The Orchardmama Blog

picnic

This poor blog.  So neglected.  Life has been FULL lately! Spring is so busy around here for Kevin, so that trickles down to busy-ness for the rest of us, because we are missing his presence and helping hands at home!

 

But, we have managed to squeeze in quite a few fun family times throughout this busy spring season, and one of my favorites was an evening a few weeks ago, that Kevin thought up all on his own.

He stopped and picked up fried chicken and potato salad on the way home from work, and then took us all for a jeep ride and a picnic.  This was when it was HOT (90 in May!) and it was such a fun evening.  

Milo has a thing for picnics.  Whenever we are out and about in the orchard, he usually spots a 'perfect' place for a picnic.  I think we would have to eat all of our meals outside for a week just to use up all the spots Milo has scoped out!

This particular evening we were up Sand Creek, where there were plenty of rocks to throw into the water, and the water was so irresisitible to Nick that he was soaked after we had been there about 20 minutes. 

We ended the night with a jeep ride around Cashmere, and ice cream from Rusty's.  Good times.

Milo wanted to hold hands:)

Not our barn, but I just love the way it looks!

Milo, 4 years 4 months and 28 days

Favorite books:  Jesus Storybook Bible

Best Friends: Hayden, Keller, Easton, Kolton, Haydin, Mackenna, Melodi, Kaleb

Favorite Activities: Imaginative play outside.  Right now he pretends that a couple of trees behind our house are his "house" complete with kitchen and bedroom.  He also pretends to fish in the creek.  He recently got his training wheels off his bike and rides very often! He likes one-on-one time as often as possible.  He likes to do crafts and painting together with me.  He also likes to do his "mystery box" (a box full of dry macaroni, and little objects that he finds just by feeling for them)

Favorite Songs: "Glory to God" "Kings and Queens"-Audio Adrenaline

Favorite TV shows: Shaun the Sheep, Any of the Disney Princess Movies. Yesterday he told us that The Little Mermaid is even beautiful-er than "Re-punzel" ("Tangled" was his favorite movie for quite awhile)

Favorite Food: Ice Cream

Clothing size: 6-7 Shoe Size-1

Height-46 inches 

Weight-60 pounds

 

Yesterday after church, Kevin took Milo on a "date".  They did lunch at McDonald's, and then went to the Sportsman's show.

While they were at the Sportsman's show, Milo got to see live bears, and he went fishing.  He caught a fish, brought it home, cleaned it with Kevin, and then they fried it for dinner.

After they had cleaned it, Kevin and I were talking in the other room, and then Milo came and told us that he had cut out the fish's eyeball.  Sure enough, we went to the kitchen and it was the cleanest extraction of an eyeball I had ever seen.  He had helped himself to a pair of scissors and a chopping knife (scary), and he was so proud of himself for his little fish surgery.

 

An ordinary, blessed kind of day

Yesterday was great. We saw beautiful skies on the way to Wenatchee. Milo went to preschool and nick and I went to MOPS.

MOPS was extra wonderful.

We went and got some things at the dollar store and then came home. Later in the day we played outside and after Kevin got home, Milo and I ran up the canyon for some impromptu sledding. It was fun until I gave him a poorly advised sled run and he ended up in the brush!

Kevin got dinner ready and made a salad (he doesn't usually even eat salad!) and he even made a vinaigrette that was DELICIOUS.

The boys tried out painting with shaving cream during bath time. That was definitely a winner!

We finished the night with bible study with my sister Heather. Good times!

Winthrop for the Weekend

Kevin and I went for our second ever weekend getaway since having kids.  We just went a couple hours north to winthrop.  The boys stayed with my dad and Julie, and had a fabulous time.  

Kevin and I enjoyed (yeah right) the 2 degree weather.  We had originally planned to bring our snowmobiles, but decided to just relax instead, which turned out to be a good choice, since it was SOOO freezing.  We spent a lot of time watching football and just hanging out.  It was nice to be lazy:)

I had fun of my own, since I brought along my big camera and went off on my own a few times to capture some of the frozen beauty.

We spent some time in the little town, had a couple meals at 3 Fingered Jack's, shopped at the bookstore, and the outdoor store.

Of course I had adequate time to read which is my FAVORITE. I'm such a nerd about books. I always have been.  When I was a kid, my mom gave up on punishing me with TV restriction, and instead went with "all non-school-textbook reading material". Ouch.  That one always hurt.

