52 weeks, Week 3

52 Lists, Week 2

52 Lists: a cool list project for 2013

Since I haven't blogged in a couple of years and I like lists, I thought I would tackle 

this cool list project I came across this morning. 

Thanks to Moorea Seal for the inspiration to do this project.

!! Halloween 2010 !!

!! Snow !!

Grangeville, population 3200, is too small to have its own TV station. Nearby Lewiston has one station, but Dish doesn't pick it up so the closest TV news station for us is Spokane, 3 northwest. Watching weather reports on the news is rather comical, since they don't even show our area on their map!

The first snowfall here was November 10, about 2 inches!



















The next week we had a couple of snowfalls and ended up with over a foot of snow. The girls loved it! Everyone says this is not "normal", but I don't know if I believe it. Along with the snow came below zero temperatures for several days.






































The snow is beautiful, but it makes getting where you want to go a bit challenging. Many people we know stayed here for Thanksgiving rather than traveling to Boise...the roads were just not safe enough. We did make it to Lewiston on Black Friday to pick up our car...but that's a whole other post!



















Let it snow!

Stories from Idaho

We have lived here for six weeks now and I have yet to write one blog post. Facebook updates, yes. But I want to be able to tell all the stories. No more perfectionism, trying to start at the beginning. Just going to jump in and start telling stories.

Countdown to Idaho!

It's time to fire up the good old blog again! The Gasser family is about to embark on the biggest adventure of our lives. After living in Toledo, Ohio for most of our lives, we are moving to Grangeville, Idaho. Rob is already out there, having started his new job, and the girls and I are leaving October 19 to join him.

It has been a long 6-8 week process getting ready to move. Rob new he had to find a different job, since the church where he worked decided they no longer needed a full-time IT director. He had until January 2011 to find something, but after months of looking in the Midwest, nothing was developing. He took a chance, applied for a job in Idaho, and 2 months later interviewed, visited and accepted a job as IT director of Mountain View School District.

It's all a bit wild and surreal. I'm moving to a place I've never seen, into a house I've never seen! Well, at least not in person...

Living Room
















Kitchen
















Family Room
















Deck















Big yard...check out that mountain in the background!!

The kids are getting more and more excited each day. Their new 2nd grade class even sent them an email already! Rob says the town is warm and friendly, and it sure seems that way based on the people I've spoken to on the phone for different things.

That's it for now. Working hard to get our house in Toledo all packed up and ready to sell!

Project 365 :: Week 7

I'm excited that I'm still going strong on week 7 of this project!

Journaling:
12::Winter Olympics begin in Vancouver
13::Visit the Andradas in Arlington Hts.
14::Girls pose for a photo for Jacquie’s
mom (she has the same pattern in her
kitchen!)
15::The kids had fun sledding with Rob
and Ted
16::Mediterranean Salmon Salad at
Panera with Melissa
17::Gretchen sports her “country” hat
(courtesy of Andradas)
18::Evan Lysacek wins gold for USA in
men’s figure skating

Credits:
Happy Together collection by Dianne Rigdon
[url=http://www.scrapartist.com/shoppe/product.php?productid=4843&cat=0&page=1]Happy Together Cool Add On[/url]
[url=http://www.scrapartist.com/shoppe/product.php?productid=4836&cat=0&page=1]Happy Together Sweets[/url]
[url=http://www.scrapartist.com/shoppe/product.php?productid=4834&cat=0&page=1]Happy Together Solids[/url]
[url=http://www.scrapartist.com/shoppe/product.php?productid=4833&cat=0&page=1]Happy Together Papers[/url]

3 Weeks In

// Week 2 \\

// Week 3 \\

// One Little Word \\

I still need to create a layout for my "one little word" for 2010, which is nike. The word has a couple of meanings for me...one being Nike's famous slogan, "Just Do It". There are SO many things that I need to JUST DO...housework, exercise...heck, even just getting out of the house most days. My necklace is supposed to arrive today and I'm excited to start wearing it as a reminder. Another meaning stems from the Greek origin, meaning "victory". Jesus gives me victory over sin and the crap of life, if I choose to accept it. Most days that is hard to remember.

So today's nike moment. I woke up (after a short night) feeling really tired and nauseous, and I really did not want to go to school to help Rob with the yearbook class. At first I told him he'd have to do it. But then something told me to suck it up and just do it. So I did. And it felt great. And the nausea went away. Was it all in my head?

One Week In

I'm so excited to have actually completed a whole week in the 365 project! Last year I think I took about 11 photos, but never actually scrapped them and gave up. I haven't missed a day yet and it's been really fun so far.

