When It Rains, Sometimes It Pours (But I'm Not Referring To Precipitation)

April was not a good month. No it definitely was not!

I was either sick, recovering from being sick and exhausted all month. Along with that I lost my inspiration for blogging at some point and our high speed Internet earlier in the month than usual.

Then there were the "other" things...

 

Sad sigh #1:

We found out that my Chef son is -- yet again -- moving south. I will really miss our conversations, hikes and drives together, his wonderful cooking...basically I will totally and completely miss seeing him. Sometimes it's really, really hard to be a mom.

Sad sigh #2:

Found out that my best friend of almost 30 years is also moving. She's been there for me through some of the hardest times of my life. And she's more than just a good friend, she's a sister-in-Christ...I already miss her immensely and the move hasn't happened yet. I just have to keep focusing on how grateful I am to God for blessing her with this wonderful opportunity.

 

Sad sigh #3:

A much anticipated trip to one of my favorite places in the US fell through--a place of many memories and lovely landscapes. Soooo disappointed.

Well, there's more---but I think that's more than enough sad sighs for one blog post,

don't you agree? :)

 

 

So, on a more positive note, here's some good things that happened this April...

#1)

Our furnace broke (thank you LORD for getting us through the winter, keeping us safe AND making me aware that there was a problem before something really AWFUL happened ). My wonderfully talented hubby was able to repair it for the total cost of about $10 (let me hear another thank you God!)...

 

#2)

 I -- finally -- had the courage to stand up to one of the slithery ones and, wouldn't you know it, he didn't back down...But at least I lasted a few seconds before my retreat. Yea!

 

#3)

My Chef son promises to send me his gumbo recipe this month! Ever since Teresa started to post her photos from New Orleans and Louisiana, I have been totally inspired to work on my family lines from the South (especially making progress on extended New Orleans family--yippee!). And then, with all those great photos of southern food, I started getting interested in the cuisine of the south--hence my need for the gumbo recipe. Mmm.  Now if I could just afford a trip south...LOL.

Maybe someday!

(And a BIG thank you to Teresa for sharing her trip photos and helping to inspire me)

 

#4)

Though technically in early, early May, I had the opportunity to try some new foods. The first, tendon, was -- well it was interesting. If you've ever had pho, you may have already had this. It doesn't taste bad at all...but the texture is -- well, the texture of tendon is memorable and stayed with me a long, long time. A very long time. However, the flavor of the pho was fabulous and I devoured every single drop of it - tendon and all.

 

#5)

Also in very early May, I had a most wonderful rhubarb hand pie at one of the most wonderful bakeries in all of Portland (Baker + Spice in SW Portland)...let's just say I will be making some of these soon God willing. YUM! Additionally, I've been munching on some yummy cardomom bread from a fav Scandinavian shop...

 

#6)

My Bible reading for 2015 is coming right along and I will most likely be done well before year's end. YEA! I've been much more disciplined and consistent about it this year...usually I have to play catch up:) And, speaking of reading, I was FINALLY able to located a beloved book I first started reading on a stay at Leirvangen, a Norwegian B+B years ago. Can't wait to immerse myself in the land of fire and ice again...oh, and pretend I am riding a Icelandic horse:)

Well that was April, but now it's May --

and May always brings some good, good memories!

 

By the way,

 Feliz cinco de mayo a todos mis amigos y mi familia :)

 

Blessings,

Aimee
 

~ * ~

 

Photos:

Marquam Hill Trail, photo 1

Seaside Beach (access at 12th Street), photos 2, 3, 4, 10

Tryon Creek State Park, photo 5

Seaside Beach (The Cove), photos 6, 7, 8

Yummy pho, photo 9

Link to Teresa's fabulous LA posts:
http://teresakasner.blogspot.com/2015/04/new-orleans-part-deux.html
(this is part 2 of 3 parts; they're all wonderful!)

A special thank you to my son for letting me borrow some of  his photos for the blog
and for forgetting the much loved and most wonderful "M" cookware here--tee hee!
Love you!

BAD HTML...oh well, time to do other things ;)

 

Into the Woods + A Little Surprise for Small One

Spring break was a busy one for us this year. On Wednesday, I was down in the Newport area with my best friend and her grandson. Then, on the following Sunday, we visited Regatta Park and a new beach in Lincoln City with tidepools (LOVE tidepools). But the day before that we were in the valley at Milo McIver State Park enjoying...

 

hiking on a trail there.

We arrived soon after the Vortex Half Marathon and 10K Trail Run ended...

hence the lovely white arrows on the bridge and elsewhere.

