Smocking Again

I had a perfectly lovely day yesterday preparing a bishop-style christening gown for my new granddaughter, Geneva. The Expedition is having transmission difficulties, so without the distraction of shopping that I could have been doing, and with the house all to myself for a long stretch of time, I puttered in my sewing/craft area. It's been such a long time since my last project!

And since my last blog post, I've been trying to keep up with all my family's activities. Number 1 is the birth of that granddaughter, Geneva, on November 2. DD Mystie ended up needing a c-section as that stubborn little girl decided she did not want to cooperate with three attempts at turning her to a proper birthing position. That necessitated Nana (me) to spend the next two weeks (daytimes) at Mystie's home helping her care for her older four children and trying to keep up with dishes and laundry. It was great fun, but exhausting. :)  Little Knox (2) decided he liked having Nana around so much that he cried when I had to leave, which just melted my heart.

We've just this week ended the Kamiakin Braves XC season. Both boys' and girls' teams won 2nd place at State - our best showing ever. Then at Nike Regionals in Boise, the boys took 2nd, qualifying them to run as a team at Nike X Nationals in Portland, OR, which was just this last weekend. Our friendly rivals from Spokane (North Central HS) took 1st place. My son, Kyle, took over coaching duties for these post-season meets as Washington rules preclude the coaches from any post-season coaching - which is ridiculous. I think ours is the only state with that

Anyway, Nike flew all the varsity team, Kyle and one other chaperone to Portland, and treated them like stars for the entire weekend. They provided all the gear they needed, brought in their elite runners for speaking and autograph sessions, put them up in a great hotel, and provided awesome activities, besides opportunities to prepare for Saturday's race.

You may have heard tell of all the rain  the West Coast has been receiving over the last week. All that rain made for the muddiest, slippery, most treacherous course that any of those kids have ever seen. The times for this year's race were a full 2 minutes more than each kid's normal 5k times. Here's our team after the race. Don't let the sunshine fool you, it was out only during the races - thankfully!

Son Kevin took over an open slot in the community race that several of our JV boys ran in, a very last minute decision for which he was quite unprepared. He did have the running gear. What he lacked was a pair of spikes which were a definite necessity on this course! Running in his trainers, every step was a lesson in sliding and keeping balance. Kevin wasn't in it for a PR and just had a great time. And, of course, DH got media credentials and was able to get out on the course for some great pictures!

So how did the team place?  They took 7th in this very elite race of teams and individuals from all over the country!!! What an excellent showing for the team's first time racing at this level!  And our friends from North Central took 3rd! The Northwest is definitely proving to be an area to be reckoned with in XC.

So now Christmas is upon us and I'm not quite sure how I'm going to get ready. Somehow I always do.

Later, friends!

Smoky Autumn

Greetings from smoky Eastern Washington where we are surrounded by forest fires, perhaps until the snow flies. The last few days we've had some relief until the wind kicked up yesterday evening and picked up a lot of dust to mix with the smoke. We need some rain!

The school year is well underway as is the cross country season. The Kamiakin High School team is doing quite well, even ranking in some national polls. Kirsten's season has not gone well, starting at the end of last school year when she picked up some kind of bug that left her with a cough that wouldn't quit and an inability to get enough air into her lungs to run well. Her times this year are well behind last year's. Argh! So frustrating for her. She's on an inhaler and allergy meds, slowly improving her lung function, and then the smoke came in and she caught another cold - slammed back down. Guess we just have to do the best we can to get her immune system boosted and hope for better things in the spring.

JV girls ready to run the Bulldog Invite, Pasco, WA

The smoky skies have impacted the cross country schedule for teams across the state; not just xc, but in some areas like Wenatchee, all outdoor activities. Our area had one league meet postponed, and the big Sunfair race was also postponed to this coming weekend. However, we already had that weekend booked for the Richland Invite, so we won't be doing Sunfair. Sunfair will be a much smaller event this year which is a shame as it was looking to be bigger than ever with a team flying in from Hawaii and several coming down from British Columbia, plus the usual teams from all over the Pacific Northwest.

My oldest DD is getting close to delivering our fifth grandchild around the 1st of November! I'm trying to get over to her house several days a week to clean up her kitchen, do dishes, and fold some laundry, read to kids, etc. so she can spend more time with her feet up. Plus it's harder for her to bend over the sink - how well I know that lower back pain! Then I visit with my Dad and there's always shopping, medications to order and deliver to Parkview where he's living, keeping his bills paid, etc. I'm very thankful that I have the time to be able to help my family in these ways!

As for myself and DH, we've made some big changes in our way of eating and have lost a few pounds. Well, DH has lost more than a few - almost 50 pounds at this point! Wish it was that easy for me. But still I'm down 19 pounds and had to buy new jeans - yay!! Eventually, maybe, I'll catch up with DH.

I haven't picked up my stitching for a very long time, but with my new diet, I'm beginning to feel more like my old self and perhaps the desire to get back into my projects will come back as the weather gets cooler.

And I wouldn't complain if we got a rainy day or two that would impact those fires!

Summer Overview

Life went into overdrive this spring. Unfortunately, I do not have that gear anymore! So not only stitching, but blogging, and even some gardening took a back seat to other things.

First off, Kevin and Kyle graduated from high school.

Then Brendan got his A.A.degree from Columbia Basin College. 

All three boys now have jobs and Brendan even moved out of the house to share an apartment with a friend. I think he's really happy with his new-found independence. The twins will be attending CBC in September.

 Gary and I went camping with Hans and Jaeger to Hat Rock State Park, just over the border in Oregon. They had a great time geocaching, and the boys scored a motorcycle ride from our camping neighbors. 

A couple of weeks later we took Kirsten and two friends to Kamiah, Idaho, to do some 5-day clubs there. Kamiah is located on the upper Clearwater River, beautiful country and great camping. We grabbed Jaeger for a special weekend and spent some time exploring the Lochsa River, Lolo Pass, and Dworshak Dam. I think we found a great campground to go to next year with all the family! 

August takes us to Ocean Park, WA for the annual Paulson family reunion. This year was stellar with a big attendance and the best weather we've had in many a year. In fact on Saturday it was 90^, forcing us to get to the beach to cool off!

Kirsten, Ilse, and Knox try out the skim board

Troy (2nd cousin), Geoff, Kyle, Kirsten, Sarah (Kevin's GF), Kevin at the Astoria Column

Now September has hit and Kirsten is back at school - only one child left. And she's driving too! Ack!

Kirsten on 1st day of sophomore year

Easier Meals

O.k., proud mamma moment here. My oldest daughter has developed an e-book to help us all get dinner on the table with less hassle. Most nights we don't need to impress anyone with our cooking prowess, we just need to feed our people a healthy meal. Mystie has put together a real gem full of ideas to make that happen.

But don't just take my word for it. Here are a couple of reviews by other moms who have been using her book:

Homemaker's Challenge

Pink Peppers

If you'd like more info, and/or to purchase, click on the image above and it'll take you to her website. Or you can find her on Facebook at Simplified Pantry!

Happy Birthday!

My youngest daughter is 15 today! She is so excited to take driver's training (Lord give me strength!). Today the two of us will be at the mall having fun shopping together. The mall is not my usual hangout, nor is shopping my thing, but I do enjoy these trips with Kirsten.

I so loved having babies, but now that all of those babies are grown, or almost so, I have to say I also love watching their talents bloom, their interests grow and sometimes change. They're just great people I like to be around. I'm a blessed mamma. :)