Adventure of the Gracies

We decided to celebrate our Friendiversary. We did some talking and we decided we've been really good friends for six years. We've known each other for a lot longer than that, but were never friends.

This morning, Gracie came over and we headed out on an epic adventure to Whidbey Island. Our first stop was at Rosario Beach. It is now my favorite spot. It was gorgeous. Although really cold, so be warned. Also, don't dress like Gracie and leave your warm jackets at home...

Gracie had never gotten out of Deception Pass, so after the leisurely drive out and the recon missions to several parks and beaches, we got to the Deception Pass Bridge and walked most of the way across.

The drive continued to Langley where we stopped for lunch and coffee. I got an amazing London Fog (one of my favorites). We shopped around the town, which has some rather cute shops. Our favorite shop was called Music for the Eyes. It was a great store with a collection of cool rugs, gorgeous jewelry and beads from all over the world (mostly Middle East and Asia).

We drove further still and found a random beach where the lighting was great so we stopped for pictures/photoshoot/to admire the view, but mostly for pictures. ;-)

We stopped off at an art gallery on the way back home as well as to try on formal dresses as Ross. It was super fun and both of us didn't want the day to end.

In addition to all that, I saw mountains for the first time since I've been home, we ate amazing chocolates, drove through slush, hail, snow-ish and rain, had many conversations and drove over 200 miles. It was a lovely day and I'm so thankful to have this girl in my life!

Candy Making

This is baking week in our family. And by baking, I mean candy making. Pounds and pounds of butter and sugar are used during the week as mass amounts of English toffee, peanut brittle and caramels fill the house, taking up the majority of the many sheet pans we own.

Today, Jane and I made caramels. Two half sheet pans full. 6 pounds of butter... It was going well, no scorching or burns like previous days. We have been having trouble with our brand new candy thermometers, mostly, I believe, because of the amount of candy we're making and the large pots we have to use. Anyway, I was going off of the candy thermometer and the ice water test. Well, turns out one of the batches was cooked a little too long despite the careful tests. I was pretty upset. It was three pounds of butter, which is a lot. It also took a good two hours to make....

So tomorrow, I've got another batch of caramels to knock out... The good news? It just tastes like Worther candies, so it'll still get eaten, just not gifted.

The Things I Learn- Number 3

So I'm home. It is a little more overwhelming of a transition than I anticipated. The house is smaller than I remembered.

The other night, we had eight people over in addition to my family of eight. I felt weird all evening and finally figured out it was because there were an overwhelming amount of conversations going on at the same time and I wasn't used to it.

The next morning, I had no voice. That gave me perspective on just how quiet it was in Tennessee.

Home

Welp, the time has come, I'll be traveling back to Washington tomorrow. The busiest travel day of the year. Don't get me wrong, I am so excited to go home. I've missed my family for ages and so much as happened since I left. I can't wait to catch up with everyone. But like every time I leave this place, I realize how much of my heart is here.

I pulled my suitcase out of the closet last week and started collecting the random things that I wouldn't need and while doing so, Elsa asked
"What are you doing?"
I looked up at her, she had been playing happily
"I'm packing to go home."
She got really sad as she climbed down from the bed and came over.
"But... You are home..."
It nearly made me cry, but I gave her a hug instead. For someone so young, she understands a lot.

Today, I spent a good deal of the morning catching up on some miles I was behind from the weekend. Then we Skyped home for probably the last time this visit and talked with Anna at West Point as well as the family back home.

I made her macaroni and cheese for lunch and tucked her in for her nap. Our morning had been filled with songs, laughter and fun. This afternoon while she naps, I did laundry to get ready to pack and made salted caramel pretzel bark (seriously addicting) while listening to Pandora.

Oh, and I got a sweet package in the mail today from a friend. She's a favorite. :-) and not just because she sent fall cookies.

So my next post shall be from Washington where I will be diving into Thanksgiving, family, friends and holiday baking.

Thankfulness

So I was cutting vegetable for dinner the other night and the knife slipped cause it was (is) dull, cutting my finger. Last time I cut myself while cooking was seriously like two years ago. I don't do it often, so I was frustrated and missing my knives. My good, sharp knives back at home. Then I thought how lucky I am to have a good knife set, which got me thinking about thankfulness.

