Lemongrass Essential oil actually really does work as a bug repellant.  It also smells nice. I already knew that you often learn important lessons when you are  suffering.  You can also learn important lessons from watching other people suffer through choices that may not have always been the best. In…

Good heavens!  I’m so behind on blogging that I’ve actually been back to North Dakota and I’m still blogging from the first trip!  Yesterday Mr. TOF and I drove to North Dakota and back to drop off the big kidlets at Grandma Kathy’s house so they can go to trail…

The cousins are watching a friend’s puppy for a few weeks.  His name is Jinks.  He is very fluffy and likes kids.  He decided he’d like to travel with us, and when we were leaving Valley City he hopped in the car three times in a row, trying to hitch…

Before we went swimming at the pool, we had a picnic lunch at City Park.  This precious and winsome individual found a giant mud puddle in no time flat.  He was utterly drenched, and proud of it.

There are no outdoor pools in our city, probably because it isn’t that warm that long in the season and there are scores of natural creeks and pockets of water to swim in, not to mention a gigantic freezing cold lake so big it almost feels like the ocean.  When…

She sees my camera and asks me to take her picture.  I’m thrilled to oblige, and then the two of us have fun looking at the images in the view finder.  She loves to jump and twirl.

YaYa had been waiting for an entire year from the day she left International Music Camp to go back this year.  She was thrilled to go back.  We drove from Minnesota to Grandma Kathy’s house in Valley City on Saturday last week, and then on Sunday I drove her up…

After about ten days of being apart (he was at a conference and visiting family in Iowa, and the rest of us were traveling/music camping in North Dakota) we were pretty excited to see this guy and celebrate Fathers Day. Simply put, he’s an awesome dad.  He helps people work…

On our first day of summer vacation we went to check out a new spot along Amity Creek.  We discovered it for the first time last fall, and I knew the minute I saw it that it would be a terrific swimming spot.  We arrived in the middle of the…