Missing Mark

Mark has now completed the first two full days of his week-long educator's conference back east. He's in Virginia now, but will also be going to Pennsylvania, Maryland, and other places as well. He's been touring lots of Civil War sites, going to lots of museums, and meeting lots of fellow teachers from all over the country. And I miss him SO much. He is such a GOOD man. The picture below was taken in the summer of 1971, in my parents' front yard in Santa Barbara. Do you think our kids look anything like us? Who could have predicted on that very day that the ensuing years would include 35 years of marriage (and counting!), five precious children (and three dear "in-law" children), and a love for each other that grows ever more precious with each passing day.

If you read our blog regularly, you might remember that I greatly admire the writing of Ruth Bell Graham, late wife of the Rev. Billy Graham. One of her poems has really resonated with me this week, as I miss my dear sweet husband. She wrote this poem in the form of a prayer, before she married Billy, and her words inspire me:

Dear God, I prayed, all unafraid
(as we're inclined to do),
I do not need a handsome man
but let him be like You;
I do not need one big and strong
nor yet so very tall,
nor need he be some genius,
or wealthy, Lord, at all;
but let his head be high, dear God,
and let his eye be clear,
his shoulders straight, whate'er his state,
whate'er his earthly sphere;
and let his face have character,
a ruggedness of soul,
and let his whole life show, dear God,
a singleness of goal;
then when he comes
(as he will come)
with quiet eyes aglow,
I'll understand that he's the man
I prayed for long ago.

I love you, Mark! Can't wait until you come back home.

Odds and Ends

Just a few images from the past few weeks of the lazy, crazy, hazy days of our summer. Above is a shot of Kevin Boss and his fiancé, Bre. Kevin was the Grand Marshall of the Philomath Frolic Parade two weeks ago. A former student of Mark's, Kevin also played for the seventh-grade football team Mark coached. Kevin currently plays football for the Super Bowl champion-winning New York Giants. It was fun to see them again.
Then it was my birthday --- 39 and holding!
Last Sunday after church, Mark and I ventured to Alsea Falls. It's amazing that we've lived in this area for 19 years, and had yet to drive to those beautiful falls. Gorgeous!
Then Dave and Nikki spent a night with us. This is a shot of their dog, Moose, who seemed to be most content to lounge around the house, mostly snuggled up against Hannah's legs. He is such a sweet baby.
Hannah and Nikki gave Moose a bath. After a little scrubbing, he smelled wonderful! Tomorrow, Mark leaves for points east, as he will be attending a teacher's tour of Civil War sites. He will be gone a week, and I already miss him!

Colorado Rocky Mountain High, Part 3 (aka The Final Chapter!)

Here are a few pictures which show our final days in Colorado. On Saturday evening, my sister Andrea (Andi) hosted all of us for a Thanksgiving dinner, complete with all the trimmings. What a treat! And it was very special to be together with three of my siblings and their precious families. Picture below: my brother John, my sister Andi, me, and my brother Doug.
On Sunday morning, we were privileged to attend my niece Margot's horse show. Mark and I had never attended an equestrian event before, and it was fun to see Margot on her horse, Lord Tobias ("Toby"). Margot did so well! She got two second-place finishes, one fifth-place, and she placed second overall in the competition. Way to go, Margot!
In the picture above, Margot leads Toby through his paces as they jumped over the various hurdles. (Actually, I'm not sure they are called hurdles, but she and Toby did a great job clearing them!) And below is Margot proudly displaying her ribbons.
Early the next morning, it was time to hit the road for the drive back to Oregon. We decided to take a different route than we've traveled before, and that plan took us on the south side of the Great Salt Lake, then west through the salt flats of Utah. It looks like a big lake made of salt. In fact, we passed the Morton Salt plant along the way. Here we are at a rest stop, where we took time to hike out on the crunchy salty surface for a photo-op.
Another view of the seemingly endless salty vastness.
We stayed a night in Elko, Nevada, on the way home. We had to laugh at the pictures above the bed - both of which were EXACTLY the same!
Last touristy thing - Peter French's round barn near French Glen, Oregon. It was built in the late 1870s or early 1880s by Oregon cattle king Peter French. Mark has taken student groups to see the site for many years, and he wanted to show it to me. It was interesting, for sure.
There were lots of free-range cattle along the road to the barn, so we had to watch out and not hit any of them.
And then we were home! It was a great trip filled with special memories, and yet it was very good to arrive home once again.