This is Thanksgiving week and it's not just for turkey and pumpkin pie, but about gratitude. So I decided to do a super small list of things I'm thankful for.

1. My family. It's been almost two months since I left, but I still get to talk to them. Which leads me to...

2. Skype and all the other wonderful ways of communicating. Since I've been gone, I've used Skype, Facetime, Google Hangout, Messenger, email, Facebook, text, phone calls and even some snail mail. Getting mail is always fun, but I am soooo incredibly thankful for all the other ways I can communicate that are instantaneous, where I can see faces, send pictures and ask for advice "in person"

3. Friends. In the last few months especially, I have realized what a unique group of friends I have. The ones who keep me laughing, the ones (all of you) who put up with the overload of niece pictures, the ones who stay up way too late writing text stories and having sticker battles, the ones who pray for me... Just to name a few.

4. My little family here. They're awesome and kind. We play a lot of games after dinner, eat a lot of chocolate, cook, shop and do house projects. It's a lot of fun!

5. My bed back home. I am so excited for my trailer bedroom, the thin foam mattress and the multitude of blankets to keep warm (cause it's freezing in the winter).

6. Noise. Being away has made me realize how much I miss the chaos of more than one conversation happening at once, music playing in the background, people cooking, typing, singing... The quiet has been nice in its own way, but I've found I play music or have cooking shows playing in the background quite frequently.

I could go on forever with things I'm thankful for. Like chocolate, taste buds, Hobby Lobby coupons, dishwashers, cheese... But I'll stop here and wish you all a very happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Moments #1

Elsa, walking up to me dragging a quilt behind her. I'm sitting on the couch on my computer and she hands me the blanket 

"Can we snuggle?" she asked 

I looked over at her, her hair up in a cute little messy bun type hairdo with not one hair bow, but two. 

"Uh, of course we can snuggle." 

Sure it was only a twenty-five second or so snuggle, but I'd never turn down this baby's snuggles! 

A Happy Quest for Fall

The "cabin fever" set in this week. For the past month, I have only gone out twice or so times a week. Compared to the somewhat crazy schedule at home where I usually go out at least once a day and often times will be out for hours running errands, chauffeuring kids and such. The first couple weeks were lovely, with no pressure, no demand to get ready for the day first thing each morning. All I did was wash dishes, watch Elsa, workout and clean. My batteries are finally recharged.

Today was lovely, I had a leisurely morning tidying up my room, bathroom and the upstairs bonus room where Elsa and I spend the majority of our time together. It's cozy up there with a giant air mattress and a super comfortable couch, plus the the surplus of books on one wall and the projector making it into a in-home theater. 

In the afternoon, I headed out. I had a vague idea of what I wanted to do. I wanted to drive and see fall, drink something warm and then pick up the few items I needed before heading back. Getsome Coffee has the best raspberry white chocolate mocha, so I got one of those on my way out. I first went to Miss Lucille's, a sweet warehouse filled with booths of antiques and knick-knacks. It's a fun place to browse. 

After that, clueless of how far away it was, and without a GPS to help me if I got lost (I rarely do), I decided to venture to Port Royal State Park. It turned out to be a lovely drive down a windy highway and about twenty minutes off of the main highway. 

The view from the parking lot of the Red Fork river. I met a nice lady who was waiting for her client to arrive. She was a photographer and we talked for a few minutes and she told me about several places to check out at the park. 

And so I found fall!! It was fun to see all the deciduous trees and the crunching leaves on the ground.

I loved the vibrant greens against the dulling orange leaves. It once again proved that fall is my favorite time of year.

This field was technically not on the park property and thus I trespassed, which made me think of my best friend and how much I've changed... This field made me happy! I didn't stay for long, but the red barn in the distance and all the beautifully colored trees with the bright blue sky was just what I needed to see. 

My adventure felt like it ended way too fast as I picked up a couple things from Hobby Lobby and a few ingredients to make pretzel bites and cheese sauce this week.... 

All in all, today was a happy day and I am thankful for where I'm at. 

Back to Balkemania

Thursday morning, Samuel, Lisa, Elsa and I boarded a rented pickup and made the eight hour drive up to Michigan for Balkema wedding. I was a little concerned about the long drive with Elsa, but she was fantastic and didn't get car sick, which was AWESOME!

