We took Levi to dinner at a local hamburger joint called “Alf’s”.  It’s named after the monkey who resides in a room adjacent to the dining room area.  You can watch the monkey’s antics through a big glass window as you eat.  Alf is a cute monkey, dressed in shorts.  He was quite entertaining – swinging off the bars in his habitat, hiding under his blanket, and coming to the window to gaze at the diners.  I think Alf must feel that the diners are his entertainment, not the other way around.  Levi seemed to enjoy his butterscotch shake and footlong chilli dog; and watching the monkey.  When we got home, we all sat down and watched “Predator versus Aliens” and “War of the Worlds”.

On Sunday morning, we headed for Mariners’ Square in Newport, OR. Even though it poured rain the entire day, we had a terrific time.  We went to the Wax Museum, Ripley’s  Believe It or Not, and the Undersea Gardens.  We had lunch at a little place just down the street from Ripley’s.  I had a delicious chicken sandwich, Thom had a yummy omelet, and Levi had a humongous banana pancake.  He wanted a large pancake, but the waitress told us the small pancake was plenty big.  Thankfully we ordered the small pancake because it was a little a larger than the plate – a good 14″ in diameter – the biggest “small” pancake I’ve ever seen.  Levi managed to eat half of it.

We got Levi back to his house on Sunday evening.  It was a most satisfying weekend all around – full of fun, adventure, and new memories.  You can see pictures of this wonderful weekend by clicking here.

Happy 9th birthday, Levi Samuel!  Can’t wait to see what we can get up to next year!

Well, so much for my idea of updating my blog monthly.  It’s been over three months since my last post.  Being retired, I thought time would pass more slowly and leisurely and I’d find myself with lots of time on my hands.  Hasn’t happened that way.  Instead I’ve discovered that time flies and it flies pretty darn fast.

Multiple events have occurred since my last post:

• Thom and I went on a weekend trip to Ocean Shores, WA.  I loved it, but Thom found it to be a bit too foggy, gloomy, and cold weatherwise.  It made walking on the beach easy though because we were the only ones there visiting a multitude of seagulls and pelicans.
• Since Thom and Jim’s birthdays are both in September, we celebrated them together at our house.  Thom’s 60th birthday and Jim’s 36th.
• October brought the celebration of Simone’s birthday; and, of course, Halloween.  Our first Halloween in our new home; and we had probably 30 trick-or-treaters.  It was fun.
• On our way to San Diego, we spent a couple days in Carpenteria (near Santa Barbara).  We had a lovely time walking the beach in Carpenteria and visiting Santa Barbara.
• We attended our niece’s wedding in San Diego.  Briana and Zac were married on 11/11/11.  It was truly a fairy tale wedding.  The highlight for me was that all four of us siblings (me, Larry, Lisa, and Linda) were together and that rarely happens.
• While in San Diego, we got to see Craig, Brenna, and Charlotte.  Charlotte grows as quickly as time flies.  It was great to go to Gymboree with them and watch Charlotte play and learn.
• We visited Dave and Joy in November; and had a lot of fun watching Davey and Katey playing soccer.
• Thanksgiving was celebrated at Mom and Dad’s home in Yuma, AZ.  Lisa was there also; and Larry came by.  Since Briana and Zac live in Yuma, we also got to visit them for a bit in their home there.
• December was filled with fun.  We went to a nearby tree farm and got our first ever fresh cut Christmas tree (a noble fir).  We invited the grandkids over to help decorate it.  Christmas day was spent at Jim and Becka’s home.  The grandkids got a beautiful piano from Jim and Becka which they were absolutely thrilled with.  Then, of course, we had the joy of listening to them all take turns playing.  All the kids, with the exception of Sophie, play very well.  Sophie will start taking lessons in another couple of years.
• January found us driving back to California to attend the wedding of our nephew, Tim.  Tim and Tracy Lynn were married in Hesperia on January 7th.  It was a beautiful wedding.
• Back home again, we woke up to a blanket of snow at our house on January 15th.  Everything looked so pristine and white and peaceful and gorgeous.

Clicking on the links throughout this blog will take you to pictures of the different events.  I must say that I am loving it in Oregon – the rain, the lush green pines, the clouds, the hills, being able to see the grandkids and Jim and Becka more often . . . it’s all I dreamed of retiring for and it’s a dream come true.

There you have it.  I would tell you that I’ll blog more often, but I’ve said that once before and we know what happened . . . three months later.  Ah well, I’m sure you know . . . time flies.

