Busy, busy, busy

It's been one week since Jordan arrived at PDX to begin her three week stay while her mom, Cyndi, is in South Korea as the leader of a mission trip along with several students from CBU.

Any stay with Grandma and Grandpa Boes has to include at least one visit to our local Starbucks. And Jordan knows very specifically what she wants: a decaf frappacino with drizzles of caramel and chocolate and lots of whipped cream.

The day after she arrived, Megan, Jordan, Jennifer and I all met at the blueberry field to pick the yummy fruit. I forgot my camera that day, so I had to show Jordan holding the blueberry peach cobbler that we made with those fresh berries. That look of Jordan's makes you think she can hardly wait to dive in, but unfortunately for her, she doesn't like cobbler. She did enjoy lots of the fresh berries, though.

I had to add this picture to make everyone think that maybe Jordan is hesitant to go on the rides at the carnival in downtown Salem. But...

She tried them all multiple times. No fear here!

Besides all of the exciting stuff above, Megan's blog tells about her first experience diving off a diving board. She also went to Jennifer's house this week and learned how to sew on a sewing machine. By the end of her stay, she should have a Christmas quilt. There have been crafts, visits to the library, lots of dog fun, and my next blog will begin with a trip to the ocean. Stay tuned!

Dog-gone good times

Dogs (and one cat) are a big part of Jordan's day while visiting us for three weeks. Here's Molly, Baby Brother and Oliver all sharing some lap time.

Sitting so quietly is rare for these two.

I was hoping that we could get a pic of all of Jennifer's dogs in one shot, but that was wishful thinking. So Jordan got some treats to try and attract as many as possible. That's Oswald on the left and Wycliffe (bull mastiff) on the right.

Here's Maeve

And that's King (great dane) on the left with Oswald hoping for seconds.

Herm is honored by our city/mayor

Tonight, Herm was presented the Vern Miller Distinguished Service Award for 2007-2008. The person who nominated him had this to say (for safety sake, I will use Herm's initials when referring to him):

"...HB has sacrificed hundreds of hours of his time, energy and compassion for people to make Salem the caring community it has become. As a driver of the West Salem Dream Center, he is the force and the leader behind several noteworthy projects which have attracted hundreds of volunteers, including the Edgewater Free Medical Clinic, the West Salem Homeless Solutions Projects, projects by the Salem Leadership Foundation, countless West Salem Rotary Projects, and many more. HB also provides invaluable intervention in solving neighborhood issues. As Vice-Chair of the neighborhood association, HB is known for helping neighbors solve many issues in an amiable and unbiased manner. When lighting at a local church raises concerns by a local citizen, HB is there to broker agreement. When residents of a trailer park are facing eviction, HB is there to offer assistance and advice. When volunteers are needed for a clean-up project in the older Edgewater district, HB is first to show up with lawn tools, strong labor and a winning smile until the work is done.

"HB sets the example, much akin to Vern Miller. His love for people and their needs in our community reflects the most noble of endeavors and effects. Salem is much, much better because of HB. This award is a small recompense for his accomplishments and self-service for others. I highly recommend him for this award."

Congratulations!

What can be said about our granddaughter, Maya.

Today, Maya flew back home after a week-long stay here with Herm and I. My friend, Marjo, has had her grandchildren come to stay with her for a week at a time, and that idea took root in my mind to try something similar. Following our family reunion in Sun River earlier this month, we were able to work it out with Eric & Sachiko to have Maya remain behind after they returned home and have some individual Grandma & Grandpa time. Most of my blog features pictures that show what we did for fun activities. But what about the in-between times?

Most would describe Maya as quiet, even a little shy. She enjoys her alone time and loves to read. Just recently, she voiced her desire to have her own room. But in a 3-bedroom house that includes a brother, it wasn't going to be able to happen that way. Thankfully, Sachiko is very innovative and put a curtain around the lower bunk to give her a little privacy. But being at G & G's with no siblings or cousins around, we found that Maya can be very talkative, and we made lots of time available to listen.

Maya moves at a slower pace than a lot of the world around her. But the two dogs and cat that live here in our house really liked that. She showered them with lots of her love and attention. They didn't have to worry about loud noises and quick movements that many children demonstrate. Our dog, Molly, could hardly wait til Maya got the quilt spread out on her lap so that the dog could jump up and have her head and belly scratched.

I found that Maya is willing to give up on her own plans to help out when asked. And because of that, we had fun baking a blueberry cake together. And she eventually got to play the computer game that she was hoping to do.

We all had smiles on our faces every time we heard Maya's cute giggle. It seems to me that Maya would rather be smiling than frowning, and the photos in my other blogs will show how beautiful that smile is. When you see Maya's smile, it's contagious, and I find myself wanting to do everything I can to make it happen over and over.

Sometimes people who are quiet don't let you know what they are thinking deep down inside. But when Maya said to me today, "Grandma, am I ever going to see you again?" I was almost shocked. My immediate response was, "of course you will." But then I wondered why she was thinking about such a heavy subject as that, so I asked "why did you ask me that?" And she openly shared with me, "but maybe you'll move away." So I had a wonderful opportunity to share with her how much I love her, and if I ever moved, I would hope it would be closer to her rather than any farther away. Those aren't the kind of subjects that get talked about when there's lots of noise and confusion around, so having that quiet moment with her meant everything in the world to me.

