Journal Entry: Our Latest Vacation

On May 6 we ventured to Seattle bright and early in the morning, where we picked up our friend Becky Jones, the proceeded to SeaTac Airport. She dropped us off at the airport and stored our mini-van at her house for 8 days, bless her heart. We were on our way to Atlanta, GA.

Well, another great gal in a mini-van picked us up approximately 7 hours later--Mrs. Emily P. Rudolph, Dustin's mom, this time in Atlanta. After a sleep at the Hampton Inn, we ventured out the next morning for a day packed full of fun. First on the docket was the Georgia Aquarium-the largest aquarium in the world. Next we visited the Coca-Cola Museum, the highlight of the trip for me. I tasted all of the different soda and juice flavors Coke distributes throughout the world (I would advise those visiting Italy to steer clear of a carbonated drink called "Beverly," have you tried this one yet Erin Coletti? How about you Elijah?). We then toured Centennial Park, luncheoned at the CNN Center, and eventually made our way to Turner Field to watch a winning Braves game w/ Dustin's dad, mom, and brother "Uncle Hank".

After the Braves game, we drove inter-state, to Rutherfordton, NC and bunked at the Rudolph Household. The next day we watched Mollie, Dustin's little sister, graduate from National Honor Society. She performed a magic show with their bunny-rabbit named Kotsay. This involved Kotsay appearing from no-where with a flash of fire....in a roasting pot! There he was, sniffing around! The next thing we knew, he was put into a magic cage with Mollie turning a small handle on the cage, expelling little Kotsay flat-as-a-pancake! Both Elias and Jillian are still processing how this could have occurred, especially since the rabbit was alive and well when we returned home. Hmm.

Family Fish Fry: This came on Saturday at Mamaw and Papaw Painter's house in Lincolnton, NC. If we're in the area, we won't be missin' out on a fish fry, especially at Mamaw's (although Mollie and I almost missed this one due to a flat tire). You haven't lived until you've had a fish fry from Mamaw's kitchen. The day began with the men-folk gathering early at Mamaw and Papaw's to rebuild their deck. I think that all the boy-cousins were there...Dustin, Peter, Jacob, Casey, Zack, Joe, Dave, Hank, and Trey. What a treat for Mamaw to see her brood of grandson's in one day! Together with uncles, a contractor, and a watchful eye from a few ladies, they got (most of) the job done. Then came supper time: Fried fish, hush puppies, coleslaw, fries, and as always an array of dessert. At a fish fry, one's eyes are always bigger than one's stomach.

Saturday evening came much to quickly and it was time to say goodbye to dear family until we meet again. The Rudolph clan (sans Mollie and Liz *sniff*) was off again to Charleston, SC...Folly Beach, to be more precise. At the beach house we were greeted by thunder and lightning and a beating of rain. It looked as though our last days in the south would be drenched. However, while the next morning blustered some, it cleared up in the afternoon, and the following days were even better. One thing I always look forward to when we visit Charleston is a good walk on the beach. I try to go alone, and this particular morning was cool and clear.

Being large and pregnant has its advantages. For example, I wake nearly every hour of the night to change positions in bed (imagine a car doing a five-point-180 degree turn in the middle of the road and this is how I imagine I must look as I am trying to move from laying on one side to the other). This can be advantageous because sometimes when I wake up, I toss and turn so much that I am not tired anymore. Two options: lay in bed, awake for the next two hours, my mind buzzing away...or get up and get something done. Admittedly I often choose the first option, especially in the middle of the night. But, at times I am motivated toward the latter and have accomplished much in the early hours of day.

This particular morn I got up. The sun had not yet risen. I ventured outside toward the sound and smell of the Atlantic. I don't remember the last time I had watched a sunrise, but I made it outside to watch the sun come-up--so simultaneously simple and awesome. My alone time on the beach was precious, a time to pray, reflect, observe, listen, praise, and walk without interruption. Following my walk came a delicious, Emily-style breakfast of biscuits and gravy, and a full day of hot sun, sand, and ocean, all made even sweeter with family to spend it with.

A couple of days later, it was time to head home. We were all sad to go. Each time we leave, we talk about the next time we will see each other, it is only a "goodbye for now". Hopefully our next visit will be sometime in early autumn, this time with 3 bambinos in tow. Until then, we await Emmy and Pop pop to visit us in the Northwest around the time baby Georgia gets here. Boy am I looking forward to that! No more five-point-turns!

A Few More Newer Pictures

N.B. The mud on Elias' face...and how happy Jillian looks! That mud hole is now the "pond" collecting all the water drained from our yard's trench system. It is actually working quite well and we hope to attract some of the frogs from the pond next door to us. I keep telling Dustin we should get a catfish to live in it, too.

Land of Milk, Mud, and Honey.

Almost a month since our last post. In our family, we are learning the preciousness of the time we've been given. The past four weeks have been filled with working at our jobs, raising our kids, and toiling on what we have started lovingly calling our "property" or the "Land of Milk, Mud and Honey"....though only 0.6 acre, we feel like we've got quite a handful of earth to till and manage

MILK, MUD, and HONEY

Let's start with the milk...

