Silver Creek Falls

Would have been a cute one, but it's blurry. Bummer!

Bridal Shower

Operation bridal shower complete!!! It's done, and I am so happy with how it turned out. At first I was afraid that nobody was going to show up since it was 7 o'clock and nobody had arrived yet, but there ended up being twelve of us! The decorations came together beautifully which was a relief. The vision I had in my head when I was planning it looked good, and the end product ended up looking just like I wanted it to :) Everyone was impressed with my hand made flower lanterns. They didn't believe me when I told them that I made them. I am pretty crafty if I must say so myself :) Laura was very excited, and I could tell that this shower meant a lot to her. She was so happy, and that made all of the hard work worth it. I think for a first timer I planned a pretty fantastic party! Now with one bridal shower under my wing, I'm prepared for the next one. Hopefully that will not be for awhile! Here are some photos from the party~

Kudana

So I found this video online of the Marimba band from Eugene that was playing at Saturday market last weekend, and I felt that you all needed to see what I experienced haha. I particularly like the dancers in this video :) Enjoy!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AJJDAANiAVc&feature=related

The Bavarian Haus

I have finally returned from a day with the parents and Zoe! First off, wasn't it the most beautiful day ever? It was absolutely perfect hiking weather. At 11 am, my parents, my dog, and I headed to Silver Creek Falls near Silverton. Zoe sat in the backseat with me. She seemed excited about the occasion. I think at first she thought she was going to the dog park because that is where we usually take her, but she soon realized she was on a day trip with the Adams!



Once we arrived, we parked and found a nice picnic bench in the sun and ate our lunch. There was a wedding reception taking place not too far from where we were, so it was interesting to listen to their conversations. The groom had an English accent which was fabulous. I think accents are wonderful! I also heard some interesting music. There was a lot of Enrique Iglesias, "I can be your hero baby." It still rings in my head 9 hours later...

Once we finished lunch, we headed for the trails. We weren't able to go on the Canyon trail with Zoe, but there were still some trails in the surrounding area that we were able to hike. We saw the North Falls, the South falls, and lots of little creeks. It was beautiful! We definitely want to go back without Zoe and hike the full trail. It was fun having her with us though :)

After our little trek, we went and explored Silverton, and Mt. Angel. I showed mom and dad where the Mt. Angel Abbey was that I went to one time, and we had fun looking at all of the old beautiful houses in Silverton. When we were driving around in Mt. Angel, we came upon this restaurant called "The Bavarian Haus." It was this cute little German restaurant. They had patio seating, so we sat outside. German music was playing the whole time which was fun! There was quite a variety of tunes. It started out with Om pa pa music, and then it went to upbeat German pop. My mom and I shared the fondue appetizer. It came with apples, bread, and German sausage that we dipped in a cheese fondue made from beer, wine, and Swiss cheese. It was DELICIOUS! My dad ordered a steak sandwich which was also really tasty. Then we all shared an apple strudel :) Super fun! Once we were finished eating, it was back to Eugene.

Currently my father is mowing the lawn at 8:35 pm. I think this is a random time to do it considering that it is almost dark. Haha oh well. Hopefully none of our neighbors are in bed yet! Tomorrow's agenda entails going jogging in the morning, trying on my brides maid dress and doing some fittings, baking a cake for the bridal shower, and making sure that everything is ready for the bridal shower on Saturday. My mom and I will also be cleaning the house, and my car desperately needs a bath!

I will be posting more pictures from today's adventure soon!

Fruit Nut Medley Mix

Currently I am sitting at my dinning room table eating my fruit nut medley trail mix from Costco. Most of you probably know already, but besides being addicted to cereal, I am addicted to the fruit nut medley mix. It has dried apples, kiwi, mangoes, papaya, pineapple, strawberries, bananas, cherries, raisins, and then peanuts, almonds, and walnuts. Can you get any more delicious and healthier than that? The dried apples are my favorite and usually the first to disappear from the bag. Usually I scavenger around everything in the bag in hopes of finding the apple chunks. It's tricky though because the apples and the pineapples look very similar. I'm a pro at distinguishing between them now, but it was difficult at first. Last year in Hob 3, all of the girls on the floor loved the mix too, especially Miss Amy Jackson. We would both sit in the hallway, and eat all of the apples in my trail mix instead of doing our homework. Every time I would come back to school from being home for the weekend, one of the first questions that was asked of me was, "did you get more fruit nut medley mix?" The answer was always yes. The bag that my mom has recently purchased is probably the best bag I have ever had. There are apple chunks up the wazoo! Amy Jackson is missing out! If you haven't had the opportunity to experience this delicious medley, you need to go to Costco and get a bag right now! You won't be disappointed. I hope :)

It's been awhile since I've written a new post, so I have a lot to catch you all up on. We'll start with last Friday.

