broken.

i've spent a long time wondering what to write for this blog. as some of you may know, michael and i have lost our baby. (michael wrote a very nice blog about it on his own blogspot, he's much better with words than i am.) as for me, i'm not in that much pain, at least not physically. we'd like to thank everyone for their prayers and thoughts and phone calls.

we love you all so very much.

it's christmastime! it's christmastime!

even though we put up our christmas lights and decorations weeks ago, christmas has snuck up on me. it's less than a week away! i just realized that we're already more than halfway through the month and nearly to the new year. last night michael and i finished our christmas shopping, and i'm making christmas cookies on saturday to hand out to friends, so i think we're all set.

about three weeks ago, we took our lanterns and hummingbird feeder down from the porch so that we could put up our christmas lights. each day, i see at least one hummingbird fly by looking for their feeder. i don't think i've made them a fan of christmas this year... i even saw one poking hopefully at one of the red lights, looking for something sweet to eat.

my only request for christmas dinner? HAM! my cravings are just starting to kick in, so i'll probably have a scoop of mashed potatoes and like, eight or nine slices of ham. we're staying at michael's parent's house for christmas, and so i'm also excited about finally using the fireplace this year. i think i'm going to request to sleep in the livingroom, next to the fire. :)

i wish you all a wonderful advent-time!

the "klootchy creek giant."

since sunday, there has been a very bad storm hitting the northwest, including my hometown astoria. there is massive flooding statewide which has closed highways and isolated towns. there have also been severe winds which have torn down trees and powerlines and since the telephones are out, so far i have not been able to contact my parents.
so yesterday as i was looking for news on astoria, i came across some sad news that almost made me cry. my favorite tree in the world broke in half. not only is it my favorite tree in the world, but it was also the largest sitka spruce tree in the US. it was 750 years old, 216 feet high and 52 feet wide. i love trees, but i love OLD trees even more. 750 years! that means the tree started as a seedling around 1257.
actually, the same day that i took michael to meet my parents, was the same day that i took him to see my tree. hehe, not that i hold my tree and my parents on the same level, it was just coincidence.

i can't find any pictures online to give it real justice, but i hope you get some idea. it was huge, and mossy, and beautiful. i will miss it. :(

here's a link:
http://www.kgw.com/news-local/stories/kgw_120307_news_sitka_spruce_damaged_storm_icon.650b6cac.html

thanksgiving is over, but still giving thanks...

so, as you may or may not know, michael and i are pregnant. :) yep! surprise! i'm almost five and a half weeks along now. if you check out michael's blog he has a picture of what the baby would look right about now. (such tiny little fingers!)
i don't feel pregnant yet, except that i'm always so hungry and tired. we feel very blessed though and very giddy!

optimistic for rain...

so far, i would say i have learned what to expect as far as riverside's seasons, and it is quite depressing. it is unusual to get below 50 degrees, even in the wintertime, and the sun shines basically all year. but come on... it's mid-november and it is about 87 degrees outside.

i don't think this will ever be a normal thing for me. right now in oregon, it is 52 degrees (32 by nightfall) with a chance of rain. they just got over a storm that knocked out power to half the state. you sometimes don't see the sunshine at all for at least five months. and in 1996 it flooded so much that my brother and sister and i took our cat in a dingy boat and sailed around in our front yard.

if any of you know me, you know that i love the rain. i love the way it smells, the way it sounds and the way it feels. i love having the need for an umbrella or a scarf. i'll open the windows sometimes so i can feel the dampness when i'm inside. and after a good rainy night, it is so clear the next day and the sunshine seems so much brighter. it's cleansing, both physically and spiritually.

so i guess i'll have to be patient and remain optimistic. :)