quality family time

I hate that I don't have pictures to post with this.

Yesterday we decided we needed to trim the trees in front yard in order to decorate for Christmas. By we, I guess I should say I. I knew Ray wanted to get it done but also wanted to do other things but this was my priority for the day.  We had considered hiring a tree trimmer but decided we could use the money elsewhere. So, we started at 10:00 AM and 4 1/2 hours later we were done. Ray used his long pole cutter and started taking off the leafy branches. I used the smaller cutters and cut each branch into 4 ft pieces and then Ryan, Cameron and Faith took these pieces and stacked them nicely in a large pile by the sidewalk for the city workers to come by and collect this week.  They also raked and swept into piles all the leaves and put them all in the trash bins. Cam's favorite task was to get in the bins and stomp down the leaves. It was hard work but luckily it was a cool day to work. And as soon as we got done with the trees, we began the yard decorating. It was so worth it!  And to add to the day, our next-door neighbor was assembling his large nativity set in his yard and hanging lights. And the neighbor next to him is a city councilman and he and others were assembling the city council float for the parade that night.  We had great conversations and shared the Christmas spirit as we all did our thing. It always feels so good to accomplish the hard work while working together- nice quality time. And then we were able go to the parade and relax and enjoy!

The real thing- WEDDING 10/10/10

I will try to write some but not sure how it will work with all the photos here. First, the beautiful bride.

The happy couple

Did Grandpa & Grandma dress appropriately or what?

with the parents

Ray stepped on her dress but other than that...

The Bolton girls- Brandie, Cami, Diona, Amy (Michelle was not at wedding)

Flower girls and ring bearers

Cami with big bro Ray

The CINNABON wedding cake (plus 3 trays of mini cini-bons)  YUM YUM 

Ryan & Cami at reception

Ric's family minus Mary Beth

Ray's family minus Arianna

So, as you can see, it turned out real nice. There will be more pictures to come. These are from Brandie's camera but there were plenty of others taking pictures including Gentry's uncle,  a professional. He just went home today so I imagine it will be a couple of weeks before we see those pics. The college was the perfect setting for the wedding and reception (actually a little small for the reception). You can see how the nature was a beautiful backdrop and inside, the twilight sunset was behind the head table. Unfortunately, I did not get to visit as much as I would have wanted to, but it was a great day.

time is flying by

When I was really retired and got to do whatever I wanted everyday, time seemed to drag on and I thought the wedding was so far away and I was so on top of it. But now that I am working again, the wedding is just around the corner and I can't seem to get everything done. Everyday I think, I need a day off!  We are interviewing today for the position, so hopefully, just another week or so and then I can retire again.

Just us Grandmas

So, last Thursday I drove to Lakewood to drop off Faith and Cameron plus Jessica's two youngest, Cole and Lindsey at Kathy's house. Kathy had asked Amy if they could come spend some time with her while her AZ kids were there for the summer. Since Amy's schedule is so weird and she is still traveling to Phoenix each week, she just couldn't figure how to make this happen. Well, I wanted to visit with my parents and spend the night with them but I always have grandkids with me when I go that far, so it all worked out. I dropped the kids off then went back to Covina to spend the day/night with mom and dad. I had a nice lunch with them and then we went to the stores- KMart, JoAnn's, Staples and Dollar Tree.  I dropped them off to let them have a rest and then I went back out to get my haircut. We then dined together for a nice leisurely dinner and were back in the apt. by 6:00 PM. They were pretty much done for the evening. We all read books, mom did some needlepoint and dad turned on the news. There was a thunder shower which took us out to the patio for a spell, but other than that, it was a pretty boring evening. They both retired to bed at 7:45.  Well, I tried to read myself to sleep, but even that didn't work. I watched some TV, went back on the patio for awhile and then finally fell asleep about 10:00. But it was hot (no, not Blythe Hot, but uncomfortable and humid) and mom does not like the air conditioning. It's not that they don't run it because of money, mom just prefers "real" air. But even sleeping in front of the patio door which was wide open, there was not a breeze and I had ceiling fan overhead on full blast.  So, I woke up a few times and was glad when they got up at 5:30 AM, because I went in and took a cold shower. After a nice breakfast at 7:00, mom and I went to a few more stores (a party store that she always wondered about, Rite Aid for her shower caps, and Fresh and Easy Market because dad doesn't like to go there- even though she bought nothing) I then packed up my car and headed for Lakewood again. Kathy and I had decided we would do something with all the kids that day and Brandie had the day off, so she and kids were meeting us too. We met at the park where Bailey and Ella were having swim lessons. We had talked about going to the beach or to a museum, but nixed both ideas because 1) it was too hot and 2) it was after noon already and going to museum that late would put us in LA  traffic coming home. So we went to Josh and Angie's to swim. The kids had fun and we got to visit and catch up. In the afternoon, Josh came home and planned to clean the pool, so we got kids out and headed back to Kathy's.  Josh and Angie then created camp Middough in their backyard and had us bring the kids back over for the night. They had 2 tents (boys and girls) and a fire pit for roasting marshmellows and making s'mores. We had pizza and sat around the campfire while some swam and we played campfire games like "telephone". It was a nice way to spend the evening. Alisa spent the night too but Robert was catching a flight at 5:30 AM the next day, so he couldn't stay. But Ray's family was all there for the campfire part and the swimming. Kathy and I then went back to her house for a good night's sleep.  Angie was planning pancakes for the morning, so I knew I had time to go shopping for awhile before the kids would be ready to come home. Kathy planned to take advantage of a quiet house and clean and do laundry.  I hit some yard sales (just across the street from K's there was a block yard sale- 20 sales within walking) I didn't get much, but it was fun going. Then I hit a few more stores. There was a sale at JC Pennys on dressy dresses and I decided to look for something for the wedding (for those that know, yes, I still have the other one but it needs altered and I'm not so sure about it anymore). Well, I found two and couldn't decide on my own, so I left.
Kathy had gone and got the kids and texted me, so I went home and then we decided what to do for the day. We decided to go to Cabrillo Beach and aquarium. The aquarium was cheap but everyone loved it. It had a touch tank and research center too. Ray and the big boys went with us too.When we got there, they were turning cars around because parking lot was full, but Kathy knew a back way in, so we got in and had great parking spots. After the aquarium, we went to the beach but didn't think we would stay too long since it was windy (sandy) and water was cold, but we ended up having to drag the kids away about 6 PM. Most of them spent most the time making a huge city with a mote all the way around it. On the way home, Kathy and I decided to make a simple dinner of deli roasted chicken and mashed potaoes. We got all the kids showered and in pj's and eating on the patio in just an hour or so. Then her and I went back to JC Penney's to see the dresses (she had an additional coupon and it expired that day).  I got a dress and I'm happy.  We returned, had some ice cream bars and put everyone down for bed. I then left Sunday morning to head back to Blythe but brought Josh and Alisa back with us (Anthony missed out again because of football conditioning).  They are getting a ride back on Thurs. with a friend from Blythe going to see Brandie. 
I have to say, it was so much fun having all the grandkids together without the parents or our husbands around to set parameters- we did what we wanted whenever we wanted to.  We got in a good visit and it was all good. Once again, I am hoping to post pictures soon.

