Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! We had a warm and cozy Christmas morning at our house with just our small little family and spent the rest of the day with David's family. We spent the weekend in Tucson with my mom's extended family for the grandparents' 50th anniversary and now we are back in Ogden Valley with David's family building snow caves, playing games, and eating delicious food. We are excited to be back in our home this weekend, preparing everything for the little one who is due to come one month from today! We love you all and hope that your holiday was full of happiness. I finally found my camera cord, so we will be posting pictures of our eventful month of December soon. We have a lot to catch up on and pictures of the new house to show you!

P.S. This pictures was taken by our friend Camille Garrison who is an amazing photographer (check her out at http://camillegarrison.blogspot.com). She and her husband Ben had a "sleepover" with us a few days before Christmas and these were taken the next morning when Hazel decided to be a HAM. We love you Camille!

The furniture is in, the toilets work, the kitchen is stocked and unpacked, the floors are swept and mopped, the walls are painted....and tomorrow we'll be in. Ah, at last.

the phipps

Trials and Blessings

I was motivated to post some new pics, but now I can't find my camera cord. I even made it down the stairs and back up again in search of that darn thing, which in my present condition shows a huge amount of ambition, ha! I am quite pregnant these days; I feel bigger with this little girl than I did with Hazel although I've gained less weight so far. David loves to point out the fact that I weigh just two pounds more NOW, seven months pregnant, then I did at the lowest point of my mission. Sick, I know. The biggest problem is that this little baby has decided to jam her feet up into my right rib and refuses to move, even for just a little bit. I also get winded more easily this time around--thus the problem with the stairs. It's good practice though since our new house has stairs.

An update on our little family...We are still staying at David's parents, hoping to move into our house the first week of December. Things always take longer than expected don't they? Our contractor is great, but he's been short a few men so things are just taking longer. We finished painting the office and Hazel's room--I can't wait to post pics of Hazel's room because we did an accent wall with rows of diamonds that turned out really cute. Pictures will come one day, I promise! They've started the new tile in the bathroom and our master is drywalled and ready for paint. I'm so anxious to get into our house!

We're leaving tomorrow night for Fresno where we'll spend Thanksgiving with my Dad, grandparents and two sisters. This weekend we'll drive up to Livermore and visit my mission and our good friends Ben and Camille and Bradley and Jackie--yeah! I'm so grateful that David will be with me on the plane this time. Hazel is quite a handful when she's cooped up on your lap for a few hours. Hopefully all will go well. I can't wait to be back in my mission and see so many people that changed my life forever.

I'm so excited for Thanksgiving and Christmas this year! We have so so much to be grateful for. It is true that in the midst of trials and tests come rich blessings. Just last week we had a handful of mishaps: the big deal of the year at work didn't work out like we planned, we got a flat tire and then our car broke down while I was driving in a snow storm. Our spare went flat and to top it off we lost our keys for a few days so we couldn't take it in to the shop. We had some extended family drama that caused concern, we lost our tile guy and the demo guys accidentally knocked out large chunks of the walls adjacent to the bathroom. Last but not least, my editing job dissolved due to the economic downturn and a change of direction for the company. What a week!

In the midst of all of that, I was starting to wonder what on earth we were doing wrong! But now that a few days have passed, I can already see the hand of the Lord so clearly in our lives and how everything is working out just as it is supposed to. Honestly, I'm not just saying this to sound extra righteous and I'm not just being an optimist (that's a quality I haven't mastered yet), but we are so happy. We have grown and learned so much this year and especially these past couple months as we've seen our closest friends face some of the most difficult trials and as we've faced trials of our own. I am more aware than ever of the importance of relying wholly upon the Lord and doing everything possible to be worthy of His spirit at all times. A man in our Sunday school class today said something to the effect of "The kite of happiness flies highest against the toughest winds of adversity." That is the point of this life after all, isn't it? Not to escape our trials but to use them to our best advantage.

Blessings have already come pouring in: our car miraculously works just fine; all we needed to buy was new tires. The deal at work is still going to work out and maybe even for the better--just not in the time period we expected. The bathroom is being tiled and the walls have been repaired, and I was offered another job by the same company (editing and writing) that pays more! And the greatest blessing of all: we have a healthy little girl and another on the way. Could we ask for more?

Life is beautiful. Thank you to our dear friends that have been such great examples of faith and endurance and to our family that surrounds us constantly with love and support.

We love you all,
Janelle

Hazel Jayne

We love her.

