a fixer-upper at the coast as a getaway for our family and almost …
I felt a tiny bit like a homeschool mom again, this past weekend– traipsing through a pumpkin patch, costuming, crafting, and carving… Our Halloween estivities were simple and dispersed, but …
Snapshots of my vocational life. Work continues to keep me busy, which is a blessing since now my kids are at traditional school all day and I find myself with …
Some of my most recent reads and impressions thereof– I’m certain I’ve missed a few but wanted to document regardless.
It’s hard to believe that summer’s come to an end, but all in all it’s been a great one. We joined a neighborhood pool, went on several vacations, and Firstborn …
My kids started school today… 11th, 9th, and 4th grades, respectively. And for the first time in a long time, I’m not their teacher. The choice to enroll our kids …
It’s nearly the end of summer and I realized never put a bloggy bow on my kiddos’ school year, but jumped right into the deep-end of summer without really pausing …
For his ninth birthday this year, Little Man enjoyed a few of his very favorite things: Sushi, swimming, panda bears, and BASEBALL. After church in the morning and a chill …
Since Center Sister turned fourteen while we were vacationing for our twentieth anniversary a month ago, we deferred her friend-festivities a few weeks out to this month… Keeping things chill …
In an attempt at ignoring my recent rounded, rather large birthday, I suggested to Handsome Husband that we sneak away with the kids for a bit of adventure. He upped …
Twenty years ago I promised to have and to hold this handsome fella. Score! We were young and madly in love, and after the officiant proclaimed “you may kiss your …
For Christmas, my sisters and I gifted our folks a preplanned Memorial weekend trip camping together with all of our husbands, kids, and dogs. We originally booked the lakeside campground …
The summer before middle school, I moved with my mom into one of the first homes built in a new subdivision. Our house was surrounded by bare lots, for-sale signs, …
Our sweet (and sometimes sour) Firstborn went and turned SIXTEEN years old. We spent the weekend celebrating her. She and her best buds have an informal Homeschool Fight Club (but …
It’s been too long since we’ve had a proper photo dump; my poor iPhone is filled to the brim with snapshots. Homeschool keeps our calendars full and our vehicles exercised, …
Resurrection Day is the holiest day of our liturgical year, Easter Sunday being the metaphorical Superbowl of our faith. We observed less-than-traditionally this year, skipping in-person church service for a …
Husband and I were recently blessed with a kid-free weekend under the bright lights of Las Vegas, alongside my sisters and their husbands. None of us gamblers, our wolfpack of …
Last weekend we rang in Lunar New Year, Chinese-style: ’round the table with a great big family feast. Threat of freezing rain caused several guests to cancel last minute, and …
‘Twas a very merry Christmastide, indeed. The sum of our hijinks and revelry has certainly made the season bright. We are grateful for this annual blessing of festively acknowledging humanity’s …
Feeling especially grateful for the abundance of blessing in our lives this year, we opted to celebrate Thanksgiving not once but twice. My youngest, newlywed sister (alongside her groom) hosted …
Chlorophyll lacking, flamboyant kaleidoscope– foliage ablaze. (An impromptu haiku-collab during a recent excursion through a particularly picturesque tree-lined street. The Willamette Valley’s amazing, come autumn; eat your heart out, New …
We’re back at homeschool for our eighth straight year– now with a working/driving highschool Sophomore, an always-dancing 8th-grader in braces, an exceedingly tall (and inquisitive) 3rd-grader, a perpetually befuddled teacher-mom …
As one last late-summer hurrah, we recently joined Husband’s folks and siblings at the southernmost beach-town in Oregon. My inlaws treated us to a long weekend at their favorite oceanside …
It was the briefest of summers. From tardy arrival due to viral pandemic to abrupt, early end from raging inferno and the suffocating ash of a million smoldering acres. Simple …
The following are snapshots of our most recent reads– because reading’s just about one of the only pastimes that persists when viruses and wildfires thwart all other best-laid plans. What …
Despite social distance and quarantine, this has been my workingest summer since I’ve been a mom. The real-estate market is hopping and I just wanted to share a few snapshots …