Vortex I, for those who may not know, was a rock festival held at Milo McIver SP

 just about 45 years ago. I don't recall hearing about it at that time, but quite a few people showed up at this--believe it or not--state sponsored event. If you're interested in learning more about it, you can follow the link above to the wiki article. There was also a OPB special on it quite awhile ago--that was where I first learned about it.

 

Anyway, MMSP is quite a pretty place between the woodlands filled with lots and lots of green,

the Clackamas River, the creek and the views one can catch--on a clear day--of Mt. Hood.

 

 

I love the wildflowers of the PNW:)

 

I believe this is Dog Creek...

I couldn't believe all of the shades of green!

Truly amazing.

Spring is awesome for greens here--

right now our mountainsides look gorgeous!

 

And of course, our primary reason for being at MM that day...

 

the Clackamas Fish Hatchery!

We thought little Miss would enjoy seeing the HUGE ponds that hold a lot of growing fish.

(She did)

 

And then there was a little surprise -- for her and for us...

 

One of the very kind workers there let her (and a few others) help feed the fish!

Can you believe that?

Totally cool!

BTW, she did pretty well and really enjoyed doing it!

 

This time we also took a peek inside the small visitor building which contains the incubation room and displays showing the life cycle of the fish--from zygote (isn't that the coolest word? LOL) to fry (oh, oh...when I see that word, my mind wonders to eating. Bad me).

 

 Another great thing about MM?
We often see horses being ridden on the trails there.  

Makes me want one again...

 

Blessings,

Aimee

Photos/Info:
Milo McIver State Park
Here's a link for more info
http://www.oregonstateparks.org/index.cfm?do=parkPage.dsp_parkPage&parkId=102

And now back to researching my latest idea for a trip...
this one will be a trip down memory lane:)
 

The Life + (Recent) Times of Aimee

Recently my life included lovely moments like this one--

at a newly discovered (for me that is) beach.

 

 

And exciting moments like this...

 

 

and this...

 

 

enjoying the wonders of this new and interesting place!

 

 

And then there were neat moments like this...

 

 

not our catch,  but those of a very blessed family

 who would be enjoying a very yummy dinner later that day!

Mmm. BBQ fish...

 

And recently my life included a few anxious moments watching this drone...

 

 

and thinking the entire time,

I hope they know what they're doing

(as it flew and dived over our car--again and again)

Fortunately they did

:)

 

 

Then, of course, there were those memorable moments on the other side of the coast range...

 

 

but you'll have to wait awhile to see those times because I need to get some sleep so I can spent

a LOT of moments today catching up on housework.

 

Wishing you a blessed week full of memorable moments!

Blessings,

Aimee

 

Photos:

Lincoln City

Milo McIver State Park

 

Spring Break: Along Yaquina Bay and Parts North

It's spring break in Oregon,

so mid-week my best friend of many, many years and I spent

some time together on the central Oregon coast. And, because there

was no school, we brought some of our favorite kiddos along--

Small One and my BFF's grandson.

 

Some photos from our daytrip...

 

 

In this aquarium some of the creatures stare back at you...

 

(Speaking of creatures, it's prime whale watching time right now in Oregon

so get out to your favorite headland and bring a good pair of binoculars!)

 

 

A view of the Yaquina Bay bridge from a different vantage point than I've seen before.

I'll have to come back on a sunnier day and take another photo...

and maybe, maybe take some using my zoom lens too.

Maybe.

 

The Yaquina Bay lighthouse.

There are two lighthouses in the area--this one and the Yaquina Head lighthouse

which is located a little further to the north.

Kind of an unusual lighthouse in that the living quarters and light are in the same building.

 

 

A little closer view of the bridge I love--

when I'm not on it that is.  

 

 

One of the murals along the historic, working bayfront area...

sadly we couldn't get parking this time. Of course I've been here before

so I wasn't too disappointed.  

 

 

A quick drive-by shot in the Nye Beach district--

another historic area in Newport.

Can you see the Yaquina Head Lighthouse off to the left?

After a yummy shrimp melt sandwich at Moe's

(yes we went up to the Siletz Bay one then we returned south to Beverly Beach

for some fun in the sand and surf).

 

 

A new game...

 

with an expected outcome.

Just to let you know, I wasn't too comfy with this game

and made her move further up on the sand.

Too many news reports on sneaker waves...

 

Kite flying time...

for my friend, granddaughter and I.

See how the sun came out?

 

A view to the north...

 

It was a GREAT day,

full of some surprises,

some new-to-us destinations

and

a lot of good conversation.

Makes it all the harder knowing things will soon change...

 

Well we have a lot of plans for tomorrow so it's time,

past time actually,

for some shut eye.

Good night :)

 

Wishing you all a very blessed Palm Sunday weekend!

