Unclaimed property

So I am stuck tonight using my DH's PC till I get the part I need for mine--hence I am a bit without photographic resources at the moment; you'll just have to imagine a few nice photos of frozen ponds, a beautiful bouquet my Farmer Boy surprised me with tonight, pics of the new (working) range and upper cabinets (looking pretty organized) and pictures of a still somewhat chaotic mess here!!! Hope you all have good imaginations:)

Because I am without photos at the moment--thought I would make a public announcement here and this is it--

Did you know that states have websites in which you can search for unclaimed property? Well it's true--at least for Washington and Oregon--and having checked both of them it didn't take me long to come up with the names of businesses, friends and family that I was familiar with; the money owed them ranged from under $50 to over $100 and the sites clearly describe how to claim it. Check it out yourselves -- just 'google' unclaimed property and your state's name. BTW--the sites I searched were clearly government sites and appear to be totally legit; it goes without saying (but I will say it anyway) I would make CERTAIN that you are dealing with a government website before giving any personal info out in this day and age!!!! Good luck!

From the land of the ice and snow (well maybe not the latter)....

Advent Blessings,

Aimee

PNW Farm Tour: Plants, Trees, Decorations & More

Continuing on with the PNW farm tour we come to another farm which is actually more a nursery/store but is an awesome place!! We were in search of the legendary ice apples which magically appear there early in November each year and disappear within a few weeks. Since we had been blessed to have some of them last year we arrived early in their 'season'-eager to again enjoy their magical deliciousness Can I say we were not disappointed?

While we were there we had to have a look see at the magical world the Purple People had created there...it definitely got me in the Christmas mood but being the good little Pilgrim child that I am, I waited till now to post the photos:) It wasn't easy!

Confession here! I have such a weakness for gingerbread men. They are just SO cute and irresistable! Maybe it was a result of reading the Gingerbread Boy when I was younger or perhaps it is just they are SO yummy and delicious, but I am hoping that Farmer Boy will soon be done with the kitchen cabinets and hooking up the new range:)

Another tree I liked was this one (although there were many beautifully decorated Christmas trees there). I also need to confess I have a weakness for reindeer, moose, elk and deer. One time when I was a bit younger then I am now a group of us visited a historic house that was hosting a special event. They had a Christmas tree in -- or at least it seemed this way--almost every room of the house! It actually was pretty neat and with all the ornaments I have collected plus ones that are easily made (or gathered from the garden or kitchen) I might be able to do that someday...maybe next year when the chaos from the BIG project has cleared:)

In addition to my aforementioned weakness for Gingerbread Men, reindeer and Bambi types, I need to confess my love for just a few other things--one being St Nicholas and the other two are penguins (love their tuxedos) and polar bears, especially little polar bear cubs. Hence the photos here (sorry no penguin pics this year)

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Besides the wonderful ice apples and 'animals' on trees, Al's has such a large variety of poinsettias that I was truly amazed--they were everywhere! They had them in white, mauve, red, pink and a new one called Cinnamon Star that I fell for.

Another plant I fell for was this one--a shooting star hyacinth.

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Beautiful aren't they? The white poinsettias were amazing too!

I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE crèches--this one is very nice with the angels on the tree. I always think it's neat when I see one at businesses or in public places.
Hope you enjoyed our little trip in the PNW--here is a link to this 'farm's' website.
Advent Blessings,
Aimee

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A big thank you to Al's for giving me permission to post these photos here on my blog and a thank you to their helpful staff there (and as per usual -- I am not associated with them or any of the farms I have featured) Just think they are ALL great places to visit in the PNW:)

Walks in His Gardens: Late Autumn's Garden

While changes continue to take place in our home, changes are also taking place in the garden which now looks much more like the late autumn garden it is (well mostly). Near the berm in the Japanese-style garden, the camellia has been blooming since before Thanksgiving -- beautiful rosy pink blossoms set amidst glossy evergreen leaves. Quite a dramatic sight at this time of the year when so many plants have gone dormant and where bare branches seem to rule the land.

In another part of the garden brown fuzzy kiwi still hang from bare branches, now clearly seen without any leaf cover.

Update: As of this afternoon--late, late this afternoon--I can happily report they were all picked except for a few too high (and too hazardous to reach given the deepening shadows of the late, late, late hour). And yes, the lingonberries were picked this afternoon too--can I say 'finally'?!

Back in the Japanese-style garden, a temporarily semi-frozen pond holding captive the aquatic plants which once floated on its surface not so very long ago.

Although so many of the once colorful autumn leaves now lay on the ground--dry and brown--a few plants haven't lost all their leaves yet and on some plants (caneberries here) the leaves still glow red in the late fall sunlight.