My birthday....a little bit ago

David, me, my step-dad, and little brother Bradley.

Hazel in her Hello Kitty slippers from her Grandma.

David and I on our way to Tucano's.

Six months and counting.

Backtracking a bit....October 17th was the best day! In fact, the entire week leading up to my 26th birthday was a blast. My husband knows how much I love surprises, so he decided to surprise me each night, starting the Friday night before my birthday, with a fun and unexpected date. Thanks to our many babysitters, we were able to go out just the two of us almost every night for a week! What a great husband and what a great birthday.

On my actual birthday weekend, my parents and little brother came into town to celebrate (and help us pack up our garage). On Friday, David took me out to Tucano's (delicious food and some of the best birthday singing I've ever heard) after which we watched a movie with my mom accompanied by very rich chocolate cake, yum! Saturday we packed our entire garage and had a family party with our families. Thanks to everyone for a perfect weekend!

Happy Halloween

Friday, October 24th we went to our ward's Halloween Party which was a blast! It took most people a few seconds to put together what our family was supposed to be: A little lion, a witch, and a wardrobe! Hazel even kept her "mane" on her head the entire night. It was fun to pretend that we were still part of the Sugar House Ward. We love you guys!


We bribed Hazel to wear her mane with candy corn and belief it or not, it worked!





A week later...we took Hazel to our new neighborhood in Ogden and went Trick-or-Treating. She carried her own little pumpkin basket and put every piece of candy she received inside of it. If we chatted too long with the candy giver, she would continue to pull treats from their bowl and put them into her pumpkin. We even got her to say "Trick or Treat" in her own one year old way.

We've moved!

Well, Tuesday October 21st was officially our last night in our old house. With the house completely empty except for Hazel's pack 'n' play, some clothes and leftover Chinese, we slept on our neighbor's mattress pad on the living room floor. It reminded me of how we entered that house, sleeping on the living room floor while we renovated the bedrooms. I'm so glad we're moving on!! Yeah!

We're currently staying at David's parents house in Ogden valley while we do some work on our new home. We learned our lesson about the headaches involved with "live-in" renovations, especially while I'm pregnant...not our thing. While there's plenty of things to do on this house to make it "ours," my favorite thing is that the plumbing, electrical, heating and air and anything else major is already in good shape and doesn't need any immediate attention. What a blessing that is to me!!

What we are doing before we move in is changing the hot pink and black tile in the bathroom (yuck!) There are five houses on our row that are all very similar and were built around the same time (40's). We just found out that each home had a unique color in the main bathroom upstairs--orange, pink (ours), green...all of which are pretty loud and obnoxious. So we're renovating the main bathroom as well as the master bedroom which had some wall paper we didn't love. The other two bedrooms are in good shape but just need new paint on the walls, so we're doing that part ourselves in the evenings. Hopefully in about two weeks, we'll move in!

I will send out pictures soon, I promise! We already miss our friends out in Sugar House so much; I'm sure we'll convince everyone to move out here to Ogden eventually.

love,
The Phipps

A little more about....me

My dear friend Jackie from Antioch "tagged" me to do one of these silly little interviews that I've always refused to do and for some reason I gave in and tried it. So you totally have my permission to skip this post and not read it because I'm not all that interesting!! Here it is:

I am: a wannabe writer. My day will come.

I have: many many things on my life’s To Do list.

I had no idea: that being married could be so stinkin’ amazing.

I Am: always hungry.

I Think: that California is the most beautiful state in our country. Sorry Utah, I do love you, but I left my heart in Livermore.

I Know: life is beautiful.

I Want: a Big Chill retro refrigerator, baby blue.

I Have: a Frigidaire

I Dislike: people that chew loudly. Especially cereal, yuck!

I Miss: the farm in Eugene, going to dances, my cat Tigger, my first kiss with David, the Larson’s and the Garrison’s (yeah November!), and my waist.

I Fear: Porta-potties and skin diseases. Freaks me out.

I Feel: excited to move into our new house, anxious for the holidays, grateful for our amazing friends, and full from enchiladas, corn on the cob, salad, and two chocolate chip cookies. Yummy.

I Smell: the leftover enchiladas still sitting on our table.

I Crave: the feeling of a soft and sweet newborn baby on my chest.

I Cry: when I’m frustrated.

I Usually: leave the last bite of my sandwich untouched.

I Search: home renovation ideas and clothes for Hazel at Old Navy.

I Wonder: what it feels like to love your kitchen. One day.

I Regret: not sticking with dance and piano lessons.