At around 2 o'clock, Zoe and I headed over to Springfield to pick up Laura. Our first destination was the dog park. This was my first time taking Zoe to the park without my sister so I was a little nervous, but I had faith that Zoe would be safe. I always get nervous at dog parks. You never know what dogs will be nice, and what dogs will be dangerous. Zoe loves everyone, so you have to watch her and make sure that other dogs aren't getting angry. When we arrived, there were probably about 7 or so dogs in the park with their owners. Zoe ran around and said hello to probably every dog in the park, and they all were having fun playing. While Zoe was off running around, Laura and I just sat at a picnic table and talked while we watched Zoe. It had been awhile since Laura and I have gotten to talk in person. I love being able to sit and talk with her, but it also makes me sad because I've come to realize how different we both are now. I used to think that there was change in her personality and behavior, but lately I have been thinking that there has been more of a change in me rather than her. I think that quite possibly the reason why we have grown so far apart is that I have grown up while she has stayed the same.

Laura is getting married in less than a month, which worries me, and blows my mind. I don't think that her and Ryan are ready to get married, and I am not the only one who thinks this way. She knows that I don't think that this wedding is a good idea, so there's nothing more that I can say or do except to pray and be there for her. I feel like you should be excited when one of your best friends is getting married, but I can't be excited with her, which is hard. I put on a smile for her though, because she means a lot to me. June 12th is going to be a tough day. I have to walk down that isle, hold my flowers, smile, and watch her make this life changing decision that I wish she wasn't making.

After we had been talking for a while, we noticed this big German Sheppard getting kind of aggressive with another dog, so I grabbed Zoe and we headed to Skinners Butte Park. Skinners Butte Park is one of my favorite parks to visit. It has a concrete whale structure and another structure that we have no clue what it is. We think it is a turtle, but it would have to be an extremely abstract turtle. Usually the whale and turtle are either gray or blue, but recently it has been painted several different colors. So we hung out there for a little bit, and then we went to the post office so that she could mail off her wedding invitations. After we finished there, I took her back to her house and headed home.







That evening, my parents and I went on an art walk in downtown Eugene. Every first Thursday of the month all of the art gallery's downtown stay open late and have community art displayed. Every gallery has a live band playing inside, lots of snacks, and LOTS of wine. There were many tipsy grown ups! It was pretty fun for a while, but soon everything started looking the same and I was ready to go. My parent's still wanted to look though, so we didn't leave for a while. One thing I did not enjoy about the night was that in one of the gallery's I was hit on by this gross man. Of course that would happen to me! I got rid of him fast though thank goodness! After we were done downtown, my parents and I met up with my sister Shelley and her friend Pariz at Chapala’s Mexican restaurant at the Oakway mall for dinner. It was soooo good! I hadn't had Mexican food in a long time. It was nice to get to go out and spend time with my family, but I wish that Jen and Jake could have been there too!

The next day was Saturday market! My mom had to be there by 8 am, but I didn't end up going until around 1 pm. Finding a place to park was a nightmare! I have never driven around in circles in Eugene so much in my life. Finally I found a spot, but it wasn't very close to the market unfortunately. There were so many people there that day, and the weather was beautiful! I hadn't had lunch yet, so I got some phad thai, which was AMAZING, and I got a fruit salad. There were not as many hippies at the market as there usually are, but I did get to see some hippie dancers! There was a marimba band that played called Kudana, and they were super good. There were about 12 musicians in the band all ranging in different ages. They were super entertaining to watch. While I was watching the band, someone tapped on my shoulder and asked me if the band had just started. I recognized the voice and turned around and realized that it was Diana Koekkoek my friend and old small group leader. She was surprised to see me too! Out of all the people she could have asked, she tapped on my shoulder. What a coincidence. We talked for a while, and then she invited me to go with her and her family to see the Springfield High School play Cinderella. I hadn't been to a high school play in ages, so I was super excited to go. It was really good, I was pleasantly surprised! It was great getting to hang out with the Koekkoeks again. In high school, Laura and I used to go over to their house every Tuesday night to hang out with them. I miss those days.

