Five on Friday: Camping!

For quite some time I have been enjoying viewing posts published by bloggers participating in Amy's Five on Friday gathering.  Since I find myself creating posts about once a week, I am going to have a go at joining Amy's link up and share five highlights of my past week.

One: Forest camping between Rock Creek Reservoir and Wamic, Oregon, on the east side of Mt. Hood, for the last ten days has been wonderful! Some of the roads my family traveled on to go camping are part of what was the Oregon Barlow Pioneer Trail.  Although we set up my tent, my youngest daughter and her husband invited me to sleep in their camping trailer which was very comfy.

Two: Fun was had by all who came with me as well as those who just visited for a day. Our campsite was right alongside a manmade irrigation creek.  It was so relaxing listening to the water ripple past although we ventured away from our campsite nearly every day for a bit. One day we drove to the nearby lookout over the Tygh Valley and it was lovely to see the farm land below us. Another day we played a round of miniature golf, and then my son and son in law played 18 holes on the beautiful, nearly deserted golf course in around 100 degree sunshine! On Sunday we visited the local log cabin Wamic Community Church and enjoyed their Pot Blessing lunch after worship.

Three:  Firelight and heat was our friend for some daytime cookouts and in the cool evenings.  We enjoyed playing Scrabble, Pegs and Jokers, Bannangrams, and, Five Thousand here and there during the days and evenings. I finished knitting two dishcloths and crocheted three little round face scrubbers. During some days my youngest daughter had to use WiFi at a local cafe to complete homework assignments for her Master's in Nursing Informatics.  While she did that I colored some more pages with watercolors, and fiber tipped pens and sketched and watercolored a view of our campsite. Some of the time I spent reading, too, from the "One Year NLT Bible," and Jan Karon's  pastoral but driving Father Tim novel, "In the Company of Others."  

Four: Feathers were a highlight of our days. We visited Rock Creek Reservoir frequently and gathered many goose feathers and a pretty little orange and black feather that I think may have come from a red winged black bird. On one of the near 100 degree days we went swimming in the clear cool water.  Ahhhhhh....  While we were out in the water  without our cameras we were thrilled to watch a Bald Eagle swoop down to the water, catch a fish and then fly directly overhead so that we could almost see the scales on the fish! Family members and friends also went fishing, but unlike the Bald Eagle, no one caught a fish.

Five:  Flowers were a delight to see tucked here and there in the green grasses and bushes around us.  When four year old grand Joy visited for a day she picked a sprig of Queen Anne's Lace for me which I brought home with me although it is a bit worse for the wear. The photo of the Thistle I took with Jennifer of Thistlebear in mind.

Now that I am home and unpacked and reconnected to more reliable internet connections, I look forward to visiting with and finding out, "what is new or old with you?"

xx
Gracie

Jamming in More Crafting

In the comments on my last post, Joy and Annie asked for the recipe for Carrot Cake Jam that some of my family members recently used and I finally have crammed in some time to type it up for them and anyone else who might be curious :) 

Carrot Cake Jam

4 cups peeled chopped pears

3 cups finely grated carrots

1 120 oz. can crushed pineapple not drained

6 tbsp. lemon juice

2 tsp. ground cinnamon

1 tsp. ground nutmeg

1 tsp. ground cloves

5 cups sugar

1 package fruit pectin

Combine everything except the pectin into a saucepan.

Heat, stirring frequently until it comes to a boil.

Reduce heat, cover pan and boil gently for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Transfer mixture to a blender and blend till smooth.

Transfer back to the saucepan, add pectin, and bring back to a boil for 1 min.

Transfer to hot jars and seal.


Last Friday I enjoyed another visit to Multnomah Falls!

Teresa invited me to attend the 100th anniversary of Multnomah Falls being a public park.

Reading the history of how this wonderful location was set aside to be enjoyed by all helped me appreciate it all the more.

Individuals such as Simon Benson helped make the park possible.

The 100th year celebration of the creation of the  public park was news covered by some of our local news broadcasters.

The celebration was made possible by the National Park Service, The Friends of Multnomah Falls, and others who worked together to make it so.  My friends Teresa and Dayle Kasner [in the upper right corner of this photo] were among those who helped make the celebration successful.

Driving home from the Falls I stopped at The Women's Forum overlook to take this view looking north up the Columbia river to Vista House. As I type to you I am appreciating once more folks like Dayle and Teresa who have contributed their support so that others can enjoy this view as well. 

Back at home with carrot cake jam in a jar on my table, I am also appreciating more beautiful dahlias and the crafting of others who have shared their talents with me.

I read this interesting cookbook from cover to cover one evening after receiving it from my dear NY friend, Becky, last week. It is a wonderful combination of history, artwork, and recipes.  Thank you again, Becky!

