tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-74228491981927464642024-03-21T01:43:32.641-07:00Over 50 But Not Over The Hill!The past is a celebration, the future is a promise!Jerihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13504638305053813301noreply@blogger.comBlogger54125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7422849198192746464.post-11838919779279743382012-04-10T23:42:00.005-07:002012-04-12T13:17:09.523-07:00Easter 2012I spent Easter with my daughter and her family. We had a nice ham dinner (I'm not a fan of ham, but it was actually really good) and then we all went outside for an Easter egg hunt. It was a pretty warm day out, and so beautiful. One of the adults hid the eggs and we let the little ones search for them first, and when they were done the adults found the rest of them. My youngest granddaughter was funny because she kept going up to her uncle and saying she wanted more eggs, and she would reach into his sack and take his.<br />
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Unfortunately, I wasn't able to see my other kids or my grandson for Easter, but I will get to see them all very soon. Yay! We did do face time on my phone so I could see and talk to my son, grandson and daughter-in-law. My grandson is two years old and he gave me some kisses and a big hug by wrapping his arms around the ipad (lol). He also counted for me, sang the alphabet song, and danced to a couple of songs. He takes after me...loves to dance! It's so cute how he says, "I love you, Nana"...always adds Nana at the end. <br />
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Here are my granddaughters in their Easter dresses.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioRBkKkvZjiK2uD8GhxNeeV8uYYKwfcXZ6MLJAMhKywkjfEPVr4sEA4_1gGf1xAV_eWiTnwlOFCijWfKc9bCJOU02RQRIDFroa48Mt4XlFuxojZ3HfyXRTNcmTZJMhB9-0tM-n_P9CnYk/s1600/Dress+Aiyana+&+Clara.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioRBkKkvZjiK2uD8GhxNeeV8uYYKwfcXZ6MLJAMhKywkjfEPVr4sEA4_1gGf1xAV_eWiTnwlOFCijWfKc9bCJOU02RQRIDFroa48Mt4XlFuxojZ3HfyXRTNcmTZJMhB9-0tM-n_P9CnYk/s320/Dress+Aiyana+&+Clara.jpg" width="215" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">So cute...she's sharing her sucker with her sister.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDPGBkn21NMN3qVQ_p1RknK0BxRWhlzknzEekxjdETMyVLKWOlBTHmGxnkCjgLrF817TZ7GnntQgHuXv8P6F-yPL_zXs0XMmFIu2ygynDYjRopHIRnl-xygfziU9Prx0Hc61DUpEBAAuM/s1600/Inside+Aiyana+&+Clara+3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDPGBkn21NMN3qVQ_p1RknK0BxRWhlzknzEekxjdETMyVLKWOlBTHmGxnkCjgLrF817TZ7GnntQgHuXv8P6F-yPL_zXs0XMmFIu2ygynDYjRopHIRnl-xygfziU9Prx0Hc61DUpEBAAuM/s320/Inside+Aiyana+&+Clara+3.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
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The little one has so much hair and it's always covering her face. She had a barret in but took it out.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilE2RWnx_PhIsi30_gkCUxEiG_jbkQPphhCNikq-d_ScpPgpWXwgzxJJ86Bb6h2KDYkeJyPWb41QZGAhJOrZgtJjS4G_2fr9GXs8v-BrnNd9bFHWVbm8mEWDD9IySva3xTSjvPXOQmcXU/s1600/Outside+Egg+Hunt+3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="217" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilE2RWnx_PhIsi30_gkCUxEiG_jbkQPphhCNikq-d_ScpPgpWXwgzxJJ86Bb6h2KDYkeJyPWb41QZGAhJOrZgtJjS4G_2fr9GXs8v-BrnNd9bFHWVbm8mEWDD9IySva3xTSjvPXOQmcXU/s320/Outside+Egg+Hunt+3.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">There's her face!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEird_Im_Ps2KF5eVHFpkyw8LGKUj8W-QV6g2cfSQGeKJZM5ej4745KFNuD5AjyruiONSmkko4-DG0UWmnQFQ9xpsJ4qt3_JF12y6cxBXFzCRpy-7efNUki65H2DiE7eBTudZ94Vs7PSUQ0/s1600/Outside+Clara+Basket.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEird_Im_Ps2KF5eVHFpkyw8LGKUj8W-QV6g2cfSQGeKJZM5ej4745KFNuD5AjyruiONSmkko4-DG0UWmnQFQ9xpsJ4qt3_JF12y6cxBXFzCRpy-7efNUki65H2DiE7eBTudZ94Vs7PSUQ0/s320/Outside+Clara+Basket.jpg" width="212" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">Counting their eggs...</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVwYhX16tL8pw9cq0w8KpUkRnJO9UVUmSIU4V8O5S2sWIIEM7bZehkINwG5sk7sfpkMuV7r7-giyBPrEYw-YPqs_jr-EXn7ulEjxdZjz4f_DGUaB_NBvOt4OYtF799WcTn32zO8gWSPeM/s1600/Outside+Baskets.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVwYhX16tL8pw9cq0w8KpUkRnJO9UVUmSIU4V8O5S2sWIIEM7bZehkINwG5sk7sfpkMuV7r7-giyBPrEYw-YPqs_jr-EXn7ulEjxdZjz4f_DGUaB_NBvOt4OYtF799WcTn32zO8gWSPeM/s320/Outside+Baskets.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">Oh where, oh where did the little eggs go...</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgLPyXEj7u5ZAgdM_EhYnyK1f2HCS6KKKBxSGUYciFJHAheFVezNCmXIbW1zHuF2WFqEVBVtGilyXsvcIhjNmEYTmfyrDIiLTiqdzzu2zbhDmf2ledoNk_edUIByxNdnrSnEUV4EVjUdA/s1600/IMG_5491.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgLPyXEj7u5ZAgdM_EhYnyK1f2HCS6KKKBxSGUYciFJHAheFVezNCmXIbW1zHuF2WFqEVBVtGilyXsvcIhjNmEYTmfyrDIiLTiqdzzu2zbhDmf2ledoNk_edUIByxNdnrSnEUV4EVjUdA/s320/IMG_5491.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">Somebody is tired. I think she had a little too much candy.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9Uwey6ktGg5lqI7eLJBVCWLPQksyN5XDIj-mZCSy3rQDwLddX13GKM_89nJUZ-it2vJGVxmVH6O-IEKna6OgeDWgRyDzlvDe16deMtFGPhNCGKP6jZNHAtOOH0UkTlkPF2icbWcKiOOQ/s1600/IMG_5509.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9Uwey6ktGg5lqI7eLJBVCWLPQksyN5XDIj-mZCSy3rQDwLddX13GKM_89nJUZ-it2vJGVxmVH6O-IEKna6OgeDWgRyDzlvDe16deMtFGPhNCGKP6jZNHAtOOH0UkTlkPF2icbWcKiOOQ/s320/IMG_5509.JPG" width="213" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
The girls were actually pretty darn good at finding the eggs.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSOelw1icIn5TpoWCXBwf9Jeq1uXkG-yz94stKGTGCO1mH00sjGuY339j7WuPGuOhnQhBnmyfSn590A605n_zx_0ykZgGFAEuvbD27fm0dGJ7wCWJtYDgyOWbXbpwBnTIVepgve_6CGes/s1600/IMG_5510.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSOelw1icIn5TpoWCXBwf9Jeq1uXkG-yz94stKGTGCO1mH00sjGuY339j7WuPGuOhnQhBnmyfSn590A605n_zx_0ykZgGFAEuvbD27fm0dGJ7wCWJtYDgyOWbXbpwBnTIVepgve_6CGes/s320/IMG_5510.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">Here's my daughter with her daughters!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3SUrxN0c_Kg75KPjUh-d4MFrqdb81kQlspnWrfymYM_fgwYFJzEztL0nisEK-4D83eFUWxu9nWc3op6I0yHr1FYnL3yt_pUXJSLvFbcV2DmuG_70kVspbq6VJNM0BCLw0n1gRr3u0d4Y/s1600/IMG_5524.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3SUrxN0c_Kg75KPjUh-d4MFrqdb81kQlspnWrfymYM_fgwYFJzEztL0nisEK-4D83eFUWxu9nWc3op6I0yHr1FYnL3yt_pUXJSLvFbcV2DmuG_70kVspbq6VJNM0BCLw0n1gRr3u0d4Y/s320/IMG_5524.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">And here I am with my granddaughters.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVRQv2vyq1qwdyaQegPgN5lH05LZpBFdbsJVVRhiVFKTE26CKZ7RpU9yPhWt0_K0UsRH8QS-CmB8MrKWSIPGAus3mwPZEijN6xz8a3Nn_fuYnUahf5hJspA7x8bTw0cTLOhVkGRmh6iaA/s1600/IMG_5526.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVRQv2vyq1qwdyaQegPgN5lH05LZpBFdbsJVVRhiVFKTE26CKZ7RpU9yPhWt0_K0UsRH8QS-CmB8MrKWSIPGAus3mwPZEijN6xz8a3Nn_fuYnUahf5hJspA7x8bTw0cTLOhVkGRmh6iaA/s320/IMG_5526.JPG" width="213" /></a> </div><div style="text-align: center;">I hope everyone had a happy Easter! </div>Jerihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13504638305053813301noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7422849198192746464.post-31996049921458901342012-02-23T21:30:00.010-08:002012-02-23T21:43:50.753-08:00My Friend Came To Visit Me in PhoenixOne of my friends made her first trip ever to Phoenix, and I did my best to show her a good time. We spent five days together...hiking, shopping, working out at the gym, yoga class, strolling through an art walk, checking out a local brewery, eating at different restaurants, getting a pedicure, and lots of girl talk. In other words, we wore ourselves out, but had fun in the process. <br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKAIA7SNVz4nM2zPE7rfDVlx6c2pCLkxqjRmx601qCEWweHDXq3aisCfjOTW2E39hZqYIEwVJsDSiN9Dd7OD_AZ_K_ctQDCWYsSOvszHkG9wEcXg9KH2FMhU0yKa0fxJnT0qckJ6nb3y8/s1600/IMG_5522.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKAIA7SNVz4nM2zPE7rfDVlx6c2pCLkxqjRmx601qCEWweHDXq3aisCfjOTW2E39hZqYIEwVJsDSiN9Dd7OD_AZ_K_ctQDCWYsSOvszHkG9wEcXg9KH2FMhU0yKa0fxJnT0qckJ6nb3y8/s320/IMG_5522.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
I took her to my favorite zumba class last Saturday and then we went for a two hour hike on a south mountain trail in Awahtukee. Both were firsts for her. She had never hiked up a mountain before or taken a zumba class, but she did great and loved the zumba dancing. I've just recently started hiking with a group I joined and I love it so much. I'm hiking different mountain trails every week, so I took her to one of the trails I have done before.<br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWWFltN72DyJP7PGJqtBf5iJl1P2rFoRyB6bPOQYTg6fk4N1XLpyRabwPjjqW6JsIEOkwj8vc4ViNuEfnmaUDsw5p1KD9M98YghVAaeEhk8XsbTzm4_41aQPEcpdHtCQLLsJ_fACz4XBE/s1600/IMG_5491.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWWFltN72DyJP7PGJqtBf5iJl1P2rFoRyB6bPOQYTg6fk4N1XLpyRabwPjjqW6JsIEOkwj8vc4ViNuEfnmaUDsw5p1KD9M98YghVAaeEhk8XsbTzm4_41aQPEcpdHtCQLLsJ_fACz4XBE/s320/IMG_5491.JPG" width="320" /></a></div> <br />
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On Tuesday another friend of mine joined us and we hiked up the Cholla trail on Camelback mountain. Her fear of heights got to her, and we headed back down before reaching the summit. It was ok though because we treated ourselves to pedicures and did a little shopping afterwards.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHLoLLy_ZbphYUPBLtlqTRniENfYV4ytqI8sWiruuRoC-AE91KuTF3TKjSMGROAlDt6TfyGA1pRzPhpYWEuaPUXh8kvJY0KcwMrrj3Ps2RfPsf1VWWB4TvS2JdW9zOOLITKzHXUOAo6sU/s1600/IMG_5539.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHLoLLy_ZbphYUPBLtlqTRniENfYV4ytqI8sWiruuRoC-AE91KuTF3TKjSMGROAlDt6TfyGA1pRzPhpYWEuaPUXh8kvJY0KcwMrrj3Ps2RfPsf1VWWB4TvS2JdW9zOOLITKzHXUOAo6sU/s320/IMG_5539.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhf1dP7b6wbIhHjGu30uo0jXNEapl-IK4CcI7x5opa6TA7KWDi_Udkvgk2amnSlDcafBvYWiX-ZBAfl4Q1alKkxNqYWPsA_VLcVh3OmCk-fvaeRUErDbABQiAJD58xjvfRR9lCFB5Ji0k0/s1600/IMG_5564.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhf1dP7b6wbIhHjGu30uo0jXNEapl-IK4CcI7x5opa6TA7KWDi_Udkvgk2amnSlDcafBvYWiX-ZBAfl4Q1alKkxNqYWPsA_VLcVh3OmCk-fvaeRUErDbABQiAJD58xjvfRR9lCFB5Ji0k0/s320/IMG_5564.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjR9-8YHmVth-KcCjTrmEzfY2OX4KTZYqezeL_jvURMyVxZkv_-TRHeIAed2JckfXcBwJFEHD0zE-W1fIKkoeMqfUaUt3FrFOWi2xPetfgT2CQ7LsP4jWtBcgEXie_NZTryhINnS16x8hg/s1600/IMG_5583.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjR9-8YHmVth-KcCjTrmEzfY2OX4KTZYqezeL_jvURMyVxZkv_-TRHeIAed2JckfXcBwJFEHD0zE-W1fIKkoeMqfUaUt3FrFOWi2xPetfgT2CQ7LsP4jWtBcgEXie_NZTryhINnS16x8hg/s320/IMG_5583.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>Later that night we capped off the evening at one of the nations best pizza reataurants...Pizzaria Bianca. She liked it so much she bought a pizza to go, and the next day she carried it on the plane with her to bring home.<br />
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I had a wonderful time with my dear friend, and I was so happy she came to see me. She had a great time too and we are both looking forward to a return visit.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwSg6C5Kvl-3zIuW40cXsSZj-CYkb2SxjZfYZZ4W-McBDw-GQYFaVRLtjCqJiBKltaR1UvqOqWBtS2gUjEuB5Tyl6AFkd5Mr1QtvrBoj0UF0InwKczICaFXcynek0_jLL1cX7jQN3mLwI/s1600/IMG_5508b.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwSg6C5Kvl-3zIuW40cXsSZj-CYkb2SxjZfYZZ4W-McBDw-GQYFaVRLtjCqJiBKltaR1UvqOqWBtS2gUjEuB5Tyl6AFkd5Mr1QtvrBoj0UF0InwKczICaFXcynek0_jLL1cX7jQN3mLwI/s320/IMG_5508b.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Jerihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13504638305053813301noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7422849198192746464.post-81553446882855932022012-02-23T20:04:00.004-08:002012-02-23T20:11:42.818-08:00Another Trip to CaliforniaI made another trip to California to visit my son and his family. I took this picture of the salf flats as we were landing. From up in the sky they look so colorful and like a beautiful work of art.<br />
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The main reason for going to California was to babysit my grandson while my son went to work, since my daughter-in-law was heading out to Colorado to ice climb. Yeah, sounds scary doesn't it? We all got to spend some time together before she left. I'm happy to say, she made it home safe and sound.<br />
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My friend from high school stopped by with her husband and son and we went to the Fish Restaurant by the wharf in Sausalito. Here's me with my son, daughter-in-law, and grandson.<br />
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My grandson is such a happy little boy. He's very inquisitive, knows his alphabet and numbers, loves puzzles, books, and Super Y (which I knew nothing about before, but sure do now!). He sleeps in a twin sized bed now and still loves to be read to every night. <br />