Week 2 news so far:

* Dave's Home-Cooked foods went out of business. We started going there when I was pregnant...so it's been a long time. We got to know the owners, Dave and Betty, fairly well as we were regulars. We will really miss going there after church on Sundays.

* A former co-worker of mine is pregnant and due in May. This wouldn't be news except that she is single and wanted to have a baby on her own. She is officially the first person I know to go that route.

* Our new pastor will be installed on January 24. It will be great to have some direction in the church again.

I'm still trying to establish some new routines for the new year. We'll see how THAT goes.

Happy 2010!

(banner created by Gretchen and me, the afternoon of 12/31/09, while Rob and Heidi were at the grocery store)

I simply adore fresh starts. And what better fresh start is there than a new year? So once again I'm embarking on a few goals for the year, which include (in no particular order):

1. Project 365 - one photo a day for the year
2. Blogging most days
3. Getting this house in order...little by little
4. Getting myself in order...littler by litter :P

And in general, a few mores and lesses...

More: God, inviting friends over to our house, hugging people I love, hockey games, RV trips, volunteering, flinging, knitting, scrapping, crafting, family game nights, walking, cooking at home
Less: worrying about how the house looks, being critical of others, eating crap, sleeping, drama, gossip

We had our annual gathering last night with Rob's family and Melissa. The girls stayed up until midnight! Can't believe they didn't crash beforehand. We all had some bubbly (girls had sparkling cider) and Jim brought a Splendid Garden (fireworks) for us to watch. Heidi was quite concerned about Uncle Jim breaking the law by setting off fireworks..."it kind of makes Uncle Jim seem like a bad guy". LOL!

The girls with their bubbly.

Melissa and I with ours

Here's to lots of good times and good friends in 2010!

The best gingerbread recipe ever

These make very soft cookies and the flavor is mild...not to intense (like some gingerbread I've tried).

Gingerbread Men

1/4 c. boiling water
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. ginger
1/2 c. baking molasses
3 c. flour
1/2 c. butter or margarine
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. ground cloves
1 egg
1/2 c. brown sugar

Melt butter in boiling water. Add all the other ingredients. Then chill the dough for 2 hours. Roll out and cut into shapes. Bake at 350 degrees for 8 to 10 minutes. Cool and decorate. Makes 24 cookies.

Holidays In Hand Days 1-3

This year I decided to to Jessica Sprague's Holidays In Hand class and document every day in December. Let's see if I can keep up!

December 1
Did: Holiday Hoopla at Bowsher. It was pretty much a bomb so we managed to salvage the evening by stopping at Speedway for some hot chocolate. Then we drove around the neighborhood looking at Christmas lights. The girls notice so much more this year. The best house was on Sherwood hear River Rd...giant pine tree decorated with LED lights. Very impressive.

December 2
Made: Ornaments at our Daisy meeting
Remembered: Making gingerbread cookies...the three of us girls. The girls want to do it again this year. Made plans to do some baking this weekend.

December 3
Made: Christmas pictures/list for Santa using my Christmas stamps. The girls are so good with the stamps this year. Gretchen made a whole list for Santa and Heidi made a picture. So cute. Gretchen asked if her list was "too greedy" and I told her it wasn't. How sweet that she was concerned about it.

Remember: a Christmas filled with joy.
I can't remember a Christmas that wasn't filled with joy, really. But I think the most joyful one would be 2001. I knew I was pregnant a few days before, but on Christmas Eve we got the official word from the doctor. We shared the news with the whole fam damily at Grandma's house. They were literally pulling out of the driveway when we yelled and told them to stop. I was so excited I couldn't keep the news inside. Grandma cried. I had never seen her cry before. That night as we sat in church at the candlelight service, I felt joy, peace, relief, excitement...and so many other things I can't even describe. It was the greatest Christmas gift I had ever received.

Of course every year since then with the girls has been wonderful, and they "get it" more and more every year.

Plans for the weekend: watch the Phineas & Ferb Christmas special on Friday night, work on Christmas cards, bake cookies, some shopping, attend event at botanical gardens.

// Right now \\

On the calendar // help with the book fair at school tomorrow, soccer game, work in the Trinity kitchen

On the needles // a second pair of hand warmers with a fabulous soft wool

On TV // Brothers and Sisters (yup it's a guilty pleasure

On the couch // Rob with his laptop and me with Pinkie

On the menu // Sweet potato soup and homemade bread, some kind of crockpot supper, frozen pizza with salad and the Kraft 1 bag 5 dinners Healthy Living menu

On the phone // No one right now...thank goodness!

