Photo Shoot

My parents, sister and her two girls just left this morning after a spending some time visiting us. We had such a nice time together hiking, swimming, and meeting Lily for the first time. While here my sister, Salome asked if we would take a few photos of her, Kaitlyn, and Lily. So, one afternoon I got to play photographer and take a few pictures of some very lovely ladies. We were all pretty excited about how they turned out. The lighting was perfect and the girls were pretty smiley for the most part. I simply had to share a few of my favorites.


This is the only one I took of all three of them together and it's a keeper.

Salome asked for this pose, it came out so nice and clear. Now I wish we would have done one with their hands in the grass too.

Lily's smile is precious. She loves her Mama!

This is my favorite of the bunch. I love how natural both Salome's and Kaitlyn's smile is. This isn't the pose that we were going for, but worked well.

At this point Lily was tired of having a big grey thing in her face, even so she is pretty cute with her "leave me be frown".

Naomi

Little Friends

It is the last day of July and I am finally getting to my July post. Yes, this is how far I have fallen in the blogging world; a single post each month is my goal. Now I would love to exceed that goal, but I make no promises to myself or anyone else.

This last Spring for one of my classes I had to give an informative speech on a subject that I researched. My choice was hummingbirds and I am so glad that I chose to study and learn about that little bird, because they have added to our summer.

After researching them I decided to put out a couple feeders and to see what happened. We now have a male and female that fight on a regular basis for the sugar water that hangs outside our doors.

Black-Chinned Hummingbird male enjoying a little sweet drink. He is so shy that I haven't been able to get any other close pictures of him.

The little female deciding whether this is good food or not. Hummers are always on the look out for food, because they burn an average of 10,000 calories a day. Some burn more and some less depending on their size and weight. Because they are always on the look out for food, it makes them quite curious and fun to watch zipping around.

Enjoying God's Creation,

Naomi

Mountain Flowers

Over Memorial Day weekend Terran partially tore his MCL, a ligament in his knee. We were so bummed over this injury; because we had a weekend full of outside hiking and biking that he no longer could do (he won’t be able to do anything intense for about 6 weeks). The dr. told him to stay off it a week and he could then go back to work, after a couple of weeks he should start walking on it more. We took advantage of that piece of advice and went to the mountains yesterday to look at the wild Iris. There weren’t any blooming yet, but we found other lovely wild flowers, some fun for the dogs, and escaped the garden that needed a little more weeding.

Enjoying the day,

Naomi

Happy 10 Years

It is amazing to me that we have been married 10 years today. Man and wife, partners, lovers, best friends, and each other’s support for a 10 full years. I keep saying it to myself, because I find it hard to believe. It seems like ages and ages ago that Terran and I were married before our family and friends, another lifetime ago. At the same time I feel like we are just getting started that our life together is brimming with potential and the future. That somehow even with all we have discovered and built together, we have just touched the surface of each other and what our life holds.

Then...



Today...



It is wonderful, one of the greatest joys to look back over the last decade and know that I wouldn’t change a thing. Life has been so rich and so full; I would live every moment again with Terran by his side as his wife.

To the next ten years,

Naomi

NOTE: For whatever reason this post was removed when blogger was doing maintenance. We celebrated 10 years on May 12th and this was originally posted that morning ... just so you don't get confused about dates.

Happy Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day to all you Mom's out there. This video made us laugh this morning at church and I hope it brings a smile to you too.




Thank you Mom, for all that you have done for me through the years. You gave so much to us children. I love you!!!

Thanks you Mom G. You raised a wonderful son and I am so blessed to live my life with him.

Love,

Naomi

The Property

Since Terran and I first talked about dreams one of ours has been to own a little piece of land outside of town. We weren’t particular about the city or state this piece land fell into, weren’t too particular about the size of it a couple acres or 50 acres, we just wanted a little space to spread our wings and let our dogs run.

