Happy six years old, Rafe! (August 29)

Rafe entered our world six years ago, in a whirlwind. He was due September 7 and my c-section was scheduled for August 29. All the plans were in place for a friend to come over in the morning and watch the younger boys while Hans and I would calmly head to the hospital. Rafe apparently knew that calm birthing experiences are not my norm and decided to behave accordingly. We ended up rushing to hospital in the middle of the night so he could beat his scheduled arrival time by a few hours. He's been on the go ever since. Happy six years to you, Rafe Bastien!

Willows respite (August 24)

Hans and I spent an overnight respite here at The Willows Inn on Lummi Island. Lummi is a small, sleepy island, easily reached via a ten minute ferry crossing but seemingly a world away.
You can while away hours just sitting on the deck of the inn.

The Willows is part of the Slow Food movement, serving all manner of local fare. Spot prawns served on Sunday evenings draw crowds all summer long. The vegetables are fresh from the garden, above.

We love Riley and Judy, the owners of the inn. Riley's an idea guy who loves to get his hands dirty. He and Hans spent more time talking about chicken butchering than I ever thought possible. Don't even ask how one actually puts that device above to work.

Riley's among the handful of fishermen who catch via the ancient Native American practice of reefnetting. Once you've had wild reefnet salmon caught just off Lummi, everything else will pale in comparison. This is food the way it's meant to be!

Fair Week! (August 11-16)

"Wheel in the sky keeps on turnin'...."

I "heart" pictures of ridiculously happy children living it up on kiddie rides.

Are these two babies the essence of cute or what?

Flying Fish

I love swim lessons. Year after year, those two weeks at Teacher Linda's provide me the opportunity to just sit poolside and do nothing other than watch my children. Sometimes the weather doesn't cooperate but more often than not, the sun smiles on us. Once Kai realized swimming does involve getting one's head wet (though, ahem, some of us manage to avoid that), he had a blast flying into the water.

Kayak Camping

Hans and Jan went kayaking for a couple of days in celebration of Jan's recent birthday. ("Recent" is relative when one has a farm and five boys...) The weather was ideal and I was more than a bit envious of their island encounters. Although I doubt I would have had the stamina and courage to keep up with the two of them. In typical Hans fashion, this was no beginner's outing, although it was first time either of them had gone sea kayaking. They covered some serious territory and thoroughly enjoyed the adventure. My firstborn babe is indeed growing up.

Summer Scenes

the best boardwalk, ever

"How to Really Enjoy a Low Tide"

We had a full week with two Ugandan orphans; the crew of seven boys made the most of it. Trivia: The ship in the back, Lady Washington, starred in Pirates of the Caribbean.

where ski meets sea

creating veggie critters at the food co-op's community partyYeah for family-friendly races!Jan took charge of the vegetable garden this year and has an eager assistant in Kai.

'tis the season

Box o' books!
Jan & Per earn their keep.
pasture-ized

Four Down!

Earlier this summer Rafe became the fourth brother of the band of five to make his way through this book ~ as evidenced by its tattered appearance. One more to go...how time flies!