Sea-Ami

August 14th - 25 Years

2011-08-20T15:40:00.003-04:00

S'te worked hard all summer putting the commemoration for the 25th Anniversary of the last time we talked or was with Jeremy. After their breakneck trip down and her family reunion was over she went into high gear on all the last minute modifications and plans and details for Jeremy's Memorial. Balloons were released all over the United States ~ and according to posts ~ in several other countries in the world.

Jeremy's Balloon Release
(click for a slideshow of the hundreds of balloons released in Memory)

I spent a very, very emotional day trying to cope with the whole idea of really truly coming to terms with the idea and the FACT that I was actually telling Jeremy good-bye and Rest in Peace. He was such a joy to me, so very active and smart, so protective and so very proud of his little sister! Even now it is so hard to grasp that in all likelihood I will never see or touch him again.

About 50 of our friends and relatives came to the Myrtle Crest baseball field to Memorialize his life. I was amazed by some of the people that came - and just as amazed by those who didn't. I was so glad to see old friends - Jeremy's friends, those who played ball with him, some who went to school with him, and many, many relatives came to show their love during this wonderful send off. We all had blue t-shirts with his picture on them - an awesome sea of blue - if you will!

S'te prepared an amazing, awesome, wonderful, and heartwarming send off for Jeremy. The balloons that she and those wonderful helpers spend the morning inflating and tying were released in turn. . .

14 blue balloons - released by S'te and I - for the 14 years he was with us

25 red balloons - released by his nieces and nephews - for the 25 years that he has been missing

100 white balloons - released by family - for all the love he was not here to enjoy

800+ green balloons - to memorialize, not only Jeremy's missing status, but for the over 800,000 children on the missing childrens lists at any one time.

and

finally, the pink balloon that I'd been seeing around the house for a week. It showed up at the ballfield with HOPE marked on it. S'te released it with the HOPE that an answer would someday be found as to why my baby boy, her brother, had to be taken from us - and what evil was done.

I honestly have to admit that most of the day was in a fog. I cannot remember all the kind words that were said or all the wonderful people that did come - I just know there was an awesome amount of love in that field.

I know that Jeremy, my Mom, Uncle GL, and the other loved ones that have gone before us were all smiling down on us as we paid this final tribute.

Thank you S'te for such a lovely tribute. I love you.

Happy Days!

2011-08-13T15:40:00.000-04:00

After flying across the US - we (Brayana and I) got everything ready for her parents and siblings to arrive. I'll tell you what~ She was one happy camper knowing that her time alone with 'grumpy old people' was finally going to come to an end :) It was quite an experience for her being an only child for so long! After getting back - she successfully passed her Driver's Permit test and and the wonderful gentleman (mmmm) gave ME a book to read! I was cleaning out the van the other day -and came across the book ~ I guess I forgot to pass that on! LOL

Rod, S'te, and family made the mad dash from Bremerton on Friday - from what I heard - it was after several 'false starts' and this time they made sure to gas up before leaving Lane County! When there isn't a gas station open for a 100 mile stretch - it makes forward planning a necessity! Brayana jumped up at the sound of the van arriving - for a joyous round of hellos! Even after the long drive and late arrival - they all were up and excitedly getting their custom tie-dyed (by S'te) shirts (and of course a dress for Tetee!) on for their excursion to the Dulley family reunion! This is S'te's grandmother's family on her father's side! LOL

Don't they look wonderful! I am so proud of them all!

On the Road AGAIN!

2011-08-05T02:36:00.000-04:00

On Sunday we attended met up with most of the family again to attend Church with Mom. The Pastor had us all stand as he honored her many years as a wonderful mother, friend, and a lifelong Christian woman. I felt very proud to be able to stand with the rest of the family as he gave her this honor!

What a pretty girl!

Melody, me, and Mom - after church and as Bray and I prepared to leave!

Bray started out with the idea of taking a picture of a McDee's in each state that we crossed. Here is the first of many she took - and then they just got away from her! There were almost as many McDee's as there was corn! :[)

A really neat farnhouse surrounded by corn, corn, and more corn!

We spent our 1st night in Peoria, Illinois, our second night in Ogalalla, Nebraska, tried for our 3rd night in Salt Lake City... When we got there - a storm was brewing and it smelled so nasty that we decided to try to go a bit further - our bit further ended up being Elko, Nevada. We saw lots and lots and lots of corn. and HOT, it was 107 at 5:30 or so in Omaha, 100 or so in Salt Lake City! It was just to hot to take our time and sightsee - so we just kept on going! The Great Salt Flats had us both wondering what we were driving thru - we saw lightening out on the lake when it was just hot and smelly in Salt Lake City - so we had to do some looking around!

And we made it back to Oregon! All in one piece!

We went a lot of miles in a very short period of time!

90th Birthday Party!~

2011-07-31T02:01:00.000-04:00

The "Birthday Girl" and her children! Keith, Melody, Heather, Mom, Joy, and Dolores. So glad I managed to steal this photo - my camera died right after the party started!

Fabulous photos of Mom's life. I tried to get photos of the pictures but just couldn't make it work. Maybe, if I'm lucky, I can eventually get them scanned.

A beautiful (and good tasting) cake!

Mom cuts her cake!

April brought this chair up and used it for a very original guest book. It was full of names before the party was over!

Elizabeth and Bray - They enjoyed hanging out!

Rick and the girls

Me, Keith, and Bray

A few of the ladies that came to wish Mom a great day.

April and Brennan

Mom and Melody

There was a lot of good food and great company for all to enjoy while being with Mom on her special day. We are blessed to have been able to be with her. And it was so great to work with the family for the little amount that I was able to contribute! It was to bad that the roses that April sent didn't last long enough to grace Mom's table ~ they were so beautiful!

After getting everything all cleaned up and back into the proper order - Dolores brought her grandkids over to the Motel and joined us at the pool - time to cool off and relax! I plugged in my camera - but - no battery yet!

A mad dash!

2011-07-29T01:34:00.000-04:00

After the 4th - we worked on trying to get the house finished in time for our mad dash across the US! Brayana joined Keith and I in our summer trip to Florida to get the final load of our belongings out of storage there. And to bring the pickup back out here to the West Coast. We stayed at the Holiday Inn on the beach for a few days while we re-connected with Barb and Jim, and, Jessie and John from Lakewood Village. The summer Florida heat is something that is definately for those strong at heart - not for a weakling like me! About all I wanted to do was to sit in the relative cool of the ocean breezes!

At Mulligans Restaurant in Vero Beach

Walking back from dinner at the Waldo's in the Driftwood Inn

Headed out to see the SEA TURTLES and the wreck just off the beach with the kayak and snorkles!

On the way to DisneyWorld - the pick was Magic Kingdom!

We did Magic Kingdom until the wee hours of the morning - we caught the last bus back to the hotel at 1:30 am!

The heat was about to get the best of all of us! I do believe that it was well over 100 degrees but even that didn't stop us from riding all the rides and walking the whole park. I don't think there was anything that Brayana wanted to ride that we didn't make it too. Right up until closing time! I had a great time ~ I was sure tired when we got back to the hotel! :-)

And after the Magic Kingdom we took off for Kentucky. That oppressive summer heat stayed with us the entire drive. I had wanted to stop at the Lookout Mountain (that had been on my bucket list for years) but it was just to hot! Maybe next time!

We made it to Ken and Dolores's home in Kentucky in record time - and got started in trying to make sure that all went well for Mom Beatty's 90th birthday on Saturday. We went over and had lunch in Charlestown, checked out the Church, had a great visit and got pretty well caught up since the last visit. Brayana kept saying "I think I was here, I think I've been here before" and it turned out - she had already actually visited both Dolores's and Mom's homes when they visited Elizabeth and Brennan a few years ago. So she got to revisit and remember!

Bray got her hair done and looks soooo pretty!

Keith and Mom at lunch

Dolores making sure that all is coordinated for the Party!

And here is my disclaimer for the time stamps! I forgot to change the time and then it got changed to 12 hours later than it was - So if it looks like it's close to midnight - it was probably closer to noon!!

Sorry!!

Independence Day Weekend!

2011-07-09T15:54:00.000-04:00

To continue our weekend - on Sunday, we actually made it to Church on time! Had a great message sitting out in the Ampetheater at River View Fellowship. Sitting out in the sunshine, looking at the trees, and feeling the breeze while listing to Pastor Matt - puts a whole new meaning to God's works. It is just so amazing! After Church we met with a few of the leaders for trying to organize Jeremy's Memorial Event next month. I wasn't able to participate much in that meeting - but I did watch the little ones...

Then Amanda and family brought all the leftovers from thier camping, Diane brought her kids over, and we had a wonderful afternoon of friendship and food. We wrapped up the little one's evenings with s'mores... boy how funny!

and a friendly little Elmore wrestle! (btw Chato rescued Raffy, his toy)

Then all but the 2 youngest went down to watch the Mill fireworks while I stuck the 2 boys in the tub and they watched tv. We liked that better than the "booms"! LOL

And on Monday, we actually went down to Bandon ourselves - to Jay and Amanda's. Keith hadn't been down that far on Hwy 101 - so he saw a little bit of 'new' (hahaa) scenery!

Where we ate SOME MORE!!

We meandered home again just before dark - and in time to see the Eastside Fireworks go off over the Bay. They were the best! We just watched them out the front door - at least I did! The kids went out to the front yard and watched them from there!

And bright and early Tuesday morning it was time for the Elmores to pack up and leave, sniff sniff, I'm always sad to see them leave - I pray often that we can be closer in distance - but - time will tell if that one is God's will. I love having them here and watching them grow! I love the life and vitality that having children in the house brings - even when they've become part of the mindless (hehee) and I am teasing!

So, now we are back to our normal hahaa! Brayana is still with us - working most days and waiting for our intended take off date to go back east!

But first! the house!!! ;-)

Home again, Home again!

2011-07-09T14:49:00.000-04:00

We have been safely ensconsed back in Coos Bay for a couple of weeks now! We brought Brayana and Jaleel back down from Washington with us. They are earning some spending money by helping the contractor who is 'doing up' the new addition to our house.
Since we sold the biggest house we had when we sold out in Vero - we had to have someplace for all of our prized personal possessions. We both pack a load of 'stuff' that we have become very, very attached to~ kid pictures, gifts from kids, crafts kids made, cards from kids, albums for kids, photos and keepsakes from our travels, and then there is the legal crap that we seem to need at every single turn, old tax returns, birth certificates, etc. So we decided to add on a room. Then that room became a master bedroom with bath - then it became a whole new addition! So now - finished in just a short few weeks - will be our 1,000 sq ft addition to our 812 sq ft house! LOL

It is going to be sooo neat! We have also been able to fix may of the issues our last contractor, that fixed the flood damage, left undone or did very, very sloppily!

Meanwhile, the Elmores came down for the 4th of July (and to pick up Jaleel) weekend and we had a great time! We went to Powers for the White Cedar Days (of course we missed the parade) and had pot luck with Evelyn's Model A Club.

Destini, Dad, Evelyn, and Me at the Pioneer House Grove in Powers

Cavelle had a blast! Red Snowcone, lots of fruit, and in the old Koontz Dairy Model A~~ What more could an almost-4 year old boy want!

From there we went up to the County Park to see Amanda, Jay, and kids!

Makkiah, Taniyah, Danika, Cavelle ~ from oldest to youngest!

Just us "Girls" at Powers.

Then came the Birthday Girl!!
And she's 15!!!

from there Keith and I went to pick up Chato from his Grandaddy - who stole him from the pot-luck :-)

and we had another BBQ at Yellow Creek

We finally made it home just before dark - and boy were we tired!

Celena's Pizza and Best Western Hacienda

2011-06-11T02:04:00.000-04:00

First my rant and if I have time I will recap our trip! And that will more than likely be in a different post as I'm pretty ticked right now!!!

We left after Church on Sunday and flew to SD for several reasons - one being me needing the dentist rather badly - It worked that the contractors really wanted us out of the house so they could get thier work done - but - that's still another story!! LOL I know, I do tend to run around the track a bit -
But to my rant!

I've been 'dentisting' all week. My mouth has been to sore to eat since Monday morning! Tonight she finished up everything (amazing in itself!) and it all feels really, really good. And I'm hungry!!.

Keith and I walked down to Coldstone for a snack. It's Friday night in Old Towne and everything is crowded - and long lines everyhwere - so we decied to come back and order from the flyer that we found in our room... Celena's Pizza.

Boy, If you are ever in San Diego and find a flyer for Celena's Pizza - just use it for tp or something!!!
The flyer says "FREE DELIVERY TO MOST AREAS", as well as offering a 10% Military Discount, and $2 off if you have to use your cell phone. The menu has a pretty good variety of pasta and pizza. So we decide on the Pasta for 2 for $20.00 which included 2 salads, garlic bread, and 2 cokes. Keith decided that he also wanted a piece of cheesecake - so ok.... Still not bad. He got the spaghetti and meatballs and I ordered the lasagna. It is announced that the total is 36.95 and 45 min to 1 hour. It took a minute - (and after the hangup) for me to realize he hadn't gotten the credit card number either. And I was still trying to figure out the total price. So I find in little bitty words on the back - 'delivery charge $5.50 So.. still I am confused - but then again - that is normal... hahaa!!

So our food gets here and we give him the credit card - he says - give the number to the man on the phone - so - ok - and the man says there will be an additional charge for using the credit card! and the free delivery is only in "most areas" -- so I ask several times where 'most areas' are and completely get the run around before he finally says, it must mean downtown... and then he wants a tip. I know it's not his fault - but I just got ripped off for his tip by his employer!! $10 for taxes, delivery charge, and credit card payment charge!! and he wants a tip too??? Well, I left that part up to Keith - don't really know what he did - but GEEEZZZZ!! And I looked up the place and it's in Mission Valley - a scant mile from here. Talk about a total rip!!!

And we open our now lukewarm food - Keith has no meatballs, the lasagna is watery,the salads are wilty lettuce, no parm, the garlic bread was put in the bag with the cokes, and the portions are so small that Keith ate both of them... and the cheesecake was the size of a matchbox.

