Angie Windheim

Yesterday I had the pleasure of chaperoning Joe’s 5th grade class to PCC-Sylvania for the annual Clean Water Festival. The Clean Water Festival is designed for 4th and 5th grade students to learn about water and how it relates to our world. Water experts from Oregon and Washington work with 4th and 5th graders to explore water science and watershed ecology. It was very fun and educational day. We played a salmon migration game, wetland bingo, watched a “green” magic show, learned about the Missoula Flood that created the Willamette Valley and found out how much water we use just by brushing our teeth. It was pretty cool. During lunch, the kids got to be inside a giant bubble. We also played with the worms in a worm bin, saw the bacteria in a drop of unfiltered water and laughed at a giant jar of the objects found in sewer pipes (the guy at the booth said that all sewer guys keep collections…too funny). Of course, all of that was a hit with the kids.

The festival is every year, but there is a limited amount of space. I highly recommend applying to attend if you have a 4th or 5th grader.

OK, now this is the way to celebrate a girlfriend’s birthday! We started by going for a late breakfast at Farm to Fork in Dundee. It’s very cute and as Karla would say, it’s very “yum.”  As the name implies, all menus are fresh daily, and ingredients are locally sourced within 200 miles of Dundee. I had the daily special frittata which was awesome. Also on the tables was a fantastic skillet with a mushroom gravy, some to-die-for French toast, some sort of yummy brioche toast with egg and gruyere cheese and, and, and. Nobody tried the trout hash, but I have no doubt that it’s excellent. For six of us, the total bill was $65.  Priced well, fresh and creative. I’ll definitely be taking Brian there soon.

We ladies followed up our late breakfast with some wine tasting in Newberg. We went to the Fox Farms, Hip Chicks and Chehalem tasting rooms. I, being the designated driver and current avoider of yeast, abstained from the tastings, but sniffed some very nice pinot noirs, checked out some excellent art and enjoyed chatting with the girls. Newberg is really blossoming on First Street and we all agreed that we should attend the next First Friday Art Walk and tastings on May 7th from 5pm-9pm. A pre-Mother’s Day night out? We’ve decided Mother’s Day begins on Friday and ends a midnight on Sunday 🙂

After much persistent begging by Joe, we finally built a hutch and added bunnies to the Windheim farm. Scratch and Oreo, two darling little girls, came home with us yesterday from Critter Cabana in Newberg. Oreo had been the sole bunny of the store for several weeks (we visit the store often since music lessons are next door).  Brian mentioned that maybe we should get two bunnies, but we were having trouble locating a second female. Well, as we’re leaving with Oreo, a lady comes in to drop off an 8-week old, girl bunny!  It was clearly fate, so we bought her before her feet ever touched the ground at Critter Cabana.  She’s very sweet, but hasn’t been as handled as Oreo…hence, the name Scratch. She likes to snuggle and basically scratches when you try to put her down. Oreo is a nibbler. She’s already put some air holes in Sam’s sweatshirt. Good thing they are so adorable. The boys are completely smitten. So am I. And, Otto (dog) and Smokey (cat) are even pretty cool with it. Should be a fun adventure.

Following the trend of so many women my age (mid-thirties and up), I signed up for the IgG food intolerance test. I’m hoping to find a reason behind my very, very dry/itchy scalp and face and dry eyes. My report came back with a few moderate/high reactions: whey/milk and yeast. Eggs were considered low, but my doctor still believes I should avoid them as well. Oh, and oysters. I’ve never had one, and I guess now I have a legitimate excuse not to try them. 🙂

So these “intolerances” are a little tricky. Whey is in a lot of packaged goods (even Chips Ahoy).  Yeast is in bread obviously, but also beer, wine, vinegar, etc. Some evidence shows that people with yeast issues should also avoid sugars and molds and mushrooms and canned goods and dried fruit.  But then, other reports don’t agree with that at all.  I’m sure I’ll make mistakes, but I’m hoping to tackle eliminating milk/whey for sure. I’ve bought the soy milk which is pretty good. I will miss yogurt though. I will also tackle yeast in the forms of bread and beer/wine. Only vodka drinks for me. And, boy will I miss my sourdough.