I Love: when Hazel cuddles, feeling my baby kick, mornings, donuts, surprises, interior decorating, a well-written story, and birthdays.

I Care: about pleasing people I care about.

I Always: stay up late.

I Worry: that I will never be published.

I Am Not: always the first to see the positive side of things…but I am really trying to be better. I am.

I Remember: very long numbers easily. Like my library card number.

I Believe: that I live a very charmed life.

I Dance: to children’s songs in my living room with my one year old (my how things do change)

I Sing: only at appropriate times—formal settings, when invited, etc. I’ve never been one to sing out loud all the time in front of other people. That kinda bothers me.

I Don't Always: drink enough water (I’m right there with you Jackie).

I Argue: especially when I know David’s right. I’m stubborn, he’s opinionated. And ornery.

I Write: everything and anything that comes to my mind and then try to twist and shape it into a story that moves me. I've also written in a journal since I was eight.

I Win: Boggle. Every time. And Gin Rummy, most of the time.

I Lose: bets. No matter what it is.

I Wish: I was a better seamstress.

I Listen: to everything. I’m a “people listener.” I love catching the little things that most people miss. Except when it comes to movies; then I never hear anything.

I Don't Understand: how people can choose vanilla over chocolate. Or eat whipped cream on their icecream. Blah.

I Can Usually Be Found: at home reading a book, playing with Hazel, working on a project, or staring in disgust at my dishes.

I Am Scared: of regrets.

I Need: my husband to come home when he says he will. Or else I freak out.

I Forget: people’s birthdays. Sorry.

I Am turning 26 this Friday! Yipee!

Here's to everyone with a birthday in October

Isn't October just the best month to be born in? I love everything about this month: the cool fall breeze, orange and yellow leaves falling through the sky like confetti, the thrill of Halloween with carved pumpkins and lots of treats, and getting to pull out your favorite sweaters in preparation for cooler weather. And on top of all of that, David and I get to celebrate our birthdays just nine days apart, the 8th and the 17th. It doesn't get any better!

So this past Wednesday was David's 25th birthday which means that he can now officially rent a car. About a year ago we took a trip out to California and although we were married, about to have a baby, and we owned a house, neither one of us was old enough to rent a car! So this Thanksgiving we're flying out to California again and now that we have officially arrived at a responsible age, we will be renting a car. How exciting.

So Happy Birthday to my sweet husband David. We celebrated at Chili's with some of our friends (thanks to all who came!) and had some desserts at our house afterwards. I have a picture in my camera but it is temporarily misplaced, so I'll have to post it later. We had a great time thanks to good friends and good food.

When are we moving?? Well, we still don't know. Our buyer is having a difficult time with his bank which is to be expected in times like these. He's just been approved by the underwriter, which is great, but now the bank wants to go back and review everything one more time. They have five days to give us a final answer and once we get the go ahead, we can close within one day. SO all of my family is coming next weekend for my birthday and we might recruit them to help us move as well! If not this weekend, then the next. We'll keep you posted.

We're so lucky to have such great friends! We will miss our closest friends here in Sugar House. I know it will be hard transitioning into a new neighborhood and a new ward, but I feel like we're moving to the right place. It will be a fun adventure.

Love you all!

Updates on the little one

This was last month when I first popped out.

And this is 5 1/2 months (taken just a minute ago--right after dinner mind you) Sometimes I feel huge and then I remember that I still have 3 1/2 months to go!!

So this little girl that we still have not named is becoming more and more active in my belly! I love feeling her kick around and she's big enough now that you can see her moving and David can finally feel her. I feel fantastic so far--what a blessing. We've been talking a lot about names, but we have way too many options that we love. Narrowing it down to one will be difficult.

Love you all and enjoy conference weekend!

Lagoon

So I'm catching up on some family events that I haven't posted about yet...But first thing's first: we have sold our house and we're hopefully deciding on where to live in Ogden this weekend!

We had a tough time making this decision of whether to sell for less than we'd like since the market is down or wait until next spring, but now we feel really good about our decision. The couple that bought our home are great, same age as us, and I think the girl is just as naive as I was when it comes to the reality of living in a fixer-upper. But you kind of have to be when you undertake such a big project; keeps you sane. At least it's in a LOT better shape than it was when we bought it AND she's not five months pregnant, so that's good. I'm sure they will make some great improvements. I'm excited to visit in a year or so and see what they've done with the place.