A few mushrooms too add unexpected color to the garden---these will NOT be harvested. Aimee DOES NOT like poisonous fungi--ick--and she is constantly hunting them down and discouraging their growth in her garden (once she takes their pictures of course). Actually to be totally honest, Aimee does appreciate their unique beauty but removes them because she doesn't want her precious puppies nibbling on one of them :)

Another unexpected bit of color! A few rose blossoms remain (along with some other surprises)-- call it a result of our wonderful microclimates here; or perhaps a very strange weather year, but whatever the reason their beauty-especially at this time of the year-is greatly appreciated!

Blessings,

Aimee

Art of the Father

The other day a ray of light shone through our window making a plant's blossoms glow in it,

turning these fragile flowers into red and white works of art;

the living origami of a heavenly Father.

And in those few moments, as I paused to admire their delicate beauty-

their graceful shape-

and the beautiful colors

the Artist had combined together (so perfect),

I realized that I had just seen a miracle-

the miracle of life.

Blessings,

Aimee

Advent 2009

Freezing temperatures, snow-capped mountains, bare tree branches and frozen ponds.

Evergreen wreaths, garlands of cedar and beautiful ornaments.

Gingerbread, fudge, fruitcake, baking (well not until the range is connected), gift lists, cards to be sent.

Candlelight, Nativity plays, carols, special meals and Christmas bazaars.

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All a part of the Advent and Christmas season here in the PNW--

but it is so very much more.

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To read about the significance of Advent, a season of preparation, and to check out some links with online Advent calendars and related info see my post from Advent 2008 (links updated for 2009):
http://aimeeonthemountainside.blogspot.com/2008/12/why-advent.html

Blessings,

Aimee

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Note: Sorry this is late; I am backdating it to the first day of Advent 09 which was this past Sunday, November 29th.

Giving Thanks on This Thanksgiving Day

--As the sound of our cordless screwdriver and pounding fills the morning air mingling with the sounds of History Channel’s special on the origin of Thanksgiving and Bread (the musical group not the baked kind) from another room; as the sight of 'chaos' because of our BIG project meets the eye I can honestly say that I am thankful for SO many things in my life!

• For family and friends
• For a warm house and a talented Farmer Boy
• For the meal we will have in about 3.5 hours
• For this year’s harvest
• For the beauty that surrounds us on a daily basis no matter the weather
• For a Godly heritage
• For this life and so much more!

I am also very thankful for each and everyone of you -- visitors to my cyber home:)
Blessings this Thanksgiving Day,
A Pilgrim Child--Aimee

"I will praise the name of God with a song, and will magnify Him with thanksgiving…Let the heaven and earth praise Him, the seas, and every thing that moveth therein."
Psalms 69:30, 34 KJV-
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Photos: Pilgrim Teddies in the garden
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Note: For a look at some Pilgrim locations follow this link to my post last Thanksgiving season. You will also find links there to many reputable sites about the Pilgrims, including first hand, original documents. Thanks to my cousins for their kind permission to use the NE photos on my Thanksgiving post last year. May you and your family have a blessed Thanksgiving:) Love, Aimee

Grandma K's Gift

Of all my grandparents, I was closest to my Grandma K--possibly because we were able to spend much more time with her then with my other grandma who lived quite a distance from us. Anyway, I still really miss her and sometimes (please don't laugh) I even ask God to send her a message from me. Of course I am not sure that is theologically sound doctrine but I know that God understands all about our love for family members-both those we still have with us and those that have died.

Well recently I got a gift from her (please don't freak out on me now) which as you can imagine is very, very difficult seeing that she died years ago. Actually to clarify the gift from Grandma K arrived many years ago but I had not realized it as being from her in all this time.

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You see I have some things of my Grandma K's--an old tabletop Christmas tree that lights up, a hand held washboard and a few other things--none of them of immense value from an earthly standpoint, but all of them priceless to me because they were hers--because she used them; because she chose them to put them in her homes. ---

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Awhile back, I called my parents to get some more information on these family items I had been given because I wanted to do a blog post on them since I had been thinking about my Grandma K. There were the items I have mentioned plus an old Singer sewing machine table which hadn't come from her but which I wanted more information about too ( I thought this was from my great aunt who had also passed away quite awhile ago).

And that's when the gift from Grandma K arrived; for as my mother and I were talking she told me--much to my surprise--that my great aunt's sewing machine had gone to my sibling and the sewing machine and table I had was from my Grandma K! And then she told me more:)
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And that is how I received a gift from Grandma K recently.