Recently I was grateful to sneak away for an adventure and rest-filled girls’ trip to Central Oregon with Handsome Husband’s sister and mother. At the suggestion of my youngest brother …
Back in late February, right before a certain nefarious virus began altering our way of life, Handsome Husband bought our family a beautiful fixer-upper. A comfortable abode of the same …
Recently, Thoughtful Husband rented a recreational vehicle to tour some nearby state parks. It was actually for my birthday– and what a lovely gift it was to adventure together in …
When life gives you lemons, make lemonade. My mom is the best at this. After her work conference was canceled due to COVID constraints, my generous mother kept her reservation …
June is always a whirlwind in our neck of the woods, and this one’s been no exception… but in the midst of all of the hullabaloo, my kids wrapped their …
My beautiful baby sister got hitched over the weekend. Ever since she was little she’s loved all things girlie and is 100% a princess. Though, in all fairness, she’s a …
Center Sister celebrated her Golden Birthday over the weekend– she turned thirteen on the thirteenth and officially became a teenager. We hosted a simple outdoor movie night (in the garage, …
It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single homeschool in possession of a good literature & language arts curriculum, must be in want of the works of Jane Austen. …
Our (new to us) homeschool co-op assembles a yearbook of highlights each Spring; but this year, as stay-at-home orders forced us to wrap our weekly gatherings early, we lacked sufficient …
Our first baby turned FIFTEEN this week. A birthday in the midst of a global pandemic is hardly a picnic… isolated from friends and family, and the DMV, the bulk …
Cheers to the one who regularly fills my gas tank, who routinely replaces the head of my toothbrush, who brings home the bacon and fries it up, too. Here’s to …
He is risen! Though this year’s festivities were socially isolated, due to Coronavirus mandates, we celebrated simply and remembered our hope is in our Savoir who triumphed over all sin …
Quarantined with bored kids and looking for some simple fun to break up the monotony? You needn’t sweat schooling at home– grab a book and some household objects and see …
We’ve been working from home and homeschooling since before it was cool/government-mandated. Five years in Montana conditioned us for seasonal hibernation and social distance– stockpiling necessities, staying in for long …
We’re officially out of boxes, settled into our new abode, and back to the grind of schooling-at-home and pinballing around town to kids’ activities. New house sneak-peekaboo: Forget formal dining, …
Because I’m too fatigued to even type, please enjoy our move, in snapshots: Okay, fine, a quick story to explain the last photo… This is my favorite escrow officer, whom …
I’m awash in a sea of boxes; up to my ears in contractors, inspectors, and paperwork. T minus 19 days until we move and we’re working our tails off, all …
I’m pleased as punch to participate in Multicultural Children’s Book Day again this year. Little Man was tickled when our friendly mailman delivered this vibrant picture book– and just in …
In a car, on a boat, with a goat, in the rain, on a train, in the dark, in a tree, in a box, with a fox, in a house, …
Car salesmen are fickle with vehicles, often upgrading to newer models as soon as they hit the showfloor. Computer programmers (like my husband) rotate electronics seemingly with the seasons, gifting …
Their big day is still months away, but Baby Sister and her Saintly Fiancé are hard at work planning every detail of their upcoming nuptials. Generously, they’ve asked all five …
This Christmas, two of our little elves worked away on an extra-special, top-secret project to bless our extended family… After our beloved Grandfather recently passed, I swiped a stack of …
Joy to the world, the Lord is come– let earth receive her King! “They drank healths, told stories, sung songs, “reminisced,” as the old folks say, and had a thoroughly …
For the first time in fourteen years, we’re not getting our Christmas cards out on time. Our mailing list will have to wait until New Year’s, and in the meantime …
In preparation for a proper Christmas holiday, we’re putting a bow on our studies*, wrapping up* the first semester of our seventh (unless you count preschool, in which case it’s …
It’s not Christmas ’til I burn my fingers on hot, molten sugar-magma. Quote me. My much older sister heralds HER holiday by prying the lid from an ornately festooned popcorn …