So that is what you get from Celena's Pizza menu that is in the hotel room at Best Western Hacienda!! So very disappointing ~ and so sad that yet another person just practices a rip off!

So, now I'm over my rant and feel all better - and hope to save some other sucker from being the same suckers we were!

June Gloom!

2011-06-11T01:40:00.000-04:00

On June 1 we went up to Washington to watch the older 3 kids participate in the District Track meet. Destini didn't end up qualifying at the end, and right before the meet - Brayana didn't either - she was 1% below the allowable grade in one of her classes ~ and not enough time between the grade check and the meet to do anything to bring it up - so we all went and cheered Jaleel on. He did the Javelin thro - 108 feet (or somewhere close to that) - his team placed 1st in the 2x200 (which gave his team 1st place in the state) and 3rd in the last relay of the day. Their team was affected by an injury which necessitated a last minute substitution ~ but made up a lot of ground and finished well anyway. We had a blast at the track meet.

Here is Jaleel winning the 1st relay:

We also attended Tetee's t-ball game. She reminds me sooooo much of her mother at that age! 'Nuff said there! LOL

She loves getting her uniform on and all the preparation~

But the rest of it gets a bit boring for her! LOL

Since we were there for S'te's birthday I thought I'd work with the kids to bake a cake for her ~~~ It wasn't one of our finer outcomes - to say the very, very least! Being unfamiliar with her ovens - I didn't realize that neither of them (she has 2) heat evenly or tay at a temp well...

So needless to say.. the cake looked rather terrible! I went to stack it and .... welll....

I did find enough of a piece to put her flames on! Boy what a volcano!

Happy Birthday Baby Girl!!

Spring in Coos Bay

2011-06-11T01:28:00.001-04:00

We have several projects in the works again this summer! I spent Jeremy's birthday staying quite busy. Tim drug out the roto-tiller and we tag team tilled and piled the fresh mound of dirt that has really made our garden quite a site. Since it is all fresh dirt - we decided to plant potatoes and just a few other items - and when they are done - maybe we will level it out a bit more.

Buiding a pile of dirt for the garden!

Cleaning up a bit!

Leveled out some!

Tim and Keith built the terrace up some before the rototilling ended.

So after all of that preparation - we (Tim and I) planted some 'taters, tomatoes, lettuce, and a few peppers. I left him with a bunch of seeds - so we will see what he accomplishes while we are gone haha....

It has been colder than usual and really quite wet - so we were really late getting much of anything done. The berries have a lot of blooms and the fruit trees had a lot of blossoms on them - but so far - no fruities are showing up.

We had a little guy come stay with us for about a month - which was pretty neat in itself. I always enjoy being busy!

Our biggest project has been an addition to our house. and I will post more on that when it is complete. It has been a big, big learning experience watching those guys put it together. An amazing project! I am excited about seeing the finished project!!!

Easter Sunday - Our Lord has Risen!

2011-05-01T21:53:00.003-04:00

It's Easter Sunday! It's all rainy and cold here in the Great Northwest but that didn't stop us from donning our raincoats and heading out to Church to celebrate this wonderful day. We took our little guy and visited the church up here on the corner - someday I will get motivated enough to investigate a little more and see if we can find a church to attend on a more regular basis. We (at least I) have gotten totally out of the habit - and I miss it.

I was really truly blessed when I found that S'te had taken photos! So here is the 2011 Album of the Elmore's at home. The only one missing is Ty - he is still in SD and doing wonderfully - at least from what I hear - he is! He has grown into an awesome young man - Rod and S'te can be very proud of the part they played in shaping this man's life. With thier influence he has learned much that he may not have ever been exposed to if he hadn't traveled the road that he did. My hat is off to you Ty (and to you Mom and Dad)

Mom and Dad - LOL - aka Rod and S'te

The kids that are still at home!

Ladaria (19)

Brayana (14)

Destini (13)

Jaleel (13)

Makkiah (10)

Taniyah (6)

and last but not least
Cavelle (3)

And here is our baby with the bunny dog cookie that his Aunt Sallie gave him to celebrate with - and with him is his 'Sallie bear" that he plays with and guards constantly. NO one is allowed to play with Sallie Bear except for Chato.

And here is what the Easter Bunny brought for our little guy. He is napping so I didn't get him in this - but want to make sure he is included!

And here is the King of this Castle - ready to go celebrate the King of Kings.

And not to be left out - April and her family were able to go over to Kentucky to spend Easter with Grandma Beatty and Aunts, and cousins. From the sounds of things, they had a fantastic time too! Family is everything!

Brennan, Great Grandma, and Elizabeth

Bethany, Elizabeth, Aunt Dolores, Brennan, and Ariel

April and Aunt D

Elizabeth, Aunt Joy, and Bethany

The twins, Bethany and Tim

Happy Easter to All!

New Project - Week 2

2011-05-01T21:24:00.000-04:00

We had some good weather for a few days - and then it decided that it was payback time!

We laughed and teased about our new swimming pool - fortunately the skies stayed in good shape for most of the ditch digging. There was a LOT of dirt moved. Chris and Greg did an awesome job. I truly enjoyed sitting in the window and watching Chris manuver that huge piece of machinery like he was driving a volkswagon around!

There were a few times that everyone headed into the garage except for him - he could just shut the door and stay rather dry. In one single day they could choose any kind of weather - we had sun, rain, sun, hail, sun, more rain, more sun, and then towards the end of the day - it just turned blue skies - like that was what it wanted to do all day to start with!

This is the pile of dirt that we wound up with (and a whole dumptruck load went out to Robert's on top of what you see here!) ~ my new and improved and expanded garden spot! Thankfully, Chris and Greg took turns flattening it out and making it all pretty before they called it a good job and loaded the equipment. There is STILL lots of work to do on it. Lime, and rototill, and some more lime, and some good mulch, and maybe some stuff oout of our compost pile, and then some more lime to be tilled in - and maybe we will have a garden in a few years.... LOL!!

And this is what we ended up with as a footprint. Chris even walked that big trackhoe across the front sidewalk without so much as putting a chip in it. I do love to watch men work! :-)

And I got to see a lot of it for the rest of the week. I couldn't guess how many forests had to be chopped to get enough wood for the massive forms for the foundation pour! I watched it take shape - so much more quickly that I could even imagine! And being right here - I can ask questions and get answers as things go along instead of trying to play catch up like I did with our last project. And by the way - I finally had to get the Contractors Board involved with that - as we just kept finding more and more issues! But that is a totally different story.

By the end of Week 2 - we had a great start going. Rain, hail, and sun - these guys just kept right on showing up and working - just so wonderful!

So this is how it looked when Monday Morning rolled around. Mighty fine progress.

And in the midst of all of this - we got a little guy to visit for a bit - so we are having fun now!

Another project - Week 1

2011-04-16T20:45:00.000-04:00

Here is the yard between the house and the studo without the Magnolia Tree or the old-growth Rhody that had to be removed.

Rutledge Construction's "job dog", Kit, and Chato play tug of war in the back yard, believe it or not - they did not even tear old "Raffy"!

Keith is busy in his 'temporary work quaters". It will be a bit crowded for the next couple of months= but still more room than we have in the Bounder or the Catalina... LOL

Chato is teasing Kit - they love to play!!

The beginnings of the excavation that will put lots of really black dirt into my garden. I may even try for some green beans again this year!!

When we get all done - we should have a 3 bedroom, 2 1/2 bath home complete with a large family room to relax in!

I love the plans!

From Arizona to Oregon

2011-04-09T20:08:00.000-04:00

Dad had an appointment on the 7th - so we waited until he was back from it to complete our 'load-up' and leave sequences. It was quite the trip! We traveled thru several different 'weather zones' in just our 1st night of travel! Our first stop was in Barstow - where Keith purchased a much needed windshild wiper (I turned them on and the driver wiper just shredded to bits!) and while trying to install that ~ It HAILED~~ on us... In the desert - in April!! So we got the wiper on - rested a bit - stoked up on a huge cappachino and headed back out. I turned on the vcr for Dad and Keith to watch since it had gotten dark and there really wasn't much scenery to watch...

Our next weather system was the blizzard that we drove thru on the Tehatchapie Pass. I was amazed at the huge, giant snowflakes that absolutely coated our windshield - and was doubly glad that Keith got the new wiper installed for us! Dad dozed and Keith laid on the couch - and by the sounds that reached me - I think he dozed also! Of course, Chato was in his element for the whole trip!

Along about Modesto or so there was an accident that took us completely off of I5. I followed a semi to a dead end - took a long, long time getting turned around again - and then followed another down a bunch of country roads - and wa-la!! came out back on I5 - north of the accident (at least I'm assuming so since we didn't see it again) LOL

Along about 5 I pulled into a Flying J - got my face washed and laid down for a bit. Dad tried to crash on the couch - boy - that had to have been really uncomfortable - I wish I'd been awake enough to pull out the bed for him - I honestly didn't even think of it!!

About 8 am or so - we were back on I5 - apple fritters and coffee for us - a snackie for doggie... all happy if not sore and tired campers ;-) Dad took care of walking the dog at each stop - it gave him a chance to stretch his legs and have a cigarette or two. He didn't even bring up the subject of having one in the Bounder - we brought one of his smokeless ashtrays just in case - but it wasn't necessary!

Keith had work that he needed to get done - so he spent several hours on his computer back at the table while we put away the miles!

Dad and Chato just kept each other some great company!

I'm not absolutely sure - but I think they may ha been growing rocks here in this field up in the Siskiyous..

There was evidence of snow - there had been snow warnings - but we were terribly blessed in that it was on the all clear for us!

This is the slide that closed Hwy 42 between Camas Valley and Myrtle Point for several days. You can't see the boulders that are still waiting to be blown up - but there are some there bigger than the Bounder!!

And we dropped Dad off at the scales in MP at about 6 pm - just a scant 26 hours and 1200 miles after we left Bullhead. We got the car off of the dolly and he was gone before I could give him his things that we'd stored in the sink (a favorite storage place of mine, at least while traveling!)

We went on for home - makeing Coos Bay at about 7 or so - unloaded just enough to make it thru the night and just cozied up in the nice warm house that Clint and Sallie had opened for us. Good friends are such a blessing! Fridge on, door unlocked, hot water all ready to have a nice shower with... mmmmmm.... wonderful after a long hard journey! Got the knots out of my shoulders and slept like a baby!!

So glad to be done traveling!

Until July anyhow!

At home in Arizona - The Catalina!

2011-03-30T15:25:00.000-04:00

Our new living room

The Kitchen!

The Bedroom

Here is our new home - quite the change from the home in Vero - just about 1/4 the size - Dad and Keith have worked hard on putting up the shade cloth and making gates to keep little doggy in. It's almost done - one gate still needs to be finished - great progress has been made!

Dad and I went to breakfast and 'shoplifting' yesterday while Keith worked - It was ~ of course ~ a great breakfast. ;-)

Dad has an appointment in Prescott on the 7th - so I know we will be here until then before we load up the Bounder - attach Dad's car to be back end - and head North. Mom says the passes are still snow covered - so the appointment is as good as any other excuse to stay for a bit longer! March's winds are blowing steadily (which helps to keep the heat down) - the sun is shining - and all is good!

Westward Ho!

2011-03-25T13:42:00.000-04:00

We saw Vero Beach in our rear view mirror about 2 pm on Friday the 18^th. The airbags in the Bounder still don’t work properly – they lose their pressure on a daily basis – but Bobby’s would have to order replacements (again) and that would be until Monday – then the install – so – off we went. Keith made sure to bring the little compressor so he will make sure they are maintained on our trip across.

We spent our 1^st night at the Flying J just outside of Tallahassee so we made pretty good time. Of course, when we don’t pull in to a park – we don’t have the setup or the power or the tv to spend our time on – so might as well keep going. This isn’t a sightseeing trip anyhow. We are loaded to heavy and are not set up to be comfortable on this hopefully one-of-our-quicker-trips...

Just outside of New Orleans (but still in Louisiana) we stopped for a dog-walk and to stretch our legs - and - low and behold - the Bounder didn't want to go again - we got clear out on one of the several mile long causeways before the old girl decided to vapor lock on us. Whew! After totally annoying the folks behind us - (on the narrow 2 lane bridge) - she coasted to a stop - I put her into park - and wah-la she started right up and did fine! She caught up with the spirit of the run and we joined in the normal flow of traffic. The trip across Lake Pontchartrain was a beautiful as it was the 1^st time we went across it a little over 7 years ago. The new bridge for I10 is in use – and it looks like the one damaged by Katrina is in the process of being dismantled.

On Sunday we pull in to Austin – a whole day earlier than we’d planned but oh- so ready for a long hot shower and some chill – axation in front of the tv. Contacting the Bettin family in Austin was taken care of and it was set up to spend Monday together. Brett, Maya, and Cetta arrived, took us for one of Keith's favorite breakfast's (Mexican of course) at a dog-friendly place - Chato loved being able to come alone with us! - and I got to play with Cetta for a long while! We were there so long that they came and cleared our table for us (I think it was a hint as it was getting toward lunchtime and they were really, really busy!). They took us to the Riverwalk (I think that was it) where there is a dog park - Chato ran and visited with other dogs and I got to hold Cetta some more!! ;-) We dropped Brett off for a meeting and retired to their apartment for Cetta to nap and to get to relax some more - it was a wonderful chat and visit! Brett got back, Cetta woke, we got some photos, and all to soon it was time for Maya to go to work and Brett to take us back to the Bounder. We put Cetta on the floor (on a blanket of course! - and Chato brought his ball - She loved watching him chase that little yellow ball up and down that small space! I have a long video that I love just listening to! And of course, I can't seem to get it loaded.... She has such a charming little giggle!