The goal is to try this for 8 weeks and then return to the doctor. She’ll be re-checking my thyroid (slightly low and I’m on a daily low-dose supplement now) and cholestrol (slightly high, but I didn’t fast before the test).

Wish me luck!

Just a quick note to all of you Northwest veggie gardeners out there.  Get those cool weather crops in ASAP.  Peas, lettuce, cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, potatoes, brussels sprouts, etc, can all be planted now (if you’re soil isn’t too wet and clumpy).  Please try to hold back though on the tomatoes,  basil, peppers, zucchini, squash, beans, etc.  It’s still a bit cold so they won’t grow and could get mold and rot issues. Mother’s Day should be about perfect for those sun lovers.

“The best time to plant a tree is twenty years ago. The second best time is now.”

If you didn’t have an excuse before, then this month’s Earth Day and Arbor Day should get you motivated to plant some trees!

The Stella Olsen tree planting was very fun. Lots of volunteers, doing lots of good work. This was my first time volunteering for a collective tree/shrub planting. It was great fun. Everyone is happy to be there, ready to work and getting some exercise. I will definitely seek out more opportunities to dig in 🙂

If you are looking for some ideas on what to plant and where to buy some trees or shrubs, I have a few suggestions. The Sherwood Rotary tree sale is underway in the Albertson’s parking lot. $10 per bareroot tree.  I bought myself two peach trees to fill out my orchard and one Golden Chain. I’ve always wanted one and they had a great specimen. They also have just about any kind of fruit tree you can imagine, lots of willows, maples, oaks, alders, etc. Just make sure that when  you go that you are ready to plant right away. Bareroot trees dry out very quickly and you really want to get them in the ground before the completely leaf out.  The trees are small, but they’ll grow. I bought some birch 3 years ago and am really happy with their progress. And, hey, I mean $10! Awesome!!

Another good source of trees and bareroot fruit bushes right now is Loens Nursery on Hwy 99. The trees are 40% off. I bought a beautiful Dogwood for just $50…a steal for sure. They have great deals on bareroot grapes, blueberries, currants, raspberries, etc. At the Stella Olsen planting I discovered I had to have some currants. I bought both black and yellow shrubs. Can’t wait to taste them this summer.  They have great flowers and a really interesting smell, too.

Just a reminder that Friday is the big tree and shrub planting at Stella Olsen Park. You’ll need your gloves, some boots and a shovel to join in the fun from 11am to 3pm on April 16th.  Snacks and beverages will be provided.

Brian and I will be there as will our friends from Raindrops for Refuge to make sure we do it right. I get to be a “crew leader.” Very exciting 

Click here to sign up or contact Olivia Collins, Volunteer Coordinator, 503-625-4251 collinso@ci.sherwood.or.us

Monday: 9,087

Tuesday: 11,122

Wednesday: 12,423

Thursday: 8,965

Friday: 8,837

Saturday: 4,958

Sunday: 8,114

Total for Week: 63,506

Daily Average: 9,072

Lost a little momentum on the steps this week, but was much better about watching calories. I dropped one pound which is a great “step” in the right direction. This week’s goal is an average of 9,500 steps per day and 2 pounds. Can she do it? Yes, she can!

I resisted Facebook for a long, long time. I had two reasons. One was that I’m already on the computer enough and really don’t need another excuse to be online. Another was that I didn’t think I wanted to connect with people from the past. We’d lost touch. So what?

Well, I’m singing a different tune now. I joined Facebook to help launch Angie Windheim Photography. But I’m a “fan” of Facebook now because it’s helped me reach out and feel so much closer to friends and family who live far away.  It’s fun to see the comments and off-the-cuff remarks. I now know that one friend is a serious coffee addict, another runs a yoga retreat and yet another just got a job as a Foreign Service Consular Officer for the State Department. And, I have a brand new baby second cousin in Japan and another cousin teaching in Korea. Facebook is very fun.

That glowing recommendation aside, it is another massive drain on my time. I have to find a way to limit the minutes I spend on it. What’s right? Once a day? 15 minutes a day? Less? More? I don’t know. Right now, I’m not able to resist checking it as frequently as email. It’s just too easy with my iPhone.  Maybe it’s just like a new toy that you can’t put down and my interest will fade over time. Yeah, right 🙂

Painters paint on canvas. Musicians paint on silence.

– Leopold Stokowski