So I spent a lot of time reading on my iPad, and spending time on a 90 day study on the Life of Jesus from Beth Moore.

We went for a drive.  It was super gorgeous.  So cold + sunshine, could not have been prettier.

thank you self timer, and car for doubling as a tripod.

Since the name of the game on this trip was to be ever so lazy, I just couldn't be troubled to go all the way down the flight of stairs to get some ice.  Fortunately for me, our balcony was well equipped with icicles.

One last little walk by myself right after sunset....brrrrrr!

Oh, and I guess this is why they call it the "quiet season"~

Island time

From the 18th of December through the 28th of December, Kevin worked 175 hours for the PUD.  Yes, 175 hours.  He missed most of Christmas, except for the few hours he was with us on Christmas morning.  Needless to say, we were desperately ready for some R&R and family time.

He finished working late on a Friday night, had a good long sleep until mid-morning Saturday, and then we decided to drive to Anacortes that afternoon and stay the night, because our final destination would be Orcas Island.  We thought breaking up the trip into 2 days would be better rather than trying to do it all on Sunday, and it worked out great!

We went to Orcas Island to see family and have the boys play with cousins.  We had a great, relaxing, celebratory time! The kids did lots of playing, no small amount of arguing, played outside in some super wet snow, watched some movies, terrorized their mothers with bean bag shenanigans, you get the picture.  

Here are some pictures of the fun!

oh look, Casey and I got the house all quiet all to ourselves for an hour:)

Kevin did a good bit of napping, reading, and relaxing on this trip, trying to recover from his insane works schedule....

The kids rolled down the hill in the "snow"

Casey, as usual, was ever the hostess.  She has the gift of hospitality.  Thank you Casey!

I'm pretty sure they are watching "Tangled" right here.  It's Milo's new favorite movie.  He's really got a thing for the princesses lately.

School is in session.  Alaina is quite the big sister/cousin.  She can whip those kids into shape better than any of their parents!

We got a babysitter on new year's eve, and the grown ups went to a seafood buffet at Rosario Resort.  It was fancier than anything I've ever seen!  All the food was super good, but I think Casey and I both liked dessert the best!

We finished off the night with card games and Champagne.  We quit playing cards at 11:45 and just couldn't stay up that last 15 minutes....seriously.  I was dozing off when I heard the neighbors lighting fireworks.

We tried to leave New Year's day and were unsuccessful.  I guess the island gets busy on the holidays because the ferry was jam packed and we would have had to wait for hours to get on one that didn't leave till the evening.  We decided to go back to Nathan and Casey's, and stay another night.  Later we found out that Isaac was so sad after we left that he was praying that we would come back....faith like a child.

So we ended up leaving on the 2nd, and it was the most beautiful of mornings.  We left early enough that we got to enjoy the sunrise, and some amazing skies and sights on the early morning sound.  We had such a great time!

Faux 10 on 10 {December}

This was supposed to be 10 on 10 (10 pictures on the 10th of the month)

However.

I can't ever seem to limit the story of our day to just 10 pictures, and I realize it's actually the 22nd because it's taken me that long to get this blog post done.

These are about 50/50 between my iPhone camera and my Canon DSLR. These were all taken on December 9th.

Pink Sunrise

Checking the snow conditions. No pants required.

Heading into church.

The reason for Christmas.  He came for us & He came to die.

Blessed by good bible teaching.

Stopped to visit Grandpa Brian after church.  He's recovering from shoulder surgery.

Lunchtime for the boys.

Nicky's favorite thing to do!

I want some chickens!

Milo is quite the chicken catcher!

Milo likes to unbuckle and come sit up front when we drive down the driveway.

Milo calls this little truck his "snowmobile" or "snowblower" depending on the day.

Melting

Great place to live!

These boys love to bake!

Snickerdoodles.  As requested by Kevin.

Anxiety. Smoke. Pears.

We have been stuck under a layer of smoke, with a day here and there with clean air reprieve, for almost three weeks now.  I remember when it first started, worrying that the smoke was going to taint the flavor of our pear crop which was all still hanging on the trees.  Then I went onto worrying that all the panic about the smoke in the newspapers, was going to spiral out of control and catalyze a mass exodus of everyone from the valley.  That would have left us with a year's worth of fruit on the trees, with a whole year of growing costs invested, and no return to even pay for the costs, much less a profit.  This is where my anxiety ridden, female mind wanders off to, when left unattended for too long.