Thom and I recently babysat  the grandkids (kind of a misnomer since only Sophie is a baby now) for four days while their parents went to the PAX Convention.  We had an awesome time with them.  We played games, had a picnic at the park, and took them to the State Fair held in Salem.  This was the largest fair I have ever been to.  Quite impressive.  We watched part of a loggers competition, the kids participated in a Lego Ninja Spinners event; and we all walked through barns full of gigantic cattle, enormous pigs, soft sheep, and a variety of barnyard fowl.  They also had great food, photography, quilts, and crafts exhibits that we all enjoyed.  The kids were treated to a vibrating foot massage (photo above) to help their weary feet.  Of course, the kids had to go on a couple of the scary carnival rides.  Thankfully they had a peaceful little canoe ride for Sophie Grace – she loved it and went on it twice.  You can see pictures of our time with the grandkids by clicking here.  We had a ball; and Jim and Becka had a great time at PAX – it was win-win all the way.  Looking forward to next year’s adventure.

We got inspired in August to make some minor home and yard improvements.  We added decorations to the patio/deck area and the kitchen; and we did some planting outside in the yard.

The kitchen now has a sunflower theme which I really like.  We got a variety of vases, pots, bottles to decorate the cabinet tops and the counter.  Then we placed artificial sunflowers, leaves, twigs, and other flowers in them.  I’m really pleased with the result.  The kitchen is brighter and more cheerful.  On a return trip from California recently, we  purchased a couple of carved wooden pine trees from a quaint restaurant in southern Oregon.  They now decorate the deck/patio wall.  Going for a foresty/woodsy feel there.

We have done a lot of planting in the front and back yard.  In the front yard we planted a dwarf pine, several mum plants, a hydrangea, and foxglove.  I so love that we can grow such a wide variety of beautiful flowers here.  In the back yard we planted several aborviates, one “Dick Clark” red rose bush, one yellow rose vine, a pine tree, an evergreen bush, and a magnolia tree.  When all these plants grow up, the yard will look awesome.  The magnolia tree is about 8′ tall now.  It is evergreen so it will look nice year-round; and in the spring/summer it will get these huge awesome white blossoms.

You can see pictures of these home improvements by clicking here.

Thom and I went on a family camping trip to Cape Disappointment in Ilwaco, Washington last week.  Jim, Rebecca, the grandkids, and two of their friends were there; as well as Rebecca’s sister, brother-in-law, and their two boys.   Cape Disappointment is an incredibly beautiful place right by the beach.  It was literally just 50 steps from our camp site to the beach.  One day we took six of the kids on a 5-mile hike/walk.  Walked to the “Wakiki Beach” side of the park.  This part of the beach is covered in an incredible amount of driftwood.  We had planned to walk the trail up to the Cape Disappointment Lighthouse, but found it far too slippery with mud from the rain the day before.  It was a very narrow trail and a slip off of it could easily send one down the cliff side.  We didn’t want to risk it.  We were able to see the lighthouse from a different vantage point and we all enjoyed the walk.  The children were very tired by the time we arrived back to camp.  You can see pictures of our camping time at Cape Disappointment by clicking here.  Cape Disappointment is a beautiful place and the campground is very nice.  I highly recommend it.  We had the most wonderful time.

Me and Jim

I had an incredibly awesome Mothers Day.  It has been nine years since I was with my son on Mothers Day, so when he and his wife invited us over to his home for dinner to celebrate the day, I was thrilled.  We got there late afternoon and spent some time visiting with Jim and Rebecca, and playing with the grandkids.  Then Jim, assisted by his eldest daughter Hannah, made the most delicious rib eye steak and lobster tail dinner.  I swear I have never had such good lobster before in my life.  The whole dinner was just perfect. It’s so very nice to live in Oregon now and be able to spend time with my son, daughter-in-law, and grandchildren here.  I could not ask for a better family nor a better Mothers Day.

*My Mom suffered a stroke in September 2010; but is doing better and better.  She has a strong will and determination to regain her speech and I admire her greatly for the strength she has shown through such a difficult and frightening experience.

*I retired from the Fire District on December 29th, 2010.  They gave me a wonderful retirement celebration which I will never forget and a retirement ring that I will cherish always.

*In March 2011, Thom and I sold our home in California (in a record 3 days from being listed), bought a home in Oregon and moved to our new home.  We returned to California to celebrate my Mom’s 80th birthday .  While in Yuma for the birthday celebration, we made a run to San Diego and arrived there just a few hours after our 8th grandchild, Charlotte Elise, was born.  She is beautiful ( of course).

*April 2011 we celebrated Easter and granddaughter Hannah’s 12th birthday with Jim, Becka, and the grandkids.

Currently we are in the process of getting a deck and patio built.  Once that’s completed, we’ll get fencing.  Moving and getting settled was quite a chore, but we are so happy to be here in Oregon.  A long-time goal reached and very much being enjoyed.

I’m sure I’ve missed a few things, but like I said, it’s been a long time. . .