We are getting two small goats at the end of May. One is a Nigerian Dwarf doeling who will produce milk around this time next year (the "MILK" part of our land's name). Since goats are herd animals, they need at least one other friend to keep them company. So the other goat we will adopt is called a Pygora--a cross between a Pygmy and Angora goat. It will be a "wether"-a neutered male, and we can shear its fur and spin it ourselves or sell it to be spun into yarn. We've met both goats. The first one we met provided the kids and I with a mildly traumatizing experience, mostly due to a barely-dodged attack by a Turkey upon the unsuspecting Elias. After that, Jillian kept crying "I'm REALLY scared!", but warmed up to the baby goat toward the end of our visit. The second goat we met last week at a small farm on Whidbey Island. This was a wonderful experience seeing another family's microfarm endeavor which they had started about a year ago.

Now for the MUD

The mud is the bane of my home management at the moment. While the drainage system Dustin dug throughout our yard is working well, we still have to clean up after ourselves. Not sure where all those clay/dirt clods that came from inside the trench are going to go, but Dustin has a plan.

We are busy planning and planting our "hobbyfarm" with most of our vegetable seedlings sprouted indoors, as the colder weather had prevented us from planting them outside. However, this week has been a success in getting our corn, cucumbers, beans, and some others outside. Peas and lettuces have already been sown.

We are in a routine with the ducks, who look full-grown now. Aside from a midnight encounter with five large raccoons (which spurred us on to finish (quickly) their nighttime pen), things have gone quite smoothly with them (oh, I forgot about the afternoon that Elias chased them around the yard, and into the blackberry thicket next to our property ["Mommy, I want to show you where the ducks are!" BIG smile]...with minor scratches, Dustin and I emerged from the brambles with all six ducks in tow). We think, however, that we only have two females, meaning the four drakes' days are likely numbered. If we decide to eat them, it should be before they are 4 months old, as their meat, apparently gets quite tough after this age.

And then comes the HONEY

The beehives arrived last week via UPS, and let me tell you that everything was put on hold so that they could be built and put together. On Monday, we pick up the bees and an Epi-Pen, just in case. I'm sure there will be more excitement to come with the bees.

This hobbyfarming thing has been interesting. It certainly is not easy work, and it is uncertain what types of harvest we will reap. Our goal is to make it a family affair, and thus far the kids seem to enjoy the endeavor, helping us, being outside, getting dirt under their fingernails, and adding their input ("I REALLY REALLY want a goat"). I have noticed that we rarely have time to have the TV on at all, sometimes going a few days between when we watch it. And I am learning to enjoy being outside more, even in the cold and damp Northwest. Was it this cold when I grew up here?

The hardest part of this for me, however, has been letting go of the pristine park-like manicured look of our yard. We hope to make the yard-turned-garden areas into tidy looking gardens, but they just don't have that look yet. On the other hand, God wants us to be good stewards of what he's given us and Dustin and I feel that this is a stewardship of our land (goal to grow our own, organic produce, milk, and eggs) and our time (more time together as a family, more time purposefully spent).

Download Feature Up and Running!

It has been a while since I have posted anything. This is mostly because I have not been motivated to write anything without posting a new photo with it. For the last few weeks we have been unable to download pics onto our computer. Well, thanks to Dustin's computer savvy, he figured it out. And here we are again.

On March 8, we got six Indian Runner ducklings. They were very little, just 4 days old when we got them. Today at 3 1/2 weeks old, they are quite big and their adult feathers are growing in. We shall soon be able to tell which ones are boys/girls based (apparently) on which ones begin to "quack". The females should have a louder quack and the males should have a soft quiet quack. Hopefully, we will at least have a few females as we got the ducks in order to provide us with homegrown duck eggs...yes, to eat. So far, all six ducklings have survived. From being picked up by the beak, to being chased around their swimming pool cage, to attempts at submerging them during their designated swimming hour, they are alive and growing--quickly! We are in the process of building their pen so that they don't have to live-in and stink-up our garage any longer. Unfortunately, the snow we have received the past two days has thwarted this process temporarily.

In other news, we are fervently seeking to find a church in Bellingham to call home. Oddly, it is a frustrating, humbling process for many different reasons and we did not anticipate it being so when we moved here. Yet, we are trusting our all-knowing and all-helping God during this season.

All for now,

Susan

February in Bellingham

This is Elias running out of the ocean in Maui. Back to reality though...

Last Saturday we rented a Roto-tiller to grind up the old roots, bulbs and dirt in our front garden area. The Tiller got the job done twofold: Dustin's muscles got even bigger--handling the tiller was quite the workout according to Dustin; and our garden area is ready to be planted after being tilled and mulched. Now, we are planning out where we will plant our vegetables this spring.

Today, the kids and Susan planted tulip and daffodil starts amongst some of the existing shrubbery (a few of the bulbs got enthusiastically pulled up after planting, then were replanted--not sure if they will still grow??). We also planted pea seeds today along the picket fence bordering the back yard.

Tonight on Dustin's dinner break, he stopped by home! We all ventured into the damp and dark, but clear night and found a viewing spot in our backyard to see the lunar eclipse! The moon was turning reddish-orange as we watched it. We even got some photos compliments of our tripod and new **SLR Canon Camera** (and Dustin's developing photography skills). Photos to be posted soon!

Family Pic

Here is a picture of us on Kaanapali Beach with Black Rock in the background during our recent vacation to Maui.

Five in Our Family

This is the new blog of the Rudolph Family, our latest attempt to document what is going on in our lives as individuals and as a family! We've titled it "Five in a Family". This is because we are expecting the 5th Rudolph to join us around the end of June. It's a girl!