gambier island

our very good friends
have some property
on gambier island.
we love to go there.
our kids love to go there.
they have it perfectly
set up
for tons of fun.
there's a tree house,
a fire pit,
a hot tub.
you can kayak,
tube,
sail,
swim,
hike,
practice archery,
or darts.
it is peaceful,
relaxing,
and mind clearing.
my favorite is to
look out the windows
of the cabin from my bed
in the morning -
and then kayak the bay
first thing -
when not many others
are up and about -
and it is quiet.
we are tempted
to buy a place there
ourselves.
these photos are from
several trips there.
last weekend,
they let us go by ourselves.
we took the girlfriends too.
made a quick trip
over to gibsons landing
for lunch -
and ice cream,
and a bit of browsing.
we bought a boat -
this year,
and i keep wondering why
we didn't do that
a long time ago.
we have had
some awesome adventures.

this one fell off the dock into the drink and needed rescuing

sleeping on the dock

happy birthday

a weekend away
to salmon arm,
brought this girl
to come stay with us.

photo credit - Saige McCann

she is adorable,
and adventurous,
and earthy,
and fun to be with.
she rarely wears shoes -
so this of course
is perfect for her.

photo credit - Saige McCann

she is quite the expert.
it has inspired me
to possibly put one
in my yard -
just to practice
balancing on it -
not necessarily walking -
but that may come.
she also
collected things -
to make tea.

which was was lovely
to look at -
and tasted mildly
pretty -
if pretty were a taste -
and sweet -
because of the sugar
of course.
i love how she
just DOES stuff -
she has a curious mind
and doesn't seem to
care about conforming
to this world.
happy birthday,
dear alanna.

cute pouches

i've gone into
production mode,
making pouches.
i really love them.
they are great for gifts -
and i always have
people to give gifts to.
i am committed
to making them
with hand printed,
natural materials.
and though i didn't
add embroidery
to the pink one -
i think i would next time.
it is fun to match up
the fabrics,
and thread,
and floss,
and zippers,
to make them look cohesive.
i made these 3 -
and gave them to
alanna, katie & saige
and i filled them with
a bunch of goodies.
they seemed to like them.

a cursed blessing

these are
my honeys
reading glasses.

he has many pair -
all around
the house,
the cars,
on his person.
he can't seem to function
without them
anymore.
he is frustrated,
with the fact
that he is getting older,
that his body is not the way it once was,
that he NEEDS these glasses
to see.
i need to wear them
sometimes too.
when i am doing
fine needlework,
or small art pieces.
or reading tiny medicine labels.
i once used them
to look at myself,
up close,
in the mirror!
don't try this!
there may be a good reason
our eyesight starts to fail
as we age.
because russ can't
see all my wrinkles,
and random whiskers,
and large pores.
and grey roots -
he still thinks
i am as beautiful
as the day we met.
curse for him,
blessing for me.

a glass garden

last weekend
saige & i went to seattle
for the 'revolve tour'.
i had a great time
just spending the
time
with
her.
the tour speakers
were really good.
though we both
could have done without
the screaming girls.
but,
our highlight was later.
we went downtown
to see the
chihuly garden & glass.
and it was
truly amazing.
we were
in awe.
we could have spent
all day there.
and if i lived locally -
i'd have a membership
so i could go
whenever i wanted.
if you are ever
in the seattle area
i highly recommend it.
it will
blow.your.mind.
these photos absolutely
don't do it justice.

a notion

nope.

not that kind of notion.

this one...

no·tion

  [noh-shuhn]  Show IPA

noun

1.

a general understanding; vague or imperfect conception or idea of something: a notion of how something should be done.

2.

an opinion, view, or belief: That's his notion, not mine.

3.

conception or idea: his notion of democracy.

4.

a fanciful or foolish idea; whim: She had a notion to swim in the winter.

i often get the notion

that i know 

what's best.

this has often got me 

into trouble

with trying 

to control situations -

and dare i say it? -

manipulate.

and this in turn

sets me up 

for disappointment 

when things don't go

'my way'.

i am trying

to learn

to let go.

learning that

i really don't know 

what is best.

and i am trying 

to learn

to hand it all over 

to the One 

that does.

without trying to

snatch it right back 

out of His hands.

parenting young adults 

is more difficult

than i imagined -

and MY kids are 

super awesome!

i really need

to know when to speak -

and when to 

keep my mouth 

completely shut.

i need 

to let them go

so they can

make decisions -

and mistakes,

without my influence meddling.

i also 

need to

get.my.own.life.

these are my thoughts 

for the day.