“You mustn’t wish for another life. You mustn’t want to be somebody else. What you must do is this:
Rejoice evermore.
Pray without ceasing.
In everything give thanks.
I am not all the way capable of so much, but those are the right instructions.”
~Wendell Berry, Hannah Coulter
I’ve just returned from a six-day camping trip on a mountain, in a forest, near a stream—Cascade Mountains, Willamette National Forest, Upper Santiam River, respectively—with dear friends and family. It’s my little paradise here on earth, and I savored every moment of the week.
This trip came on the heels of a six-day trip to Austin, Texas for the CiRCE National Conference, which came on the heels of our annual family reunion. July has been our busy summer month, so I’ll have to catch you all up in a separate post.
This little spot is the same place at which I’ve been camping (with the same friends and family) since I was 5 or 6 years old. All of us feel a particular and pronounced possession. This is our climing rock, our swimming hole, our trail. We know every little path and boulder. And yet, Mother Nature has a way of surprising us every year with a fluctuating stream bed and fallen trees, among other changes.
This year we were blessed to have my whole immediate family (Russ only had to head down the mountain two afternoons to coach); Mom and Dad; Holly, Casey, and Ivy (missing Drake and Jess and Ilex!); and Shannon, Ben, Rilla, and Sweden (pictured above) along with our longest and closest family friends Mike and Debi with two of their children and families (Lindsay, Bob, Daphne, and baby Avonlea and Nate, Domini, Hudson, and Greyson). Some of my favorite people in the whole world.
The three little girls and two little boys (ages 2-6) had a blast playing together all week long. Ivy, Daphne, and Leif made a great game-playing trio. Levi was either helping with the little kids or off exploring on his own (barefooted).
We hiked and swam and ate and talked and read and laughed and roasted marshmallows and threw rocks and played games and built fires and climbed boulders and slept in (speaking for myself, anyway).
The weather was perfect all week long.
The water was just as frigid as it always is.
Already dreaming about next year.
Do you remember this exquisite wedding (and more wedding pictures and this fun bridal shower)?
Well, my “little sister” Lindsay and her husband, Bob, are expecting a baby in just a few short weeks!
[I took Lindsay’s family pictures back in November, and I’ll post them as soon as my hard drive is recovered!]
My sister Shannon (with friends Jessye, Tinsa, and Domini) knocked it out of the park again with the baby shower decor. It helped to have such a fabulous location.
The literary theme was carried throughout the room. Each guest table was topped with a stack of gorgeous old books.
Lindsay with her daughter, sister-in-law Domini, and mom:
Chalkboards with literary quotes were sprinkled throughout the room. This was my favorite:
Lovely brunch food:
The guest book was a darling picture book version of Anne of Green Gables. Guests signed the inside cover.
This adorable illustration of Anne of Green Gables was custom created by a friend. Lindsay received the original piece of art, and the image was the cover of the invitations.
What happens when Heidi is given the task of planning the baby shower game? The guests are given a literature quiz!
I gave them each a paper with 20 children’s book quotes and 20 children’s book titles, and they had to match them.
Want to give it a try?
QUOTES
1. “Safe?” said Mr. Beaver…”Who said anything about safe? ‘Course he isn’t safe. But he’s good. He’s the King, I tell you.”__________
2. Kuplink, kuplank, kuplunk.________
3. In an old house in Paris that was covered in vines… ________
4. Better drowned than duffers if not duffers won’t drown. ________
5. “Why, sometimes I’ve believed as many as six impossible things before breakfast.” _________
6. Second star to the right, and straight on till morning. _________
7. “When I say ‘salutations,’ it’s just my fancy way of saying hello or good morning.” __________
8. We can’t go over it. We can’t go under it. Oh no! We’ve got to go through it! _________
9. It is more fun to talk with someone who doesn’t use long, difficult words but rather short, easy words like “What about lunch?” ________
10. The Herdmans were absolutely the worst kids in the history of the world. _________
11. It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye. _________
12. For the strength of the pack is the wolf, and the strength of the wolf is the pack. __________
13. So please, oh please, we beg, we pray,
Go throw your TV set away,
And in its place you can install
A lovely bookshelf on the wall.
Then fill the shelves with lots of books. ___________
14. “You were Real to the Boy,” the Fairy said, “because he loved you. Now you shall be Real to everyone.” __________
15. “Please, sir. I want some more.” _________
16. “No, Miss Minchin, you are not kind. And this is not a home.” _________
17. “I read in a book once that a rose by any other name would smell as sweet, but I’ve never been able to believe it. I don’t believe a rose WOULD be as nice if it was called a thistle or a skunk cabbage.” ___________
18. And for all I know he is sitting there still, under his favorite cork tree, smelling the flowers just quietly. ___________
19. A person’s a person, no matter how small. ___________
20. As long as I’m living, my baby you’ll be. _________
TITLES
A. The Story of Ferdinand by Munro Leaf
B. Peter Pan by J. M. Barrie
C. Swallows and Amazons by Arthur Ransome
D. Love You Forever by Robert Munsch
E. The Velveteen Rabbit by Margery Williams
F. Blueberries for Sal by Robert McCloskey
G. Winnie the Pooh by A.A. Milne
H. Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens
I. Charlotte’s Web by E. B. White
J. Horton Hears a Who by Dr. Seuss
K. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl
L. The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe by C. S. Lewis
M. We’re Going on a Bear Hunt by Helen Oxenbury
N. The Jungle Book by Rudyard Kipling
O. The Best Christmas Pageant Ever by Barbara Robinson
P. Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll
Q. A Little Princess by Frances Hodgson Burnett
R. Anne of Green Gables by L. M. Montgomery
S. Madeline by Ludwig Bemelmans
T. The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
We had our fair share of bad attitudes and mishaps and too much sugar, but these are three of my favorite ambiance photographs from our day of celebration. I can’t claim the presentation above; those are family gifts from my sister Holly and her family. I can’t claim the home below (my mom and dad’s) or the table-scape (created by my sister Shannon) or the food (I only contributed store-bought rolls and our family-favorite jello mousse) or the road (my parents’ country road). But I’ll claim the pictures.
