A new roof...

Our friend Cam and his son-in-law Stuart and son Clay worked for a couple of weeks to get our roof on. Our roof should not withstand winds up to 130 mph. If we have wind that strong, the whole area will be in trouble.

Grandpa with Clarissia, Titus and Ginny

James' brother John and his wife Anne decided to take their children, Clarissia, Titus and Ginny to Disneyland during their School Spring Break. They arrived at our home about 9:30 PM and we quickly went to visit Grandpa and had a round of pictures. Their time at our place was brief, they stayed the night and then headed on their way the next day.

Working hard to replace the roof

Our friend Cam Buck and his son Clay and son-in-law Stuart have been working diligently on getting our roof replaced. Unfortunately they have had to work between rain drops. Some days it rained so much they couldn't even work. James chose Dow Corning shingles that are good up to 130 mph. We are hoping that the wind never gets that rough though, and that the 50-year rated roof will last at least 25 in our Troutdale winds!

Surprise Visit from Josh and Kaija

I love surprises! I just don't like knowing about them. If someone said that they had my Christmas present for 2009, it would drive me crazy not knowing what it was. This surprise was perfect because no one told me to expect a surprise. So, on March 18th, I came home from work and was very tired. I showered and got into my pj's expecting a take-it-easy evening. As I was relaxing on the sofa I heard a Bam-Bam-Bam at the door. James asked me to go get it and I said I couldn't I was in my pj's, so he went. I heard Josh's laugh and couldn't believe it. I said, "That sounds like Josh?" Matt and Katherine were nodding. Seems everyone but me knew--now that is frustrating--I don't like being the ONLY one left in the dark. But it was a wonderful surprise.





We didn't have a lot planned, we had Stake Temple Day the next day and Josh and Kaija treated us to Calamity Jane's in Sandy for the best burgers. We didn't do a lot, but we had fun sitting and visiting. Matt and Josh played with their cards.



















Saturday night Josh and Kaija made 'Monte Cristo's", or deep fried sandwiches and served fresh fruit with it. Josh had this on his mission and it was so good!

Birthday Weekend at the Oregon Coast

We rented a home on the beach for the weekend from one of James's co-workers. It was a beautiful home and the setting was perfect. It was wonderful being with the family. We left early Friday morning and drove out Hwy 26. We stopped at Camp 18, a favorite restaurant and logging museum for breakfast. Of course, Aaron is on the phone taking care of business.

From Camp 18 we headed out to Tillamook and the Tillamook Cheese Factory. This is a place we can never tire of seeing. We love to watch them make cheese, browse through their gift shop and (of course) have ice cream.


















Aaron spent a lot of time in the car because customers called and he had to deal with them when he had cell service. He managed to sell a lot of parts while we were inside spending money. We were glad he could join us for ice cream.

















We stopped at a vista place to look down on the ocean.




















Then on to Cape Meares Lighthouse, another favorite place of ours.































We stopped in Pacific City and had dinner at Riverhouse Restaurant before heading toward our destination in Neskowin. We arrived and unloaded our things just as the day was coming to a close. The house we stayed in was beautiful. It was in a gated community, and only 6 years old with 4 bedrooms--the master bedroom being on the ground floor. When we arrived it was only 50 degrees and took a while to warm the place up.
















After a good night sleep we were able to see the place better. We were told there was a creek off the back, but actually it was a river 30 feet off the deck and the beach and Proposal Rock 2 blocks away.






































After breakfast we walked down to the beach, not staying for long because it was such a cold day. I love the beach, I love to watch the waves crashing against the rocks, I love walking along in the sand and I love being with my family.










The stumps are from the Neskowin Ghost forest that existed 2,000 years ago.

















This is the house we stayed in.



That afternoon we met up with Brian and Erica Webber had lunch at Pier 101 and then browsed book stores while it rained outside. Katherine and Matt are always looking for a good book. Dinner that night was at Kyllo's--chowder and fried oysters--can't get much better than that.


















We were all able to relax that evening and the smart people went to bed by 10:30 PM. James, Aaron and Matt played a game of Lord of the Rings. This wasn't a simple game--it took 3.5 hours, ending at 1 AM.























The next day after a wonderful breakfast of apple upside down pancakes, Brian and Erica joined us. Here are Erica and Lauren.























After a lunch together at Moe's Matt, Katherine, James and I headed for home. Aaron and Lauren spent another night at the beach with Brian and Erica at their family beach house in Pacific City.

Happy Birthday Kathleen and Kristine!

What I wanted more than anything for my birthday was to have my family together. I was blessed to have what I wanted. We woke up to 1" of snow on the ground. I think the last time I had a white birthday was when I was attending Rick's College! Another birthday celebrated without my sister--I called her and was happy to hear she was having a great day and her co-workers were treating her wonderful. Aaron and Lauren arrived safely the night before, we were glad they got here before the weather turned bad. It was a good day. James went with me to physical therapy and we spent most the morning and early afternoon running around getting things done. In the afternoon we were together as a family and all went to dinner at Pho Van, a Vietnamese restaurant in Portland. After dinner the kids gave me my present from them. It was a gold ring with 2 opals (Aaron and Matt were both born in October) and 6 diamonds. It is beautiful! What a surprise!

Happy Birthday, James!

With the help of Clarissia and Beth, we had a German Pancake Breakfast, along with little pigs; Grandpa joined us.









James wanted to go to 'Bob's Red Mill' in Oregon City for lunch. Bob's Red Mill is a cool place to see history such as grinding stones that were used to grind wheat a hundred years ago. It is full of healthy food and fun to just walk around and enjoy the atmosphere. The girls had a great time and Clarissia, to our amazement and surprise spotted Bob himself and was brave enough to jump up and take his picture.

































Later the girls and I went shopping and we celebrated with a New York Steak Dinner.



James wanted two Steve McQueen movies and a bread maker that makes 1 pound loaves. He was very happy to see that his family obliged him. All in all he said it was a good day.