The fish were biting.

We returned home yesterday from our Paulina Lake trip. It was perfection. I'll let the pictures tell the story.

Here is the cabin we stayed in. "Rustic" is a word that realtors would use to describe it. "Quirky, outdoorsy and perfect for the handyman" is a sentence they might use. Brenda (my sis-in-law) and I might have other, more descriptive terms. But we are church-going folk and don't use language like that.

But let's move on from the cabin. Because the lake? It was beautiful. Bee-yu-ti-ful. And my cabin mates? Couldn't ask for better. (Well, I could, but God might have a hard time answering that request.)
Look! I went fishing with a couple UniBombers! They were great fisherman and, more importantly, they kept me entertained for hours!

Seriously? I have never had more fun fishing than I did with Rod and Josiah this weekend. They make me LAUGH. Alot.

Here is my niece, Renick getting to know the camp dog Tugboat. (AKA Buddy Brown or Tubby, Sometimes a combination of all three names.) Tug usually came to visit around meal times. We'd find him laying in front of our cabin door waiting patiently for a tidbit.

Wowser! Our niece Chantry caught the ONLY GERMAN BROWN of the weekend! Frankly,we're not going to count Rod's because it looked like Chantry's German Brown mothered a tiny, itty bitty baby and Rod hooked it. We let it go. Out of pity. No one wants a baby German Brown. (Rod is working on his jealousy issues. Also, his sure-fire lures for the next trip.)

Rod and I hiked around the lake one day when were there. Notice the backpack he is wearing? That was my On Demand Snack Bar. Jerky, dried fruit, Fruit snacks and water. He also hauled my ginormous camera in there and only asked me to carry the backpack a few times. I politely declined. :-)


See the tiny boat? It's Eric, Brenda, Renick and Chantry. They are fishing. Rod and I were spying on them trying to discover their fishing techniques. What lures were they using? How long was their leader? We are a competitive bunch, yes we are. But we couldn't get a good look at what they were using because of our completely useless binoculars. I begged Rod to leave them on a rock during our hike. He politely declined.

My fellow campers. Rod's brother Eric and his fam. From the bottom row left: Lookin' for Bars Ryden, Fish Cleaner and Wood Chopper Rennick, Queen of the German Browns Chantry and Flip Flop Hiker Marinda. Brenda and Eric up above. (They were all fighting like UFC cage fighters a mere moment before we snapped this picture. You'd never know. But I felt you should be aware.)

The star of the show. What could be better? Well, they could be cooked, for one. Notice the deep red meat? That is because these are Kokanee, a land locked salmon which are found in Paulina lake, and the end of our fishing poles. We tried to follow an Emeril recipe for these fish, because we are fancy like that. They have sprigs of fresh herbs inside, as well as more lemon slices. BAM!

Cousins Josiah and Renick reliving the scary story of the night before. Good times. One of these cousins is age eight, the other is 24. I'm just sayin'.

We stopped at the Black Bear Diner in Madras on our way home for a quick bite.

Here is Brenda preparing to ask the Lord to bless this food.(praying it doesn't kill her by sunset, most likely.)

Look at that humongous mound of biscuits, sausage, scrambled eggs topped with a creamy country gravy. That is a couple pounds ofextra crispy hash browns on the side.What an amazing amount of food, but all that high altitude mountain air must have heightened Brenda's normally average appetite.

I personally was satisfied with my light and zesty salad with just a squirt of lemon and could hardly believe it when she cleaned her plate. And asked for more. Wow, Brenda. Wow.

It was an enjoyable way to end a fun, relaxing week-end.

Thanks for sharing your family with us, Eric and Brenda.

Fluffy post/serious post..two posts in one!

I really do want to write a shallow, funny post, but serious subjects keep floating to the top instead. I guess that's just how it goes for now. But I'm sure I'll be back with things that are amusing soon.

Like how Rod, in planning a little camping trip to the lake yesterday, invited everyone.....to a cabin that sleeps 10. I believe he invited about two dozen too many.

Whoops.

Somebody let their enthusiasm for family get-to-gethers interfere with their basic math skills. Gotta love him. That's what I keep telling myself, over and over, as I make the obligatory phone calls with the proper conciliatory tone.

Actually, 99.9% of the time, it is no struggle to love Rod at all. He is just a big bundle of goofy goodness.

I, however, am a different story entirely. I'm positive that half of all Rod's prayer time must be spent in begging God to help him figure out HOW HE CAN LOVE SOMEONE WHO JUST SPENT $85.00 ON SANDALS. (Okay, to be honest, he doesn't know quite yet that I spent $85.00 on sandals, but he will eventually.When I tell him....at just the right time. Hopefully, he'll be awake. I'll keep you updated. In case you need to search for my body in our new garden area. I'm just saying.)

Okaaaaay. Switching gears. (Don't you like how I warn you, rather than just change subjects all willy-nilly , like I do in real-life conversation?)

Last night I went into prison and brought the DVD, Mel Gibson's "The Passion" in for the ladies. I did notice that over 100 women signed up to come in and watch, rather than the normal 30 or so that usually attend Prison Fellowship with us.(You'll be relieved to know that I was able to "woman up" and swallow my bitterness and envy that they don't all fight to get in the room when I am leading a lesson.....This is about JESUS, after all. And I hope you know I am so kidding. No envy. No bitterness. Amen)

Wow. Can I just say WOW. I am sitting here with my fingers poised over the keyboard wondering how I am going to communicate the total awesomeness of being there and sharing this story together.

Some of us prayed before hand. A couple ladies, not staying for the film came in when they saw the crowd and asked me to just pray with them. I was privileged.

We cried as Jesus was betrayed by his friend. We cried when Peter denied knowing him. We flinched and wept as Jesus was beat so unmercifully. The gal sitting next to me, weeping until her eyes were red and swollen, just rocked back and forth in her chair and whispered, "Thank-you, Jesus," each time he was struck.

All of the scenes when Jesus was with his mother were particularly difficult for these women who have little, if any contact with their own children.

When he was crucified, the entire roomful of prisoners, some believers, some not yet, were in tears.

The fact that he died for us, while were yet sinners, was not lost on this crowd. How obvious it was to all of us that he chose to die, that he loved us and forgave us, even as he was being tortured and killed.

It was a truly remarkable time, and although we were "cried out" and emotionally drained afterwards, we were also thoughtful and grateful.

Basically, we had us some church in the prison last night!

Have yourselves a wonderful Easter, everyone!!

"Behold,I am coming soon! My reward is with me and I will give to everyone according to what he has done.

I am the Alpha and Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End." Rev.22:12-13