Random Photos from November

November 2020

Every Autumn I look forward to seeing the leaves make their wondrous transformation. And every Autumn I am fascinated by the beautiful colors they display. It fills me with joy seeing the colors of Autumn so vibrant. There is no doubt that God is the ultimate artist. 

I am blessed for this awesome experience. I am aware that not everyone gets the opportunity to see  deciduous trees up close in autumn.

I love going on walks when the weather is cloudy. This was an after-dinner walk. We had just walked down our street when I looked back and saw how cool the evening sky looked. I had to take a picture. I love how it came out. Yes, the sky was that dark. I don't use filters on my pictures.

Walking on crisp fallen leaves and hearing the crunch is a joyful experience that brings comfort and a deep connection to nature. I love it all.

I read that having hobbies are very beneficial for our brains because they lower stress hormones and improve emotional wellbeing. Hobbies are also mental stimulating activities which create a defense system that delays memory decline and cognitive aging. 

One of my hobbies besides reading is journaling by longhand. It helps me to focus better and allows me to process my feelings in a deeper and calm way. 

I like to cozy up my space when I journal. I light candles, get a comforting (and sometimes healthy) snack and I have calm music playing in the background. It's important to be intentional about creating an environment that brings me peace. I tend to get so engrossed with journaling that often times I lose track of time. I LOVE that. This brings me joy. It makes me feel content and satisfied.

Energy flows as I busy myself with constructive activity. 

Sophie knows better than to sit on my bookcase. Look at her, she knows she's guilty. That's why she's looking back at me that way.

In our home we love to coddle our cats. Nathan is loving on Lila. Lila likes it even though she pretends to be a tough girl.

I haven't made an official blog post about us moving out of Washington. That will come at a later time. This October will be four years since we moved. We miss WA terribly. Aside from my two oldest children still living there, I miss the cloudy/rainy weather, parks/trails, the Puget Sound/ferry, and the North Oregon coast the most. 

Seeing our previous house brings back a lot of great memories. Even though change is inevitable, assimilating to a new environment can be tough in a new city; whether it's the climate, people, or the way of life.

Although it is constantly cloudy in Washington and there's light rain on most days, fog was something that we didn't get every single day. I like fog but after two days of it I noticed that my eyes would take a second to adjust to it whenever I began driving. Fog would put a heaviness on my eyes. Once home I was glad not to be out driving in it. Fog has its own beauty too though.

Virtual school was one of the lamest things we have experienced, especially for my son. For an adult, being in front of a monitor for hours is tedious tiring work now imagine how stressful it was for children during the pandemic. And don't get me started on whether or not they benefited from being taught via a monitor. My son fell back so much on learning during this time. The teachers didn't seem equipped to handle this rapid change either. Riley hated it and I don't blame him not one bit!

Driving past the Tacoma Dome on our way to a restaurant for dinner. I like to eat at different locations when it comes to restaurants. I like a change of scenery. I guess I like to go on car rides and take the long way to a location, at least most of the time I do. 

The ordinary days often become the memories we ache to return to. They matter because they tend to make up most of our lives. 

I've realized that the most important luxuries

in my life are family, slow mornings, home cooked

meals, spending time in nature, and expressing myself

though creativity.

Wild Cottontail Bunnies

 May 2019

One evening in May while we were all upstairs ready for bed I noticed Sophie was looking out the window. She was in full attention mode chattering and letting out a faint cry. She then jumped off the windowsill and ran downstairs. I followed her downstairs but wasn't able to see anything. 

The following night she did the same thing. Then a few days later we saw what all the excitement was about, a wild bunny!

The bunny had also caught Lila's attention. 

As the days passed by we noticed the bunny would drop by the evening. I would find her perched on top of the babies barrel. We had no idea how long she had been coming by so one day I decided to check the barrel. 

And I discovered baby bunnies. This was the second time that our backyard has been used as a nursery for wild bunnies. Look how cute they are!!

It seemed that momma bunny used her own fur to provide insulation. She dug the hole a good ways down and it tunneled to the other side of the tall plant. I think it's so amazing how God weaves knowledge into the animals brains so they know what it takes to survive. Amazing!

As the days went by and as I just kept my eye on the bunnies, one day I happened to see all 6 bunnies out of the hole. 

There were several times when I would only see these three together. I could see the other three still inside the hole. 

I did a bit of research and found out that wild bunnies tend to be on their own about five weeks after they're born. That's just crazy because they are still so little. 

One evening while I was watching television upstairs in my room I heard a loud thud downstairs. I went to check it out and Sophie had pounced on the window and had moved the blinds. I peeked outside and saw a black cat walking along our fence. I went back upstairs and then I heard a squeaking sound. I realized the cat was after the baby bunnies. 

