Time to go rafting!

Nothing like a group of friends, a hot sunny day, and the cool refreshing water of the Kern river. If my camera battery hadn't died on me you'd see a little more action footage, but hopefully this will wet your palate for more. Visit the River's End Rafting website and make this a stop on your summer vacationing circuit. This is my brother's company so tell him I sent you and he will hook you up.

In other news, we are HALF WAY to our goal of 100 PEOPLE on the 100 DAY CHALLENGE, so if everyone who has accepted it will just recruit ONE person, we will be there!!!

Now I am off to Seattle to see my SIBS. I will report on that next...

Artist-in-law

Our favorite way to view a Bruce Brainard painting is on the easel in his studio. Well, our most favorite way would be hanging permanently on one of our walls, but his paintings don't run cheap, so we've learned to savor the painting we were given as a Christmas gift once, and enjoy the rest of his paintings from a "so close and yet so far" distance before they are shipped off to the galleries that carry his work. Bruce's paintings are filled with tranquility, light, and soothing colors that sweep you into the scene of the landscape they protray. You can glimpse a few more of his pieces at the following two links:

David Lusk Gallery
Munson Gallery

Bruce's talent spills over into many facets in his life. He skiied moguls competitively for several years in the beautiful mountains of Idaho, and can still make most anyone look like bunny hill material. He is adventurous and loves his European travels which take him to the remote countrysides of Tuscany where he is able to capture photos that inspire his paintings. He is a great teacher and mentor to Brian and I with his profound wisdom and insight. He is kind and gentle to his family, and able to provide for them fully through his passion and gift for art. He is also hilarious, and would find this entry sappy and sentimental, but I can't help it (see Brian's comment - you'll feel more at home). Happy birthday Bruce, we love you.

How's your Hundred?

I'm pleased that so many of you have committed to a hundred day challenge--and amazed at your ambitious goals. It exhausts me reading through them and realizing "Oh, yes, I need to do that too," and "That's one I should really work on as well." But my own goal is proving to be enough of a challenge for me for now. Thanks to all who have posted the challenge on your own blogs. It's a lot more fun to do the challenge if you know someone else who has also taken it on--and as my friend Marianne said: "Even though I don't know most of the people on your list, and none of them have the same goal as me, I still feel like I have a support team. It makes me feel confident that I'll do what I set out to." I hope you feel the same way. We have 35 committed...1/3 of the goal! But we don't want to lose momentum, so keep referring your friends as they learn about your 100 days. I re-issue the challenge to those who are NEW, and invite those of you who are now SEASONED in this endeavor to share with us your successes!

Dads R Rad

So I think the title of this little Primary activity in honor of dads pretty much sums up my feelings about Father's Day. Unfortunately we had a few mispronunciations this year that inaccurately grouped dads in the rodent family, but I think they still felt loved as they putted around the homemade mini-golf course with their children. I know I am grateful for my dad who is one of the kindest, gentlest men I know, and loves life, people, art, cars, swiss cheese, remote control anythings, talking, laughing, movies, and his grandkids. His weekend trips to hang out with us are better than Disneyland for our children, and he is a big part of our family.

I am also in awe of my husband who is so deeply involved in his kids' lives I don't even know where to begin in tribute to him. He is the axis their world spins around, and I love watching him in action as he coaches their sports teams, volunteers in their classrooms (whether Kindergarten or princess preschool) takes them swimming, biking, hiking, camping, or even just to 7-11 for slurpees. He cleans wounds, wipes tears, changes diapers, wrestles, laughs, and plays with them. He is their teacher, their mentor, their example and their biggest hero. He is the kind of Father I dreamed of for my children and I am so grateful for him. I am also thankful for my Father-in-law who taught Brian this depth of involvement through his own good example.

Dads R Rad. What more can I say?

Do you accept...

THE HUNDRED DAY CHALLENGE?

I would like to issue a challenge to anyone interested. The rules are easy and the results are amazing. In celebration of tomorrow (June 12th) which marks the end of my own hundred day challenge, I am sharing the wealth. Here's the background on it: Our son came home from his hundredth day of school party with a journal that said: "One hundred days ago, I couldn't write. Now I can sound out words and I can write. And I can make my fives the right way. I like school." OK, the spelling was a little choppier, but it struck us how he had gone from unable to read, write or do math, to being able to do all three in one hundred days. This got my husband thinking. If a Kindergartner can learn so much in 100 days, why not us? And he put himself on a hundred day challenge. Then he got me started, and I set the goal of working on "that book" I always intended to write...and 99 days later, I have made incredible headway on something that otherwise would have gone untouched. (Entire plot is outlined, book is named, characters established, and 55 pages of single spaced writing are completed.)

So here is the challenge: Choose a goal to work on daily for 100 days. It could be ANYTHING--healthier eating or exercise, taking a class of some sort, finishing an unfinished project, practicing patience or other attributes, learning a new skill, language, instrument, etc., reading books, cooking, playing with your kids, deepening spirituality, keeping up on your home, accomplishing a goal at work, taking time for yourself...you get the idea. Anything you would like to tackle for 100 days. Once you have chosen the goal, you simply make a conscientious effort to work on it daily for 100 days. THEN....report back on September 18th and share your success story!

Are you game??? My goal for my next 100 day challenge is to get 100 people on the challenge...so I hope you'll be willing to join Brian and I. Invite your friends and family too. In the comments, state your name and your goal, and from there it's up to you. I don't think you'll regret the decision to take this on!!!

Happy Hundred!

my sisters

Having no sisters of my own, the law was kind enough to step in and give me sisters via marriage. I am so happy to have 3 (soon to be 4, maybe 5...) sisters that have come to me through my own tying of the knot and through the marriages of my brothers--all who have chosen well! Today and tomorrow Lori and Lolly celebrate their b-days so this post is especially in their honor.( In fact, if it weren't for Lol I wouldn't even be a blogger, so pretty much my whole blogspot is thanks to her persistence!) Anyway, these are two incredibly talented, beautiful and amazing women that I am proud to claim as sisters and more importantly--as friends. Happy birthday to you both, and when I'm on a different computer--the one that holds my photo library-- I'll share your pretty faces with the www!

Republicrat for President!

In an effort to fuse the political divide in our country, I'd like to introduce a new political party to the presidential race, and I even have a candidate I'd like to nominate. He represents the best of two parties and will be known as a Republicrat. I probably enjoyed the recent debates more than the average viewer, since I got to hear this lesser known candidate "weigh in" on everything from my own private living room couch-- and although politics may not be his thing, the man can debate! Brian is officially old enough to run for president come July, and the fact that politics is not his thing is really his strength in this race. So ignore the prediction of the psychic twins who have all but sworn in Hillary, and cheer on Rudy McRomney or Obama all you want...but come next November, be prepared for real change when this mutation hits Washington center stage. Go purple!