Kurt Bestor at his best...

What a way to begin the Holiday Season. On Saturday evening, November 27, 2010, Dean and I were treated to a top-notch Christmas Special by Kurt Bestor. In our minds, Kurt is among the top Christmas billings.

We last saw Kurt in Boise, Idaho at the beautiful Cathedral in the Rockies and were lifted to a new level of musical expertise by a gifted craftsman. We have been hoping he would come to Oregon and finally, he did. The venue was a wonderful little theater in Hillsboro called The Venetian Theater and Bistro. It isn't as grand as the Cathedral or as elegant as the Schnitzer in Portland, but it was a beautiful experience.


We came early, so we could enjoy the Bistro for an elegant Italian dinner before venturing upstairs to see the show. When we entered the building, who do you think was sitting at the bar, visiting with his co-star, Jenny Jordan Frogley, but Kurt Bestor himself. I smiled at him in recognition, and he returned the smile. I was too timid to walk up to him and start talking. That's just me!


We enjoyed a wonderful dinner and then headed up the stairs to be treated with dessert. Yes, it was a show worth skipping dessert for. Kurt arranges all of his own music and does an outstanding job with many of the standard Christmas favorites. His gift on the piano is something to behold. We learned that he hated piano lessons and hated practicing as a child. Then, one day his mother put away all of his music and told him to "play me a sunrise." And he did! His words, "It wasn't perfection, but that's where I began to love the piano."


We were also treated with an amazingly gifted singer, Jenny Jordan Frogley. We had never heard of her before, but she can really belt out a song. She was a joy to behold.


All in all, the entire evening was well worth the hour and a half drive to get there (and home). We were well fed both physically and spiritually. And so, the Holiday Season begins in earnest for us.

Is Your Glass Half Full or Half Empty?

I once knew a dear, sweet lady somewhere in my past who was badly crippled with Rheumatoid Arthritis. Every day was another day of excruciating pain just as it had been the day before, and just as it would be the following day. And yet, I never once heard her complain or saw anything but a broad welcome smile on her sweet round face.

She would say that her glass was more than half full of great blessings and the empty half was reserved for blessings yet to come. She was a marvel to me. Her positive attitude and her ability to take whatever challenges life brought to her as easily as she would receive a beautifully wrapped gift from someone special in her life was beyond understanding. Her wisdom and courage was an example to me.

Over the years, I have tried to emulate this lady, but, alas, I fear I have fallen far short of that goal on more than one occasion. I have allowed worldly woes to fill the empty void in my glass and threaten to turn the filled part into "murky forgotten blessings." I have oftimes failed to see my half full blessings.

My life is fractured in so many directions, that it is no wonder that I can't excell at any one thing. I am so involved with my work (it consumes me sometimes), my family (near and far), my home and the management of so many facets of its survival, my writing of written words and music, my newly found love for piano lessons, my participation in the community with choral groups and Church music that I begin to wonder, "Where in all of this chaos is there time for my creative side?" Things that I used to love to do, like scrapbooking, reading, sewing, quilting have all taken a backseat to everyday living.

And, "Where is my time for self?"

And then I stop, look at my glass, start counting my blessings again and again, and I remember that beautiful bent lady of my past and my glass is transformed into something beautiful.



I pray this Thanksgiving day will find you all praising God and giving thanks for each and every blessing that fills your glass.

Always remember this little quote that I received recently in these "Thanksgiving thoughts: Happy moments, PRAISE GOD; Difficult moments, SEEK GOD; Quiet moments, WORSHIP GOD; Fearful moments, TRUST GOD; and Every moment, THANK GOD."



Happy Thanksgiving, everybody!

Yes, family, it does snow in Lincoln City...

I know, I know! We live on the coast. But, we also live on the 45th Parallel and it gets mighty cold here in the winter time.

This morning, we woke up to temperatures in the low 30's and white stuff on the ground that wasn't sand. I love it! The thing I love most about it, is that at some point the sun will come out and it will melt and I don't have to shovel it.


