Deer Hunting in Dufur

I know that I’m not alone in my sentiments of loving fall. It really is the BEST season. My favorite things about fall aren’t just the leaving turning or the crispness in the air, but all the memories that are included. As soon as I smell that wonderful crisp fall smell, I think of my volleyball days; oh how I loved my volleyball days! But those are long gone, and now the smell means walk with Seth and Sam gathering leaves, fire pits in the back yard with my hubby, canning and making applesauce, and hunting time. And while I don’t actually hunt (only my hubby does), it means a fall trip to my in-laws house in Dufur. We pack up the car and drive through the beautiful Gorge as the leaves are turning, watch Caleb and Levi’s football games, pick apples, go on walks in the woods, and I pack up all my scrapbooking stuff because my mom-in-law graciously takes care of Seth and Sam while I scrapbook! Doesn’t that all sound magical?

First, we watched the football games. Levi is the starting center for his team, and Seth and Sam thought it was pretty cool that he gets to hike the ball every time!Sam playing with uncle Caleb. He loves his uncle Caleb!The boys spend a lot of time on their grandparents shoulders during the games, which they think is pretty special (Seth with Deedo)  They have the best grandparents who love to play with them!

I’m pretty sure that this is the warmest that it’s ever been for hunting season. The implications of this were that the leaves were really crunchy when trying to quietly stalk deer and that my husband’s hunting outfit was absolutely atrocious. I really can’t stop laughing when I see him wearing this:Come on…who doesn’t think of Joe Dirt when they see this picture? Notice the boys’ binoculars around their neck? I was pretty proud of that art project—their very own hunting binoculars complete with elk stickers for decorations. Grandpa Deedo took Sam and Seth on their first “hunt,” a “three-year old hunt” which meant a very loud walk through the woods where surprisingly they didn’t see any deer. Maybe next year boys.

We visited “Paradise Tree” which is an apple tree standing alone in the middle of a field that has a unbelievable yield of apples, especially since it receives NO care. Diane and I picked four bags chalk full of wonderful apples that I’m still working on making into applesauce. You can’t beat this view while picking apples:  That’s Mt. Hood in the background, isn’t it amazing? Seth and Sam got to stand on the top of the big blue truck and pick a couple with me. Then they got to ride in the truck home with Deedo while chomping on their crisp apples: Beyond all these fun times, these weekends are special because of the time they get to spend playing with their uncles and grandparents. And did I mention I got to scrapbook? Yes! I dove into Ben and I Europe trip from Spring of 2008 and had a blast!

As fun as two weekends ago was, I must mention this past weekend as well, because it was equally as fun and relaxing. Ben didn’t get a deer the first weekend of hunting (or the second weekend either…sorry Ben!), so he took the boys back to Dufur and I stayed home! Yep! All by myself! It was so wonderful! I’m so thankful for a husband who is willing to give me breaks and alone time, and Grandparents who are willing to help out.

What did I do with all my free time? I have to admit a bit of how pathetic I am: when Ben and the boys left on Friday evening, I did not spend a fun evening out with girlfriends. Nope. I borrowed my neighbors steam carpet cleaner and stayed up until 10:30 cleaning our carpets. I know, pathetic. But such a thrill for this stay-at-home-mom whose carpets were nasty, and who never has a good amount of time to clean them and let them dry before the troops run all over them. They look so wonderful! Don’t worry, though, I did do some fun stuff. I went to Bob’s Red Mill with my friend Amy (they have great bulk bins with gluten free flours) and had lunch out with her. Then I drove down to the Woodburn outlets (because I could) and had a very successful shopping trip, finding not one, but two pairs of pants, several shirts, and good discount clothes for the boys. I watched a couple chick flicks with my scrapbooking stuff spread all over the living room floor (because there were no little feet to step all over them) and continued to work on my Europe scrapbooking. I listened to music, but also enjoyed lots of peace and quiet. I got up 15 minutes before I needed to leave for church, but still could get there in time because I only had to get myself ready. I didn’t do any dishes and ate snacky food for almost meal. I tried not to rush through anything. I got refreshed and ready for this week. Ah…sweet, sweet weekend to myself. Thank you husband for letting me have a break so that I can be a better wife and mother!