One morning, a few days before we were supposed to start picking, there was still no end in sight to the smoky conditions.  We had been trapped in the house for over a week, and were in the midst of a stomach virus making it's way through our house.  I was about to lose my mind.  Literally.  I had a day where I was really despairing and felt like I couldn't dig out of it.  I was able to wake up before the boys on this particular morning, and had recently found an old bible study booklet covering the book of Proverbs, with specific focus on the topic of anxiety.  I went through one of the lessons, and felt a great sense of peace.....for about three hours.  Then I think I read yet another article about the  smoke apocolypse and freaked out again.  I called Kevin, voicing my worry about everyone leaving, or perhaps even mandates that no one work outside, and how are we going to ever get the pears picked, blah-blah-blah.  His response: "Well, there's really nothing we can do about it".  And he said it so light-heartedly.  I laughed as I realized the irony that I was the one up at 5 am doing a bible study on anxiety, and it seems to come so easy to him, to not worry.  I told him this, and he had a good laugh. I don't know if he realized it, but he literally brought to life this verse: 

Proverbs 12:25

²⁵ Anxiety weighs down the heart,
    but a kind word cheers it up.

How does trust and faith about these things come so easy to him? I want that kind of peace of mind.  I really struggled during this time of smoke induced hibernation.  It was very hard to be indoors with 2 boys for that long, and not run out of things to do, and more importantly patience and kind words.  I know part of it was that I felt like I was in a spiritual slump during this time, and I was leaning heavily on the truth found in scripture, but my heart just would not perk up.  

Deuteronomy 31:8
The LORD himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.”

In the end, we got all of our pears picked in 10 days, which is our usual timeframe.  We felt blessed and grateful for this provision, because daily, we were hearing stories of people being VERY short on labor this year.

I feel like I'm on the other side of my feelings of depression and restlessness.  So thankful for that.  God is so faithful to be ever-present and even when I can't feel that presence, I know he is there.

Here are a few pictures from harvest.

We are so thankful for all the laborers who made this possible! 

#instaddicted

Yes I am.  Addicted to instagram that is.  I have all but ditched my DSLR these days, and have been relying solely on my iPhone.  Prepare yourself for a picture overload.

*Milo & I on the 4wheeler *3boys *birthday *kitty rescue *baby football *kitty cuddles *barn *bath *belly *bible study *overseer * cherries * birthday cake

*bubbles *barbecue buddies *bus driver *weekend away * car shopping *closet cat lover * cat eyes *cat food snack *lake chelan * cherries *roche harbor *Nick's favorite food * kitty cuddler *dance *heading out *dentist * tandem tantrums *cherry sorter

*explorer *sky on fire *sweet boy brings me wildflowers *flower by the road *fruit kabobs *more cherries *hottub * gorge-ous wedding *grandma heidi * down the dock *aunt heather *orchard *kitty hides *blackcap jam *kitty rescuer

 

*light *anniversary date *Roche Harbor mausoleum *selfie *the everyday *milk for 2 *mischief *post tantrum cuddle *sprinkler fun *sleep time *pretty eyed boy *raspberries *Roche Harbor *rain over Cashmere *Rainiers *watching the storm

*turtle thief *water fun with cousins *washdown *wedding *wind machine *windmill *working in the cherries *

*landscapers *wildflowers *wet cat *night in Wenatchee *pretty sky *cat bath *wine & music *the neverending chore *to swim or not to swim *iced coffee *boy on the run *backpack buddy *little lion *chicken tamer *kitty cuddle *wildflowers *blondie *sunbathing *quickbooks

*"Spraying" *apple on pear *little boy *dinner *blackcap picker *stroller ride for 1 *profile *bike ride *bike lessons with Grandpa Brian *swimming practice with Grandma Julie *little cousins *little tractor, big tractor *sleeping the same way since he was an infant:)

weekend away

Kevin and I have not left the boys and gone somewhere together since before they were BOTH born.  So, almost 4 years.  LONG overdue! The boys spent the weekend with Grandma Heidi & Grandpa Tom.  They had a blast, went to the Founder's Day festivities, hung out with cousins, and had a great time!

We went to Roche Harbor on San Juan Island, with Nathan and Casey.  They have a boat and live near Anacortes, so we went there to meet up with them, and then took the 2ish hour boat ride to Roche Harbor.  We had such a fantastic time! 

