Front Porch

Most people have lovely fall decorations adorning their front entrances. Colorful mums, pumpkins and gourds, corn stalks. Some might also have dark stuff like tombstones and what not, or be really hideous like that giant spider covering most of the house's facade that we see on our way to town. As for me, I'm happy if I can keep the leaves cleared from my front entrance. There seems to be a converging wind zone that brings all the leaves from a 2 mile radius to my front door. My spiders also have super powers, as they can weave 2 webs in the time it took me to remove one. I was really content in my little power struggle with the leaves and spiders, until I looked out one afternoon and saw an interesting touch added to our porch.

Apparently Nolan thought his cammo tarp had to dry (so it could get wet in the woods again?), and what better place then our covered porch by the front door!

You are always welcome at our house, just be aware that you might have to climb over leaves, duck under the tarp and clear some spider webs before you can reach the door.

After I got back from taking Christian to his classes, I told the other two boys in a very solemn voice that school was canceled. They gave me a puzzled look and I asked if they had not seen the adverse conditions out there. How could one have school in such weather? "But where has school been canceled?" I told them to take a look outside and they were still trying to figure things out as they saw the bright blue, crisp autumn morning. Then it began to sink in, that their teacher would not miss one last opportunity to go on a Baker hike before the snow (which is in the forecast for this weekend for that elevation) will shut down the access road.

We saw, explored and learned so many things that would not have been possible had four walls surrounded us all day.

Our good friend and neighbour Lolita and her dog Nya, joined us for the day.

Here we take a rest for lunch. What would you choose, being a little cold or a little hungry? Nolan did not know he was choosing the later when he put down his sandwich to put on his jacket. Nya did not hesitate to gobble his food in one bite. The tuna smell must have been irresistible. We were told by other hikers to go on and check out some mountain dwellers on the other side of the ridge. And here they are, a group of eleven mountain goats. I was glad to see them, but also glad about the distance between us as well. Lolita had just told us about the unfortunate hiker that had been killed by one of these, just a couple of days ago on the Olympic Peninsula. I have a new found respect for these creatures.

As the sun rapidly began to set, we had to get our toques and gloves out and also quicken our pace; which was a challenge for Ethan, since he was getting pretty tired. There was no choice, we had to complete the 8 miles and get back to the parking lot before dark.

The shorter days afforded us beautiful sunsets,

and a beautiful moon to guide us back to the trail head.

Apples for Entertainment

All I wanted was to go to an orchard and pick tons of apples for a bargain price.

Instead, we got a tour the orchard in our own little golf cart. The power on the cart was set so low I could have walked faster. Supposedly the owner has set it that way because people have taken down trees in the past while speeding around in the carts. I'm happy to say all the trees were left intact.

We observed the whole production line, from the apples being picked to getting those annoying little stickers, (don't you hate peeling them off your produce?), to being packaged neatly in a box.

Nature was at work all around us.

I certainly did not need the sign to point out that I should enjoy the view. Come to think about it, maybe this was the real culprit of people hitting trees. I wonder if taking the sign down would be more effective in protecting the trees then adjusting the power on those carts?

We tasted many delicious apples and other treats, picked a pumpkin and bought apples of many varieties.

The only thing I did not find was that bargain price I was after!

After coming to this place two years ago, we knew it would be a spot we would have to return every year. With September gone, the weather turning and many activities that keep us rolling, I was not sure it would happen this year. We had a little window of opportunity to get up there, and I have to say that we almost didn't take it. The routines of life have been keeping us busy, And I felt a little overwhelmed at the thought of getting things ready.

I'm glad we made the choice to go. It was nice to take a break and be able to sit back, to rest and restore and spend some time with each other at one of our favorite places.

This tent provided a cozy shelter during a rainy night. We read many chapters of our latest family read aloud while tucked in our warm sleeping bags. It also provide a layer between me and the creature that crawled under the tent and woke me up with it's movement under my mat. Creepy! Nothing like a hot cup of coffee or tea and a yummy bowl of warm oatmeal to start the morning. We had this mystic, beautiful place all to ourselves. There is a working mine down the road and many abandoned mines in the surrounding mountains. This little one is one that has to be visited every time.

Something new this year, was an attempt at fly fishing

Success!!!

A fish was fooled by our fly, it might not feed our family, but it sure gave us some entertainment and excitement.

The reason for this smile is obviously not the size of the fish. Christian had just said he was going to give it a try, even though he usually doesn't get anything. His bait wasn't in the water for 5 seconds when he felt the tug.

These two had gotten up earlier and caught their prize fish before Shawn, Christian and I even remotely entertained the idea of getting out of our sleeping bags.

Spending time in this pristine place with my family was so refreshing and reinvigorating.

Once back home, I was quickly brought back to reality. It was 4 o'clock, lots of clean up ahead of us when I hear the question:

" Mom, what's for dinner?" Welcome back to the real world.

Baptism

Baptism, a confession of your faith and commitment to follow Christ.

How special it was to witness our oldest son getting baptized today in the waters of Lake Whatcom.

In his own words: I first asked Christ to come into my life when I was about five years old. God was always there because I grew up in a Christian family, and we always prayed and had devotions together as a family. We read the bible together, and I was educated about God at a young age. I went to church as many Sundays as our family could and then when I moved up to middle school I went on the fun missions trips to Oregon and Seattle, which were new experiences. Sometimes I had questions about God and my faith was tested with them, but there were usually answers. I wanted to be baptized earlier, but I just didn’t know if I was ready. Then I realized that I didn’t really have to be “ready,” I just had to want to follow God and give my life to him."

Congratulations! Our prayer is that you will continue to seek God's plan for you life and that you will continue to grown on your walk with Christ.

These guys and many other kids spent the weekend at the Middle school camp. It sounds like they had great spiritual growth, lots of fun and pranks and very little sleep.