Spring Break (Part 2)

Spring Break seems like forever ago, but I still have pictures to post about it.  After getting home from Oak Harbor, we spent a day unpacking, doing laundry and repacking.  Then we went to Roseburg.  We all had dental appointments.  

After we got that out of the way we headed to the coast.  We love the coast!

We went to Face Rock in Bandon. 

Taylor in front of the "face."

Logan at the beach.  He wanted his picture taken in front of the Canadian Goose that's out there on that rock.  

 

The kids loved climbing on the rocks.  They had a blast even though it wasn't very warm.  (At least it didn't rain on us)!

 

Here are some other pictures of the Bandon coast:

There's the face again.  It's just emerging out of the water, looking toward the sky.  Legend says that the "face" is of an Native American Indian, Princess Ewauna, daughter of Chief Siskiyou, of the mountains.  They traveled to the coast. There was feasting and trading with other tribes. 

The Princess fell in love with the sea and that night, sneaked down to the water with her dog, cat and kittens.  She swam in the sea, under a full moon, going farther and farther away from shore.  

That's when the evil spirit, Seatka, captured the princess.  He tried to make her look him in the eyes, but she refused to take her eyes off of the moon.  

Now she's turned to stone and frozen in time, along with her cat, kittens and dog, (the only one who made it to shore).  They are the Face in the sea and the surrounding rocks.  

After spending a few days in Roseburg, the kids and I went south to Klamath Falls.  We stayed with my parents and got to spend Easter with them and help them getting their house ready to put on the market. 

 My dad taught Taylor how to use a screwdriver to remove and then replace the handles on the cupboards.  She thought that was great fun.

 She's a great helper.

So here are some Easter pictures.

 I have two pictures that are almost identical, the only difference is which child is scowling.  Of course they couldn't both just smile nicely. 

 Oh, there's the smiles... I suppose.

 After a little Easter Egg hunt in the front room.  The kids also dyed Easter Eggs for the very first time, thanks to Nana!  They loved their time in Klamath Falls, but were missing their Daddy, who was back in school in Forest Grove. 

So that's where we headed back to.  It turned out to be a busy 11-day-long Spring Break.  But we saw both sets of Grandparents and Oak Harbor, so it was very productive as well.  

We just found out this week that we have a place to live in Oak Harbor!  We are very excited and relieved about that.  

Well, the kids have been sent to bed and I can tell by the banging and laughter that they are being soooo obedient.  I need to go remind them that bedtime is quiet time.     

Nashville, Tennessee

My parents finally got their mission call!!!  They are going to the Nashville, Tennessee Mission!  We are all so excited for them!  Their primary work will be as "member and leadership support."  I don't know exactly what that means, but I'm imagining them working in areas where there might not be that many members.  

This picture was just taking at Easter.  We were down visiting my parents (and hoping the mission call would come then).  

So from Sept. 2013 to Sept 2014 my parents will be laboring and serving the Lord in the Nashville, Tennessee area.  They've actually passed through Nashville before and went to the Grand Ol' Opry.  So they have an idea of what the area is like.  

Taylor is a little jealous because Nana & Papa get to cross the Mississippi River.  She wants to visit them on their mission.  We all do.  It's only 36 hours from Oregon, a mere 2,400 miles.  

Nashville Tennessee has a temple too.  It was dedicated in 2000 by James E. Faust.  There are about 2.5 million people (total population) in the mission bounderies including about 11,000 who are members of the Church.  

Missionary work in Tennessee began in 1834, so there is a lot of history there.  Elder Wilford Woodruff was one of the first missionaries to labor in the area.  

Congratulations Mom & Dad!  We're so excited for you and pleased with your faith and courage to serve the Lord!  We love you!!!

Spring Break (Part 1)

James & I celebrated our 15th wedding anniversary recently.  Fifteen years ago, during Spring Break, we got married in the Portland, Oregon Temple.  The best decision I ever made!  Seems like a long time ago, but it's really flown by.  I hope James knows that I'd marry him all over again!  He's the absolute best!  Life has been an adventure, always something happening.  

March has been particularly hectic.  James was studying almost constantly for Part 1 of Boards.  It was a 2 day, all-day-long, test.  It's over now and I'm positive James did great!  We'll find out the score in May. 

The day it ended was Pinewood Derby and the next day was our anniversary and we went up to Oak Harbor, Washington to check out the site of our 1st rotation.  (We'll be moving there in about a month and we need to find a place to live).  

I'm feeling a bit overwhelmed with all we need/want to get done in the next month or so.  I'm very tired right now and don't feel like writing or being creative or thinking at all, really.  But I do want to show you some pictures of our trip to Oak Harbor.  So here they are.

 This is Deception Pass Bridge that we crossed, to enter onto Whidbey Island.  

 

This is the view from the bridge, well very near the bridge.  That island is called Deception Island. 

It really is a beautiful place.  It's bigger than I thought it would be.  It doesn't feel like we're on an island, but it does feel like we're on the coast.  I loved it.  We all loved it. 

We drove around a lot, getting to know the place and visiting property management places.  We did not find a place to live while we were there.  We're still working on that.  

 We hiked up to the bridge and beyond.  We had a close-up view of the bridge.  

 

 On the trail to the bridge.

We hiked to Goose Rock, which gave us a nice view of Cranberry Lake and the Strait of Juan de Fuca. 

Strait of Juan de Fuca. 

 Looking down on little North Beach, from the bridge trail.

 On North Beach, looking toward the bridges.  The bridge actually connects Whidbey Island to Fidalgo Island and then another bridge connects Fidalgo Island to the mainland of Washington.

 A closer look at Deception Island, from North Beach.

 The kids loved running on the beach, looking for cool rocks and climbing on the logs on North Beach.  

 

 The kids also found some fun stuff to climb on downtown. 
 

 It was windy and cool and close to sunset when we got to Oak Harbor.  We drove and walked around for a little while.  We discovered Flinstone Park.  
 

 The kids in front of Oak Harbor, the actual harbor, not the town. 

 Sailboat on the Puget Sound.  Good thing the clouds were so dark, we could see the white sails easier. 

 Libbey Beach, Puget Sound, South of Oak Harbor.

 Libbey Beach again.  The kids thought it was fun to have a beach named after one of their aunts. 

 It might be hard to see, but there is a tugboat and container ship out on the water.  
 

 So there you have a little glimpse into where we will be during our 1st rotation.  We'll have lots more to explore once we get there.  Now I just need to find us a place to live.  That's the next step.