A Trip To Holland

No, not really. But I wish!! Our family vacations in a quaint Dutch town in Northwest Washington every summer. Lynden is approx. 25 minutes from the Canadian border. It was originally settled by Dutch immigrants, and most of the current inhabitants have strong Dutch roots. What brings us there, (most of my family knows this, but not many of my friends do) is the annual Puget Sound Antique Tractor and Machinery Association's Steam and Tractor Show. (Wow! That's sort of a long name. We just say "goin' to Lynden") My daddy and both of my uncles inherited steam yarders (used in logging) when my grandfather passed away, and my dad does most of the 'events' with them. For this one though, my dad helps one of my grandfathers old friends, Bob Sorenson, run a steam powered saw mill. It's pretty interesting to watch! Bob's saw mill is set up year round in Berthusen Park on the outskirts of Lynden. The family joke is that daddy works harder on vacation then he does the rest of the year. ;o) So... while daddy is working, my mom and I explore the town, do a little early Christmas shopping, and have a jolly time. ;o)

One thing that kind of bugged me though was the fact that I didn't get to play my piano before we left. I thought, "Oh, it's okay. I'm sure I'll come across a piano in our travels." Sure enough, on our trips through the unique little shops, I saw several rare, old, and very beautiful pianos. My fingers itched to play, but upon further inspection there was always a neat little sign saying, "Please do not touch." Drats. And I actually believed that there would be a nice piano to play!! Oh well, not the end of the world by any means. For any one that is interested I am currently learning "Be Thou My Vision", "Unchained Melody", and "Canon in D." So far I have Canon in D memorized! Yeah! Speaking of memorization, some friends of ours and I are racing to see who can memorize Psalm 119 first this summer. (They are probably winning.)

Talk to ya'll later! ~Brooke