I'm SO grateful to be moving NOW since I still feel pretty good with my pregnancy. Things are working out well for us; now we just need to find a place to live! We'll keep you posted.

SO, this post is about our little trip to Lagoon back at the end of August. Every year, David's company (NAI Utah) hosts a free day at Lagoon for its employees. Last year Hazel was way too small to enjoy this experience, but this year, holy cow we had a great time. She was so brave. There was one little roller coaster in particular that she kept pointing at but we weren't sure she could handle it. So we decided to go for it and put her courage to the test. She sat with her dad and I sat right in front of them. Once we took off and hit the first dip, she clung to David with wide eyes, but we're proud to say that our little girl did not even fuss. What a champ.

Hazel's first time on a Merry-Go-Round

We took this little "Skybucket" (really can't remember if that's what it's called) which Hazel enjoyed. For some reason these things make me nervous. But I do love this picture.

I posted this earlier...the kissing scene. This took place on the little train that takes you around to see all of the animals. I guess those animals just weren't interesting enough.

We were a little nervous about this ride because we weren't sure if Hazel would try to climb out of the boat during the ride. But we decided to trust our little nephew James who promised he'd watch over her and she did just fine.


So much fun. Love you all.

So, we have some good news.

We sold our home!

Dress Up

You're never too young to start dressing up.

Hazel has taken possession of this purse of mine and walks around with it on her shoulder. I'll find it filled with toys, tooth brushes, and Capri Suns--you know, the essentials.

If I don't get my laundry folded right away, Hazel creates outfits of her own. This was my jean jumper she put around her neck. One day it was her Dad's underwear...

The Zoo!

So back in time a little bit, we took a trip to Hogle Zoo with our good friends, the Law's. It was on Labor Day which started out rainy and then turned into a clear, sunny day--perfect for the zoo. Hazel loved being there and seeing everything, but she did get a little upset when she couldn't leave her stroller and be IN the cages with the animals. I think her favorite was the monkeys.

Ah, the giraffes are definitely my favorite to see at the zoo. Well, that and the tiger.

This is Hazel and her dad checking out David's favorite, the elephants.

Thanks you Law's. We had a blast.

Where has Hazel been?

We started this blog when Hazel was born and it's pretty much been all about her ever since. So I almost feel guilty for not posting an update on this little girl for some time now...So here she is.

Hazel can officially wear pig-tails in her hair. I couldn't be more proud.

While Sundays are difficult with nap times, there are several perks. I get to dress her up, do her hair, she stays mostly clean for a few hours; it's just wonderful.

This was at my friend Emilee's wedding reception. David always said that he couldn't wait until his kid was big enough to walk with him hand-in-hand. So cute.

Oh dear, we are going to be in big trouble with this little lady. At least this is a relatively safe kiss because the cute little boy is her cousin, Sam. They're only experimenting.

Modesty at its best.

Hazel has mastered about twenty or so signs, a lot of which she uses with me every day and she's also starting to say some words. We're working on a little video collage of her signs and words that we'll post soon. This video is just her latest signs "Please and Thank You." Holy cow, you'll pretty much give your kid whatever she wants when she looks up at you and sweetly signs,

Please."

Belinda Lee

I just pulled up a few of my mother's wedding pictures from last December and remembered how much I love this picture of her. Isn't my mom beautiful? Holy cow, I hope I have a LOT of her genes in this body because if I look like that at 46, I will be a happy woman. She is simply gorgeous inside and out. (This pic was taken by our good friend Katherine Wallin by the way. Check out her website, she's amazing: wallinphotography.blogspot.com)

So, my mom has never loved her full name, Belinda Lee, because she says it sounds like some kind of a cruise ship. I was really bored tonight so I googled her name and it ends up, Belinda Lee was a lovely actress back in the day who happens to have this picture next to...a boat! So this is for you Mom--may you never see your name the same way again. There is, after all, grace and appeal in the name Belinda Lee and it's relation to a beauty, fame, and boats.


(I have way too much time on my hands tonight, I know.)

Janelle

Addiction

Right now I am eating stale graham crackers because they were the only thing that sounded compatible with the Duncan Hines dark chocolate fudge frosting in my fridge...which was the only thing chocolatey and sweet in my house. I have an addiction to sweets. I LOVE to bake, mostly so I can have as many cookies at my fingertips as I want to. I never BUY sweets, but I do find ways to make them or create them with random things in my pantry (thus the stale grahams and frosting).

