Summer Evening in Canby

I finally got to take Brian down to Canby for a BBQ at the Hygelund's last night.

Brian "snapping" beans and helping with the farmhouse dinner

Debi's famous farm fresh veggie ragu

Since Brian is rarely in town during the week and our weekends are so chaotic, it was a real treat to take him to Canby and show him the farm.

Debbie's garden is incredible.

Her flowers are always so beautiful. She mentioned the cold weather early in the season has made it hard for some of her flowers to take off. Everything still looked wonderful. Brian was really impressed.

They still have the chicken coop! And I brought home a dozen fresh farm eggs!

The weather was pleasant.
Noel Hygelund - 12 (13 in September)

Life on the farm is good!

Enjoy!
Stacy

Happy Birthday - Deby!

Happy Birthday to my best friend, Deby Hygelund who enters the last year of her 30's today. Happy 39th - I am right behind you.



Deby and I have been friends for over 30 years. We met the day before we started the 3rd grade at Yolanda Elementary in Springfield, Oregon. Her parents, Byron and Roz and her sister, Tera moved in next door to our house on E street and we became best friends from that day forward.



Happy Birthday! I'll see you soon to celebrate!

Stace

Spaghetti in Canby

I had dinner Wednesday night in Canby at the Hygelund’s. I had not seen Debbie since our 20th High School Reunion and prior to that in the middle of summer – when the days were long and the garden was in full bloom.

Life on the farm is good, despite 16 year-old Miles’s knee injury while playing defense on the Canby football team. Fingers crossed he will be back wrestling in no time.

We celebrated a belated 12th birthday for Noel who is not “the baby” anymore. Both boys are growing up quickly.

Noel Hygelund Age 12

Deby made a huge pot of spaghetti….YUM and it was nice for the two of us to spend some time together.

Stace

High School Reunion

I spent the weekend in Springfield, OR with my best friend Debi for Thurston High School's 20th Class Reunion. Friday night was a meet and greet at the Roaring Rapids Pizza Parlor in Glenwood, a beautiful location right on the Willamette river.



Both Debi and I were a bit nervous and were afraid we either wouldn’t be recognized or wouldn’t recognize anyone! Well…..it was a whole lot of fun. A few people actually remembered us!! We saw people we had not seen since graduation night and it was so much fun catching up with long lost friends that the evening flew by! We closed the bar at the River Ranch after the festivities at the pizza parlor ended and no one wanted the night to end.


I especially enjoyed seeing Gary Prouse who I went to first grade with at Yolanda Elementary - 32 years ago! I also enjoyed seeing Julie Bright and Deborah Kempton - who I hung out with my junior and senior years at Thurston.
DEBI, JULIE, HEIDI, STACY and TAMMY

Saturday evening’s dinner/dance back at the West Brothers River Ranch was a bust. The DJ didn’t know an 80’s dance song to save his life and people were more interested in talking than dancing, but everyone really had a good time and it was hard to believe that 20 years had gone by. I really enjoyed meeting Deborah Kempton's spouse Craig (cowboy hat) and finding out what their life is like in Wyoming. I also really enjoyed meeting Tami Kley's husband, Scott. They are both teachers who live in San Jose, California.

DEBI, CRAIG, DEBORAH, TAMI and SCOTT
SCOTT, TAMI, CARRIE, DEBI

I would encourage everyone to go to their 20th year reunion. I know Debi and I had our trepidations, but seeing friends and even foes 20 years later left me with a better memory of high school and those people I spent so much time with in my youth.

Stace

Down on the Farm

I spent last evening with the Hygelund Family in Canby. Debi and I are getting ready for our 20th High School Reunion in Springfield on the 10th and 11th of August.





Their farm is buzzing as usual. Debi’s garden is amazing and she harvested Japanese eggplant, sweet onions, zucchini and beets and made a wonderful stir-fry with gorgonzola cheese (thanks for the leftovers).



They have a chicken coop! Do you know where eggs come from? It’s not in the cold section of your super-market! I walked out to the coop and opened up this hatch and inside about 6 nests were three wonderful eggs. Cool! For a city girl, it was pretty awesome.




I took home a ton of fresh herbs and veggies and a very colorful bouquet of wild flowers.
LLOYD and SPINNER
DEBBIE and CHEEKA

Thanks to the Hygelunds!

Stacy

Dinner in Canby

I had dinner with the Hygelund's last night (okay, maybe just Debi). It was the first time I had been to Canby in about a year! Life on the farm is good. Both boys (Miles, 15 and Noel 11) are into wrestling. Miles is ranked in the state of Oregon at 135 pounds and has his first meet today. Good Luck, Miles!

Debbie made this amazing soy/ginger/wasabi glazed Ahi tuna, which she seared on all sides and left bright pink in the middle (good job, Deb)! She also broiled some cod and scallops and had a pot of brown rice.

Unfortunately, Lloyd had to go coach Noel's wrestling team so I didn't get to spend much time catching up with him, but I'll be back on the 18th of December for some "holiday cheer" and maybe a little of Debi's famous Southern Comfort Punch she was telling me about - http://www.recipelink.com/gm/31/569, to which she adds sliced lemons and oranges sprinkled with colored sugar and partially frozen. Sounds Yummy! Always good to catch up with my best friend since the 3rd grade (that's almost 30 years).

Stace