Eden Turns One

How I love pictures of little Eden with her reddish hair, happy smile, cute little body.  She is a delight.

 

She is excited, evidently.

 

 Meagan says that Eden loves Keira so much she not only wants to sit by her, she wants to sit on her, so cute.

 

I especially love this picture, so relaxed and enjoying Life, the way we all should be.

Jacob Turns 16!

Jacob turned 16 on February 3rd!!! Where has the time gone?  So he is driving and a good looking teenager.  He is also good at whatever he decides he wants to do and such a sweetheart.  Everyone loves Jacob!  Scuba diving with his Dad and in to Lacrosse this year.

 

 

 

Birthday Week in Carlsbad

Matt and I traveled to Carlsbad, Ca the week before my birthday as Maria had secured a week for us at a timeshare there!!!  It was wonderful.  We had a lovely kitchen and living room that looked out on the grounds and on to the ocean!  Matt had his own special privacy with a curtain that pulled across in back of the living room.  He had lots of space there.

           

I had a large bedroom with a lovely dressing table and large closets.  In between us was a fantastic bathroom.

The grounds were lovely with a great Jacuzzi outside that I used several times!!  And at the ocean end you could walk down the stairs, cross the driveway and go down more stairs to a beautiful beach that was clean and uncrowded!!

Every day we had someone else to eat with and somewhere to go.  On the first night Matt and I joined Maria in the Jacuzzi after having wonderful pot roast!!

The next morning Kelly invited to go get a pedicure and manicure with her.  At night I saw the movie "Selma" with Linda and Gary and then had wonderful grassfed? hamburgers at a new restaurant.

Saturday I went to Nordstroms with Sarah and Linda as Sarah shopped for a new dress for an upcoming dance.  I bought a new pair of jeans after seeing me in a mirror!  That night Matt and I had fish and chips with Maria in Oceanside.

On Sunday I went to church with the Pulsiphers and had a steak dinner after and then later I went to the parents of Johnny for his birthday party in University City.

  It was near where Richard and I lived when Johnny and Linda were babies.  Sue had her wonderful salad again plus all kinds of delicious food.  It was fun.  Johnny and his sister Michelle get the giggles together, it is so fun to watch.

Monday I saw "American Sniper" with James and had lunch.  And finally there was time to take a walk on the beach and then another movie with James "Black Hat"?--I did not like that one so much but we went to the movies all three times at the theaters with the lounge seat.  Very cool.

Tuesday, Matt and I met Meagan, Keira and Eden at UTC, our old shopping area between La Jolla and University City.  They have added a lot of things so it was a fun afternoon.  First we had lunch at the skating rink area.  I ate a fish taco.

And then we went to play!  More in the next blog.

 

Kristi's Christmas Birthday 2014

We can never forget waiting at the hospital for Kristi to be born on Dec 23, 1983.  

And Kristi in 2014 with a family of four.  What a lovely Mom, Wife, Lady, Friend, Granddaughter.  31 years old.  Happy Birthday, Kristi.

Thanksgiving Time

Well, it is that time of year again--the saddest time of the year.  It was 18 years ago that Richard died the day before Thanksgiving in Susanville.  We had come to spend the holiday with Maria's family.

My brother David says he feels the same way  as my brother Dick also died at Thanksgiving time and Jeanne's husband died in early November also.  Thanksgiving, a time for remembrance.

 It really hit me this last Sunday as we were singing the first hymn, it was a song I was not familiar with but the music was by Alexander Schreiner, the great organ player and author.  It was "Thy Spirit, Lord, Has Stirred Our Souls".  For some reason it brought tears to my eyes and made me think of those sad Thanksgivings.  I should learn to play it on the organ, it is so beautiful.


Over the years the holidays have just not been the same without Richard in my life. Every year I have to decide, should I decorate for Christmas or not???  Seems I always feel alone, no matter where I am.  The Hardys were thinking about coming up this year for Thanksgiving but I really think it would be better for them to come up when it is warm and there is more to do.  It has been in the 20's the last few nights, the coldest we have had so far and I understand there have been some broken pipes. Thank heaven Matt called and he is coming for Thanksgiving and maybe he will bring a friend, I hope so.


My neighbors were up because some gutter workers found their front door open.  The raccoons had gotten in and made a terrible mess in the kitchen.  It is unbelievable to me as well as to him that he had left the door open.  I have watched them as they close up the house and they are so meticulous.   He is getting older, no doubt.


This month there were so many birthdays.  Kate's was the end of October and then Ryan, Jimmy, Mitch and Maria all had birthdays in November.  I just send the E Cards anymore.


I finally got a speaker for my tablet.  It makes it so much easier when I am doing work and don't have to be so near to hear.  Of course, I have my big speakers I got in Guam but I use them on my computer, I just got one of those little round ones like Linda showed me.


