This and That Wedensday:

I want to let you guys effected by Irene that I am praying for you.  I am concerned about Gloria and her son (it looks as if there was tons of wind damage where she lives).  Also, my son's extended family lives in Vermont and upstate New York ... and those floods are horrific.  I'm grateful that more people didn't die in that huge storm, but feel bad for those who did, and for their families.   This is going to be another huge clean-up effort, isn't it?  I certainly hope that the new storm just fizzles out and gives peeps a break.

The wildfires around here are super bad, especially over at Warm Springs.  There are a couple of huge fires in the same general area that have burned over 132,000 acres and are keeping the highways closed. 1500 firefighters are working very hard to get a handle on them.

Here are a few things that we have been up to the past couple of days.  Our friends Pam and Gary moved to California, and we stopped by to say goodbye to them on Sunday at their going away party.  We'll miss you two!

  Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

On Monday, John and Shanna (my stepdaughter) and the boys stopped by on their way home and took us out to pizza and then came to our house for a great visit.  Yesterday, they came to work to say goodbye.   It was wonderful to see them:

  Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

Shanna and Cary

  Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

Collin, Chase and Johnny

  Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

The background was great, but there were too many 

shadows to see everybody's faces well.  Dang.

  Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

Poor Johhny was trying to not block me, 

but his legs were getting tired.

  Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

And there was bit of an issue with his arms on this one.  Not a bit wrong with that handsome face though, Johnny.

  Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

We had a frost warning for last night.  I put the hanging baskets under the lawn chairs and the table, and covered them up with beach towels to keep them warm.  This is the second time this summer that I have pulled this trick, but the first time was when heavy hail was predicted.  It was 36* when I woke up, and I hope this helped the flowers, who will be gone soon enough. We are really enjoying them, so I want them to last as long as possible.

  Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

We had some volunteer pansies this year, by the table.  At the end of the season, I think I'll try to plant all these flowers by the pansies and see what happens.  Maybe next spring some will grow back?  It won't hurt to try.  

Well, that is the news for now, except that I have been cooking a lot and dealing with all of those onions.  I have barely made a dent in that onion basket!  Lots of dehydrating and making of onion rings are going down in this grandma's kitchen.  

Have a wonderful Wednesday my friends! 

Kathy M.

At Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy, if you miss a day, you miss a lot!  All material on this post is copyrighted and not for use without my permission ...Please click here to go to my home page and see what is happening in Mayberry today.
 

Buying Food in Bulk and Some Storage Ideas:

Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

If you have been reading this blog for a while, you know that when I feel worried about the world, I feel better when I buy food.  This has turned out to be a good idea, I think.  I was reading my friend Gloria's blog, The Little Red House With The White Porch and she lives in the path of Hurricane Irene. (How are you, Gloria?  Please let us know!)  When she went to the store to pick up a few last items, many shelves were practically bare.  And that is exactly what I fear will happen around here if some sort of disaster strikes.  Except that our disaster will probably be wildfire and I don't know how much food I can put into the car with my dogs, computer, pictures, etc., but that is a different story.  We have a pickup too, so I guess that would help with a few clothes or something.

Anyway, back to the topic.  Last week, Kylie and I went to one of my favorite stores to buy food, CASH AND CARRY in Bend.  They used to only sell to restaurants, grocery stores and other food service outlets, but now they sell to anybody ... even me.  Thank goodness.

We bought a lot of food and brought it home.  Then I needed to figure out what to do with it all.  The dry foods are the easiest to figure out, if you have a lot of canning jars or other good airtight containers that mice or bugs cannot get into.  I have been planning on canning, but that is still a bit intimidating for some reason.  Still, I am good at buying canning jars.  Bi-Mart keeps them in stock year round now, so I try to pick up a boxful of one size or another every week or couple of weeks, especially when they are on sale.  The average price is $8.99; sometimes less and sometimes more.  I am partial to the quart jars because I like to use them for my cookie mixes, but have been buying other sizes too.  If I do want to use all of these jars for canning, I'll just dump out the popcorn and rice and put them into something else.  Even big Rubbermaid totes will do fine, if you have the room for those.  

The food on this table (not counting the containers) was only $82.83.  I was curious to see how much 25 and 50 pounds of stuff really was, so here we go:

Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

Ahh!  The harvest table.

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

Fifty pounds of popcorn.  You may be asking me why I would want to buy so much.  Well, the bag was only $20.89 (or .42 lb) at Cash and Carry, I love popcorn, and it will keep well.  I am thinking of selling the smaller jars after decorating them with fabric and raffia with a matching gift bag in my little store. 