First Day of...

I read a great blog post today that really summed up what I'm feeling about the first day of school tomorrow, so rather than trying to reinvent the wheel, here it is (courtesy of Elisa Blaha :: enJoy it:

Today is the first day of school for so many people. I'm a little bit envious. So much excitement. Clean notebooks. Favorite outfit. The only day of the year when you are not tired when the alarm goes off and instead jump out of bed to start making your hair look right. The day when you really only want toast for breakfast to settle your stomach. You actually enjoy packing your lunch. You walk into every class hopeful about who might be there. You listen to the teacher and decide if this is going to be a class that requires a lot of meaningful effort or if this will be one that you just get to skate by in. Your homework is to read chapter one and write an essay about who you are in less than 200 words (or maybe now its 140 characters.) You carefully add it into your planner.

Day one feels so clean and new. As if anything can and will happen.

What if today was day one? For you, not just your kids or your younger brother who is starting his senior year at USC (love you, Robbie. Hold on tight, it will fly.) How would having a clean state, fresh notebook, & high expectations change your Monday?

::::::::::::::::::

Today was spent doing a lot of things to get ready: haircut, dentist (yay no cavities for either girl), finishing hems and tucks in uniform skirts, discussing breakfast and lunch menus, and early bedtimes. The girls are excited and ready for school, but also a bit nervous (which I assured them was completely normal).

Happy first day of...

Summer in a Nutshell Part 1: Synchro

I love synchro. I loved it as a kid and I love it now that Heidi is doing it. I encouraged both of the girls to join in June but Gretchen was really hesitant. Now that she has watched Heidi do it for a summer, I think next year she'll want to participate.

Heidi went to practices twice a week for June and July, and then had a few extra ones the week of the show. The whole summer has been plagued by rain and cool weather, and the dress rehearsal was no exception. We all huddled in the club room during a pretty intense thunderstorm while the girls were getting their hair done. They weren't even able to get into the water that night! No matter though...the show was great and brought back so many memories. Heidi's group was just adorable and they swam to "Just Can't Wait to be King" from The Lion King. I think her group had the cutest costumes, but then, I'm a bit biased. LOL

I hope both girls want to do this next summer.

Summer=

Credits: SYTYCD Week 2 kit by Wild Dandelions, word art by Ali Edwards

Summer = swimming. gardening, barbecue, camping, running around barefoot, wearing skirts and dresses, flip flops, rhubarb, walking to Lickity Split, the big synchro show at Laurel Hill, library reading program, garage sales, that summer glow, catching lightening bugs, baseball.

Fairies Everywhere!

Credits: Mon Petit jardin by MaeliaDesigns, Dear Mom by Anna BV, Yin template 114, Spell It Plastic Beads by Kim Jensen, Font: Pea Bethany

Melissa told me one day about these cool things called fairy doors in downtown Ann Arbor. I showed the girls on the computer, and that was it...we HAD to go see them! Melissa had a band rehearsal in AA on a Saturday, so we all hopped in the camper for the trip. We found most of the doors downtown, and the girls were delighted. Heidi left the fairies notes and Gretchen left jelly beans. We even found one door that wasn’t on any list...it must have appeared recently! We also went to thebookstore to find the last one. My favorite was the Red Shoes, since it had its own garden. Now they are hoping the fairies will come to live with us. I hope so too!

A six year old Ali Edwards wanna be

The story:

The girls' homework assignment was to find two photos of something starting with the letter L. Since I only have old scrapbook magazines around the house, we used what we had and went to work. As Heidi was browsing the pages, she saw a photo of Ali Edwards and said, "Look, it's a lady...lady starts with L!". Okay, that would work. After cutting out the photo she had a silly streak and decided to make "Ali" talk...

Road Not Traveled

Photo mask by Gunhild Storeide
After School paper and alpha by Lynne Marie
Glitter spray by Michelle Martin
Daisy by Kasia Designs
Date stamps by Amber Clegg
Fancy swirl by M Koegelenberg
Fonts: Pea Bethany, Pea

Journaling:
There was a time when I believe God was calling us to move to the mountains. I’ll never know if it was really Him, or just my own desire to pick up and change our lives. Rob wasn’t convinced and so we stayed. Now we both wish we would have been brave enough to just do it. Even though it’s never too late, we don’t want to uproot the girls. Maybe our dream will come true when we retire. Never say never...