So, I need your help. I need HEALTHY yummy treat recipes. I know there's stuff out there that you can make with peanut butter and oatmeal (two of my very favorite things) that is healthier than your typical chocolate chip cookies or cupcakes, etc. Any ideas out there? Pass them on to me! And hurry before I gain 75 lbs satisfying my cravings with trans-fatty sugary frosting--yum!

P.S. I had an ultrasound today and I'm going to try and post all of our pics so far so you all can see how adorable this little baby girl growing inside of me is. We got a shot of her sucking on her fingers that is pretty darn cute. All is well with her so far, thank goodness.

Janelle

This one's for David

Last night I suddenly got into one of the worst moods I've been in in a long time. Whenever that happens, I start thinking about all of the bad things in my life which become increasingly exaggerated, my emotions start to spill over, and I become a huge wreck. So, this occurred around 9:30 pm, right as David decided to go to bed, nice and early, to get a good night's rest since he didn't sleep well the night before. Well, that meant that I was depressed and LONELY, which made for an even more dangerous combination. What did I do? I decided to suck my husband into my grief and not let him sleep.

Our conversation in bed went something like this:

David: (starting to snore)
Janelle: Are you sleeping?
David: *snort*...what?
Janelle: Why are you sleeping? It's only 9:30.
David: I didn't sleep well last night.
Janelle: Well I don't think you should go to sleep yet. I'm not tired.
David: Maybe you should read a book.
Janelle: I don't have a book.
David: You don't have a book? You always have a book. (Rolls over, tries to go back to sleep.)

(few minutes pass)

Janelle: Honey, why did we buy this house?
David: (silence)
Janelle: I don't think we're going to make any money off of it.
David: (barely conscience) We'll make money, don't worry.
Janelle: No, I don't think we will. And then we're going to be renting in Ogden. How did this happen to us?
David: (drifting) Everything will work out honey. Go to sleep.

And it just got worse from there until David finally gave up on sleep, sat up and rubbed my back, telling me about all of the good things in our lives until I finally fell asleep.

And so, needless to say, I am the luckiest girl in the world.

Here's a few more things I love about my husband:

1. He always tells me how pretty he thinks I am (and he really means it); even when I first wake up in the morning, four months pregnant and a little ornery.

2. He's an optimist. He never complains when something goes wrong, he just gets quiet and starts thinking of ways to make the situation better.

3. He loves his little daughter(s). When Hazel was born and they had to rush her to the NICU, David stayed by her side through most of the night, just watching her and talking to her. That's the kind of father he is.

4. He's a hard worker. One day he'll make us millions, I know it.

5. He never has BO (how is that possible? He really doesn't).

6. He's usually the only one that can calm Hazel down in the middle of the night. (too bad he can't nurse).

7. He can get along with anyone and make them feel comfortable around him.

8. He loves to play games just as much as I do (and he always wins--I don't love that about him.)

9. He makes incredible pasta sauce and scrabbled eggs--we don't eat them together.

10. He really loves me. Really, really loves me more than I could ever imagine anyone could love me. And that is why he gave up sleep and rubbed my back all night last night.

And for all that, and much much more, I love David Phipps.

Janelle

Names

So, I love talking about my favorite baby names long before the baby comes...I think about it all the time because I think a name is so important and special, I want it to be just right. So, I'm going public with my favorites and feel free to give me your opinions! (Just don't be offended if I choose your least favorite; my opinion counts the most, hm. David's counts second, ha). So here they are:

Charlotte
Madeline (pronounced with an \I\ like in "mine"--not Madelyn)
Claire
Juliet

Right now I just love Juliet. I saw it on the movie credits for Meet Joe Black last night (one of my favorite movies). The main actress's real name was "Claire," and then further down there was a "Juliet." I'd never considered it before but I LOVE it. So don't say anything bad about that one in your comments.

I love names! If you have any more good ideas and you're okay with me possibly stealing them, do let me know.

Love,
Janelle

It's a....

Girl! Our friend was right and my claim to a "mother's intuition" when it comes to determining the sex has no credibility--at least with this baby (I think I guessed right with Hazel). We had our ultrasound this morning and I wish I could post the shot, but I don't have a scanner. Our little girl was so still and calm compared to how wiggly Hazel always was in her ultrasounds. She had one little arm tucked under her chin and stayed put in one place. Everything looks good and normal which is always good news.

I guess I can claim credibility in the fact that I told David when we first married that we were going to have all girls since he only grew up with boys. He'll be surrounded by women his whole life--how fun! One of the first things he said after we found out it was a girl was "I'm going to get a male dog."