Wouldn't Billy have fun on his playground now, when it is all white?


Oh, and we get some mighty big surf in the winter time. Check out these pictures of our November 2nd Surfing Competition, drawing some of the best surfers in the world.



And now the sun will set on another day in Lincoln City. Who knows what tomorrow will bring? I guess we will know in the morning!

Just call me the "Slug of Lincoln City"...

I cannot believe that it has been over a month since last I posted anything on my blog! And there were so many happenings in the month of October--what was I thinking? Rather than "catch up," I will just post a short recap of all of the fun pictures I received from my family with their Halloween antics posted on them.

Granddaughter, Jacki and her hubby, Mark were dressed so cute like "Woody" and his gal from Toy Story3. I loved it! And I bet little Dallen got a kick out of going Trick-or-Treating with mommy and daddy dressed in costume.

Daughter, Heather and hubby, Rich had an amazing Halloween party at their house. Everyone came in various costumes and appeared to be having an hilarious time. Heather looks like a pretty good copy of Gruella DaVille from "101 Dalmatian's" and Rich--well those short shorts on the "Cop of the Year" just might tell it all! Little Hailey was so cute as Dorothy from "The Wizard of Oz" and what else could you expect from Parker, but a Ninja fighter! He's a hoot! Beautiful Granddaughter, Elissa, looks like she is some sort of cave woman. All in all, the Tusko's had a great time on All Hallows E'en.

Grandson Gerald and his sweetie, Lily did a little dressing up of 6-month-old Ezekiel for Halloween. From all reports, they had a wonderful Halloween party and a great time with little Zeke.

The witch? Well, that is just my standard contribution to Halloween. Some say, "Where is your costume?" And I just laugh, because I like to go in my true character!

Hope everyone had a fun and playful Halloween. Where would we be if we couldn't just let down our hair and have some fun once in a while.

My Killer 71st Birthday...

I spent my 71st Birthday doing what I love to do most--hiking! At least, I used to love to do the hard stuff. I'm afraid I over did this one, however. Billy told me it was a tough hike, but being the stubborn Scottish/English lass that I am, I just said, "Bring it on!" (I think next time I'm going to believe him.)

We started our "walk" at the very end of Roads End which is just north of Lincln City. We followed a gravel road up a pretty good incline for about a block or so and then left that road to take a narrow path into the woods. It was beautiful on this wooded path and we saw all kinds of interesting specimens of nature. We saw tall aspens mixed in with the coastal pine trees that had beautiful moss-covered trunks. Billy saw a couple of small snakes and pointed out a little green frog.




Our path was an uphill climb on slippery gravel, mud and rocks and over logs across small streams. And, it was hot! After what seemed like forever and about a miles distance, our trail narrowed and became nothing more than a deer trail into the thick bushes. We had to be very careful in there and watch our footing. Sometimes we had to bend over to get through the brush.

After about 30 minutes of "bush country," we broke out into the trees and a cool clearing. This is where I had to sit down, catch my breath and drink water and eat crackers. I could feel the beginnings of "heat stroke." I've had this in the past, and I know the symptoms. I had that awful feeling of light-headedness, nausea and "other-worldly" sensations--the ones you get just before you pass out! Relax! I didn't! The 10 minutes or so rest and the water and salt kept me going.

Up ahead was another 15 minute trek through more bushes and then came the grassland! The grass was tall and the path through it was narrow. We could see flattened areas where deer had spent the night. Out in this open area, it was getting really hot and humid. I had one more attack of heat stroke before we reached the base of "the Devil's Thumb!"



I took one look up that trail and saw those itty-bitty "steps" formed by deer and almost called it a day right there. Billy encouraged me and Dean helped with a gentle push once in awhile and one step at a time, I climbed that 70 degree incline and collapsed in a heap on the top. I was exhausted, hot, and elated all at once. I did it! And Billy was right--the view from the top was worth every excruciating step.


