Home-Sweet-Home!

Yes, we did finally make it home! I haven't been that excited to see Portland in a long time! : ) After everything, we were home about 9:30pm and in bed (asleep) by 10pm. There were, of course, a few other flight delays for us yesterday.

I don't think Makena was ready to go back to school yet, and I know I didn't want to be back at my desk this morning either! Jamie had a lunch presentation today, so we were scrambling to get things ready this morning and off he went. I think it will be an early night for us tonight!

Vacation updates and photos soon...

Blogging from Houston

We arrived in Houston - where they told us the plane would be waiting for us. Well...they lied...it didn't wait. : ) We are now going to Las Vegas until tomorrow and then will hopefully be arriving in Portland (after another stop) in the afternoon. I would normally be happy about going to Vegas but after being in lines in the terminal, Customs and the airports I just want to be home. Looks like that will have to wait... We are now hoping that our luggage also arrives in Las Vegas with us!

Makena is very happy to extend her Spring Break from school! My mom said that Moxie is happy too as she is getting ice cream every night. (She did say that it is organic ice cream...hehehe...she's a funny one.)

Back in the US

We arrived back in Florida this morning and are currently at the Ft. Lauderdale airport. We had a great cruise and I'm ready to get back on the boat! : ) I took over 2000 photos of course!

We just found out that our flight has been delayed (like many other flights) and our connection in Houston is now scheduled to leave before we get there. Ummm...I'm thinking that's not gonna work! Hopefully we'll be home tonight and I can catch up on the 'internet world' tomorrow.

Earth Hour News

From the Oregonian

Blazers, Made in Oregon sign to go dark for Earth Hour

Thousands of fans arriving at the Rose Garden for the Blazers' game against the Memphis Grizzlies, and I-5 drivers used to seeing the Made in Oregon sign glow from atop Old Town, will notice a distinct difference come next Saturday night. Those Portland properties, and maybe more, will kill the lights at 8:30 p.m. March 28 for "Earth Hour."

The World Wildlife Fund is sponsoring the global effort to encourage individuals, families, businesses and governments to shut "non-essential" lights off for one hour to bring awareness to climate change. The organization says more than 1,500 cities have committed to participating, including 100 in the United States. "Iconic buildings" scheduled to shut off all or most lights include the Eiffel Tower, the Golden Gate Bridge and the United Nations headquarters.

Today, the Portland City Council is expected to approve a resolution in support of Earth Hour. The resolution pledges to "support extinguishing all non-essential lighting in all city government buildings and public landmarks for the hour between 8:30 p.m. and 9:30 p.m" on March 28.

Three normally well-lit properties -- the Rose Garden Arena, Oregon Convention Center and the Made in Oregon sign are on board to go dark, at least on the outside, said Julia Thompson, a spokeswoman for the city's Bureau of Planning and Sustainability. At the Convention Center, the tower lights and exterior lights will be shut off. At the Rose Garden, the bright-burning lights on the outside of the arena will be shut off, as well as the scrolling marquee lights on the building and marquee signs elsewhere on the arena campus. (You can leave the flashlights at home, however. Inside lights will remain lit in both buildings, for Convention Center events and the Grizzlies' game.)

Earth Hour

From Seventh Generation...

Get ready to spend some time in the dark as you participate in the largest climate movement in history! Earth Hour takes place on Saturday, March 28th at 8:30 pm local time. At that moment, millions of people around the world and some 540 city governments across the globe will turn off their lights for sixty minutes in an international call to stop global warming.

Participation is easy, and we're urging all our friends to join us. All we need to do is turn out our lights for a single hour. The blackness that follows will send a message to Washington and other capitals that it's time to take strong action and make sure that the Earth remains habitable. But we all need to participate for that message to be heard. So gather your loved ones and light some candles then tell stories, sing songs, and dream of a sustainable world. We can build it if we try.
Talk to your friends and neighbors and urge them to shut off their lights, too. Let's join people from New York City to Shanghai to spark this movement to save the environment. Because this is the hour when we can all make a difference by coming together in a single, simple act. This is the hour when we dissolve all borders to bring lasting change to the world. Let's hit the switch and get that party started.