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

Here is fifty pounds of rice ($17.99, or .36 lb) and fifty pounds of onions ($11.25, or .23 lb).  There were really 17 more onions, but we used one and I dehydrated the other 16.

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

These two jars contain 16 dehydrated good sized onions.  Pretty cool, huh?  Our house smelled like onions for a day, but that was okay.

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

I put the 25 pounds of quick oatmeal into Ziplock freezer bags, because I have room for them and will be using them in my cookie mixes.  At Cash and Carry, it cost me $15.00 for 25 pounds (.72 lb).

The 25 pounds of sugar cost me $17.62 (.72 lb).  I put most of it into old spaghetti sauce jars.  I also bought 50 pounds of flour for 16.09 (.32), but I left it in a Rubbermaid tote in the garage for now.

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

I also bought 5 dozen eggs for $6.00 (.10 each).  I boiled up 4 dozen, and we made egg salad and pickeled eggs.  The pickled eggs will last for a couple of weeks in the fridge.  I just put pickle juice over the eggs ... beet juice works well too.  

I have a bunch more food in the fridge that I need to deal with, and my freezer is full so I have to figure out something else to do with it.  I think that I will dehydrate some broccoli and green onions, and more of yellow onions.   Though buying this way is less expensive, it does take a lot more time to make things convenient, but the work is easy. 

Best of luck!  I'd love to hear about how you guys do this sort of thing, so please leave me a comment or an email if you want to.


~ Kathy Matthews

Cash and Carry, Ziplock Bags, Ball Canning Jars, Rubbermaid ... none of them even know about me ... I only wish this were a paid advertisement!

At Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy, if you miss a day, you miss a lot!  All material on this post is copyrighted and not for use without my permission ...Please click here to go to my home page and see what is happening in Mayberry today.
 

Shadow Shot Sunday #171: Last Night's Sunset

As our friends on the East Coast are dealing with the hurricane, and friends in the mid-west are in the middle of a drought and horrible heatwave, those of us on the West Coast seem to have gotten off rather lightly all summer long.  Except for wildfires.  About an hour away, they are raging.  There is one around Madras, Oregon, that is supposed to be settling down after three weeks, but this week Warm Springs Reservation began burning big time.  To make matters even worse, they have closed sections of Highway 97 due to fire around the towns of Maupin and Grass Valley.  The smoke has blanketed Bend for days. What a mess.  

Still, all that smoke with a bit of thunderstorm clouds thrown in made for the most striking sunset here in La Pine last night.  I am so glad that I got off of the couch and went outside to photograph it.  I hope that you like the pictures too.

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

This one is a good one ... can you see the bird above the tree near the brightest area?  I'm thinking that it is a Bald Eagle, but it could be a hawk of some sort.  Or, it could be a seagull, though that doesn't seem as cool somehow.

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

I took these two standing by a tree and shooting 

through the branches.  Such different effects.

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

This is a Shadow Shot Sunday post.  To see more beautiful shadow shots from around the world, please "CLICK HERE" to visit Ms. Tracy over in Australia at Hey Harriet.

At Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy, if you miss a day, you miss a lot!  All material on this post is copyrighted and not for use without my permission ...Please click here to go to my home page and see what is happening in Mayberry today.
 

Sepia Saturday #89: Some Sepia Posts That You May Not Have Seen

This week on Sepia Saturday, Alan has given us free choice on what to post.  Well, of course it is always free choice, but I try to follow the theme if I can.  Anyway ... I was posting sepia posts before I knew about Sepia Saturday, and here are a few that my Sepia Saturday friends may not have seen yet, nor my newer readers. 

I hope that you have a few minutes to explore these neat posts.  There is a lot of information here with some fun bits of history.  To read other great Sepia Saturday posts from around the world, "CLICK HERE" when you are all done at Oregon Gifts. 

"Bend's Water Pageant on Mirror Pond"

Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

* Please click here to go to the post about Bend's Water Pageant on Mirror Pond.

"Bob Ross Revisited"

Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

* Please click here to see the post on Bob Ross Revisted.

"1945 WWII Navy Sea Bees 

Guam Building Projects"

Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

* Please click here to read the post about the 1945 WWII Navy Sea Bees Guam Building Projects.

