Snow, and Snow

Oh my, it was falling from the sky.


Yes, the great Northwest got a dose of snow this last couple of days. We had been hearing the predictions and worrying how bad it would be. It wasn't bad around here, but trying to get to the cabin was quite the adventure. It was so wet and slippery and trees were down all around. I finally got too scared to go any further and turned around to come home. If the heat isn't on enough, or the water freezes in the house, we will have to deal with the problems another (warmer)day.

Today, on the other hand, is so crisp and cold! One of those days that is so clear you can practically hear how blue the sky is. And the sound of the snow as it crunches under my shoes, is a wonderful squeaking crunch that you hear seldom in this wet, moderate area. While driving around on errands this morning, the temperature didn't get above 27 degrees.

Don't get me wrong-I wish it was warmer. But you gotta understand how some people love the snow and cold on beautiful days like today.

Love ya all,

Nicolle

Aleas' birthday dinner

This was the centerpiece for the dinner. It is a cocconut cake with candied pecans on top. It was fun to make and a great new recipe to try.

Here is a current picture of Alea and Zach and babygirl. We love seeing how the baby is growing and Alea is such a cute little preggie.

And here we are for the grand finale. All of us so stuffed we can hardly move.

We wish the best of life for everyone and hope to be with you soon.

Aunt Sara's Birthday

Here we are with Aunt Sara and Loya for her birthday dinner. We had a great meal and fun chatting and catching up.

New Front Doors, Patio, and Driveway

Here is a picture of the new garage doors. It is amazing how much difference a door that goes up and down makes. They are straight, clean and work like magic.

We love the front patio! We are hopefully getting the grates for the strip drains this week. What you see now is just the plastic covers used to keep the cement from setting in the drains.

And this is the driveway and front of the house. How nice to have it done!!!

New Front Doors

Here is a before picture of the front doors.

These are the doors we have had on the house since we moved in. There is alot of history behind the cracks and scratches. When Aaron was toddler we gave him a little plastic golf set and the first place he practiced his swing was in the entry way, much too close to the doors. The panes of glass had been held together with packing tape for years, I just never got around to having the glass repaired.

We also had a little dog, named CC for several years and the only way he knew to ask to be let out or in was by scratching on the door. I never figured out how to get him to stop it. So there were bands of deep grooves where he damaged the door.

It was one of those happy and sad moments when the doors were taken apart and the new ones replaced them.

But I do love the new ones!

Love you all!

Fall Feast

Having been introduced to the fall feast tradition by Colleen Conlin, we had a wonderful time this year eating beef stew, hot rolls, veggies and a delicious pumpkin pie. We had a great gathering with Diane and Bill McDonald, Kris Schweikart, Alea and Zach, Ashley, Dan and I.

After dinner we had a great time at a Neil Diamond concert. For fathers day Dan got tickets and the big day was as fun as anticipated. Although we missed having more of the family go with us, we loved being with the company we had at this great event.

Hi friends and family,
It is Oct 2nd and Jury duty is over for me. Now I can say that it was a Federal drug trafficking case and we were involved in the trial for only 3 1/2 days. I was chosen foreman,(pretty much everyone else declined).We deliberated for about 3 1/2 hours today and found the defendant guilty on all counts. He will get at least a 10 year mandatory sentence. It is very interesting to take part in the jury system. I encourage all who get called to do it if they can.
Nic