After the play, Diana and I went and got a chocolate crème pie from Marie Calanders and then we headed over to our friend Claire's house. It was so great to get to visit with Claire. She graduated from nursing school a year ago, and understands the stress and frustrations that I am dealing with. She tried getting into nursing schools for five years, and it's taken her a long time to get to where she is. She was telling me about the program that she did in Colorado, and I am seriously considering it. She absolutely loved her education there and highly recommended it to me. She only ended up paying about $2,000 for each year that she was in school. It is only a two-year degree, but you are able to get your RN and she has a friend who was in the same program as her who is now getting her bachelors degree online, and the hospital she works for is paying for it! Sounds pretty fabulous to me! She gave me the number of a lady that would help me with any questions that I have, so I'm going to call her tomorrow. The application isn't due until March, and the program doesn't start until next fall. Colorado seems so far away, but if it gets me to my goal of becoming a nurse, then I'm willing to go anywhere that will get me to that goal. Plus it's only for two years. We'll see what path God leads me on!

Mother’s day was very low key, which was nice! My sisters and I got my mother a beautiful Orchid, and she was very excited about it. We had lasagna for lunch, and then we all took our Sunday afternoon naps :) Then at 4 o'clock, my mom, sister Shelley, and I went to the movies and saw the movie Valentines Day. It was really entertaining! I don't know if I would buy it, but I would definitely see it again. Then at 8 o'clock pm my mom and I watched the finale of the Amazing Race. The cowboys didn't end up winning like I had hoped, but at least the models didn't win. I didn't like them very much. The rest of the evening consisted of watching some episodes of the Office, and then looking at failblog online. Pretty low key. Today I didn't wake up until 11 am. I had plans of going running this morning, but at 7am I looked outside and saw that it was raining, and that finalized that decision. It's supposed to clear up tomorrow, so my plan is to go tomorrow morning. We'll see if that ends up happening.

Once I got up, I organized and cleaned the bathroom. That was quite the job. I threw away a lot of things, but I still have so much. With my sister and I combined that bathroom is completely full. I can't even imagine how everything fit when all three of us girls were living at home. I finally got things cleaned up though. Next I am going to take a shower and pick up my room a bit. My friend Karly is coming over tonight to hang out. I'm super excited because I haven't seen her since Christmas break. We've both been super busy, so it will be nice to get to sit and chat. I'm so glad that I have her here in Eugene. Even though we both have grown up so much, we still get along so well and it feels like nothing has changed. That is what I love about hanging out with her. It reminds me that even in the midst of our ever-changing lives, some things do remain the same.

Currently is it pouring outside, but I love it. I love the sound of the rain trickling down the drainpipe. Although I do wish it were sunny out, I'm kind of enjoying this typical Oregon weather :)

Well I'm going to go watch my dad on TV. The TV station is revealing a new set that they have been remodeling for quite some time now. My dad says that it looks really nice, so I'm excited to see it!

Fly Me to the Moon

After spending 3 days in the house without leaving once I might add, the room is finally complete! The only things left to do is hang up my lantern, curtains, and pictures. It feels so good to have all of my belongings put away and in their places. I found that it is way more fun to clean your room and unpack when you've got newly painted walls! I love the colors I chose. Thank you Margaret for helping me decide :)

Ever since retirement, my mom has become quite the craft guru, especially with beading. She's even taken beading classes at the local community college. I always love it when I'm talking with her and then she says, "oh it's time for my class, I've got to go." It sounds pretty similar to what I usually end up saying to her :) My mom has started selling her jewelry at the Eugene Saturday market with my friend Laura’s mom who crochets hats. I'm really excited to get to spend most of my Saturday’s downtown outside in the sunshine helping them at their booth. I absolutely love people watching, and in Eugene we've got some great people to watch. My favorites are the hippie dancers. It would not be Eugene if we didn't have the hippie dancers and their crazy outfits. Tomorrow will be the first Saturday for me, and I'm excited!

