Family Fun in the Garden

It's Monday. It's time to work on adjusting to our new normal.

I spent time with Jesus. This is soul-care.

I made a list of all the things I still need to do to get Dad truly "moved."  It was overwhelming. I accomplished five of the ten items on the "Dad To Do" list....and then deliberately stopped for an hour of self-care in the form of a work out.  The other five will wait for tomorrow or later in the week.

Michael got up and we tackled one of the garden projects! Potatoes to be exact. We are getting more rain and I had trouble with potatoes and squash getting soft and squishy last year. I'm learning how to balance the need for more TIME with the danger of WET and FROST.

I expected the size on the left...

Papa's shadow got into the action  - by the time it was over the whole family was in on the fun. I loved it. I didn't get a photo of Dad and Krista. 

Yukon Gold

Wait, Benny! 

We planted one row of reds and three rows of golds....our red harvest was prolific. 

Michael said we got right at 300 lbs of potatoes....I am not sure they will winter over....I am thinking of grating some for hashbrowns in the freezer....and maybe I'll can a soup starter. What would you do? 

Michael averted a near disaster. We were throwing chickweed to the chickens. We always take care to give some to Petunia, our lame chicken. She lives in the greenhouse now....um....he saved us from a chickweed invasion in the greenhouse. She had plenty of other treats. 

 We picked the cucumbers and composted the vines....I'll make one more batch of pickles. I'll need to figure out how  - or where - to grow more cucumbers next year.

The chickens love garden harvesting....

Petunia

I picked all the medium and big squash before we left...but 3 weeks is a long time this time of a year.....I have quite a few HONKER zucchinis. 

Do take note of Bachan's boots! Benny  is impressed. Chickens all over them - great for gardening in the wet ground this time of year.  Our empty potato patch. It will be bigger next year if I can figure out how to use them all this year.

Road Runner continues to get out. Lucille is fully integrated back into the chicken yard. Look what we found today! Road Runner has been laying eggs. 

More squash - whatever can I do with all of it? 

 Some of these are a usable size.  

After all the fun in the garden, we settled for leftover stew, leftover salmon chowder, sandwiches and steamed baby potatoes. LOL

The apples continue to dry. Tomorrow, we'll keep working apples and try to get a batch of pickles done....and then something must be done with the tomatoes soon.

Settling into Home

We arrived home the evening of the 10th. I have notes for each day of the return trip,  and will blog them as I sort through photos.  It is ALWAYS our practice to walk in from a trip, or camping, and take the laundry directly to the laundry room. We had a MOUNTAIN of laundry this time.  Arielle had considerately done her laundry early so we could have use of the machines out of cycle.

We had a couple of unique dynamics to this homecoming. Stacia's room was stripped bare while we were gone. Until the RV was emptied there was nowhere for her and Krista to really have their "own room." Dad needed to have his space set up in order to really feel like he'd come "home." AND we had to unload the Uhaul trailer and return it. These unique factors directed our choices for the first couple of days home.

Wednesday - Sept 11th (wow - the memories of that day! Life CHANGED for us as a military family - and we continue to live with consequences from those changes).

ANYWAY - Walt and Dad went to Wasilla and checked out Jason and Nicole's (Walt's daughter) old home. They also made a few stops looking for sweatshirts Walt wanted to buy.

We unloaded Dad's U-haul.  We brought in his furniture, his bedroom set, and all the boxes packed from his previous room. We took down the bed we had purchased when he came up for a visit (it will become Krista's bed eventually), and assembled his select number queen size bed. We maneuvered all his bedroom furniture into place (except for a massage chair that needs a bit of fixing before it comes inside), and began unpacking boxes.  At this point his recliners, coffee tables, and a pile of boxes were all in the living room, along with the mattress from the summer bed.

Team work

Thursday - September 12th  - Dad and Walt ventured to Anchorage on a search for sweatshirts. They stopped in Eagle River as well.

The washer and dryer continued running all day.

Michael hung a mirror Mom and Dad received from dear ones in the Philippines, and a few photos in Dad's room. I finished unpacking his things. We'll go through his things in the garage at a leisurely pace.

Massage chair will go under the mirror 

Michael returned the U-haul trailer!!!! Good riddance. ::snort::  Alex, Stacia and I set about getting the living room in order. I simply CANNOT "relax" when the house is in total chaos.  To clear out the living room, we had to take a look at the storage space "under the stairs." CoRielle have moved their things from there.....and many of Krista and Stacia's things are now there....I hoped with a bit of organizing we could fit the furniture from the nook into the space under the stairs (it will eventually go downstairs).  It all fit - even the mattress from the living room....and we were able to place recliners and such in the living room.... Mom's recliner is now in my nook.  We also found a place for Grandma Anne's rocking chair....and kept the other rocker as well.  My Gram's hope chest had served as a coffee table for years. We store blankets in it and they are mighty nice to have handy in the winter. We finally found a spot for it in the dining room - still accessible.