Blessings,

Aimee

 

Photos:

Hatfield Marine Science Center (OSU)

(link above to another post I did with a lot more photos and a link to their site)

Newport's south jetty

(first time there!)

Newport's historic bayfront

(lots to look at and as an extra bonus, sea lions)

Beverly Beach

 

What Serenity Looks Like

Serenity surrounded us there.

 

 

It accompanied me as I passed by the ponds.

 



 

It filled my heart as I beheld this grove of trees.

 

 

And with it came a sense of wonder as I stood on the bridge watching a pair of ducks below

 

 

and later contemplated the seed head of a dandelion.

 

 

The calls of assorted birds could be heard as I wondered along

through forest, meadow and oak savannah.

They filled my heart with joy!

 

 

For a time this past Sunday this is what serenity looked like.  

 

 

What kind of places make you feel peaceful?

 

Blessings,

Aimee

 

The WORD on Monday:)

These things I have spoken unto you,

that in Me ye might have peace.

In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer;

I have overcome the world.

John 16:33 KJV

 

 

Photos:

Early spring.

Tualatin River NWR
(one of several refuges in the Willamette Valley--all unique;
all wonderful when you're looking for a bit of serenity and wonder)

 

(Official) Spring in the Garden

The last day, of the strange yet wonderful winter of 2015, found my best friend and I toiling away in the garden and after months of virtual neglect we had much to do! During the 4 hours we worked we pulled out blackberry vines that seem to LOVE all rural PNW gardens, removed some of the naughtier, most unruly running bamboo and we weeded, raked and watched the burn pile grow.

 

A lot done and there's a LOT more to do!

Somehow though it seemed quite pleasant working under a blue sky and temps

 that seemed more like early summer or late spring than winter.

 

Of course there's a lot of blooming going on right now because of our VERY abnormal winter temps.

the sunny yellow blooms of forsythia, daffodils and Oregon grape,

the lovely white of a magnolia, pieris, other daffodils and many fruit trees,

the always pretty pink blossoms of one of our bleeding hearts and azaleas,

and the unexpected small blue blossoms of the brunnera and light purple of the rosemary.

 

The blueberries and evergreen huckleberries are in bloom as is our most lovely native kinnikinnick. In the bud stage is one peach colored rose and there are buds not quite showing color yet on some of the other roses. Our prairiefire crabapple's buds are right on the verge of opening and yesterday I noticed that our one and only beloved trillium has emerged from the ground (yippee), as has it's nearby neighbor, a hosta. Some of these plants are about a month ahead of schedule I think and others are pretty much on time or a bit early. Our forecast is calling for cooler temperatures for a few days and rain (yea, yea, yea) so maybe things will slow down.

Well I should be in bed (or doing the dishes my hubby, who just came out for an early morning snack, says) but I am, as usual, not tired yet so I'll share some photos...be forewarned the lighting was not the best and I still had on my zoom lens from our last trip with Small One. Anyway here goes!

 

Oregon Grape

 

Resident toad who offered to pose for a picture--

ok he didn't offer and I took much more than one picture :)

 

Camellia--a japonica

 (our camellia sasanqua finally decided to stop blooming after some 5 months of color)

 

Fruit tree blossoms

(I think this is one of our pears)

 

 

Pieris

(borrowed from a post I made 2 years ago. One can only take so much bad lighting you know. LOL)

 

 

 

Brunnera Jack Frost

(also borrowed from an older post.

 I love the leaves and forget-me-not type flowers on these shade loving plants).

 

Oh my! There's the most wonderful violinist playing on TV right now.

Dreamy...

I have thought for the longest time that the violin most closely matches the melody of my heart--

well at least the sadder tunes.

I think the flute captures the peaceful, happier tunes.

 

What instrument would you say is most like the melody of your heart?

 

Well I guess I'd best get to sleep as I am officially exhausted now.

 

Blessings + Happy Spring (or Autumn) to you!

Aimee 

 

A favorite couple of verses for your springtime...

(even if it's not Wednesday)

 

For, lo, the winter is past,

the rain is over and gone;

The flowers appear on the earth;

 the time of the singing of birds is come,

 and the voice of the turtle is heard in our land.

Song of Solomon 2:11-12

 

Of Unexpected Blessings: Pt II

From awhile ago...

Our early spring continues with many days of blue skies,
blossoming fruit trees and other plants
AND
lots of yard work still needing to be done!

 

So today, instead of dipping our toes in the sea

or watching one of my favorite rivers in action,

we...

 

pruned and pruned some more,

weeded,

turned back on our external water system

(then had to turn it off in a few days because of the cold night temps),

raked leaves

(yep, didn't do that this fall)

and watched a red tail hawk flying over us.

 AND

the best part

(other then all of the above)

was we didn't see ANY of the slithery ones!