Terran grew up with a lot of space to play in Canada, being able to hunt, run, and explore right outside his back door, so it seemed natural he would want the land. For me owning property was always the ideal dream. To not have neighbors a stones throw away, to have a garden any size one wanted with a few fruit trees was the dream my parents had and it passed to me.

Last fall we bought our property. After looking and looking the last few years and a few false starts on other pieces of land Terran and I found the piece that is all we wanted. Terran wanted some wild area that would stay rough, while I wanted some places for grass, a garden, fruit trees, and a goat. Our place has it all and then some extra.


Standing at our gate. We had to wait almost 6 monthes for our closing to go through. We waited a long time for this moment.

Walking up our long bushy driveway.

Kojo running through one of the wild areas. We haven't exlpored all of the hidden places yet.

Sitting in one of our large cottonwood trees that were a huge draw for us.

We are so glad that we waited for God’s perfect timing and for His best for our future home. It would have been so easy during the last few years to have pushed for something that seemed great to us, but wasn't the best. God really does bless waiting on Him.


Proud owner of 8 acres,

Naomi

The Place I Live

Sometimes I am overwhelmed by the beauty of this area and can’t believe that I call it home. Yesterday was one such day. I went for a hike with the dogs, taking advantage of my last Friday of break, while Terran was working and it was gorgeous.

Perfect hiking buddies

Too lovely to words...

The joy of living in a place where the Yucca blooms in the summer and the snow falls in the winter.

Living in the moment,

Naomi

The Last Weekend

The last weekend of this semester is upon me. One more weekend of hard work studying for my algebra final, some sacrifice (sorry Jil), and this semester will be finished. It is hard to believe how quickly time has flown. I really can’t think of a fall that has gone more quickly and winter seems to following suit.

One time years ago when I worked at the Credit Union, one of our members was talking about how quickly time was going for him as he grew older. His theory was that a year was a smaller percentage of his life making them feel like they passed more and more quickly. I hope on some level that he is wrong, because he is about 20 years older than I am and I don’t want time to go any faster than it is.

Not only is school filling my time and brain right now, but Christmas keeps poking its head in my thoughts to remind me that it’s just around the corner. Yikes!!! Packages to mail, cards to write, house to decorate, not to mention cookies to bake!

I do have my Christmas cookie list made and decided with Terran that we wouldn’t do as much baking this year. Right now the list is 9 cookies long and I don’t see how we can narrow it down any more than it has been at this point. The ones that are on the list are keepers, not one can be sacrificed. Everyone loves the espresso crinkles, I’ve always made Nanaimo bar and cant’ leave those off. My great-grandma’s buckeyes are a must and I really want to try the new ginger cookie recipe that has candied ginger pieces in it. We also are leaving so many yummy cookies off, peanut butter crunches, white chocolate raspberry cookies, and fudge. Do you see what I mean? Nine really are just a few of all the ones that sound good. I once heard moderation is the key…. I don’t think it is working.

Well, I need to go back to my final Friday studying for the year. That sounds good!

Naomi

Children's Books Part 2

My Name Is Yoon
Written by Helen Recorvits and illustrated by Gail Swaitkowska

Summary: A young Korean girl has recently immigrated to the United States and is struggling to view herself through the English spelling of her name Yoon. She dislikes how it looks in English, it is not happy like her Korean spelling. The dislike of her English spelling is part of her homesickness for Korea and her fear of not making friends in her new home. Instead of writing her name at school she writes other words and imagines how her life would be if she were that word and not Yoon. In the end after making friends she accepts that she is Yoon in English, happy knowing it still means Shining Wisdom.

Why Read: My Name is Yoon has many good qualities to its story. It asks children to look at the world through an immigrant’s eye as they try to learn about the new place they are living. It draws attention to another language that does not use the English alphabet for its words while also focusing on English words and writing. The teacher is a kind supportive person that helps Yoon feel more at home and the other child that befriends Yoon also helps her like her new place. My Name is Yoon is a lovely story of a little girl finding a place in her new home.