After leaving Austin we had a bit of Bounder trouble - it all started when I hit a pothole the size of Texas - right where I couldn't miss it - I did get slowed down - but, it seams, not nearly enough as the next time we stopped for gas - the old girl wouldn't start. We were again at a Flying J, the wonderful girls there gave us the number for a mobile mechanic - who came and looked but couldn't do anything until morning, and also allowed us to SHOWER!! A shower never, ever, never felt so good! We spent the night in the parking lot there and the next Wednesday morning - Keith tried to start her - and she started right up! No tellin'! So we got clear to Lake Havasu where I, stupidly, shut it down to gas us and - you guessed it! - right in the bay - no startie! again with the mobile mechanic - this time it was James of Desert Jet Mobile Mechanic who came to our rescue. After several diagnostic tests it was determined that we needed a fuel pump... but then... after thought ... one more test showed that it was the fuel sensor.. probably damaged during the bounce thru the pothole... at least that's what I'm a thinking...

Once the part was found, it was quickly installed - while getting dark- a pocketful of money exchanged hands, and we were on our way... Spending a day at Lake Havasu would be great (we will definitely come back another time)- if you have transportation and can get around. Spending the day in the parking lot of a gas station isn't optimal.. LOL

So we are now here - and spending our night in the Catalina across the street from Dad. Our welcome to Arizona wasn't quite as uneventful as we would have liked - but we are here!

Whirlwin!

2011-03-17T10:25:00.000-04:00

We are back in Vero ~ and all ready to go again - so I thought I'd catch up to date with a real quick summery of the last 2 1/2 months.

Keith decided on the way to San Diego that it was time to just sell out here in Vero and head back towards the west. We know we'll take a hit but hopefully (I'm thinking) it won't be as bad as Keith is forecasting. So right after the 1st of the year we connected with the Realtor that Kenny (Keith's brother in law) recommended, she (Lesa) came out and signed us all up on a Friday. She made arrangements to come back to take photos for the MLS listings and we parted ways. I was very stubborn about my price - her comps showed that we needed to list way below what I thought we could get. I figured that we'd put the sing out and then in a couple of years - it would sell. Rumors about selling were that bad! She caved and we agreed on a higher price - then promptly caught the crud that was making it's way around town - so didn't get back to take photos when planned - Actually, her son came by and put the sign out - she was that sick. So - around mid-month - I went to Lowes to get my annual 'bunch' of yard stuff and when I got back - Keith had sold the house! The buyers came back a little later that day to give us earnest money, I called Lesa, she came out, and we had papers signed that night - with an allowance for us to take until the end of March to vacate! We did take a loss - with the economy and real estate prices going down like they did - we didn't make anything - BUT - it wasn't nearly as bad as Keith's prediction (as I pat myself on the back for being so stubborn!)!! LOL

So.... we attended the Valentines Spaghetti Feed - it was a blast for the hour we were there. The spaghetti was great but didn't sit really well for me (it seems most things don't anymore) - so we danced a couple of times and then headed for home and the recliners!!!

There was a lovely rose for each lady and little flowers made from hershey's kisses at each place. We have some really crafty ladies here at the Village!

Our table companions.


And a dance rounded out our evening!

Barb's Valentine Roses! ~ she still receives them - I'm jealous! :-)

The Ladies Tea was a really fun event. We all had fun gathering our hats and gloves to match our outfits. The hostesses for each table went all out with linen tablecloths, napkins, real china, teapots, crust-less sandwiches, desserts, and all the rest of the trimmings needed for a regular Tea! I'd not been to one before and it was quite fun!

Barb - the Hostess at the table I was at.

Peggy

Vincie

Rita took time out from her Biloxi trips to come see us too ;-)

And our own grand-dame ~ Eleanor. She was one of the forces behind Lakewood becoming an RO, served on the BOD for several different terms, and is still a nice friendly lady! She was the belle of our table!

And - this is the hat I wore - it got the most votes for the tea.

Keith and I went to the aqua-cises led by Peggy several times once the weather got a little warmer. We also attended the usual coffee hours and took our turns around the Village to keep up with what is going on around us.

Then it came time to pack. As I seem to always do- I am not feeling my best - finally, finally went to the Dr. and he announced he thinks it is diverticul one-or-the-other... put me on antibiotics . . . and hopefully I will feel better soon. I am now on Day 9 of 10 and not seeing a big change - I am hoping to make it out to the west coast before the meltdown ;-(

The Bounder ended up in the shop 3 different times and as I type - I am waiting for word that it will be ready to pick up today. I am ready to finish up this chaos and get moving. Dragging this out is really getting on my nerves! LOL

I've had several visits from people that I've met and enjoyed throughout the 11 years (4 just coming out for vacations) and 7 since we moved from San Diego. I will miss those that have been so nice, sweet, helpful, such a joy to be around.

I am so ready to get this wagon train loaded and headed out!

Rest in Peace Uncle JIm

2011-01-16T06:44:00.000-05:00

In Myrtle Point, 1977

To my sweet Uncle Jim,
Here are a few of my memories:

Grandkids, Nephew and Neice


A good Boss...	I remember the following the Sunday Morning Bartender very well!

Fun times!


That huge smile and ready laugh will always be remembered.

So many family members:

Some have welcomed you into their midst and the rest of us have wonderful memories of the way you touched our lives.

Thank you Uncle Jim ~ just for being you.

Love from your Neice,
Diane

2010 - A year of Contrasts - Extreme great and Extreme lows...

2011-01-02T08:35:00.003-05:00

I've been watching and happily reading the happy recaps from all that have "friend-ed" me on Facebook. I have been trying recap our 2011 in my own mind and make it feel better than it has at times.

We traveled A LOT in 2011. We saw some absolutely beautiful country, actually, a LOT of really great country. This USA is absolutely breathtaking and has more beautiful scenic landscapes than any of the other countries I've visited. As it has turned out, it is a good thing that I can take solace in beautiful sights, both personally visited or as photographed by others. As I've posted, we visited many friends and family and made many great memories. Some funny, some tender, some just plain nice. But most of the really great memories were overshadowed by some real losses. From end to beginning was my favorite Uncle, my Uncle Jim. I would have visited more but my lack of couch training for my little chihuahua became a sore point for my Cousin. I didn't get back to visit after being lectured about the proper place for a DOG. Upset me and hurt my feelings that my visits weren't welcome enough to overlook the little dog sitting on my lap. My younger brother passing was also a huge loss for me. I thought I was ready for it to happen. I knew he was in a lot of pain and HE was ready to go on to a better place - but I absolutely wasn't ready to let him go! The 3 am call absolutely shook me to my core; and subsequent lack of anyone else that seemed to care that he'd left paired with those who seemed to welcome his passing was kind of a deal-breaker. At the same time learning of the rancor, the horrid real feelings towards me from another family member was enough to send my world spinning. It seems I need to become a completely different person to comply with what those whom I thought were important to me thinks I should be. I found that there is no room for me to feel anything. Only others are allowed to feel and act on those feelings. I also learned that I was written off of the family tree by yet another relative. I wouldn't have even known about it but it was pointed out to me several times in different ways. With many excuses, but nonetheless written off. I was the first one called during a medical emergency - but as soon as the emergency status was over - I was no longer needed - or, it seems, wanted around. I realized that physical distance doesn't separate families as much as indifference does. I was asked to document memories of our childhood ~ and then berated because my memories concerned me - making me selfish and self-centered. And as I delved into my memories and photo albums to 'remember', even more memories surfaced. Some not so good, some sweet, some fun, and many happy ones. And THOSE sweet and happy ones are the ones I choose to keep close. I cannot FORGET but I hold them all as history - without rancor or bitterness. These same memories are the very things that have made me who I am, lumps, bumps, goose eggs and all. Nature has a part, Nurture has a part, but Environment had a huge impact. It still does.

I am glad that those who are important to me are doing well and are so very happy. Bittersweetly - I am sad that I am not as important to any of those same people. I will, however, continue to do what I can to become a better person in this coming year and one that maybe some day, some one can be proud to have known me. What I want most from 2011 is for the thought of me to bring a good memory up and a smile to that face.

HAPPY 2011 TO ALL

MAY YOU HAVE A HAPPY, HEALTHY,

AND PROSPEROUS

NEW YEAR

2010 Christmas in Kentucky

2010-12-26T16:02:00.000-05:00

As we traveled beyond the Arch and Busch Stadium and

on across the Mississippi

I remembered the song we used to sing before Thanksgiving - Over the river and thru the woods - to Dolores's house we go!

It wasn't as nice out as we'd been having - but again - the weatherman says there is a storm coming - seems we've been staying just long enough to be sandwiched between them all along!

Loiusville was waiting for us - along with some blue (ish) skies! The trip didn't seem as long as it has before - maybe I'm just enjoying this trip way to much! ;-)

And Chaito had another friend waiting for playtime! Dolores and Kenny were dogsitting Jackson - and they (both dogs) absolutely had a blast. They would play and roll until we thought they should be exhausted - and rest a bit - and play some more... oh... for the energy!!

Chaito even got his own lamb Chop!!

Keith and I got books and smellies, and food (Kentucky style)

I even got gifts!

We had a wonderful Christmas Eve! It has been several years since Keith spent Christmas with his family - Dolores's girls brought their families and friends over for dinner and gift exchange. I met Keith's nieces and nephews, everyone ate - and then of course (like Chaito) many were ready for naps. On Sunday, Faith and a friend joined us for Church and a really rushed dinner before heading back to their home - Dolores had to take Mom, Melody, and Heather back also. The van that Dolores borrowed for the trip was so full that the 'loot' from the exchange had to be left for Monday's trip over. I brought sample boxes for the exchange. Samples of good Oregon product - straight from my kitchen LOL - and I do think that everyone liked what was in them. I didn't see anyone 'sharing' or doing any trading - I didn't know that there were going to be so many there (I wasn't really thinking - of course) so I didn't have them boxed to distribute better - and I'll know better next time! I learn something each and every day ;-)

Christmas dawned with another play date - Jackson was waiting at the door for Chaito to be able to play!

And the snow arrived!

And it was a great day to hide our noses and nap! or otherwise relax! ;-)

I miss having the family occasions like we used to have. It seemed so much more like Christmas this year than in years past.

Tomorrow morning we say another good-by and head towards Florida! Kenny gave us the updates and tips on getting the best for our house when we return - so - it's time to go put it on the market and cross our fingers!!

Happy New Year!!

2010 - On towards St Louis!

2010-12-23T22:55:00.000-05:00

It's along about the 2nd half of December and we've been really, really lucky for travel weather! No matter how you cut it - it is a long, long trip but.... I enjoy driving .... I LOVE watching the countryside and all the beautiful vistas that God put into this truly amazing USA ~ just for us!!! How lucky are we!!!

To try and keep Chaito from getting really stressed - we took 'his' bed and blanket in with us each night! There was a light dusting of snow on the ground as we went over to the breakfast at Best Western in Santa Rosa. It had pretty much turned to a drizzly rain by the time we got loaded up and ready to go. Chaito sure kept a good close eye on his buddy ~ I'm thinking that he wanted to make sure we didn't leave him - and we didn't!! ;-)

Keith and Chaito make perfect travel partners!

We had lunch here at Shamrock, OK. The whole town was done up with the theme. It was cute to

see.

When we left Yukon, Oklahoma our trip meter was 3,828.4 miles. This is the number of trip miles from the time we stopped for gas in Florence, OR. That's a lot of miles folks!

More of the flat scenery that is so prevalent all the way through the center of our country. It's flat and in December - it's brown - and I've been thru here in the summer - and it's like the song says - "Amber waves of grain" - it all seems to have a beauty of it's own. I am in somewhat of a somber reflective mood as I drive through here. This is the morning that Linda texted me that Uncle Jim passed on during the night. Probably ~ in a really strange way - the scenery calmed me.

And we have arrived in St. Charles! Chaito has his spot all picked out! There was some really, really cold weather just in front of us - school closures and all sorts of stuff - but - we are in luck - it's cold and there is some snow and ice leftovers - but the skies stayed blue and the sun shining for our whole trip!

We got to St. Louis in time for the 'Portrait Party' that April has planned. Ricks whole family came in mass and this really great lady came in and took portraits for us. Ricks family is very upbeat and lively - They came - they posed - we ALL ate (and ate, and ate), and it was time to nap! LOL

The Orf house was all decorated for Christmas and even had a jigsaw puzzle set out for everyone to stop and try to fit a piece ~ each and every time we walked past. Chaito stayed with them for the few days we were there - a bit easier on him than in the hotel room. He, Monica, and Nana made fast friends - at least I think they did - no one told me any different!

I got this great idea that I was going to try to map our trip - I got as far as Coos Bay to Bremerton - and took this photo - and lost the map - So much for that great idea - but you can see by this - we literally visited 2 corners of the country (Bremerton and San Diego) before heading across with our final destination being Florida (and Keith really does want to do the Keys before we head back out!)

We spent a fun evening bowling, touring the Christmas decorations, looking all over for a Coldstone Ice Cream shop - finally settling on Steak and Shake - where April felt enough of an appetite to actually, really eat something (I'm so proud of her!), and the final photo is at the Orf's - Elizabeth is teasing about their less-than-full-size tree!

It's been a great trip so far!!

2010 - Eastward Travel!

2010-12-14T22:34:00.000-05:00

When we got close to Bullhead City we stopped and got all the fixins' for Dad (and Keith's) favorite dinner. Meatloaf. I don't know that I do anything special to it - just empty the fridge into some hamburger - bake it - and put it on the table. But they like it ~ so we got the stuff. We got almost there and Dad called. I figured he was just looking for an ETA - but that wasn't it. Uncle Jim has taken a turn and Dad needed to get there. I convinced him to just hang out and wait for the 10 minutes it would take for us to arrive. And he did. During that 10 minutes he packed, changed clothes, had his jacket on, and suitcase in the car - ready to go!