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I love this little guy so much. He was so cute at the airport when he broke away from my son's arms and ran to me as soon as he saw me coming through the gate. He was calling out to me...nana...nana! It melted my heart.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwYBpufNhSGqVu0-UnO3nS3IVgM6HUxNPcu7OhuEcHjuUGHa6y83_orVkpirB2vmpyADfo84syl_IIUNdA7vedZ_erUAlqK7xFHMdwp2lHUgxE9OKlHin7gf8ydja8rcl9qw0ualU4sYo/s1600/IMG_5345.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwYBpufNhSGqVu0-UnO3nS3IVgM6HUxNPcu7OhuEcHjuUGHa6y83_orVkpirB2vmpyADfo84syl_IIUNdA7vedZ_erUAlqK7xFHMdwp2lHUgxE9OKlHin7gf8ydja8rcl9qw0ualU4sYo/s320/IMG_5345.JPG" width="213" /></a></div>Jerihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13504638305053813301noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7422849198192746464.post-20631036016151582562012-01-30T10:41:00.000-08:002012-05-16T22:58:08.758-07:00Special Times With MomWe went to Chicago to visit my mom, and of course, my daughter, last week. My daughter had to fly out a couple of days after I arrived. She won an award at work for a free trip to the Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah. The rest of my time was spent driving to the suburbs to see mom, and the only other thing we did the whole week was see the movie, War Horse. What an awesome movie! We will do more things in Chicago next time around, but this time our focus was mom since it is her birthday week. In fact, today is her birthday. Happy Birthday, Mom!<br />
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<span class="caption">A Loving Tribute To My Mom</span><br />
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<span class="caption">In my mom's hands, I see all of the hard work that <span class="text_exposed_hide">...</span><span class="text_exposed_show">she has done for me. I see the caring they've provided for my benefit down through the years. In my mom's eyes, I sense a gentle understanding of my ways, and also a longing to sometimes help me see some better ways of living. In my mom's arms, I've found comfort from the world so many times, from fears, hurts, and everything that troubles me. I know that if anything happens to bother me now, those arms are always open just for me. In my mom's face, I see the hopes for me that are plainly written there; often, a sense of pride is revealed, too. But in my mom's heart is the greatest gift of all, for that is where so much love is kept for me. ~ Barbara J. Hall</span></span></div>
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I love my mom so very much. Here's some pictures of our visit...<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFSTlMw6dgwKgvuXdNC8runxrgrAuOKYgDd9t3y71e4eVE7NW0bU2iyExrnoe9oGg7fkdjgsTgEFvo85zEaU4lZt9VX1aXW35dW_emsGW9xt_nQClYxYziv0dK2uZU_cJZ7mfbTkzY7Nw/s1600/photo10.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFSTlMw6dgwKgvuXdNC8runxrgrAuOKYgDd9t3y71e4eVE7NW0bU2iyExrnoe9oGg7fkdjgsTgEFvo85zEaU4lZt9VX1aXW35dW_emsGW9xt_nQClYxYziv0dK2uZU_cJZ7mfbTkzY7Nw/s320/photo10.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBPa8aPukT035T7wE3fba2DftNdeVjk0yNzBsLF2MlqLhoTNNhEwvVOMBTmzYzwTbkIMbpmtPv8rKIL34K_z1KGUXCelKfQ6YSKKqCWTrUMVbxmEa-hpV_0-aCHLo0VeZ0vy2KJ7UHhMg/s1600/IMG_5341b.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBPa8aPukT035T7wE3fba2DftNdeVjk0yNzBsLF2MlqLhoTNNhEwvVOMBTmzYzwTbkIMbpmtPv8rKIL34K_z1KGUXCelKfQ6YSKKqCWTrUMVbxmEa-hpV_0-aCHLo0VeZ0vy2KJ7UHhMg/s320/IMG_5341b.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Jerihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13504638305053813301noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7422849198192746464.post-13432358603431216742012-01-09T19:29:00.000-08:002012-05-16T22:57:22.394-07:00Yellow Sky Painting With Trees and Snow<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
I painted another picture! I used acrylics on a 16 x 20 inch canvas, and it took about 5 hours to paint. I really want to start painting more often, but sometimes I don't get around to doing what I want, even with the best intentions. We'll see how it goes. My mom enjoyed painting too, so I guess it runs in the family. I used a painter's sponge on the background, and I love the way it turned out. </div>
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Here's some pictures of my painting from start to finish. </div>
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<br /></div>Jerihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13504638305053813301noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7422849198192746464.post-73359249189759663302011-12-30T10:01:00.000-08:002012-01-08T18:49:07.411-08:00Keep What Is Valuable To You Because You May Never See It AgainJournaling is so important to me, as I do it all the time. My own private journals. I kept a journal when I was living with my mom, right after her diagnosis with Alzheimer's disease, when the Dr. said she can no longer live alone. Another sister wrote in the journal sometimes, too. But I did most of the writing. I wrote about the good and the bad days, I quoted things mom said, I wrote of what she said during our prayers, and I wrote about my feelings and the struggles we both went through. When I moved I placed the journal in another sister's hands, the one I turned over POA to. I thought I did the right thing, to let the others continue to write in it. But things changed. The POA got stolen from the sister I gave it to, by another sister who wanted to control everything, and mom got taken away from her home. Now I find out after months of asking about the journal, that the journal got 'lost in the shuffle'. What is that supposed to mean? It either means she didn't care enough to put it in a safe place and it got thrown out, or she gave it to the controlling sister because she was demanding everything be given to her. In either case, it's gone. A piece of my life with mom is gone. It's more than paper with words. I regret trying to do what I thought was right in thinking of my sisters. I should have thought of myself and kept the journal. I can rewrite some of what I remember but it won't be accurate. I don't have dates, quotes, details. My journaling now is very accurate and it will continue, without anyone taking it away from me. I learned a very important lesson...don't give someone something that is very important to you if there is even a remote possibility you will never see it again, because what you value, someone else couldn't care less about.Jerihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13504638305053813301noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7422849198192746464.post-28725531259259160072011-12-21T21:21:00.000-08:002011-12-21T21:24:09.913-08:00This is Good Advice<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-wcxv_wMmDBM/TvK9OqJXkII/AAAAAAAAAgY/NFARuLITYAQ/s1600/1+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-wcxv_wMmDBM/TvK9OqJXkII/AAAAAAAAAgY/NFARuLITYAQ/s320/1+%25282%2529.jpg" width="309" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>Jerihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13504638305053813301noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7422849198192746464.post-26470582388818790262011-12-17T15:06:00.000-08:002011-12-17T15:06:04.646-08:00Some Things Never ChangeSometimes, you just need to walk...and not look back.<br />
Change means that what was before wasn't perfect. It means what's old got boring.Jerihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13504638305053813301noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7422849198192746464.post-9918072341684943522011-12-11T18:26:00.000-08:002012-01-09T19:48:17.908-08:00Choose To Live Your Life With Happiness and Don't Regret Your Decisions<div style="text-align: justify;">There's so many things about life that I don't understand, and I will never have the answers to everything I want to know. None of us will. That is part of the challenges we face in life, trying to figure out the answers to all those questions we have. At least if we can accept that we don't need to have all the answers, we can live our lives with a higher level of happiness. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><em>“It is better to live your own destiny imperfectly than to live an imitation of somebody else's life with perfection.” </em> <em>― </em><a href="http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5158478.Anonymous"><em>Anonymous</em></a><em>, </em><a href="http://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/1492580"><em>The Bhagavad Gita</em></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">We've all heard that expression...Life is short. Sadly for some, life is shorter than it is for others. So why not live the best life we can while we are still here? Why not choose to be happy? I know it's hard sometimes, but try to make choices that bring you happiness. We all want to live the best life we can, to be happy and do what is right for us, and for those we love. Do you ever hear anyone say otherwise? Nobody wants to cause misery to another person. At least, no decent person does. And nobody wants to live an unhappy life. Go for what you want that makes you happy!</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
<em>“There will be a few times in your life when all your instincts will tell you to do something, something that defies logic, upsets your plans, and may seem crazy to others. When that happens, you do it. Listen to your instincts and ignore everything else. Ignore logic, ignore the odds, ignore the complications, and just go for it.” <br />
― </em><a href="http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/9885.Judith_McNaught"><em>Judith McNaught</em></a><em>, </em><a href="http://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/1209066"><em>Remember When</em></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">I know people make decisions that adversely affect their lives, both consciously and unconsiously. We all make mistakes because we are not perfect. We can look back on our lives and see where we went wrong, and where we may have been able to change the course of our lives, had we made different decisions. But that is life...we choose, we grow, we fail, we achieve, we loose, we regret, we learn. We are constantly faced with decisions, and we don't know the outcome of those decisions until after the fact, sometimes minutes, sometimes days, weeks, months, or even years later. We live and learn, and we will never stop learning and growing as long as we are living. </div><br />
<div style="text-align: justify;"><em>“That’s the thing about a human life-there’s no control group, no way to ever know how any of us would have turned out if any variables had been changed.” <br />
― </em><a href="http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/11679.Elizabeth_Gilbert"><em>Elizabeth Gilbert</em></a><em>, </em><a href="http://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/3352398"><em>Eat, Pray, Love: One Woman's Search for Everything Across Italy, India and Indonesia</em></a><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: justify;">The important thing is to accept that we are going to make mistakes. We are not always going to make the best decisions on everything we ever encounter in our lives. Sometimes we have to look back to realize if our choices were wrong or right. Sometimes our decisions are not as simple as right or wrong, they are simply a choice. It's no different for anyone, no matter who you are.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><em>“As long as the world is turning and spinning, we're gonna be dizzy and we're gonna make mistakes.” <br />
― </em><a href="http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/126491.Mel_Brooks"><em>Mel Brooks</em></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">In light of that, articles like this can help us to at least think a little harder about what it is that is most important in life, before it is too late. <a href="http://www.inspirationandchai.com/Regrets-of-the-Dying.html"><span style="color: #0b5394;">http://www.inspirationandchai.com/Regrets-of-the-Dying.html</span></a> <br />
I think I've made a conscious effort to do that, but I guess I won't really know until it is the end of the road for me.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;"></div>Jerihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13504638305053813301noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7422849198192746464.post-8723898252086874492011-12-02T14:11:00.000-08:002012-01-09T19:49:15.701-08:00Starting a New Tradition For the Holidays, and Trip to Jerome, Haynes, and Sedona, AZ<div style="text-align: center;">This year was a new beginning to a Thanksgiving tradition, since our former holiday traditions have become a thing of the past. With my grandparents and my dad long gone, my mom in a nursing home, and the distance of my sisters, holidays are not the same as they once were. That's the thing about life, things change, traditions change, and we start new ones. It's not supposed to be a sad thing, but a happy, new beginning. The past holidays of Thanksgiving and Christmas will forever be etched in my memory, but now, going forward, I am starting a new tradition. We have decided that every other year we will get together at my house for either Christmas or Thanksgiving. Since this was the year for Thanksgiving, we celebrated Christmas too. My kids will be with their significant other's families for Christmas this year. Next year our family will be together for Christmas instead of Thanksgiving. I think we got it all worked out where everyone knows the schedule and can plan accordingly. <br />
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</div><div style="text-align: center;">There's so much going on right now and my mind is usually in a state of worry about my mom's health. So it was so nice having all of my kids come here for the holiday and we could spend some good quality time together. It offered me a nice distraction, and we had a really fun time. They always make me laugh! I love being with all of them. I didn't get to be with my mom, but I plan to see her just as soon as I can get back to Chicago.<br />