Dad's recliner, table, and lamps are set....as well as
Gannie Annie's rocker

Michael's recliner moved over here and the other rocker is cozy by the stove

Mom's recliner in the nook - no WAY was another recliner fitting in the Living Room 

Stacia's dresser is still in the entryway. I think it will stay there until she and Krista are able to move into CoRielle's room.

The garden IS soul care for me  -  I spent some time taking stock of what needs to be done out there. The chickweed flourished in our absence. LOL

What could be getting into the beets....

Cutest garden pest....evidently she likes beets

Squash of all kinds....these are the volunteer cross of spaghetti and pumpkin.... 

I had pulled ALL the Kale leaves but we have some new ones now. 

It's a race to the 1st frost - but I think we may have some corn! 

Hello, there! Another unexpected surprise. 

We felt really good about our progress by Thursday night. We made the conscious choice to leave Krista's things in the RV basement....and NOT to unpack the green trailer with stuff from our Mom's until CoRielle are able to move into their home.

Friday - September 13th  What a fun day for Walt to begin his trip back down the Alcan. He has been such a blessing to us, and to Dad. We are going to start praying he and Judy come back for a fun visit in a future year. ::hint:: :hint::

Stacia and I are working through a devotional together - 100 Days to Brave, by Annie Downs. We took time out today to head to a local cafe to share our thoughts and hearts. It was good! Very good.

On our way home we stopped and bought APPLES - because they were on sale and we've been waiting all year for them to be on sale. Last year I dried 5 cases and we ran out. I got a total of 6 cases this year.

This.....

...has led to four days of these noisy things working their magic. I had hoped to make applesauce this year, but life is still too busy for me to attempt it....maybe I'll get it done next week???? It's much easier to core/peel the apples and put them on trays than it would be to make applesauce. 

Saturday - September 14th 
Stacia and I played with Benny all day so that Arielle could go to a ladies retreat.

Stacia and I like to cook and bake together. It could be considered self-care around here. We had the perfect opportunity today. A sweet gal from church had an adorable little girl while we were traveling. We made a couple of meals which the family can heat up, and we BAKED...cookies and monkey bread. THEN we experimented and made "reduced sugar" cookies. I used monk fruit - the monk fruit said to add sugar .....which I didn't want to do. I used dates. They weren't totally sugar free, but they were greatly reduced...and Dad and I both do fruit. They were a bit "hefty" but I made a lot of them and they are all gone.  While Stacia and I enjoyed a down day in the kitchen......

Michael, Alex, Dad, and Krista were at demo day at the church!

Sunday - September 16th 
Church!

After church we went out to eat with a couple of other families - and it was fun to be together again.

Josiah and Jamin came over in the afternoon. We hadn't seen them since the trip and it is always fun to have them over and catch up on their week. We grilled for those who weren't stuffed from lunch.

It's been a busy week - but a good week. Dad is home. We are making progress on projects we need to complete before winter, the house is settling into a routine.

Whirlwind Visit In Springfield

Its been a whirlwind visit to Oregon.

We arrived in Springfield, dropped our trailer, and got Dad settled at Will and Sherri's on Thursday.  Dad began to show us the things he'd like to take to Alaska. We have the underside of the RV and a utility trailer. We looked at our things and confirmed they would fit in the space with room left for Dad's things. However, as the day went on we realized Dad wanted to bring more than he originally thought he would. We are also bringing Krista's last household goods up with us. 

Michael is happy to have more tools at his disposal 

We saw dads primary doctor on Friday. We feel like we have a handle on the medical care we need to find in Alaska for Dad. We were excited to discover his A1C has gone from 10  to 7.1 over the summer. 

We stopped by Dad's bank and the Uhaul store. We had a nice catch up lunch with Rebecca, Michael's sister.

We talked with Walt, dads friend. He will drive up to Alaska with us and pull one of the trailers. I have no experience pulling a trailer.

Saturday we loaded our trailer. Dad and I got 99% through packing his things. We had dinner with Will and Sherri and their kids...Andrew and Amy. I had prayed it wouldn't rain this weekend while we were packing. We needed space to be able to sort. It was HOT - 86*. That prayer was REALLY answered. LOL 

Loading furniture from Dad and Mom G

The pool and hot tub were a welcome amenity Saturday night! 

We went to church at our home church on Sunday. Dad began attending Calvary 60 years ago when he came to town to attend Bible College. He was married here, this church sent Mom and Dad out as missionaries, my bothers and I were all married here, Michael did an internship here, we dedicated our two oldest children at this church, two of our daughters were married here, and one was the Children's Pastor for several years.  

Lousy picture but I'm not about to delete it. LOL 

Dad ushered on his  "last Sunday."  I reflected on his choice to move to Alaska. I found myself praying this is also a choice which reaps generations of blessings. May my choices have such long-term effect for good.  Many shared words of confirmation and affirmation about Dad's upcoming move. On a side note, it felt very odd to be at Calvary and not see Mom, or so many others, who have passed on. 

Nate and Heather's daughter, Nadia met us at church. She, Jim, Walt and Judy, Will and Sherri, and us went to one of Dad and Jim's favorite after-church haunts....Centennial Steakhouse. Dad is going to miss his friends. 

