Schweitzer in Spring

 

Our family takes a yearly trip to Schweitzer. When the kids were in high school we would go in February over mid-winter break to ski.  We have also gone in the summer for the mountain biking.  This year our family ski trip landed in March due to college breaks.  The last 3 years we have stayed in a condo up in the ski resort.  It has the right number of bedrooms and configuration to accomodate our entire family plus a few extra teenage boys.  All the males spend their time on the slopes, and the the girls and I cook, eat and take the grandkids to the beach park down the hill in Sandpoint, on beautiful Lake Pend Oreille.

Of course, Grandma has to get out there and sled with the grandkids. Both Evelyn and Douglas really prefer to get in the sled and be pulled along with a tow rope as Mom, Auntie and Grandma go for a walk.






Here, Odie and I are considering my trajectory.

Rachel, Douglas and I with Becca and Evelyn at the Beach Park in Sandpoint.  The kids loved to play on the toys.
Evelyn was particularly fond of the twirly slide.  Douglas was mostly enamored with climbing stairs.  He did come down the twirly slide on his tummy once all by himself.

 

Even though the days were beautiful and sunny, the wind coming off the lake was cold. The kids were active enough they didn't seem to mind the chill.

Here we have Becca the Patriotic.........

Sandpoint has random statues here and there.  This Lady Liberty at the end of a jetty out in the lake, and great little brass carvings on downtown street corners. I love encountering little surprises like this to treasure.

Seasonal Spring Chairs

I know it is passed St. Patrick's Day, but I wanted to share my holiday chairs with you. Even though it has been a mild winter, not too many flowers are blooming in March, so one is pretty well limited to primroses to celebrate the "wearin of the green".

The little green glass totem I made from miscellaneous items I picked up at a thrift store to add some color.  It actually looked better next to the other chair up on the deck next to the front door.

          My Easter Chairs
 

Still limited to primroses, the Easter chairs needed a bit of color, so I added easter eggs and a darling little teapot in spring colors I had on hand.

Sumo Satsuma

A few days ago I was in Whole Foods doing some shopping, when I spied this large wrinkly fruit.  The sign said "Sumo Satsumas".   They looked so unusual I just had to buy one to try it out.  I took it home so my kids could give it a taste. As you can tell they are huge compared to the regular Satsuma in the above picture.  In fact it was so big everyone in the family got a bite.  They are amazingly sweet- even more so than the regular satsumas in side by side comparison.

Love What You Do: Do What You Love

This is me doing what I love- out in the woods, hiking with dogs.  I also love going to lakes and rivers so my dogs can swim and in warm weather I'm out there in the water with them.  I also like to ride my mountain bike on mountain trails with my dogs.  The two goldens in the foreground are Dexter (with the quizzical look on his face) and his big brother Dunn that were mentioned in yesterday's post.  Merlin, a Belgian shepherd is peeking over my shoulder. There is another Belgian shepherd and a springer spaniel just out of camera shot. Just behind me and up to the right is a roaring waterfall that was also out of the shot. Exercise, gorgeous surroundings and great company.... what a cool way to spend the day.

A Walk in the Park

Becca and I took 2 golden retrievers named Dexter and Dunn to Marymoor Park for a walk.  As we were walking next to the Sammamish slough we passed a tree filled with Great Blue Herons and their nests.  We counted at least 12 herons, some actually sitting in their nests. As they would take off to fly away it was an amazing sight.

Leaders of the Pack

 

This is George Albert White, the patriarch of the White family and my mother Ruthe's father (my grandfather).  My mother adored him and talked about him all the time. He was born in Toronto Canada in 1881 the oldest of 4 surviving children. His father, George Charles White owned a string of butcher shops and apparently the result of hard work and hard drinking died at the age of 45 when grandpa was barely 12. Grandpa had to quit school and take a job driving a team of horses pulling a butchers wagon to help his mother Anna support the family. Grandpa eventually turned to the culinary arts and became a chef at a hotel in Toronto where he met his wife Rachel Evelyn Dean Major while she worked there as a waitress. My mother told me the story that Rae's roommates had dared her to go into the kitchen after hours and steal a roasted chicken for them to eat, and George caught her in the act!

This is Rachel Evelyn Dean Major White. I don't have any early pictures of her or information on her childhood. My mother related that Rae's mother Lydia had 13 children, and unable to care for them put all but the baby in a convent orphanage. There is not much information about her early years.   She and George married on October 10, 1905 and settled down in Toronto and had the first child Leola on January 10, 1907 soon to be followed by 4 more children born in Toronto, Fred, Anna Mae, Grayce and George Ernest (known as Ernie).

 George Albert's younger brother Ernest had moved to San Bernardino, California to work for the Santa Fe Railroad and was killed in a train wreck in 1912 at the age of 30.  When his mother Annie and her two youngest children, Walter and Edna came to Cailfornia for the funeral, they fell in love with the climate and decided to stay.  George and Rae followed two years later with their brood of 5 children.  The sixth child, my mother Ruthe, was born in San Bernardino January 23 1915, the only one to be born in a hospital ( St. Bernardines).

With the whole White clan now settled in San Bernardino, the two brothers with their own hands built three houses for the family in a small compound in the same southwest neighborhood near San Bernardino Valley College. Walter and George each had a house and one for their mother Annie.  Both brothers started working for the Santa Fe, with Grandpa again working as a chef.

Sam's Mission Farewell

 

Sam gave a talk in church today- the last one he will give before he leaves on his mission April 10 to Indiana, where he will spend the next 2 years of his life.  Talking in church in front of a congregation is not his favorite thing to do, but he did a great job. He wasn't sure he could fill the allotted time given, but he did just fine. Sam is such an outgoing personable kid and is quick to engage people.

 

His talk started with an introduction of himself and where he is being sent on his mission.  Then he shared his reason for joining the church.  When he was a small boy in Thailand he didn't know either his mom or dad well.  He was raised by extended family first on his mom's side, then his dad's, and they continued to switch back and forth.  He never felt like he had a close family unit.  He missed having someone he could come to and share that he had gotten a good grade at school, or had done well at sports. There was no one he was close enough to who would be excited with him about his accomplishments. That was what attracted him most about the Mormon church- the emphasis that was placed on families, and all the families that he became acquainted with in the church that seemed to have that closeness that he desired. He made the decision that he wanted that more than anything for his own family that he would someday have.

 

After he was baptized and joined the church, he was sure that he would never go on a mission.  He had finally found a family where he felt like he belonged, and did not want to pack up and leave for 2 years. It was even a hard decision for him to go away to college, rather than attending the local college where he could stay in town and live at home, which is what his brother Jared had decided to do. We strongly encouraged him to give it a try, and he found a friend at our church that agreed to be his room mate at BYU so he took the plunge.  It turned out to be a remarkable semester for him. Most of his room mates were returned missionaries that shared their mission experiences with him, and encouraged him to go, and assured him that he would never regret it.

 

One night at school he was walking back to his apartment from the gym by himself.  It was a beautiful night with the moon shining and the temple lit up against the night sky.  As he was walking he heard a voice tell him that he really needed to serve a mission. He committed to do so.  He has never looked back. Once he made the decision to go, he started working towards his goal while still at college, getting his physical  and immunizations taken care of on his own.  He has studied and prayed and read his scriptures, and made every effort to prepare himself.

 

We are proud of this young man and know that he will touch many lives in Indiana.  Mostly, we know that he will be changed by this experience. He will work hard and lose himself in the service of others for 2 years and come home the better man because of it.