Father's Day

We had a great Father's day this year! Started the day by letting Dad sleep in while we played with the new kittens.  Milo found 2 kittens the day before in the top of a pear tree.  He was riding his bike when he heard meowing.  We decided to keep them and have since found out we have one boy and one girl, named Smokey & Snowbell.  They are a lot of fun, and they put up with the boys who are learning how to be careful (as in not throwing them up in the air like toys, holding them around the neck, etc.)

After we gave dad his wake up call, we got ready for church.  Great message at church about how God wants to Father us, and be involved in all the details of our lives.  I needed to hear this, as it's something I continually struggle with.  I have a hard time believing that God cares or needs to be bothered with the things I consider insignificant and mundane.  I've come to realize (but need frequent reminding) that this is really due to a lack of faith and reverence on my part.  God is omniscient, omnipresent, and eternal, and fully capable of handling every detail of every person's life on the whole planet.  The question is, will I bring everything before him and ask for his help with it, or in pride, will I assume that there are some things that I should probably just try to handle myself because I don't want to "bother" God.

After church we went to Home Depot to look for a new barbecue.  We've had a charcoal barbecue for years, but with the boys, it's really hard to try to keep them away from it and it's so dangerous to have around them.  Not to mention the inconvenience of having to light the charcoal and then  wait around for 40ish minutes for it to be ready.  Just doesn't mesh well with my last minute-failure to plan dinner approach:)  Kevin chose the barbecue, and I think he chose well! It did take him the rest of the afternoon to put it together, which doesn't seem fair, since it was his Father's Day gift....we squeezed in some play though here and there, and then had a lovely dinner of hot dogs and roasted broccoli and mushrooms, all on the new grill.

It was a great day!

Remembering

I wish it were possible to remember what something feels like.  We can remember what something looks like, through photos, and even remember mannerisms, voices, and events through videos, but I wish there was a way to remember what something feels like.  When Nick wants up, and I hold him, and he countours himself against my shoulder and lays his head down on me, maybe even gives me a drool filled kiss, I want to remember THAT.  I know this time will be here and gone quickly, I can barely remember already what it feels like to hold a newborn baby and it's not been that long.  Or maybe when Milo first wakes up in the morning, and after we get Kevin out the door, coffee & chocolate milk cups served, Milo sits with me in the chair to watch cartoons.  I want to remember his soft skin, his never-ending wiggles, when he randomly turns to me and says "I love you", or even sneaks in a quick "owie right there". (that's when he softly scratches my cheek with his index finger, he has done this since he was about 14 months old)

 

Oh, and it's time for another instagram update.  In case you're unfamiliar with instagram, it's like a little social network where you can share your pictures from your cell phone camera.  So these are all from my phone.  There is one in there that is really old, it's of Kevin & Milo walking up the road together, back even before Nick was born.  I pulled that one off of facebook.

snowmobiling!

Milo went on his very first "off the orchard" snowmobile ride today!  He had so much fun!  He went with Kevin & Wayne.  Before they left, he kept saying he was "super excited", and he talked about it until he went to bed after they got home.  Kevin took a few pictures:)

Catch Up

I missed getting a picture for the Kids were Here project on Friday, but here are Saturday & Sunday's submissions:) Milo's knife that he "takes to work". It's a plastic straight edge razor, from his "My First Shaving Kit"
Not sure who's parking job this is

To Kevin

I just finished a photography workshop, and one of the assignments was to pick a couple of quotes from several that we were given to choose from, and tell a story based on those quotes.  Here's mine. A tribute to my husband.

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

We bought this place 6 years ago. We barely made it work. There were so many nay-sayers. So many bumps in the road. You knew this was your dream, and at the young age of 23, you stared down the huge obstacles in your path and were not deterred.

Now, 2 kids later, and 5 crazy cycles of orchard growing seasons under our belts, you are continuing to grow in wisdom, patience, & dedication to this little patch of earth God has entrusted us, and more importantly to the two little boys He has entrusted to us.

I appreciate you more than you know. I am honored to be your wife and feel truly blessed to do life with a husband who so selflessly gives, in order to make a beautiful place for our family to grow. I love that you are both tough & tender. I'm thankful that you have given all of your self, your time, your talents, & your possessions to the God who made you, so that no matter what happens to us in this life, we as a family can rest in the assurance that we have a Father in heaven who is directing your steps, and will always feel cared for and protected to the utmost.

"Love is the most difficult and dangerous form of courage. Courage is the most desperate, admirable, and noble kind of love" --Delmore Schwartz
"There are always two people in every picture: the photographer and the viewer." Ansel Adams












I love you Kevin, and I'm excited to see what's next.