I am listening to the life of Billy Crystal.  He is really an unpretentious nice guy.   So far one of the funniest chapters I thought was his lamenting about how much more fun the Christian holidays were than the Jewish--with Christmas trees and presents and Easter bunnies, chocolate eggs, etc. and the Jewish holidays are all about fasting and asking forgiveness, etc.  It was so funny and I have never heard any Jewish person talk about it like that.

Birthday Beach Bash

Saturday afternoon on the 25th we gathered to celebrate my birthday.    Me, the Pulsiphers, the Rasimas families (two) plus Michelle and son James and friend, and eventually the Hardys. the children enjoyed the sand and surf--adults enjoyed basking in the the late afternoon sun (until it goes down)...but so beautifully it goes down, a joy to watch and I get it on camera..

Sue and childen

Maria, Johnny's Mom Sue, Johnny, Johnny's sister Michelle

Maria, Linda, Gary and Bob

Maria and Michelle..

Sue--we had a baby shower at my PB house before she had Michelle in the 60's!

Linda

Doesn't get nicer than that--California Dreamin...

.

Gary and Sarah enjoying Linda's yummy food.

Sarah looks up!

 

Birthday girl at 81--I look like my Mom!  Beautiful daughters.

The sun is almost gone--it's gonna get cold...

How many birthdays ahead?  Who cares--seize the day!

 

The Hardys arrive just in time to eat what is left...

Camber and Michelle,,,

Brrrr--time to go home--Good Night!

More Birthday Pix

My children with great granddaughter Kate and granddaughter Kelsi.

 

Featuring Kate and Kelsi.

Great granddaughter cousins Keira and Brynn.

Daughter Maria with Nieces Meagan, Amy and Kelly.

More Birthday

I adopted this chic pix taken on my birthday as my official birthday picture.  It was taken after granddaughter Kelsi brought me the birthday glasses and before I had taken my curlers

 out.  I think it is so appropriate at this stage and age of life (77)--Looking at life through rose colored glasses and yet never being quite ready for whatever comes.

 I still haven't had my little cancerous spot removed from my nose.  It was so stormy this Thrusday it was postponed till next Thursday.  Now I read the storm coming may be worse this week--of bibilical proportions, whatever that means.

This is Kelsi, looking at her strange grandma.

On my real birthday, my son James and I had lunch at the Olive Garden.  It was delicious as always and we topped it off with a wonderful lemon cake.  In the evening Melissa and I went to the movie "The Book of Eli".  I keep wondering who wanted to push the importance of the Holy Bible so much that they would do it by enticing people in with the promise of violence (of which there was a lot).  Whoever wrote the script has not really studied the bible well enough to glean all of the truth of prophecy but it was a message worth getting.  The message is that we are putting too much value in the material things in life and not realizing what is most important.  At least that is what I got out of it.  The message was good but it was a strange, dark movie and I am not recommending it.

Saturday I picked up my new glasses at Costco and yea, the world is a little clearer and I can read without squinting so much.  Maria and I also saw "To Save A Life" which I would definitely recommend.  The theme was suggested by a Christian Church in Oceanside and the filming was done with non-Hollywood type actors.  The theme is teen suicides.  It was extremely well done, very entertaining and believable and the message was loud and clear.  We need to love and care about everyone and show it.  We get so busy with out own little lives we just don't see those around us.  Even if we think we are good Christians we are not doing what Jesus would do.  We are not being inclusive and we are not serving others.

Which reminds me of the darling child joke that Carole told me once and I have never forgotten.

"The teacher was telling all the children that they were here to serve others.  And one child raised his hand and asked, "What are the others here for?"  I love it.

Oh, yes, I missed two days of power outtages this past week at home and 4 feet of snow--way to go, Janet!  This has been some birthday, I never had so many birthday greetings.  Our lives are so different with cell phones, emails and facebook, it seems like we have so many more friends, but I wonder, do we really???  Something to think about.

Happy 77th!

We all gathered at the Hardy home to celebrate my birthday.   There was my daughter Maria,  her friend Dave, and her children Melissa and Matt--my daughter Linda, her husband Gary,  and their children Tanner, Sarah and Kelly and Kelly's friend Matt--my son James, his wife Camber, and their children Jacob, Lea, Jimmy and Kelsi--my granddaughter Kristi, her husband Mike and their children Kate and Ryan.

Cute Granddaughters Kristi and Melissa.

Linda had prepared enchiladas and mole sauce with rice and beans and Camber prepared the salad and lemonades, James made the guacamole, and they provided chips and other dips and Maria brought the Red Velvet birthday cake and there was also ice cream.

Sarah and Kate

 

 

Kristi's husband Mike with Ryan and Kate

After eating at three separate tables, the girls were in one room doing karaoke and the guys were in another room doing Wii while some were just watching...Fun party.

Cute picture of the sisters!