2012 Retrospective

I skipped out of a Grange Meeting to work on my blog.  Last week I jotted down some important events of the past year thinking I would make a top ten list like they do on the radio.  But the list got very big and unwieldy so then I categorized them into:  milestones, home improvements, trips, visitors, and crafts. But even these subdivisions bled over into one another.  What’s a blogger to do?  I do feel a need to document—but why bore people with details that many of you already know or can refer to in earlier posts? 

My quick summary is starting to look like any other Christmas letter.  Drat, Blogger is not working properly for me to upload pictures from my computer.  I will have to reuse from past blogs.

I’ll start with visitors—since the all time big event for me was the Family Reunion centered on Dad’s 90^th birthday.  So, 72 people here on the island in June.

 

Other visitors include:  Liz, Guy, Jay, Marc, Nancy, another Nancy, Loretta, Don, Lynn, Diane, Craig, Barry, Karen, and Bjorn’s family (Bjorn, Ethel, Lenora, Iliana, Audrey, and now Corbin.)  I know I’m forgetting someone.

So, you’ve already guessed some milestones.  Our grandson Corbin born on March 13^th, My Dad’s 90^th birthday on June 10^,  Also, some sad passings, our nephew Drew in March, my friend Olivia and my first husband George in May and June.  And a couple great weddings as well, Abe and Hilary’s, Lindsay and Greg’s.

We also took some memorable trips in 2012—two to the Oregon Coast, two east of the Mountains (one all the way to Boise), and my big trip with friend Liz to Missouri to visit family and sightsee.

 

On the home front, we made some progress at Thornbush, mainly by getting ready for the big reunion.  I painted the bedroom and bath upstairs.  And Roger built a loading dock on the back of the house—complete with outside sink and dog bath.  I also made a mosaic bowl for the fountain.  But that brings us into the realm of craft.

 

This was a big year for craft.  I got to weave quite a bit, even bought a table loom --an 8-harness to augment my 4-harness floor loom.  I also made several baskets and attended the Columbia Basin retreat at Rockaway Beach, Oregon for the first time.  You may remember the cedar hat I showed off in October.  And now there’s the crow’s nest which the girls were eagerly decorating last week while up for Christmas.  I also participated in the Trashion Fashion show at the County Fair and hope to build on that success in 2013.

 Roger managed to run his business, lead the Grange, and improve Thornbush with loading dock and several improvements to the garden chicken run.

 So you see, quite a laundry list with out even including all the fun gatherings we went to through out the year.

 

Besides more trashion fashion, this year I will be President-elect of the Textile Guild, Roger is once again Master of the Grange. Goals mainly are for more home improvement, attending a weaving conference in Bellingham in June, and a short road trip to Canada to celebrate our 25th wedding anniversary.  I am turning 60 in May, you are all welcome for a big potluck at my house.

(and I hope Blogger is working next month so I can show off with new pictures!)
 

November Rain

Lindsay marries Greg
 

Let's see, the first weekend of the month--oh yes--Lindsay's wedding.  What a wonderful time we had--witnessing Lindsay's big day.  We also stopped in to see the kids.

I volunteered to host the Friday Walkers at Thornbush on the 9th.  It rained each and every day that week, and then on Friday, sky was blue, sun was out, and more than twice the usual number of walkers showed up (this is a club that's been walking for twenty years or more).  I made a little map of the place, had them walk the perimeter trails, down Christmas Tree Row, over the ridge by the Eagle's nest, down through the nut orchard and Alder Pond, past the garden, then over to Eric's, up Alaska Place to Barbara's border trail, ending at the pond.  Then I gave them a farm tour.  It was well received but I really think they should come back in the Spring when things really look nice.

The week after that--Roger and I drove to Boise!  For the National Grange Convention.  This involved crossing the Cascades and the Blue Mountains twice in the middle of November.  We had a friend Suzie-sit, and we stayed overnight at my brother and sister-in-law's place in Richland.  Which seems to be roughly half-way between Anacortes and Boise.  Add a stop in Ellensburg to have lunch with an old friend and a stop in Baker City at the Sumpter Valley Cafe, and you've got yourself a pretty decent road trip.


Jane, Anita, and Roger's shadow in Ellensburg--not raining
 

At the convention, Roger and I took the "7th degree" which is the highest level for Grange members.  Cannot tell you about it as we are pledged to secrecy.  We met up with people we met last June at the State Convention, and met some nice new people from California, and met up with our friends Shann and Steve who were on their way to the Southwest for an adventure through the Grand Staircase.

Snoqualmie Pass on the way home
 

Of course, the following week we celebrated Thanksgiving.  Because the Barrecas took care of that holiday back in October, we had a small Ellison gathering at the Village at the Harbour, with an added visit from Roger's brother Guy earlier in the week.  I didn't have to cook!  But then, I didn't have any lovely leftovers, either.  The whole day would have ended quietly, but we had a phone call in the evening letting us know that Al had fallen and hit his head on a table leg.  Roger met with the EMT's at Al's bedside.  The hospital wasn't due to open for four more days.  The staff, after consultation with the on-call doctor, decided to wake Al up every hour to make sure he wasn't suffering from a concusion.  Fortunately, everything seems to be okay at this date.

Ellison boys laughing it up at the Cask with Al

I started a basket--biggest I've ever attempted.  We'll see if I get through it or not.  I'm learning a lot.  I worked on the even bigger living basket-- that is the grandchildren's "eagle nest".  This was fun because I was inside of the basket to work on it.  Felt like a Lilliputian.

Inside a basket
 

Then came Roger's 57th birthday.  I'd already given him the 3 new c.d.'s for our trip to Boise (I know--old school)  So, just a cake to bake, a couple other little things to wrap, and a trip to his favorite Mexican place for dinner.  That should round out the month.