Thompson's Mills State Heritage Site

Earlier this month we took the kids to Thompson's Mills State Heritage Site, in Shedd, Oregon. They took part in a program where kids can experience being a pioneer at the mill. It included a tour of the mill which is pretty awesome to see and the host told lots of fun stories about the children who used to live at the mill. We enjoyed it and will definitely visit it again someday.

Flowers on May Day 2015

The first apartment I lived in was in the historic German Village in Columbus, Ohio. The old houses, and several of the streets, are mostly all made of brick, and the gardens are beautiful. Every May Day residents hang baskets on their front gate or door filled with flowers. So I try to hang some flowers each May Day. My son's school invites students to bring flowers to school to fill vases for teachers and staff. It can be a wonderful start to the gardening season!

The Rhododendrons are in bloom.

Stopping to see a ladybug on the way to school.

Vases to fill with flowers for teachers and staff.

Happy Earth Day 2015!

The giant earth at Riverfront Park in Salem, Oregon.

Newport, Oregon

We took a little day trip to Newport on the Oregon Coast recently. The sea lions were trying to get an afternoon nap in while lying on some floating concrete pads. But there wasn't enough room for all of them and several were trying to jump aboard and find a space to join in on the nap. But each time one would try, the sea lions who already had a cozy spot would bark up a storm. It was quite noisy. Definitely hard to get a nap during all that ruckus. Then we headed to a park near Nye Beach. The super-long slide coming off of a pretend ship was a favorite!

Arbor Week 2015

Our city has a number of heritage trees and in honor of Arbor Week people are invited to take their picture with one of them. This is a big, beautiful, old Japanese Maple. We walk past it on our way to preschool.

Orchid show and sale

A local nursery was the host to the Mary's Peak Orchid Society Show and Sale today. I arrived one hour after it started and it was already packed. The orchids on display were quite pretty and there were lots of choices available to take home.

An Outdoor Cat House

I had put a cardboard box outside for our very skittish/somewhat feral cat to sleep in during these cold wet months. My husband decided that wouldn't do, and in the matter of one afternoon constructed an outdoor cat house out of wood with a concrete board roof. The boys got to paint it the next day and the cat has approved!

Good Morning!

Pancakes are a great way to start the day, especially on a cold January morning. I have cooked these Whole Wheat Apple Cider Pancakes twice so far and love them each time. The recipe came from All Day I Dream About Food.
Here is the link:

http://alldayidreamaboutfood.com/2011/10/whole-wheat-apple-cider-pancakes-healthy-breakfast.html