The next morning I checked up on the bunnies and found only 5 baby bunnies. During the day they had jumped off the barrel and were scattered all around our backyard. I didn't want to interfere in case the mom came back for them. As it got dark we again heard another squeak. I felt so bad for them and decided that I should find them and bring them inside the house. I had Riley help me gather them up and as we tried to grab them one of them crawled under the fence and onto the neighbors yard. 

Two baby bunnies were killed by the black cat, one escaped and hopefully it survived and we did catch the remaining three. I felt bad because I didn't want the ones we rescued to die. I called the animal shelter and they don't take wild bunnies since they are native to WA and told us to just release them. 

I  placed an old towel inside the box and placed the three bunnies in there. The next morning we went to a feed store and bought Timothy hay but they didn't care for it so I did more research. Besides small pieces of carrots and cucumber skin I realized that they preferred cilantro. They would eat all the cilantro but they didn't care for the carrots. 

When they weren't eating they would huddle together in a corner and keep each other warm. 

One of the bunnies also liked to sit in the little water bowl I placed in the box. Thought that was cute. By this time the bunnies were about six/seven weeks old. We couldn't keep them because we have two cats plus I didn't want to keep them in a cage because I think that's mean given these are wild bunnies. And I didn't want to release them in our backyard because of the black cat that would still come by looking for them. So, we decided to release them in a large field that's covered with overgrown blackberry bushes and tall grass that's a few blocks from our house. 

We felt good about releasing them in that field. My husband had seen several other bunnies in that area so we knew that they would have a higher chance of survival there. 

I just can't take how cute they are. 

All the ugliness of the world can be best forgotten in the beauty of nature!

September's Simple Pleasures

2018

Last year, Autumn made itself visible several weeks early. Leaves began to change color by mid August and by mid September they were already falling.

I always smile when I see the pretty Autumn colors all over the ground and I love it when leaves are falling as I drive by rows of deciduous trees with my windows down. This scene gives out a feeling that one would get from a loved ones hug. In my case this would be God giving me a hug. I do thank Him for all that is pretty and so thankful that we do have beautiful things in this world to enjoy especially during those difficult times that we all go through from time to time. It is a reprieve from the hard times and beautiful scenery gives us hope, hope for better days to come ... and they will ... in time.

Seeing a cloudy sky never gets old for me and if it's a moody sky then it is even more worthy to photograph.

I took a picture of this poem from one of Riley's books called The Children's Book of Virtues. Isn't it good? I think I may print it and frame it.

Typically it doesn't rain hard in WA, it's usually a steady light rain or drizzle but on occasion we do get a lot of rain and it reminds me of the torrential rains we would get during the monsoon season in Tucson. We even had thunder! That's another rarity. Whenever it does rain hard we step out on the front porch and watch it for a while.

I sometimes plan little outings for myself during the day. Sometimes I'll treat myself to breakfast. I bring a book with me, I read while I eat. I just love solitude! Other times like in this case I went to our local country store and bought several size and color pumpkins then I drove to Redondo beach and sat on a bench and read, looking up occasionally to take in the views. It was enjoyable and quite relaxing.

This is how the sky looked like as I was getting closer to home ... a big difference from the cloudless sky out by the water. I think this is one of the reasons why I can handle cloudy days ... because of the variety in the weather. Everything is all about balance, and perspective. And not to mention that I do have a great affection for cloudy stormy skies.

This boy has always been so active and very hands on and always wants to be doing something. As you can imagine, after a while it can be tiring and mentally draining. On days when we want to relax at home during the evenings we have him play board games. I'm so grateful that Jacob likes to play board games too. I like to sit with Riley while he's reading and help him with difficult words and to remind him to pause at commas and stop at periods or else everything sounds like a run on sentence, lol.
We do tell him that it's perfectly ok to be bored. There's times when we say no tv or electronics and that he needs to entertain himself without making a mess. At first he'll complain but then I remind him of how blessed he is to have toys and books. After a few minutes the house is quiet and when I checked on him he's immersed with his hot wheel cars or playing with his army men. I think it's important that he learns to keep himself busy in constructive play.

And ohmygoodness, just look at my super cute Sophie! Isn't if funny how cats will make themselves feel right at home next to books? Like, it happens every time. I didn't put her in front of my books she just likes to sit by them or on top of them, like when I'm reading or the ones on my desk. I can't even with cats ... they can be the cutest! Some cats that is. I'm just so thankful that Sophie lets us pick her up whenever we want. She's very loving.

Still, with the remainder of the apples from apple picking, Jacob baked an apple banana bread with pecan crumble. It was so moist and delicious.

One of my favorite breakfast is hash brown casserole, eggs, bacon and biscuits and gravy. Sometimes we even add this meal on our dinner menu.

