2016: A Year in Review

It feels like the years are flying by around here and I often have no way of distinguishing one year from the next.  I wanted to take a few minutes to highlight some of the biggest memories of 2016, mainly just for myself when I look back later.  This year was marked mainly by adjusting to life with a daughter and figuring out how to be parents.  We continued our volunteering with Foster Parents Night Out, thanks to grandparents being willing to watch Dahlia each month.  Luke coached a soccer program for work and was heavily involved in the planning and execution of a neighborhood orchard.  I found myself often at the library for story times, and also found ways to volunteer, at my old school and also at Zenger Farm, continuing with their Healthy Eating on a Budget classes.  We were able to support many friends and families by taking meals after new babies were born and folks were walking through hard times.  We also had the chance to welcome many more foster kids into our home.  Since I stopped working, we have had the flexibility to have kids for longer periods of time, the longest being a little over a month.  Kids have been in our home as they are in the process of waiting to transition back to family members or if they need a place to go while a more permanent foster home is found for them.  We had 17 children in our home, ranging from 18 months to 16 years old.  We got to experience many ordinary moments with these kiddos like homework, playing at the park, reading books, and driving to appointments.  We also got to experience many special moments like birthday parties, taking kids to the ocean for the first time, and seeing families reunite.  That has continued to be a challenging and rewarding way to extend radical hospitality to young people who so desperately need it.  Now, month by month...

January:
*Welcomed the year hiking at Silver Falls State Park
*Luke went on a winter backpacking trip in the snow with some friends to Lena Lake, up in the Olympics
*We made soap out of the lard from a pig we butchered


 

February:
*We spend a weekend at Rockaway Beach with family- Dahlia's first time to the ocean!
*ML's sister Lisa and her husband Ray visited
*Bagby Hot Springs!

March:
*Nothing too out of the ordinary


April:
*We went to go see the magnolias blooming in Washington Park.  What an incredible sight we have always heard so much about!
*My parents sold their home in Vancouver

May:
*We dedicated Dahlia at our church home of Imago Dei Community
*Helped my parents move into a rental home that they will stay in until they are ready to make their next step
*Adelman Peony Farm down I-5 was an incredible sight with all the flowers blooming and it was free!  Way better than the tulip festival.

June:
*Chicago trip to see Hannah and Quilen's new place and all the work they're doing on the Chicago Eco House
*An awesome women only bike ride with folks from Bridger
*Early warm days at one of our favorite spots, Oxbow Park with our good friends, Brandon and Victoria
*My grandpa passed away and we got to see a lot of family during the memorial service and weekend

July:
*Some wonderful camping including up by Mt. Hood, where we got to hike two trails we've been wanting to check out for a long time, Ramona Falls and McNeil Point
*Avett Brothers concert at Edgefield
*Camping up by Mt. Adams- Dahlia is a real trooper when it comes to camping!

August:
*My sister and her family here for their annual visit.  Lots of wonderful time with them, including camping, floating at the river, lazer tag, and sleepovers.  The kids are 9 and 11- such fun ages!  And it was so great to see them interact with Dahlia
*Our dear friend and old neighbor, Theta, passed away.  It was so sweet that Erin got to be here for the funeral

September:
*Josh Garrels concert at Revolution Hall for our 6th anniversary date
*Bluegrass festival up at Timberline Lodge, kicking off a weeklong adventure, that led us to Bagby, Breitenbush and camping at Olallie Lake.  One last summer hurrah!


October:
*Cook at the MCC Sale down in Albany- delicious seasonal veggie sandwiches on homemade foccacia bread
*Our 4th annual neighborhood apple cider pressing party

November:
*I finally made it to a harvest with the Portland Fruit Tree Project and picked persimmons
*Hannah came to visit and travelled with us to Montana for Thanksgiving.  Much of our time in Kalispell was spent with Luke's aunt, Tauntie, who had just found out she had cancer and had surgery a few days before we all arrived.  Our feast wasn't the same without her!

December:
*My dad got his knee replaced
*I hosted my 2nd annual cookie exchange party with girlfriends
*We got to enjoy a week with Luke off of work, in which he did lots of little house projects and we got to snowshoe up on Hood
*We ended the year with a group of old college friends and their families.  I think the adults were outnumbered by children and the party might have started at 4pm ;)

On becoming a foster parent

A week ago, I sat on a panel of foster parents for people who were interested in learning more about what it looks like to step into this journey.  Tonight, I sit at my house with two kiddos tucked into my guest room, aged 7 and 9, sleeping soundly and my own 8 month old daughter asleep in our room.  The girls' 5 year old brother has been with us for the last four nights, but left us today to transition to a longer term foster placement. 