The Tiger Has A Toothache: Helping Animals at the Zoo
Written by Patricia Lauber and illustrated by Mary Morgan

Summary: Animals at the Zoo get sick just like people. How do they get taken care of when they have colds, hurt teeth or broken bones? This book answers those questions and more. Each section is a couple pages long and follows one type of animal through their diagnosis, treatment and healing.

Why Read: This is an interesting book about some favorite zoo animals that kids can really enjoy. It brings a different perspective to the world of animals through the stories and colorful pictures. It is a fun read for thinking outside the animal box.

Ladybugs
Written and illustrated by Mia Posada

Summary: Ladybugs is a nonfiction book that goes through the life cycle of ladybugs. Its brightly colored pages and simple explanations of what is happening make this a fun read for children.

Why Read: Ladybugs are easy to spot and fun to find. This book gives children more information about the little bugs that is easy for them to understand and really brings to life an important part of nature.

Library Lion
Written by Michelle Knudsen and illustrated by Kevin Hawkes

Summary: A lion walks into the library one day and loves story time. He quickly learns that certain rules of the library must be followed and strives to follow them. He befriends most of the patrons and the head librarian. To help his friend the librarian the lion one day breaks one of the library rules and leaves. After he is gone he is missed by all, especially the head librarian. The assistant librarian who didn’t care for a lion in the library sets out to find the libraries missing friend and bring him back.

Why Read: Library Lion shows that books are for everyone and the library is a fun place to be. Not only does it shine a bright light on books, but on friendship too. It tells us that friends take care of each other and that friends come in all different shapes and sizes. Also, who wouldn’t like being able to snuggle with a lion and read a good book at the same time?




Make Way For The Ducklings
Written and illustrated by Robert McCloskey



Summary: Mr. and Mrs. Mallard are looking for the perfect place to hatch their ducklings. They fly around Boston discarding different places until they happen upon the perfect island. After the ducklings hatch Mr. and Mrs. Mallard have quite the adventure trying to move their little family across the city to a spot with lots of peanuts to snack on and room to grow. With the help of a policeman the little duck family makes the journey safely.


Why Read: I like that this book values a duck family, a policeman is willing to help and make sure that this little family makes it to their destination. It is also fun to see the different people’s reaction to little family walking across the city. This story leaves one with a good feeling and smile.

Cuddle with someone small and read,

Naomi

Thank You

by Diamond Rio

I like how this song draws attention to the foundation of our country and to the many freedoms that we have as Americans.

Thank you Veterans for defending our land and freedom,

Naomi

Children's Books Part 1

I love children's book. I think that they are fun, imaginative and can open up whole worlds to children that they wouldn't know about otherwise. They can help children problem solve, understand relationships better and so much more. Also kids who like to listen to stories are more likely to enjoy reading and children who enjoy reading more often do better in school.

For my Early Childhood Education class we had to put together a list of our favorite 10 children's books and write a little about each book. This assignment was right up my alley, the hardest part, besides taking time to do the writing, was limiting the number of books to only 10.

Here are the first 5 I chose. I didn't do them in any favorite order, but ordered them by which ones I got first from the library. So there is nothing special about the order.

Vera Goes To The Dentist
Written and illustrated by Vera Rosenberry

Summary: Vera has her first appointment with the dentist and things are a little different than she expects. She ends up biting the dentist’s finger, running away and finally has her teeth cleaned after a second try in the dentist’s chair.

Why Read: Vera is such a real character from wearing her favorite skirt to feel strong and brave to her response of running away from her first dentist appointment. I like that Vera overcomes her fear and finishes her appointment with the dentist and finds that things were not as bad as she feared. Vera’s story shows that little people have big events in life.




Not Norman: A Goldfish Story
Written by Kelly Bennett and illustrated by Noah Z. Jones

Summary: Norman is a goldfish who was given as a gift to a little boy who really did not want a goldfish for a pet. After trying to trade Norman for another pet the little boy starts to realize just how special Norman is and decides to keep him.

Why Read: A fun story about how any pet can be special from the little boy’s point of view. This story can open up conversation about why kids think their pets are special and what kind of pet they would choose if given a chance.