Another book stack. All great books by biblical authors. I am SO thankful God opened my eyes to discern between biblical and unbiblical authors. I no longer just buy a Christian book just because the book is placed in the Christian/religion genre. Although I hold biblically sound authors in high regard not one of them replaces the truth that can only be found in Scripture.

During mid mornings I take time to do Bible study. Reading slow and with intention has been engrossing. The more you learn God's truth the more you want to keep learning and the more fun it becomes.

Sometimes after dinner we head out by the water and breathe some fresh air. I think it's nice to be out in nature especially after a long day. It is refreshing and necessary and it definitely breaks up the monotony. It is up to us to make our life interesting and fun ... you have to be intentional.

Such a pretty serene scene.

On August 31st, 2018 my sister texted me and said that my dad wasn't feeling well. He felt a heaviness on his chest so my sister took him to the ER. They ran tests and dad ended up staying overnight for observation. Doctor's concluded that even though my dad did not have the typical symptoms of a heart attack they determined that he did in fact had a mild one and had 100% blockage so the Doctor placed two stints in his left artery.
I am just so thankful that my sister was available and took him to the ER immediately. I spoke with dad the day after his surgery and said he was doing better and sounded in good spirits. I'm grateful to God for allowing dad to stay with us a while longer.

Mom was blessed to have another birthday last September. My sister got her the prettiest cake. Here is dad after his surgery. He lost weight but looks good. I wish I could have been there but grateful that my sister includes me by texting me pictures of important celebrations. I'm happy she's there ... always being a helping hand to them.

Living slower requires living with intention. And to live with 

intention means to make little daily choices that resonate deeply in our souls.

End of November Life Moments

Oh Sophie. I would think your belly fat would keep you warm during these cold winter days.
There's been many times where I've had to make room so she could fit more comfortably. And whenever Riley's not around she'll fall asleep within a few minutes after grooming herself and could stay asleep for three full hours. The thing with her is that she will fall asleep in ways that resembles a human posture which makes her even more funny.

My sister has been telling me for some time to have Riley make her some holiday crafts. Honestly, I haven't been in the mood to look up any. Halloween and Thanksgiving came and went and we really didn't do any crafts however, I did come across a very simple Christmas craft that I had Riley make. I wrote his name in large letters then I had him glue some red and green tissue paper on it.
Not sure why he scrunched his face so much. Just silly like always.

{that craft was supposed to have been mailed along with my sister's Christmas present but I forgot. Oops.}

Ignore the blur. We were watching Riley play an educational game and we were quite impressed on how much of the material he knew. That's the reason for Jacob's big grin. These kids are such quick learners ... I'm talking about how to maneuver the technology devices. He can go from one game to the next then to the app store to download more like nobody's business. 

Another piece of clothing ruined. Not sure why he decided to cut his shirt. This is a fairly new shirt. I stitched it back together but it was cut at an angle that no matter how careful I was it still looked just plain bad so now we gotta toss it. Why do kids do the things they do? who knows. I didn't get overly upset. I mean, I had to keep a straight face and I don't particularly approve of what he did but now that I'm looking at this picture it's actually making me laugh. Golly! Riley is definitely something else. Completely different than his two older siblings. I'm sure Reagan would have followed in his footsteps too. Imagine, two little rascals causing havoc?! Would have been fun to see for sure.

Recently got Nathan's progress report card in the mail and this kid is a smart one. All A's and one B+. Also, he's finally going through a growth spurt and we once again have to buy him more jeans. We just got him some in September. Oh well, that's life.

Poor Sophie. She spends so much time grooming herself but when Sydna holds her -her attempts to stay clean are useless because Sydna always leaves her smelling of perfume. It's so funny too because whenever Sydna holds her or touches a certain body part Sophie will immediately clean that area.
Sophie is very lovable though and most of the time she does appreciate all the loving we give her.

{This post is from November.}
Riley's birthday would be in a week. Can't believe he will be turning six years old. His little life has flown by unlike Nathan's infant, toddler, and childhood years. Those went by as they should, in normal speed. I truly enjoyed every single milestone and season with him.

Looking back to the end of November and to begin December I am most grateful for God's mercy and grace and His hope. I sure sought Him after these exact same things. I'll write about it in the days to come.

Autumn's Simple Pleasures

There are a lot of frogs here ... and they're loud too especially during the summer months. A couple of weeks ago while Jacob mowed the front lawn he spotted a small frog near one of the pine trees. He called Riley over and placed the frog on Riley's arm. This frog was very tame, it hardly moved. Riley wasn't sure what to do. I could see he was a little anxious because he had that nervous laugh but he also wasn't scared.

If Riley would have stood still I'm sure the frog would have stayed on his arm longer than three minutes. Once it jumped off Riley wanted to get it again. I told him to leave the poor little frog alone, they're not meant to be handled for long.

