Life at a "Swell's" pace

Road Trip: Arkansas (Birthday Surprise)

May 7-In May we loaded up and took off to Arkansas for a surprise birthday celebration for my sister's fortieth. We also planned to stay until May 12 in order to be in Arkansas for Mother's Day. The best part of the trip was that fact that my sister had no idea we were headed their way.

We had an early flight, but the best part of being up that early was being able to see the sun rise.

We also had a great view of Mount Hood. I bet the sunrise looked amazing from the hot air balloon.

Photo via Instagram.

Our layover took us to Las Vegas and when we took off the view was pretty groovy.

The day was beautiful and we got a great view of the Grand Canyon.

Since we flew in on May 7 once we landed we headed straight for the restaurant where my parents had taken my sister. She assumed it was going to be a small get together of just some friends and my parents, but we came strolling in and she was pretty shocked.

(Taken by Kayla H.)

The food was delicious and my sister really enjoyed that we flew down for it all.

We all had to try out the saddles at the restaurant.

It was a lot of fun surprising my sister for her birthday and we all had a great time at Jose's Mexican Restaurant in Hot Springs, Arkansas.

...Just a side note: The following night we tied the large bundle of balloons onto my sister's mailbox in the middle of the night. Unfortunately, a storm came through in the morning and the wind and rain popped all of the balloons before she could see them all. :( (It was a good prank otherwise.)

The storm that came through produced a lot of lightning, too. The Mr. loved it! He would be a tornado chaser if he could. He loves the weather!

More soon!

What happened this time last year?

Five simple things (June 11)

This week has been a slow week. The Bean and I came down with something I like to call "The blues." Although we weren't all that sick we were just down and not feeling our self. The Mr. got it toward the end of the week and with him having to work today (Saturday) he really had it this morning when leaving. After the hustle and bustle of our trips lately coming down from all of that was a real drag. "The blues" to me means a sniff, maybe a cough, and the overwhelming urge to want to go or be somewhere, but you can't. That's what I call "The blues." For us it maybe the travel blues, but we will all feel right as rain come Monday next week. In the meantime, here are the things that made this week awesome!

1. This Ornament

It may not look like much, but it was a found Razorback ornament from Christmas that somehow got pushed to the back of the cabinet. I found it while cleaning out our food cabinets. The Bean broke it on the counter and ate it right up. We have been on a mission to cut out sugar, but I thought this small treat was in need of eating.

2. This Iris

These are growing rather wildly this year and are welcome more than they realize.

3. This Clipart

With June being strawberry season here in the Willamette Valley I've made this clip art to celebrate the season. (Download it here) The strawberry festival happens here every year, for 100 years straight, and even though we didn't go this year, it's still a fun time to enjoy the strawberries from our own garden and make up some strawberry jam.

Check out our previous years at the Strawberry Festival:

4. This Book

A Streak of Light by Richard Lockridge is the Reading Selection for this month. Find it here.

5. New Glasses

It's that time of year again, time for The Bean and me to get our eyes examined and get new glasses. I've given up the thought of ever going back to contacts again, mainly because my eyes have gotten so bad over the years. I miss them a little, but glasses are so fun to pick out. With all of the great colors and styles, it's an endless field of fashion. We go to get our eyes checked soon, so stay tuned to my Instagram to see what we pick out for this year in glasses.

What happened this time last year?

Extras:

Are your eggs still good?
Guide to creating a minimalist home.
Generation Good.
This patchwork flag is fantastic.
Silicone lids to reduce your dependency on plastic wrap.
We are in the process of finding a new, smaller fridge.
Repelling insects.
Glass Tea Jar.
Don't make these mistakes when making jam.
How to make your strawberries last longer.

The Bean's new P.F. Flyers

This post contains affiliate links and/or sponsored by the brand[s] pictured. Thank you so much for supporting this brand, which also supports this blog and our family.

The Bean has been all about baseball lately and with that comes an obsession with the movie, "The Sandlot." You know, the whole movie about the kids that play ball on a dirt field in the back of a lot behind an old man's house? The ball goes over the fence and the kids lose it to a big dog named Hercules. Yeah, that movie. Well, The Bean has had that movie on repeat since the end of March and he loves the scene where the kid puts on some P.F. Flyers to outrun the big dog in order to get their ball back.