Good Night, Gorilla
Written and illustrated by Peggy Rathmann

Summary: A zoo keeper tucks all the animals in to bed for the night at his zoo. He does not realize that a little gorilla is right behind him letting all the animals out so that they can sleep with the zoo keeper and his wife.

Why Read: This book does not have a lot of words and leaves a lot of the detail of the story up to the reader. It can be a very elaborate or simply told story depending on the reader. I like this book, because it has a lot of artistic detail and the children can tell you their own version of the story if they want to, thus “reading” a book.




Firefighters A to Z
Written and illustrated by Chris L. Demarest

Summary: Goes through the letters of the alphabet, matching each letter to some aspect of fighting fires.

Why Read: Children will enjoy this colorful and detailed booked about fighting fires, while hearing the letters of the alphabet, especially those children that like fire trucks. It brings attention to the need for team work and the bravery of those who fight fires for us.



Franklin's New Friend
Written by Paulette Bourgeouis and Illustrated by Brenda Clark

Summary: A new animal moves into Franklin the turtle’s part of the woods. Franklin when he first sees his new neighbors is scared of them, because they are Moose and very big. Franklin learns to not judge by what an animal looks like, but to accept them for who they are.

Why Read: The story of Franklin learning to overcome his fear and get to know his new neighbor and classmate is very sweet. The book brings attention to the fact it is not what someone looks like that matters and that we all can be friends with someone very different from us. The role that adults play in this book is very good too. They are not condescending or controlling, but offer sound advice to Franklin and try to help him have empathy for Moose, allowing Franklin to make his choice to reach out to Moose and be his friend on his own.

Go Forth and Read,

Naomi

Slumber Party

We had a sleep over at our last weekend with our nephew Kaiser. It was his first sleep over and we had fun. He did such a great job being away from Mom and Dad, just playing and laughing the whole time. Such a delight to have a little person running around the place for an afternoon and evening.

While at our house the dogs and the dog crate were the favorite play things. I think the crate might have just had a slight edge over the bed owner.

Kaiser trying for the Great Escape on our hike, but Uncle Terran was just a little faster and caught him

Throwing sticks into the water for the dogs.

Kaiser was a big help to Uncle Terran pushing the stroller up the hill

Bugs are the best!

Tromping along like the big boy he is

Nothing like an after dinner milk

Nite-nite little buddy. Thank you for only getting Auntie out of bed during the night a few times. You did such a good job sleeping.

Auntie Naomi

Fall's Arrival

Fall arrived this year with heat, our temperatures were in the high 80’s until the beginning of this month were they have slowly dropped to the 70’s we are experiencing now. I am so glad that summer didn’t leave us in a rush, taking her heat and sun with her. I wasn’t ready to see the end of summer this year, quite willing to keep the illusion of summer break even after school had started, through the heat. Yes, that is the reason I wasn’t ready to see summer leave, because it meant the start of school again. I so enjoy my classes and now that I am in them wouldn’t change what I’m doing, but struggled at the beginning giving up my days of freedom. I have to chuckle, because days of freedom for an adult are very different from children’s days of freedom. My freedom meant gardening, going through closets, canning, freezing meals, all those life details that are very nice to do without the pressure of homework and tests.

Thinking about this past summer along with life details it was dominated by three R’s. Reading, Running and Resting… each one is wonderful on its own and together, make for several lovely months of sunshine and fun. It is always interesting to me how at certain times different things dominate; there really is an ebb and flow to all things.

Now we are enjoying cooler mornings, midday hikes after homework and cool nights good for deep sleep.

Naomi

Saturday Snaptshot : Kaitlyn's Pal

Our niece Kaitlyn with Kaia when she was a puppy. Whenever Kaitlyn visits or we visit she and Kaia are inseparable. Kaitlyn is so sweet and prays every night for her furry friend.

Saturday Snapshot: Cute and Weird

CUTE: Bright eyed Kaia

WEIRD: Kojo the earless dog