Do you like my hair-do?

I did my hair like this today for church.
I love new hair-dos.

Source: elisajoy.com via Darilyn on Pinterest

Looking forward to this...

Staying at the Overleaf Lodge in Yachats.  

in 7 more days....

I seriously can't wait. It's my birthday present from my sister.  I am feeling so spoiled. I've been counting down the days since we decided on doing this and you know how something you are really excited about seems to take forever to get here?  That's how I feel. I've never been to a resort spa before and I'm going to enjoy every second of it. Yessiree!

I can't wait to tell you all about it.

Snowed in, in Seaside

Last night we made a 4 1/2 hour drive to Seaside. It's supposed to take 1 hour. Snow everywhere. There wasn't snow when we left Portland but as we climbed the coastal range we saw more and more. We eventually had to chain up but as soon as we got going again we encountered a 12 car pileup on a two lane highway. We then proceeded to sit there for 2 hours as the sun went down and emergency vehicles arrived.

Eventually we got moving again and made it into Seaside slowly. A nice dinner awaited us at the Bigfoot Pub and Grub and life seemed a bit better.

Our house we are staying in is lovely. We are a block from the beach and we took a walk this morning to see the snow on the beach, a rare Oregon encounter.

It is still snowing and the sky is gray. We extended our stay another night so that we wouldn't have to drive back today.

Makenzie is not happy with being here. She didnt want to come. We take these trips to provide family memories and it's frustrating when you get teenage antics. She did this in Mexico last summer as well, not wanting to participate in anything. And it's not like she's four anymore. I don't feel like making her.

Today we are going to the arcade, get some salt water taffy, and visit a used bookstore. At least most of us are having fun.

A Love Affair

My love affair with the Oregon Ducks started in 1989. The spring to be exact. I was living not too far from where I live now and most weekends I would make the two hour drive south to spend time with my boyfriend who was attending the University of Oregon. As soon as my Dodge Challenger rolled onto Franklin Avenue and I caught that whiff of Bread baking from the factory, I felt like I was home. I became a part of campus life Integrating into whatever my boyfriend was doing. And I loved every minute of it.

I watched Trailblazer games from the basement of his dormitory.  I ate grilled cheese sandwiches from the cafeteria. I went to math classes and I went away on weekend trips with people from his dorm.  I was an unofficial Duck.

The next fall I moved to Eugene to be closer to my boyfriend. And although I lived a good 20 minutes from campus I found myself there a lot. Football season was huge for us. There were the pre-game parties, the post-game parties, and the game in-between the two. He would sneak me into the student section and for two years that's where I watched the Oregon Ducks get stomped on.

I was caught up in the mania of wishing for a winning season.

Then it happened.

In 1995 the Oregon ducks went to the Rose Bowl. By this time I was married but not to the duck loving boyfriend. At least my husband was from Eugene so I could continue with my love affair. He at least understood it. We were living in Provo, Utah going to school at Brigham Young University.  I remember going home to Oregon for Christmas and freaking out about how much my Rose Bowl sweatshirt was gong to cost.  But it had to be bought.  Had to.

The Ducks didn't end up winning that year despite the mania in Eugene of wishing for it.

Then 15 years later they got another chance.

 But lost.

The Ducks haven't won a Rose Bowl title since 1917. That's a long time.

Today I wish them the best. I've come a long way from those early college dorm days being snuck into the game.  Today I will watch the game in my family room surrounded by three teenage daughters who love the ducks because their momma loves the ducks.  And a husband that will probably play on his tablet during the game but sit by me in support nonetheless.  My girls don't have any first-hand experience with them like I do but they know I love them and that's enough for them.  For Christmas this year they all got Oregon shirts and sweatshirts and unlike 17 years ago, I could afford them.

Good luck, Oregon. You deserve this win.

And so do I.

All About Emma

I've Told y'all about Heidi and makenzies musical abilities but I haven't mentioned Emma yet.

Here you go.

Emma has an amazing lyrical voice. She loves to sing the most out of the three girls. She is patiently waiting until she is old enough to audition for encore, the choir Makenzie is in.

In the meantime she is an active member of the 8 th grade choir at her school as well as a member of the select women's middle school choir.

I love her choir teacher, ms. Klatz. She is really dedicated to the music program and even wrote for a grant to get a much needed piano for the program. Well, she got the grant and the school was given a gorgeous grand piano.

Here is Emma as part of her women's ensemble. And also her with her best friends.

Encore Christmas fireside

Tonight as a family we had the privilege of hearing the Encore choir of which Makenzie is a part. I felt the Spirit very strongly. I believe that the spirit of our Father in Heaven can be felt through music. I've always felt the closest to God through music and nature. I am so grateful that Makenzie gets to be a part of something so incredible. She also accompanied the choir on the piano for one of their songs.


The first picture is of the 2011-12 Encore choir

The second picture is the current choir with all alumni.

The Time I Drank Rotten Milk.....The NASTY

Yesterday I made a protein drink I had drunk quite a bit before my surgery. It was a chocolate powder mixed with skim milk. It always tasted good. So yesterday I made one and was really disappointed that it tasted NASTY. But I drank it anyway. I figured my tastebuds had somehow changed. A lot of things haven't been tasting so great. I made enough for two meals so I drank the NASTY again for dinner.

Sometime around 10:00 pm Heidi goes in the kitchen to get a bowl of cereal. She pours the cereal and then the milk and then takes a bite expecting the sugary sweetness of Trix cereal. Instead she got NASTY. She brought it to my attention where we realized it was indeed expired. We even had a new one in the fridge sitting next to it.

So now I'm laying here this morning in bed with the foulest taste in my mouth. It doesn't matter that I brushed my teeth. I guess that's what happens when you drink 8 oz of rotten milk!!!!!