If were were home, we would participate too. Enjoy!

Good Things #11

Did you know that 75% of white breads contain high fructose corn syrup or that a glass of cranberry juice has more sugar than a Coke? You'll find these surprising facts and a lot more at a brand, spankin' new website called GoodGuide. (In fact it's so new, it's still in Beta testing so you will probably see it evolve over time.)

The site appears to serve two purposes: a rating system for products and a resource for learning about all sorts of health, environmental and social issues that are associated with the types of products we buy. Each product is given a rating score of 0 to 10 (10 is the best). The rating is made up of data from 3 different types of performance: health, environment and social. If you're interested in the deets, click deeper for information about things like how the manufacturer is addressing global warming or workplace diversity.

The site also provides links to current, relevant news stories and the latest product recall information.

Lovin' Blue Moon!

Thanks for the last-minute, late night date to Blue Moon girls. I know we all needed the distraction and it was nice to be out with 'my girls' again! Love ya!

Because my bigger camera was all packed up, I grabbed the smaller one just before walking out the door. (After walking around 23rd & 21st for a minute, I really wished I'd brought my bigger camera!)

just outside of Blue Moon

love her expressions!

window shopping on the way back : )

I have a couple of posts scheduled for when I'm gone - don't want you to think I'd forget ya! I may post while I'm away, it's been known to happen! : )

There was a slight change in plans, so we have to take Moxie to Grandma & Papa's tonight. She'll be enjoying her vacation in Garibaldi! I'm off to run a few errands and then pick Makena up from school. We also have one more (hopefully quick) stop at Famous Footwear and the library before I finish packing.

I love Oregon Beer!

The Oregon brewing industry is facing a nearly $50 per barrel increase on beer taxes – an increase of over 1900% – which would make the Oregon beer excise tax the highest in the country. The tax proposed in House Bill 2461, would devastate what has been an incredible economic success story for the State of Oregon. At this time and in this economy, our state cannot afford to put more people out of work and harm an industry that is serving Oregon - which is exactly what this tax increase will do.

Jamie & I went to Rogue Ales Public House & Distillery tonight to help support their No-Beer-Tax Party. (Umm...I didn't see any of you there!!??!!)

something that should be given out with every food menu!

Yum - Rogue's American Amber Ale

Jamie filling out his petition - even tho he doesn't like beer!
my new favorite accessory

JUST SAY NO..to the Oregon Beer Tax!!

6th Grade Social

As I was getting ready to head to Makena's school, the phone rang. It was the volunteer coordinator asking if I could bring my camera to take pictures of the 6th Grade Social - Of course I can! I've previously worked the concession stand (craziness!) so it was nice to walk around and take pictures. I wasn't happy with most of the photos tho - the kids don't seem to care that I'm there trying to take pictures of them, they were just running all over the place! : )

There was dancing & break dancing, tons of "social"izing, basketball, volleyball, contests and more. All around, I think it was another great 6th Grade Social!

As it is just before Spring Break, it was also Spirit Week at school. Monday was Hawaiian Day, Tuesday was St. Patty's, Wednesday was Wacky Day, Thursday is Super Hero Day and Friday is Fancy Day. I joked to Makena this morning that a lot of her clothes were already "wacky" - she said "Ha-Ha". : ) Again, I'm not complaining, she wears what she likes and expresses herself how she wants to - while covering her body! I'm proud of her for knowing who she wants to be!

Makena and friends had the smaller camera, so I'm sure I'll find some fun photos on that when I download pictures from there! : )

CASA Cards

Sadly, CASA Cards has to close it's doors. You can get some great cards, for a great cause, at a great price now at http://www.casacards.org/. Please share...sale ends March 31!

CASA Cards Mission: CASA Cards supports and promotes the CASA for Children program by producing and selling greeting cards and related products featuring original work by young artists.
CASA Cards utilizes artwork from children to create uniquely distinctive greeting cards to raise awareness and funding for Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA) programs, which provide individual advocacy for children who have been abused. Founded in 1989 by board members of then Multnomah County CASA, the project is currently operated by CASA for Children, serving Multnomah and Washington Counties in Oregon.

