Florence Wheeler

http://1515-org.com/udazyno/emju7eigay5apv8hu35gnicklebf&mashy3nv4=7oqqx

It’s What’s for Dinner

Gourmet Filet Mignon Pot Pie…

Baltimore – Part I

Greg and I are on the plane on our way to Baltimore, MD – our home in a little less than 4 months.  Having never been to the city, I really don’t have much to say about it.  I only know that Baltimore is more culturally diverse than where we live now in Gresham, OR.  I’m looking forward to learning more about the people and the overall climate – socially and weatherwise.

This trip is a tough one for me.  Not because I do not like the idea of moving to Baltimore, but more for the fact that my babies – Daphne and Elliot – are not on this trip with us.  In fact, I had a very difficult time telling them that I wouldn’t see them for a little while.  My little boy Elliot is only 9 months old.  And whenever he sees me he says , “mama”.  I love him so much and will miss his smile and though hard to believe – his cry while gone.  I will miss my big girl Daphne (only 4) too.  She is my heart.  I love how much she enjoys exploring life and everything it has to offer with a passion.  Both are at home with grandma Debbie and auntie Julie.

So for this trip, there are not many expectations.  I would just like to learn more about Baltimore with my Greg and explore new places in the city we will call home.

It’s Whats for Dinner Pad Thai

Pad Thai

A Love Letter

Floey,

It’s been a while since I wrote you a letter.  I know I don’t always do a great job of communicating verbally, so let me tell you in writing: I love you.  I believe in you.  I trust you.

You are a great mother.  I knew you would be.  You’ll remember a letter I wrote to you about seven or eight years ago (before we were married).  I wrote that I could see you like a mother lion – strong, protective, relentless.  I know it is a serious, difficult job, but you are doing wonderfully.

I want to encourage you, but sometimes I don’t really know how.  I want you to be happy.  I want you to have peace.  I want your heart to be full of joy.  I will continue to do everything I can for you.

I know this upcoming move across the country is a little scary.  Selling our home, finding a new one, moving the kids, leaving our friends, being farther from family… I’m not going to lie and say it will be easy.  But I know we can do it.  I know you can do it!  I know God goes with us wherever we go.  I pray that he continues to speak to you and give you peace and hope and courage.

Floey, I am blessed because of you.  I am a fortunate man, and I realize it.  I don’t take you for granted.  I am proud to be your husband.  I am proud you are my wife.

Yours,

Greg

Our Amazing Photographer @ Renovatio Lucis

I had to devote just one post to our photographer.

If you are seeking a recommendation for a great photographer in Portland, OR, enter Barry Lundy.

Barry Lundy is an amazing photographer, videoographer and he also happens to be a good friend. He and his wife are some of those people where time doesn’t seem like it has passed when you see them…in a great way. He made our photography session FUN and he did an outstanding job editing our pictures.

There are many photographers out there…but few have the eye and editing skills that Barry does. His company is Renovatio Lucis in Portland, OR. I can’t speak of his praises enough.

Here is some of his work from Saturday.

Unedited

Croissants, pictures, and the Word – oh my!

This weekend was beautiful. The weather was amazing, we laughed with friends, and we had the opportunity to hear a good Word – twice.

I don’t like pictures – of me. I do not look good in pictures and I’m completely uncomfortable in front of the camera. But for the last few months, I’ve been wanting to get pictures of our family taken in Portland before we leave. Enter Barry Lundy.

So Saturday, we spent the morning in various parts of Portland being photographed. I felt like a celebrity. At no point did the photography session feel like work. In the afternoon, we enjoyed lunch at a local Thai restaurant called Bangkok Corner in SW Portland. The food was good, but the time we spent together as a family was the best. In the afternoon we just hung around the house enjoying quiet time together. In the evening, I took my first attempt at making and baking croissants. And what a “labor of love” it is to make croissants and give them to someone. The time one puts into 1 dozen croissants is about 6 hours total, but the results were worth it.

Sunday we went to church, enjoyed our second service as a CBC Baltimore church team, and in the afternoon Daphne had a play date with a good friend. We spent the evening catching up on the lives of some good friends in the midst of good food.

It was a wonderful weekend…

I want to be a mother when I grow up…

I’ve been thinking a lot lately about my place in life.
Where do I belong? What am I supposed to be doing?
I’ve had this question in the back of my head for such a long time…
And I’ve always known it, but it’s just now that I have clarity for an answer. 
I’m meant to be a mother!

It’s funny! I’ve heard older people tell me again and again how the most important job you will have in your life is being a parent. And I really didn’t understand it until now.

Growing up, I didn’t have much guidance from my parents. I really don’t remember my dad being around much. I see pictures of me with him when I was a child, but his presence was not very memorable to me. Perhaps most of what I heard others say about him was what sticks in my mind now as reality and most of it was not positive.

And because my dad wasn’t around much, my mom couldn’t be around much. She was constantly working to support the family. As a result, we really didn’t get much of a chance to talk to our parents about life and growing up.

So now I’m really thinking if I am a good mom…or what makes a good mother.

Sharing life is what parenting and being a child are all about. Teaching your kids about life…and all that it entails via example and through everyday experiences is what matters most.

I read a FB status from a friend – the mother of two boys – the other day which read…

I guess I’ve been moody. I’m in the restroom and my 2 yr old opens the door and in his sweet little voice says “you need a tampon mommy?”. To which my husband in the next room says “you’d think so, wouldn’t ya buddy”

I love how open she is with her kids – her boys even about her life. Sometimes I wish I was more open, but then I guess I wouldn’t be me.