Dad, Will, Walt, Judy, Sherri 

Walt and Dad grew up together and then went on to Bible College together.  I grew up calling Walt "Uncle Ollie." He wanted to help all he could with Dad's move. He drove down and picked up the Uhaul trailer for us.  In the end, he hitched up our green trailer. We will met him and the trailer on Tuesday morning in Woodburn. He will drive his truck and our trailer up the Alcan. It will be precious time to catch up and remember for he and Dad. I believe the time with Walt will help Dad with the transition period. We will drive the RV and the Uhaul trailer up the Alcan.

Mike and Will decided the boat wouldn't ride on the side of the trailer. 

Monday Will helped us pack Dad's stuff. Sherri and I talked about Dad's business matters.

The boat slide into the trailer 

Things were packed all around the boat

Michael and Dad

Dad met up with Mikhail and came back to supervise. He was concerned I'd not packed all his hangers.

Jim stopped by for a visit. Mom used to babysit for Jim's children. For quite a few years Mom and Dad rented from Jim and his wife, Gloria. It's always fun to meet up with this family. 

Mom's recliner (which Dad is seen sitting on above) was the last item loaded. It went into the RV for the ride home. Both trailers are packed solidly. Michael is an amazing packer. Our military moving skills are coming in handy. 

They got it in! 

We brought dad back with us to the RV tonight. He opted to rest while we enjoyed the pool.

Tomorrow we head back to Alaska. It's been a full Labor Day. 

Alex likes having a recliner in the RV. 

We'll pull out in the morning. Tonight, we swam and relaxed with a game of Farkle.

Dad, Me, Alex, Stacia

Bringing Dad Home - Trip Outside

We are off!

Heading on an Alaskan adventure to move Dad home. I didn't get the trailer decorated but hope to before we come back. There are always a lot of moving parts to leaving home.

Preparing for a good view 

Alex checks the tires

We moved Dash to the chicken yard  - Stacia checked on him and told him goodbye. 

 Benny wanted to come with us, but not without Mommy.

We're off! #BringingDadHome

Stacia, Alex, Dad (GG)

Totally staged! This is the back seat driver look reserved for when *I* drive the beast. LOL 

The worst of the road....as we waited for the pilot car the "wolves" came out....though we decided the flagger was wrong and they were foxes....Can you spot the one? 

This unique rainbow occurred as we followed the pilot car. The colors were so low they went into trees.  We've never seen a rainbow so close to the ground. It was beautiful.

Some of the pull outs are awfully tight for a rig our size....Alex is very good at spotting Michael.....

And Michael is very good at making the space work for him. 

Day 2 we pulled off the road for Michael to sleep a couple of hours. I made lunch for everyone and Stacia and I went for a walk. We found some unique prints and realized we'd forgotten the bear spray. Maybe we should buy a can to leave in the RV.

 We took note of the Fireweed up in the mountains. There were still a very few blooming. 

Many patches were bright red. 

Some have begun the browning and dying out process. 

Day 3 was a big wildlife day.... Cariboo - Reindeer

We'll wait.....

Note the greens, the red Fireweed and the hints of fall colors. It is AMAZING to compare the colors with the photos when we come back two weeks later. They get HIGH WINDS up here...check out the trees on the left....

 And that little black dot in the photo above? Mama and two cubs... 

We saw a few more bears this day...I think the count was 14.

Who would have guessed? Quite a few healthy options. A & W are quite prolific in British Columbia and Yukon Territories. 

This evening we nearly collided with a herd of Bison. We decided it was time to stop.  It was too exciting to grab photos. LOL

We slept in a turnout on Night 3.....we opened the back of the trailer and watched the stars. 

It was a pretty spot to stop. 

Alex was faithful to check tire pressure

Day 4 we crossed back into America...and traffic. 

We threaded our way through Seattle and Portland traffic only to run into an accident on the south side of Portland. The interstate was closed and all traffic was detouring....we were over 2 hours late getting to our campground.

We had wanted to arrive early to meet Lorri, my cousin,  for dinner at the Woodburn exit. It turns out our RV park was directly behind Elmers - by the outlet mall. Lorri met us for breakfast. I didn't take a single photo. The fellowship was sweet. We do miss our cousin dates.  We were all thankful Lorri drove up to meet us. 

THIS was parked in the RV park....next to it, we looked small. LOL  Some big slot competition. 

After breakfast we drove on to Springfield.....Dad settled in to Will and Sherri's. We settled in at Premier RV park. We lived here during the months  we were in Eugene in 2017.  The kids jumped into the pool. 

It is 2500 miles from our home to Will and Sherri's. We did it in 4 days and an hour on the 5th day. I'm pretty impressed.  That's a slew of long days in an RV. We don't go as fast as a car. When we moved up in 2017 we averaged 300 mile days....took us about 10 days. We had a couple of sight-seeing days built in. This time our goal was to have as much time as possible in OR. We averaged 600 mile days.