Unfortunately, there was no flight to North Bend, OR that night. Eventually, he calmed down enough to take off his jacket and sit down while I tried to simultaneously find a decent flight online and fix dinner. Finally got him booked out of Vegas on the first flight into San Fransisco - and then on up to North Bend. Due to the circle jerk that is called an airport board up there - the Portland connections with Alaska (which were great by the way) are no longer available. So Dad sat in the LV airport waiting for the SFO weather to clear so that the plane he was supposed to be on at 7 or so AM could take off at 10:30. and guess what... he missed his connection to North Bend. Another circle jerk... Sounded so much like the flight I had out of North Bend in April. So - Dad left Bullhead at 4 am so he can be there in time, sat in the airport for an extra 3+ hours, made it to SFO and sat there for another 4 or 5 hours, to get to arrive in North Bend (and someone was waiting to take him to Powers to Uncle Jim) at 8:30! The whole time worrying himself to a frazzle because he was afraid that the man he'd known as a brother for over 50 years would be gone before he could get there. In the end - If Dad had left Bullhead - driving - stopped and spent the night somewhere - and continued on - he would have arrived in Powers before the flight arrived in North Bend. AND he would've had his car, AND he wouldn't have had to spend an enormous amount for a return trip - that ended up just like the one out!! The morning flight couldn't take off due to weather - so they canceled it - caught the next one and missed their connections (Evelyn came back with him) and arrived back in LV about 10 hours late - with Leona sitting there waiting to pick them up. Boy - I'm sure glad I wasn't a fly roaming around inside of Dad's head while either of those trips were happening!

But back to the story, Dad made it in time. He was there for several days before I received the text message from Linda saying Uncle Jim had gone on to heaven. I am glad that Dad made it - glad that Uncle Jim is out of his pain - and content with the fact that he lived a good long life and was ready to go. Rest in Peace Uncle Jim!

So - since Dad wasn't around, we left Bullhead ~ with our little Chaito sooo glad to be going with us - I opened the pick-up door and he loaded up - no problem!

Oh, and I forgot to tell you, on the way between Reno and Bullhead - we stopped at AREA 51 - it isn't anything but a little water stop and we bought t-shirts - but we STOPPED!! LOL

See Chaito settled right in to his designated pose!!

This is just a sample of the "hills" between Bullhead City and Kingman. If you look closely enough there is the top portion of the highway threaded thru and between the little peak on the right and side of the top... and a great view from the top too - just like driving straight into the sky!

At Kingman, we stopped, got milkshakes and headed towards Flagstaff where we planned to stopfor the night.

Williams was a very interesting looking place, and oddly enough, it looked vaguely familiar... you know why - because we've been through here before!! I had to look it up on the map to try and figure it out! I knew I'd never been through Kingman - so I was just kind of - hey ... deja vu or what! LOL AND it is a very, very kool lookin' town too!

And we did try to stop at Geronimo - it is a ghost town - 1 major building - if it is any more than that - it was well hidden - we did see a souvenir shop with a couple of tepee's sitting next to it - but - we didn't stop.

Really neat rock formations along I40 between Geronimo and

the Hard Rock Casino at one of the many, many Arizona reservations. We checked into stopping at one - but none of them allowed a dog. Geez, not much into 'senior' tourists - we all travel with our new-found babies - and these places were out in the middle of NO WHERE... or if not . . they weren't where any amenities could be found! LOL

Some of what I call awesome scenery. Not awesome in the same awesome as the what Mike, Brett, and Sharen get pictures of - I surely enjoy my drives :-]

An truly barren rest area !

A working oil field LOL -

we stopped for the night at Flagstaff. Had a nice meal, planned our travel for tomorrow, kicked back and watched tv for the evening. Tomorrow is another day and some more miles!

Just outside of Flagstaff is a true amazement. It is where a meteor hit the earth some who-know's how many eon's ago. We (as in I) followed the sign off of I40 - up and down the rolling high desert scenery for some 10 -15 miles off in the opposite (not quite but...) direction - to find a fenced off area that hosted some rv's - a few cars - a strong breeze - and a truly helpful guide at the top of the stairs leading to the entrance to the Meteor Crater - I read the signs - they had tours, a theater-in-the-round playing a documentary of the Meteor Crater - all inclusive - for the paltry fee of $15 per person. Best part was, since the wind was so strong ~ the tours were all closed - and no - there was no alternative rate since we couldn't actually go see the Crater (due to the wind). So we thanked them and left to drive on some more!! LOL There was a car that came in behind us - as we were walking back down the steps - they went up and paid 30 bucks to go watch a movie all about the Meteor Crater. Well, I learned as much as the movie would've taught me online - and did it at my own pace too!

Enough for now....

2010 -Bullhead to San Diego

2010-12-14T22:13:00.000-05:00

So we left YARINGTON! Yay!! And with the bright blue skies, the sunshine, and the warmth things soon looked and felt a lot better. Here are some of the sights we passed between the big "Y" and Bullhead City! We finally got off of the 'ye olde 395' and onto the US 95 - which - if you (and I) remember - we should have been on to start with! LOL

A beautiful lake nestled on the East slope of the Sierra's. Walker Lake - it is a huge lake - just kind of out in the middle of the desert! It is pretty - not Oregon trees pretty - but still another wonder of our USA! It is reputed to be great fishing and it was just surprising to go-around-a-hill and come upon this huge lake! :-)

After Walker Lake came the huge Army Base at Hawthorne. Like - just sitting in the middle of the desert we started seeing 'bumps in the sand' - then they became a pattern - and then Keith let me in on the secret - they were huts - for one reason or another- covered with sand. And in the middle of Hawthorne - we have a signal light and a sharp right turn. Just a little funny to go along with a really long drive!

A close up (sort of) of Hawthorne, NV. Quiet, dusty, sunny, and really nice and warm!


And then we come to Mina, NV. We stopped here to get something cold to drink -

there was a pickup there - but nobody was home. I couldn't resist a photo - after being in places that have such strict codes for EVERYTHING - seeing a metal building with a storefront on it - and being open (but not right now) for business was special. There was a trailer out back - maybe it was their lunchtime. Here are some other photos of the little old town that were taken by others (I hope they don't mind the link). Really quite interesting (to dummies like me) when I start looking for the background of the places that absolutely reek of our American History!

Then came the sleepy little town of Santa Fe, NV - When looking into it's history - I found out that it is a gold mining town - to this day! Who'd a thunk it!


And then to Beatty!!! Nestled in the middle of gold mining country and known as the "Gateway to Death Valley", Beatty is one of the larger towns that we traveled thru - this in the only good photo that I came up with. Amazingly - Beatty has an airport - and just outside there was the Beatty "house of ill-repute" - which of course - I guess - is legal - but - knowing my wonderful mother in law - it was a hoot!!! Beatty has quite a history!

Getting closer!

And we made it!

Chaito was so glad for a new lap to sit on!! Dad gracefully agreed to dogsit his grand-doggy while we went to San Diego. Looks like he and Chaito will be just fine!!

And we spent the next two nights at The Riverside - spending the whole day on Saturday at Dad's rearranging the 'load' in the pickup and getting ready to take off for San Diego on Sunday. I think I ended up with his whole shed full of "stuff"! LOL

And we are headed to Jackson's in San Diego!!! Onward HO!

Where the rocky desert changed to sandy dunes. It is right along I8. I saw the exact spot!!

Keith helped Jackson trim the "TREE" in the backyard. It was quite the task ~ they got out the 'chain-saw and everything'! It looked great when they got finished. In San Diego they pick up the 'green recycles' every other week - just in the green can or tied in bundles. Really quite handy. :-)

Here is some of what they cut - Jackson tied the rest of the stuff up. And I filled a couple cans with the cuttings from the front yard. There was sure a bunch for no more ground than he has. The "Birds" out front and the bougainvillea looked real good after we got done!

We cleaned up Jacksons patio and back yard too. We were so thankful to him for having us and letting us stay for so long. Keith and I got both got several teeth worked on which required different trips down to see Dr. Ruth. We have so met so many wonderful people in our travel down our path! Dra. Ruth extracted 4 teeth and did my impressions and all the stuff she had to do with very little of the 'stress' of a visit to the Dentist's up here in the States. And I've been to both! LOL

And all to soon our visit was over and there we were - headed back to Bullhead City to pick up Chaito.

Mom's, Mountains, Snow . . .

2010-12-04T09:54:00.000-05:00

We spent a very nice, relaxing couple of days at Mom's. Keith pretty much rested up to get ready for the LONG road ahead! hahaa!!

Again, no photos. I don't know what is happening - I just forget if the camera isn't hanging around my neck!! But, we went running around Anderson a bit, got Dairy Queen Blizzards (hehee), Mom made Carnitas con Chili - and it was great - It has been years (since they visited in Myrtle Point) since I've had it. We watched tv, plotted our next moves according to the weather patterns and incoming storms (with almost hysterical laughter), Teri and I stayed up way, way to late chatting! and in all - had a great visit. Not really a lot of exciting things to post but everyone is doing well, they have wonderful plans for Christmas, and even more fun things planned to do for New Year's.

We got up early to get on the road to drop the dog by Bullhead City. Dad has agreed to dog-sit his grandpuppy... lol!! So we are heading down and over that way before going down to San Diego for our dental work and to do some maintenance on the Condo.

We decided to go over the mountains to Reno. The weather report said clear all the way across - at least until tomorrow....

When we started out the roads were clear, the sun was shining and all the snow was really pretty!

It started snowing here. And it snowed and snowed and snowed. The roads stayed really nice - it was actually a pretty nice drive!

And it snowed harder! LOL

I was never really concerned - it was a beautiful drive throughout the mountains. Scenery that I hadn't been through before!

BUT during the entire drive I was keenly aware that I was one step ahead of a BIG storm. The radio broadcasts were full of information about all the passes that were closed, all the road closures going on, and the one they kept repeating was the 395 to Lake Tahoe was closed.

And then we started descending towards Reno.

When we got to Reno it was starting to get dark. Keith hadn't made any arrangements for a place to stay - so I pulled into a Denny's and called S'te so that she could get online and find a place that would take Dad's grandpuppy. She gave us the number to several that said "Pets Welcome" but when Keith called them - 'oh yeah - they area welcome - we will put him in a crate next to another dog that is in a crate and you can come down and walk him anytime.' Now do you think that would make Chaito think that he'd been stuck back into another shelter? ? ?

So we didn't stay in Reno. We got back on the Interstate that we'd just gotten off of and Tom (my hero) said to stay on it - Keith said to take the 395. So, since I have to live with Keith - and I can shut Tom off (which I did because he kept telling me that we went the wrong way) _- I took the 395 to Carson City. Now after Carson City - where do you suppose that highway goes? Yup... anyhow, while on the 395, at rush hour, in the dark, the storm starts catching up. It rained, and it rained, and then it POURED.. (Remember I'm from the rainy state AND I've been known to drive thru the Florida deluges - so when I say RAINED - I mean RAINED!!) Where the 395 ended we stopped. It was in the industrial section of somewhere or nowhere - I'm still not sure. But we did follow Keith's direction... LOL

So, I turned TOM back on - plugged in Bullhead City - well, we ended up going North on the 50 for about a 100 years to the 95. Well, unbeknown to us there are TWO Hwy 95's. So we saw the 95 and turned South. Another 100 years later - somewhere about midnight or so, we made it to Yerington where there was a Motel. Keith had to go to the Casino to rent a room. It was cold, it was ugly, it was late, I was in a nasty mood, and I went to bed - in my clothes, coat, and socks. I expected Reno - I got Yerington!

Things HAVE to look better tomorrow!

In fact even the scenery around Yerington is blurry!! Hahaha~!

Reconnect

2010-12-02T09:11:00.003-05:00

I GOT TO MEET NICK AGAIN! I know it is a little odd (maybe a lot odd) that as I get older; I want to reconnect with those who are part of my own history. And those of you who don't like it or don't care - don't read.

So anyway, via Gerald's death notices and his friends fond (and some not so fond, but we aren't going there) memories an old school friend of Whitey's called. And another found my on Facebook; and thru their friend lists - I got a few more calls and more to smile over. I found out that two of Gerald's favorite friends were able to visit him during his very last couple of days. In the 'kites' that were passed on with his effects, I know that he was very, very excited over this visit! Thank you Allen and Karen from the bottom to the top of my heart for making the trip over there! He wrote telling me of the visit - the note was still in his boxes that came later. It absolutely made his week. In my heart, I feel that that final visit calmed his soul enough to pass. AND - it was thru these calls - after he passed - that I FOUND NICK!

I was so excited - there are those that tried to pee on my parade - but I found him. I hope those with poor attitudes just stay away from him - he had a hard way to go anyhow. I am not excusing Gerald. He was worse than a poor father; he was not a father. He didn't know how to be a father. He was written off and ignored by his own father from the time Mom brought him to Oregon clear to his death. Of course, why would Jack Dean Smith make it any different for Gerald. He already wrote off 2 other sons earlier in his life. Yes, Gerald had 2 older brothers. I don't think that Jack ever paid a dime of support for ANY of his sons and I know he barley acknowledged them. I remember when our Mother passed, I contacted Jack, and he flat said "so what". He didn't even ask about Gerald. (I was so amazed that I was speechless, if you can even imagine that!) So, in effect, that is what Gerald knew. When the Mom takes the child; that's it; you are done. But that made it really bad for Nick. But...

I found him. I called him. His wife Tasha called me back. Nick has 4 children, a job that he has worked at for several years, he is close enough that I can even get by there again! Tasha seemed to be a really sweet person. She told me all about the kids!

So, after we left Bremerton, we spent the next night at 7 Feathers in Canyonville, OR. We were on our way out of the parking lot, headed for Mom's (my stepmom) in Anderson, when Tasha called me again. Unfortunately Nick was at work so our little visit would be very short. So, Tasha met us at the Interstate and we followed her (and baby Ethan and their oldest, Candice) over to where Nick works. He took his break and came out. I got a couple of hugs, their address, a little bit of history, found out that Arlene is doing well, and I got a couple of hugs (did I say that already? hahaa). Since Nick was on break - it was a very short visit - but Tasha and the kids went to Mexican lunch with us. What sweet kids - I got to sit and hold Ethan to my heart's content. I LOVED it!!

Way to soon Tasha needed to go meet the school bus, she invited us to their home and to meet the other kids but...