Good Things #10

I don't know if this is my actual "10th" post titled Good Things but I thought it was a good number to start at! : )

On March 12, the Oregon Environmental Council went to the capitol to urge lawmakers to support the Children's Safe Products Act.

If you can't read this child's sign, it says "Please make my toy SAFE." Wow...who could ignore that??

Rogue throws no-beer-tax party Wed., March 18th!

See you there! Rogue Ales Public House & Distillery - 1339 NW Flanders, Portland 97209

More Amazon.com goodies!

I've gotten a few of my new camera gadgets in this week! I'm only waiting on a waterproof bag for the point & shoot Nikon (my older, smaller camera) - apparently they don't to make one for my D90 Nikon yet. : (

Makena will be able to use the point & shoot most of the time we are on the cruise. As I don't have anything waterproof for the new one yet, we will only have the smaller one when we are doing water activities. By the way, she does have her own Nikon point & shoot camera but it's my oldest one and the battery door opens up sometimes so she doesn't like it. Yes, we are spoiled!

A wireless remote for my camera - love it! It's the tiny thing in my hand.

my new camera bag - love it too! It fits all of my stuff, plus my laptop or books and look at all the extra space for new lenses!! I also ordered a new battery for the smaller camera and it came with this cute little table tri-pod. Obviously it is only for the smaller camera - mine is the larger tri-pod. (Which, sadly is too heavy to put on my bag.)

St. Patty's Day!

HAPPY ST. PATRICK'S DAY!!

Rainy Monday

After the rain (monsoon) that we had yesterday, I was surprised that there was any rain left for today! Never fear, Oregon followed through with more rain!

After our busy Saturday, our Sunday was rather uneventful. I did have a lot of emails and Relay stuff to catch up on though. Makena and I did a little clothes shopping for the cruise, but we were only able to find one dress for her. We are off to find shoes tonight...oh joy...she's not the 'shoe shopper' that I am. : ) We also stopped by Barnes & Noble as the newest book in a series that Makena is reading was finally out. I think she spent all of her allowance on new books! (Can't really complain about that tho.) Then we went to the library because she had a few other books on hold. I think she ended up reading 3 books yesterday - hopefully she'll have some left for the cruise!

We finally decided on some shore excursions last night, and we are very much looking forward to our upcoming cruise!

Crossing my fingers for some sun breaks today so that I can take Moxie out for a walk. She does not like the rain at all!

TeaLee's 9th Birthday Party!

After the parade we ran home to eat and put on dry clothes before heading over to SkateWorld for TeaLee's 9th Birthday Party!!

The Birthday Girl!

Makena & Hailee

TeaLee opening her gift from us

I think she likes the iPod! : )

cousins

We hope you had a wonderful Birthday TeaLee Ann!

I still can't believe that SkateWorld hasn't updated anything since I was going there years ago! The carpet is all torn up and really, really needs to be replaced - the ceiling tiles are falling out - I'm afraid to go into the bathrooms but I'm sure they need help too! They seem to be busy when we are there; it's a shame they haven't updated the inside at all.

We had to leave the party a little early as we had one last Girl Scout Cookie sale. It was cold, rainy and windy again so we stopped the sale a little early. We still have a few cookies if anyone is interested! The girls ended up selling just over 850 boxes - thank you all for your support! We will be going to Great Wolf Lodge in May.

Makena and I had to do a little grocery shopping after the sale and then went home to make dinner. I was exhausted from the day, so I took a long, hot bath and read a book. It was a good day though; lots of reasons to smile!

St. Patrick's Day Parade

Saturday was a busy day for us. First we were walking in the Hillsboro St. Patrick's Day Parade with the Relay For Life of Hillsboro. Jamie drove the truck in the parade so that people could stay warm and dry if they wanted. Jamie liked being warm and dry too! Makena and her friend Hailee rode in the back; waving, holding signs and throwing candy. I walked along with other Relayers and took pictures. It rained almost the entire time we were at the parade, but stopped when we finished of course!

