Trees, Nativities & Family in Vancouver

    2012.11.28 Wednesday 0340  Almost every day I wake up around this time, go to the bathroom, and then spend an hour trying to go back to sleep, but not doing very well no matter how tired I am.  Stoooopid. Sometimes I do manage to go back to sleep, I think, but it doesn’t feel like it.  Once in a while I really, blissfully do.  If I KNEW I could not go back to sleep or felt I didn’t need to, I would read.  But, I do need more sleep.
    2012.11.29 Friday 0654  hooray!  This morning I woke up at 4:30 instead of 3:30, decided I didn’t really need to go to the bathroom, rolled over, snuggled down, and WENT BACK TO SLEEP!  Until 6am!  I took today off - first thinking that I was going to drive up to Washington today so I could go to Cadi’s concert tomorrow night, but her concert is Saturday afternoon now (yay!) and I need to get ready.  Today I will get Goldie’s oil changed, do laundry, pack, make sure there’s food in the fridge for Joseph.- stuff like that.
    Andrew just wandered by and said, “I have a great idea! A snowman with rocket boots”
    While not sleeping during the wee hours yesterday, I kept picking up my iPod Touch and started learning about the Lesson feature in my LDSscriptures.com appp.  Last Sunday I tried teaching the lesson off the notes I had in my word processor on Sophie, but that was awkward and I kept picking up Winnie the Peg (the Touch) instead. Nice thing about using Winnie is that she is always with me and I can work on my lesson on and off anytime and wherever.  
     ... 2247  Naturally, I did not accomplish all I wished to today.  I did get Goldie’s oil changed and later gassed her up and shopped at  Costco.  Milk for home, Goldfish for Andrew, Doritos for me.  And grapes and too much other stuff. Did my laundry.  I am mostly packed - toiletries tomorrow.  Wrapped the few small gifts I have for Rosers.  I made fried chicken for dinner with leftovers - some to leave for Joseph and some to eat on the way up.  What I did none of was house cleaning. This poor house!  I had rather planned on a shower and early bed maybe, but we had a parade of your siblings come through - bringing gifts for us to deliver to Rosers.  Every country heard from except Debi.  Hinds are sending a small box.  The kids made lots of presents, it seems.   Fun!  We put all the presents in the trunk tonight.  Today’s weather has not been bad.  Supposed to be stormy tomorrow -beginning in the morning.  Warnings of possible street flooding and power outages.  Poor Joseph!

2012.12.01  -  We left during a thunder/rainstorm in Sacramento yesterday morning.  Driving through the valley we were in and out of rain.  Actually the whole trip was a mix of rain and sun.  Castle Crags, which Andrew loves to see, was in lovely sunlight despite clouds all around.  We saw at least 4 rainbows, two of them double.  One rainbow ended right by the freeway. For a while we thought we were going to be able to drive to the end of the rainbow!  Of course, when you get there it fades away.  
      Stayed up too late with Sariah last night.  First we watched the Yosemite DVD, then we watched the last Downtown Abbey of season 2. I had not realized that it was the finale, but had thought it was an extra - Christmas at Downtown Abbey.  But! there were important plot developments. I sure like that show.  
     Lazy morning.  Then Acadia’s concert at the Festival of Trees and later the Festival of Nativities.  Andrew and Aurora are quickly playing a series of games.  Disney Trivia, Memory, Red Sox vs Yankees Chess.  Acadia has been baking cookies.  Healthy breakfast.  
 
