The Poppy Dresses

    When I was barely pregnant with our second baby, I was telling my niece how the heart was already beating, and only the size of a poppy seed. She said "oh, we should call the baby Poppy!" That became her "womb" nickname, and when our beautiful little girl was born, it only seemed right to add it into her name. So even though it's a middle name, it stuck, and so seven eleven years later she is our Poppy Joy Girl. I've made her a dress with Poppy fabric every year, and here they are all together in one place. (You can click on the pictures to see them bigger.)

Eleven - She still loves pink and purple.

Ten! Fun and bright, just like my girl!

Nine- Something a little more grown up looking.

Eight. I loved the colors and bold prints on this one. 

Seven- I ordered the fabric on Etsy and only one of the prints- the really big one- had poppies on it! I couldn't tell the scale of the fabric online so there are actually only a few poppies on the dress. It also came out way shorter than I thought it would but I like it. I'm glad we're in a warm climate at the moment and she's able to get a little more wear out of it. 

Six- I used an Asian inspired pattern from Modkid and fabric I found on Etsy for this one. I love it, and love the way my girl looks in it!

The Five-Year Dress in all it's Poppy splendour! I had ordered the main fabric online and planned to pick a bright green contrast for the trim. But my girl went to the fabric store with me and wouldn't hear of green defiling her pink dress; so here it is in all it's Poppy Pinkness! 

Here is her fourth birthday dress, made with Amy Butler fabrics; I think this is my favorite one so far.

The Third Birthday. You can't see the details on this one very well. The little red flowers are poppies. (Daddy was trying to capture the girl, not so much the dress!) If you look here there is one picture of her where you can see the full length a little better.

The Second Birthday. I wanted to make a classic "little girl" style dress while she was still little. She wore this one for a long time.

The First Birthday. I saw this batik fabric first online, then purchased it in a local quilting shop. I love how it brings out the blue in her eyes. (She got those from her Daddy!) There were yellow bloomers underneath.

So there you have it, the first five eleven, of hopefully many, Poppy dresses. I don't sew for her as much as I'd like to, so I've really enjoyed doing these special dresses for her special days.

A Dozen (Years)

Today we give thanks for Peregrine, remembering the twelve years we have traveled this earth with him. I always enjoy looking through photos of the kids through the years and thought it would be fun to gather up pictures from all of his birthdays. 

I labored long and hard to bring this little one to the light. His birth was agonizing and beautiful. We were so thankful for the gift of him!

One

We decided early on that we would have a costume birthday party for him every year. It's been a fun tradition. He was a monkey for his first birthday. We all remember it as the first time he got so mad that he held his breath and passed out. Looking back, this totally made sense in the grand scheme of his personality! I made him a pumpkin cake and we let him smash it. 

Two
This was his "Patuanan"... that was how he said Happy Birthday at the time he turned two.

Three
We had just moved to an new house. He was a knight, there was a baby sister by this time, and he had Thomas the Tank Engine on his cake. 

Four

He was an astronaut and Poppy was a star princess. We had a moon piñata.

Five
A brave knight ready to defend his sister.

Six
By this time, Raphael had been born, and apparently it was the end of elaborate, handmade costumes! A simple knight cape did the trick!

Seven
A police detective, two outlaws on the run, and a fairy, of course. Because every police detective should have the assistance of a fairy.

Eight.... aaaaargh, matey!
The legendary Pie-rate party, complete with pie contest, in which he took control of the entire party and showed that he had what it takes to diplomatically command an audience. It was remarkable. 

Nine
Some sort of soldier this year... thrift store costume that he was thrilled with! 

Ten
We celebrated his tenth birthday with my aunt and uncle in California, who made a very special party for him, and then with more family in Baja, Mexico. We had just sold our home and hit the road in our travel trailer. It was the beginning of a grand adventure that lasted over a year. I think this was the only birthday that we didn't dress up.

Eleven
We were at the end of a 2 ½ month road trip around the US and had stayed the night in our trailer in the parking lot of Cracker Barrel in Flagstaff, Arizona. It was cold. We surprised Peregrine by taking the kids in to eat breakfast in the Cracker Barrel restaurant. Pearl has since referred to the parfait Peregrine had that morning as a "barfait", and we like to laugh about that. Later in the day we made sushi, went swimming, and parked our gypsy wagon near the railroad tracks on a cold, desert night. I remember Peregrine having a very, very happy day. We celebrated with family a few weeks later when we were back in Oregon. This was the beginning of the Doctor Who Era.