Colorado Rocky Mountain High, Part 2

After lunch on the Fourth of July, my brother John took us on a tour of his latest project, the Mother Lode. There was an open-house party scheduled for that evening, to celebrate the completion of this project, so we were treated to a pre-party tour! This picture was taken from the roof-top deck, and you can see Aspen Mountain, with its various ski runs carved out of the mountainside.
This is one of the bathrooms in the living-quarters portion of the project. The property also has retail space, and other commercial possibilities, to be tailored to the buyer's needs. Are you interested in purchasing this gem? It will only set you back about 37 million dollars - for real!
Below is one of the bedrooms. The view out the window is of Aspen Mountain. Can you even imagine what that view would be like in the winter? In any season, it is breathtaking.
And after that, it was time for me to choose my new Stetson. We went back to Kemo Sabe, the same shop where Mark had purchased his hat last summer, and I chose the "Gus" style, like Mark's. Only in this picture, Mark is wearing his new straw hat, also from Kemo Sabe. (The nice lady in the picture with Mark and me is the very kind and patient employee who helped us.)
After that it was time to check out Ben's project. Last summer when we were in Colorado, Ben's project had a foundation, and was partially framed. It was so exciting to see all the progress that has been made in the last year. They are on the home stretch now! Below is the staircase to the second floor. This circular staircase, custom designed of steel, cost $150,000. More than our entire house cost! I can't really relate to those Aspen construction figures, but it all sure looks beautiful!
Here is part of the kitchen. The cupboards are in, and it looks ready for counter tops to be installed. Lots of custom wood of many varieties are used throughout, for ceilings, flooring, cabinets, etc.
Lots of windows!
The great room.
Ben and Mark outside the home.
Ben and me! Love you, Ben! You have a lot of responsibility on your shoulders, and you bear it well.
And that night, we went back to the Mother Lode for the open house for John's project, and watched the fireworks. There were about 200-300 attendees, some of whom were checking out the property as a possible investment. At one point, it was rumored that Bill Clinton might show up, as he was in town that weekend, and was staying at another of John's properties. But he didn't show up. Colin Powell did, however, attend, and that was pretty cool to see him up close and personal! David was brave enough to talk to him. I wanted to take a picture of him, but in Aspen that's considered bad form. But I can still brag a little, right?
Beautiful fireworks display, shot off from Aspen Mountain, which we watched from the middle deck of the project.
More to come later!