The month of October was Pregnancy & Infant Loss Awareness Month. I ordered three pink & blue ribbons for us and we wore the pin the entire month. I think most people are oblivious about it's meaning. I think that because they see some pink on it they assume it's for breast cancer awareness {which by the way October is also Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and so is Domestic Violence and several others} which in this case is not accurate. One of Jacob's supervisors did ask him what the ribbon meant and Jacob told him.

Sometimes, after school I take Riley to the library. Now that he's in school we don't visit the library as often so it had been a while. The library's parking lot is full of deciduous trees, I love it!

And after the library I just had to go shopping for some Autumn pretties. You know I have a thing for pretty dish towels, hand towels, placemats, table cloths, and home decor. Every year and for each season I tend to buy dish towels. Sometimes I avoid using my pretties dish towels because I don't want them to get stained. Some still look good but others do get soiled and not even after a wash does the stain come off. That's a bummer but it doesn't damper my mood for long because I know that I can always buy new pretty ones. Aren't you glad for simple pleasures? I am!

Got Riley this dinosaur clay fossil. It came with this knife looking tool. I'm so glad I placed it on top of a cookie sheet because that pinkish stuff was very messy. It was taking him a while to get to the fossil so he asked for help. I gotta admit, that darn thing took some elbow grease to finally see the darn dinosaur fossil, lol. But I finally broke apart enough of that pinkish clay which made it a little easier for Riley to finish the job.

Now that I'm home alone about six and a half hours three days a week I get to enjoy a lot of quiet therapeutic time. It's bittersweet ... I would have rather wanted to be anticipating my baby's arrival but that wasn't part of His plan for my life so now I'm home using this quiet time for self-nurture and to seek contentment instead. When I'm not spending time reading or blogging I tend to do a bit of coloring. I'm almost halfway done with this inspirational coloring book. I need to look for more.

I bet not a lot of people tend to notice the beauty of nature around them on a daily basis. How sad is that? Sad for those people that are too busy with what they have to do next that they forget to live in the moment. I see it in some mother's that walk their kids to school. The flustered look on their faces which makes them look crass. I feel sorry for them because life doesn't have to be that way no matter what we're dealing with. Most days contentment comes naturally to me but on those days when I feel a heaviness or I'm feeling overwhelmed, that's when I make an effort to "SEEK", to go after, contentment. I remind myself to look at my surroundings and try to find something beautiful among the mundane. If you want good things to happen it takes work just like anything else in life ... like marriage, friendships, responsibilities, etc., same goes with how we feel or want to feel.
As much as I don't ever want to forget the rawness feeling of losing our son I know I can't stay in that mindset for too long because I know it's not healthy for me emotionally. I know what it's like to be in the pits of depression and anxiety and I don't ever want to feel like that again. Although I allow myself to grieve I really try not to linger there for too long.

And even in my sadness I tend to notice what's around me, the weather. Some people may think that weather talk makes for dull conversation, I don't think that's true especially if you're someone who appreciates the weather and nature. Those two go hand in hand.
I love to notice how the day presents itself, like this particular morning. Once me and Riley began walking to school we noticed how pretty the field looked covered in fog, how pretty the trees looked like if they were behind frosty glass. Even Riley said, "wow, look at the fog!" with great excitement. I must say though that I am able to only stand foggy weather for no more than three days straight because then it begins to mess with my vision, it's the most weird thing.

I believe I made three trips to the library during this time. The book that I was looking for was checked out so I had to reserve a copy which I happened to get notified a couple of days after my initial visit.

My child definitely has the coolest backpack. My sister got it for him over a year ago just because he's always been a Ninja Turtle fan and it definitely came in handy once it was time to start school. I actually wanted to buy him a new one because I didn't want this backpack to get worn out since its super cool but he insisted on taking it.

And this was my 3rd trip to the library, lol. Silly me. Well, what can I say, now that I'm home alone I can go out and about without hindrance. I sometimes also treat myself to lunch. Eating out alone feels so good especially with a book in hand. Swear, I could be at the restaurant for over an hour when I read and eat.

Ok so there are no haircut places for kids near our home so we usually take Riley to those hair salons where new stylists are constantly being replaced which usually means that they lack talent, they just don't know how to give a good fade so Jacob decided to take the boys to the barber shop where he gets his haircut. The only drawback is that this place tends to get packed so one needs to be there before they open and wait.
Glad to say that this guy knows how to fade but unfortunately he had to cut Riley's hair very short to fix what the other hairstylist had done. At least it'll grow back in a few weeks. Riley loved his short hair though. He wants to look just like daddy. Next time it wont be cut very short.

Sometimes, when I feel the need to be near water I take a short drive to Redondo beach to take in this pretty view. I was out here for an hour ... just me by myself and it felt so good too. I had my talk with Him and called it a day. Thank goodness for sunglasses.

The secret to being happy is accepting where you

are in life and making the most out of every day.

-unknown