Walking away from the panel last week, I was struck by the fact that to the outside world, I am a foster parent, but in my heart, that is a title that doesn't ring true.  I have been an emergency foster parent for the last two years, taking kids into our home on the weekends and after hours with my husband, Luke.  I became a mama last September when our little one, Dahlia, was born.  That being said, I feel like I am just now learning how to be a parent.  One thing I have realized with my involvement with our state's Department of Human Services and the families that is serves is that there is such a crisis shortage of safe and open homes that my inexperience of being a parent is outweighed by my willingness to open up my home and my heart. 

Over the last week, I have realized that even if I am not confident in my parenting skills, I have much to offer these three children that are in our home.  After all, I can...
-get the spaghetti stain out of their white shirt
-buy them underwear that fit at Walmart
-run a bubble bath (until the 5 year old uses up a whole bottle of shampoo and can't seem to rinse off)
-do laundry, so many loads of laundry
-drive them to school and pick them up on time
-read with them
-give them a shoulder to lean on
-hold their hands when we cross a street
-give them a snack
-make chocolate chip cookies, and give them each a part to help with, and of course let them eat the dough
-take their temperature when they have a fever in the middle of the night and place a cool washcloth on their forehead
-pour their milk into their Lucky Charms
-double tie their shoelaces for the twelfth time today
-play on the teeter totter with them
-pick them up when they fall
-make them mac and cheese (obviously the blue box kind)
-cover them with a blanket and admire their precious sleeping faces
-let them beat me at board games
-and my personal favorite... have impromptu dance parties in the living room

Luke was letting each of the kids have turns with his instruments.  Then, they asked him to play a song.  He began with a lovely acoustic rendition of "What Does the Fox Say?", followed by "Let it Go".  During which, all three kids and myself were "busting a move" (their words) in the living room while Dahlia napped in the other room.  It was one of those moments that I so desperately wanted to snap a picture of to remember it for months to come, and yet knew that bringing out my phone would cheapen it.  Instead, I chose to wink at Luke, watch the joy on the kids' faces as we twirled around the living room, and realize that this is what we can bring and is exactly what they need.

We have no idea what we're doing, and it feels a little crazy quite often.  But in the end, we just do our best to meet the needs of some innocent children who have gone through some tough stuff and hope that our actions speak our love.

oh, the places that shape us...

when i think back over my life up to this point, i can easily identify seasons and places that have shaped and formed me.  jobs i held, homes and communities i lived in, cities i explored, people i met who have challenged and supported me.  there are some that spring to mind quicker than others and for me, one of those places is Camp Tadmor in lebanon, OR.


 Tadmor is a place i consider to be sacred as it was fundamental in the formation of my faith and relationship with christ.  located two hours from my growing up home, i was lucky to spend a week there each summer as soon as i was old enough for sleep away camp.  i have a strong memory of sitting around the campfire at the end of the week when i was about 12 or 13, realizing that i wanted a relationship with christ that would be all my own, and be something more than just religion as it had been for me in the past.  as soon as i hit college age, i knew i wanted to spend my summers there on staff.  i served on the counseling team for two summers, working alongside about ten other staffers each summer to guide different groups of campers as they came up one week at a time.

my alter ego: kazam

the great folks i got to serve alongside my second summer

 during those summers, i got to do lots of things.  i'm not sure there has ever been a season where i've taken so many goofy pictures!  between the mud pit, 100 feet water slide, swimming in the lake, rock climbing, hikes, exploring in the creek, paint ball, camp fires, singing, team building, night games, canoeing during one on ones with campers, eating meals family style with campers, dressing up in ridiculous clothing either for wacky wednesday or "just because", sleeping under the stars, brushing my teeth with 100 other girls at an outdoor sink, forgoing showering for the summer since i decided that was better than a cold shower, writing encouragement notes, weekend adventures down the hill into town and doing lots of dishes and cleaning lots of toilets, it's no wonder that those two summers are a bit of a blur in my mind. 

wacky wednesday- five bucks if you can spot me

where else in life is it ok to wear a potato chip bag as a hat?

action shot in the mud pit.  quality bonding with campers!