Carol Leary - our Event Co-Chair

Fun in the truck

Jason came over last Friday to deliver a fridge/freezer for my garage and the girls came with him. I've been wanting a fridge or freezer in the garage since we built the house 6 years ago! (It's great to finally have the extra food storage!!) Jamie had to help me do a little cleaning up of the garage first so that we could fit it in there. We can actually walk around in garage now, it's amazing! : )

The girls all ran around outside for a bit and then helped me load Girl Scout Cookies into the truck. Makena & I had to go to a cookie sale, but Jamie got to go have dinner with Kylah, Kallie and Jason.

Kallie is like "What are you doing Sister?"

Banana Bread Recipe

Boy, trying to keep up with the Blog & Facebook is harder than I thought! : ) (I do enjoy the Blog more tho!) I don't know my way around Facebook yet, so I thought I'd share my Banana Bread Recipe here.

I can't eat a banana (yuk) unless they are green & fried or in banana bread. I'm always trying to make recipes healthier for us so I usually just take a basic recipe and then change things.

2 or 3 organic bananas - very ripe - mashed
1/2 cup organic cinnamon applesauce
1/2 cup sugar (I would usually use Splenda, but I was out)
1/2 cup brown sugar
2/4 cup egg substitute
1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1/3 cup all purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
The following items I just added in however much I wanted: organic ground cinnamon, organic ground nutmeg, organic vanilla extract, organic ground flaxseed & oats

Preheat oven to 350
Blend applesauce & sugars well. Add egg and banana - blend. Add flours, baking soda, spices, flax and a small handfull of oats. Blend all together.
Pour into lightly greased loaf pan and sprinkle some oats on top. Bake for about 45 minutes - too much longer and it dries out the bread.

I like my banana bread when it's hot from the oven with a little butter. And, lucky for me, Jamie & Makena don't like banana bread (they only eat bananas) so I get it all to myself! Enjoy! (I would add a picture here, but I already enjoyed some of the bread and it doesn't look so pretty anymore.)

Beautiful Oregon Spring Day!

After I dropped Makena off at school and did some actual work, I worked out on the Fit. I haven't yet tried the strength training as...well...I didn't want to. I do the yoga almost every day and like the aerobic, but decided to do the yoga with the strength training today. Whomever came up with the Jacknife and Plank exercises were just being mean! Thankfully, 45 minutes later I was done and in a hot (muscle relaxing) shower.

More work, a healthy lunch and then Moxie and I went for a long walk. I couldn't pass up the beautiful Spring day! (I thought about mowing the yard, but that idea passed quickly!) We walked for about 2 1/2 hours and I took some pictures around the neighborhood.

I did a few Relay things and then had to make a quick run to Target. Makena needs a new swimming suit and some shorts for our cruise, so I'm on the look out. She only really wants to shop at Hot Topic now, so it's easier for me to just bring some things home for her to try on. She's not even an actual 'teen' yet! Aaarrggg!

So now I'm on the couch trying to catch up on a few more emails, 3 weeks of Rachel Ray and the blog. Jamie left for a conference yesterday, and Moxie is still sleeping off her walk, so it's pretty quiet here.

Oh - apparently we forgot to mention to everyone that we are going on another cruise here in a few weeks. We are going to the Western Caribbean and can't wait! (Thankfully, Nikki & TeaLee will be staying here to take care of Moxie and Brandi for us.) I'm still looking into shore excursions that we can take. I really, really want to go parasailing and zip line, but Makena just wants to go someplace warm and read. : )

I'm loving the Daylight Savings change by the way - more daylight always makes me smile!

Reflection

I follow a digital photography blog & website. One of the posts was on taking pictures of reflections, so I thought I'd try it! Unfortunately, I didn't have anyone to practice it on so I had to use myself. (I don't usually like pictures of myself - or post them - but here are a few.)

The mirror I used is one right at the front door. It is an antiqued mirror - great marks & cracks. It was also very sunny with the light reflecting too.

Finding something special

I found this special surprise today! (I've actually found it a few times, but have forgotten to share.) This is a little pad of paper I leave in my camera bag. When Kylah & I went to deliver Valentine-a-Grams, she made these for me:

I love (heart) U Amber from Kylah

this is me looking out a window in my house

Thank you for these Kylah - I love you too!