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</div><div style="text-align: center;">My son and his family flew in from San Francisco and my youngest daughter and her boyfriend flew in from Chicago. My oldest daughter lives here in Phoenix, near me. My house isn't that big so we had to divide the family between my house and my daughter's house for sleeping arrangements. It's ok though, because we spent most of our waking hours together. I had all of my kids and grandkids here, and I went to bed at night, peacefully, knowing they were all safe and sound. All moms know that feeling! Even though my kids are grown, we moms still worry about them.<br />
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</div><div style="text-align: center;">I usually have my Christmas tree up early so it wasn't that big of a deal putting it up when I did. It did feel kind of strange getting all of my Christmas shopping done so early. I was listening to Christmas music and wrapping presents when other people were just starting their Christmas lists. I don't know what it's going to feel like when Christmas is actually here, because right now I feel like it's over, except when I go to the stores and am reminded that Christmas is still coming. It's everywhere. I love this time of year.<br />
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</div><div style="text-align: center;">When my youngest daughter and her boyfriend arrived last Wednesday, we headed out for a mountain hike shortly after returning from the airport. By the time we got to the mountain, we stopped for a jump shot picture, which is something my daughter and I always do. She can jump higher than I can, but I say it's because she's so much younger, AND, she is more athletic than me with all those years of dance, cheerleading, and other sports. Anyway, it's a fun thing for us to do.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg36LAxF3e1kPCj9__IEYKhMbvxpSmVshzM2c2zaxxjoEinFw8rLLDaEvVT3cKTdF4VpTwDg9cS4pINN33klGLQqGfSHr7fl93EoQZm9-8Wi87cLSLYYVvIs6ovQdhtlnnY8OotqI07oPk/s1600/IMG_4694c.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="295" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg36LAxF3e1kPCj9__IEYKhMbvxpSmVshzM2c2zaxxjoEinFw8rLLDaEvVT3cKTdF4VpTwDg9cS4pINN33klGLQqGfSHr7fl93EoQZm9-8Wi87cLSLYYVvIs6ovQdhtlnnY8OotqI07oPk/s320/IMG_4694c.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Here's my daughter and her boyfriend...</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHaDScexQ9JFER3nM_C4s7gYl20uPRPvPG2Y_JouNBHM0gJR_ooZtQCLDsJZYAN9JEdXTZHmfdpEmnkBlLRxbmKoVKt2o_oCuWV7TuBqWkJHq1bbBNPxQi62uJ6TWuFgoAo9bi09f6XIg/s1600/IMG_4686.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHaDScexQ9JFER3nM_C4s7gYl20uPRPvPG2Y_JouNBHM0gJR_ooZtQCLDsJZYAN9JEdXTZHmfdpEmnkBlLRxbmKoVKt2o_oCuWV7TuBqWkJHq1bbBNPxQi62uJ6TWuFgoAo9bi09f6XIg/s320/IMG_4686.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;">After our pictures, we set out on the mountain trail. The rocks were really loose and I warned everyone to be careful. So what do I do? I guess I wasn't careful enough, because I ended up slipping on the rocks and I fell and landed on a hard rock that jabbed me in the upper part of my leg. Thankfully, I didn't get hurt badly and was able to walk ok. Shortly after that we turned around and headed back to the house. Soon after, a bruise appeared, and my leg was sore. But about 5 days later, after all the kids left, that's when it started to bother me. I got some Arnicare from the drugstore and I applied heat to the bruise (which was the worst bruise I have ever seen). Both of those things helped because it felt so much better and looked so much better within just two days. Anyway, enough of that.<br />
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</div><div style="text-align: center;">Later that day I picked up my son, daughter-in-law, and grandson from the airport. I just saw them earlier in the month, but of course it was so sweet to see them again. I fixed lasagne and baked spaghetti and french bread for supper that night, and all the kids and their spouses and my grandkids were at my house. The grandkids played really well together. They are 3, almost 2, and just turned 2 years old.</div><div align="center">This was taken at my daughter's house...</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-RSZpVhwG3w-dV09OhH5vS998zFnaiZ2vl-rkJ-y8vk4cYE41b3gJuY4FsdMrFFv0kRQvW8n8m3J295761i6bo2UCK_BpUmcWaJythm-Rjkl3wOT-oHJ4IdhPP8A0HwriOALUmMlFxpk/s1600/DSC_0153.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-RSZpVhwG3w-dV09OhH5vS998zFnaiZ2vl-rkJ-y8vk4cYE41b3gJuY4FsdMrFFv0kRQvW8n8m3J295761i6bo2UCK_BpUmcWaJythm-Rjkl3wOT-oHJ4IdhPP8A0HwriOALUmMlFxpk/s320/DSC_0153.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div align="center"></div><div style="text-align: center;">We had Thanksgiving dinner at my daughter's house the next morning. She has a bigger dining room table than me so we agreed to have it there this year, and we both shared the preparation of the food. I baked the turkey at my house, so I got the most important job! I think it turned out really good.</div><div style="text-align: center;">Here's a picture of my kids on Thanksgiving. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNlw8IQds3M_HYy19PFZ0YRN9OALroL7kT_n0ajt5ZGHKBd0JuMxSrSR5yBbuBI1E6-nWjYADe231zzwe9InOQnu8Annb6Bb5isETgGQffZIcO3buJJym4hHoVQ-X8uI1DgqINsPViiDQ/s1600/IMG_4711.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNlw8IQds3M_HYy19PFZ0YRN9OALroL7kT_n0ajt5ZGHKBd0JuMxSrSR5yBbuBI1E6-nWjYADe231zzwe9InOQnu8Annb6Bb5isETgGQffZIcO3buJJym4hHoVQ-X8uI1DgqINsPViiDQ/s320/IMG_4711.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;">The day after Thanksgiving we packed the family in two cars and drove to Jerome, Arizona, which is an historical ghost town. It is considered the most vertical city in America. The views from the vistas were beautiful. You could see Sedona and the San Francisco Peaks in Flagstaff from the town.<br />
This is Jerome...<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQL1FqamZXg24L5qX76MkZFMWYxenelgutPjlt8pU0u65pkl0u67TjhzicPgRUc2Jg_6BhwExlBTPQuJ8zUAZM5mw_pqtlIKEywprifHc4SzjS1rJW4H7nti9MoRcQtrONA2hynSExruU/s1600/DSC_0100.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQL1FqamZXg24L5qX76MkZFMWYxenelgutPjlt8pU0u65pkl0u67TjhzicPgRUc2Jg_6BhwExlBTPQuJ8zUAZM5mw_pqtlIKEywprifHc4SzjS1rJW4H7nti9MoRcQtrONA2hynSExruU/s320/DSC_0100.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIXnfz8FFcDxfbyTEEcV85VyHbFdOfPtRIAK26RmknEfilaBoGCutKdXSjk2pf03sWE1CgsdZ37eNeJd3xk-yoaIsVYmjbRHKnwBc53qYiGLjE_48JAbyIwBpSkpyFRJkXhDbuIMBWQSQ/s1600/DSC_0098.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIXnfz8FFcDxfbyTEEcV85VyHbFdOfPtRIAK26RmknEfilaBoGCutKdXSjk2pf03sWE1CgsdZ37eNeJd3xk-yoaIsVYmjbRHKnwBc53qYiGLjE_48JAbyIwBpSkpyFRJkXhDbuIMBWQSQ/s320/DSC_0098.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhL3KUa4_dbMTxjO0lMoanP_BXlnIoL5PjlhD-RjrsofnlZy3ct90iAbcw5Z9FH3O-na2gWh9mW6apXCUUOLKNuF66LBDltlPDvkjLIjh4vJLejhrk1hm3ByxsqCagMDNhOBeuLGwsiu-E/s1600/IMG_4741.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhL3KUa4_dbMTxjO0lMoanP_BXlnIoL5PjlhD-RjrsofnlZy3ct90iAbcw5Z9FH3O-na2gWh9mW6apXCUUOLKNuF66LBDltlPDvkjLIjh4vJLejhrk1hm3ByxsqCagMDNhOBeuLGwsiu-E/s320/IMG_4741.JPG" width="320" /></a></div> <br />
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We left Jerome and drove a short distance to the town of Haynes, Arizona, which is an old mining town, and a completely deserted ghost town. A mine was constructed to mine for copper but gold was found instead. It was interesting walking through the town and going inside the old buildings, and seeing all the old cars and trucks and equipment.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkt-iO7clPLAwLPFvyKD4HdK66Zy1-m-RtrMUn0mIeeK9Xfb1QpikDPqPiGahIgFStjOSyZmTGOFlckQT0UlzG0PdiuUqo85e1_zGtJB5ex4UjG6N23oIVooLMhb3qU20-VylALbFQseA/s1600/IMG_4761.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkt-iO7clPLAwLPFvyKD4HdK66Zy1-m-RtrMUn0mIeeK9Xfb1QpikDPqPiGahIgFStjOSyZmTGOFlckQT0UlzG0PdiuUqo85e1_zGtJB5ex4UjG6N23oIVooLMhb3qU20-VylALbFQseA/s320/IMG_4761.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6W82WwTxiZV5JQQ0lsopHeKMnN7Vb7iRaqBClJEBfAFZj-eMu-0kArhsDkUZxtbv3irNr3LYCmOBMWWT2fiTvx7p6nO2Uq97Had0bGZwUo3J3y1WxuCYn4SNE3RSnOcV3fJ5FCVzCzg4/s1600/DSC_0049.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6W82WwTxiZV5JQQ0lsopHeKMnN7Vb7iRaqBClJEBfAFZj-eMu-0kArhsDkUZxtbv3irNr3LYCmOBMWWT2fiTvx7p6nO2Uq97Had0bGZwUo3J3y1WxuCYn4SNE3RSnOcV3fJ5FCVzCzg4/s320/DSC_0049.jpg" width="212" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9A5uM2q5XFrNKIyK9_zbQQXqvX0k6wKTmKer9TLp8WHL8wgJHlSBaw3hoV6QsjjvT4JqqMBpwkonDq15vB8h7yM14AwG1-MB9mcfkufMdgG9Ohipd61DqqpPft4VpwNxAdsllY5PoojQ/s1600/DSC_0052.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9A5uM2q5XFrNKIyK9_zbQQXqvX0k6wKTmKer9TLp8WHL8wgJHlSBaw3hoV6QsjjvT4JqqMBpwkonDq15vB8h7yM14AwG1-MB9mcfkufMdgG9Ohipd61DqqpPft4VpwNxAdsllY5PoojQ/s320/DSC_0052.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg73ZsR8UbRwrdqRR7IvcFCZMNf7fuolocFdasbi2wKcr571Qs83o0-Y4xtBkroSuuuW67UyCpikQyVS6SdwgvouRmeJs6mLWY1iB9wGZixxxgA9_DuY2Eb7-LffZlSq5pds6PV7xRkWK8/s1600/DSC_0087.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg73ZsR8UbRwrdqRR7IvcFCZMNf7fuolocFdasbi2wKcr571Qs83o0-Y4xtBkroSuuuW67UyCpikQyVS6SdwgvouRmeJs6mLWY1iB9wGZixxxgA9_DuY2Eb7-LffZlSq5pds6PV7xRkWK8/s320/DSC_0087.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpcQ6FfprkO9idyB7nFz0zy60ve6MFV0xKCvrdpmZlZDEuEtnQFaN_GDXOmJSvZVcb2LRdgQ9vYfeVbIQJ6DlubqYMk6uPPke9nmrJFK1qkRp8fnTYBeg1FdcSIzZr0K3iJnBCjycsvXA/s1600/IMG_4801.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpcQ6FfprkO9idyB7nFz0zy60ve6MFV0xKCvrdpmZlZDEuEtnQFaN_GDXOmJSvZVcb2LRdgQ9vYfeVbIQJ6DlubqYMk6uPPke9nmrJFK1qkRp8fnTYBeg1FdcSIzZr0K3iJnBCjycsvXA/s320/IMG_4801.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3Bm8A3raTyrTbMTmeYH0c3K88JX5o4pNQR5Ua97ShPn5AP-IHT1XkB4l4poAlqw9wxs0VBCuYk43C5b0mrAIAugqqEA1gS_lahl34LcoUhVmkY_uafCB84Z9kkA9GPTH28ZePbtQ00yo/s1600/IMG_4793.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3Bm8A3raTyrTbMTmeYH0c3K88JX5o4pNQR5Ua97ShPn5AP-IHT1XkB4l4poAlqw9wxs0VBCuYk43C5b0mrAIAugqqEA1gS_lahl34LcoUhVmkY_uafCB84Z9kkA9GPTH28ZePbtQ00yo/s320/IMG_4793.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
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After walking around Haynes, we drove about 20 miles to Sedona. I've been there before but my younger two have not been there. It is such a beautiful place and it would be such a neat place to live. Not only the beauty, but the energy some people feel from the vortexes is what draws spectators to the area. This first picture is the Chapel of the Holy Cross, which was built in 1956...the same year that I was born.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJ6NsjcdMXBtA2fseZn_qP_w6fuw2WEa7yadj-oqr8irQXddE69yBWg5zl6Jz6bEefzibhnnS-9K7K4tOxHu4VlGv6N4xOghl3JqnXURDHKRd7g3VfjVlw_a6pRDgAQ21VLIZBlcQlIiw/s1600/IMG_4907.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJ6NsjcdMXBtA2fseZn_qP_w6fuw2WEa7yadj-oqr8irQXddE69yBWg5zl6Jz6bEefzibhnnS-9K7K4tOxHu4VlGv6N4xOghl3JqnXURDHKRd7g3VfjVlw_a6pRDgAQ21VLIZBlcQlIiw/s320/IMG_4907.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"> A couple of pictures of me and my kids. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2Cfl_cLKVSxqfR2o0I4Ok3EiE3LbDb2tabO_CiV-j2dxW3Nxj2yqCzJMoMNJilhZ5yupWWIIpkKX6C6ezGLCpNiniEyKmjVgmxHeWNdUlKWadcYXp2fEAQAXIM6vd5v7Kd2Aedp9ZGAA/s1600/IMG_4898.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2Cfl_cLKVSxqfR2o0I4Ok3EiE3LbDb2tabO_CiV-j2dxW3Nxj2yqCzJMoMNJilhZ5yupWWIIpkKX6C6ezGLCpNiniEyKmjVgmxHeWNdUlKWadcYXp2fEAQAXIM6vd5v7Kd2Aedp9ZGAA/s320/IMG_4898.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQDXvJLusRl3mM2gXo6PV1TVzV9sanIEggAUujIDgc3MSwl-6FtdzZDuKxU1Do82Bo0T7BQff4IBIaFUJLspL9PwI-Go0bEv7s7cTmX5VtFpD7opcKAFRdDO36C-ufpi94rKtfChHlm_w/s1600/IMG_4883.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQDXvJLusRl3mM2gXo6PV1TVzV9sanIEggAUujIDgc3MSwl-6FtdzZDuKxU1Do82Bo0T7BQff4IBIaFUJLspL9PwI-Go0bEv7s7cTmX5VtFpD7opcKAFRdDO36C-ufpi94rKtfChHlm_w/s320/IMG_4883.JPG" width="213" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxKnURChiZ5xt_TOm1Ejdwu-JWfc1gvRWJ3TlAzGTyuI2Z0K8fYpef53cRAEbugtkJp_NAIqlR7hJECuGuT8fFyOZ6XzHtrOkZrGr_9yGddqhsmrdCp3GIo5nS0jo8QUX8qsVmfpTBEIA/s1600/IMG_4868.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxKnURChiZ5xt_TOm1Ejdwu-JWfc1gvRWJ3TlAzGTyuI2Z0K8fYpef53cRAEbugtkJp_NAIqlR7hJECuGuT8fFyOZ6XzHtrOkZrGr_9yGddqhsmrdCp3GIo5nS0jo8QUX8qsVmfpTBEIA/s320/IMG_4868.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihc-gMfB-zohrjreOaN3zIKPqOBml-PXfdnPMEBa1RXAYVBOp30-AUhBb3HnrVO8rZbo1iaYMHkeDUfpkkcUMGRNng37YzENT553fx5W-5Zy-fyDDVb64FBHRGzEAnVbRvRVGzwiGvbX0/s1600/IMG_4830.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihc-gMfB-zohrjreOaN3zIKPqOBml-PXfdnPMEBa1RXAYVBOp30-AUhBb3HnrVO8rZbo1iaYMHkeDUfpkkcUMGRNng37YzENT553fx5W-5Zy-fyDDVb64FBHRGzEAnVbRvRVGzwiGvbX0/s320/IMG_4830.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"> Here's a picture of our whole gang.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNTwHw92wuGTSV4wynHV2XQc7RIBlKuKLufzp9nttN5C57AYABMb4_D5ThEo4UCs6YmBTvC4C6ZTyOuMgxKrFaZ4CfnV7CreWZAprblLsEC475gAnGZiLUSON-Z1CoBs-Qq8VrunD2AE4/s1600/IMG_4887.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNTwHw92wuGTSV4wynHV2XQc7RIBlKuKLufzp9nttN5C57AYABMb4_D5ThEo4UCs6YmBTvC4C6ZTyOuMgxKrFaZ4CfnV7CreWZAprblLsEC475gAnGZiLUSON-Z1CoBs-Qq8VrunD2AE4/s320/IMG_4887.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieUPuqQ-gEPbC5lMlI5CNgRF9TDSqGHlWkIu2H4A1l9tXtMkEkmruwMwKpF9p3-SfAnTtMO1dWRvOZVh0QEoUBdOwPWUwrY3JN7c4AG7AQ53F1I-w7RjFdGJz-9LDP3xPHm2BKrrgt24M/s1600/DSC_0156.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieUPuqQ-gEPbC5lMlI5CNgRF9TDSqGHlWkIu2H4A1l9tXtMkEkmruwMwKpF9p3-SfAnTtMO1dWRvOZVh0QEoUBdOwPWUwrY3JN7c4AG7AQ53F1I-w7RjFdGJz-9LDP3xPHm2BKrrgt24M/s320/DSC_0156.jpg" width="212" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"> The beautiful Sedona sunset. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVG1XcUF1agn-S0CMc-9OTS5f3hOBchBqZeDAzSCNEMWQL0nlJv4DDkxd94mh4QZjhsB7ai4fn2hErYRxysLW8uSv5uZa5PHFMhyJS4VR4o-tG_KdiwHdjxfta07HTdqZcU44AP1YATbk/s1600/DSC_0149.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVG1XcUF1agn-S0CMc-9OTS5f3hOBchBqZeDAzSCNEMWQL0nlJv4DDkxd94mh4QZjhsB7ai4fn2hErYRxysLW8uSv5uZa5PHFMhyJS4VR4o-tG_KdiwHdjxfta07HTdqZcU44AP1YATbk/s320/DSC_0149.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">When we got home after our trip we went to my daughter's house and ate some left-over food.</div><div style="text-align: center;">The next day we prepared a big breakfast at my house. My daughter and her husband made pumpkin, walnut pancakes and my daughter-in-law made an egg and hashbrown casserole. I made some bacon and cinnamon rolls and we had some fresh fruit and juice. After breakfast we turned on some Christmas music and opened our presents. I just loved the kids' expressions and obvious signs of happiness and excitement when they opened their gifts. That is what makes Christmas so special. Seeing that. </div><div style="text-align: center;">Here's my grandkids again. My daughter curled the girls' hair for a photo shoot later on...</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCALHBb1G_f6oD-FdzMjR5pnngQZH7jrX4Udlxyos4F7sdjWe6MT4cyR0-bqOHDGbwrXOPxas6ZPJqmGs9kAukU0_oTlVs6hsJy6EaN2Dkaq2Ztfo3HKhXhmDvk3ONGj3HPudinszknwY/s1600/DSC_0052.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCALHBb1G_f6oD-FdzMjR5pnngQZH7jrX4Udlxyos4F7sdjWe6MT4cyR0-bqOHDGbwrXOPxas6ZPJqmGs9kAukU0_oTlVs6hsJy6EaN2Dkaq2Ztfo3HKhXhmDvk3ONGj3HPudinszknwY/s320/DSC_0052.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"> I love this picture of them...</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQNfMPJFgfv696TZonZak7TryWunh2QXijPjpz4f8P1xEtEFz9tGkoMjM2amDeDwbMg7-3R1RLvRKkRI3Sl69FDOb33Fq5E-tj1YqLPUcgqvKzptXJo3fYhywWVv0m-XijvXcFdQIeSTI/s1600/DSC_0047.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQNfMPJFgfv696TZonZak7TryWunh2QXijPjpz4f8P1xEtEFz9tGkoMjM2amDeDwbMg7-3R1RLvRKkRI3Sl69FDOb33Fq5E-tj1YqLPUcgqvKzptXJo3fYhywWVv0m-XijvXcFdQIeSTI/s320/DSC_0047.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Here's the rest of the family...</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYWK8a4QAwWeiqZHaqDm0GkAiCtwwv_yg7kNMg58rcToyKGeDXqKEP6Y07kH6Mnm1bKCXS8jSIG1qh2hduDUF5dzOP8TF2FgnHj4nLFB1Zfeeii-BM0L_LnGUYen-qK3gzA8h6RWN_cME/s1600/IMG_4963.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYWK8a4QAwWeiqZHaqDm0GkAiCtwwv_yg7kNMg58rcToyKGeDXqKEP6Y07kH6Mnm1bKCXS8jSIG1qh2hduDUF5dzOP8TF2FgnHj4nLFB1Zfeeii-BM0L_LnGUYen-qK3gzA8h6RWN_cME/s320/IMG_4963.JPG" width="320" /></a></div> After our Christmas, the kids took naps and then we went to Scorpion Gulch at South Mountain for a photo shoot. My daughter is an aspiring photographer and she wanted to take pictures of the family. We really appreciated it, and she got some awesome shots. Here's some of them...<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiajLk2YXv6pfY8-Syqp5t7OpYkjQljSy7qtEguvaX42FkS7xRkWhlbfnPztorIwSYX3r8ib0m7ogrNbX27bG0L4b5_MrcIpJR4dnEqLJL2yg_HxE_dpteMYGq3y7m8ooyjJIfZuFc7eQ/s1600/Group+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="211" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiajLk2YXv6pfY8-Syqp5t7OpYkjQljSy7qtEguvaX42FkS7xRkWhlbfnPztorIwSYX3r8ib0m7ogrNbX27bG0L4b5_MrcIpJR4dnEqLJL2yg_HxE_dpteMYGq3y7m8ooyjJIfZuFc7eQ/s320/Group+1.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLVMpe3RWnDG3IvxfLLtNRi2ytzsfGjr6XeQTeTA6mEqpDtjUFXsUdLOMYiBNYPeF3Paj4UmwOy7l4IcdxMz19l_uxH95Pxb_TX59XTAQNHeLn_dncSfmHLycn1BszTvZbQzmqs4jfK2o/s1600/DSC_0083.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLVMpe3RWnDG3IvxfLLtNRi2ytzsfGjr6XeQTeTA6mEqpDtjUFXsUdLOMYiBNYPeF3Paj4UmwOy7l4IcdxMz19l_uxH95Pxb_TX59XTAQNHeLn_dncSfmHLycn1BszTvZbQzmqs4jfK2o/s320/DSC_0083.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3rTE3MAoNcgu0T-vfxjcfqb7jInIXVq5-i6JDRL5DljMmQFay12SMT8EXVh3Gsw0QpqpNKgdwmgP7D0JDFtR3rof_pFzDPKyPklEMwXzMWqTJ5JsFtoY49YS4-npjuYq3VhCOpuEtJkM/s1600/DSC_0204.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3rTE3MAoNcgu0T-vfxjcfqb7jInIXVq5-i6JDRL5DljMmQFay12SMT8EXVh3Gsw0QpqpNKgdwmgP7D0JDFtR3rof_pFzDPKyPklEMwXzMWqTJ5JsFtoY49YS4-npjuYq3VhCOpuEtJkM/s320/DSC_0204.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">I took this one.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkDEDJ7hZHCIzpg0mRfn2NPVaF3zIfM8ghXwIcoQHJwVXQArhjYKU83KItELv3ANft-dMMJZdNufZhD2yEC4TCayq2wMM3j2Ann4AAGejiSux47ohzPcLjyY46Nu_oVrsynEPJXQ6Tsko/s1600/Cummings+Family+2+bw.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="219" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkDEDJ7hZHCIzpg0mRfn2NPVaF3zIfM8ghXwIcoQHJwVXQArhjYKU83KItELv3ANft-dMMJZdNufZhD2yEC4TCayq2wMM3j2Ann4AAGejiSux47ohzPcLjyY46Nu_oVrsynEPJXQ6Tsko/s320/Cummings+Family+2+bw.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7WWA5tBhGs-9yCrAWvBwuAuWL__WLdQVNxrl3vf6I8VNxtru_rMbh2v9GbKhnNMKcHZcw68SHVubJbCtxOt3jR6IV2hTDA54ludJDAnMnIZMbotblvjTOI40-aJI9CGy9qL1pi6LNrfI/s1600/Alisa+%2526+Joey+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7WWA5tBhGs-9yCrAWvBwuAuWL__WLdQVNxrl3vf6I8VNxtru_rMbh2v9GbKhnNMKcHZcw68SHVubJbCtxOt3jR6IV2hTDA54ludJDAnMnIZMbotblvjTOI40-aJI9CGy9qL1pi6LNrfI/s320/Alisa+%2526+Joey+1.jpg" width="212" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieyt5gXQ_AqTnYZ0_B4qv6CHtp6gJwEf3KIsC1YgXrtdd-rZ2KqlSwosiHz89w6JKhAvkTsMZICsBAUd4Fbq_VpX-iGs4pBNGPAmKq7G9q-B_VNy9VMYU1JnIcJfFR0DjIf2qgwSRPyKk/s1600/Zach%252C+Mary+%2526+Mason+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieyt5gXQ_AqTnYZ0_B4qv6CHtp6gJwEf3KIsC1YgXrtdd-rZ2KqlSwosiHz89w6JKhAvkTsMZICsBAUd4Fbq_VpX-iGs4pBNGPAmKq7G9q-B_VNy9VMYU1JnIcJfFR0DjIf2qgwSRPyKk/s320/Zach%252C+Mary+%2526+Mason+2.jpg" width="216" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinMrT2jT-3OQQJnaNDY6Tyy9kj-Zhyphenhyphen-q0AKmWIR17oVtzikWxu72tmfN8Cdhg7pSSj6O-9iTsulijFZ_DIO3RGFjIBrSbrypW9qqSoztSExQdlFNmeZpURpHFbolN2TTPjadD-Xdf_kVI/s1600/DSC_0245.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinMrT2jT-3OQQJnaNDY6Tyy9kj-Zhyphenhyphen-q0AKmWIR17oVtzikWxu72tmfN8Cdhg7pSSj6O-9iTsulijFZ_DIO3RGFjIBrSbrypW9qqSoztSExQdlFNmeZpURpHFbolN2TTPjadD-Xdf_kVI/s320/DSC_0245.jpg" width="212" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjp0mYXvp4SYpR95ZZR-MEFma7HD2DPGlbFKibI5YqhmvOT8B_do9RVQ_OKL2ljZkdj0z5Cg2yNNsSEgBo1LAMux1dzpiBcmIUnQnZqRmUrLkuuESkDgv69CZyyYzHYQ094KYvzF9_h6rk/s1600/Mason+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjp0mYXvp4SYpR95ZZR-MEFma7HD2DPGlbFKibI5YqhmvOT8B_do9RVQ_OKL2ljZkdj0z5Cg2yNNsSEgBo1LAMux1dzpiBcmIUnQnZqRmUrLkuuESkDgv69CZyyYzHYQ094KYvzF9_h6rk/s320/Mason+2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_pxdMDq7BM5JZ5Mu-MC8W6eL3_ebRuG6NTMfBujtT7vE-5S7I0DJyP47FwjCOLyxcqefmYJGe2CtQsnkCXO2U7BhSoHS9tHWVGrj_N3_tPG9u1vGauRjF6xlMbzttDwH5kWnOYL_2nUk/s1600/Aiyana+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_pxdMDq7BM5JZ5Mu-MC8W6eL3_ebRuG6NTMfBujtT7vE-5S7I0DJyP47FwjCOLyxcqefmYJGe2CtQsnkCXO2U7BhSoHS9tHWVGrj_N3_tPG9u1vGauRjF6xlMbzttDwH5kWnOYL_2nUk/s320/Aiyana+2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibbiYizXYrR6941WY2ORZGEO4qNbhleO-7txCO4pcatAvlv8TlKCfCTeggHMW6oDUi6yVLziDl5nI_VkanKA5mAVLbBqCZEtSyf88aIIl0NY1x6nfuSg9U6I-CML7ugp00dIfWBIygxtM/s1600/Clara.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibbiYizXYrR6941WY2ORZGEO4qNbhleO-7txCO4pcatAvlv8TlKCfCTeggHMW6oDUi6yVLziDl5nI_VkanKA5mAVLbBqCZEtSyf88aIIl0NY1x6nfuSg9U6I-CML7ugp00dIfWBIygxtM/s320/Clara.jpg" width="210" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCVhwA5wJtsdT3W2qrwZeP7vdFRna0x5xhR9dlkFa8vkko_jALolVIW2fVSwsJUQk8NZucrf2re5TOpbc-_cL25KaV0qGGZkgoW53DGXxFxKSxMHj5l-008TGmdTtIWZ5l3XPXdJqaGws/s1600/DSC_0235b.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCVhwA5wJtsdT3W2qrwZeP7vdFRna0x5xhR9dlkFa8vkko_jALolVIW2fVSwsJUQk8NZucrf2re5TOpbc-_cL25KaV0qGGZkgoW53DGXxFxKSxMHj5l-008TGmdTtIWZ5l3XPXdJqaGws/s320/DSC_0235b.jpg" width="213" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"> Later that night we hung out at the house and ordered pizza. My son and my daughter's boyfriend put some cool apps on my iphone and showed me some of the features of my new phone that I didn't know about. My daughter's boyfriend made a Lady Gaga CD for me (I love her songs) and next time I go to Chicago he is going to download her songs to my ipod. We talked about a family vacation next year, and decided a Disney cruise next fall/winter would be a great thing for the young ones and the adults. We've got some planning to do! That will be a blast, and more than anything, it will be a great memory for all of us.</div>Jerihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13504638305053813301noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7422849198192746464.post-38671861696601882652011-11-19T14:54:00.000-08:002012-01-09T19:50:29.740-08:00Elmo Birthday PartyI recently went to California to celebrate my grandson's 2nd birthday. It had been a few months since I've seen my son and his family and it was a long anticipated trip. When my daughter-in-law picked me up at the airport, my grandson was looking at me from the back seat of the car and said, "Nana". It sure made me smile. :) I got in the car and gave him a big hug and a kiss, and a present, and couldn't take my eyes off him the whole way home.<br />
<br />
<div align="center">Here is my grandson watching Elmo on his daddy's phone. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaI9SOl-G0FV8q7pUphH59_S1BzPROZwl_nkBHSF0Kyudw1ItkCdAY5TtCWTUgCPsj5TLRksrebfD6ozg5Ekz5dNgpxM8dp9TvwQJhKymk6_QrqEZ6O5ShgUCxsEV2OagEVjb4lsyR9LU/s1600/IMG_4459.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaI9SOl-G0FV8q7pUphH59_S1BzPROZwl_nkBHSF0Kyudw1ItkCdAY5TtCWTUgCPsj5TLRksrebfD6ozg5Ekz5dNgpxM8dp9TvwQJhKymk6_QrqEZ6O5ShgUCxsEV2OagEVjb4lsyR9LU/s320/IMG_4459.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div align="center">I was there to see my grandson get his first haircut. Needless to say, it was not a pleasant experience for him! </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmDZ_G4UcGswvYvamHRV5LVejt_ebHCyA6yVegY17fD9AJRkfNv-174p-hecHQQYXuh5ZB7Py7avUp-jYPH6fTaNuj9j7L5BrmG9kpzZqgKma_S7SjxM2spsAO9GdNU3SII_z7hygyuwY/s1600/photo+%252822%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmDZ_G4UcGswvYvamHRV5LVejt_ebHCyA6yVegY17fD9AJRkfNv-174p-hecHQQYXuh5ZB7Py7avUp-jYPH6fTaNuj9j7L5BrmG9kpzZqgKma_S7SjxM2spsAO9GdNU3SII_z7hygyuwY/s320/photo+%252822%2529.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYurmfp8wMnxfAWU-tr8Hu19y6MlJFJzOfp33yRNnI2XSKr4VeF2ERxRT7ncB1VagpKir-yW9IfXrqyqB0Jj2vT6RJpved9vw334vfmFHgI-QMdeTUw7NnKXUQKxNa5N8b_OgHKyg-k1c/s1600/photo+%252826%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYurmfp8wMnxfAWU-tr8Hu19y6MlJFJzOfp33yRNnI2XSKr4VeF2ERxRT7ncB1VagpKir-yW9IfXrqyqB0Jj2vT6RJpved9vw334vfmFHgI-QMdeTUw7NnKXUQKxNa5N8b_OgHKyg-k1c/s320/photo+%252826%2529.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-Nse8O_UxTaK2IHsJo8z3BPI8nE0WnV4U2qAbDuKH4V6v8ruLKkPVJO1JVRkCkO4KaPmwjeOFK8Ifsb3OqNAgyr9U6egnzBGW914JomM9j1C9Tz3OPyzYzP5324wltiUi8PUdrB3Ta8w/s1600/photo+%252828%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-Nse8O_UxTaK2IHsJo8z3BPI8nE0WnV4U2qAbDuKH4V6v8ruLKkPVJO1JVRkCkO4KaPmwjeOFK8Ifsb3OqNAgyr9U6egnzBGW914JomM9j1C9Tz3OPyzYzP5324wltiUi8PUdrB3Ta8w/s320/photo+%252828%2529.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">After the haircut, we went out for dinner and my grandson got to ride the train at the mall.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-XtmawwFui4Djj2bKKBKphMPgzR9oQcLIBBy9Azt7NPHLMZ54fSapgIx_LlUImLsp6I3CcLvYemNfmqykCG90cgfec8aBykzpcoOZuEl4e3i-lr28iBqK4WtOLHsxDUrzWtx4u7_Escs/s1600/IMG_4489.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-XtmawwFui4Djj2bKKBKphMPgzR9oQcLIBBy9Azt7NPHLMZ54fSapgIx_LlUImLsp6I3CcLvYemNfmqykCG90cgfec8aBykzpcoOZuEl4e3i-lr28iBqK4WtOLHsxDUrzWtx4u7_Escs/s320/IMG_4489.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">My son's a video game producer and one day soon, his son will be playing this game with him. We went to my son's work one day and my grandson loves to ride the elevator when he gets there. As soon as he stepped off the elevator he started calling...daddy...daddy...daddy! He got everyone's attention as they looked out of their offices and said 'Hi' to him. Every corner he turned and down every hall, he called for his daddy. It was so cute. My son said he heard him as soon as we got off the elevator. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0xbI3AtWSxWOvw0nVdnadVprO00LvFEbrAIrjWBwHFJwQm0jcwO8r4AHY1xKn09mWkvhcCY4UCuzT6azXV-zHP82-NtxUeYQcYVnzZlTyfXg_lVK58l45JysAYxdjXeHQGraLH_Fzv9Q/s1600/IMG_4497.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0xbI3AtWSxWOvw0nVdnadVprO00LvFEbrAIrjWBwHFJwQm0jcwO8r4AHY1xKn09mWkvhcCY4UCuzT6azXV-zHP82-NtxUeYQcYVnzZlTyfXg_lVK58l45JysAYxdjXeHQGraLH_Fzv9Q/s320/IMG_4497.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">Party time! You should have seen his face when my daughter-in-law came home with the Elmo birthday cake and balloons. He was bursting with excitement!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhI3OIazx0pV86V3JwbMVhwQ339OQektvsDZZjHVlWc3JpNqzxVZSqIhDo6y65ljHgyBYpC1eCKbSL4p4WDPjxqtRsRPIe7jsrZOzjwgMZpnz0HrjJw61CzhRpKZqMPgAMT3OzplswtiYw/s1600/IMG_4523.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhI3OIazx0pV86V3JwbMVhwQ339OQektvsDZZjHVlWc3JpNqzxVZSqIhDo6y65ljHgyBYpC1eCKbSL4p4WDPjxqtRsRPIe7jsrZOzjwgMZpnz0HrjJw61CzhRpKZqMPgAMT3OzplswtiYw/s320/IMG_4523.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQBQr1kd57VGk2nd4jxJd_xdNOkq-agsEbmHtIL1GID_k-i-0tQ_ZD5ZBCWii8jXkxGld1uGlsAIyNTpMNMWPIxMkAHzdr2ec85wgA3rvGb9VTSAwS3bbNTPKRuIW_EWaElWUQgiYLmNs/s1600/IMG_4530.