Craig and Brenna were married in San Diego on July 25, 2010.  We are so happy to welcome Brenna to our family – a wonderful new daughter.  She is a happy, upbeat, positive, terrific woman.  She is so good for Craig and he is so good for her.  When Brenna’s sister, Kaitlin, toasted the couple at the reception, she said something about rainbows appearing and cute, cuddly puppies being born every time Craig and Brenna are together.  That pretty well sums up how happy they are  . . . they just glow with contentment . . . they just “fit”.  Congratulations and much love to Craig and Brenna.  You are wished many, many years of wedded bliss. 

My Wonderful Dad

Thom and I went to Yuma, AZ last weekend to join family in celebrating my Dad’s 80th birthday.  We went a couple of days ahead of time so we could help with the decorating and logistics of the celebration day.  Lisa was staying in the room next door to us at the hotel which gave us a little extra time together in the evenings.

My sister Linda was unable to come, so the family gathering wasn’t quite complete and we missed her being there to celebrate with us.

My brother Larry arrived the day of the celebration with his friend Jan. I hadn’t seen my brother in several years, so it was just wonderful to see him.   Jan is a lovely person who fit right in and added to merriment.  The family gathered round the patio table and reminisced.  There was so much fun and joy at just being all together.  There was more laughter than any of us had experienced in any one day in many years (if ever).  I laughed so hard that my ribs and chest muscles hurt for three days after the birthday celebration.

Lisa, Larry, Mom, Dad, Me

There is just nothing like having family together – sharing old memories and making new ones.  This event just recharged me and filled me with joy; and I’m certain the rest of my family felt the same way.  Now looking forward to next March when we’ll gather again to celebrate Mom’s 80th.  Family is so important and the dearest of treasures in life.

Thom and I celebrated Thanksgiving with Lisa and my folks at Lisa’s home (that’s me and Lisa in the photo above).  We had a wonderful time just visiting and, of course, eating.  We had turkey and all the trimmings, plus yummy dessert.  My sister makes the best homemade cheesecake I’ve ever eaten.  You can see some photos by clicking here.  We also celebrated my birthday ( a few days early) since we were all together.  That was special too.

Our Christmas was awesome, start to finish.  We spent a couple days with Craig and Brenna in San Diego – Christmas shopping, going out to dinner, and touring the Christmas lights at Del Mar.  Thom was able to visit Joy, Dave, Davey, and Katey (while I was working), and see a Christmas play where Davey most proudly played the part of a pepperoni.

We spent a week in Oregon.  I was in grandma heaven as you’ll be able to tell if you check out the photos we took  – just click here.  Spending time with the grandkids is just bliss!  Sophie has grown so much and she is just adorable.   Hannah, Miriam, and Simone are all playing piano.  Levi is a whiz at building complicated Leggo projects.   Between the nine of us gathering around the tree on Christmas morning, we had a mountain of gifts.  To top off the day, we had an incredibly delicious turkey dinner.

 Jim had brined this turkey for over eight hours in a pot of broth, water, salt, spices and herbs. Then it was perfectly baked.  I’ve never dined on such a tasty and tender turkey.  Becka made homemade dinner rolls and garlic mashed potatoes . . . everything was just perfect!  A terrific family feast.

We had a bit of an adventure on our last day.  We were to fly out in the early evening.  In the early afternoon, big soft snowflakes began to fall.  Since we hadn’t got so much as a drop of rain the entire time we were up there (I was disappointed at that since I so love the rain), we all oohed and aahed at the beautiful snow coming down.  The children ran out to play in this winter wonder and make snow angels.  We all figured it wouldn’t last long and certainly wouldn’t stick.  We were wrong.

The snow came down thicker and faster, and covered the ground in no time.  We decided we should leave early for the train that would take us to the airport just to be safe.  With all the children, us and our luggage packed in the van, Becka proceeded to drive us to the station.  A normally 20 minute trip took us nearly two hours!  Thom and I said our goodbyes and hurried Becka on her way, hoping the snow would let up so she could get back home more quickly as poor Sophie was hungry and fussing by this time.

Thom and I waited at the train station quite some time standing under the scant shelter that did little to protect us from the ice cold blowing wind and the still falling snow.  After a little over an hour, we finally boarded and headed to Portland, where we were to get a connecting train to the airport.  We got to the Portland stop and waited an additional hour in the still falling snow (it was freezing I tell you!), until a train finally arrived to take us to the airport.  We got to the airport just in time to check our baggage, grab a quick sandwich, and board the plane.  Then we had to wait on the tarmac awhile as our plane was third in line to be de-iced before taking off.  Quite the adventurous end to our Christmas vacation.

I’m wishing all of my family and friends (and anyone else who might happen to read this post) a happy, healthy, and love filled 2010.  Cherish your parents, your siblings, your children, your grandchildren, your friends . . . all the people who touch your life in a positive way and make it special and full.  Time passes so quickly . . . be sure to treasure the blessings God has given you and give thanks.