Get it done ladies!!

Today I went to a funeral for Kerrie, a woman my age who was diagnosed with ovarian cancer three months ago. She bravely battled it, setting an amazing example of strength in adversity. She left behind her husband and three children. So, here's what I have to say to all my women friends out there. Get your exams done regularly!! So your boobs hurt (bad!!) during a mammogram. Deal with it and get it done!! So a pap smear is uncomfortable. Suck it up and get it done!! So you don't like needles and getting shots. Too bad and get an HPV vaccine!! Do your breast self-exams every month!! Do whatever it takes to be here!! Men, remind the women you love to get it done!! Cancer doesn't care who you leave behind. (I am in no way suggesting that Kerrie didn't do any of these thing.) We want you here ladies!! : )

Wreck This Journal - Week 2

Wreck This Journal - Week 2

More fun!! This week I did some great stuff. Some things are in process, so I am mostly just showing things that I have completed. My favorite was "trace your hand". It is hard to see on the video so I am going to include a photo.

Keri Smith has also come out with a book called "Mess" and "This Is Not A Book." Both very cool!!

To see all the photos of the things I have done this week, click HERE.

I have found the most wonderful book!!! It is called "Wreck This Journal" by Keri Smith.

I was looking online for journalling prompts for teenagers, when I came across a link to a blog about "Wreck This Journal". Interested, I clicked on the link, which directed me to a gallery of photos of different pages of the book. It seemed to be from an art class project. I was fascinated. I enjoyed looking at all the creative, artful ways people had "wrecked" the book.

I clicked on the Introduction and Instruction links and the more I read the more intrigued I became. Then I realized that I could actually purchase the book!!! I immediately went to Amazon.com. I ordered two, as I knew my Mom would love this book too! I waited anxiously for the books to arrive!! Thankfully it only took two days to get here!! I started right away, and sent the second book to my Mom.

It has been so much fun having this book to stimulate my creativity!! I am having a great time, and even more fun, my girls are enjoying it as well. When we went up to Mom and Dad's in Auberry this weekend, I took Amanda with me out to the bridge over the gully. She had already read most of the instructions, so she said, "Is this where you are going to drop it?" I said, "I am going to throw it." Her face got an look of wondrous fear on it. "Can I throw it too?" she asked. "Absolutely!!" So, we took turns throwing the journal down the gully. It got all banged up and there are leaves and grasses in many of the pages now, but it was fun and that is pretty much the point!!

My Mom was thrilled and excited to receive her book. We are going to compare notes as we go along. Here are some of the things I have done this first week:


Wreck This Journal - Week 1

To see photos of the things I have done so far this week, click HERE.

Pencils? Check! Breakfast? Check! Backpacks? Check! Pictures? Mom!!!

This year is a special First Day of School, as ALL three Nehring girls headed off to school today!!!

Amanda is in 8th grade at Kerman Middle School. She has all honors classes again this year and is in percussion again as well.

Rebecca is in 5th grade at Liberty Intermediate. The school is right across the street, so she is out of the morning car pool and walking this year.

Katrina starts Kindergarten this year at Sun Empire Elementary!! She has been waiting for this day for a long time. She was so excited!! She has her brand new backpack and she is in Mrs. Gragnani's class. There are a few kids that she knows already from Church in her class. It is amazing to think that Katrina is old enough to go to school! She has grown up so fast!!

And now, Lora is at home alone. : )

It's been three years now, so I guess we could start to call it a tradition……

Each year, on the last weekend before school starts, we go on a family adventure. This year we decided to follow the route of the Climb to Kaiser. We started by driving through Burrough Valley and stopped at the top of Wildcat grade to do some maintenance on our WIldcat cache, which turned eight years old yesterday!! We traded the plastic cache for an ammo can. That should last another eight years, at least!!

We then headed up through Tollhouse and up the mountain! We stopped and took a photo of the view!! All the way along we told the girls stories and information about the bike ride.

We drove into the town of Shaver Lake and stopped at the Sierra Historical Museum. The lady at the desk answered a few questions and then asked if we knew about the caboose that was being restored next to the museum. We told her that Kevin's dad was one of the volunteers restoring it. Turns out the lady knew Kevin's family from when he was young and used to live around the corner from them. Small world.

At this point we started adding in information about the hydroelectric projects in the Sierras, as we were driving past much of it during this trip.

We drove down into Big Creek and looked at the Powerhouse there. As we started to climb out of the town of Big Creek, we stopped for a cache and while we were there, we saw a deer very close to us. That was pretty neat!

We climbed up Big Creek, which takes you up underneath the dam at Huntington Lake. None of the lakes in this area of the Sierras are natural. They are all man made with a series of dams and power plants that provide water and electricity to the Valley. We stopped at the Billy Creek Guard Station Museum. They have a beautiful museum and a great display about the WWII bomber that crashed in the lake, but you are not allowed to take photos in the museum.

We went around to the head of Huntington Lake and stopped at the Portal Powerhouse there. It is pretty impressive.

We drove up to the top of Kaiser Pass and the girls got out for a while to climb on the rocks and stretch their legs. We wished we had time to go for a hike. Next time.

We headed down Tamarak Pass back down into Shaver Lake. We stopped at The Hungry Hut for dinner. We sat at the counter, at Katrina's request.

The sun was setting as we headed from Shaver down through Alder Springs into Auberry. We stopped at Mom and Dad's for a few minutes and then we headed home. It was a lovely day! The weather was gorgeous and we learned a lot!

To see all the day's pictures click HERE.

Summer Fun!!

This summer has been pretty busy, but mostly for the girls. This was a fun summer for birthdays. Amanda turned 13, so she is officially a teenager. Rebecca turned 10, so she is in double digits. And, Katrina turned 5 and gets to start school this year! Kevin, Lora and Katrina spent the summer at home, while Amanda and Rebecca took turns doing all kinds of things and going all kinds of places.

It began June 26th, when Amanda boarded a plane for Alaska to spend a week with Gma Kathryn and Gpa Herb. It was her first flight all by herself and she had a great time! While she was in Alaska she got to spend time with her grandparents, her aunt and uncle and cousins. They made candles, food, went to museums, to a musk ox farm, and the zoo, where Amanda got to help take care of the wolves for a few hours. We got to talk to her frequently on Google video chat and got to hear about all the fun things she was doing.

Amanda returned home just in time for Rebecca to start Literacy Camp, which is put on by the Kerman Branch Library. The kids spent the week writing and reading and in the end they received a beautiful book about animals. One of our favorite librarians, Miss Rita, was retiring at the end of the week, so we were glad Rebecca got to spend the week with her. (And, we did not get even one photo. Sad face!)

Then it was Amanda's turn to be off again. This time she headed up to Girl's Camp as a First Year. Girl's Camp is healed at Green Meadows in Fish Camp near Yosemite. Gorgeous area!! Amanda had a wonderful time! She loved being there with all the girls from our ward and she made a lot of new friends. Including a girl named Meredith, whose dad went to school with Amanda's dad. She took hikes, practiced archery, and her favorite part was the Faith Walk. Amanda did not stop talking about it for a week afterwards.

Every year when the Nehring grandchildren turn 10, they get to spend an entire week with their Gramma and Papa in Auberry. This year was Rebecca's turn. She got to help feed and brush horses, sewed a skirt, went to an unexpected funeral in Bakersfield, made a birdhouse and went swimming. She enjoyed her week very much!!

It was a busy summer!!