5 Good Things

1. Being a CASA volunteer! SADLY - the County has experienced significant challenges in keeping pace with the growing number of abused and neglected children needing foster care placement. This makes the role of a Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA) even more necessary than ever. If you know people who you think would make an excellent advocate, please refer them to our CASA Recruitment and Outreach Coordinator, Benjamin James, at 503-988-4178 or benjamin.f.james@co.multnomah.or.us. March 31 will be the start of the newest Washington County CASA training. *I have enjoyed my past year and a half as a CASA and look forward to many more years!*
2. CASA Cards! After 20 years, CASA Cards’ founders, management and volunteer committee have made the very difficult decision to cease operations, effective April 1, 2009. CASA Cards was begun in 1989 by a group of volunteers who were determined to raise funds for (CASA) program in the Portland area. The concept of children creating artwork for greeting cards to benefit the abused and neglected kids who CASA serves has yielded well over $2 million, thanks to the dedication and efforts of so many loyal patrons, volunteers, staff people, and young artists over the past two decades. CASA Cards is inventory of holiday and all-occasion greeting cards will be available for sale at significantly reduced prices for the remainder of the month. SPECIAL INVENTORY CLOSEOUT SALE FOR CASAS + FRIENDS & FAMILIES Friday & Saturday, March 13-14 • 10am-3 pm CASA Cards Office, 7031 NE Halsey St., Portland, OR 97213. View current selections:
   http://www.casacards.org/.
3. Cooper's Flock! I am taking this from fellow Relayer & Blogger, Kathy Cina - I read about Cooper today. Lucinda is making a knitted memorial of 100 birdies for her son Cooper, who passed away when he was only 21 days old. I emailed Lucinda and I plan on making a bird and I'm also going to see if Rosemary wants to make one to that we can send back to NY and give to Lucinda and her husband in memory of "their little birdy" taken all too soon!Anymore of you knitters out there reading this that would like to make a birdy for Cooper, please let me know or contact Lucinda directly via her blog.
4. Amazon.com! I've recently made several purchases as Amazon.com - fast shipping and better prices on camera equipment! It would have been much smarter of me (cheaper too!) had I placed one order and saved money on shipping. Unfortunately, if you don't buy the products from the same place, you have to pay different shipping anyways.
5. The Beer Here! A wonderful blog about beer, breweries, tastings, people & such here in Oregon.

Thank you!

I wanted to say THANK YOU!!

• For those of you that helped deliver or purchased Valentine-A-Grams from Loaves & Fishes; more than $130,000.00 was raised!!! AMAZING! 100% of the proceeds went directly to provide hot, nutritious meals for area seniors. And, because of you, 4,000 people in Multnomah, Washington & Clark Counties enjoyed treats on Valentine's Day! (Kylah - thanks again for going with me to deliver our Valentine-A-Grams!)

• For those of you that took the bus with us to Spirit Mountain Casino; $673.70 was raised for the Relay For Life of Hillsboro & Tami's Full-House of Champions! Thank you for your support!

Fun time at the Casino!

I think everyone had a good time on the bus (I know I did) and a great time at Spirit Mountain Casino! I heard some people even left with money in their pockets - not Jamie tho! : ) I'll be looking forward to planning the trip again next year!

Congrats to Jan W on winning over $1200!! (I think she said it was just before she was getting ready to head back out to the bus.) She kindly donated 10% of her winnings back to Relay - thank you Jan!! Congrats to Missy P, the lucky winner of our Half-sies Raffle, who also donated her winnings back to Relay - thank you Missy! Stephanie J was the winner of the $150 Pumpkin Ridge Gift Certificate. Thank you to everyone else that gave additional donations to Relay - thank you for helping us in the fight against cancer!!

We had reserved a 29 passenger bus with RAZ Transportation, but they sent us a 59 passenger Spirit Mountain bus. Lots of room for extra food, prizes and fun!

Shortly after arriving, my sister and I had to hunt down the bus driver - the casino had given him a dinner certificate. We found him just in time!

here we all are (in the rain) leaving Spirit Mountain

here is what happens when I put my camera down

here we all are again, arriving safe & sound back in Hillsboro

Thanks again to everyone that came and supported the Relay For Life of Hillsboro and Tami's Full-House of Champions!

