Happy Birthday!

Tuesday was Andrew's birthday. My family and his family all celebrated at his sister and brother-in-law, Aimee and Jon's house. We had a fun time all being together. Here are a few pictures from the evening.

Andrew opening gifts, Adam watching

Jon and Aimee. Aimee's birthday was Saturday, so she opened gifts too.

Uncle Caleb with Justus

Family visiting

Melissa and Aleah looking at paper dolls

Surprised

I have had the most wonderful surprise this week. On Monday evening when I came home Andrew was here. He came out of the hallway singing the same song as when he proposed and gave me a red rose. I wasn't expecting him for another week. It is so good to be together again. having time to sit and talk and make plans.

California Coast

Yesterday while it was so hot over here our family headed to the coast to cool off. We took both the dogs with us. We all had a great time. We walked a long way down the beach enjoying the cool sandy beach. The dogs, especially Tizzy, loved playing in the water. It was a fun family outing, probably one of the last before the wedding.

Melissa and Tizzy



In the Water

Mom and Braun

Walking on the Beach

There were lots of jelly fish washed onto the beach

Special Friends

Yesterday we had a chance to visit with the Serven girls from Missouri. They and and the Keulen girls stopped at our house for a few minutes, then we all went over to Aimee's(my soon to be sister) for lunch. It was a good time of visiting and catching up. Although I wasn't able to stay too long because I had to be somwhere at 1:30.

Looking at pictures


Holding Aimee's baby


Eating lunch

The Simple Woman's Daybook

For Today... September 1st, 2008

Outside my Window... blue sky, a warm day but not too hot, a much neater yard now than this morning.

I am thinking...that there are only 27 days until the wedding!

I am thankful for... being able to talk to Andrew every night while we have been apart for so long.

From the kitchen... nothing. Breakfast is long over and lunch, well I guess everyone will have to raid the fridge.

I am wearing...work jeans and my Montana t-shirt. My hair is in a braid and I am actually wearing shoes.

I am reading...You Can Farm, very interesting, informative, and inspiring.

I am hoping...to check off everything on my to do list this week.

I am creating... lists, lists and more lists. Some I write down and others are just in my head. Trying to keep track of everything is challenging.

I am hearing... a gentle breeze. Everything is quiet after all the activity and yardwork this morning.

Around the house... Boxes in my room and more packing to do, a little bit of laundry to iron and put away.

One of my favorite things... mornings that have a little hint of fall, my favorite season.

A Few Plans For The Rest Of The Week... organizing, packing, preparing.

Here is a picture thought I am sharing with you... A pile of boxes all packed and taped.


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Colorful Corn

This is some of the most fun corn to grow. It is called Painted Mountain and is a colorful dry corn. We have been harvesting and husking it. We will hang it to dry around the house and it makes a beautiful fall decoration. Later we will take the kernels off the cob then grind it into corn flour. It makes pretty and delicious cornbread.

The Simple Woman's Daybook

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For Today... August 18, 2008

Outside my Window... the sunlight is beginning to get that golden evening glow. A breeze is gently blowing the trees.

I am thinking... about how amazing and exciting this time in my life is.

I am thankful for...the garden growing well, the good day I had working, my family, and Andrew.

From the kitchen... fresh corn on the cob!

I am wearing... my three tiered denim skirt and a flowered shirt, bare feet and hair in a ponytail.

I am reading... nothing much, there's no time.

I am hoping... that the next six weeks go by fast but also that I have enough time to finish all my projects before the wedding.

I am hearing... a breeze outside. In the garden the rainbird sprinklers are going.

I am creating... a pile of boxes in my room as I begin packing everything up.

Around the house... it is almost dinner time. Everything is pretty neat compared to how it has been recently.

One of my favorite things... is bringing my basket down to the garden and gathering the fresh produce.

A Few Plans For The Rest Of The Week... working tomorrow as a mother's helper, finishing the hem on my dress, sending the last of the invitations, packing and organizing.

Here is a picture thought I am sharing with you...
Heirloom tomatoes... some from our garden, some from a friend's garden.

Another Shower

After I got home from Washington there was a bridal shower down here, too. Mrs Auringer put it on and it was lovely. The shower had a garden theme. Everyone brought food from their garden.

The ladies sitting around the room. Frances played piano music from Pride and Prejudice.


We played pin the bow tie on Andrew. Here is my attempt.

Another game we played was creating toilet paper wedding gowns.

There were five teams. Here are the lovely results. Some of the dresses started falling apart.

The cake was "dirt" cake in flower pots, they looked so cute. Here I am with my two mothers.


Opening gifts was so fun. The little girls were so excited and crowded around to help me. It was very cute.

Sunny Sunflowers

We have an abundance of sunflowers this summer. Last year bugs ate many of them as they came up. So we planted extra this year. They must have all survived this year! They are so thick and tall that they are crowding out some of the corn. They look so pretty out in the garden or a bunch inside in a jar.

Yardsale Finds

Another fun activity Andrew and I did was look for furniture for our place. We went to all the second hand shops. They have amazing ones up there! We also spent two days yard saling. On Friday we took Adam and Aleah and stayed in the local area. It was quite fun and very cute how much they like yard sales. On Saturday we took a trip to Spokane and went to yard sales, thrift stores, the mall, Costco and out to eat at a Mongolian grill. Spokane is a bigger city than I am used to so I am glad I wasn't driving. It is nice though that it has everything we would ever need to shop for. We had a great time and one of the best parts was finding a good deal on a table and chair set.