Lisa read Cruel as the Grave by Mrs. Southworth on the way up and back and that helped the time past quickly. We made really good time going up and made it to the rehearsal dinner. After the rehearsal, we went to the reception venue and went to work on some of the decorations.

The wedding was sweet. Everything went well and the reception venue made a stunning transformation from a gym to a reception venue. It was gorgeous and Lisa's Aunt Julie did an amazing job!

It was quite awkward for me because I didn't know hardly anyone there (besides bridesmaids), although tons of people seemed to know me and it was weird, cause I hardly know who they are. I'm pretty sure it's cause they see all the pictures I post of Elsa and it makes them think they know me....

Due to a culinary conversation during the wedding reception, Bob and Julie (Mrs. Balkema's sister) brought sushi the next day including raw scallops and raw tuna. It was delicious and super sweet of them. I had a fantastic time getting to know them this weekend!

Besides the horrible allergies I had the entire time I was there, it was a fantastic weekend. I love the Balkema family!

I made several realizations over the weekend:

-I have now been to three outta four Balkema kids' weddings. :-)

-I've never been to a wedding where I haven't worked in some way. This time, I was asked to run through the kitchen to look for necessary equipment, walk the cooks through the kitchen instead of the bride, moved chairs from the church, to the rec. center, helped slice and serve cake and all sorts of cleanup stuff...

-Even though I was busy almost the entire weekend, I missed my family even more than ever.

-My home away from home felt like home when I was away from it and came back. If that makes sense. ;-)

The sunset on the way back was gorgeous! We got back in decent time and unloaded the back of the pick up. It felt good to be home.

Listen, Learn and Live

The past few days I've been thinking a good deal. About writing, reading, expressing feelings and being empathetic. I've thought about how to listen better and focus on understanding what people are saying rather then trying (and usually failing) to look smart.

I've had the desire to read poetry, listen to the lyrics of songs, sit and watch the sun set or watch bubbles blow away. I've put down everything and just sat, curled up on the couch watching the rain gust down the street and how many thousands of droplets land on the road and tumble down the blades of grass to the flowers. I've put down my electronics and books to watch the lightening brighten the clouds and the thunder that rumbles from one side to the other. It's been peaceful. I want to improve myself, learn new things and listen to what's gong on around me.

Turn on Pandora or your Ipod music. Randomly select a song. Really listen to the words and understand the meaning.

Go on Pinterest. Pick a word that sums up how you feel or what you've had to do that day. For me, it was choice, or decision. Search that word with quote and see the results. It is encouraging.

Learn a new song. Explore your voice and sing with passion.

Find something in your life that you can change no matter what. So when the impossible things (or so they feel) come, you can always know that one part of your life you are in charge of. For me, that is eating well and exercising.

Ask questions and listen to answers. Problem solve and forgive.

Sometimes when I'm creative writing, I find myself wishing to give a character a deeper personality, believable struggles and weaknesses, strong and brave. Then I wish I had a character like that. It makes me want to explore the character I have become and see what changes need to be made

Autumn

I had to find fall today. It is October 18th and outside is sunny, blue skies, and 88 degrees outside. Coming from Washington, I was ready for boots, scarves, coats and chilly walks, not this warm weather nonsense....

Elsa and I took a walk around towards the school area, where three schools sit next to each other. There was a small cluster of trees with leaves on the ground and wind blowing. We picked up leaves and took pictures before heading home. Of course part way home, she got tired and needed me to carry her.

So I could my touch of Autumn. I can't wait for the chilly days. They are my favorite. My pictures of Elsa also turned out pretty sweet. She looks so great in black and her hair was so floofy that the braids looked thicker and cooler today.

A Happy Day

Photo shoot with babe today. Changed her outfit three times and she was awfully good about it all and I got a few good pictures. 

We watched Sofia the First, did dishes and made macaroni and cheese. It was a happy morning. 

The afternoon started with 3 mile workout, shower and then break while Elsa napped. I did some watercolors and Spotify. 

The best part of my day was Skyping my best friend and catching up with her. Elsa took an immediate liking to her and popped in and out of the screen while we talked. It through her off that we had the same name. I needed to do dinner, so we just hung out while I cooked. It was like we were hanging out together. It was awesome! 