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What gifts have you received from your ancestors and relatives that you treasure? I also have some old furniture -- two dressers and more, some crocheted tabletop covers, and more; on the furniture, I am thinking of possibly using the dresser as a bathroom sink vanity (it would have to be modified for this use) What do you think? Would you do that or keep it as a dresser?

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Blessings,

Aimee

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Photos & notes:

My apologies for some of the bad photo quality here-the lighting in our bedroom is really bad. Sorry!

1) Grandma K before "the stork arrived". I love this photo!

2+3) A Dubl Handi. This one was from either the late 1930's or early 1940's and they are still being made today. Now I think that is very, very cool! If I remember correctly, my mom said Grandma K used this when they were living in a cabin high in the Rockies.

3+4) An old electric tabletop Christmas tree. This was bought when Grandma was living in the Rockies. I am hoping very much to use it this year in one of our rooms--depends on how far we get with the BIG project (sorry but I did not light it up for the picture as I need to get a replacement bulb for the base) The color of the tree itself is not white but kind of a champagne white, like the color wedding dresses take on after many years. Also I think it is supposed to have a garland of beads on it but I was in a hurry to get the photos for this post so didn't bother adding them. I believe this would date from the very early 1940's.

5-8) A Singer sewing machine + table. Bought in the PNW when Grandma K was living on a ranch. She used it to sew clothes for her daughter on and kept it in the sunroom. I absolutely LOVE the detail on it! It is so beautiful although it needs some refurbishing and a good polishing for the table which has been used as a nightstand for quite a few years now. I am hoping to do all that needs to be done to it and then use it--although I have not sewn since High School, I think it would be very special to use the same sewing machine as Grandma! Oh the table is in the Queen Anne style. It is from the late 1930's I believe.

Walks in His Gardens: Autumn Wanderings

Autumn is an amazing time of the year in the PNW and I love nothing better then to wander about on rural and mountain roads every chance I get and everywhere I travel. With so many paths and so many roads there is never a chance of becoming bored

Some routes climb up into the foothills and mountains, leading you over train tracks

and by old trestles on narrow country roads that wander about the rural setting. .

Some roads run down into the valley past fields now emptied of their crop.

Many lead past old barns with dramatic rooflines.

Every turn, every curve of the road brings you to a new discovery, a new view, a new panorama that delights your eyes...and your soul if you let it.

It is a journey where even the seemingly common things of this world are transformed into the dramatic.

It is the beautiful PNW in autumn

and its sights and sounds bless me everyday I am alive.

Blessings,

Aimee

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"O taste and see that the Lord is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in Him."

Psalms 34:8 KJV

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Photos:

Photos taken in the same region as the Farm Tour.

Party Like A Baby!

So I'm sure you are asking yourself how does one party like a baby? Well allow me--one proud grandma of one beautiful baby granddaughter to tell you how it is properly done.

First you must begin with the party girl. She must be one year old and dressed appropriately for said party--in this case coifed in a cute little hairstyle and suitably dressed in an adorable yellow and blue sundress with ribbons down the back.

Of course, there must also be party guests prepared to celebrate such a grand occasion with said one year old birthday girl--parents, big sibling, grandparents, great-grandparents and other friends and family.

Party decorations are likewise vitally important to every first year party's success and must be carefully chosen --BIG balloons are an absolute party MUST!! Also key to the party's success is their placement; BTW Grandma thought the balloons were totally awesome!!

Let the party begin!!!

Family and friends arrive, food and beverages are served, partiers enjoying themselves, baby girl taking it all in….good thus far.
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And then it is time for the rite of passage; the symbol of a new year arriving for said baby girl--it's time for the birthday cake of course!! And in baby girl’s case it was delectable birthday cupcakes.
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The birthday candle, the birthday melody, birthday candle extinguished--good thus far!
The traditional birthday cake mess all over the face and body? WHAT? Nope, not much of one at all--one wipe with a towelette is all that is needed! AMAZING!

Grandma is SO impressed with baby girl's dainty manners (after all your uncle needed a bath after his one year birthday cake!)! Impressive! What a good mom you must have little one! (BTW baby girl cupcakes were made by talented mom of baby girl, and her very talented mom! And have I said yet that they were really, really yummy?) Especially the chocolate ones with the white frosting! --
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But what is this?

This large cup full of brownish, sugary liquid..so close.

the balloons with those tempting long strings

one quick moving baby….

the hands, the grip, the pull down, the bump….

the fast moving liquid swiftly moving towards the food,

the mom,

the grandma...

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The intensive clean up!

(But none on the party girl!!! Yea! The party continues with the opening of the gifts (see below for photos).