[Can you see the cave in the middle of the above picture? It is accessible by a trail along the cliff.]
At the end of last month, we spent several days on our traditional camping trip with family and friends—a tradition since my early childhood. Since we started having kids 14 years ago, we stopped overnight tent camping as a couple. Russ took the boys on camping trips as soon as they turned 4, and I stayed home with the toddlers. We would often travel up for the day (sometimes a few days in a row) to be with everyone. That worked much better for us.
This year, however, we had no toddlers and Russ was able to take the time off work, so we all headed up to stay for several nights. My younger sister (however, again) found out why we had not been overnight tent camping as a family until this year. She and Ben made it two nights and then headed home to sleep on the third (since they hadn’t a wink of sleep the first two nights) and came up again the next day. I’m so proud of them and all the effort they made to keep their family adventuring, even if it isn’t much of a vacation for the adults of two strong-willed toddlers.
I was happy to be able to just let the kids play without worrying much about them. Finally.
We have a great combination of kids. I love that they are making memories, just as their parents did as kids together. Ilex and Drake and Drake’s girlfriend, Jess, were able to come up for the day on Sunday with Casey. For the rest of the week, Levi and Sweden (as the oldest and youngest kids, respectively) were the outliers. Luke and Leif, Ivy and Daphne (ages 9-12) were the big kid pairs. Hudson and Grayson, Lola and Rilla were the little kid pairs (ages 3-5).
Nathan, Lindsay, Holly, Shannon, and I all grew up here as kids. To have our spouses and kids here with us is a dream.
And our parents, too! [Do you think we can fit one more person in this tiny lagoon? There is more water, but we were following the sun and enjoying each other’s company.]
I went hiking and climbing at the falls but didn’t bring my camera, so this is all you get to see of the trail.
Below is Dragon Island. Can you see all the dragon eggs waiting to hatch?
And more jumping and swimming.
Golly, I just love this place and these people. My cup runneth over.
It’s the end of an era.
Those who have followed my blog for almost a decade have watched my niece Ilex and nephew Drake grow up. I am so proud of the adults they have become, and they are two of my most favorite people.
After eight years of homeschooling (four of those in the Classical Conversations Challenge program) and two years part-time at the local high school (where he played four years of football) as well as some classes at the community college, Drake has graduated from high school. He has joined the Navy and will head to boot camp in August before entering the Advanced Electronics/Computer Field program.
After seven years of homeschooling (three of those in the Classical Conversations Challenge program) and three years at the local community college where she was in the Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society, Ilex has graduated with her Associates of Arts degree. She has been accepted into the dental hygiene program at the community college south of us where she will attend in the fall.
Both are moving away, though we are sure to see Ilex often. The nest has begun to empty.
The first year of my blog, I had a photo shoot with my nephew Drake. He was 9 years old, almost 10. Is that possible?! He was so little. Eight years later (this past October), I had the privilege of taking his senior photos.
In August he will be entering military service with the Navy, and he will be gone for many years. It breaks my heart a little that these kids grow up and start their own lives. Sniff.
[What terrifies me is that my youngest son, Leif, is 9 years old, almost ten. I’m going to blink and he will be graduating.]
Almost two weeks ago on May Day, we celebrated the littlest family member’s first birthday. It was a gorgeous day in the garden with family and friends.
Swede has a fantastic personality that isn’t so obvious from these pictures. I’m so glad Shannon had girls with strong personalitites. She and Ben catch me in knowing glances all the time. These kids of ours are world-shakers. Ha!!
I’m so grateful that Lola has these sweet sister-cousins just down the road.
We spent the day with my family for Mother’s Day. This isn’t the best photo we’ve ever taken (really, Lola? sigh), but I think it’s the first whole family picture with Sweden. For an impromptu photo, it isn’t too bad (we only made one guy change his shirt, hahaha!!).
Gorgeous weather. Favorite people. Happy Mother’s Day!
We had a string of beautiful, frigid but sunny days this past weekend! We took an abridged Green Friday (okay, it was really late Saturday afternoon) walk with Holly and Ivy. [Yes, Levi is now a smidge taller than I am, and his feet are definitely bigger! Leif has passed Luke up in weight, and he’s so close in height! Luke is getting tired of people asking if they are twins. Poor kid.]
This girl. She has me wrapped around her little finger. I guess it’s a good thing she’s so ornery sometimes. It brings me back to reality. Ha!