Colorado Rocky Mountain High, Part 1

Mark and I enjoyed a week away, visiting family in the Aspen, Colorado area. Of course, Ben and Dave and Nikki live there, and I also have three siblings and their families there as well. So it was great fun to see everyone, and mostly to reconnect with our kids.
Soon after we arrived on Thursday evening, July 3rd, we headed to the Basalt Rodeo. Mark wore his genuine Stetson hat that he'd purchased in Aspen last summer, and he was thinking that I should probably get one this summer. More about that later! The rodeo was great fun, and we attended it with Ben and David. Nikki had to work late that evening, so we didn't see her until we got back to Dave and Nikki's house afterwards. Dave and Nikki have a condo in Carbondale, and they invited us to stay with them the first two nights we were there. They have fixed up their home so nicely, and it was truly a joy to stay with them. Thanks for having us, D & N! We love you!
Of course the next day was the Fourth of July, and we drove to Aspen for their annual parade. Many of our relatives were there for the festivities, too, which made it all the more fun. Here, two of our grand-dogs, Moose (with his mom, Nikki), and Cody (with his dad, Ben) checked each other out while we waited for the parade to begin.
Our family always gathers in front of my brother John's Aspen office to watch the parade. John, who is the owner of John Olson Builder, has plaques on his office walls that are specially-mounted magazine pages which depict some of the high-end construction projects that his company has completed. Many of his projects have won architectural and design awards, and these plaques are proof of his hard work. We are proud of his quality work, and are proud of Ben and Dave, who work for him.
Another plaque, this one from Luxe Magazine. They had just received this one, so it was still covered in plastic wrap, but you get the idea. And no, these are not your average run-of-the-mill homes. After all - it's Aspen!
After the parade, we headed over to Brunelleschi's (aka Bruno's) Pizza, also in Aspen, for lunch. There, Ben introduced us to his girlfriend, Christine, who works there. Christine is from Quebec, Canada, but she pretty much looked all-American that day! We found her to be a very sweet, nice girl.A few more parade shots - above are Dave and Nikki (and Moose).
Here is my sister-in-law, Barbara Olson (John's wife), and their son, my nephew Charlie. Charlie just graduated from high school in May, and is heading to San Diego this fall to attend college.
Here is my sister Andrea, her husband Eric, and their two dear children, my niece Margot and my nephew Reed. We spent two nights with them after our two nights with David and Nikki. Thanks, guys!
And here Mark and I enjoy the parade. Happy Birthday, America! We love you! More to come later...

We're baaaaaaack!

Mark and I returned from our Colorado trip on Tuesday evening. I KNOW it's Thursday, people, but give me a break - I had lots of mail to sort through, bills to pay, and laundry to get caught up on! Before I post pictures about our trip, I wanted to share some from our 35th anniversary celebration in Portland.
Here's Mark in front of Portland's White House, where we spent the night. Please go there - you will be so glad you did!
This is one view of the living room in the White House. It is filled with lovely, genuine antiques.
And this is the dining room. We took this picture at night, when the room was all set for the next morning's breakfast, which was very good.
For dinner, we went to the Rheinlander. After all, we first met each other when Mark sat behind me in our German class when we were seniors at Mount Rainier High School. What better place to mark our 35th anniversary! We enjoyed delicious, authentic German food while occasionally being serenaded by this sweet guy and his accordion. He played a traditional German anniversary song for us when we were served our dessert, which was warm apple strudel with fresh whipped cream.
A beautiful stained-glass window in the restaurant. Mark had eaten there several times in the past, as the Rheinlander is a destination field trip for German classes all over the area. He went twice, with two of our kids when they took German in high school. (All five of our kids took German in high school, and several took German in college as well.) But I had never eaten there, so it was all new to me. We really recommend it to you!
Of course the accordion player and the singing wait-staff sang the German song that both Mark and I best remembered from our high school German class: "In Munchen steht ein Hofbrau Haus," the words to which were emblazoned on the restaurant wall. He also played many selections from the Sound of Music - very fun and entertaining.
A view of our room at the White House. We almost needed to pole vault into the high bed, but we managed to find our way, amidst lots of laughter.
Here is a view looking the other direction, showing the armoire.
They provided chocolates for us - really rich, good ones - knowing we were celebrating our anniversary.
Some of the gorgeous hanging baskets in the courtyard. We had such a wonderful time - the setting was lovely, the food yummy, and the company (Mark!) incomparable. Next post will have pictures from our Colorado trip!

Wonderful news!

We have been eagerly awaiting the "green light" to share with you the wonderful and exciting news that Jake and Beka have begun the process of adopting an infant son from Ethiopia. They came over on Monday evening and presented Mark and me with a book for our anniversary. The paper you see below was stuck in the pages of the book, and as Mark and I read it, we learned that we will soon become grandparents.
Please click on the link to Jake and Beka's blog to read all the details, including a FAQ section (nice work, Beka!). And we will post updates as they are available. For now, just one thought: we already love you, Baby Dorr, wherever you are, and can't wait to welcome you into our family. Mark and I are now heading to Colorado, and will return next Tuesday evening.