Twelve
He had a whole Dr. Who costume, but I failed to get a picture of it. Here he was judging this year's contest, which has evolved to include other desserts. My Jammie Dodgers took second place for taste, quite the honor! 

It's hard to believe we've been around the sun twelve times with this boy. Being his mom has stretched me in ways I didn't know were possible. I  didn't know how much I could love, nor how I would find the strength to carry on when I am exhausted and discouraged. I continually throw myself on the promise of God, that when we ask for wisdom, He gives it freely. I'm thankful for the gift of Peregrine, for what he has taught me, for the intensity and passion he brings to life. I look forward to the next dozen years!

From Panama to Canada

Sun setting over the Caribbean on our return flight from Panama. 

I can't believe it's been four months since I've posted anything. No, we are not still sailing in Panama! We are, in fact, settled down for a few months while Erik works on a contract job and we get some positive cash flow going to finance the next adventure. I'm hoping to get back to blogging a bit more regularly, but for now, here's a little update on what's been happening the last few months. 

    We had a few really fun adventures during our last few weeks in Panama, and I will try to post some pictures soon. One of the highlights was a Jungleland adventure that included an overnight stay on Lake Gatun, exploring the Panama Canal, spotting wild monkeys, kayaking in the jungle, and hunting crocodiles by night.

    We flew back to the US on February 21st, and had a very short week in Eugene, unloading the contents of our storage unit into a trailer, visiting friends and family, and getting ready to head north. Last fall, in the aftermath of Hurricane (Megastorm?) Sandy, Erik had put in a call to a company that does contract work in his field. They basically offered him work when he was available, so we decided to take a job that would have us in the Northwest for a few months this spring.

    He is working right on a US/Canada border crossing, so we are living in Canada while he works. It's been nice to be settled here, and we've enjoyed exploring a new place. I grew up in Canada, and all the kids have dual citizenship, so I'm glad they're getting to experience Canada. We're in the process of figuring out our next step, and hope to have plans to share soon. Here are some pictures that show a few highlights of our time so far.

On our way North, we spent a day in Seattle and explored the Pacific Science Center.

The kids in front of the Space Needle.

One of the things I love about where we are is seeing the mountains around us. I was born in the mountains, and there is something about them that stirs my soul. This is Mount Baker, which I climbed many years ago. I dream about backpacking as a family someday.

We arrived here at the beginning of March, at the request of the company Erik is working for. We ended up having nearly three weeks before he started work, so we took the ferry over to Vancouver Island for a week. I love riding ferries. It reminds me of my childhood. The job was originally supposed to be done by the end of May, but it's dragging out a good couple of months beyond that. It's a good thing we're in flexible mode!

We enjoyed exploring Victoria and got to spend time with my niece, Savanna. It was fun for all of us and the kids enjoyed getting to know their cousin, whom we hadn't seen in years.

We stayed in hotels and vacation rentals while trying to find a house to rent. It ended up being quite an ordeal, and a very stressful first month here. People were either looking for a long term lease or didn't want to rent to someone with kids. After a couple weeks we found this place, which seemed ideal. We were so relieved and thankful. It turned nightmarish less than a week after we moved in, when the owner decided she wanted to live in it again. We then learned she was not to be trusted, and neighbors told us she'd been taken away screaming in handcuffs on more than one occasion. We moved out of this house, not having found another one, and ended up staying in vacation rentals for another week while we looked for better place to live. 

Poppy turned eight the day before we had to leave the house. 

And Raphael had his fifth birthday just a few days later. Yes, his shirt is inside out and backwards. That's the way he likes it.

We were so thankful to find a place to rent, and it's turned out to be wonderful. It's an older house, and the owners are planning to tear it down, divide the lot, and rebuild. The landlords have been so very kind to us, and we feel very blessed. It has way more space than we need and a huge yard where the kids have had lots of fun. When the weather is cold or rainy, they ride their scooters in the basement! The house was built to maximize sun exposure and has huge windows. Erik hung our Mayan hammock in this sunny room. We've all enjoyed being settled for a while. I'm loving the luxury of a full kitchen and a big bathtub. Cleaning a huge house? Not so much. It's been nice to be back into a routine with school and life, and it's made us realize we need to take travel very slowly. 

My handsome boy served up a Mother's Day feast! 

And the Pearlie Girlie turned three! 

We've had lots of real life learning over the last year, and this has been a nice time to do more "book learning", as well as some of  fun little projects and experiments.

Poppy's taken an interest in sewing, and made this little felt heart which she is very proud of. 

We joined millions of people worldwide to March Against Monsanto. Safe, reliable food sources are something I feel pretty passionate about and we had a fun day protesting together.