I made Hawaiian BBQ wraps for dinner, which were a hit and after Samuel, Lisa played Wizard. It's a pretty sweet game and although I was in the lead for the majority of the game, I still managed to lose. We made chicken and avocado eggrolls, which are a favorite here. It was a good day.

Outting Adventures

Yesterday, we headed to Opry Mills Mall in Nashville. It's like quite literally next door to the Grand Ol' Opry and Opryland. We had dinner at The Rainforest Cafe, which was an interestingly fun experience. Elsa loved all the fake moving animals and the jungle feel. 

We watched Storks that night in theater. After The Secret Life of Pets, I had little to no hope for it being a good movie. I was pleasantly surprised, it was a super cute movie, all made better because I got to snuggle with Elsa almost the entire time. 

So, I had my first time in a Disney store. SO. MANY. SPARKLES. Lisa got Elsa an adorable pair of pajamas. They're adorable on her. 

Anyways, ended up staying up wwwwwaaaaaaaayyyyyy too late and fell asleep on the floor of my room for a few minutes.

It was a good day. 

The Things I Learn- Number 2

Of course while I'm potty training her, she wants to wear a tutu. And pants. -_- Small victories, however, are worth celebrating with 1/4 pieces of Starbursts. We're making progress.... I still never thought I'd potty train someone else's kid.

The Things I Learn- Number 1

Random things I never really realized....

There is such thing as a Starburst run. Yes, it involves cravings, exhausted parents and sending the nanny (me) to the store. Shoes on, cash in hand, I made the two mile drive to the store just for two bags of Starbursts.

It was worth it. That is all, folks.

Routine

The Tennessee routine is setting in. Today has been wonderful so far. The morning was filled with playing with Elsa, potty trailing and picture taking.

The afternoons around here are beyond quiet. With the little munchkin sleeping and no one else in the house, it is completely silent. I worked out, showered and still had 2+ hours of free time before she woke up. For me, that means I get to recharge my batteries. It means art, reading, writing and listening to music. It means chatting, looking up new places to go and thinking. 

The late afternoon and evening will be filled with dishes, tidying up and games. It is a slow paced day, but I'm cherishing these slow moments because one day, I will want them back. 

2,385 Miles

That is how far I traveled today. It didn't feel like I traveled that far. The direct flight felt short and between watching the clouds and amazing views of the states. After staying up until 1:30am last night, I was running on very little sleep, which was awesome - I slept for around two hours of the flight, another reason the trip felt short.

Samuel, Lisa and Elsa met me at baggage claim and as soon as Elsa saw me, she ran up and hugged me tight. She hasn't stopped talking since. We did Trader Joe's shopping and didn't get home until dinner time.

And that was my day. Samuel and Lisa are super warm and it feels comfortable around them. But even so, I feel incredibly homesick this go around, so prayers would be greatly appreciated as I make this transition.

Sunday

Sundays are usually relaxing. Yesterday was far from relaxing, but I somehow came out of it feeling happy and fully of energy...

Between waking up and Church, I went and had a business meeting for Civil Air Patrol and toured the "kitchen" I will be spending the weekend in once a month. It was a sad excuse for a kitchen, I'm not sure I've seen a kitchen in worse condition and that's saying a lot. I barely had enough time to do the entire tour and get to Church on time - okay, I was a couple minutes late and ended up changing my shirt and shoes and fixing my hair at stoplights on my way.

I hung out at my friend's house for the next few hours before Joyful Dancing started. I took about three minutes to learn the very, very basic step of what was being taught before two of my closest friends and I ditched to walk around the woods nearby.

Volleyball was already in full swing by the time we got there after the dance. I caught one game before it was too dark to play. I really just wanted to say goodbye to people since I won't see them again for at least another two months...

My friends and I weren't ready to call it a day quite yet, so (after many brainless moments of trying to find a place to go) we went to Target, bought drinks and candy and talked in the parking lot. We stacked corn candy up to look like corn, at Espresso M&Ms (which are amazing!) and talked pretty late. It was fun. I'm lucky to have such cool people in my life!