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQBQr1kd57VGk2nd4jxJd_xdNOkq-agsEbmHtIL1GID_k-i-0tQ_ZD5ZBCWii8jXkxGld1uGlsAIyNTpMNMWPIxMkAHzdr2ec85wgA3rvGb9VTSAwS3bbNTPKRuIW_EWaElWUQgiYLmNs/s320/IMG_4530.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">He loves Elmo!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_GLAv1WAnD9r-5LoG9rv_3P7QdMff4z4_T5EWkSo63PFPHm4Dfx9Hgnf_dwYd9u4m50S3STtHxfdloe1CX9o4mouezYevSCI2oBNjUv4eq-FQIS5a0GtQONK8Kb3hqKksdwH6lYSWarE/s1600/photo+%252820%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_GLAv1WAnD9r-5LoG9rv_3P7QdMff4z4_T5EWkSo63PFPHm4Dfx9Hgnf_dwYd9u4m50S3STtHxfdloe1CX9o4mouezYevSCI2oBNjUv4eq-FQIS5a0GtQONK8Kb3hqKksdwH6lYSWarE/s320/photo+%252820%2529.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgURA6BMFPaEntHedn8Wk1hXeLMjbFi0uQmQAfg8rvDHO9G9if98e1cZJvgIaHZf7v9Mh0WY9GWgLhD8Ke_q1_pNxut8WxCZgJdvS1ivL26tyYVdFZ277V9_n6uUSYiuo3pNKrPIr8dkpk/s1600/photo+%25282%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgURA6BMFPaEntHedn8Wk1hXeLMjbFi0uQmQAfg8rvDHO9G9if98e1cZJvgIaHZf7v9Mh0WY9GWgLhD8Ke_q1_pNxut8WxCZgJdvS1ivL26tyYVdFZ277V9_n6uUSYiuo3pNKrPIr8dkpk/s320/photo+%25282%2529.JPG" width="223" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">I love this little guy! He's such a happy, good-natured little boy. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinbCnM79DWsCEAaPwPXdyCK1ay0UYsRJ5ZHSj3FWTJcYzNO0rakdEj9Q7Anh0M5vZrgfbR5L2dDfIfVqKzHzcJgX8_6rTLmX2pR3RxOnNtEYq-PS-7a1Xn6X439SD6JqzVIxp7D3OGBjU/s1600/IMG_4562.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="228" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinbCnM79DWsCEAaPwPXdyCK1ay0UYsRJ5ZHSj3FWTJcYzNO0rakdEj9Q7Anh0M5vZrgfbR5L2dDfIfVqKzHzcJgX8_6rTLmX2pR3RxOnNtEYq-PS-7a1Xn6X439SD6JqzVIxp7D3OGBjU/s320/IMG_4562.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">We went for a hike up Mt. Burdell. There were some incredible views up there.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9LcTivJP0rp69t9m5lmwlUTvMTIDX95wSaLiqPHx3t7Mol-B7JlSMwMTHy8i_YCH8XX6C_Xkv4p-YC-uFAdZsWUbAU57VjdUHwqyavlf2r8JJtGd1klN9jwNITTnln7T7goO3OhrR-0U/s1600/photo+%252810%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9LcTivJP0rp69t9m5lmwlUTvMTIDX95wSaLiqPHx3t7Mol-B7JlSMwMTHy8i_YCH8XX6C_Xkv4p-YC-uFAdZsWUbAU57VjdUHwqyavlf2r8JJtGd1klN9jwNITTnln7T7goO3OhrR-0U/s320/photo+%252810%2529.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNqoyPIeicHFG4F2TElOpWIl28dCZSWzXhecoqG9fuykbL1WgLzEf5UHSzuBEn8Xb0ROYr0udJ87fAk49FiBaCtWV1rYFS7rVlYIgt1c4xOhOEXdAPtdj_n42Gdv1TmvOdqVeXH7WzHIY/s1600/photo+%25281%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNqoyPIeicHFG4F2TElOpWIl28dCZSWzXhecoqG9fuykbL1WgLzEf5UHSzuBEn8Xb0ROYr0udJ87fAk49FiBaCtWV1rYFS7rVlYIgt1c4xOhOEXdAPtdj_n42Gdv1TmvOdqVeXH7WzHIY/s320/photo+%25281%2529.JPG" width="213" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_Bt-AfTn6tl012qUl_6V-zCwJXgk6fGwI12oTCzYJf0FULm6Og1jgPgBZgqotsTW-53XLSk7aN5qsQd3pb0dHvxDwnJyQIvrWAII3SUjfln5213cqSlgpUDmEq_oCLKHon66sZqLmjZg/s1600/photo+%252830%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_Bt-AfTn6tl012qUl_6V-zCwJXgk6fGwI12oTCzYJf0FULm6Og1jgPgBZgqotsTW-53XLSk7aN5qsQd3pb0dHvxDwnJyQIvrWAII3SUjfln5213cqSlgpUDmEq_oCLKHon66sZqLmjZg/s320/photo+%252830%2529.jpg" width="213" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Can't wait til the next time!</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div>Jerihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13504638305053813301noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7422849198192746464.post-78825667947617053202011-11-19T11:05:00.000-08:002012-01-09T19:53:50.882-08:00More of ChicagoI don't always post about my trips back to Chicago, and since my last trip was pretty much the same as the others, I will not say too much, and just leave you with a few select pictures. I did get to see my awesome friend from high school, who lives in CA now, and was also visiting her daughter in Chicago. Other than that, I was spending a lot of time with my daughter and my mom, which is what brings me back to Chicago so often.<br />
<br />
<div align="center"></div><div style="text-align: center;">I love looking out the window when I fly. I will never be one of those people who choose the aisle seat. How boring! There's so much beauty to see, and every time it's just as amazing to me. I always think of things while I'm looking down at the cities and small towns below. I think of all the people living their lives in what is such a big world down there, and how miniscule they all seem from up in the sky. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLS_jH003lcRFmqyZi6Sue6lbXMH7bEMp8u7FfWxnjdJivlEzPRo1MqUpLJ90apsgY_rriKhKgpsn2kqAO0Bc5qQ9uHwT6EJ4kFpZXHQqCjYtDIwtQLuQL9gqjJ3KnbLUSGgfWjPYws7M/s1600/IMG_4153.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLS_jH003lcRFmqyZi6Sue6lbXMH7bEMp8u7FfWxnjdJivlEzPRo1MqUpLJ90apsgY_rriKhKgpsn2kqAO0Bc5qQ9uHwT6EJ4kFpZXHQqCjYtDIwtQLuQL9gqjJ3KnbLUSGgfWjPYws7M/s320/IMG_4153.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">We went out one night and saw Vince Vaughn at the Hubbard Inn. He was so close we actually made eye contact. I could have had an awesome photo of him but my daughter wouldn't let me get out my camera. She said, "Waaaiiittt, you can get one later". Then in a split second his whole clan was gone! I did manage to sneak this picture when no one was looking.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgddDgAjN4PZSL279zVB2eRuXR7GBqkAj8nAV5YTMwfJfkxT06-b-RjGF91FOLFTNFUV0cgGTsPIfGJ6gvLHbORAzFgaFLN8B1ZZdTa3RQyHFS7aaQo6QugYmXqFgbdkUJjpfmHwMQ_h8g/s1600/IMG_4178b.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgddDgAjN4PZSL279zVB2eRuXR7GBqkAj8nAV5YTMwfJfkxT06-b-RjGF91FOLFTNFUV0cgGTsPIfGJ6gvLHbORAzFgaFLN8B1ZZdTa3RQyHFS7aaQo6QugYmXqFgbdkUJjpfmHwMQ_h8g/s320/IMG_4178b.jpg" width="213" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">My practice plank, before I do the real thing (and I will, too!). </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Trump Tower</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXhpsNFRK1KXdm6q7sC-KehaI8kND6Z0aSmOJwdC4zhVwM0MY_3YNnBrz8apVVgX5ZzF5B4zTkYw28fxrxjkzlWAxYZdxKEJbutcIkpxN7bt-DZa3srT8h4ERZIw0li-SJV-NzSK-VJ3M/s1600/IMG_4190.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXhpsNFRK1KXdm6q7sC-KehaI8kND6Z0aSmOJwdC4zhVwM0MY_3YNnBrz8apVVgX5ZzF5B4zTkYw28fxrxjkzlWAxYZdxKEJbutcIkpxN7bt-DZa3srT8h4ERZIw0li-SJV-NzSK-VJ3M/s320/IMG_4190.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">I got up early the next day to watch the Chicago Marathon. My daughter didn't run this year, but I still wanted to see it. I am always amazed and inspired to see the perseverance of these athletes.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgf5UO227H3M0YOzUZDOFum5ueMXYqHpvP_LvusTjrO29k8w70k-xiDreN4ZGAuZRq8l_7ndj2wX7JUPbefFwxPb4R19lpNXIx7KY4Ju0KXCg95ZrsBgj-nkvQKg_Vj1cQ4i3RGwg-Jvz0/s1600/IMG_4202.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgf5UO227H3M0YOzUZDOFum5ueMXYqHpvP_LvusTjrO29k8w70k-xiDreN4ZGAuZRq8l_7ndj2wX7JUPbefFwxPb4R19lpNXIx7KY4Ju0KXCg95ZrsBgj-nkvQKg_Vj1cQ4i3RGwg-Jvz0/s320/IMG_4202.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">While I was watching the runners, I looked to my left and saw this advertisement. They are all over Chicago. It always brings a HUGE smile to my face because my son produces this video game, and I am SO proud of him!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgM7hOMqTcya4kueAuNF73RPdzUkmdOCMW4NtgM0fNAihJAclzO6nJHnoPxxtRDb_1MOEOU5N6HmmVLuhxCMttS-PptOEN-VPhe9LsDQg4in8TsljUBuCmP0ZAndbfCkAdAOGYMMg8KS3w/s1600/IMG_4197.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgM7hOMqTcya4kueAuNF73RPdzUkmdOCMW4NtgM0fNAihJAclzO6nJHnoPxxtRDb_1MOEOU5N6HmmVLuhxCMttS-PptOEN-VPhe9LsDQg4in8TsljUBuCmP0ZAndbfCkAdAOGYMMg8KS3w/s320/IMG_4197.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Mom and I went out for a drive and I stopped in the road to take this picture. Oh, I was careful to make sure no one was coming behind us! Mom and I were engulfed in falling leaves and it brought us a moment of sheer delight.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh595VDJDF9COo3sqcdIYZ2uOQm9VwSehlSVZVmwCwSfd9fkOGzVNgHYPkIa2NaetE2nacDHuusmFmlXlsDszhZ2QnOAbQYcMCaNr_6ehJlHHme7CxsDiw7bhSxieUBxJEtldWUDTaZfaE/s1600/IMG_4245.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh595VDJDF9COo3sqcdIYZ2uOQm9VwSehlSVZVmwCwSfd9fkOGzVNgHYPkIa2NaetE2nacDHuusmFmlXlsDszhZ2QnOAbQYcMCaNr_6ehJlHHme7CxsDiw7bhSxieUBxJEtldWUDTaZfaE/s320/IMG_4245.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Who can resist taking yet another picture of Lake Michigan? I can't! </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVnn5Qorw-YWj0Oi9TcwgTfITLzizrN64E1qpcSi1XWSUDFgBU9JPZczp3oMH7JlMqMnBWME5UoINnReCYHTinpckwNb7rLx1WwFdKi8sJYTplDLh2eYy6xKK24aAF04xrvGpytK7dybc/s1600/IMG_4264.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVnn5Qorw-YWj0Oi9TcwgTfITLzizrN64E1qpcSi1XWSUDFgBU9JPZczp3oMH7JlMqMnBWME5UoINnReCYHTinpckwNb7rLx1WwFdKi8sJYTplDLh2eYy6xKK24aAF04xrvGpytK7dybc/s320/IMG_4264.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">My daughter and I had a nice evening walk along the lake. The weather the whole time I was there was gorgeous. I couldn't have asked for anything better. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYl167b7jte8qWKud2M_PTWCNTjOgHvPP0f178Fd3ZQVKLkGjR9Kcomzx1yrhGdA2lJ_yeMb8ryA14GnFJ_NDFbDrO2Jp3we9TEHNFfAJVJhlS8Iv85k9PbqsmQD1UHbfUFBoFkMxSu7A/s1600/IMG_4299.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYl167b7jte8qWKud2M_PTWCNTjOgHvPP0f178Fd3ZQVKLkGjR9Kcomzx1yrhGdA2lJ_yeMb8ryA14GnFJ_NDFbDrO2Jp3we9TEHNFfAJVJhlS8Iv85k9PbqsmQD1UHbfUFBoFkMxSu7A/s320/IMG_4299.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Since I didn't get this picture in my previous Halloween post, I wanted to post it now, because I think my daughter did an excellent job of putting together this Black Swan costume. She looked great!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj301uIf3n0cFQQLZWKoRT6Qni9OmByf2M0BScTFnwhquMx_s8uslXFL7aKoJeR3MKBvHH_M5g6lq4W7-0NylY4ZfX0uqU7_u3wknd-40R1Z7CSDgsoDwvhyphenhyphen2npWJx_Rktym9fu76bwIPQ/s1600/8.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj301uIf3n0cFQQLZWKoRT6Qni9OmByf2M0BScTFnwhquMx_s8uslXFL7aKoJeR3MKBvHH_M5g6lq4W7-0NylY4ZfX0uqU7_u3wknd-40R1Z7CSDgsoDwvhyphenhyphen2npWJx_Rktym9fu76bwIPQ/s320/8.jpg" width="212" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div>Jerihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13504638305053813301noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7422849198192746464.post-62192969501573492272011-11-13T21:23:00.000-08:002012-01-08T18:50:19.578-08:00Have You Ever Been Touched By a Homeless Person?I went to Walmart the other day, looking for toys for my grandchildren for Christmas. I walked out of the store empty-handed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I couldn’t find what I was looking for, and I was upset with myself for wasting my time going there. I don't like this particular Walmart (even though I love Walmart stores in general), and I normally avoid it at all costs. When I left the store, my daughter called out to me from the parking lot.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She had just gotten there to pick up a few things after work.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> I was surprised to see her there and I walked over to her car where we </span>talked for a few minutes. Then I went back to my car and drove off. <br />
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As I was leaving the parking lot I noticed a homeless woman walking along the edge of the lot, pushing a grocery cart filled about half way up with her belongings.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She was dirty. and everything in her cart was dirty.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She had on pants and a coat and a hood over her head, even though the temperature was in the 70’s.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I could see her eyes and they looked so sad. I don’t believe she made eye contact with me. It was as if she was in her own little world, a desolate world, where nobody paid any attention to her, or her to them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><br />
<br />
My heart went out to this woman.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> There was something about her that touched me. My heart sank, and I knew I had to do something. I couldn't just drive off and ignore her. </span>She looked like she was around my mom’s age.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But I could've been totally wrong.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She may have only been my age, but her hard life aged her.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I watched her walk in my rear view mirror and she walked so wobbly and weak.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Her knees were turning inward.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I turned my car around and drove up a little bit and parked so I could observe her, wanting so bad to help her.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She reached down and picked up something and then picked up something else.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I don’t know if it was a can or what it was.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then she sat down on the curb and put her head in her lap.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> That did it for me. Seeing her do that brought tears to my eyes...i</span>t just broke my heart.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><br />
<br />