  

yes, i seriously did wear those overalls all summer and they were not part of my dress up repertoire.  to mogli's family, before they met me, i was known as "overalls".

and that's not even mentioning all the things that i feel i walked away with: i learned to pray, in anticipation that my prayers would come true.  i learned the fundamentals of my faith, and they were cemented as i got to explain them each week to children who had the same questions i had.  i got my first taste of living in community by life with dozens of other young people for 8 weeks, spending 24/7 with each other (which as you can imagine had its ups and its downs).  i got to observe christian family and marriages through the full time staff that was serving at camp.  i had serious crushes that were distracting from my service at times.  i learned the art of encouragement.  i connected with people with whom i had nothing in common except christ.  i learned how to serve humbly.  i also got to make friendships that still stand to this day.

it was at camp that i met my soul mate- mogli, known by some as carly.  at first, we did not get along AT ALL, but then quickly forced a friendship based on the fact that we both have african sisters.  i'm so grateful that we took that walk on the beach... (p.s. it's a little embarassing the amount of pictures i had to scroll through that looked like variations of this one...)

 since then, camp has held a significant place in my heart.  on the day luke proposed to me, he said we could go anywhere to celebrate, and i chose camp!  the last few years, our church's men retreat has been hosted at camp and i have been able to go along to cook, which fills my heart so much to once again be in the place where me and my savior first met.  i am looking forward to the map of my life, to see which other places shape and grow me. 

spring is springing and we're still waiting...

feeling inspired by my bro-in-law john who has mastered handcrafted sodas at his cart, pyro pizza, and also by the bag of frozen rhubarb leftover from last spring, i decided to give this recipe a try.   i was delighted by the strong ginger flavor and liked that it was refreshing without being overly sweet! 



homemade rhubarb ginger soda
recipe from homemade pantry by alana chernila

2lbs rhubarb, cut into 1-inch pieces
8 cups water
4 tbsp fresh lime juice (2-3 limes)
1 tbsp fresh ginger, peeled and roughly chopped
1/2 cup sugar or more to taste*
a few sprigs of fresh mint, thyme, or lemon balm (whatever you have on hand)

1. combine the rhubarb and water in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil over medium-high heat.  reduce the heat to low, and cook for about 20 minutes, or until the rhubarb is almost dissolving.  use a slotted spoon to scoop out the rhubarb.

2. add the lime juice to the rhubarb water, along with the ginger and sugar.  raise the heat to medium high and cook at a low boil, uncovered, for 20 minutes or until the mixture is slightly reduced and thickened.

3. remove it from the heat, add your herb of choice (i used mint), and cover.  let steep for 5-10 minutes.  taste and add sugar if needed.  strain through a fine-meshed sieve into a jar or bottle and let cool.
yield: 1 quart syrup

to serve: mix 1/3 cup syrup in 1 cup seltzer or club soda.  serve chilled or over ice.  sit on the porch and take in all that surrounds you!

*rather than sweetening this syrup, i added some simple syrup i had on hand when mixing my sodas and it did the trick! 



a jar of flowers in the kitchen instantly brightens my day!



 
this afternoon, after a strong and sudden spring rain, this rainbow appeared outside our kitchen window.  it was actually a double rainbow for a second.  everytime i see a rainbow, i can't help but be reminded of god's promise to noah when a rainbow appeared for the very first time in biblical days.  luke and i are holding on to god's promises, particularly as we wait to hear about a home.  we placed an offer several months ago on a short sale home, and it is still pending.  we are excited at the prospect of being in the lents neighborhood, by many of our dear ones, and are considering doing respite care for families in the foster care system.  all that to say, we are excited at the possibilities!  yet, in this season of waiting, of anxiously checking email and text TOO many times a day, hoping to hear something, anything, luke and i are realizing the good that comes in the wait.  we are realizing together how good it is for us to be in a situation where we cannot do anything to change the outcome.  it practically forces our trust and reliance on christ.  it encourages us to communicate clearly about our hopes and dreams with one another and also leads us to moments of meaningful prayer, where we can pour out all that we are hearing to the One who never tires of listening to His children.

we are crossing our fingers, praying, and hoping that this house is the one and that we find out soon, but until then, we will rest in Him and enjoy the journey.