Canadian Thanksgiving

On October 12th we celebrated Canadian Thanksgiving. The kids think it is so fun that we have TWO Thanksgivings! I just try to convince Garth that I can now play Christmas music since it is now after Thanksgiving (for me!), but so far he is not buying it.

Here are some pictures from our feast! Carissa and her daddy ate with our family, too.

Blackberry Picking

Our 2nd annual blackberry picking/jam making excursion occurred last month up in Sequim. We took full advantage of these thornless blackberry bushes with HUGE berries! In just a couple of hours, we had our buckets full and ready to make jam the next day.


Rachel's full time job was occupying her cousin Jaden. And Jaden's full time job was occupying her cousin Rachel. No telling what they were talking about!


These berries were so big and juicy...so delicious!


If you look carefully, you can see some berry residue around Rachel's mouth and on her jacket. We all enjoyed munching on these delicious berries while we picked. Good thing they didn't weigh US on the way in and way out!



And then we started the jam making process the next day! We cooked the berries and then put them through a Squeezo machine (like a big sieve) to get the seeds out. Seedless blackberry jam is much tastier than that with seeds! Now we have many, many jars of jam to enjoy throughout the year. Mmmmmmm....

Recent Pictures of GWI

For those of you who don't know, my parents own a bed and breakfast (George Washington Inn) up near Sequim. Last month we got to spend the night there and as always, really enjoyed the scenery and nature around us. Here are some pictures that Garth took on our visit.

Field Trip to the Naval Undersea Museum

Recently our family took a field trip to the Naval Undersea museum. This has been on our list of things to do for quite some time, so we were all excited to see what this place had to offer! When we drove up, the kids were instantly enthralled with the "big machines" outside.



We enjoyed exploring the inside of the museum as well. I thought it was great how many hands-on things there were for the kids to try out. Not just a bunch of history things to read, but actually things to touch and really feel like what life might be like if they had to live under the sea!

The Fall Season Isn't Complete...

...until you visit the pumpkin patch. This time only Sarah was able to go since I was babysitting for a friend that same day. Sarah was very excited that we trusted her to go "by herself" (with several other church families). I packed her a lunch, gave her some spending money, and sent her on her way. I suggested that she buy something "fallish" such as apple cider, but she came home with a bottle of Sprite and a Butterfinger for me, her pregnant mama! ;-)

She had to tell me all about her trip when she got home and then again when I was looking through the pictures. Her adventures consisted of the corn maze, the tractor ride to the pumpkin patch, choosing her own pumpkin, and touring the farm.

A New Blanket

Benjamin's baby blanket finally bit the dust and it was time to make him a new one. For some strange reason, he is harder on his things than Sarah is on hers (she's still using her baby blanket!). I took Benjamin to the fabric store and let him pick out the fabric he wanted. He was stuck on some Hot Wheels fabric until he saw this army print. Then all he could talk about was the army trucks! So here is his completed blanket. It is very heavy and warm which is great for the winter time.

Great Friends

From college days...


To now-a-days...


A great friend from Music Camp and college days came through the area recently and it was so nice to see her and catch up on life for a bit! She is now married and they had just finished a very exciting journey through Alaska (just for the fun of it). I enjoyed meeting her husband (and our husbands enjoyed talking to each other!) and hearing what they are doing in life and where they are headed. Out on the west coast we don't normally see many people from school anymore, so this was such a special treat for us both.

"Nelson's Illustrated Guide to Religions" by James A. Beverley

This review was done for Thomas Nelson. If you are interested in becoming a book review blogger, please click on the side widget for more information.

This huge hardback book is as the subtitle states "a comprehensive introduction to the religions of the world". From a Christian perspective, it introduces the reader to the history and evolution of the prevalent religions we see today. Each entry also includes some questions and answers and Internet sources for further information. The religions included are Baha'i, Branch Davidians, Buddhism, Christian Science, Christian Sectarian Groups, Hinduism, Islam, Jehovah's Witnesses, Judaism, Mormonism, The New Age, Orthodoxy, Protestantism, Roman Catholicism, Satanism, Scientology, Sikhism, Unification Church, and Witchcraft.

I really enjoyed reading this book, though it did take me quite a while to get through. It is quite lengthy (over 700 pages) and is not just a light read. It's a great resource to keep on hand when meeting people of a different religion and then being able to fully understand what they believe. The fact that it is written from a Christian perspective makes it my choice of a resource like this for our family. I would recommend this book to someone who is interested in becoming of aware of what other religions/cults believe (for evangelistic purposes), but mostly just as a good resource to have on the bookshelf to refer to.

"Find Your Strongest Life" by Marcus Buckingham

This review was done for Thomas Nelson. If you are interested in becoming a book review blogger, please click on the side widget for more information.

To the world, there is no better qualified person to write a book on how to become the strongest and best person you can be than Marcus Buckingham. His achievements qualify him greatly for such a book. As the book subtitle proclaims, it focuses on "what the happiest and most successful women do differently." The goal of the book is to help women realize that they can "have it all" by following a few different steps and realizing their inner potential.

My opinion on this book is a strong one. This title is written from a very humanistic approach and leaves God completely out of the picture. No matter how many little quizzes you take or how deep of a look you take within yourself, you cannot reach your fullest potential without Christ. As a woman who has had to juggle a family and a full-time job previously, the answer does not come from having a stronger career, stronger relationships, stronger kids, etc. The answer comes solely from knowing Christ and recognizing who you are in Him. God made me and I am His and because of that, I have an obligation to Him to honor Him with my choices, relationships, children, tasks, and such. If my relationship with Christ is in line with Scripture, everything else will fall into place. This book ended up being a big task to read and just get through the words as I completely disagree with the philosophy and approach.