THE OREGON LANDSCAPE

The Oregon Landscape is magnificent and beyond beautiful!!! Last week-end we went to the ocean and it did not disappoint! In fact we were in awe, the windswept beaches, verdant forests, giving way to sweeping rangelands, towering rock formations (even in the ocean itself) and dramatic river valleys, and streams leading the roads up and down the mountains to the ocean itself, and back to the Willamette Valley, and the college town of Corvallis. It is certainly picturesque!!! No wonder it inspired the largest voluntary land migration in recorded history!!! Steve and I have often talked about the early settlers crossing this country in covered wagons, or riding horses, or walking, and any other means to get here before it was inhabited . I read somewhere that the first settlers would drive their horse and wagons along the ocean when the tide was out, and then climb the cliffs and wait until they could go again. I also read so many of the settlers that came from the east or midwest died along the way, many froze to death in the mountains, or died from heat exposure, or many diseases. Some of the wagon trains tried to follow the streams over all the mountains to the ocean, and onto California where they were hoping to find gold. It certainly must have been a great adventure!!!

So, last weekend Steve and I went to the coast, and instead of taking months to get there, it took us about 45 minutes. We drove along the coast to Florence, Oregon as the cloud formations took different forms and the waves were so high, one of my favorite sounds - ocean waves - and it was definately worth it. We stayed at a bed & breakfast, and upon our arrival they presented us with a box of Belgian chocolates, and I mean y'all it was a BIG BOX with two layers all wrapped up in red paper with a beautiful bow. The owners know how to win a woman's heart!!!

We had dinner at a 5-star restaurant that the owners told us about and not only was it awesome and romantic, but one of the wait staff came to our table when he found out we were at OSU, he has a daughter in Veterinary College, and believe it or not she is in one of the classes Steve is teaching. Another thing so interesting is that he (the father) and his family lived in Peoria, Illinois and he grew up there. IT'S A SMALL WORLD!!!

The next day we shopped in OLD TOWN FLORENCE and I bought a couple things in my favorite shop "BONJOUR". We were so glad to see that this little town is still doing very well even though the economy is in a mess. This was on Sunday, and we started home late afternoon because we wanted to drive along the ocean as far as we could, and we took lots of pictures and we met so many nice people that weekend. It seems like out here life is much slower, and people are just so friendly. You can be crossing the street to go to the river walk here in Corvallis, or going to the bakery, and start talking and find out about someone's life. Just different - . Then we headed back to Corvallis, and decided to take a different road down the mountain - not a good idea!!! It was very dangerous , even though most of it followed a creek, some of it was covered in dirt , and let's just say we will not be taking that road back here again, even though I saw a whole herd of elk, and several eagles, - I guess that was worth it.

This week Steve has been very busy and happy with his work. I somehow pulled a muscle in my back and have been taking it very easy, but that has turned out to be a blessing too. I have been reading a lot, and resting, and today feel much better, so tomorrow I will probably get out and explore more of this little college town. Some of the books I have been reading are : my BIBLE, UNCOMMON by Tony Dungy (based on the BIBLE and the way he grew up, and being an UNCOMMON man, not a popular man, and so forth). I highly recommend this book , it talks about finding your path to significance, and what THE LORD has for you. Also ,I am reading a mystery by JAMES PATTERSON, and just starting NORA, a book about a woman who came to visit the Wild West. I want to get a Bible Study of some kind to do on my own while I am here, and also I want to read Tony Dungy's first book. The one I am reading now is his second.

Now, I am going to post some pictures that I took, and sign off for tonight. I send my love to everyone back home and pray for ya'll everyday, and miss you very much.

The LOVE OF MY LIFE - Stephen Kent Kneller - and I are having an exciting and dynamic experience and wish all of our family was here to enjoy the beauty of this area. GOD'S CREATION, JUST AS THE BIBLE SAYS, IS BEAUTIFUL BEYOND DISCRIPTION!!!!!

HELLO - GOOD BYE

One week ago this morning (Sat. 1-31-09) our son Greg dropped us off at the Champaign airport in the early a.m. 6:15a.m., and we said good-by (SO HARD!!!), especially after only one hr. of sleep for me. I cried as we walked into the airport and away from Greg , although I was excited to fly to Oregon for 6 weeks. Saying good-by to all our family is so hard, and we knew our first great grandbaby Bruno would be so much more grown up when we get back home.
Steve's first week at OSU was great. Everyone at the Veterinary College gave him a big welcome, and our first week there flew by!
We are now at one of our favorite places in the good old U.S.A., THE LODGE AT SUTTLE LAKE, on the top of the Cascade Mountains. We do love it here! We arrived in the beautiful sunshine with just a little snow, (last year we had 10 to 20 feet of snow here, and when we arrived it was snowing.) This time the sun was out with just a little snow on this mountain top, so it has a whole different look and atmosphere which is just as beautiful, but different. The skiers are having fun in the surrounding snow parks that are filled with snow, which we are going to visit tomorrow.
Tonight we had dinner in the boathouse restaurant on the lake and the food was awesome!!! As we walked out of the restaurant to come back to our room the moon washed the lake and the tree lined snow covered mountains in a silver glow. SO BEAUTIFUL!! THAT WAS BREATHTAKING - GOD'S CREATION JUST SHINED. WHAT A MOMENT WITH THE MAN I LOVE!!! Hand in hand, my love and I walked back to our cozy western-native american appointed suite to find the fire burning in the fireplace. We feel so blessed to have this experience and make these memories. Time to go cuddle!