We ate our lunch up there and rested. Then the fog began to roll in. I tried to stand up to begin our trek down, but when I stood at the edge, looking down, I said, "No way am I going to get down there!" After a few moments of contemplation, however, I decided that when the only two choices I had were to spend the rest of my life on top of that hill or make my way down, I figured that I better give it my best shot and get going.





The first few steps were wobbly and Billy held my hand and helped me with each painful step. Then I took a look at my situation and noted that all of that tall grass up there was actually a blessing, so I decided to slide down the hill to the bottom on MY bottom. And that is exactly what I did. That was great fun! I haven't slid down a hill like that in a very long time.

It only took us about a half hour to go back the way we came with me having to walk carefully with my rubber legs. But, it was all down hill and parts of it were great fun. I was really happy, though, when we broke out of the trees and were back on the gravel road.

Here are a few more pictures of some of the treasures we found on the trail. Billy found a leaf with a perfect heart eaten out of it by bugs and we had to have a picture of it. He also found some little seed pods from some plants nearby that fascinated him.



All in all, this was another memorable birthday. And I got to spend it with two of my favorite men!

P.S. It is now three days post-hike, and I have terribly sore legs. Walking is still painful. Ah, the price one pays for tryig to be 21 again. Next year? Maybe I'll try sky diving!

Billy's Playground...

There is a beach not far from where we live in Lincoln City, Oregon, that we call "Billy's Playground." It isn't your typical white sand beach, stretching for miles, or even a shorter version that you can walk on and play in the sand. This particular beach has a boat-load of logs that have washed ashore and planted themselves in a multitude of configurations that have Billy's name on them.

For as long as I can remember, Billy has been a climber. And if there is anything to climb on anywhere within a 50 foot perimeter of where he is, he will climb on it! This is why he loves this beach so much.


We took Billy and his new friend, Rachel (from Iowa) and his friends, Holt and Natalie to Billy's beach for an afternoon in the sun. It was a great day and everyone enjoyed the beach, the water, the walking, and the "playing on the logs."


Billy can make a teeter-totter out of a 50 foot long log, resting on top of another one; he can climb to the top of a planted log in the sand and stand straight up. I have learned, as his mother, not to watch the hard parts. I don't want to see him fall! Amazingly enough, he never seems to!
















Our next adventure was a hike to Drift Creek Falls where we found an abundance of trees and fallen logs for Billy to climb on. He's an amazing kid!

Every where we turned, there was Billy, climbing!







I wouldn't trade a day with Billy for all the luxuries in the world. He makes the grandest adventure out of nothing at all! Nature provides his playground, and he is eager to explore every facet of it. He is my Peter Pan!

Some of Life's Simple Journeys...

Somewhere between my age of discovery and my age of pseudo-wisdom, my #1 baby girl grew up and became a woman. Her journey took her from the cradle, through elementary learning and on into the learning that only life can provide. She began a dream through her college studies of becoming an Interior Designer and worked tirelessly for 3 1/2 years toward that goal.

Then, Cupid stepped in, drew back two arrows, aimed them very carefully at two hearts and Kim and Ken fell in love. Marriage and family became her new dream. Kim and Ken raised 4 beautiful children, sent them all to college (except for Scott, who will leave this fall for BYU-Hawaii) and then returned to her original dream.


On July 25, 2010, Kim graduated from The Interior Design Institute in Irvine, California with her Bachelor's Degree in Interior Design. It was a perfect day and this mother cried tears of pride as I watched my daughter walk across the stage to receive her degree. I thought of her dad, and how proud he would have been to witness this moment.
Kim's journey has been one of many rewards. She has persevered both in the raising of an amazing family and also in never letting go of the dream that consumed her all those years ago. Her words to me, after the graduation ceremony was over, were, "I'm not finished yet, Mom! I want to go on for my Master's Degree!"

That's my girl! And definitely her father's girl! It wouldn't surprise me if she went all the way to PhD, just like her Dad. Gotta' love and respect that girl.