I thought I had mentioned this, but Teresa told me I hadn't!  My oldest daughter is expecting to introduce me to my youngest granddaughter, Sarah Josephine, around the end of November...in about ten weeks!  My youngest daughter was hostess for a baby shower yesterday, and I made this little bib with a size D crochet hook for the baby.

This is the new baby blanket I am working on for a baby at a local neonatal unit.  I love how the self striping yarn forms a pretty design...without me having to count my stitches :)

Folks round about me share their creativity and care in such sweet ways, and encourage me to go and do likewise.  There are so many needs in the world, I often hide from them, but then I realize that each effort one makes to express love is worth it and helps our world to be more filled with love.

While I was reading one of her blog posts, I listened to a song Clare crafted and performed and posted on her blog. I was inspired by how she is contributing to the cause of love by using her creativity to highlight the needs of the Syrian refugees.

I love hearing from you and learning how you are crafting creative caring into your life with your family, friends, and neighbors, at home and abroad; and I hope your are having a good week!  :)

xx,
Gracie


"...But I'm not abandoned.  The Father is with me.  I've told you all this so that trusting me, you will be unshakable and assured, deeply at peace.  In this godless world you will continue to experience difficulties.  But take heart!  I've conquered the world."  John 16:31-33 MSG

Shades of Winter

We are enjoying white, pink tinged Apple Blossom Amaryllis blossoms and the last glory of our red Poinsettia.

The blossoms are so heavy I found the stalwart green stem bent in half one morning!  : (

Then I discovered that the green and brown palm trees from the Fisher-Price Nativity set are able to prop up the stem.
Can you see them? : )

My youngest son and I fiddled with the electric stove and coaxed it to warmly glow orange and gold with new light bulbs.

This pretty scarlet and green Cyclamen plant was purchased for my youngest daughter to cheer her as she recovers from hip surgery.

Knitting this alpaca, silk cowl feels like I am knitting a soft warm, fluffy, silvery cloud.

When Teresa and I came out of the gym pool one day, recently, Mt. Hood was outstandingly snowy white against blue gray clouds.

Our confused Camellia bush is producing these gorgeous pink and white Springtime blossoms.

Usually this bush starts blooming in late February, so we are getting an early treat seeing the pretty pink contrasting against the deep evergreen leaves of the bush.

 Mt. Hood was glowing goldenly from Jonsrud overlook near Sandy, Oregon, just before sunset recently.

After the Seattle Seahawks won their last football game my oldest daughter took this photo with her iPhone of a muted winter rainbow we saw out my window.

A few days ago I received this lovely card and felt stitched heart shaped Valentine pin from my sweet friend, Betsy.  My basket full of rainbow colored yarn seemed a good background to perch the card and pin on to show you.  I bought the cotton yarn in this basket on sale from Lyon Brand Yarn a few months ago and am enjoying single crocheting around  35 chains to form a double thickness rainbow colored pot holder. 

The new year has found me occupied fighting off a cold for a week, involved with my youngest daughter's out patient surgery on her left hip, reading material for a class on Eastern Orthodox history, exploring the use of the word "secret" in Scripture, helping to keep my living space tidy, celebrating my oldest son-in-law's birthday, swimming less than usual, and doing a little knitting and crocheting, too.  I re-read some of Women's Work: the first 20,000 years, by Elizabeth Wayland Barber, that Annie has been reviewing on her blog, but in general I feel I am behind on EVERYTHING, including post reading.  However, the shades of winter around me stop me in my tracks...to behold beauty in the moment.   I am grateful God created it! I am recharged by it!  I want to replicate it! I want to share it!

How are the shades of winter affecting you?

Sunset Moonrise

A few blocks south of our house is a nursery where these lovely sunflowers were blowing about 9.10.2014.

As the sun set in the West, the sunflowers glowed in waning light.

The sun disappeared leaving pink and blue blankets of clouds behind to warm the earth.

Then in the East the moon began to rise to the North of Mt. Hood, from a bank of clouds obscuring the base of Mt. Hood.

Rising,

warmly glowing,

more,

and more,

until we could see it all, as a comforting night light,

making light of any darkness,

until it became a brighter more silvery light,

and we chased it in our car, my youngest daughter who took most of these photos, and I, so that we could see it light the night as day on the farm behind our home,

leaving its' song lingering:

I see the moon and the moon sees me.
The moon sees Somebody I want to see.
God bless the moon, and God bless me,
and God bless the Somebody I want to see.

I really think the Lord above, created you for me to love.
He picked you out of all the rest, because He knew I'd love you best.

If I get to heaven and you're not there, I'll write your name on the golden stair.
I'll write it big so the angels can see just how much you mean to me.



A Google search attributed similar lyrics to Brinkman and Merrill, but the version above was taught to me by my sisters, I think, over fifty years ago, and I am not certain of the source.  Do you know?

Gracie xx