Trilliams

Trilliams are beautiful flowers that grow all over in the forest. We were always told never to pick them though. Once picked it takes them seven years to produce another flower. You must know, I only know this because someone told me. I've never actually researched it for myself.

The house that my parents bought from my grandmother had trilliams growing in the yard. My Mom told me that they were brought by my Grandmother, from her previous house. When my parents sold their house, my Mom dug the trilliams up and took them with her.

I love these little flowers. I don't really know why. Maybe it's because they're so simple and delicate. Maybe it's because they remind me of my Mom and Grandma. I can't say really. I just love them! We came across several on our hike the other day.

Depth of Field

In my reading I've learned about "depth of field". It's quite interesting, and something I never really looked at before.

This picture is an example of "great depth of field". Meaning almost everything in the picture is in focus.

















Where, this picture is an example of "shallow depth of field". Meaning only certain things are in focus.

















I can only hope that knowing these things will better my photography skills. My goal has never been to be a professional, but I do want to have the ability to take beautiful pictures.

Crown Point

I have been reading about landscape photography lately. I'm not very good at capturing really good scenery pics and want to be better.

On Thursday we took a spontanious trip up to the Columbia River Gorge so I could practice some of the stuff I learned in my books. I'm still not very good. Like anything else it will take lots of practice.

At least now I have something to guage my improvement by. This is taken from a view point just west of Crown Point at sunset.

Weekend in Sisters OR, Part 4

Sunday was our last day in Sisters. We had our breakfast at the lodge again, and of course, decided that a visit to the Sisters Coffee Co. was a necessity.

After we checked out, we got into the car and turned onto the highway. This is where we noticed something strange. A group of people parked on the side of the highway with camp chairs waving American flags. We wondered aloud what they were doing, but kept driving. We were, after all, on a mission for caffine!

As we pulled into town, we noticed more of these locals sitting or standing on the side of the streets waving flags. Some of them were holding home made signs. We caught a glimpse of what these signs said. "WELCOME HOME TROOPS!!!" Ahhhhh... it was all making sense now. We discussed how nice it was that this town came together to show their pride toward these brave men and women! We were still on a mission though.

After getting our coffee, we decided to cheer for the troops along with these nice people. We found a good place to stand so we weren't in any one's way, and waited. Pretty soon there was a loud noise in the distance. Then you could see a cop car followed by at least 200 rumbling motorcycles decked out in red, white and blue!

All of the sudden fire engines started screaming and horns started honking. People were cheering and whistling for what we realized was a bus full of troops. But it wasn't just one bus... There were 8 buses!

I snapped picture after picture. And as I focused my camera, I was overcome with emotion. Suddenly, I had tears streaming down my face. I was so proud of all these men and women! They had bravely fought to protect our country!

It was an indescribable event to be a part of and I'm very glad to have been witness to it! Here are some of the many pics I snapped through my tears of pride and joy.

Weekend in Sisters OR, Part 3

As most of you already know, the Banisters LOVE coffee! I realize that you may think it's a bit ridiculous to designate an entire post to a single coffee place. What you may not realize is that we were a bit nervous about where we would get our caffine dose in such a small town.

We ate breakfast at the lodge Saturday morning and immediately went in search of the best coffee in Sisters. We had a tip from a good friend that there was a fantastic coffee joint right off the "main drag" in town.

Well, we found what we were looking for right away. It was a place called Sisters Coffee Co. and it really did have some amazing coffee!

The owners started with what looks like a very tiny space that has since been torn down to make room for a huge coffee house. They now have a wonderful building with a cozy seating area with a nice crackling fire in a stone fireplace. There is a balcolny that overlooks the rest of the shop which has lots of game tables and several different games to pass the time while you enjoy your perfectly brewed americano.

If you'd rather sit outdoors and enjoy the clean, pure air that central Oregon has to offer, Sisters Coffee Co. has a lovely wrap-around porch and flagstone patio with plenty of seating for your enjoyment.