   2012.12.01 Saturday 1618  The Festival of Trees in Portland is a fund raiser for the Providence Portland Medical Foundation.  Sponsers decorate. not only a tree but pretty much a a setting and the trees etc are auctioned off. One of the prettiest trees had an African theme.  Big stuffed giraffes next to the tree.  Cool wood carved animals.  There are usually also several gift baskets of toys and goodies which the winning bidder usually donates to children’s hospital or something like that.  I really liked the  green house full of gardening tools and books, chicken coop for 3 chickens and tree decorated with cute garden and farm stuff.  One of the most unusual was the Wizard of Oz.  A house with the witch’s legs sticking out,  several baskets of goodies, each including a stuffed Toto dog,  a cyclone or tornado (I forget the difference) which was an upside down silver Christmas tree decorated with cows and other things that might have been picked up by the tornado.  Before they can have their tree, however, the public can come see the trees - $6 for adults, $5 for senior citizens (guess who), $4 for kids.  Performing arts schools - public school and private enterpise - get free admission in exchange for performing for the festival.  A couple of big trees are raffled off.  There were also free activities - Mrs Claus story reading, cookie decorationg, face painting, coloring pages, jingle bell “necklace” (tied on a plastic cord) (I got one.  So did Andrew.  Oh, and Aurora), and a free teddy bear for kids under 12 (somehow Cadi got one as well as Rori).  It was a health clinic.  When they gave the kids the bear, the helper asked it’s name and why it was at the clinic.  Aurora’s bear, Jingle, was bee stung and allergic.  They go through the clinic and get treatment.  I didn’t watch the whole thing, but I think the idea is to help kids feel good about doctors and to teach them a few health and safety tips.
     Acadia’s middle school chorus and orchestra performed a few pieces.  Acadia played cello except for one song where she played piano.  She did extremely well.  Sariah said Cadi was nervous, but it didn’t show.
     After a little down time and bean soup at Rosers, we went to the Festival of the Nativities.  So many beautiful Nativities!  but none from Korea.  At least I didn’t find one.  At the Festival of Trees when I was pretend shopping, I honestly didn’t find a tree that I wanted.  My favorite tree I saw was in the Roser’s family room.  Not so at the Festival of Nativities!  There were very few there that I would NOT want.  I found myself thinking that I would like to set up our front room as a Festival of Nativities, but there are two cute little problems - the Happiness Twins.  They are always knocking things over.  Maybe next year. Unless I can think of cat proof settings.  I do not want to take down all the books so I can put up Nativities, although it is a thought. What a lot of work that would be!  But pretty awesome.  We will see.
  
2012.12.02  Sunday 
      During Testimony Meeting Nate revealed that the Bishop is on the stand cutting onions out of sight of the congregation so that the speakers appear to be emotional.
      Every month some of the Vancouver area family get together for Home Evening.  Tonight we all went to Scott & Alisha Taylor’s new house (my sister Kris' oldest).  Kris and Adam  live there, too.  HUGE house out in the country in woodsy area.  It was dark when we went there so we couldn't see anything outside. Out in the same general area as the big house on the side of a hill that Kris used to live in.  But not quite as remote and on level ground.  At least 12 foot ceilings throughout.  big rooms.  Not my style, but beautiful.  Rosers,  us, Taylors, Kris, Adam & his girlfriend, Matt & Mary Jane.  Samantha was home stressing and studying for finals.  Alisha did a short lesson on the wise men and we watched last years 1st Presidency Christmas Devotional - the one where President Uchtdorf talks about setting the curtains on fire.  Because they couldn’t get this year’s yet.  They plan to make it the tradition to watch the previous year’s. 
     As almost all weekends, this one was over too soon.  We didn’t get to watch Once Upon a Time with Acadia because we were at the family thing.  They recorded it and we can find it on-line most likely, but it would have been fun to watch it with Cadi.
   
    2012.12.03  Monday  2240  We had a safe and pleasant drive home which included talking about God, life’s struggles, testimonies & faith, a little singing and a stop at Castle Crags State Park where we went out to the view point and also checked out camping sites - as best we could in the by then dark.  The campsites we pass on the way to the view point are smallish and sloped, but the lower campsites look like they have potential.  Might be a place to have family meet and camp some time.
    We arrived home safely and found Joseph and the pets all still alive which is a good thing.  Joseph had gone to a hack-a-thon Saturday which he found interesting and told us about.  We asked him about news from church and learned that a baby was blessed - it might have been Paines - but he wasn’t sure.  Was Jake holding the baby?  He didn’t know. = D
     As I anticipated, the weekend was not only very pleasant, but also restful. and it was nice to have Andrew help with the driving - as well as his good company.
     But alas, now the weekend is over.