Plumeria Ring

Today I received an unexpected package. Rick had ordered a plumeria ring (well it was originally sold as a pansy ring but it works perfect for plumeria). It is a flower vase. Apparently you can't find them new any more-at least not in the US. This one was made in Germany, we believe (see writing on the bottom of the ring) just post WWII. I think it is beautiful and really shows the flowers off!

Just Another Disney Day

Monday, Adri, Diane (my cousin) and her 2 children, Jonathon and Lizzy, and a friend of Lizzys from Texas, Sara, and I went to Disney. We started at Disneyland because when Adri and I had gone on Sat we started in Ca Adv and when we went to Disneyland all fast passes were gone and the lines were ridiculous! We zipped over to Space Mountain first, rode it and got a fast pass for later, then to Matterhorn. Even arriving there first the lines quickly became humongous and we did what we could get on and while we waited for Small World, Adri and Jonathon went to Ca Adv to try and get on the roller coaster (turned out it was down).
We met at Ca Adv and did the water ride, Tower of Terror and the swings. Now, my cousin rides Space Mountain twice, does Splash Mountain, the Matterhorn, Tower of Terror and when we do the Swings ....she SCREAMS! How funny is that?! Ok Diane, I can relate a little, you won't catch me on the Ferris Wheel!

Sean was in the Block Party on this day too and we asked that he pull the 2 younger girls up to participate. Lizzy jumped right into it! I got some cute videos of her and Adri.
As you can see I have given up on the collages. I guess they are not cooperating when you try and enlarge them to see the pics.

Roadster Show

Adrianna and I were out in California on Father's Day. Rick really didn't mind-he thinks of those type of Holidays as Hallmark Holidays. Adrianna spent the day with Joslyn then that night they along with joslyn's fiance,John, and Megan went to Dave and Busters.

I went to a Roadster Show at the Pomona Fairgrounds with my little brother. Yes, I like looking at cool cars too! I think Steven was a little disappointed, he had hoped for a better display, but since I had never been to one, I thought it was pretty good. I even took pictures of some of the cool engines! There was a display of grills that looked like giant jock straps to me. They should be in San Onofre along with the giant's golf balls and thumbtacks.

Oh, that's me in his Corvette. Afterwards we went to Carl's Jr and sat and chatted for, like, 2 hours. I miss him so much. We need to be together more than once a year! It's your turn to come out here Steven!!

California Adventure

Saturday morning Adri and I left Noreen's with one intent. To go to Mel's donuts. It is a donut shop that was just down the street from where we used to live. We miss their donuts! Florida has not mastered the donut at all!! She got a chocolate bar and I got a maple bar. MmMm good! We also both had a buttermilk donut. Yes, we know, very naughty but it was worth it.

Then we met 2 characters at California Adventure. Jason and Scott. We signed in and immediately went to Soarin. It is a must when you go to Disney. They have it out here now too but you can never get on a new ride with out waiting forever.

After that I went to get Steven and Carrie in and we immediately did Soarin too!
We had great fun all day and for me the highlight (besides being with family) was seeing Sean in the Block Party Parade. He pulled Adri up to dance along and me too but I sat back down, I was taking pictures!

Flying to California....... $736

Eating at Mel's.............. $3.62

Going to Disney............ $Silver Pass

Adri's expressions....... Priceless

The Graduate

The whole reason Adri and I went to California was for Megan's graduation. My niece has become a beautiful, poised young lady. UCLA will be lucky to have her grace its halls. The day was very hot! Adri and I picked Jason up at Amtrak (it would have been nice if it was on schedule) then to Bill and Terri's. We celebrated before, after and during. The "kids" went to be seat savers so us "old folks" didn't have to be in the hot sun the whole time. The cheerleaders were selling much sought after cold water. I think we all were unattractively sweating. It must have been cooler down on the field because Megan looked gorgeous and fresh through it all. Megan left for Grad night about 9ish and as I was thinking the celebrating was over, Juliette mentioned a project she had done in 4th or 5th grade thinking Adri might want to do it with her class. I am so glad we stayed! She brought it out and Bethany proceeded to read all of Juliette's writings from this Indian project and just had us all in stitches. Juliette was quite the writer! and Bethany the perfect reader! Thank you girls for ending the evening on such a joyous note.

A peaceful day

Our neighbors from Garden Grove moved to Arrowhead (I hope I got that right Patsy) a few years ago and we finally made it up to see them. They have a beautiful home and I love the way it is decorated! Patsy has a wall that she did a tree mosaic out of plates and while it looks great in pictures, in person it is phenominal! The part in the collage is where she has 2 geckos (I am a fan of geckos). Noreen and I drove together and Megan had borrowed a truck that she, Kara and Adri drove up in. The truck was to move her furniture. I was a little slow on how that was working. Noreen had said on Friday she was helping move Megan and then we all went to Patsy's. It turned out Megan's furniture has been stored at Patsy's for the last year but she is changing apartments and needs her furniture. Moving the furniture from the free room to the truck looked a little scary. They had to walk down the side of the mountain carrying it. There was a bat in the room that startled them and Adri and I came down those steep stairs to try and get a picture, but alas, it was more afraid of us than we were of it. The day was wonderful. They have a fantastic view and pretty flowers around and Gerry made us an apple pie. Dinner was delicious. Thanks Patsy and Gerry for having us!