Now, that's what I call a perfect spring-in-winter day:)

 

  (Update: but this last weekend lucky me had the

first snake sighting--CLOSE up of course)

 

But this post isn't about today--

though it was filled with unexpected blessings--

it's about Valentine's Day weekend and our trip up into Oregon's coast range.

 

 Now most visitors and residents  take one of the main highways that cross the mountains that run north to south between the Willamette Valley and the coast.

But there's some of us that prefer the quieter, (usually) less traveled and

MUCH more interesting back roads.

 

 

It's a beautiful little drive -- with lots of pretty things to look at...

 some white water

(if you know where to look for it and where to park so you can take a photo or two).

 

 

A pretty meadow with a river running through it and a favorite spot of mine!

Looks peaceful doesn't it?

What you may not know is that it hasn't always looked the way it does now.

In fact if you had been here in the very early 60's,

before November 20, 1962 that is,

you would have seen a beautiful lake here.

 

But on that day, the historic dam holding back those waters failed.

 

I would not have wanted to be downstream of that dam on that day.

Though no one lost their life, it must have been scary knowing

that a lot of water and debris was headed your way.

 

I don't recall ever hearing about this dam break as a child;

my hubby was the first to tell me about the existence of Meadow Lake and to show me its location.

I do recall the horrible Columbus Day storm that preceded it by more than a month though and I do recall our family enjoying a picnic or two at another earth-filled dam not too far from this one.

Ah, the memories of childhood...

funny what you remember and what lays hidden deep within your mind.

 

You can still see the big boulders of the dam,

although there's a lot more moss and

undergrowth since my Hubby was here with his Dad in the late 60s.

That's how he knew about Meadow Lake.

Some of these boulders are quite large--the size of a car.

  

 

I didn't want to venture closer to the edge...at this time of the year I wouldn't trust the area.

  

 

Lots more to see up here--

lots of views of the valley and even the Cascade Mountains.

A drive by, not so great photo of Mt. Hood 

(one of the two snow covered peaks we saw that day and they were stunning in person)

 

 

a photo of the valley.

There's a somewhat hidden viewpoint near here that we've visited before.

 

A pretty little valley that you pass.

Yep, it's a beautiful back country byway and one of my favorite places.

Perhaps sometime this year I'll share photos of the lovely river canyon that you drive through on the "main" route, but until then you can check out the links below for the alternate mountain route that we've taken several times.

 

Now it's back to work. Our sun has gone away and they're calling for rain,

but Friday is looking good! Meanwhile the blooms are multiplying outside and

sometimes it almost feels like summer-in-winter. Truly amazing!

 

Blessings, Aimee

 

Links (I included quite a few as my search feature isn't working correctly and I wanted a list of posts from this area to refer to quickly):

Posts:
http://aimeeonthemountainside.blogspot.com/2013/04/springtime-in-coast-range.html
(Bible Creek Rd, Lake, etc.)
http://aimeeonthemountainside.blogspot.com/2013/04/a-different-kind-of-exercise.html
(Bald Mountain/Bible Creek Rd Route)
http://aimeeonthemountainside.blogspot.com/2012/09/into-unknown-of-fear-and-detours-pt-2.html
http://aimeeonthemountainside.blogspot.com/2012/08/into-unknown-of-fear-and-detours-pt1.html
(Bald Mountain/Bible Creek Rd Route--first time)
 http://aimeeonthemountainside.blogspot.com/2011/12/advent-journey.html
(Meadow Lake area and more)
 http://aimeeonthemountainside.blogspot.com/2010/08/mountain-retreat-for-soul.html
(Meadow Lake area, viewpoint BLM)

Meadow Lake Dam Info:
http://photos.salemhistory.net/cdm/ref/collection/max/id/3790
(several photos available here of the lake before and after 1961)
http://www.yamhillcountyhistory.org/media/August2008WestSide_-_FINAL.pdf
(awesome history of the lake and dam that I found)
http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1310&dat=19621121&id=adozAAAAIBAJ&sjid=zuIDAAAAIBAJ&pg=4867,4010582
(newspaper report about the event and other problems caused by the abundance of rain that fall. Includes a very short witness account of the dam's collapse)

(Updated 3/11) Brochure and video of Nestucca River Byway:
http://traveloregon.com/trip-ideas/grants-getaways/nestucca-river-byway/
(video)
http://www.blm.gov/or/resources/recreation/files/brochures/Nestucca%20River.pdf
(printable brochure with a map of the byway)

Other (just for me because it took me FOREVER to find it this last time)
Fear + Mountain Roads by Lakes
http://aimeeonthemountainside.blogspot.com/2009/11/thursday-thanks-giving-mountain-roads.html