Grapes...and SNOW

We went back to our old house to clean out the garden beds.  And to our surprise we discovered GRAPES.  Lence and I had planted grapevines along the side of our garage a few years ago and now they are producing.  And DELICIOUS they were!!!

We also in the same period of time experience our first bout of snow up in Comore Loma.  BBBRRRRRRR!!!!

More Summer Pictures: Homeschool, Geocaching, Concert to Jenny Oaks Baker, and our SNAKE!

Brian had this great idea for a date to go geocaching.  In this picture Brian is running fast to get out of the swampy wet water.  He was such a good sport even though he was soaked when it was all done. 

I am awfully proud of finding this one, let me just tell you.  :)

Brian is teaching the Connor to play the guitar, and he is talented--just like his dad.  Connor has the best little boy's singing voice I think I've ever heard.

School is starting and aren't we ALL excited!  Nothing beats homeschool!

We have snakes at our house!  EEEEEEEK!

I am getting my four princesses ready for a special Jenny Oaks Baker Violin Concert.  Such a special day!

We were so lucky to get a picture with the star of the show!  Great inspiration for my budding violinists!

Lots of fun memories!

Sprouts and Growing Gardens

Every year the kids that are old enough participate in Sprouts, an organic gardening class, twice a week for about 5 months.  It is a wonderful program organized by Kristi, an amazing mentor for the kids.  This year Laurie, Megan, Rachel, and Connor participated.  I am so proud of all that they have learned, all the work that they put in day after day, and the responsible people they are becoming!

Fun at the Fair and Milking a Cow!

Milking a real cow!

Yes, even I get to milk one.  Oh happy day.  :)

I love this picture of the Mama goat.  All of her babies were constantly fighting to be directly on top of her.  I appreciate this so much because I feel like the Mama Goat sometimes!

For a long time Brian has wanted to milk cows with the kids.  It's hard to find the right opportunity.  But we called and got set up to actually milk cows with the kids.  Brian even made me do it.  :)  It is nice to know firsthand where milk comes from.  And nicer still to know the kids had that experience!  :)

Growing Butterflies, Little Women, and Laundry!

For Rocky's birthday I got him a butterfly growing kit. We received the caterpillars in the mail, we watched them form cacoons, and then emerge in to beautiful monarch butterflies.

Laurie, Megan, Rachel, and Hannah do the "diva thing" once in a while. They enjoy makeup and being pretty just like the rest of us. :)

Random picture, I know, but a family of 9 produces quite a LOT of laundry!



           

Crabbing in Oregon

Every year Grandpa VanderSloot takes anyone older than 5 years old crabbing off the Oregon Coast.  We flew in his private plane to Oregon.  The first plane stop was to meet everyone for Thai food.  Then we hopped on the plane and went to our next destination.  Bright and early in the morning we got stuffed with a big breakfast before heading out on the boats.  Grandpa and Grandma took Rachel and Laurie in their boat.  Brian, me, Connor, Rocky, Megan, and Uncle Caleb were in our boat.  Thank goodness for Uncle Caleb!  He did a lot of the releasing and pulling up of traps.  Brian mostly drove the boat.  What an experience!  You can only keep male crabs that have to be a certain size.  All the females or baby crabs have to be released back into the ocean--by law.

Following a day in the boats, we took our individual boat and camped it for awhile so Connor and Brian could do their tradition of roasting a crab on a fire.  I tried a little bit, but I'm not much of a seafood fan.  Rocky found little hermit crabs, and Megan was having so much fun collecting all sorts of shells, and crabs.

After we were done everyone pitches in to clean the crabs in preparation for the feast at the end of the day.  That is quite a long (and stinky!) process!  The kids had fun finding mussels.  During the adventure of looking at fish and finding mussels Rachel lost her brand new glasses in the water!  :(  The next morning Brian went diving (Ew yuck!) in the murky freezing water to find them but had no luck.

We all went to the the Tillamook Cheese Factory and got a tour of how they make the cheese and sampled the best icecream I've ever had.  So much fun!

That night we went to a nice restaurant where all of the crab was cooked up.  What a feast!  And what wonderful memories we will have forever!