Caroline has Cooking Success

This week Caroline baked her first batch of cookies all by herself! She did a great job and Nick, Miles and Tara all spoiled their dinner by eating a bunch of them straight out of the oven.
I only helped a little bit, with stuff like where do we keep the baking soda (NOT the one in the fridge, honey), and now she knows where the secret cookie baking cookie sheets are.

She was so proud, she even went online, and found her own recipe!! She likes my cookies, but prefers them without oatmeal, so she made them herself. She even cleaned up!
Apparently am now a food blog.

Easter

On Easter, I made a strawberry pie.
Yes, I did.

Random

Well, long time no post. Here are some things that have happened in the last 4 months, I think.

Miles had a band concert. Ok, I think that was in December, but he looks SO cute in his tux with gold lamee accessories. It was about a hundred below zero that night, and all the instruments were so out of tune, the concert took an eternity to get thru because they had to keep re-tuning. Luckily it dumped snow, and we were out of school until after New Year's.


This happened with the Driver family. Don't know, but I love this pic.

I went to Hood Canal with my Super Crafting Coven of Shrews, and our cabin came with a ginormous bag of oysters. We made amazing sauce and ate until we were stuffed. Geni went and threw all the shells in the water. I pretended I was really arty and did some watercolors. Looking out the window at the rain was very inspirational.
Best damn photo I ever took of a sheep.

We went to the Lodge in February, and there was a moderate amount of snow.
At the Lodge, the kids went Tubing, here are Owen, Miles and Stefan.
Caroline on the rope tow.Miles, likewise.

Caroline and Nora, Cousin Fun!!!

NEW YEAR-- NEW ATTITUDE!

OK, I am going to stop going crazy trying to "catch up" and just get some pics and posts up when I can... We have spent the last month buried under snow and school closure lists, and my resolution is to Stop Freaking Out! Whew, I feel better already. Here are some excellent snaps of the snow, taken by my personal photojournalist, my mother:


Saucering in the middle of the street!!
I think this was before the last big snowfall...

Cherry tree.The first time I have ever had to shovel our walk! So many people walk on our street, and it was so icy and treacherous, I felt like a negligent neighbor...

More later on Xmas....

First Day of School...

Well, it may have been back in September, but here they are! Miles started middle school, 6th grade, and Caroline started 4th.

It may look like bedhead, but he enjoys styling his hair with lots of product and making it all wacky. It's fine with me.

Caroline has had this outfit picked out for a week....

Caroline and Phoebe have the same teacher this year! Yea!
Well, that sums up the first day of school. My plan is to post 5 pics a day until I'm caught up.

Layout

I thought that I would experiment with a new layout. I kind of like the green background, and how the photos are framed with white. I'm not sure about the big white stripe going down on the right.....

Catching up...if possible

Yes, I have been an extremely lame blogger. Many things have happened since Provo, I am sure. I do get tired of waiting for the photos to download sometimes.....

At the end of August, Miles and Caroline's friend Anna wrote a play. She was so excited by the unit they did on Shakespeare at school, she wrote this play called the "39th Shakespeare". It was very well written and staged. Caroline had a small part as an "actor" who always spoke in rhymes, and Miles did some very good scenery work backstage. Caroline is second on the left here:

While the girls of the family went to Provo, Utah, the boys went camping at Mt Rainier and took a fantastic hike up to Panorama Point. They would like you all to know that they are not sweaty, it was so hot they put snow in their hats and it melted on them. I wasn't there, this is the story they tell me.

Caroline and Cousin Stefan share August 18 as a birthday. We take photos every year. Stefan is becoming very elusive when a camera comes out, so consider this a success! She is 9, he is 14 now.
My friend Beth had a baby the first week of September. Here he is! Jackson....
We had a weird year in the garden, due to June-uary and Aug-tober weather issues. Sunflowers were amazing, though.