grandkids' visit 2010

 I don't have pictures to post yet, but wanted to journal about this visit.  On Monday June21st,  Brandie drove 14 yr old Josh, 7 yr old Robert and 4 yr old Alisa to Blythe. Add them to 11yr old Cameron and 9 yr old Faith and it was a fun mix.  Amy was working so Brandie & I just hung out with the kids.We pretty much just swam and played Wii/ DS's all day. On Tues. June 22nd Ric arrived with 8 y old Alainna, 6 yr old Isabel and 1 yr old Seven. It was late evening, so we just ate dinner and got ready for the night. Ric left early AM on Wed. to drive to Phoenix to pick up 12 yr old Mary Beth from the airport. So, again, we just hung out during the day because temp. was over 100 everyday and closer to 110 a few days. Ric then left early Fri AM to go back to Phoenix airport to fly out to New Orleans to join Diona who is attending a 2 week class for her job. They enjoyed 4 days together in hot and humid weather while we were sweating it out here. But the kids didn't seem to mind. They swam off and on all day and night. Most of the time, Amy took all the kids except Seven to her house to sleep (one big cousin slumber party). Ray and I enjoyed our alone time with Seven in the evenings and Seven got Grandpa in the swimming pool every night. Seven sleeps well and wakes up in a good mood at about 6 am. He loved going out in the backyard in the mornings because he isn't allowed out during the day. After a couple of days, all the kids, including Seven, got used to our big dog Belle and Cam & Faith's little dog, Roxy and they were always under foot too. It was actually chaos during the days with everyone staying in most the time, but it worked. Cousins can argue and disagree, but for the most part they get along great.  Ray and Brandie came back on Saturday to pick up their kids and stayed through Sunday. Everyone made it to church on time (if you allow for walking in on opening hymn).  I hope primary survived the Bolton evasion.  Poor Mary Beth is too old for primary and does not attend church at home, and she did not want to go to Young Women's, but she too survived.
Unfortunately, Faith developed a headache and then a fever last night and has not been able to play with cousins today. But, we expect her to be back in form soon.  Diona will be arriving in Phoenix on Friday afternoon and Ric will once again make that trip to pick her up. They will stay until Sunday AM, then head to Ray and Brandie's to see them and others for a few hours but then will begin the long drive home. They plan to spend Sunday night in Sacramento with Dee's family and then be home by Monday night to return to work on Tues.  It has been a great visit even if exhausting at times. Grandkids really rule our world!

journal entry- losing the memories

It's another sleepless night. I have no trouble falling asleep when my head hits the pillow the first time, it's only a problem if I wake up during the night and then I can't fall back asleep.  So needless to say, I get a lot of "planning" done in my head as I lay there thinking of everything that needs to be done. I am retired and don't really have a lot on my plate (on a day to day basis) but I mentally plan every event of my life while trying to go back to sleep. Sometimes I have been conscious enough to write things down during my brainstorming minutes, but mostly it is forgotten by the time I actually need to "act on it".  So goes the senior years. I do think my most frustrating times are losing my memories. I am glad I did journal regularly for awhile (during my peak mom years) so I can go back and read it, but for the most part, details are fading away and that makes me sad.  I love being with my sisters and reminiscing about our childhood, it helps keep the memories alive. And now I have started to journal again on a regular basis to be able to share as many memories as I can with my prosperity.

I remember thinking during our younger days that what I really wanted to happen (in my perfect world) was for my mom & dad to own a big piece of property and then each of my sisters and I and our families could all live on a compound, each having a separate house but a common playground, swimming pool, bbq area, etc.  I'm sure no one else would have liked my perfect world scenario, but I dreamed about that for years. I loved living near my sisters and loved the closeness of the cousins. Then, later in life, as my family grew, I had the same thoughts of a compound only this time with my grown kids and their families living surrounding us.  My perfect world is not a reality and I have come to except that fact, but I still hate that I can't have everyone that I love close at hand on a daily basis.

Okay, I just re-read this post and realize it is a little depressing, but that is how I am feeling right now, a little funky.  I know this too shall pass. Life goes on, more memories are made and more memories may be lost by some but a new generation can take those memories and pass them on and the circle of life continues. What a wonderful plan our Heavenly Father has created! FAMILIES ARE FOREVER

Washington trip (part 2) - more pictures