"The Agana Bridge Now and Then"

Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

* Please click here to read the post about The Agana Bridge Now and Then"

"Postcards to Litha Series"

Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

* #1 and #2 - Please click here to view the post about Postcards to Litha

* #3 - Please click here to read about The Wenatchee Apple King in the Postcards to Litha series.

* #4 - Please click here to read about The Willamette River in the Postcards to Litha Series.

So there you go, friends!  Thanks for reading these, or if you couldn't get them all read today, please come back and finish up when you have more time.  Happy Sepia Saturday!


Kathy M.

At Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy, if you miss a day, you miss a lot!  All material on this post is copyrighted and not for use without my permission ...Please click here to go to my home page and see what is happening in Mayberry today.
 

To all my friends and relatives in hurricaneland ... I'm praying for you to stay safe and that your homes will be fine when you get back.  Just hoping it won't be as bad as they think.  God bless. 

Love ya lots!

Kathy M.

Book Blurb Friday #26: "The Good Doctor"

Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

The Good Doctor

by Kathy Matthews

"Dr. Sylvia Charleston was a child prodigy with a kind heart.  Growing up on the mission field and then graduating from medical school at a young age, Sylvia worked for twenty years in the Willamette Valley of Oregon.  Saving her money and sacrificing over the next twenty years, when Sylvia turned 40, she moved to Guatemala to set up her dream practice of helping the underprivileged.   Dr. Charleston's home-office and surgery center was like a mansion to the locals, built with the best materials.  

Sylvia soon partnered with CMT of Oregon.  Teams of medical professionals visit her small Guatemalan town each spring, and stay for two weeks.  Other team members visit village homes and install safe stoves and cover their dirt floors with concrete slabs.  

Learn more about this remarkable woman with heartwarming stories of the bonds and friendships that Dr. Sylvia Charleston has made over the past 15 years."  (150)


This week's photo was taken by my friend Lynn, over at "Present Letters".   You sure do take awesome photos, Lynn!  

I just made up Dr. Sylvia Charleston, but CMT (Cascade Medical Teams) and HELPS International are real.  They go to Guatemala for two weeks each spring to hold medical/dental/surgery clinics and to install ONIL Stoves.  The construction teams also pour concrete slabs on the dirt floors of people's one-room homes. 

Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

My mother, aka: Grandma Jody, has gone for the past ten years to serve.  My nephew Ethan has gone the past three years, and my daughter Kristin has gone twice and plans on going again next year.  This is such an incredible gift that CMT is giving to the Guatemalan locals.  To learn more, I have photos and links on my "Outreach" blog.

I am participating in Lisa's Book Blurb Friday, from over at Writing in the Buff.   It is fun, and you can play too!  Pretend that the picture on the top of this post is the cover of a book.  On the inside jacket, you have 150 words to entice the reader to buy your book.  Lisa gives us a week to think about next week's entry (she's gracious like that).  Please CLICK HERE  to read what everybody else wrote!

At Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy, if you miss a day, you miss a lot!  All material on this post is copyrighted and not for use without my permission ...Please click here to go to my home page and see what is happening in Mayberry today.
 

Viewpoint at Newberry Crater, Oregon:

Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

On Tuesday, we took Cary's cousin Gary (who was visiting from California), on a drive up to Paulina and East Lakes.  This was Gary's first time to see them.  On the way up, we stopped at the viewpoint and took a few pictures.  The day was so beautiful, and the sky was so clear.

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

There was a great  view of the Cascade Mountain range, including of Mt. Bachelor, Broken Top and The Three Sisters.

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

After leaving there, we continued our drive.  These were taken at East Lake Campground:

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

 Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

The Cousins:  Gary and Cary.  Too sweet!

Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy ~ Kathy Matthews

I did another post that includes the viewpoint in May 2010 ... there was still snow on the ground then.  To see that post, please click here:  "Today's Trip Up to Paulina Lake".

For more information about The Newberry Caldera and the Paulina Peak area, please "CLICK HERE".

This is a SkyWatch Friday post!  The person who began SkyWatch Friday, Klaus, has recently passed away.  Please say some prayers for his friends and family, who are missing him terribly.  To see beautiful sky shots from around the world, PLEASE CLICK HERE  when you are all done at Oregon Gifts.  Thanks so much for stopping by to say hello!

At Oregon Gifts of Comfort and Joy, if you miss a day, you miss a lot!  All material on this post is copyrighted and not for use without my permission ...Please click here to go to my home page and see what is happening in Mayberry today.