My mom and some ladies at our church want to start up a website where they can sell their crafts and things. They meet every 3rd Thursday of the month to discuss things. Yesterdays’ meeting was at our house. Goodness gracious do those women talk up a storm! I was sitting at the bar in the kitchen while they were in the dining room, and it was exhausting just listening to them. They spent about 20 minutes talking about diets. The food that they love to eat, and absolutely cannot stand. Then they switched and talked about the weather for another 20 minutes or so. Just lots of funny conversations like that. I was highly amused. I was glad that my mother was not involved in those crazy conversations. She was in the kitchen with me getting snacks together for everyone.


At 3 o' clock my parents and I headed over to Yachats on the coast. My dad was subbing for a saxophone player in the Yachats Big Band. Throughout my childhood and much of high school, my dad played in a big band. It was always so much fun getting to go to his concerts, hear him play and watch the dancers. Before last night, it had probably been 4 years since I've heard my dad play in a band. I didn't realize how much I missed it until watching him last night. He was so happy. He misses being able to play every weekend like he used to. He substitutes for different bands in the surrounding areas occasionally, but he just doesn't have the time to be a constant member of a band.

Typically these concerts attract many elderly, and this concert was no different. I love seeing all of the elderly couples get out there and dance. It's probably the sweetest thing you ever saw. Just warms your heart :) There was one couple in particular that caught my eye. They looked to be in their mid to late 80's. She had on a black dress that had tan colored outlines of flowers, and she wore this sparkly green and purple jacket over top. He was wearing black slacks, and a black western style button up shirt. They were so adorable. As frail as they looked, this couple danced to practically every song. The concert was 2 hours long, so you can only imagine how tiring that would be! It just amazed me how much stamina they had. They were out there more than a lot of the younger couples were. They danced so fluidly together. You could tell they had been dancing with each other for years. After the concert was over, my mom and I talked with the couple for a bit. We asked them how they had the energy to dance every song for 2 hours, because we knew for a fact that we would have needed a break. They said, "Well we just love dancing, so we just dance as much as we can." They have been each other’s life partners and dance partners for 59 years! That's love right there :) We ended up not getting back to Eugene until about 11:30, and instead of going to bed right away, I decided to watch Robin Hood. Oh how I love that movie, although it is much better when I watch it with Margaret because she laughs at and enjoys the movie just as much as I do.

Today after I eat breakfast and get ready for the day I'm going to go hang out with my friend Laura. I think we'll take Zoe to a dog park, and visit all of our favorite Eugene sites like we used to do. I also need to be measured for my bride’s maid dress and then send out invitations for Laura's bridal shower.

Some exciting news! I might be able to spend a week with my oldest sister Jen in Idaho in early June! I would fly, and I absolutely love flying! I only get to see my sister about every 6 months, so this would be a special treat. My parents are going to Idaho in late June, but I will be in my CNA class. I am also going to Idaho in August with Nick and Brandon for 4 days to see Alicia, but we'll only be spending the night with my sister, and I want to be able to spend more time with her. So hopefully this works out! Well it's a beautiful day and a busy day, so I better get started!

And The Final Colors Are...

Tree house and dried hydrangea!

I am on day 2 of painting, and it's still a work in progress. I thought I was getting pretty close to being done, but then this morning I found several spots that needed to be touched up which resulted in realizing that the whole wall needs another coat. Who knew that light yellow was going to be so difficult to cover? So I sit here on my bed with my glass of 1% milk (don't worry it's on a table this time) and eating my chips and tuna fish sandwich taking a mini break from my paint brush and paint roller. I don't think I want to paint again for a while. It so much more work then I remember!

After I finish doing a second coat of the dried hydrangea, (I really could just say beige, but dried hydrangea is much more fun) then I can vacuum and start to move all of my stuff back in which will be another big chore in itself.

Well I've finished my lunch, so there are no more distractions keeping me from painting. I'd better go finish it. Wish me luck...