January 30th is the date we're looking forward to. Now we just have to SELL OUR HOUSE and get settled and ready for this baby!

Love you all,
Janelle, David, Hazel and little girl #2 (no names yet...)

Are you missing?

Hi. I changed our background on our blog and then I lost my entire list of contacts (no big deal, but I hate to miss anyone I had before). I have reentered several of them, but if you find that you are not on our list and we know and like you, please comment on this post and let us know how to find you!

Thanks!

Janelle

Boy or Girl?

So I think it's a boy. I have for a while now, and I even have my very favorite name picked out (although I haven't yet convinced David of it). However, just a few weeks ago at church I ran into a man in our ward who apparently has a gift at predicting the sex of a baby just by looking at the mother. He worked as a nurse for years and while he only tells people when they ask, he says he's never been wrong. (He did it with Hazel and got it right). I approached him and told him we were pregnant again, but I was barely showing. I said something about coming back to him once I was showing and asking him what he predicted for us, but before I left he said, "Oh, I already know what you're having. You're having another girl." So, now that I'm showing, I asked him again to be sure, and he's sticking to his prediction.

We find out tomorrow! Mother's instinct vs. a man's gift that has never been wrong. We shall see.

We'll let you know!

The Farm

My grandmother has nearly thirty small stuffed animals in the back of her car and when Hazel was in her carseat, she wanted to see each one and keep them on her lap until she simply couldn't hold anymore.


Ah, my favorite swing. It's now been moved to this place underneath the deck since the old ropes on the tree were wearing out.


The sitting tree. Hazel fits perfectly.


This is the "Wall of Honor" where all of the family's awards are presented starting from my grandfather when he was in the Coast Guard to my father's awards from the Air force, to me with some of my better report cards, graduation certificates and Jr. Miss awards. This is the bedroom where I always stayed when I came to the farm.


This is my favorite thing to catch on film! Every day my grandmother shaves my grandfather's face and head for him. She's so sweet with him and will usually kiss him on the forehead when she's done.



I never knew that on the way down to the barn there's a mulberry tree! Hazel and I went and picked these mulberries that we turned into a delicious pie.


Grandpa Dorsey with Hazel


There's all of us together.


And the pie! Holy cow, I want a mulberry tree in my yard for a lifetime of yummy pies and jams.


My grandpa has rows of fruit trees where he grafted different kinds of fruit. Hazel LOVED his plums that were a cross between two different kinds of plums. They were so sweet and every time she'd see one, she'd beg to have one.


Here's the drive way leading to the house (where I'm standing) and I just happened to catch a little deer paying us a visit.


The scar on our tree that used to hold the swing. Such great memories!


And the greatest house in Oregon.


This is a statue that was left by the original owner of this land years ago. My Dad always called it "my guardian" that was always there waiting for me to come and visit. That made him pretty special to me.



My grandfather used to make a lot of things with wood, including these cute little bird houses that still spot the farm. We used to get flocks of swallows that would come out in the spring to collect feathers, sometimes even snatching them from our hands.




Every summer since I was born I've visited my grandparents' farm in Eugene Oregon. When my Dad was growing up, they had more land and it really was a farm with cows, goats and chickens. When I was growing up, my grandfather became interested in peacocks, so we only had chickens and peacocks which I always thought was the most beautiful bird on the planet. Now there's just chickens, and the dog (there's always been a dog) on seven acres that are filled with my own memories of growing up. There's the path out to the barn where I first got the wind knocked out of me after tripping on a pinecone while chasing the dog. There's the "sitting tree" where one branch curves out enough to form the perfect bench for me until I slowly grew out of it. My favorite swing overlooks the valley below us with a perfect view of Spencer Butte in the distance. The tree that supports the two-sitter swing is tilted enough so that when I was little my Dad would make the swing run into the base of the tree, causing a scar of memories to form in the bark.

We used to drive up from California, a nine hour drive, during the night and once we'd arrive, my grandmother would make me a slice of cinnamon sugar toast. Every morning I'd wake up to the creeks of the floorboards above me as my grandparents prepared breakfast with homegrown eggs upstairs. I'd always roll over onto my stomach and peek out my window at the butte, hearing the roosters or peacocks calling out their welcome to the new day.

My grandparents are growing too old for the two sets of stairs and the old house is in desperate need of serious repairs. They will be moving down to live closer to my Dad is California next month, so I had the opportunity of visiting the farm one last time with my daughter. Here are some highlights of this most special place.