I reached into my purse and pulled out three dollars, and I slowly drove up to her, thinking about what I was going to say.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I rolled the passenger window down and I called out to her and said, “Ma am, do you need any help?”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She stood up and approached my car and I could see her face well, with dirt between the wrinkles of her weathered skin.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I once again saw those sad looking eyes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She said, “Where are we going?”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It looked like she was going to open my car door.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I said, "We aren’t going anywhere, I was just wondering if you needed anything.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She said, “Do you know where the races are?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Are we going to the races?”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I knew she had some mental issues when she went on to say, “Is this a race car?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Are you a race car driver?”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I said no.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I asked her again if she needed any help and she backed away and started to sit on the curb again, almost like she was defeated in that I wasn't going to take her to the races, and then she said, “I could use a dollar.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I said here, and I held out the 3 dollars, as she stood up and approached my car and reached her right hand in to take the money.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><br />
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I could swear it looked like she wanted to touch my hand.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I noticed her old, wrinkled hand was filthy, with dirt between her long fingernails.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I almost thought she was going to grab my hand.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I don’t know why, but I got scared for a split second.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She took the money and slowly sat down again.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I don’t think she thanked me, but I could tell by the look in her eyes that she was very grateful.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I said, “God bless you!” <br />
<br />
As I drove off, I prayed for this woman while choking back tears.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There was something about her.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> I realized that there was a reason I went to Walmart after all, and she was the reason why. I didn't do much at all for this poor woman, but she did something to me. She has been on my mind ever since. I see that image of her head in her lap, and her long skinny fingers reaching for the money, I just can't shake it. </span>After I drove down the street I almost turned back around because I forgot to ask her name.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It didn’t really matter I guess, but I wanted to know her name.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I bet it’s been awhile since anyone has asked her that.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><br />
<br />
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">Today </span>I drove through the Walmart parking lot looking for her. She wasn't there. I drove through the lot next to it and down another street nearby, and still no homeless woman.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> I'm sure she pretty much sticks to that area since she didn't look like she could walk very far. I talked to my daughter today and she said she saw the woman that day that she saw me. She said she saw me drive past her, but she didn't know I turned around to approach her. She said she's seen her several times in that area because her kids go to daycare just down the street. I told her to text me the next time she sees her. I will go to her again, and maybe I can do something more for her. </span>I looked up some agencies and phone numbers for outreach programs for the homeless and I will try to get someone to come talk to her about their services. I do know from working at a homeless agency in the past that sometimes people who live on the streets don’t want to participate in the services that are available.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> They don't want any help. But maybe this woman will welcome the help. Just maybe she can be saved from the streets and given shelter, food and medical attention. I hope so, she is a human being and she deserves to be loved and cared for.</span>Jerihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13504638305053813301noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7422849198192746464.post-17150921407596857402011-11-10T21:44:00.000-08:002011-11-11T09:26:12.943-08:00It All Started in Eighth GradeI can't believe I am 55 years old! The past 43 years have flown by, just like my 8th grade social studies teacher told us would happen on our first day back to school after summer break. He asked us if we thought summer vacation went by fast. Pretty much everyone nodded their heads in agreement. He then went on to tell us something that would stick with me for the rest of my life. He said that the next two years of junior high school are going to go by very quickly, and we will suddenly find ourselves a half foot taller and sitting in a high school classroom. Then before we know it, we will be walking across the stage at graduation, wondering where the years went. When he said those words, I remember feeling kind of sad. I thought, well, this is just HIS opinion. I vowed that I will be different...I won't let that happen to me, I will make time go by slowly. I didn't want to grow up and graduate already. I was still just a kid! My social studies teacher was a middle aged man, obviously a smart man in my eyes, and he had experience in this matter because of his age. He went on to say that as we get older, life will seem to go by even faster with each passing year. Boy, was he right. I walked out of the classroom that day with the intention of proving him wrong. Unfortunately, before I knew it, I was standing on stage at graduation waiting for my name to be called, and I realized my social studies teacher was right on. And here I am now, just a few short years later, and I'm already 55.<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;">First year of high school.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRimhobut3_EsrkaAH2p67b_C-ioKf7QKYr8jN5GqBNnIUvvdYjvhXdafsekZZ8OWyQd8Sdm9QdTspBNWF4Sigr5IsDbScqLWoARAS9v1plQCCMb56MX1W1CGYZ84V7UmfKmraXAp_w1I/s1600/IMG_0005.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRimhobut3_EsrkaAH2p67b_C-ioKf7QKYr8jN5GqBNnIUvvdYjvhXdafsekZZ8OWyQd8Sdm9QdTspBNWF4Sigr5IsDbScqLWoARAS9v1plQCCMb56MX1W1CGYZ84V7UmfKmraXAp_w1I/s320/IMG_0005.jpg" width="212" /></a></div>Jerihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13504638305053813301noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7422849198192746464.post-72965021822476699922011-11-02T21:48:00.000-07:002012-01-09T19:51:21.858-08:00Halloween and Other Stuff<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">I packed up the leftovers from my yard sale last Saturday and called Big Brother's Big Sisters because they are scheduled to drive through our neighborhood this week. I made a little cash, and donated the rest. Saturday night I went to a Halloween party and I'll post a few pictures of that, along with some pictures of my grandkids in their costumes. I went trick-or-treating with my granddaughters on Monday night. The weather here is great now, and I love it! I got my new 4S iphone in the mail and got that going the other day. It has a cool feature, called Siri, which is like a personal assistant. I've been experimenting with what Siri can do the past couple of days. You just press a button on your phone and give voice commands. Siri will even type a message or text for you, and send it. I'm not really into the newest gadgets and apps, etc., but this IS pretty cool. I haven't taken any video with my phone yet, which I'm sure I will be doing this upcoming weekend for my grandson's 2nd birthday. Tonight I went to a polical fundraising event at my neighbor's house. His friend is mayoral candidate, Greg Stanton. There were lots of people there, and lots of food, and lots of wine! My kind of party! Tomorrow I have an early morning flight to California to see my son and daughter-in-law and grandson. As I mentioned earlier, my grandson is having a birthday, and I wouldn't miss it for the world! </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjt4iWDXgXjWongGMSsMKAiwsxm02rUrTYBGg9YggO2OXpHQLw8fEKeyifnPwZWZqyvNLqQhskWpK_JHN7sZu5HE2x1UH3QzCJ2BVw0dn9s-91fRnF-5EQG05R4G1tvjj2H01xD_tDdtzg/s1600/IMG_4396.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjt4iWDXgXjWongGMSsMKAiwsxm02rUrTYBGg9YggO2OXpHQLw8fEKeyifnPwZWZqyvNLqQhskWpK_JHN7sZu5HE2x1UH3QzCJ2BVw0dn9s-91fRnF-5EQG05R4G1tvjj2H01xD_tDdtzg/s320/IMG_4396.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBZVoJRX4zwPmfdG_mhePHN_w8tsKhYp0q20C3WoPvwRZRlBlGxu8UA8ArMtBPAWT2vqLyq3LZ3c7T8GXFRsuolrLaLcWx9DSnu8Sy_OKcWa7KmTUGkqowFpzHkMe6BdQu9JwBQEkGfH0/s1600/IMG_4394.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBZVoJRX4zwPmfdG_mhePHN_w8tsKhYp0q20C3WoPvwRZRlBlGxu8UA8ArMtBPAWT2vqLyq3LZ3c7T8GXFRsuolrLaLcWx9DSnu8Sy_OKcWa7KmTUGkqowFpzHkMe6BdQu9JwBQEkGfH0/s320/IMG_4394.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmnASxRY4tXRc1Ztz6cyg5VrJmnkx4rJJ_85YnpyMAXWqQ7rWBNDu78n70avtUS-rHOMk3ZtgBtT1AiMXKHSk5PAj-UvecQ4xHlZ6KFb7m50nUPc8zKd_RKVCBXe_AHGe5ej6_OHhhjU0/s1600/IMG_4421.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmnASxRY4tXRc1Ztz6cyg5VrJmnkx4rJJ_85YnpyMAXWqQ7rWBNDu78n70avtUS-rHOMk3ZtgBtT1AiMXKHSk5PAj-UvecQ4xHlZ6KFb7m50nUPc8zKd_RKVCBXe_AHGe5ej6_OHhhjU0/s320/IMG_4421.JPG" width="213" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVT3Mf-KokGXT7MFDj-gXSg5UdgHW4WUeSZ6WvhDv4TndDxl6AgnXdiEcB0YBZtJ8KNLYzobZt05dqDZFrhY7M4VI-HNHfvK4aP2BdDZgyunFPuYkoJOSY4dMTiobzCCQS7EF0SbbE7DY/s1600/14.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVT3Mf-KokGXT7MFDj-gXSg5UdgHW4WUeSZ6WvhDv4TndDxl6AgnXdiEcB0YBZtJ8KNLYzobZt05dqDZFrhY7M4VI-HNHfvK4aP2BdDZgyunFPuYkoJOSY4dMTiobzCCQS7EF0SbbE7DY/s320/14.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUjBMN97uU_hvlqGaGF-xoZQi7XolR__qAotfI6MTJWza9To479H7WuTCnuToxI5f2PZc_dBqNAauRV8YoT9t5e370XvGo8g0Poya4kZGW1cIQQgoAvg_AZStSI8AE-G0cudUMlnLKBDw/s1600/IMG_4432.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUjBMN97uU_hvlqGaGF-xoZQi7XolR__qAotfI6MTJWza9To479H7WuTCnuToxI5f2PZc_dBqNAauRV8YoT9t5e370XvGo8g0Poya4kZGW1cIQQgoAvg_AZStSI8AE-G0cudUMlnLKBDw/s320/IMG_4432.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcuJUN6AzfMiVFIyCngPN9kPi_4lHjXiSpkWRUmxO3qMMPZGO4ep8uUbgzrTR8K-mzv4knt9Z-kb5PRH2AtxhXXDGiqK_1GGIJNw2TRM5qiRRxUyOz9GHXzcqJ_Vk9p9IcaonPfC-gm2Y/s1600/9.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcuJUN6AzfMiVFIyCngPN9kPi_4lHjXiSpkWRUmxO3qMMPZGO4ep8uUbgzrTR8K-mzv4knt9Z-kb5PRH2AtxhXXDGiqK_1GGIJNw2TRM5qiRRxUyOz9GHXzcqJ_Vk9p9IcaonPfC-gm2Y/s320/9.jpg" width="206" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYFmecG_cvhqho2JEdii09puOXQVZKMhoGlCYS2LZOKTuwmIn1kcUHmdu5bpk7yfTGYbjZ765W6eRZtDK2v4j0XKZUQh9RgG0XK8wFe6QDArjA71xQwICOO2FhOmmUZ6VNRyWaiRokKEg/s1600/11.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYFmecG_cvhqho2JEdii09puOXQVZKMhoGlCYS2LZOKTuwmIn1kcUHmdu5bpk7yfTGYbjZ765W6eRZtDK2v4j0XKZUQh9RgG0XK8wFe6QDArjA71xQwICOO2FhOmmUZ6VNRyWaiRokKEg/s320/11.jpg" width="212" /></a></div>Jerihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13504638305053813301noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7422849198192746464.post-90825771843044495712011-10-27T22:30:00.000-07:002011-11-10T21:47:56.839-08:00RamblingsI am joining forces with my neighbors this Saturday and doing what I thought I would never want to do again, which is, have a garage sale. I spent the past two days getting out everything I didn't want and tossing it in the garage, where tomorrow we will tag and set up everything. I hope it's worth it! When I wasn't getting stuff ready for the sale, I was doing yard work. The weather has cooled somewhat, which made the task much more tolerable. Because I was doing a lot of bending over, my legs got a little sore, and I was feeling the stiffness in Zumba class tonight. We did something different, in honor of Halloween, and we learned the dance to Michael Jackson's Thriller song. It worked out good for me since I was feeling kind of stiff! I don't believe I've ever done that dance before, and it was a lot of fun. Everyone made pretty good zombies! lol I am tired, but before I head to bed, I'll post this beautiful picture I took of the clouds............... Goodnight!<br />
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Jerihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13504638305053813301noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7422849198192746464.post-21715075605436555672011-10-20T15:48:00.000-07:002011-11-14T07:50:51.985-08:00The Four Agreements by Don Miguel Ruiz<em>Last year someone told me about this book, which describes the codes for life, according to Don Miguel Ruiz. He describes these simple agreements for people seeking happiness, peace, freedom and love. It's a good reminder for all of us who want to be the best person we can be to others and to ourselves, and live the best life we can. ~</em><br />
<h2 style="margin: 0.83em 0in;"><u>Be Impeccable with Your Word<o:p></o:p></u></h2><u>Speak with integrity. Say only what you mean. Avoid using the word to speak against yourself or to gossip about others. Use the power of your word in the direction of truth and love.<o:p></o:p></u><br />
