gratitude garland

gratitude garland
Originally uploaded by one deep drawer

instead of just making a regular, old paper chain to string across the front windows, we made a gratitude garland...writng what we are thankful for on the inside of each link. here's a bit of my list (in no particular order): pots of soup...AP's new job...the river...scrub jays...Mabel...Mabel's cousins...LLL...Gerri, our midwife...the ocean...time with grandparents in San Diego...how generous my bnrothers are...homemade bread...our mothers...Marla, our landlord...the Terpstra boys...the hospitality of Ben and Jess...the list goes on and on.

does your landlord bake you cookies?

we received this card from our neighbor and landlord along with a bag of crisp apples and warm oatmeal chocolate chip cookies...

Dear Andy, Kortney and Mabel,

just a little note to say thank you for coming to dinner on Tuesday evening...we so enjoyed your company. i was just disappointed when i realized as you were leaving that you had the pictures (from Suriname) i wanted to see...i hope you'll come over and bring them again--you have a standing invitation!

Kortney--so glad you could go to the play with us. i loved hearing you and Sarah chatting about "baby stuff." it was a fun evening.

we really thank God for the 3 of you being our neighbors! you are truly a blessing to us.

Love Marla, Dave, John and Ruby

isn't that just amazing?

steps

this has been happening the last few days. we caught her this time!

they say that the rain is about to begin. and this after we have enjoyed such lovely weather since we arrived. i was telling AP a few days ago that i remembered November in these parts. how it's so lovely and then it turns wintery fast. it can take you by surprise. i wanted to be aware and appreciative of the sunshine while we still had it. so today we spent the morning out.

the main item on the itinerary was story time at the library. after a nap and a shower and some cottage cheese and a Satsuma tangerine, we headed that way. we found out that story time for our age group is held in a separate room instead of being in the middle of the children's library. it felt a little out of the way and closed-in. we could have used an open window. we sang alot and did finger plays. but we only read two board books. we can stand to read a bit more than that! then the librarian brought out a box of dolls and trucks and puzzles and balls: all things that Mabel loves to play with. she played with the other kids, offering a doll to hug or a ball to roll. she had a good time. then we said goodbye to the toys and the kids and the light fixtures. she left murmuring, "i love you!"

then off to a neat little shop to find a birthday card for Jude, our cousin. i found the perfect card, a print by Nikki McClure. it's there at the top. just perfect to welcome Margaret and Jude into this second year together. then to the Salvation Army where we found a towel rod for our bathroom and a pair of tennies just right for the little one. it was just beginning to rain when we arrived home.

nature's green turns to gold

she really does play telephone with almost anything...her shoe, the computer cord, a shell from Ocean Lane. and then when the real phone rings she leans her head to one side and says, "Lo?" of course when it comes time to talk on the phone she gets all smiley and quiet.

we've had a smash up fall here in the Northwest. the days are short, but the light is just amazing. almost every afternoon we spend some time outside. we go get books from the library, walk for coffee, buy a few groceries for dinner or just hang out on the deck and watch the scrub jays and Oregon juncos.

last week, getting ready for Halloween, we shared a near perfect day. as i raked leaves, Pa and the girl carved her little pumpkin that we got in Bonita. (yes, i brought three pumpkins with us in the move.) she was interested in eating the pumpkin, so i took the cut-out eyes and mouth pieces in the house and sauteed a few chunks. we also roasted the seeds. such a rich, warm flavor with a bit of salt. we took a handful over to our new neighbor and introduced ourselves.

today after a kind of slow morning, we took a walk to the library park: swings and slides and squirrels and a pretty cat with blue eyes. on the way home we shared a pumpkin shake from Burgerville. she cried when it was gone. crazy one!

let's start at the very beginning

this little snatch of video is from our trip to the pumpkin patch in Bonita. Mabel and i were waiting for the hay ride to begin, and i didn't know the camera was switched to the movie setting. but the result is very sweet. the simple, silent images catch something of our relationship and the way our days flow.