Catching Up With the DeShongs

Wow, I sure am pathetic.  Too much time has passed and I have not done  any blogging.  That is not to say that there is nothing to blog about.  Wow, there sure is!  Bullet points of major event happening:

{Birthdays!}

Dave turned the big 4-0 on March 10th!  We celebrated a weekend sans kiddos and had a stay-cation.  We went to the Peterson Automotive Museum, went to an indoor shooting range to fire his birthday gift (a new Smith and Wesson revolver), and had dinner at Love Sushi.  It was a lovely time together, so relaxing and fun!  Couldn't have done anything better!

Luke turned 14 on March 26th!  He got a new pair of Vans and some new clothes!  I got to take Luke out on a date for sushi for lunch, just the two of us!  We had his requested dinner of ribs, mashed potatoes, and coleslaw.  Yum.

Vance turned 12 on April 6th!  For his birthday, I finally acquiesced to his request for a pet snake.  And I am glad I did!  It makes him oh, so happy, and I am actually quite fond of the critter.  I am not fond of frozen mice thawing in a cup on my kitchen counter, however.  Welcome, Hawkeye.  You are very loved here.

On his actual birthday, we spent the day out in Pasadena, having lunch at Roscoe's Chicken and Waffle, and then purchasing live crabs to bring home for dinner. We get ours at the Ranch 99 Asian market.  I grew up going to the beach with my parents and bringing home crabs to boil.  I can still remember my grandfather showing me how to take the crab apart after cooking to clean it and prepare it to eat.  It's still so much fun for me to line the table with newspaper, get out the hammers and nutcrackers, and smash away.  Add some melted garlic butter and cocktail sauce, and you are all set!

You are about to go to your doom...a large boiling pot of water.  Poor guy.

Before....

After!!!

Celebrated my sweet sister, Karen's birthday on April 8th!  Enjoyed a lovely breakfast at Egg Plantation, and some wedding shopping at the mall.  Fun!  Such a sweet joy and treasure it is to spend time with her!

{Baby Shower/Welcomed our newest niece!}

I hosted a baby shower in March for my sister-in-law Lisa, who was expecting a little baby girl!  Katherine Irene came into the world on March 29th.  Sweet indeed.

 Austin and his newest cousin

 

Luke and Katherine

My baby, Vance holding baby Katie

{Wedding Shower}

I had the privilege of co-hosting a shower for my sweet niece-to-be, Stephanie!  I was so busy that day that I did not take any of my own pictures, but it was so sweet and lovely!  Kristen (Rich's sister), and Amy (Rich's niece) did an amazing job preparing decorations, food, and drinks, while I handled the desserts, favors, sandwiches, and some other stuff.  It was a great joint effort, and we had so much fun doing it!  I can't wait for the wedding in just 17 days!!!  I couldn't have hand picked a better match for my nephew, Drew.  I am so filled with joy and excitement for them, and I can't believe the day is almost here.  There is much buzz about, with everyone busy, busy, busy with all the details.  And I am happy to say I have finally gotten all the boys' outfits together for the big day.  Phew!!  Pics to come!  Let's just say they will all be wearing ties :-)

{Austin is driving!!}

Austin got his permit the day after Christmas, and has been toting me all over town since!  He is a very relaxed driver, and I am learning to be relaxed!!!  The first few times out were WAY more stressful than I could have ever imagined.  But he has come a long way, and we are looking forward to the new independence he will have and the help it will be to our family!  He is looking for part time work, and is ready and willing, so that is exciting.  He will turn 16 in June, so lots on the horizon for him!

{Homeschooling/Field Trips}

School is plugging along as we wrap up the last few weeks (hopefully).  There have been lots of great opportunities lately for the boys....serving at Children's Hunger Fund, Easter parties, the Norton Simon museum, great writing classes, a trip to the Courthouse in Palmdale....lots of fun!  

RECAP IS NOW COMPLETE.

December to Remember

Our December was very full indeed.  It was brimming with service, traditions, family, and blessings. I can't possibly try to contain all the activities in this post, because there are so many.  But here are the highlights!  Come on the photo tour with me!

The older two boys and I had the privilege to serve at Operation Christmas Child once again.  It is such a great organization, which collects shoeboxes filled with goodies to distribute to various countries, directly into the hands of children in need, who would not normally be in the situation to receive anything for the holiday.  It is so much fun to be a part of this endeavor, and they even tell you where the boxes you worked on for that day will be going.

Here's Luke packing boxes!

And Austin weilding his scanning gun....right up his alley :-)

We made our traditional Christmas yummies....

 Bordeauxs (Coffee filling...tastes just like See's Candy!)

 Snowballs (Russian Tea Cakes)

           Toffee....and also sugar cookies, truffles, and red velvet cheesecake bars.  

We brought home a lovely tree!

 

 I cherish putting on our ornaments every year.  I love our tradition of picking out a new ornament for our boys each year. I try and find something that matches their interests or current hobbies.  

Christmas puppy!

 Our annual Hanukkah celebration with my side of the family.  Making latkes with Dad!!!  Each family member grates an onion and potato, no exceptions...even the gentiles!  I also tried my hand at brisket this year.  It came out delicious.  I was actually quite surprised, as nobody can really live up to my Mom's brisket.


Christmas Eve is always wonderful.  We look forward to having Dave's family at our home every year for dinner, dessert, and gift exchange.

 Enjoying the festivities!

 Dave's Mom and Step Dad...my sweet in- laws!

Receiving a larger than life Nerf gun.  WOW!!!

Then it was Christmas Day!!!!  We spent the morning as a family with our breakfast tradition of cinnamon rolls, presents, remembering the birth of the Savior and how that reality affects our lives.

Appetizer dinner!

And this beast for dessert.  Chocolate heaven.  Soooooo amazing.