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<u>Impeccable means “without sin” and a sin is something you do or believe that goes against yourself. It means not speaking against yourself, to yourself or to others. It means not rejecting yourself. To be impeccable means to take responsibility for yourself, to not participate in “the blame game.”<br />
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Regarding the word, the rules of “action-reaction” apply. What you put out energetically will return to you. Proper use of the word creates proper use of energy, putting out love and gratitude perpetuates the same in the universe. The converse is also true. <br />
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Impeccability starts at home. Be impeccable with yourself and that will reflect in your life and your relationships with others. This agreement can help change thousands of other agreements, especially ones that create fear instead of love.<o:p></o:p></u><br />
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<h2 style="margin: 0.83em 0in;"><u>Don't Take Anything Personally<o:p></o:p></u></h2><u>Nothing others do is because of you. What others say and do is a projection of their own dream. When you are immune to the opinions and actions of others, you won't be the victim of needless suffering.<o:p></o:p></u><br />
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<u>We take things personally when we agree with what others have said. If we didn't agree, the things that others say would not affect us emotionally. If we did not care about what others think about us, their words or behavior could not affect us.<br />
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Even if someone yells at you, gossips about you, harms you or yours, it still is not about you! Their actions and words are based on what they believe in their personal dream. <br />
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Our personal “Book of Law” and belief system makes us feel safe. When people have beliefs that are different from our own, we get scared, defend ourselves, and impose our point of view on others. If someone gets angry with us it is because our belief system is challenging their belief system and they get scared. They need to defend their point of view. Why become angry, create conflict, and expend energy arguing when you are aware of this?<o:p></o:p></u><br />
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<h2 style="margin: 0.83em 0in;"><u>Don't Make Assumptions<o:p></o:p></u></h2><u>Find the courage to ask questions and to express what you really want. Communicate with others as clearly as you can to avoid misunderstandings, sadness, and drama. With just this one agreement, you can completely transform your life.<o:p></o:p></u><br />
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<u>When we make assumptions it is because we believe we know what others are thinking and feeling. We believe we know their point of view, their dream. We forget that our beliefs are just our point of view based on our belief system and personal experiences and have nothing to do with what others think and feel. <br />
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We make the assumption that everybody judges us, abuses us, victimizes us, and blames us the way we do ourselves. As a result we reject ourselves before others have the chance to reject us. When we think this way, it becomes difficult to be ourselves in the world.<br />
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Take action and be clear to others about what you want or do not want; do not gossip and make assumptions about things others tell you. Respect other points of view and avoid arguing just to be right. Respect yourself and be honest with yourself. Stop expecting the people around you to know what is in your head.<o:p></o:p></u><br />
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<h2 style="margin: 0.83em 0in;"><u>Always Do Your Best<o:p></o:p></u></h2><u>Your best is going to change from moment to moment; it will be different when you are healthy as opposed to sick. Under any circumstance, simply do your best, and you will avoid self-judgment, self-abuse, and regret.<o:p></o:p></u><br />
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<u>Doing your best means enjoying the action without expecting a reward. The pleasure comes from doing what you like in life and having fun, not from how much you get paid. Enjoy the path traveled and the destination will take care of itself.<br />
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Living in the moment and releasing the past helps us to do the best we can in the moment. It allows us to be fully alive right now, enjoying what is present, not worrying about the past or the future.<br />
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Have patience with yourself. Take action. Practice forgiveness. If you do your best always, transformation will happen as a matter of course.<o:p></o:p></u><br />
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</div>Jerihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13504638305053813301noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7422849198192746464.post-18209274991101809032011-10-16T01:24:00.000-07:002011-10-16T01:24:22.411-07:00"Comes the Dawn"After awhile you learn the subtle difference between holding a hand and chaining a soul, and you learn that love doesn’t mean possession and company doesn’t mean security. And you begin to learn that kisses aren’t contracts and presents aren’t promises, and you begin to accept your defeats with your head up and your eyes ahead<span class="text_exposed_hide">...</span><span class="text_exposed_show"> with the grace of an adult not the grief of a child. </span><span class="text_exposed_show">And you learn to build your roads today because tomorrow’s ground is too uncertain for plans and futures have ways of falling down in mid-flight. After awhile you learn that even sunshine burns if you get too much, so you plant your own garden and decorate your own soul, instead of waiting for someone to bring you flowers. And you learn that you really can endure, that you really are strong, and you really do have worth, and you learn and you learn…with every goodbye you learn. - Virginia Shopstall<br />
</span>Jerihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13504638305053813301noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7422849198192746464.post-25064132563345405222011-09-03T21:13:00.000-07:002011-09-04T19:17:47.564-07:00What Does Fall Smell Like?Back home in Iowa everyone is looking forward to those fall days, when the air turns cool and crisp, and it's time to get out those fuzzy sweaters and favorite boots. I remember! It's always something to look forward to, especially after a particularly hot and humid summer. It won't be long and the days will be getting shorter and the nights longer. Trees and bushes will be turning vivid colors of red, orange, and yellow, and filling everyone's senses with the sights and smells of the season. When the wind blows and the leaves rustle in the trees before falling to the ground, and when the leaves brush across the street and pile up in the lawns, those wonderful aromas of autumn fill the air. What does it smell like? How do you describe it? To me it's almost like dried flowers, a burnt smell, rippened apples on the ground, wet dirt mixed with cold fresh air, I don't know...it's hard to describe. I love the fall in the midwest. (Although raking semi-truck loads of leaves had a lot to be desired, I won't complain about that!) I just don't like what comes AFTER that. Well, I take that back. The first snowfall is always exciting, and wearing my new boots and winter clothes is fun at first. Not having to mow the grass anymore is nice. Of course, a white Christmas is what we all dream of, and then after that, I want to be some place warm.<br />
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And that brings me to my point. I had had enough of the cold, dreary winters, of sliding on the icy roads, below zero temperatures, scraping an inch of ice off my windshield, brushing 16 inches of snow off my vehicle, always having salt from the street covering my car, shoveling snow, shoveling snow again, gray skies, turning up the heat in the house and piling on the clothes and never being warm enough, feeling that bite in your face from the bitter cold wind, and freezing and shivering every time I went somewhere, that I decided I didn't want to live in that climate any longer. So, I moved to the southwest, the desert, to be exact. I have to admit, the main reason isn't because of the weather, although that had a big impact on my decision. The main reason was to be closer to my grandchildren. Having sunny blue skies and <em>dry</em> heat vs. humidity was a big bonus, too. My hair is thanking me for it, as it looks so much better without the unruly curls and frizz caused by the humidity. <br />
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Hard to believe, but I've been in Phoenix for almost a year and a half now! That's two summers worth, two springs, and one winter. I am looking forward to another winter here. While everyone back home will be complaining of the bitter cold, I will be in glorious sunshine and warm weather. I have to admit, it's been so hot and dry here this summer, where normally Phoenix gets some rain during the monsoon season from mid June to the end of August, we didn't see much at all. This summer, instead of rain, we got dust storms. The dust, or sand storms, are called haboobs. A funny name but not a funny sight! They say we had three, but I counted more than that. Some of the valley area got lucky and got more rain than we did...and some areas got terrible wind and rain storms. We also had 32 days in a row with over 110 degree temperatures. Yesterday it was 101 degrees, but today it's back up there in the 110 range again. Yes, it gets hot here in the summer, but to me it is the lesser of two evils....if you want to think of it that way. I'd rather have hot than cold, ANY day. I love wearing flip flops and tank tops and never needing a sweater at night. For the record, I do miss my hometown and the people in it, and I do miss the changing seasons, but I'm adjusting to life out here in the valley of the sun. Fall in Phoenix doesn't have the aromas of back home, but that's what Yankee candles are for! Jerihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13504638305053813301noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7422849198192746464.post-37766657389907282272011-08-27T22:37:00.000-07:002011-11-19T11:28:43.198-08:00Oh...Girl's Just Wanna Have Fun!<span class="messageBody" data-ft="{"type":3}">My granddaughters were over for a few hours today and one of their favorite things to do is pretend they are talking on the phone. Then we watched 5 episodes of Dora (in between, I caught some TV coverage of Hurricane Irene). We painted 'ningernails', did this little piggy 8 times...twice on each girl's toes, played ball, ring around the rosie, colored, played matching game, read a story, rough housed, tickled, counted, cleaned up spilled milk, washed crayon marks off the chair, wiped a runny nose, played with necklaces and tiaras and little people toys, and ate breakfast, twice, oh and we can't forget that poopy diaper! Nana's tired. But I wouldn't trade it for the world! </span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4V7PiSSkfFViCldLtra_dfGbAXyzAKjZTd5xPQwRWf63Lyk7g9tooXw60MNXo1Jb0R7Loa74UQR7wMKg2DxArXVAIhXFDLgaaI3_AItWClp27Ii2vpt5Lt2U57QndKTauPTOxIkoOmck/s1600/IMG_3816.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4V7PiSSkfFViCldLtra_dfGbAXyzAKjZTd5xPQwRWf63Lyk7g9tooXw60MNXo1Jb0R7Loa74UQR7wMKg2DxArXVAIhXFDLgaaI3_AItWClp27Ii2vpt5Lt2U57QndKTauPTOxIkoOmck/s320/IMG_3816.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3yslsqnPRu7wNu81qW2Jxc5GJ_6K89ACtROMKcTrWFNlq6uMnIHQNdp-a1X9xwDel4VubRdLaP8IoJT83rKVOoaWOY0t1Ou5p2TjXQxMAIhr7spSojeYhgkPwirDPjskKa2WDaf5v9aM/s1600/IMG_3821.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3yslsqnPRu7wNu81qW2Jxc5GJ_6K89ACtROMKcTrWFNlq6uMnIHQNdp-a1X9xwDel4VubRdLaP8IoJT83rKVOoaWOY0t1Ou5p2TjXQxMAIhr7spSojeYhgkPwirDPjskKa2WDaf5v9aM/s320/IMG_3821.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">They are 3 and 1 1/2 years old. It just amazes me how much kids at this age know, and how quickly they learn. It is so fun talking to them and watching them. I find myself smiling all the time. Well, most of the time!</div>Jerihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13504638305053813301noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7422849198192746464.post-88862109630204215612011-08-09T20:55:00.000-07:002012-01-09T19:54:43.979-08:00Back In Chicago Again!I've been staying with my daughter in Chicago for the past week and driving to the suburbs every day (except Saturday) to go visit my mom. The drive takes anywhere from an hour to an hour and a half each way, but it's worth it to see my mom. And boy, is she happy to see me! Almost as happy as I am to see her. It's been great being with my daughter, too. We've been doing the typical things we do when I am here...shop, work out, run along the lakeshore, and work out in the fitness room. My daughter is really into fitness and I am too, but I usually slack off when I'm 'on vacation'. My daughter still likes to take her mom out, so we went out for a cocktail one night. We almost didn't get anywhere though because all the cabs were being hogged by the Lollapalooza crowd. In a couple of days I'll be driving to the Quad Cities to visit more family and friends. I will be staying at my sister's house for 3 nights. She and her husband are selling their house and it may be the last time I get to see it. <br />