Weekend Work And Weekend Play

My weekend had 14+ hours of Civil Air Patrol classes in two days, which I was stressed out about, so I am relieved that it is over. It was another goal for this year that I got done! Squadron Leadership School was a good learning experience and really threw me out of my comfort zone.

My Squadron Leadership School class. 

After the class was done, I felt immediate relief. What made my day was that a couple of my friends came over that night for Fish Tacos, Italian sodas and brownies while watching The Kid. We ended up visiting long after the movie was done. I am so blessed to have friends who come over spontaneously and hang out until the wee, early morning hours.

Days Like This

I'm sitting in my bedroom with my watercolor, cup of tea and journal. Rain is splashing away on the trailer roof and outside is gloomy with thunder and lightening. It makes me happy. I love thunderstorms. Contrary to the grey outside, I have a bright sunflowers as a result of a spontaneous Farmer's Market visit yesterday.  I'm at peace - content with life. 

Return to Fort Worden

For two months, we had a date set aside in September to spend together at Fort Worden. We made improvements from the last time by making ferry reservations and packed enough food for everyone.

So this past Saturday at 7:50am, three Fuji's, three Grays, three Jamiesons, one Hacking, four Miles and one Caitlin-- fifteen people total-- loaded into the our "rad" semi-white van and headed for Fort Worden. I forgot how chaotic and loud a full van can be, but it was fun to listen and participate in the different conversations. We arrived in Coupeville at the ferry terminal in great time. Forty minutes before the ferry was to leave. It left us the perfect amount of time to play Duck, Duck, Bang and Ninja in the parking lot. 

Fierce game of Ninja at the ferry terminal

Once on the ferry, the looks we got while fifteen adult/teens got out of the van was priceless! It looked like a ridiculous amount of people in one vehicle. 

All those people fit in one van! 

We admired the view and eventually met up on the Mezzanine deck of the ferry where it was relatively quiet and clear. We had to take what is now a traditional ferry picture for us. 

We arrived at Fort Worden hungry and ready to explore. We grabbed lunch things and headed for the beach. 

Some things you should know:

Gracie+Beach= Friends

Gracie+Beach= Frolicking 

Gracie+Beach= Happiness 

Gracie+Friends+Beach= Bliss + <3

So we ate our Robin Hood lunch of French bread, meat, cheese and sand. Washed it down with Mucho Mango tea and water and hand pies. 

The beach explorers took off, running and laughing down the beach, we were happy. There was real sand between our toes and sun in our eyes. The majority of them ran around the bend in the beach and way out from eyesight. Since shoes, socks, bags, wallets and food were still at our original lunch area, I stayed relatively close looking for cool rocks and shells and talking with Lindsay. 

After a good hour or so, the beach wanderers were called back (I'm mean, what can I say), so we could go explore the fort. They came back with smiles, covered in sand and some wet. 

The beached boat was our next destination. We had to get a group picture there and recreate the recreated Washington Crossing picture from last time... 

We went next to explore the upper bunkers. They were pretty much all the same, but still pretty sweet and not as busy as the lower bunkers. We always search for the best singing bunker. Part way through the exploring, Nick, John and I ditched in hopes of finding a different room to sing in, or just get away from the rest of the group. I think a good scare would have been planned as well. It was fun. I took a bunch of picture as we continued to explore, we ran around, sang and looked around more. 

Near the end, some of us got "separated" from the rest of the group (we thought they would find us, but instead, they went all the way back to the van). It gave us a chance to sing a little as a smaller group. The funnest part was when this dad and his three girls walked past and we screamed really loudly and Ian banged on his Cajon, then silence. When we stepped out into the hall, no one was there. It was awesome! 

Overall the time at Fort Worden was a blast, although it could have been longer.... 

The second ferry ride was us hanging on that same Mezzanine deck the entire time. Gracie gave me a killer neck massage. I was so out that walking back to the car was really really weird feeling. 

Since spending ten hours together wasn't enough to satisfy anyone, we went to Fort Ebey to watch the sunset and sing some more. It was the perfect way to spend the evening. The acoustics in the large room at Fort Ebey were way better than any of the others at Fort Worden. 

It was a sweet time and once again, I am left thinking that I know a great group of people and am thankful for my friends. Until next adventure...