It is winter, their is snow on the passes, the prediction is for more snow, so, we felt the need to get over them during the daylight.

But I met them, the ice is broken and I certainly hope to see more of them.

My one regret is...I was so excited - I didn't get any pictures... but Ethan looks so much like Nick and Nick's great-grandma Haven Smith!

So, on to Mom's we go!!

Here is a couple that Keith took. Medford, Or, and the Siskiyou Mountains between Oregon and California!


When is the last time you saw a Woolworth's sign?

I5 over the Siskiyou's

Snow wasn't bad - but it turned out we were just in front of the storm!

Thanksgiving 2010

2010-11-26T07:56:00.001-05:00

We had a great Thanksgiving in Bremerton with Rod, S'te, and the grandkids

On our way up we got word that there was no power at the kids' house. We knew when we started out that it had been off for a day - but who knew that it would still be out! We kept up hourly communication as we drove North and by the time we got to Tacoma and there was still no power ~ Even Mak's battery to his feeding pump had exhausted it's back-up ~ they had used the outside grill for cooking ~ and S'te announced that it was colder in the house than outside ~ and she'd found out that lines were down in a hard-to-access-area and no one was even giving a guess as to when the power might be restored.... Keith started calling around Bremerton for a warm place to stay! Finally, after many calls, he found 3 rooms (the last they had) at the Marriot in downtown. Frantic, we reserved all 3. They were King Suites - but hey - they were warm and would have a hot breakfast!! But.. no doggy ... he'd have to stay in the van. So he called the Elmores - told them to 'pack up' and meet us there. They brought blankets, clothes, food (for the microwave), and we all got there just about the same time! Cold and in great spirits and looking forward to cuddling up, getting warm, and watching some tv (back to electricity!), we all headed up to our rooms. What a mix up! The first room we opened had not yet been cleaned, there was still items in the fridge, bed was unmade, and towels on the floor. So, we checked out the next one on our list, it was good - so the kids all piled in while we headed back downstairs. At the desk, they apologized profusely (things were quite busy and confusing with the widespread power outage!), and housekeeping headed straight up to do the room. Then we tried the key for the last one (it was next door to the one being cleaned), and someone asked (rather historically) "can I help you?"! SOMEONE WAS ALREADY IN IT! So we headed BACK downstairs - and while waiting our turn - we decided that 2 rooms would probably be enough (at over $150/per room, it was a good decision!) and the man at the desk that had been all over the county looking for a warm place to stay got a nice room - down the hall from us. We headed out for food (for me) and the little place around the corner was close to out of everything! We got our choices and headed back to the nice warm room. There was ice all over the roads and sidewalks. It was COLD! I am sure glad that Keith was able to secure those rooms. It was heavenly! Cavelle and Tetee shared our space while Brayana and Destini got the sofa-bed. S'te and Rod got the boys and Ladaria. ';-) BTW - sleeping with Teters is a challenge, hehee!!
S'te found that the power was restored early Wednesday morning - so after our hot breakfast - we headed down to the parking garage. Chaito was so glad to see us - he ran back and forth between our pickup and their van. Where there was people - he stayed!! He ended up riding with his good friend, Naner, and we headed for the house. What a way to start a trip!

So here are some photos of Thanksgiving!

Makkiah helps with the Deviled Eggs

Jaleel starts the process for his project!

Brayana thinking about her fruit salad

Busy in one of the kitchens!

Destini working on some clean-up

We had a fun time with the dinner. Mak, Tetee, and I made bread in the breadmaker. Mak also did his specialty, Deviled Eggs. Destini got up early and helped with the turkey and dressing that she roasted, getting it into the oven in plenty of time (and it turned out awesome too), Ladaria made her green bean casserole, Brayana, Destini, and Jaleel (with a bit of help from Tetee and Mak) made a huge fruit salad!, AND Rod did a smaller turkey in his oil-less deepfryer. New neighbors and family friends joined in and we had a great dinner and a wonderful time!


The little kids corraled by Ladaria and listening to a story!

And then it was over. Another memorable Thanksgiving!

2010 Part 2 Time to wander back to the East!

2010-11-23T21:35:00.002-05:00

The beginning our our semi-annual trek started on a rather wet note this year. I spent many hours agonizing over what I wanted to take with us, our route, the amount of time necessary to get everything possible done that we wanted to do. I got all of the 'gift packs' done for family members - jams, jellies, tuna, pears, peaches, and whatever else we 'did up' this summer that we can IN NO WAY ever consume. Besides I love the complements that sometimes come along with the giving of the 'gift packs'. So along came the final day before the day we are to depart. It was the WETTEST day yet of the fall of 2010! Only partially depicted below in how wet it was. Tim even had to cover the sidewalk he had started to try to save at least some of it!

So this is the day we absolutely had to pack up the pickup - departure is tomorrow and we can't procrastinate any more! So we ran the boxes, and totes, and suitcases, and bags of all the miscellaneous 'STUFF' that I collected along the way out, found over the summer, and just have to take with us for distribution along the way! I really must hand it to Keith. As I ran things out to the garage and stacked them; he just looked. Somewhat unhappily, but he just looked at it. He asked several times if I was done yet - but it seemed that I always seemed to find something else. But...

I finally got done, we got the pick-up loaded, we decided that we needed to be up for a departure time of no-later-than-6 am as I wanted desperately to stop by the North Star Coffee Shop in Portland that Rusty Brown was displaying his carvings in. And they close at 2 pm... so we really needed to get out of Eastside early! So we put ourselves to bed early - so we'd be fresh for our rise and shine!

I woke up to an already lightening sky, so I knew we had slept in. An unusual thing for us to do for some really strange reason. So I hurried andgot coffee going - and opened the curtains to.... SNOW!! I was amazed. Totally slack jawed, open mouthed amazed! It rarely snows on the south coast ~ but on the DAY we are supposed to leave~~ SNOW!! It was beautiful tho'. Sallie and Clint came over to see us off and Tim came out and said farewell so we had a grand send off! We finished off the last little bit to load. . filled the coffee cups up, rinsed and dried and mopped ourselves out the front door with Chaito ~ and ~ wa-la ~ the pickup won't start. The battery is deader than a doornail! Thank goodness for friends like Clint because as soon as I called and interrupted his breakfast - he came right over and got us up and on our way! Friends are true blessings!! SO this is what downtown coos bay looked like as we rolled thru a little after 10 am (I forgot to reset the time stamp). The drive on up Hwy 101 was a sight to see! I'm sure glad that I don't have issues driving in the snow!

Hwy 101 between Coos Bay and Florence

Keith and Chaito at the gas station in Florence.


a Florence Oregon style dog sled! On 101 right in front of Safeway

The Tunnel on Hwy 126 (?) between Florence and I-5

More beautiful than a painting!

It was sure a beautiful drive. There was almost no traffic on the road so we made excellent time getting to S'te's. We were there before dark and greeted wildly by the little ones. Once they get to be tweens - it seems like they are more reserved in their welcomes. I sure miss having ALL the kids run to hug me every time I visited (even when it was every day!) Brayana, Destini, and Jaleel hauled the majority of the heavy boxes of home-canned goodies into the house while Mak, Tetee, and Cavelle helped me get the cab emptied of all the other 'stuff' that I seem to collect on every trip.

I was soooo glad to see my babies again. It seems like they grow a foot (I think the older ones actually do) between visits - and I was there in July!

So we are going to have an absolutely wonderful few days visiting and cooking and having a great time!!!!!!

Fall arrived!!!

2010-11-19T22:01:00.000-05:00

Chaito really feels the cooler weather. He is such a funny little guy! He seems to always find something that he can burrow under. He would rather 'wait' than go out in the rain! He definitely has his comical times. Keith bought him a really fancy cable knit sweater that he will wear if ABSOLUTELY necessary... As you can tell.... it's not his favorite clothing item hehee!!

Now with the cooler weather I've had time to finish a lot of the little things that I started over the summer. I have quite a little 'stash' from Amah's Attic (S'te named my product line) to fill in bare spots in S'te's little shop. I have a whole box to to take up Thanksgiving!

Jaleel crocheted this when they were down visiting. I finished it up and put it into the 'stash of things to go to Bremerton. I have lots of little things to go up - for some strange reason!!

Sidewalks from the deck to the gate to the back studio door to the camper door... You can walk the whole way without trudging thru the wet grass. We may not be doing it all at once but... it is getting done. Tim's learning curve is producing quite a nice trail! I love it!

And here is what happens when you don't 'get a roun-tuit' before your agreed upon time is over. Tim played around for several days - and then the weather turned on him .... so here he is trying to finish up the sidewalk up the garage side... in the pouring rain!

And some more pouring rain....

And I'm getting a really dirty look! There is still a segment between the studio door and the gate that is laid out but not complete. It will be really great soon...

So anyhow, this project is supposed to be finished before we get back. And before he starts anything else LOL!!

Okay,,, here we go...

2010-11-18T21:00:00.000-05:00

It has been a nice summer. A few bumps in the road, but generally nice. I have so much to be thankful for but will try to hit the high spots so I can catch up! I got to see Gerald twice this summer and got to visit twice each time, and I am so glad for that as he finally gave up his fight on November 12. He was many things to many different people ~ but he was my little brother ~ and I was actually no better prepared for him to pass than I was when others that were so very close lost the battles they fought.

Little Chaito made himself right at home and has been the best little guy! He is definitly a Daddy's boy - and we have been well entertained by him. The best picture we ever saw on the internet!

We fostered 3 little ones this summer. That was quite a few since we didn't make it to Coos Bay until the middle of July! We had a little fellow that we did respite for - the cutest little redhead you ever did see too! And we got a newborn 4 pound infant right from the hospital. We had her until she was well-established and went on to work her way thru the system. Wishes and prayers for the best of luck went with this little one - another little cutie for sure! Then we had a little chubby cheeked baby girl come to visit for a bit ~ until it was time for us to get ready to leave. So I stayed very busy with these little guests - just adorable babies.... Gifts to me. I loved their little hugs, kisses, smiles, and just holding and cuddling these little darlings... It doesn't get much better that that! :->

Rod and S'te brought the van down to us ~ and they brought the kids with them too :-> They seemed to have a great time hiking up to The Falls, swimming up at Daphne Grove, visiting with old friends and family. They stopped in Powers and visited with Aunt Nita and Uncle Jim for a bit on their outing up that way.

Amanda, Jason, Coby, and Danica came over for a fun BBQ and they went down to Bandon to visit them after a day of horseback riding in Coquille. I think they had a good time...

I got photos of every one but Destini. She seemed to make herself scarce every time I had the camera out... hehee!!

I didn't have a garden this year but still found time to do a bit of canning. I made several canner-loads of jellies, stews, tomatoes, applesauce, and fruits. I enjoy doing it - we just don't seem to eat enough to go thru it fast enough! I am so glad that I have so many people that humor me by taking the 'fruits-of-my-labors" off of my hands.

Dad was close for the summer and into the fall - so I stopped by to see him each time I made the trip up to Powers to see Uncle Jim - and he stopped by to see me a few times too. I so enjoy having family around and close enough to visit! It is just so heartwarming to me :)

Now, let's see, what did I miss ... ... ...

Oh, just before Labor Day I braved the traffic and made a jaunt over to see Mom and Teri. And managed to make a mid sized donation to the wonderful CHP's on the way back home. And I tried to hard to avoid all of the speed traps that they have around there. . I just had to go to the restroom. Geez... the best laid plans..

Tim stayed busy all summer fixing, puttering, and helping get all the things that the contractors did half way (or skipped them all together) and generally being quite a big help ~ and it helps him out too ~ gives him a few extra spending dollars ~ Helps everyone out. I do wish that the contractors had done as good as it looked like they'd done ~ They were paid in full for all sorts of 'short-cuts' that they too - as well as out and out not doing a few things properly. And I know it is (was) my own fault for not being close to supervised more directly. But I do love my little house and beautiful yard... It is getting better every summer~ this year Tim is putting in sidewalks... another step in the right direction!

So... it has been a great summer.

Gerald - May You Rest in Peace

2010-11-12T08:19:00.001-05:00

This is a very old photo of my baby brother, Gerald, and my son, Jeremy. It was taken in Reisterstown Maryland in 1972. Gerald was 10 years old and Jeremy was probably about 4-5 months old (Jeremy is amazed by his hand). Now, both have left us. Both deserved a longer and better life. I am not here to say what life choices should have been made differently, or by whom, or if any choices would have made any difference in God's plan for either of them. I know that this is the time and way that I wish to remember Gerald. Before life, regrets, and many miles came between us. I have other photos, much more recent ones. They show the ravages of time and the disease that finally took his life and were not the happy ones that this one is.

Although he spent most of his life in a not-so-good way he deserves to be mourned. It is sad that this will probably be his only tribute. The list of people to contact is very, very short. Life just shouldn't be that way. I do have to thank all the people that assisted him in this last journey. The Hospice workers and the Chaplin were so very nice. They all went out of their way to make sure I could visit whenever I could get over to Pendleton, making special arrangements when necessary. Even fellow inmates were accommodating for our last visit. The Chaplin said Gerald passed quietly in his sleep much quicker and more mercifully than expected. There was no real warning that he was this close to the end of his time. Although we all knew it was getting closer ~ well ~ I guess I wasn't ready for it to be it. I was planning to visit again in just a couple of weeks and sent a card just 2 days ago letting him know that I was thinking of him.

Although we still don't know for sure about Jeremy, I am sure that Mom (and probably Jeremy to) was waiting to welcome Gerald with open arms. May you rest in Peace Little Bro' - keep watch.