In Oregon, one does not simply select a Christmas tree from a parking lot… One must traipse through the woods (or, ahem, a tree-farm) wielding a saw, chop down a …
“… set apart the last Thursday of November next as a day of Thanksgiving and Praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the heavens.” – Abe Lincoln Our extended …
T minus 8 days until Thanksgiving! We’re ready-freddie. My extended family’s busy mixin’ up some inventive stuffing variations in preparation for next week… this year, we plan to shake things …
I love dress-up. I just do. I’m not sure what it says about me, but I’m glad my kids love it, too. The night before Halloween, Firstborn received a last-minute …
Our school year’s off to a solid start. Activities are in full-swing and I’m racking up the mileage on my Jeep to prove it. Still, I’m grateful the bookends of …
Ohhhh autumn… synonymous with bright foliage, garden harvests, pumpkin evvvverything, and, of course, Halloween. It’s fall, y’all. We’ve been to the pumpkin patch twice already– once with our new homeschool …
Don’t go to Target with a broken heart. You’ll walk out having spent 200 and some-odd dollars on a cartfull of random trinkets you’d no idea you “needed.” My beloved …
It’s back to school tiiiiiime! Though we maintain a daily reading, writing, & arithmetic regimen through the summer months, we ramp things up in earnest and resume extracurriculars each fall– …
About mid-summer, my much older sister and I drafted a master list of allllll the adventures we’d yet to endeavor before her critters headed back to traditional school. She called …
We managed to squeeze another teensy camping trip into our fleeting summer by hijacking my next-door [much older] sister’s recent family getaway. I suppose living 50 yards apart just isn’t close …
It’s not often that my husband and his two siblings are in the same zip code, these days. Add in their folks, spouses, and offspring and it’s a regular family …
This is how I spent our recent weekend camping: Bliss. Everywhere I go, I bring a book… or two. Or seven. Current read, Bible study/devotional, the book I’m reading aloud …
I blinked and it’s August. Our summer’s been so blessedly full that we’ve scarcely had time to catch our breath. Thank goodness for modern conveniences like camera phones– the following’s …
And the Lord God made all kinds of trees grow out of the ground– trees that were pleasing to the eye and good for food… This summer we took a …
Little Man is SEVEN and I cannot believe it! He’s up to my shoulders, smart as a whip, sensitive, and silly. Current favorites are: sushi, video games, riding a bike …
“Sleep is good. And books are better.” – George R.R. Martin Word. And I’ve decided that if George Martin can double his middle initial ‘R’ ala J. R. R. Tolkien, …
There’s nothing like a holiday weekend cohabitating with extended family to insure domestic tranquility and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity. To celebrate our nation’s 243 …
June’s always a busy birthday-month in our house, rivaled only by April… In addition to marking our anniversary and Father’s Day (we celebrated both in Prince Edward Island), we also …
When Husband was plotting our literary pilgrimage to Prince Edward Island, he quickly discovered that direct flights to the island were pretty spendy. Flying into Halifax, Nova Scotia, from where …
We’ve just returned home from a glorious vacation– a pilgrimage back to my mother’s homeland, Prince Edward Island, for a sentimental sabbatical and literary field-trip to cap off our homeschool …
I’m emptying my camera roll of the last few months’ homeschool activities– to put a bow on our year, for posterity’s sake… Our homeschool’s comprised of a Breakfast Club of …
How’s a family to bless a hip Grandma on her birthday when it seems she’s already got everything she needs? Why, slave labor in the garden, of course! Our fearsome …
In addition to immersing in all things Lucy Maude Montgomery, I’m presently reading classic Judy Blume tomes with Little Man and he is all about Farley Drexel Hatcher– aka Fudge. …
Back in January, Firstborn was thrilled to land a role in another local theatre production– this time the musical classic, Annie. She was cast as French maid, Annette, servant to …
Sometimes it feels like I’m surrounded by mothers: Mom, step-mom, mother-in-law, grandmother, spiritual mentor-mothers, a sister who’s a mom, a multitude of magnificent mommy friends… Mothers make the world go …
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