The day after Christmas, we surprised the boys and told them we were going to San Francisco for two nights!  Everyone was so excited.  We packed up and headed up to NorCal.  My Dad so sweetly and generously provided the hotel for us as a birthday gift.  We have not been on a trip with the kids in a long while, and usually it's camping, so this was a treat.  I tried to justify it by saying it was my big birthday celebration....I did turn the big 4-0 after all.  We spent our time touring around the city by cable car and bus. Austin, armed with his map, got us to every bus stop and trolley pick up, and it was so nice!

We went to Chinatown and spent a few hours at the shops!  The boys bought lots of cool trinkets and some, ahem....fireworks.  Just the little stuff, like sparklers, the little ash snakes that ooze out when you light them, and the flower that spins and sprays sparks, and then has a surprising ka-boom at the end.  The cute little Asian woman in the store says "You have to try these."  I asked what they do, and she said "they go whooosh then pow."  Yes they did.  Too much fun we had on New Years Eve in our nice little Saugus neighborhood.  Glad nobody called the police on our ka-booms and pows.

Cable Car riding.

Views of the Golden Gate!

Clam chowder in a bread bowl while exploring Fisherman's Wharf and Pier 39!  We did so much more, and just had a great time together as a family.  I love the city!

But for now, back to reality....school, work, diet and exercise that has been neglected!  Wishing you all God's blessings as we start the coming year.  May it be full of much grace to love God and love others more.

Before and After

Left side of yard before.........

And after......

Still lots of finish work to be done, but WOW!  What a difference!

Almost there......

Do you see this????

Freshly rototilled yard!!!!

Do you know what this means?????

Grass soon!!!!!  We did nothing in the yard for a couple of months.   Dave had been hired to do some extra work, so he was working long days and weekends for several weeks.  We are thankful!!  It was finally time to proceed, so Dave drug out the rototiller once more.  A little tilling, a little watering, a little more tilling.  Dave moved some of the dirt to the side yard to lower the level a bit, then he raked it all nice and neat.  We were all ready for sod last weekend and then......it rained.  We needed the rain, and it actually helped compact the dirt a bit and show us where low and high spots are.  So Dave will do a final raking, and we are ready for the sod. Could be this weekend!!!!  We are only doing one side at a time, so the dogs will still have a place to run and go potty, so we will build a temporary fence around it, let it get established, and then move to the other side.  I am beside myself with excitement.  I haven't seen grass in my yard for a longggggg time.  And never weed-free grass.  Ah, the simple joys of life.

Thanksgiving week is here, and I am hosting at our house this year.  While my house is small, I do truly enjoy the preparation and having people in our cozy home.  Thankfully my kitchen is rather large for a small house and I have lots of counter space.  Add in that I love to cook, and that's all I need!!!  My sister and family, and Dave's family will be coming.  I am looking forward to it!

No Thanksgiving camping trip for us this year.  I am rather relieved, actually, even though I will miss it.  I have come a long way in my recovery from my neck problems, but am still not completely there, and the idea of sleeping in my camping trailer just didn't appeal to me.  I am proving to be a rather tough and unique case to my doctor, and he is still trying to figure out my complicated little self.  I truly enjoy watching all the other patients go in for their treatments and leave within 15 minutes, while mine last 1-2 hours (hint of sarcasm).  Ha!  I never used to be that patient nobody could figure out.  I guess that's what happens when you are about to turn.....ahem (not telling you).

But seriously, what I have learned from all this is well worth all of it.  God has been SO faithful.  I am so blown away at how much He cares for me, and how gracious He has been to allow me to experience limitations so that I can appreciate smaller things and focus on what is important.  I am thankful He has allowed me pain so I can have compassion and pray for other who experience pain far greater than mine.  It has made my problems seem insignificant in comparison.  If I never felt any relief from my pain, God would be good.  But He has chosen to relieve me of a significant amount of it already, and for that, I am so thankful.   I can't specifically think of any Scriptures that come to mind that have helped me, but what I believe to be true about God and who He is have always been my strength in weakness.  Knowing that God is faithful, trustworthy, and in control even in the midst of great discouragement have flooded my mind and heart with peace during this whole process.  It would be so easy to worry, and believe me, I have had moments of worry.  It would be so easy to despair, and I have had those moments too.  But if I look back on my life thus far, I can see that God has always provided for us in ways I could have never imagined, and then I ask myself what did I really need to worry for?  I have seen His provision, His healing, His faithfulness, and His mercy.  I wish I could be so faithful.

Backyard Makeover, Part 3

Phase one of the side yard path is almost complete!  It has taken several weekends of work to accomplish, and a lot of sweat and elbow grease.  Here are some pics of the process.

Here, Dave and Austin are finishing laying the shape of the path with the bender board.

It was pretty simple to install.  Just hammer in some stakes, and screw the board onto the stakes.  I say simple.  I watched.

Bender board complete, all the way to the deck.

Then came several trips to the builder's supply for scoops of gravel.  We did it one scoop at a time, so we wouldn't overpurchase.  Or overload the truck with weight.  All in all, I think we ended up with 5 scoops, which was less than $100 to fill the entire path and the deck with pea gravel.

The boys brought it in by the wheelbarrow full!

Time to lay the pavers, which, if you haven't been following my blog, were FREE!  Craigslist baby!!!
Dave used the motorcycle ramp as a large level!

Continuing the process!

Starting to come together!!!

Almost done!

We shoveled in more gravel on top of the pavers so they are almost buried, but we still need to fill in some low spots.

The dirt areas on both sides will be phase 2 of the side yard makeover.  We will be planting some various plants and trees someday, and filling in the area with bark.

Next on the docket is to rototill side one of the yard and plant grass seed, and also work on getting the top of the deck finished too!  Fun!