When you walk in and are disappointed by the long line because all you wanted was a regular cup of coffee, no worries! Instead of waiting, there is a bar to your left with at least 6 different blends of coffee waiting for you to serve yourself. "But what about payment?" you might ask. The ready-made coffee is all on the honor system! There is a jar, with a list of the prices that you deposit your cash into. Now tell me what could be better?

I hope that if you're ever in Sisters, or even just passing through, that you'll remember to turn off of the "main drag" and grab a cup of some truly fine coffee at the Sisters Coffee Co. Unfortunately, I was enjoying my americano so much that I only took one picture, and it's not that good. You'll just have to go and check the inside out for yourself!

Weekend in Sisters OR, Part 2

When we arrived at the Five Pine Lodge, we discovered that our cabin was even better than we had hoped! It was named "Sorensen" after the man who owned the first filling station is Sisters.
















When we stepped inside, we were greeted with a nice bottle of cabernet and some wine glasses.
















The fireplace/tv area were nice and romantic with a lovely view of the forrest behind the lodge property.
















The king size bed was nice and soft. It had lots of feather pillows and wonderfully luxurious bedding. And of course, a heavenly down comforter!
















Oh, and the best part... the bathroom! I could seriously LIVE in this bathroom! We've decided that the boy's room will be converted into a luxury bathroom for us. (We aren't sure where the boys will sleep yet...) The very large soaking bathtub was filled by a faucet IN THE CEILING!!! It scared me to death the first time I turned the tub on!

Weekend in Sisters OR, Part 1

My husband, Eric and I got a weekend away from the kiddos at last! In the 9 years that we have been married, we have only gone away together (alone) twice. It was time for us to have another trip alone. We decided to visit Sisters, OR. I had never been there and we found a great deal on a really nice place.

We dropped our kids off at our friend's house and took off for central Oregon. On the way there were lots of opportunities to stop and take pics. This is us at a view point of Mt. Washington. The scenery out there is amazing!

"STELLA"

For those of you who have followed me longer, you know that I love ducks. This is a new love... I didn't used to give them a second thought. That is, until they started camping out in our yard every spring! It started with just two, a male and a female Mallard. We lovingly named them Frank and Alice. They have returned every year for several years. They have become accustomed to us because we feed them. Alice will wait for us at the back door and will even peck on the door if we're not paying attention to her!

Last spring, a new guest arrived. She made a nest in our front yard between the house and a small tree. She was a very dilligent sitter. I rarely saw the nest with out her on top of it. I assumed that she wouldn't come back because we spent a lot of time taking pictures of her and checking on her. I thought she might decide we were annoying. I was wrong!

She's back again! Sitting on a new nest! We named her Stella. We're hoping to catch sight of the ducklings this year since we missed out on them last year. I hope I don't bore you with thousands of posts about my ducks! Here's a pic of our newest family addition.

How we spent our Easter Sunday

Ethan got sick the day before Easter, so we decided it would be better to stay home from church and keep our germs to ourselves. I was disappointed because Eric was supposed to sing and I was going to have to miss hearing it.

Thankfully our resident "tech geek" at church had streamed a wedding over the internet on Saturday for the groom's family in Portugal. He decided that since he had all the equipment set up, he'd stream the Easter services too!

So the boys and I sat in front of our computer and watched a live video stream from the church. (Which is three blocks away from our house!) I'm very thankful that I didn't have to miss the service! The boys thought it was really funny to see Daddy singing on our computer too.

My "Better Half"

This is my husband, Eric.

























Yes, I love him dearly!

Honeycrisp Tree

I love apples. I love to eat them. I love to cook with them and I love to bake with them. Apples are such a versitile fruit.

As you've probably seen already, I have extended family that own orchards up in Parkdale, OR. A recent visit to them inspired me to get my own tree and try to grow some apples for myself. I'm a little nervous about this because I've not had the best success growing things in a garden. I've done some reading though, and I think I'll be okay. I may need some help come pruning time.

I decided on the Honeycrisp variety because they're my favorite and they're always SO expensive. Of course, I won't actually have fruit on my tree for several years, but the journey will be well worth it I'm sure.

We purchased our tree and planted it in the pouring rain. (Which I've heard is good because they need lots of water.) So far, it's still alive. Let's just hope it stays that way!