This is a little lake up near Whistler, where we went hiking one day. This is such a beautiful area.

Erik celebrated his birthday, with lots of love and homemade ice cream.

We're enjoying being near the Pacific Ocean.

This is just a short walk from our home. 

Three Wishes

Birthday s'mores, of course. My mom always makes different colored candles represent numbers. This is for you mom: This candle stands for 37! 

   I turned thirty-seven as I slept crammed into a tent with Erik and my four children. Above us, pine trees reached for the sky, and alongside our camp the wild Umpqua River flowed on its journey to the sea. I was exactly where I wanted to be, enjoying a long weekend in the forest with the people I love best. I had three unofficial wishes for my birthday and I felt incredibly blessed that they all came true! Here, in no particular order of importance, are my three wishes:

    Crater Lake. The last few years we've made a big poster listing the things we want to do during the summer. I keep writing Crater Lake on it and we keep not making it. This year I was determined to make it happen, and a few weeks ago I told Erik that for my birthday weekend I wanted to go camping and make a day trip to Crater Lake. It was perfect. We had a gorgeous campsite in the forest and spent a day driving around Crater Lake. The whole weekend was full of fun and a relaxing retreat from the responsibilities of life at home.

Yes, I shared. 

    Thimbleberries. This was just a little wish, that I would find ripe thimbleberries on my birthday. I'd seen some growing on the side of the road the day before but they were in a place where it wasn't possible to pull over.  We drove up the road to hike to Tokatee Falls, and there by the parking lot I found a little patch with a few ripe thimbleberries. So yummy; soft, sweet, melt-in-your mouth deliciousness. If you've never had them I suggest you get yourself to the nearest forest and look until you find some. 

Pending Sale!

   We accepted an offer on our house! Yep, you read that right! Our home is officially "pending sale". With three days left until we planned to take it off the market, our realtor negotiated an offer on our behalf while we were happily out of cell range. So, we've been launched into several levels of craziness here, with the targeted closing date only three weeks away. We realize anything could happen between now and then, but we're going full steam ahead. We are thankful, excited, apprehensive, and a whole range of other emotions. It was on my birthday weekend seven years ago that we put in an offer on this home, and Erik started his current position on August 1st of that same year. I thought it would be neat if it all came full circle after seven years, and here we are. 

    And so I enter another year, thankful for the many blessings God has given, and excited to see how He leads as we go forth! 

Forty-Two

Happy birthday to my love...

  

  If you read the title of this post and assumed it was going to be about the meaning of life, the universe, and everything, you would be wrong. But you just might get on famously with Erik, who has acheived a certain age that would answer that all important question. If you're thoroughly confused than you've obviously never read Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy or lived with someone who has. And you won't understand why I gave him a towel as a gift, either, so don't worry about it. Moving right along now...

    It was eleven years ago this month that Erik and I started getting serious about each other. We'd met five years prior to that and it took a while for the chemistry to kick in. It's hard to believe it's been that long; the years have gone by quickly, and I can't imagine spending them with anyone else. We've had a some challenges along the way, but who doesn't? Life is good, and I'm so blessed to spend it together with Erik. On his birthday we drove up the McKenzie Highway, had a picnic at one of our favorite spots, Belknap Hot Springs, and then continued up to Koosah and Sahalie Falls. It was a wonderful day of enjoying one another and celebrating Erik!

We started our hike at Koosah Falls. 

Koosah Falls from above.  This is one of those places where I hold on tight to the kids!
 

It was a beautiful day and the kids loved running along through the forest. We were fascinated with how this tree had grown beyond the rock, which was split beneath by the roots. 

The water was so beautiful!

Ambush!

We stopped for quite a while and let the kids explore in and around this hollow log.

Whitewater rafting, anyone? 

We hiked upstream until we came to Sahalie Falls, which isn't far from the headwaters of the MeKenzie River.  I think it was Erik who first introduced me to this place.

The six of us in front of Sahalie Falls. 

  

Erik likes this picture. I'm not sure I do, but since it's his birthday and he took the picture, and I'm his ever lovin' wife and all that jazz, I'll put it in here. 

We believe in "hands on" education, and "feet on" for that matter. Here we were learning about how  rivers form up in the mountains. 

The man behind the magic. Well, behind a lot of the pictures on this blog, at least. I'm glad he enjoys photography so much. I like taking pictures of him taking pictures. 

Sweet, silly Poppy!

Happy Birthday, Erik! I love you, and am so glad we're on this journey together. My life is richer for it.