Shop with a cop a success

PLENTY WET. We had heavy rain this past weekend and, with a little luck, the forecast for drier weather will prevail. While it won't be all dry, it's not supposed to be pouring rain every day either. Fingers crossed!

SPECIAL DAYS. Celebrating birthdays this week are Fritz Carmine, Breanna Smith, Zachary Stewart, Sandy Bergseng, Tyson Webb Foster, Jim Webb, Abby Buennagel, Lynah Bergseng, Azula Hoven, Wesley Hoven, Kellie K. Masters, Riley Brown, Angel Brown, Isla Nortrup, Hillary Price, Sunnie Beard, Ruth Linquist, Kristen Souvenir, Barbara Moore Johnson and 67'ers Elaine Rolf, Sharon Kowalski and Don Seaberg. Roger and JoAnn Reed will celebrate their anniversary.Congratulations to them, and here's wishing all of you wonderful celebrations on your special days this week.

CONGRATULATIONS. I am not a horse person, but I do know that a first place ribbon, a gold buckle, and a check mean that Makayla Davis did a fantastic job with her horse in Las Vegas. The buckle says “All In 3D” (All In Barrel Race) and, boy, is that great or what? Her mom, Crystal Davis, is mighty proud of her daughter and, of course, her whole family is just as happy as can be. So "Congratulations" Makayla. Awesome job! And hug that horse, too; he did you proud.

JAM PACKED. The weekend was packed with things to do; one had to be a genie to attend all the events. Since most of us don't have that title, we missed a lot of things. One of the happier events was held at the Duck Inn this past Saturday where the "Shop with a Cop" group, which included twenty-three kids and officers, came to have "Breakfast with a Cop." Once the whole crew was fed, it was time to head to Longview where they whole gang went to Walmart to do some shopping! It's always good to see all those happy faces. Plus, those officers and helpers, were all looking pretty happy too. Their jobs aren't always dealing with the happiest moments, so these events make for some happy memories. With all that was going on, the spirt of giving was alive and well this weekend for sure!

LOTS OF QUESTIONS. There were still a lot of folks that evidently hadn't heard of the Santa Run happening in this area, and Facebook lit up with a whole bunch of comments like “What's going on with all the fire trucks?” “What's wrong?” Thankfully all those sirens were just to welcome you into the holiday spirit and to give the kids a thrill as Santa was waving as they went by. They stopped at various places along the way in order to pick up donations of food, gifts, coats, or money for the upcoming holiday season, so kudos to all who participated. This event was hosted by the Skamokawa Fire Association but all of the of the fire districts participated and all monies and items are distributed among the entire county. If you missed this event and would still like to donate, you can go to Facebook and use their GoFundMe account. Or call 360-355-7519 and see if you could bring somebody a check.

GIVE AN EAGLE GIFT. This is also a good time to remind folks to give a gift of this newspaper. Once you have this paper in your hands, you'll be more aware of what's going on in your town!

SHOEBOXES OF JOY. Time is running out to add someone to the list! The forms need to be filled in by tomorrow, Thursday, Dec. 15, and can be picked up at the Bank of the Pacific, the Video Store or the Duck Inn. You can also drop off items for the boxes there. If you happen to be out and about today, Dec. 14, you can come by the Skamokawa Grange Hall and enjoy a free breakfast and drop off items for the boxes as well. Let's spread a little more Christmas cheer and get those shoe boxes filled up with personal items and goodies. I hope you'll be able to help make this the brightest Christmas many folks in our area have had in years!

SHOP LOCAL. If you haven't finished up your shopping list just yet, be sure to shop our local stores for those last-minute items. For those who have everything, maybe a donation to one of our local groups. It's that time of year when the spirit of giving makes both the giver and the receiver happy!

GREAT PARTY. I got to see some great pictures of the cookie decorating party held by Adam and Samantha Pedersen this past weekend. It looked liked everyone was having a great time! I believe there were a dozen kids there and with long tables set up and all the many tubes and tubs of frosting and the many containers of sprinkles and various other toppings, it looked like a real fun time was had by all. Their two daughters, Bailey and MacKenzie have shown they are quite the little cooks already, so they obviously learned a whole lot from their folks; Dad Adam is a pizza making pro along with a master on their BBQ, so I'm thinking of moving closer to their house!

GREAT ADVENTURES. Pete and Katie Sechler, along with their family members Kyle and Suzy, Blake and Michaela, Tessa and Bobby, and Luke, all met up back East to gather for some pre-holiday fun in Connecticut. With matching aprons and a huge kitchen, the crew whipped up hearty meals at the rented house by the lake and had a marvelous early holiday celebration together. They all wound up taking a train into New York City and had a great time, albeit a bit chilly. At least it wasn't snowing or pouring down rain. The family got to enjoy sites that a few of them had not seen before, and be altogether as well, since that wasn't going to happen on Christmas Day this year. As my Grandma Elsie would say, “And a good time was had by all!”