I so much appreciated Maya's desire to do the right thing. For the most part, she wants to follow the rules, so when we told her it was time to shower, come to dinner, or most anything else, she did as we asked. No, "just one more minute" or " can't I do...?". Her heart shows that she desires to do the right thing. And I'm confident that that attitude will serve her well throughout her life.

Another thing I hope will follow her around forever is that she doesn't like to spend money. WOW! when we were at Walmart, the Dollar Store, etc. shopping I would ask her about some item, and she would say she hadn't brought her money along. When I volunteered to pay for it and she could pay me back, she would say "I want to save it."

Maya is very grateful to others when they do something for her or give her something. While standing in line to get her ticket today to fly home, she told me "thank you, grandma, for being so nice to me." I had to wrap my arms around her and tell her "thank you" back, because that's not something any of us can hear enough. When I bought her a watch at the dollar store (that's right, everything is only $1), she was thankful for it. It didn't matter how big or how small, she was right there to show her appreciation.

So while children learn a lot from adults, I believe that they can be teachers, too. I know I would have missed out on a lot if I hadn't had this wonderful week with my oldest granddaughter. I know I'll be a better listener, because I don't want to miss out on the heart of the one speaking. I desire to move at a slower pace so that I can enjoy some of the pleasures that come with it. And I'm sure I will find much more to smile about.

So thank you, Maya, for teaching me this week. And thank you, too, Eric & Sachiko for the sacrifice you made this week to allow your daughter to spend an awesome week with us.

Downtown Salem is FUN! (July, 2008)

Each Wednesday during the summer, the city closes two blocks downtown and features a farmer's market. We stopped at a couple of the vendors to purchase fresh fruit and vegetables, plus we went to Riverfront Park which is where the Salem Carousel is located. On a different day, Herm and I visited a kid's museum named after A.C. Gilbert, the inventor of erector sets.

Oregon's capital building is quite stunning
on a beautiful summer's day.

The fibia is connected to the ......

Maya points something out to Grandpa.

Andrew, Megan and Oliver at the carousel.

Cyndi & Jordan

Maya picked a unicorn to ride.

Riverfront Park has a great playground.

There's a large area for exercising.

The girls chow down on fresh raspberries purchased
at the Wednesday Farmer's Market.

Fantastic Fountain Fun (July 14, 2008)

Maya's week-long stay at Grandma and Grandpa's house included a visit to the fountains that are right across the street from the capital building. The water was cold, but the weather was hot (in the mid 90's), so it was very refreshing. Here's some of the photos I snapped.

Super Girl!!!

B-r-r-r, it's freezing in the water.

Maya is using her foot to stop the water from coming up. She says it was hard to do.

That's Maya in the middle running through the water.

Maya is cold, but you can tell from her smile that it was FUN!

John's Incredible Pizza (It really is)

On Memorial Day, Cyndi and Jordan, Herm and I, and Eric's family all went to John's Incredible Pizza to try it out. It's a pizza restaurant with lots of games like Chuck E Cheese, but is even better because it also serves buffet style. The food was good, and some in our group tried types of pizza that we had never heard of such as macaroni & cheese. There were several rooms that could be selected for eating your food, then any number of games could be chosen using coins that were purchased. While there, we celebrated Sarah's 6th birthday.

Hold on tight, Maya

Even the adults entered in on some of the games.

Father and son compete

Chuck E Cheese doesn't have anything like this!

Jordan, what was so scary?

Girls just gotta have fun

It seems that when Jordan, Maya and Sarah get together they manage to have some fun. On this visit (5-08), Herm and I were staying at Cyndi's, and Eric's family came up to Riverside to meet us so we could all spend Memorial Day together. Judging from the smiling faces, these girls were having a good time dressing up.

Maya visits Silver Creek Falls 7/11/08

When Maya came to visit us, we asked her what she would like to do. One of her requests was to go behind the waterfalls at Silver Creek Falls. We had done this during the winter during a previous visit, but it was very cold and icy. This was quite a contrast.

Maybe you can tell by this photo how much she enjoyed it.

Adventures in Riverside, CA

The following pictures were taken in May, 2008 while Herm and I visited Cyndi & Jordan.

We took a hike in Riverside that had this view.

Jordan in "jail"

Jordan poses while we toured the Mission Inn located in downtown Riverside. This is the place that Cyndi got to stay in when she came to interview for the position at Cal. Baptist.

That's a long way down!

We found a car show in the area, so we asked Jordan to pose in front of her favorite car.

Cyndi often goes to this Saturday Market in downtown Riverside.

Karate Kids (I know, it's Taekwando)

Noah gets ready to spar

Maya sparring (on right)

Noah kicking a board

Maya breaking a board

Maya and Sarah showing their form with the whole class

The gym where the kids take their classes is in a church in their neighborhood. All of the designs on the wall are painted on and are very well done.