I love you.
Gerald Dean Smith
April 9, 1962 - November 12, 2010
Born in Portsmouth, Ohio and died in Pendleton, Oregon
Son of Jack and Betty Smith, brother to Diane (Bland) Beatty, Sharen (Bland) Rea, and 2 estranged brothers, George and Randy Smith. Gerald had 1 son, Nicholas, and a grandson whom I never met. His nieces and nephews included S'te Elmore, Brett, Michael, and Caleb Bettin. He was preceded in death by his Mother, Betty, and most probably his oldest nephew, Jeremy Bright. He spent his early life in Maryland before moving to Myrtle Point in 1974. He then went to school in Myrtle Point and afterwards lived and worked all over. At one time he coached the Tubby's baseball team (including his star player, Jeremy) to a winning season, making the front page of the newspaper! He worked in the logging, construction, fishing, and food industries for several years before becoming ill. Gerald had many life struggles and with God's mercy, they are now behind him, he is without pain, and, hopefully, he was able to make his peace with everyone as he did me, I hope he is finally at peace with himself.

My Favorite Halloween Story

2010-10-30T19:44:00.000-04:00

To give just a tad bit of history, about the time of this picture I did a short summertime stint not working and being home with the kids and did massive amounts of work in the kitchen. I learned how to can, freeze, make jelly and jam, and loved the baking until Ole asked me to 'knock it off' as he was gaining as much as I was. I promptly got my feelings hurt and didn't bake anything that I hadn't bought in the store (no more homemade bread or rolls, cookies, cakes, pies, NOTHING). But I never made any sort of Christmas Candy and believed others when they described how difficult and time consuming and boring it was. I, like Grandma Betty, always had trouble with my weight, so she never made it and so I never learned.

About the time school started, I went back to work at Ms. Malia's there in Myrtle Point. Among my loyal customers was Mr. Caudle who, along with his dear wife Burl, were friends as well. Mrs. Caudle (who Jeremy lovingly called "Little Caudle"; another story) baked Christmas candy each year and sent it over for the kids to enjoy. And enjoy it they did. S'te was a bit young (but now I'm thinking it must've been a bit later as I do believe she was about 3) so she didn't realize that this was a real treat quite like Jeremy did.

Anyhow, to get back to my story, Jeremy (God Bless his heart, where ever it is) was about 8 (I think), so that would have made S'te about 3, (remember this is in late October and their birthdays were in late May and early June) when Wayne (Mr. Caudle to the kids) came in and asked what kind of candy Jeremy and S'te would like for Halloween. I forgot to ask that evening but the next afternoon they stopped in after school and Mrs. Caudle was there to ask them what they wanted. Jeremy thought for quite awhile before piping up and announcing that he had made his decision. Now, you have to picture this, Jeremy was always just loving being the center of attention and a bit on the dramatic side, milked this 'decision' for all it was worth while S'te just grinned and chatted away with everyone, she was such a cutie with those big blue eyes!!! So anyhow, Jeremy finally came to his decision and announced in a huge voice that he wanted some of Little Caudle's special profanity for Halloween. Everyone just stopped. Now, Mrs. Caudle was every bit the lady. She didn't have any profanity, nor would she have used it if she did. After a good bit of questioning - a light finally started glimmering in my head. So I asked him to describe it. He did and Mrs. Caudle made Christmas Candy a couple of month early that year. Jeremy wanted profanity and Mrs. Caudle made him a huge batch of it for him and S'te to share.

Can you guess what Jeremy's profanity was? His description was white, fluffy, with nuts, and it melts in your mouth.

I'll bet you've come up with it. Jeremy just loved 'Little Caudle's'

DIVINITY!!

So, how's that for a great funny story? To this day, every time I see Jeremy's profanity, I have a special little smile that hits my heart. :-)

Photos from our July stop in Bremerton!

2010-07-12T21:01:00.000-04:00

Of course, it's real easy to tell where I fit in with "tallness".

My pesky battle

2010-07-10T12:41:00.000-04:00

I had to pick up yet another prescription while in Pendleton. A uti had been haunting me since St. Louis. After picking up different meds there and in Yellowstone, I got a prescription for Cepro to assist in kicking this pesky, painful, nasty, annoying, haunting, blasted, (and as many other words as I can't think of right now). Weeelllll~ the Cipro kicked me. Right out of the ballpark. As usual for me - I didn't read all the side effects - I don't generally get any side effects from anything. I am bull-headed and bound that I am going to get rid of this annoyance. Since the kidney stone incidents in June ......

So anyway, I took the pill and didn't feel so well. Thought maybe the stress from seeing Gerald and all the traveling had caught up with me. I took to the bed and slept between the nausea. Then the cramps hit... boy I was one miserable puppy!! Until late that night this kept up.

But morning came and all was better! Yay, that little bit of flu or stress was over. Ate a bite of breakfast and took another pill before getting in the pickup to head for Washington. { ] ( :( Ugh. We didn't make it 100 miles before I had to ask Keith to drive. I couldn't enjoy the scenery, I couldn't do anything, Just be miserable. AGAIN. . .

When the nausea got so bad that I couldn't stand it any more Keith decided that we needed to make it a really, really short travel day and stopped at the Best Western just beyond this gas station (that had a chapel right in the parking lot). I was so ill that I was tempted to go in - but to sick to get out of the pickup!

So our plan to drive straight over to S'te's was thwarted by this 'bug' that I seemed to have caught. While calling to tell my sweet daughter that we wouldn't be there as planned - she looked up this 'different medication' that I was taking and learned that not all folks react to it very well. Ok... so I went to lay on the bathroom floor with my pillow and didn't take any more Cipro. I went back to the antibiotic that I was taking before. Just to be taking something I guess. I really got to feeling like a human again after many, many hours and it looks like we were going to be able to continue our trip - tomorrow!

We made it to Bremerton, a day late, but feeling better for the most part. We got straight out of the pickup and into the van to go see what Keith saw on the internet - that he wanted and that S'te checked out for us. We got to the place and found that the particular item that Keith had his heart set on had been sent to a different place. To makes ure that no one else ended up with this particular item - they called ahead and had it held for us and S'te took us STRAIT there to get it.

and

And

Here is

And he jumped right into Keith's lap and hasn't left it since! :-)

Keith has changed the pronunciation of his name and he is now called 'Kako' but we've left the spelling alone... after all, who cares?

A great choice, they bonded immediately, and have remained fast friends!

Thank you S'te, for finding him for Papa!

Couldn't have done it without you!

Another stop on our trip

2010-07-08T11:54:00.000-04:00

The ending of out trip out contained little to actually write about. We did meet up with my sister, Sharen, in Pendleton, OR She drove over from Cultus Lake where she was camp hosting for the summer. We went out for dessert and a great chat and then met again in the morning to go over and visit our brother, Gerald. He is looking pretty well considering all things. He is back on Hospice and I believe he has made his peace with God. The hardest part is so, so, still in front of him. His health is still doing a yo-yo, he rallies a bit and then it's 2 steps back. I look forward to his letters - but then cry after reading each one of them. But, back to the visit, it was a good one. We had a few laughs, remembered a few old times, got pictures taken, ~ Gerald actually had some licorice and asked for a cola - I'm not sure he is "supposed" to have them ~ but at this stage - what difference is it really going to make - so he had what he wanted. After Sharen took off to head back into the hills I went back for an afternoon visit. We had to cut it a bit short as he really wasn't feeling that great. I did get to meet his physicians' assistant and the head of the hospice care - so it was another greatly productive visit. I gave him a huge hug since I know it will be another year before I see him again.

Visiting Gerald is always very bittersweet. I love my little brother, hate some of the history he has, am compassionate about his disease, emphasize with his decisions about medical treatment, AND want him to be here to visit next year, but also know how much pain he is in, how long it has gone on, and know that his own wish is for it go be over. I really do pray for God to be merciful. That is about all that is left.

Cody and Yellowstone photos

2010-07-05T23:44:00.002-04:00

Here are some select photos - but for the WHOLE shebang... Check out my Flickr set 2010 East - West Trip! There are probably more photos than anyone would really want to look at! :)

Just passing thru today!

Cody, Wyoming - the only town we saw

I just loved the way this looked.

East entrance - via Wyoming

Three Bears Lodge ~ A great place to stay!

Some really, really hot mud!

Boiling hot water to go with the snow on the ground!

Old Faithful taken from the deck at the Lodge

South Dakota photos a wonderful tour!

2010-07-04T23:21:00.001-04:00

Made it to the Black Hills in South Dakota

Amazing

Crazy Horse - a granite mountain being blasted into a memorial. Amazing feat!

Keith after lunch.

A tunnel between Crazy Horse and Mt. Rushmore in the Iron Mountain

Mt. Rushmore from the peak of Iron Mountain

Another Iron Mountain tunnel.


A campsite near the road.

Mt Rushmore - Awesome!

The rainbow showed up just about back at the hotel.

Home again after a long day!

Troubles......

2010-07-04T13:55:00.000-04:00

My favorite laptop is down - it has all of my photos on it that go with my intended posts of the rest of our trip across the country. At this time I can only give a synopsis and then ~ if time and interest allows ~ I can go back and re-post.

We went to Yellowstone National Park and stayed at Three Bears Lodge in West Yellowstone. The package we had included a wonderful, scrumptious dinner for 2 (I had the prime rib, Keith had shrimp), full menu breakfast for both mornings of our 2 night stay, and a great tour of the "Lower Loop" which was an all-day tour with a huge lunch at Old Faithful. I wish I had the photos! It is amazing what God has done with this Earth!! I don't know why us Americans go abroad (us too!) and spend our money when we have so many unique things to see right here!!! The geysers were amazing! We got up close and almost to personal with elk and bison (right on the side of the road!!) and the views from Yellowstone's own "Grand Canyon" and falls are awesome!! All of this was included in the tour as well as the history of the park, fires, wildlife management techniques~ Our guide was great!!

After Yellowstone we headed westward again towards Pendleton, Oregon to meet up with my sister, Sharen, and to go see our brother. We (pretty much I) loved the scenery on our drive thru Montana, N. Dakota, and Idaho. The views at the 'viewpoints' are amazing. During part of our 'Montana drive' the skies were rather overcast and you could see all the layers of the huge,huge clouds. And at times, we were so high in the mountains it seemed like I could reach up and touch them!! Our small time in Idaho was all mountains and huge green trees. It was like crossing into a different country when we crossed over into Eastern Washington. It was hot, dry, and way, way barren. After all the huge green trees and animal sightings of the last several states, it looked like we'd crossed into desert - which in reality, we had. High Desert in fact!

So that pretty much takes care of a little update to get closer to where we are today.

2010-06-30T13:36:00.000-04:00

After enjoying another breakfast with members of the tour group and sharing our plans for the day - we learned that we were all heading in the same direction later - to another Cardinals Game. THis was an afternoon game so we would head out about lunch time. They were going by way or the Arch - Gateway to the West. I went to the top of this several years ago with April, Noah, and the kids (and during a thunderstorm). I'm sure it was documented early in our Novice days! LOL

Keith had some work to do so I explored the strip mall just outside of the hotel, swam a couple of laps in the pool, and toured (should've been a small workout) the exercise room, all before getting ready to leave for the game. To say I was a bit restless was an understatement!!

April took us to brother-in-law Jack's favorite burger place... This is for you Jack!! :-)

It turned out rather hot and humid during the game. We had great seats but the sun was just to much for me - so I watched most of the game from the food court just inside. April and the kids alternated watching from the seats and the court. We shared a table with interesting people from all over. The Cardinals have fans that travel quite far for their games!! It wasn't a great day for them either as it was the only loss in the series with Arizona.

So our visit with April was at an end. I spent the evening getting organized for the next leg of our journey across the USA!! I love this country!!

St. Charles, MO

2010-06-29T12:34:00.001-04:00

I started out my day having breakfact with a tour group from Oklahoma that was also staying at the Best Western. They were a group of American Indians (I knew the Tribe but cannot drag it up from my memory) that get together every year and tour a different area of the US. This year it was the St. Louis area. We talked about all the different things there were to see there and the nice ladies also talked quite a bit about themselves. I got a pretty good history lesson (which I thouroughly enjoyed) before they headed out to start their trip to the Cahokia Mounds across the river in Illinios and to Grants Farm. Keith took me to both of those spots during different visits to the area. I know they will have a great time - I know I could've spent a whole day in each place when we went! LOL

So, after this very long breakfast, April, Elizabeth, and Brennan arrived bearing all sorts of goodies for our day together! We started out at the pool!

Then we went for a nice stroll down to Main Street in St. Charles. The weather was quite wonderful. Sun shone all day for us and a great breeze made it that much better!

Our lunch stop was at the Olde Millstream Inn which was in itself a really great place. I'm so glad April suggested it. The patio seating right next to the stream was great. The servers were wonderful. The food (except for Brennan's overdone burger) was really good. Brennan didn't say anything about the burger in time to do anything about it - but they apologized profusely and offered....

After the great lunch, we explored Main Street

And got our picture taken

before we took the St. Charles Trolley and headed "back for the barn". The driver dropped us as close tot he front door of the hotel as he possibly could!

WHAT A GREAT DAY!

Day 2

2010-06-28T23:57:00.000-04:00

Thankfully, there weren't any more issues - only the 1 trip down the 2 flights of stairs for Keith and 2 round trips for me... but . . the elevator, true to the young man's word, was still out of order when we went down to breakfast. So, Keith painfully transcended the staircases, again.

I got this brainchild of an idea during breakfast... Since the irritated couple last night had a 1st floor room (I saw them head down the hall after our nice conversation) and were headed out on their long drive - early, early, early ~ to repeat their words ~ I could go request that we get their room after it was cleaned - and the elevator was fixed.

The nice lady at the desk was astounded about the elevator breaking down with us in it - no one seemed to realize we'd been in it when it stopped (no one checked, that I know of), was very apologetic about the leak, false alarm, and all the rest - and checked, looked, checked, and looked again at her bookings. W planned to stay until Thursday - so I REALLY wanted to get Keith off of the 3rd floor and felt like I was being rather pushy... and she checked her computer some more, before asking if we'd requested a 1st floor room. When told yes, it was requested both at booking (online) and again when checking in ~ but were told there were none available ~ she apologized profusely before offering us a room - that had not been booked the night before - so we didn't need to wait for cleaning or anything - EXCEPT - the elevator was still not working - and we had ALL THAT STUFF and no luggage cart! She actually made several trips up and down those stairs HERSELF packing our stuff down them. In just a jiffy or two, she had us ensconced in a 1st floor room. Thankfully for others, the elevator was actually fixed that afternoon, and the leak and and alarm system was online shortly afterwards. Me, the worry wart, was on a need-to-know quest with that stuff!

