Seafood and Wine Festival

We spent the weekend in Newport at the Seafood and Wine Festival. Reminiscent of last year, we had a lot of fun. Unfortunately, the weather wasn't an improvement from last year. This trip we encountered extreme wind (it really rocked the motorhome.), rain, and hail. The wind even caused some issues with the tents set up for the festival, and it looked as if the opening on Saturday would be delayed. Luckily the organizers were able to batten down the hatches. Maybe 2013 will have less dramatic weather.

Valentine's Day

Valentine's Day this year was pretty mellow. Went to work and dealt with all that junior high "it's a holiday" drama. Of course I contributed (sort of) by feeding them sugar. ;)

Then I headed off to my sister's for a family dinner. Traci made the spaghetti. Mom made the marionberry pie.

More Birthday....The Weekend Edition.

Having a birthday happen mid week often means that celebration has to wait for a weekend when people who work Monday thru Friday have some time off. Of course that also requires some logistical planning and communication.

My pal Jen and I had been playing phone tag for a month. Sometimes it's like that. On Thursday she sent me a FB message about meeting up for dinner on Friday. The short version of the story is that after more "tag" we were able to settle on a meeting location. We had a great time: Dinner at the Macaroni Grill and dessert at Yogurtland. {I don't know about other parts of the country, but self-serve yogurt shops have been popping up all over Oregon!}

On Saturday I made the trip to Corvallis for a family dinner. We went to Terminus. It was the first time we'd been there and I have to say the food was really good. Unfortunately, the service was not fabulous. We were seated for probably an hour and forty-five minutes and saw our waitress three times. We wrapped up the evening with a trip to Coldstone. Gotta have ice cream. ;)

Birthday....

It's not really my favorite day. For some reason, birthdays are the day that makes me reflect and not always in a good way.

Today was a pretty good day. My mom called at 5:58. That's AM. She does mornings. I don't. My dad texted me at 7:04 as I was walking out the door to work. My sister called at 7:39 while I was in a meeting. {I swear. I'm the only non-morning person in my family!}

One my darling students, J.C. who is the daughter of a friend and coworker let it slip that today would be my birthday. She made up for it by bringing me cake.



And thanks to J's friend B.G. I turned 29 today. At least that's what she's been telling everyone. I'm okay with that age. If I could do go back to 29, how would life be different? See....reflection.

I ended this evening with my mom's apple pie. She left it for me after being here on Sunday. I saved it. :)

Flooding....

The last few days have brought snow, a warming trend and lots of rain. Getting to and from work yesterday was a bit nerve-wracking with water over many roads, and creeks rising quickly. This morning the call came at 5:20 that school was closed. There was no safe route to the school.

Roads have been closed near my parents' house. Luckily we're all safe and sound. Others are no so lucky. Nearby towns of Turner and Scio have been evacuated. The governor has declared a state of emergency for Marion, Benton, Coos and Lincoln counties. And last night in Albany a car was swept into Periwinkle Creek resulting in the death of a young mother and her infant. It's been quite a day.

Snowy 10K

Today was the Cascade Half Marathon. As in 2011, Tina and I did the 10K. We did pretty well, finishing with pace of just under eighteen minutes per mile. As predicted by the weather experts, it snowed. For half of the race. Oddly enough, the snow was preferable to the miserable wind and rain of last year's race.

My family delivers dinner

If you've been reading this blog, you've seen where I set a goal of no fast food this month. It's a bit odd, but necessary. I told my family, and they've jumped on board wholeheartedly. This week my parents have been in Salem three times for various things. On Saturday I made lunch and we ate it. Tuesday they met me at my house after work and brought fish for dinner. Tonight, they beat me home and provided spaghetti. I could get used to this.