I had so much fun that I couldn't sleep after we got home! (Even losing an hour with the time change didn't help.) I was up almost every hour, and finally decided to come downstairs to catch up on some TiVo shows. Here I still sit on the couch; checking emails, reading or watching tv and enjoying my Sunday.

Blogging FROM Spirit Mountain!

Yep...I'm at Spirit Mountain and blogging! I don't gamble...so I'm not be "pulled by the game" to play. : ) I just spent two hours with two of my very best friends and my beautiful sister...definitely worth $35!! We had some drinks and appetizers in one of the lounges. Sadly...we don't really get a chance to do that at home. (Although we really should!) I did go out and take a few pictures too...I just didn't want to lose my table so I had to rush back in.

The bus left for Spirit Mountain this afternoon at 1pm - we had a great trip here! I'm hoping someone wins 'the big bucks'!! We've already given away some great prizes...and have more for the ride home. I'm hoping everyone had a great time - that was the idea!!

Spirit Mountain Casino!!

We are off to Spirit Mountain Casino tomorrow for our Relay FUNdraiser! Even though I don't gamble, I'm looking forward to the bus ride! Maybe I'll put a quarter or two in a machine! : ) Probably not, I'll be sitting somewhere with my laptop doing other Relay stuff. I'm not allowed to take pictures inside the Casino (I asked - something about rules) so I gotta keep busy somehow.

I have food & beverages for our 'bus riders', as well as games and prizes. This is the first time I've planned a fundraiser like this so I'm hoping it all works out. We initially had a bus reserved for 47 people...but it's looking like there will be about 25 of us. (It's the smaller groups that have more fun right?)

"Why I smiled today" - Jamie took me to lunch...just like the old days. : )

Final class

Sadly, tonight is the last of my camera classes. I'm thinking I may sign up for the next session, but I'd like to wait until we get some warmer weather. I have enough to keep me busy shooting right now anyways!

For our final assignment, we had to pick some of our favorites and blow them up to 5X7 or 8X10. It was hard for me to pick favorites...I had so many! I ended up picking out two from each week's assignment - which is probably more than I need but oh well. It's also a good experience to see the photos in a larger format.

I may not have many photos now until we return from our cruise, and then I'll have a ton of them to share! (That's a lie, I'll probably have a ton of them to share before we leave too!)

Happy Birthday Momma!

We spent time in Garibaldi last weekend to celebrate my mom's birthday. (She graciously shares it with Dr. Seuss!)

my beautiful momma

she posed for me - I couldn't believe it! (I want Rachel's BOB book.)

Mums for Momma

In a previous post, I mentioned that we had brought the Wii with us. There was a lot of laughing (with and at each other) as well as a lot of yelling and cheers!

Jeff (neighbor) came down to play too!

Chad 'trash talkin' Makena (all in good fun)

On Saturday, we all went to the hardware store for their 'bucket sale' - anything you can fit in the bucket was an extra 20% off. Now that's what "fun" is all about in Tillamook! : ) We mostly just went along to help carry buckets for Mom & Rudy, but ended up getting our own buckets. I think we spent the most money there too! I picked up a composting bin for the island as well as solar lights for our pathway there. Then, of course, we found other little things we couldn't leave without.

After shopping, we stopped at The Blue Heron for more shopping! Mom, Rudy and Makena headed back to the house, while Jamie, Chad, T and I stayed for lunch. If you are ever in Tillamook, you should stop at The Blue Heron - lots of animals to pet & see, good food and drinks, tons of things to sample and lots of great little gifts. Here are a few photos:

don't try to pet the Emu (or ??) - he growled and ran at me!

Jamie tried some different wines

T being funny at lunch (told ya I was gonna post it!)

Chad really loves my new (bigger) camera!

just thought the lamp outline was cool here

more Wii on Saturday night - T explaining it to Rudy

Makena is happy when she wins all of the time

After playing around with my camera on indoor photos, I think I like the warmer, golden hue photos better. (Like the one with Rudy & T.)