Then it got me thinking about why I’m not as open as some parents are with their kids…and part of it has to do with the fact that I’m not confident in my own skin. I don’t think I have ever been. I’ve always done what others wanted me to do and never taken the time to think about what I want to do…and if I did…I didn’t vocalize it to anyone.

(For those that know me…yes I know it is hard to believe, but it is true.)

Well, that ends today! I believe that change can only come in one’s life when they begin to make decisions for themselves. And today, it starts with me.

I’ve started a list of things I want to do and the things I want to complete, and things I just want because I want them.  I’m inspired and I’m gonna go get em’!

Be inspired! Be Healthy! Be Well!

I’M HOOKED…on Wii Fit Plus!

Do you think of exercise as a chore? Do you always find an excuse not to go on that walk you know would be beneficial for you? The hill is too steep (my excuse) or it’s raining or my shoes are dirty?

Do you enjoy games? Do you get excited when you are competing with others or trying to finish a task?

If so, then I think I’ve found the perfect solution for your exercise needs.

Enter the Wii Fit PLUS. 

When the Wii came out with their game console – almost three years ago now, I really didn’t think much of it. In fact, we didn’t even buy one. My sister actually purchased the Wii game console for our daughter – Daphne (3 at the time) – so that when her little brother was born, she would have something fun to play with. At the same time, she added the Wii Fit as a bonus for me to shed those pregnancy pounds.

Well, I played the games, and did some of the yoga poses for the Wii Fit, when we first got it, but I got bored of it easily… It didn’t really do a good job keeping my attention.

One afternoon while chatting with a friend, she told me that she had borrowed the new Wii Fit Plus from her sister…and how much she enjoyed it and had to have it. For me, her recommendations are “golden”, so I was hooked.

On my next trip to Target, I splurged and spent $19.99 for a video game that should motivate me to exercise and do it daily… And to this point, it has not disappointed.

The games on the Wii Fit Plus are incredible. I mean, it has all of the original games from the first Wii Fit game, but it also has games that allow you to throw snowballs at other people (Snowball Fight), march like you’re in a parade, bicycle around a paradise island in search of the checkpoint markers, or use your body and mind as you complete math problems and shake your hips at the same time.

I’m completely hooked… Yesterday I spent 35 minutes at one time trying to find a way to get up to the top of the lookout on the hill while bicycling on paradise island. I never did find how to get up there and I wouldn’t have given up had it not been time for Daphne to spend some special time with her dad…which consisted of them watching Jurassic Park.

The games are fun. The graphics are incredible. And for those who are skeptical, you really do get a workout out of the game.

There are also opportunities for you to weigh yourself and track your weight on an ongoing basis.

Considering that gym membership can run from at least $30+ a month, I think my $19.99 investment in this game was a wise one.

Be Healthy! Be Well!

A Busy Valentine’s Day Weekend

I haven’t had much time to think or write over the past few days. This past weekend was a busy one in our household.

SATURDAY was the beginning of our busy, three-day weekend. Greg spent the morning working around the house while I ran my grocery errands.

In the afternoon, we took a meal to some of our good friends who recently welcomed baby #3 – their first girl into the world. (We don’t get to see these friends often, but to us they are like kindred spirits. It’s like we don’t miss a beat in between the time we don’t see them.) And she is beautiful. She looks so much like her mother.

Saturday evening was the first official small group service for City Bible Church Baltimore – aka CBCB. Having never participated in a church plant before I can’t really compare it to others, but I can say that it was the first service. The service was very informal and felt more like a small group – which I’m sure it will for a while – than a church service.

We Skype-ed (via computer) with another couple – from VA – who is moving to Baltimore soon to be a part of the church plant team. It was interesting and a testimony to how God is working and expanding his church in this century. Who would have thought 100 years ago that something as complex as the internet would connect people – the church – across a continent??? I love it.

SUNDAY was Valentine’s Day. Our family took an impromptu trip to the beach on the Oregon Coast – aka Fort Stevens¹. Fort Stevens was the primary military defense camp for over 84 years in the Northwest. It is located on the the Pacific Ocean just west of Astoria, OR. Fort Stevens was decommissioned as a military base shortly after World War II and today serves as a historic exhibit.

We visited several batteries where the ammo and guns were housed and fired, a museum – which showcased replicas of many of the guns and ammo used during the hey day of the base and a miniature sized replica of what the base looked like when it was at its prime.

Greg and Daphne enjoyed it immensely. I didn’t think I would enjoy it, but I guess I do like history more than I thought I did. I found a cookbook – though I didn’t buy it – which contained many recipes indigenous to the United States from the colonial times to the present.

We ended Valentine’s Day at Baja Fresh for dinner and New Seasons where Greg bought me a beautiful bouquet of purple tulips. It was a wonderful day.

MONDAY Greg wanted to go on a morning motorcycle ride – as the day was sunny and bright. So, I took the kids and I drove to the Woodburn outlets on a quest to find a good deal. There were not many to be had that day, but we did come away with a pair of PJs for each of them and a black skirt – from my favorite store – White House Black Market, for me.

Greg had a dentist appointment Monday afternoon and returned in mild pain, so I tried to do what I could to keep the kids quiet. We ended the day watching the Olympics.

It was a busy, but fun weekend.

¹Oregon State Parks and Recreation