So, when April and Elizabeth came to pick us up for our CARDINALS Game, we weren't in the same room as when she and Brennan had left us in just the night before!! :-)) The desk called and let us know that we had our daughters looking for us... and we were so happy!! So, ready, set, go... we are off!!

and what a crowd!!

that went totally nutso

when

after being behind since the 6th inning -

during the 9th inning

with 2 outs

the Cardinals came awake

AND WON THE GAME!!!

YAY!!!!

And we tiredly made our way back to our 1st floor room at the Best Western.

A good day was had by all!

Except the lady with the sore legs from running

up and down those stairs so many times!! LOL

St. Louis - night 1

2010-06-28T00:31:00.002-04:00

So, after attending Church with Mom B we got into the car and headed out towards Missouri and April's family. We got about 1/2 way there and I saw a sign. Then I saw another one and Keith said we could go see. Way, way out of our way I found Santa's Candy Castle at Santa Claus, Illinios.

Keith waited in the car while I went in and watched kids there make snow... indoor - no melt snow! - talk to Santa ~ and generally have a great time. It was amazing - all of the 'stuff' for Christmas that was available! But I contained myself, I only bought our 2010 donations to the Girls family's Christmas Tree decorations. I loved the little birthstone angels! Keith even helped out by calling for the one birth month that I couldn't remember (I thought I did pretty good - after all, there are a LOT of them!). We got about another 100 miles down the road before I realized that I'd gotten one of the other months wrong - and it was too late to turn around. Wahhh! So we continued on our way, determined to find a way to fix it - one way or another - and the another ended up with the fine folks at the Castle sending me the ornament that I was needing to replace. Thank you for the assistance! During our stay in St. Charles - we went and got an engraver - and I got the year and names engraved too... What a deal!!

After a few more hours with Rush, Kelly, and whoever else I talked too, we crossed the Mississippi into St. Louis! It was a bit overcast and just as we hit the city - we even got a few raindrops but we soon left them behind to the warmth of St. Charles.

We stayed at the Best Western Inn of St. Charles where we had a rather eventful 1st night! As always, Keith requested a handicap room, or at least a room on the 1st floor since he and his legs have definate issues with going down stairs. Well, we were given a room on the 3rd floor since the fellow at the desk said he had to 'hold' a first floor room (I'm not extremely clear on just what this issue was, except that I know there were empty 1st floor rooms and we didn't get one of them). So we unload all the stuff in the crew cab of the pickup - since we would be there for several days. And haul it up to the 3rd floor - definately thankful for the elevator!! ^-^ Along about dark or so I start hearing this noise. Keith isn't the least bit concerned (right to sitting in the chair in his scivvies working on the laptop!) and says it's the fire alarm!!!!! Yikes~~ fire alarm ~ third floor ~ bad ankles ~ no elevator during a fire~~~ I grab my purse and I'm ready to be out of there~~ Keith still in his scivvies, still scrolling around on the internet, not the least bit interested ~~~~ The young guy desk clerk is running from room to room, checking to make sure all of his patrons were safely evacuated! Not so!!! Here we are!! He was very exasberated when he said "The fire alarm is ringing!! You are SUPPOSED to go outside to the evacuation area!" to which I replied ~ I will, as soon as my husband puts some pants on. LOL So Keith finally finishes what he is doing and PUTS HIS PANTS ON and we go down the stairs. . . one step at a time - as is necessary for us to do - (which is why we ask for a 1st floor room to start with) are we getting the picture??? I'm about to bounce off the wall - afraid of fire, yes I am....

So we get down the stairs, the fire trucks are there, the police are there, the other guests are sitting around the lobby - and I quipped to one of them " nice way to spend an evening" ~ only trying to be funny ~ and was told that they were glad they were only spending the 1 night there - as they didn't like being annoyed - ok - so that didn't go so well..... and the fireman shows up and says - ok folks, the rain caused a leak and the leak caused the alarm to go off - there would be something, something, something to make sure that everyone would be safe until it was fixed - anyhow, we could go back to our rooms....

So, we get into the elevator, get to the 2nd floor, and the elevator stops. More alarms. Can't get it to move. Keith got the door open, we got out, and we walked up to our room on the 3rd floor, hoping that the something, something, something didn't happen - because I don't think Keith would've volunarily walked those stairs again....

Soooo, I need another box out of the vehicle that didn't get taken upstairs. So I go out to the elevator. There is an out-of-order sign on it - both on the 3rd and 1st floors (I didn't check any further), I got the box from outside and stopped at the desk to inquire as to the status of FIXING the elevator and was told "probably a couple of days". So this stinks!!!! I then offer the fact that I certainly hoped that nothing 'happened' in the next "couple of days" - as we were on the 3rd floor and handicapped. Not a good deal!

I have a funny story to tell

2010-06-27T12:44:00.000-04:00

This is a sample of true to life events:

A few weeks ago I was in Lowe's in Vero Beach. I went there to get a few things that I needed for the pantry setup and while I was there I was over looking for the door that Richard had seen a while before that and .... anyhow... on with the story.... So we'd been talking about the lack of insulation over the pantry area that we needed to keep cool - and I was looking at insulation - and asked the man there how much I would need... so to come forward some more... I put a roll of the stuff in my cart and asked who could get 4 more rolls for me. A young man was pointed out and called over.

So here is the crux of my story..... the young man sauntered over and said "what". Taken back a bit - I told him I needed more rolls of the insulation. He sauntered very slowly around the corner - I followed because he didn't acknowledge that he'd even heard me much less that he would honor the request. In reality he was getting a cart, V e r y s l o w l y. He finally came back with the cart and loaded the request. The I headed to the checkstand... and I waited for him to show up. When he got there I said "having a long day? a bit tired?" his reply - "no, I'm just a laid back guy". another suprised startle for me!!!

So I pay and head out the door with my cart. I come back in the door looking for the young man. He is sitting over on a display... I commented to the cashier that he (the young man) didn't seem much interested in his work and the response was "I'll bet his parents are so PROUD" and I agreed. I then asked the youn man if he was going to help me take the stuff to the pickup - he looked suprised... got up, wandered over, and started pushing the other cart toward the door. We got outside the door, he asked where I was parked, said he'd wait there for me to pull over, "it's too hot out here and I don't like the sun". So, now exasperated, I get the pickup, unload my cart, pull over to him, and load that cart into the back, take the carts (both) back inside, come back out and say thank you to the young man that was so much help... And people that WANT TO WORK don't have jobs... wonder which corporate boss he is related to.

No wonder this country is going broke!

Charlestown

2010-06-26T23:56:00.000-04:00

We arrived in Charlestown just after noon on Friday. To our delight Mom and Melody were both home (Keith didn't tell them what day we would even get here) and Heather came by not long afterwards. We went to a very late lunch at Keith's favorite Mexican Restaurant and then stopped by the Library to look at the historical exhibit for the Indiana Munitions Plant that is located here in Charlestown. Keith's mom worked there twice, both times during wartimes. She saw several friends there and it was fun watching her enjoy herself - and being a bit of a history person - I enjoyed watching the video and looking at the massive amount of memorabelia that has been collected by the Historical Society of Charlestown.

This weekend was Charlestowns Founders Day Celebration, with booths, rides, and even a parade! We saw them setting up as we went to the Restaurant yesterday. Then looked at the 97 degrees on the thermometer before deciding that we really weren't up to a visit. It worked out very well tho' as we had company almost as soon as we returned to the house. Keith's youngest sister, Joy, and nephew, Tim, came by. Then Heather went and got her new bundle of joy, Precious! Here is Joy meeting Precious!

This morning was the Parade. BUT, the temp at 8:30 am was 85 so Keith and I just napped a little longer. Actually, we had heard that the forcast was for it to be even hotter today than yesterday, so we pretty well knew we weren't going to go and stand out there to watch it. But then, if we had, we would've missed the next visitors.

Dolores and Kenny came up from Shelbyville and we got another photo. I sure wish Joy could've been here for this photo event also. Try as I might - I can't get all the siblings together for a family photo! Maybe I'll get S'te to photoshop one for me!! :-}

So the next plan is to attend Church services with Mom B so she can again show off her baby boy (as she LOVES to introduce him as) once again. And then to take off towards St. Charles to visit with April and the grandkids for a day or three. Maybe take in a baseball game - go Cardinals!! (and I didn't bring my tshirt AGAIN!!) :-P

Perry Georgia

2010-06-24T09:12:00.001-04:00

After lots of assistance by John, Jessie, and Mike A. we headed out about 10 am. We actually had quite a nice drive up the Turnpike and then blended nicely onto I75. Tom had fantastic directions - and we stopped several times to stretch our legs out.

This was one of our first stops in Georgia. The temperature on the thermostat in the pickup said 101 but the radio was announcing a heat index of plus 10-15 degrees. It sure felt like it. Here is Keith discussing the heat with a gentleman that was headed south toward Tampa. We met many folks that were headed the opposite way we were! !

The rest area here was pretty and massivly green. The groundskeeper said that was due to daily rains. We only drove thru minimal rain - just a few drops and we were done.

Rush and I kept an ongoing scintilating conversation going for much of the trip. I was able to stay connected to radio stations that were consecutive for many hours (much to Keith's chagrin) Hahaa.

At the Information Center area (I probably have the tags wrong) these huge trees have lots and lots of moss hanging. I tried to get Keith to take a photo of me with them - but it was still to hot out... He went inside, leaving the pickup running and the air on - and straight back out again. I have to admit - IT WAS HOT!!

We stopped here at Perry, GA at the Holiday Inn, where we met some really nice folks. They are having a conference for Comcast (hehee) so I listened a lot about the ways they figure things out. And.... I heard about a building that burned down after a worker (the guy got paid to do this) put a splitter in a wall for an apartment and it wasn't tight (or something to that effect) and sparked. So, what I got out of that is to make sure all my connections in my cable are always screwed all the way in. Anyhow that was the big discussion of how Travelers Insurance was going to have to pay to rebuild this building because the tech did it. My news for the day LOL

So.. Now we are still headed northward.. Maybe on to Lookout Mountain. Keith says he is feeling a bit 'rocky' this morning . . . so we will see how he feels when we get close. Hopefully he will feel like exploring - Other than that we are doing well and enjoying the trip!

A little insulation!

2010-06-15T21:15:00.000-04:00

With the advent of the Pantry at the Crossings Community Church we found that we badly needed a bit of insulation above the rooms we converted. I got Lowes to match me on the donation of 10 rolls of attic insulation - So here is ever-ready helper Mike getting started on the first few rolls.

He managed to get about half of them installed while working alone. He got to the point that he needed some help so had to stop. Hopefully the rest will be installed there soon. It sure can't hurt the power bill.

So far we managed to get weather stripping around all the outside doors, caulk the windows, and put the heat barrier film on all but the Sanctuary windows. That with a bit more help with the insulation will be a great start in making our Church a bit more economical. Then we can save our funds for the big projects :-)

Thanks for helping so much Mike -

I doubt that we could have done it all without you!

Busy, busy, busy

2010-06-14T13:20:00.000-04:00

I finally found a set that I like for the dining room - and it fits here too! It is really pretty with a hutch, china cabinet and table that came with a glass cut for the top! I really am enjoying having another flat surface to stack stuff on!!

My pet project for the last month or so has been to organize and assist in the creation of the 90th Avenue Food Pantry for The Crossing. Of course any 'pet project' of mine turns into one for Keith too! :) Our CORE committee has worked hard in getting it all up and running! We draw (purchase) food items that have been donated to the Treasure Coast Food Bank to distribute to those who are in need. We opened on June 5 (S'te's birthday ~ Happy Birthday girlie!) and served a very few - our second open day saw a great increase - and we are looking for an even greater increase in the weeks to come!

The fellows at the food bank are wonderful! They loaded our pickup full of items for the Pantry - all with smiles! I am so glad that I was able to be a part of it. Makes my heart lift! After we go thru the fresh fruits and veggies - we always end up with some spoilage - nothing goes to waste! Here is a sample of the recepients of the spoilags - this was taken at the Rest Area between PSL and VB. Closer to home we have some goats that come running any time the hear the pickup coming. We were blessed with an overload of fresh corn and tomatoes during our last run! We distributed all but the spoilage - and the goats got that! Everyone and everything is being blessed by this project. Again, I am thankful that I've been involved with it. We even have Youth that have been able to be blessed with assisting us on Saturdays.

The Crossing, Vero Campus, has been where we have been attending and doing whatever little bit we could to lend a hand. It has been great fun for me to have the chance to be useful again! I've been doing some of the nursery duty to get my 'baby fix' since we've not been doing the foster care gig. I miss my babies (sniff sniff) but the break has been nice too. On a side note, The Crossing is now collecting items for a Rummage Sale to raise funds for some much needed building maintenance as well as a portion of the donations going to help fund the Pantry. If you are one of my friends in this area and have 'stuff' to donate - give a call - I can get someone to come get the donation and give you a receipt for it!! The Rummage Sale will be on July 10th, in the morning. Come shop!!

So, now to get ready for our vacation. It is getting pretty hot and humid - Keith gave me a departure date.... Thank you LORD, for close neighbors that we can depend on to keep our home safe and sound while we are gone. John and Jessie keep a real close eye - as they live next door - and Barb stops by every now and then to check on them... hehee!!

I've been working really hard on resisting the urge to spill all of my opinions on the Health Care garbage that went on and the media hysteria over the nasty oil well in the Gulf - and - so far - so good! For another jpost anyway.

Hopefully I will have good posts of our travels this summer and pics of our growing Grandchildren! Oh what beauties!! And so grown up!

a couple more photos!

2010-05-31T21:32:00.000-04:00

2010-05-31T21:27:00.000-04:00

Thank you to all the Men and Women in Uniform, all the Military Spouses, and lastly but not leastly, all the Military Brats for the sacrifices; past, present, and future, that our Armed Forces have suffered.