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So how do you party like a baby? You do it as all other babies have done--in your own unique and special way

(AND BTW Baby Girl that is just one of the reasons we love you totally…

because you are so uniquely you and we wouldn't have it any other way!)

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And now a few other birthday photos...

Stretchhhhhhhing is such a good exercise and SO important with the many toy temptations close at hand.

Party gifts included some beautiful clothing, a big red colander (kind of like grandma's big red bowl), some cute little toys and stuffed animals, and these wonderful noise making maracas!! Baby Girl really liked them--maybe she will be a percussionist someday? Maybe, not.

A milk break for one thirsty little party girl -- after all partying can make baby girls SO very thirsty when one is not used to it!

A first chapter comes to an end and a second one begins! Congrats little one and GREAT JOB on passing this important rite of passage!!

But most of all --

blessings always and lots of love too!

Grandma Aimee

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Thursday Thanks-giving: mountain roads and answered prayer

Yes, I know this isn't Thursday, but yesterday as a friend and I were traveling over some mountain roads, I was thinking how grateful I am for them... but it hasn't always been that way.



Those who know me, know that I've loved mountains for a very long time. When I look at them (or better yet are on them) they elicit a deep emotional response within my soul - as if God placed this deep love for them within my DNA-and I know that it is on them that I often feel closest to the Creator. But mountain roads are another thing. Dread and outright fear would be the term I used to describe them -- for a very long time.

It wasn't always that way though-nope! Earlier in my life you would have found me on places like the top of Pike's Peak (CO), traveling up a gondola at Grouse Mt (BC, Canada), on a chair lift in the Cascades--in summer-and on the countless mountain roads my parents and others took me on in the NW, Canada, the Rockies and the SW. You also might have seen me on cliffside trails in Hawaii and the Pacific NW, on the side of the Grand Canyon, at the top of the Space Needle and other 'high' places. No problems until THAT night...the beginning of the change.

It was a cold and VERY snowy night about 25 years ago. We were traveling in our small convertible when we hit ice and slid straight towards the other (lake) side of the road. Now I don’t know if I cried out to God for help; knowing me I probably did, but a miracle occurred--we came to a stop on the only embankment in the area. A little bit to the left or right and the ending might have been very different. Did I say my infant son and young daughter were in the back seat at this time (my daughter still remembers the incident)?

Over time I developed a rather pronounced reaction to mountain roads, especially those that ran by water or had drop offs or cliffs and it got worse as the years passed. It limited travel, at times, and caused conflict; it changed travel plans and it hurt me deeply as I loved to be in the mountains more then any other place. My PCP ordered meds to take during trips but these, at times, were not sufficiently strong enough to help-most noticeably on one trip to the Canadian Rockies, a place I really love, where we had to change our itinerary completely when. after miles along cliffside and other roads, I ended up with a severe anxiety reaction that couldn't be controlled.

At work, a suggestion by a fellow employee to look only at the road ahead of me, instead of to the side, helped--and I still do that at times but this was not enough and I could not truly enjoy the journey upwards. Years later, another friend said something about taking baby steps and attacking the problem by not avoiding it (actually the fellow employee had mentioned something like this too, but I wasn’t ready for it then). And so the process began--slowly but deliberately and with a friend driving that I had total trust in.

Now I can truly say that I am doing better; still on fairly non dramatic roads--no outright cliffs like some roads in the Gorge, mountains and coast have, but high enough so that there are definite panoramic views. I am also trying to travel upwards often enough so that fear does not have a chance to build up again.

As for the original site of THAT incident--the one we believe precipitated this fear of mountain roads and heights--I have yet to return there and feel at ease and yet, the idea of doing so at some point in the future does not fill me with the same trepidation it once did. However, it would not be on a snowy, dark night and would certainly not be in a convertible!
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So on this third Thursday Friday of November, I can truly say that I am thankful for the mountains, mountain roads AND most of all--answered prayers.
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Blessings,
Aimee
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Photos:
NW Oregon
Alaska (4 photos)
Canada (2 photos)
NW Oregon
Central Oregon--Cascades

Note:
An apology for the quality of some photos. The prints themselves are beautiful but I was
a) too lazy to scan them
and
b) the house is still caught deep in the throes of chaos--albeit not as deep as previously so it would not be an easy process to scan them:)

Photo Credit:
Credit for Alaska and Canadian photos goes to my dad (yea, dad) and thanks to both of my parents for permission to post them here. They were taken during a trip on the Inner Passage to Alaska--a place I have never been but which I would love to go as it reminds me of some photos I've seen in Norway--another place I have never been but would love to go! The Canadian photos were taken in the Rockies--near Banff and Jasper from what I can remember. I have been there before but not for some time. Incredible place:)