California Missions

Wed morning we left Joe's and had all day before meeting Noreen at the dance studio at 7PM. We had hoped we could sneak up on Uncle Paul but all we found at his house were his dogs. He did not answer his phone. I knew the San Luis Rey Mission was on the way to the 5 and asked Adri if she wanted to stop and see it. She did not remember ever going to any of the missions but she did remember her mission project in 4th grade. (all you Californians probably remember your mission project too!) California has a rich history in their missions. The San Luis Rey Mission was a little disappointing, they had a nice museum but most of the buildings and the quadrangle were closed to the public. mission San Juan Capistrano was wonderful. You can meander all over it and they have preserved the original adobe and have a lot of information about mission life. There were some things that I felt could have been better marked and given more information about but over all it was a great experience.
At the dance studio it was great catching up with every one. (Pictured:Miss Linda and her grandaughter Jenna, Adri and Joslyn)It is like old home week when you go back. An added surprise was seeing Adri's dance instructor from 5th (or 6th) grade that had moved, Miss Kerri. I must look basically the same and she easily recognized me but I guess Adri has grown up and I am not sure she would have known her if I hadn't been there.
Then off to Noreen's where we got to meet Sir Walter Riley.

The San Diego Zoo

We stepped off the plane about 10am (after leaving home at 3:45am!) and went to Joe's to drop off our luggage. Then off to the Zoo. We love the San Diego Zoo and go when ever we can. Joe has a pass and let us use his free tickets that come with them. Thanks Joe it was a great day!!Usually we take the bus tour which includes the busses that you can get on and off but this time we just hoofed it. We saw lots of babies. The flamingo babies are adorable! They have very chubby legs which makes them look silly and cute. There were moms with babies in pouches, little piglets running around (yes, they are darling too) and several primate babies. I took the Canon camera with me and was quite pleased with the shots through the wires. In some cases the wire virtually disappeared (see the eagle shot). This was our first day in the sun. It was very hot (felt hotter than Florida!). We slathered on sunscreen but Adri and I both forgot our parts. Yes we sunburned in our hair! I always walk with my hair in a pony tail so that part is not used to direct exposure! We have both subsequently peeled (major dandruff flakes!). When we got home the first thing Rick said to me was "your hair is lighter" (Adri said that I had just gotten a lot grayer). We were out in that hot California sun most every day!
After the zoo back to Joe's where I took a catnap. Then we met my mom for dinner. Afterwards it was back to Joe's where I immediately went to bed. The problem? Rick's work phone was buzzing at 1am and I never got back to sleep! Kept thinking I needed to get up in a bit to wash my hair before leaving. I gave up and just got up. Not to mention I must be getting really old. I seem to need my sleep!

We're back

We are home. It is good to be back and not at the same time. I do miss everyone out there. We did some different things this time which meant limiting who we saw. We need a month every 4 months or so!! Yesterday we got home at 1:45 AM. I slept in until a late 7:23! The day was lazy...unpacking, doing laundry, uploading pics and naming them. Adri and I did a little detour and ate at Panerra bread. On the way I said "you have to admit Florida has prettier skies" (it was a gorgeous blue with puffy white clouds). She just looked at me and said "sooo". Don't think she is thrilled to be back (well who is, but it isn't thaaaat bad). Once I get the pics organized I will post some. The one of Adri and me is up in the mountains at Patsy and Gerry's. The one of Adri, Jason and me is at Calif. Adventures.
Today it was back to the normal routines. Up and out on errands; pharmacy, Home Depot, dry cleaners, pool store and Publix. Weed whacked around the back yard fence on the inside and 2 sides on the outside of it. Trimmed (by hand) around the trees on the side. Now it is raining. Pouring actually. I am glad we are getting rain. Perfect for catching up on all those shows I taped while I was gone! Hope every one is having a great week end!

Going to Calif.

Just one more day and Adri and I will be on our way to Calif. I am not sure if we will be ready. The suitcases are still in the attic and who knows what to bring! We hear its hot, then its cold then it should be fine while you are here. Joe pointed out it is the normal June gloom going on. Well if it is in the 70's we are going to feel freezing! It has been 95 + here everyday for about a month! We are lucky if it cools to 75 at night!
I have been working on my Iggabelle book. Michael is thoroughly grossed out by it. I really like it and truly it made my creative juices flow. I have not been in a scrapping mood for some time and I had a great time making this book. I am posting a few of the pages. At this point it is the only book I plan to take to Calif.

Blueberry picking

It has been blueberry season for over a month now and we have been picking. We have a field near our home that is open twice a week (Wednesdays are a nightmare-way too many people for the parking area!!). Grab a bucket and start picking. You can't beat the price or the taste! It is $3 a pound. Saturday we picked a little over 7 1/2 pounds. We like eating them straight from the bush(you are encouraged to eat your way around because different varieties taste different) and they also make the best shake ever. We have our favorite varieties and as the summer unfolds our favorites have been picked clean but we are broadening our tastes.
Yesterday, besides taking a quick bike ride up and down our street (3 times-all we can handle of the hill), doing laundry, cleaning the master bath and a little ironing, we went and saw X-Men, The Last Stand. It was very good. All you X- Men fans should be happy with it.
This cute squirrel was tormenting Red and when I went to see what she was barking at it froze. Stayed there long enough for me to get my camera and take a few pictures getting closer and closer with each one. They are all identical-just closer. It did not budge at all until I walked away. I got practically in its face! (This pic is for you Danica)
Adri and I leave for So Calif in 1 week. We will be going to my nieces High School graduation and hopefully getting to see lots of our friends and family. Seems people are so busy now a days I am not sure how many will be able to squeeze us in. Regardless, Adri and I are looking forward to whatever adventure awaits us.