Thank you to those who have given the ultimate sacrifice for the freedoms that we Americans enjoy.

To Jeremy 38 years later.....

2010-05-25T03:13:00.000-04:00

Happy Brithday Son
I wish Heaven had a phone so I could hear your voice again. I thought of you today but that is nothing new. I thought about you yesterday, and days before that too. I think of you in silence, I often speak your name. All I have are memories and a picture in a frame. Your memory is a keepsake, from which I'll never part.... God has you in his arms. I have you in my heart.
With love, Mom

As summer comes along

2010-05-20T00:53:00.000-04:00

I have been employed by the Census. Not a permanent position. Not a demanding position. Pretty much another way to waste time but this time I get PAID for it!! LOL No, seriously, it has been fun to be doing something productive and so necessary. Unfortunately, the job came just in time to really mess with our (my) summer plans. So, instead of going to Brett and Maya's wedding in Utah, we sent a check and jellies and instead of going to stay in Oregon for the summer, the newly renovated house will be rented for a few years. A disappointment (on both fronts) but in staying here for the summer, along with the job that I am actually getting paid for, I have gotten busy helping to set up and organize a 'food pantry' for the Crossing Community Church, where Keith and I attend.

The pantry organization is really going pretty quickly. We are hoping to be opening for the first time on S'te's birthday... Happy Birthday sweetie!!

Staying busy is one way of staying sane... I think....
Dad's bithday flew by just a couple of days ago - Happy Birthday Dad - glad that your day was made all the better by getting released to go home!

Soon (in 5 more days) it will be Jeremy's birthday again. It is so hard to believe this would be his 38th!
Jeremy, I miss you. Even with all the good that God has blessed my life with - I miss you so much. My heart is heavy and the memories of you bring a smile with the tears. Someday you will lead us to you. I only hope that day is not to terribly far away.

It seems just like yesterday that you were just a tiny baby, then the grinning toddler, growing into the happy and busy little boy with the infectios smile, and then the much to short time we had you with us as a young man. I look at the wonderful woman your sister has become - and I know in my heart you would have been a wonderful man if you'd had the opportunity.

An Update

2010-05-20T00:30:00.001-04:00

This was what our little house looked like when we bought it. That is Keith and Tim trying to figure out what we needed to do first.

This was after our first attempt at getting some sort of drainage syhstem going on.

The back door

and the brown garage is gone. Boy was it ugly

Then our second try at fixing the drainage issue

Then the deck and shed came along

Then the patio we put in...

and now the new front!

and the new back ... hopefully all cleaned up real soon!

With the all new insides... sure looks nice.

A great tribute to D&R Traditional

thanks Del and Shawn!

Jellies

2010-05-09T15:10:00.003-04:00

Last summer, while in Coos Bay, I got on a real creative kick. I was absolutely loving my new kitchen, all of my new counter space, the full garden, the lucious fruits that I grew and others that I picked.

So I made a bumper crop of jams and jellies (among all the other STUFF).

My baby sister, Sharen, told me about some of the guests that will be traveling internationally to attend Brett and Maya's wedding and a few of the customs. She was brainstorming a local delicacy to offer as token momentos (or something of that sort!) for a few of them.

So anyhow, I thougtht,

why not send some of this bumper crop of sugary sweets to offer up!

I know for a fact they are local to where Brett is local to!

So, the last time I was in Oregon, I boxed up a small (actually very small) sample of my homemade delights and mailed them off to Sharen, who...

put her talented mind and hand to..

decorating with gold lables

Wrapping so prettily

and making rather delightfully appealing, yummy looking gifts.

I hope they are enjoyed!

Dining Room Set

2010-05-07T17:02:00.001-04:00

The dining room set that we brought out here 6 years ago succumbed to the difference in humidity several years ago - and I gave it away. Up until now we've had the desk in the 'dining area' as we had bedrooms set up for the foster care we used to do. Since we've quit doing the foster gig here in Florida - we made one of the bedrooms into a den/office type of thing and the dining room has been empty.

Which was ok -

Then when Sharen and Jack were here - Sharen and I decided to put the kitchen set in the dining room so we wouldn't have to sit all the way at the other end of the house. And it worked really well. In fact, I would rather sit in the dining room than in the eat-in kitchen area (I can see more LOL). But, then I had this bare room in the kitchen....

So...

I got the card table and chairs out of the rv and set them up - for temp. Uncomfortable, ugly (as only a card table can be), and inadequate but useful to fill a spot for awhile while I looked for something I liked. Sharen and I did lots of shopping, looking, pricing, and discussing. Did I want to put another table in there - or a conversation group? Just what did I want to do with that space? Well, for all of these months I've done nothing with it.

Our friends, John and Jessie are getting a new dining room set. I LOVE the one she was selling. Other than a few dings and nicks from being a hurricane survivor - it is beautiful! So....

So, of course, the set that Sharen and I moved out to the dining room has been returned to it's rightful place in the morning room!!

And lastly but certainly not leastly,

See that bouquet on the table?

I received that a couple of days early.

Thank you my sweet Baby Girl!

10 Anniversary

2010-04-25T15:09:00.002-04:00

The Crossing

Today The Crossing celebrated it's 10 Anniversary by hosting a meal at the Vero campus (that's the one Keith and I go to). We had a great turnout - got to meet many fromt the Lakewood Park and Beach campus's. I think everyone got plenty full, the kids had the jumper playhouse, and the adults had plenty of room to fellowship. Many, many great dishes were brought and there were lots of willing hands to help with the clean-up. What a wonderful bunch!

Keith left this morning for St. Louis, so after dropping him at the airport, I made a pasta salad and went on over.

Merchant kitchen - news!!

2010-04-19T15:41:00.000-04:00

Our original kitchen - June 2008

Our remodeled kitchen (June 2009)

Our new kitchen (April 2010)

Who says nothing ever changes??? LOL

Home Again, again...

2010-04-19T15:33:00.002-04:00

So here is Keith's new toy. We were on the way back fom an appointment in Palm Bay and decided to stop in and look to see what was there. Well, we found something!! It drives like a dream and not having the stick shift is absolutely wonderful. I am so short that when I get into the seat behind Keith - lots of adjustments had to happen before I could even reach the clutch. Not so with this wonder of all wonders!! Knicknamed "The Beast" by Keith - we have sure enjoyed having it! Keith donated the Green Thing to the Church which in turn made sure it went to a good and deserving cause. So all is happy in our world!! :o)

After I got back from my marathon return trip, for a late 6th Anniversary lunch - we went down to the BeachCombers - sat in the sunshine while we had a wonderful chummy lunch and watched the sunworshipers and the brave wave jumping children. It seemed that all were having a wonderful time - and as I got to spend time outside in a really wonderful place with my dear hubby - I am happy!

6 years from Las Vegas!! Yay!!

My latest project was to get the driveway painted. I took a piece of siding and went to Lowes so that I could just get grey paint that matched and wasn't anything drastic - well - dull grey was the stock color and both the salesman and I thought it would match.... Boy!! There I went thinking again!! It is really blue - thought maybe it would get duller (since the color name is "Dull Gray") as it dried - but no such luck! So I put the white border on it hoping that it won't be quite so noticable when it fades some :o( One driveway down - one to go. Got the other one all powerwashed - and have the paint - now I just need the ambition!! Anyone got any to spare? LOL

I have also finished my 1st try at the 'cable stitch'. I took it out several times - learnd a LOT and will do as S'te suggested and put it in the cedar chest for 'later' - which means it will be one of the things the grandkids will have to divvy up someday :o)

And last but not least!! The house in Oregon is within weeks of coming together!! Double Yay!! Keith is thinking that we might rent it out for a couple of years - instead of leaving it empty for so many months at a time - so - as it gets closer to finish - he will decide. I have a couple of pre-requisites - and housekeeping and being willing to keep up the yard are two big ones! I would also like to have someone that would continue to work on the property to keep it as nice as it is... not asking for much - am I? LOL

It is warm here - today we've done our aquacises in the pool, I went to line dancing where I managed to tangle all 66 of my left feet - but had a great time doing it - and have done a parkwide bike ride... Keith is having a nap and I'm wonderin if the volcano in Iceland is going to keep friends here longer... being selfish - I hope so LOL

Oregon

2010-03-31T12:56:00.000-04:00

The texture is on the walls!

It seems like it's been a long, long time coming, but I guess it hasn't been all that bad with the wet weather and all the 'ground up' work that had to be done. It seems like every time they started something - something else had to be fixed before the first project could be completed. Keith has renamed it the 'New Money Pit" since the kids have given up on thiers.

So right now I'm in Oregon, ensconced in the camp trailer. It was a stormy wet horrible drive down, the usual 8 hour drive taking 10 and a half - several traffic slowdowns (clear to 10 miles of 2mph) - hail, rain so heavy the wipers couldn't keep up, oh, and did I say hail? So I made it - and it rained horribly for the next two days - today the sun is out - and I have much to do.

We have had the horrible jolt of yet another family member passing on to be with God. May you rest in peace now Margo, and please God help Teri and Mom Judy through the processing of thier grief. Be kind and be gentle with them.

I have my flight plans (finaled now - thank you baby!) don't have to spend 9 days in the San Francisco Airport waiting for my connecting flight! and will be back in Vero next week. Ready for the warmth and sunshine! As much as I love south coast Oregon - I so dislike being bone chilling, damp, wet, cold!!

Hopefully I will have more progress to report by the time my visit is over. Now off to take Tim shopping.....

Some Washington Pictures

2010-03-26T15:15:00.001-04:00

Jaleel is playing the drums in the band at school. We went to his band concert and made it just in time to hear his band play thier one and only piece. JMan said he was 'so nervous'!!
The bridge is a 'floating bridge' - built on pontoons!

And here is the view of the Olympic Mountains that are between Bremerton (this is actually Silverdale) that I see whenever I take Taniyah to school. I was on the other side of these mountains looking for a way over (instead of around) when I drove up Hwy 101 last October :->!

Cavelle has crowned his Mommy as Princess for a day!

And of course there has to be photos of at least some of the grandbabies!!

My March madness!!

2010-03-16T16:05:00.001-04:00

The month is already half over! We finished the yard - boy - that was a lot of work - then -

Rod had to go to North Dakota for something or another - and he was to be gone for the whole month - He no sooner got gone that Cavelle got sick, Tetee got sick, and Mak ended up with MRSA on his back. So... Being the inveterate traveler that I am - and with permission from Keith.

I headed for Washington. Keith found a half decent fare, reserved it for me, and got John to ride with us to take me to the airport. All in about 4 hours! I was in Seattle at midnight that night! S'te met me - and I've been here ever since. I have been of a little assistance in watching the little ones while S'te does Dr. daily med appointments with Mak - and we've been to marathon basketball games. No one has won a game that I've been to - but they play really, really hard! It has been fun!

Mak has been having odd issues, first the MRSA, which is FINALLY healing up. He got his Mickey button changed on Friday. He comlained of a tummy ache Friday evening - and on Saturday he didn't want any feeds. He said he felt like something was 'stuck'. By evening he was in terrible pain - So to the ER he went. About 1 am I got a call from S'te that he was being taken via ambulance to Mary Birch Childrens because something was blocking his small bowel. S'te's friend Shirley came and stayed with the little kids while I ran a bag to Naval Hospital and traded cars with her - so that I would have the carseats! :)

I hung out with the kids Sunday morning and then off to Tacoma to pick S'te and Mak up. They had to change out the new tube - again. Theory has it that the balloon migrated again and the valve part that is used for him to 'burp' wasn't functioning properly so there was just more and more pressure building up in his tummy!

Then from coming home from the hospital on Sunday afternoon - to playing basketball on Monday evening - it is amazing how resiliant this guy is! He tires easier than the others and the coaches keep a pretty close eye on him - but he plays hard - and is really quite a rebounder!

and it's lunch time!

Rod's thing was cut short so he will be home later this afternoon - and - Keith wants me to stay here until the house in CB is done - so that I can go do the final walkthru from here instead of having to come clear back out from Florida again - and S'te says they won't kick me out until the house is good enough to stay in.... right now it's still in pretty rough shape....

but

I'm hoping that it will be habitable soon!

Yard Work!

2010-02-21T16:18:00.001-05:00

I'm guessing it is time for yard work. We woke up to bright sunny skies and a promise for mid 70 degree weather. So ~~ we put it off ~~ we went to Church, then Keith had lunch, then I put some laundry in, then I gave up - we went outside to do the 'duty'~ Boy do things grow up and over !! We trimmed the rubber trees down. They were about 7 or so feet tall. I had to dig out the sprinklers - in this sand they tend to sink every year.

So I got about 1/8 th of the work done. The back of the side yard and 1 side of the back yard. I got the sprinkler heads dug out, mulch (from the front) under them to keep them up where I want them, the rubber trees cut back, the frozen parts cut off of the hibiscus, and 10 bags of mulch down. That was just the area in this picture! I didn't put any under the rubber trees. I still have to go around them with the shovel to sever the 'roots' that tend to go all over the place. :-<

Keith trimmed this poor frostbitten hibiscus to within inches of it's death - but it is budding nicely. It was frostbitten that badly during the cold spell back in January - when it was warmer in Seattle than it was in Orlando!! We pulled the old bark from here and put along the back where we have some low spots in the sand and around the back 'bird' and tomato plants. Yes Sharen, believe it or not, we still have tomato plants!! They broke off at the ground and then resprouted - don't know if we will have tomatoes but they are sure determind fellers!!

Jack and Keith cut the monster down that I had mistakenly planted right in the middle there. Still trying to figure out what to put there. If the middle hibiscus doesn't come out of it's funk, I may trim it and replant it there. It has turned into a huge beautiful bush every year. I think it would look good there on the large bald spot.... I doubt seriously if Keith will agree with me enough to move it - but who knows - hahaa.

But I believe we are done for today - my hint - Keith put all the tools away and has gone back to his Facebook Poker game. :-> At this rate - we will be done in 8 days. And this will give me time to work on the decision of the hibiscus.