"YOU PLAY BALL LIKE A GIRL!"

The Bean got his P.F. Flyers and fell in love with them straight out of the box.

He couldn't wait to put them on and run around the block.

After all, they are "guaranteed to make a kid run faster and jump higher."

"You're killin' me 'Smalls'!"

See more photos of The Bean with his P.F. Flyers here and snag your own pair by clicking the image below.

What happened this time last year?

Views from my Neighborhood: Lebanon Public Library

I decided to start a new series for my blog titled, "Views from my Neighborhood." I figured, what better way to share the places we go right here in our own city. No matter if we move from here or not, there will always be something to share in regards to the "views from my neighborhood."

Our walks take us all over the city here in Lebanon, Oregon, but one of our favorites is to the local library.

The "old" library used to be housed in the old hospital building located at 626 Second Street. The hospital has since moved to the north side of town, but the old hospital building still stands and is now the current location of the Lebanon Chapter for Boys and Girls Club of America. Straight ahead of The Bean in this above photo is the new library for the city. It finished construction and opened its doors to the public in 2009.

The original signage for the hospital still visible through the stone.

This 24 bed hospital was built here in 1936 where a former grade school sat. It was determined that there was a need for a larger hospital by Dr. Joel Booth-president of the hospital at that time.

During the 1940s, the population of Lebanon tripled and just 11 years after it was built the hospital was found to be overcrowded and was condemned as a fire hazard. In 1948 the Mennonite Church took over management of the facility while a fund drive was organized with the help of attorney Lawrence Morley as general chairman, Lebanon lumberman John Nyland, and Max Thecker, president of Cascade Plywood Corporation. Dr. Booth was still president of the hospital board, and again promoted construction of a new building. The new Lebanon General Hospital was dedicated on January 20, 1952. (source)

One of our many walks through town when we are out and about takes us to the new library building. We really enjoy the new building and there's still more construction going on around the grounds of the library. A community gazebo is in the works currently.

The Mr. and The Bean kicking a pine cone while walking toward the Lebanon Public Library.

Read more about the history of Lebanon, Oregon.

What happened this time last year?

Five simple things

Wow! What a great end to a week! Yesterday (Saturday) was the start of the Strawberry Festival here in the Willamette Valley, also home of the World's Strawberry Shortcake. There's a fair, a parade, and strawberries everywhere! It's a great, small town event and people that live here go nuts over it. It's great! This week, The Mr. and I got a lot of things done that we've been putting off. We put up The Bean's pool, planted some flowers and other plants in the garden and flowerbed, and even took some time to visit the Roaring River Fish Hatchery (pictures soon). We had a great week and we do hope yours was just as great. Here are the things that made my week awesome!

1. This Fortune Teller

Zoltar is always a hit for us. You put in 50 cents and he gives you a generic fortune. It's such a fun thing for us to do anytime we see him. Once, my brother put in money and the fortune read, "Zoltar sees you giving me more money in your future." Ha!

2. These Plants

The Mr. and I went on a hunt for some new plants for our ever-expanding flower beds. We were considering a few small trees, but we are still considering what is best.

3. This Ballot

Oregon has mail in ballots. They come to your home and you have the privacy of your own home to vote. We are Green Party in our home and we get to see who is running in the Nonpartisan Primary only.

4. This Find

The Bean always finds the buggiest bugs. He found this caterpillar while we were mowing on Friday and went on a mission to find out exactly what kind it was. It's a Cloudless Sulphur caterpillar.

5. This Library Book

A book we found at the local library here on the history of Lebanon, Oregon-"It used to be.... but now...." (An Oral History of Lebanon, Oregon). It had a lot of interesting facts about the area and one chapter is on the fire department/fire district here in the city. As we were looking through the pages we came across and interview with The Mr.'s uncle Dan Wilkerson, who has since passed. He gave some great information for the old fire station that used to be located in downtown Lebanon, Oregon. Finding this interview made The Mr. happy to know that he is still part of a fire fighting legacy handed down in his family over the years.

Extras: