So you think you can dance.....!

I have made the decision to let you all in on one of my deepest, darkest secrets. At first I was determined to NEVER let anyone know this secret, but for some reason I feel the need to share. So here goes: I am taking tap dancing lessons! Yes, its true. Now after you finish rolling around on the floor in laughter, please hear me out on this. You need to know the rest of the story.....


Sister Aileen, one of the Nun's at Mel's hospital (a Catholic healthcare facility), invited me to join her and a few other older-than-forty women who were taking tap lessons. My first thought was ,"Never in a million years!" Then I reconsidered. Why not? It might be fun. Sister Aileen reassured me the class was made up mostly of women like myself who had no intentions of going professional. It was just for fun and exercise. Hey, I could do that. A thousand years ago when I was young I took a couple of months' tap lessons. I decided to live dangerously and try it.

Well, I totally and completely enjoyed the first lesson! It was soooo fun! I even remembered the "shuffle-ball-change" steps of my first lessons many many years ago. I was a natural! After the second lesson, I am ready to invest financially in the whole thing and buy my very own tap shoes! (Now there's commitment for you!) When I dance, I can just feel all kinds of new neurological connections being made in my brain as I try to get my feet to do what my brain is telling them to do. Now I can exercise and not even know it! Now I can exercise and actually enjoy it! What a deal!

So, the next time you see me, if you want a little demonstation of what I am working on, I'd be happy to oblige. I do not see any performances on the big stage in my future, but I'm sure I can teach all my granddaughters a little dance or two. And, I just might ward off old-age-senility for another year or two. So watch out dancing world, here I come!

1776

OK all you book club fans, I have a recommendation for you. You have got to read 1776 by David McClullough! If you are like me, you know the revolutionary war took place, and that the Colonies prevailed, and now we have the United States of America, and that's about it. This is an enlightening account of what happened right after the battle at Concord and Lexington. It is well-researched and well documented. It will help you realize that it was more than the ability and genius of George Washington, Henry Knox and Nathanael Greene that won the battles. You will read of miracle after miracle that enabled the "rabble in arms" to defeat the most powerful nation in the world. And you can ponder Greene's prophetic comment, "We are fighting for our country, for posterity, perhaps. On the success of this campaign the happiness or misery of millions may depend." We are those millions who have benefitted from their fight and their sacrifice. We should learn what took place and never forget how fortunate we are to live in a nation such a this. And finally, we have even broader perspective because we know the ultimate purpose of the founding of this nation - so the gospel could be restored and taken to all the earth.

"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times...".

I think this quote by Charles Dickens applies to the time in which we live. And one of the aspects of the "best of times" is our ability to keep connected through this incredible technology we have now. I absolutely love to read others' blog entries to find out what's on their minds, what they have been doing, what they have been struggling with. The miles between us melt and there is an instant connection. It is a blessing to me because several hundred and several thousand miles separate me from beloved family members. We don't get to see each other every day. But blogging is the next best thing! I also get to meet very interesting people that I otherwise would never meet. Hooray for blogging!

Ta-Daaaah!

About 10 years ago, I started a quilt for Abbi. She was about 12 years old at the time. It was coming along fine, til Jessi got engaged. I had to put Abbi's quilt on the back burner so I could make Jessi and David a quilt for their wedding. Then baby McKenna came along, and I needed to make a baby quilt for her. Then the next thing you know, Audra and Mike got married, and I was once again in the wedding quilt business. Then along came Lydia, Kyle & Jordan, Emily, Tanner, and Summer, all needing a quilt. Abbi's quilt sat patiently in the cupboard.

Last summer I didn't have a wedding quilt or a baby quilt to make. I knew Abbi's quilt's time had come! I figured that since Abbi had waited so long, she might as well wait a bit more while I hand-quilted hers (to make it extra-special because she had waited so long.) Almost 12 months later, Abbi's quilt was finished!! A true miracle!

A small town a few miles north of us, Coburg, Oregon, was having a community quilt show. I took the opportunity to enter Abbi's quilt in the show, and here it is:

So thank you Abbi, for your incredible patience! Sorry it has taken me so long to finish this for you. Now, if you ever have a little girl and she asks for a quilt, she won't have to wait as long as you did.

Crocheting Fool

Jessi has gotten me crocheting again! I made the cutest (in my humble opinion) cap, poncho and bootie sets. Just thought I'd share them with you!

Wildlife Update

I guess it's about time I got back to posting a blog or two! I will write about our wonderful wedding experience soon, but for now I'd like to update you on our wildlife on the hill. So here goes:

Turkeys: I used to think turkeys were so picturesque! I got a kick out of them strutting through our yard every now and then. Well, forget the picturesque thing - turkeys are my enemies!! All of a sudden I come home, and they have shredded my hostas and destroyed my ground cover, pecking and looking for bugs to eat, I guess. Cussarutzafrutz! Stupid turkeys! Now every time I see them, I run outside and yell at them and scare them away. I don't care how picturesque they are, they need to LEAVE MY LANDSCAPE ALONE! I am going to keep "turkey artillery" by my back door (rocks or pine cones) that I can throw at them and let them know I am not pleased with their landscape destruction. I will keep you posted on the turkey war I am currently waging. I am hoping for victory, but it is a desperate battle!

Our villanous turkeys:

Deer: My former enemies, the deer, have totally behaved themselves this summer. I have sprayed my "deer fence" on everything they usually eat, and they have not touched it at all. I am very happy with my deer!

A few weeks ago we had 6 large buck with velvety antlers saunter up our hill. That was exciting! Unfortunately, I didn't think to take a picture, so hopefully next time they come I can scramble for my camera.

The best entry in my deer report is there are cute little fawns that visit us occasionally. There is a mom with one little baby, and then there are another set of twins! They are about the cutest things you've ever seen, and they zip and run around the hill just like little kids would do. Fortunately, I did snap a picture of them! So here goes:

Peacocks: Our lone neighborhood peacock came through our yard today with a trio of turkeys. I don't know if he thinks he's a turkey or he's just good friends with them, but it is so fun to see him every now and then! (It's a very poor picture, but hopefully you can see him in there.)

Chipmunks: We saw the cutest tiny chipmunks hiding in our rocks when we first moved in, but then we haven't seen them for about two years. Well, this summer they are back! The body measures about 6-7 inches and their tails are about the same length. They are also the cutest little guys you've ever seen! Unfortunately, I don't know how I am ever going to get a picture of them, because they are soooo fast and run at the slightest threat. You will just have to imagine them in your mind, or come and visit us and hope we are around when they decide to come out and run around.

Hummingbirds: I saw my very first hummingbird yesterday, drinking from the flowers of one of my hostas. He/she was a light green. I'm going to have to look into getting a hummingbird feeder so we can have them come all the time.

So there you have it, the official Pyne Wildlife Report! Just remember that you are all invited to come visit us and experience this wildlife first hand.

The Fellowship of the Unashamed

We attended a baptism last week, and on the program was a very interesting quote. It was from Torrey L. Korab, a BYU student, written for a class he attended in the fall of 1999. He said:

"I am part of the fellowship of the unashamed. The dye has been cast. I have stepped over the line. The decision has been made. I am a disciple of Jesus Christ. I will not look back, let up, slow down, or be still. My past is redeemed, my present makes sense, and my future is secure. I am finished and done with low living, small planning, smooth knees, colorless dreams, tamed visions, worldly talking, cheap giving, and dwarfed goals. I no longer need pre-eminence, positions, promotions, plaudits, or popularity. I do not have to be right, first, recognized, praised, regarded or rewarded. I now live by faith, lean on His presence, walk with patience, am lifted by prayer and labor with power. My face is set, my gait is fast, my goal is Heaven."

I like that quote because I think he has expressed what we must all do if we want to be a true disciple of Christ. In order to keep our covenants, we have to leave behind the world and it's values. We have to stop judging ourselves by the world's measuring stick. We get to look forward to a bright future with total assurance of His promises. We can rely completely on His power and on His love. There is no difficulty that He can't guide us through and help us conquer. What a wonderful blessing to belong to the fellowship of those who have chosen to follow Christ, those who have dedicated everything they have and everything they are to Him!