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<div align="center">This job is not for the weak stomach. No, it's not Spiderman! I don't know how these guys can be up so high, just dangling from a cable. He was on the 13th floor here.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8vz8nYLn8ejGDDqk6Rp28Kz9iEvF9PW35bli4SCGWZR0RbctahVFlOy1lfHE1W2anz7KAzSkMTZ4Hr_8-W-_CXeqr2qzDAkZZhrPzseRob-PgAk1tfapYawv4yvfGrXtjPzccXhaCFOs/s1600/IMG_3668.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8vz8nYLn8ejGDDqk6Rp28Kz9iEvF9PW35bli4SCGWZR0RbctahVFlOy1lfHE1W2anz7KAzSkMTZ4Hr_8-W-_CXeqr2qzDAkZZhrPzseRob-PgAk1tfapYawv4yvfGrXtjPzccXhaCFOs/s320/IMG_3668.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;">Here's my wonderful mom.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSF1gyy6OmGkzcac37l0LtukxUijm_X_VxCGNsJ7iSMf_3jS2rd6I7ETtuQmWEtc7eiobh5R5FeQyBsm3pXsSSakZM9QRYgS_HkySeHoyrdFA0Lsh_JGttdKlrfx7FQ-uquGDpqENSi04/s1600/IMG_3673.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSF1gyy6OmGkzcac37l0LtukxUijm_X_VxCGNsJ7iSMf_3jS2rd6I7ETtuQmWEtc7eiobh5R5FeQyBsm3pXsSSakZM9QRYgS_HkySeHoyrdFA0Lsh_JGttdKlrfx7FQ-uquGDpqENSi04/s320/IMG_3673.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;">I could stand to see this view everyday on my jogs...well, except for the cold winter days.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_a7vI5dETBud96igs-Bc5wBO4dJOf3qcq1Liw1HapaoV21t26BBP791k67lMcSe9TevClT7EHzweC-Cu-Vuil-cm-GFo0BQ30wlR2sR-yaWtrNxOBf5TxNWk9Gd6zmJtrI-Vv2HIWaC4/s1600/IMG_3684.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_a7vI5dETBud96igs-Bc5wBO4dJOf3qcq1Liw1HapaoV21t26BBP791k67lMcSe9TevClT7EHzweC-Cu-Vuil-cm-GFo0BQ30wlR2sR-yaWtrNxOBf5TxNWk9Gd6zmJtrI-Vv2HIWaC4/s320/IMG_3684.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkphbM6ES5KL9i7XQshFV0RHrUSFUxd51Z621FosV0wyvRKq6HlDVSRBYeH54jkdSoLh1w8AVycaPZm-eh1kAhd3iVX631bD-9OMFCJpz6DZWrR9xcwldEmaRO2XFaYOtFo7_vPR06CSE/s1600/IMG_3701.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkphbM6ES5KL9i7XQshFV0RHrUSFUxd51Z621FosV0wyvRKq6HlDVSRBYeH54jkdSoLh1w8AVycaPZm-eh1kAhd3iVX631bD-9OMFCJpz6DZWrR9xcwldEmaRO2XFaYOtFo7_vPR06CSE/s320/IMG_3701.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhBNpWGruFeBrEAE-OK6Ka5iWxUWJbxXeTP_KprQwqinZbqFL-ML_D1vXi6-AKkR_T7BIjUNiVBeUOwYLozuoaiCBUldbaENqNF-FIWpeDf6yOm6PYZTKvXYEuSt4DNvwdy-LXt0Jyo08/s1600/IMG_3703.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhBNpWGruFeBrEAE-OK6Ka5iWxUWJbxXeTP_KprQwqinZbqFL-ML_D1vXi6-AKkR_T7BIjUNiVBeUOwYLozuoaiCBUldbaENqNF-FIWpeDf6yOm6PYZTKvXYEuSt4DNvwdy-LXt0Jyo08/s320/IMG_3703.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfJQzbTca9vE-iifBveuxYUf8S_k2LDyCe5CSHl2DtzyF0LhN2xExvMEYP5xfALOxzrxKGY6ay_Mf6dqPZvX3QjT15Vx3NZK7hcGd3amF8KEQ92moEVYKiraokJwnZ4HBFdcUc5aFY9Jw/s1600/IMG_3715.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfJQzbTca9vE-iifBveuxYUf8S_k2LDyCe5CSHl2DtzyF0LhN2xExvMEYP5xfALOxzrxKGY6ay_Mf6dqPZvX3QjT15Vx3NZK7hcGd3amF8KEQ92moEVYKiraokJwnZ4HBFdcUc5aFY9Jw/s320/IMG_3715.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKz_AofFGyjW4v5Rr6uesjCAWzJoIy8H1U7XPzp-ibLYxVBNxQuVi9xMDQS-Gugv2jj0LrAqdBvfXn44uGxXXUgt5sT4rmSNgKvlUjEuD2JVjoXkCrgw54bOFq4o6FHndpHH9j_hR7ghA/s1600/IMG_3721.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKz_AofFGyjW4v5Rr6uesjCAWzJoIy8H1U7XPzp-ibLYxVBNxQuVi9xMDQS-Gugv2jj0LrAqdBvfXn44uGxXXUgt5sT4rmSNgKvlUjEuD2JVjoXkCrgw54bOFq4o6FHndpHH9j_hR7ghA/s320/IMG_3721.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEnZb_iVlXpKg0KmEIwXtFO8ddOUilM5k0Ej5d76QgGV9no5GjpYn0DpBLy7JSGYLn-ivqjhRZp1SEvPzd5GjmRV5v_cUGDEfBlEoCw4nHU2gGDVu_Ga3Sx8jl_SWD7GviftM-onkw4lA/s1600/IMG_3735.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEnZb_iVlXpKg0KmEIwXtFO8ddOUilM5k0Ej5d76QgGV9no5GjpYn0DpBLy7JSGYLn-ivqjhRZp1SEvPzd5GjmRV5v_cUGDEfBlEoCw4nHU2gGDVu_Ga3Sx8jl_SWD7GviftM-onkw4lA/s320/IMG_3735.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;">Like our shirts?</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3B4N2cOfBxm3Q6-_yzu1UQmUm7Ev7eRloy5bpwsQiZ7MOtNsNv5Iu9HZF87MlaKnm-7NOlymMkBYFqwR-mRK9Cz5c4gZDJHC26MWmRZtHLitdzLI98TVs4dhYGcIA-r_v4JX_-oQF5Bo/s1600/IMG_3739.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3B4N2cOfBxm3Q6-_yzu1UQmUm7Ev7eRloy5bpwsQiZ7MOtNsNv5Iu9HZF87MlaKnm-7NOlymMkBYFqwR-mRK9Cz5c4gZDJHC26MWmRZtHLitdzLI98TVs4dhYGcIA-r_v4JX_-oQF5Bo/s320/IMG_3739.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;">My daughter works in the Unitrin building. If you saw the Transformer III movie, you will recognize the building next to it. One of the highlights of last year was when they blocked off the streets and filmed the movie. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhu1EWPG5McukMWXe6nnePuQcvWVFOBjDUdNIepsR67BTz0RMeHQVvzY2oP19YcQ5VT0fSOJDi3UA8cbubr3f01J4RPu25ayVgatc6-4zon1M90h310FCCHd4sdXnzvX1TpdPOw295WGD0/s1600/IMG_3742.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhu1EWPG5McukMWXe6nnePuQcvWVFOBjDUdNIepsR67BTz0RMeHQVvzY2oP19YcQ5VT0fSOJDi3UA8cbubr3f01J4RPu25ayVgatc6-4zon1M90h310FCCHd4sdXnzvX1TpdPOw295WGD0/s320/IMG_3742.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;">Of all the photos I've taken in Chicago, I don't think I've ever taken one from this vantage point. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8O53IXM4hXyGvsKSXuMHJeItLYUJ3edKSfwyL8FT6ykL7TaNUMp2ABHnlhCyK6I6HVVIA9eWkHFaKT7j1iTpW3BacSHGJ86nQWyjMr7apZf9ba0QVvsjVUxDFAUT7yGUl_CWbgWuNBTI/s1600/IMG_3744.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8O53IXM4hXyGvsKSXuMHJeItLYUJ3edKSfwyL8FT6ykL7TaNUMp2ABHnlhCyK6I6HVVIA9eWkHFaKT7j1iTpW3BacSHGJ86nQWyjMr7apZf9ba0QVvsjVUxDFAUT7yGUl_CWbgWuNBTI/s320/IMG_3744.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
<br />
With my youngest daughter. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjg57PRkTgh3gRkgniZBzDhhgVDn10YE1TaoUj2nrzVymMM60Sf5OEE1uJmAhccjDjJJbBGlLCVqDvBSoCX1HGDhtI8CYoAc6w-ijLifbkmVycRJW2nz3vzOWWHOSLPNFC6wl4Gz5oFmTc/s1600/IMG_3745.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjg57PRkTgh3gRkgniZBzDhhgVDn10YE1TaoUj2nrzVymMM60Sf5OEE1uJmAhccjDjJJbBGlLCVqDvBSoCX1HGDhtI8CYoAc6w-ijLifbkmVycRJW2nz3vzOWWHOSLPNFC6wl4Gz5oFmTc/s320/IMG_3745.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;">Here I am with my mom and two of my sisters...</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpXbW2QcMfviizXnTTHmWG2GYiWHt8yI26jeZ7wBiyLWdw7OL6WxGDzEfoG9NTpMD2g22YJZCK7ezoeeMKYpd1qT7q_cX4fL78_c5DE0UzLq9wrhIIFjDGA5AYhRaUlh7J5amZz3h1IbE/s1600/IMG_3753b.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpXbW2QcMfviizXnTTHmWG2GYiWHt8yI26jeZ7wBiyLWdw7OL6WxGDzEfoG9NTpMD2g22YJZCK7ezoeeMKYpd1qT7q_cX4fL78_c5DE0UzLq9wrhIIFjDGA5AYhRaUlh7J5amZz3h1IbE/s320/IMG_3753b.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;">I see this view everyday when I drive back to the city from visiting my mom. I took this picture because I liked how the sun was reflecting off the buildings. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnGG3YFM25UNj0XlSSmc2Sdkd2uleA0kc7eM83UKjqCtikD9c-QQT8cVsWWL0TaebOssfHW2m6BVbYVmSvUNx_wkNGgXbHhC1uA-VlJcmAg890BWK9inqINheJuXIR_y8EzJYGG8Q9aII/s1600/IMG_3763.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnGG3YFM25UNj0XlSSmc2Sdkd2uleA0kc7eM83UKjqCtikD9c-QQT8cVsWWL0TaebOssfHW2m6BVbYVmSvUNx_wkNGgXbHhC1uA-VlJcmAg890BWK9inqINheJuXIR_y8EzJYGG8Q9aII/s320/IMG_3763.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;">The streets and sidewalks were filled with people for the Lollapalooza music festival. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6KRXuxITh0cgLivILpBras4PkYkZAMDfNh8VN-rcr_aQWzgklizYOnNrIqPVfIgodW5T5qyEvpEW6OwRIO2CwmYvdAxalDpYtTObIRmBc5mIx__OzEM-OM2yD4H1TY-64zcWi7gfNRmE/s1600/IMG_3738.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6KRXuxITh0cgLivILpBras4PkYkZAMDfNh8VN-rcr_aQWzgklizYOnNrIqPVfIgodW5T5qyEvpEW6OwRIO2CwmYvdAxalDpYtTObIRmBc5mIx__OzEM-OM2yD4H1TY-64zcWi7gfNRmE/s320/IMG_3738.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>Jerihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13504638305053813301noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7422849198192746464.post-54557744095831033372011-07-24T20:45:00.000-07:002011-10-16T01:27:23.976-07:00My Thoughts On Reading My Diaries Many Years Later<span style="font-size: small;">I recently went back in time and mentally relived a part of my past, beginning at the young age of 16.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I kept a diary back then.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was my first diary, one of 8 to follow.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I continued to write in a new diary during different stages of my life from that point on.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Even then, I realized that this was something special, a way for me to preserve memories to reflect upon one day when I am much older, and to be able to someday share it with my kids and grandkids.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Upon reading these there were some entries that I would not want anyone to read.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In fact, I scribbled out a few things!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> Just a few. And some pages have been torn out previously</span>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I had these diaries in my hope chest and one by one I read every single page.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>With each diary I saw how things changed, how I changed, the way I expressed myself as I grew from a teenager, to a wife, and to a mother. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I once again felt those feelings of happiness, fear, sadness, and excitement. There were deaths, births, illnesses, friends coming and going in my life, my kids growing up so fast (and those wonderful teenage years), and house building. I even wrote down prices of things like food, gas, clothing, appliances, electronics, movies, etc.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Which by the way, some appliances and electronics cost more then than they do now.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"> </span><span style="font-size: small;"></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">There were a few things that surprised me in my journaling.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One is, I could not believe how often I ate at fast food restaurants as a teenager.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I am certain it was because it was the affordable choice, it was convenient, and it tasted good.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Not to mention the fact that I was very skinny, very young, and without the slightest concern about my arteries and cholesterol, just so long as I wasn’t getting fat.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As the years went on my diet changed for the better.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Today I rarely eat fast food, and I try to eat the foods that are good for me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m sure that is due in part to the fact that I am well aware of age creeping in, and I’m trying to do things that will ensure a longer life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"> </span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: small;">My movie choices as a teenager had much to be desired, but I’m sure that’s what you get when you go to a drive-in theatre, if you know what I mean.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Another thing I hadn’t really realized, until reading my diaries, is just how much time I spent with my mom after I married at the age of 18.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(Which, by the way, being married at 18 explains why we are no longer married, even though we did love each other.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We grew up and grew apart, and after 3 wonderful children and 25 years together, we went our separate ways.)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I often went over to mom’s house, and we would go shopping, or out to lunch.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My sisters would either still be living there or would come over to mom’s house too, and we would all hang out and talk or do things together.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For years I would see my mom at least 3 times a week, and talk to her on the phone even more.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My sisters and I and our mom were really close and did so much together.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We celebrated everyone’s birthdays and every holiday together.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Mom and dad were divorced, and dad had his place in our lives, too.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He wasn’t around as much, but we loved him just the same.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Mom was always buying my kids toys, clothes and gifts.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She would take them shopping at the dollar store and she would have them over for sleepovers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My sisters and I would take turns having each others kids overnight.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>At one point we had our own little club and we would meet at each other’s houses on Thursdays and have a meal together and talk about anything and everything women talk about.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Mom and I even took college classes together, and I have some fond memories of that time, like the time we could not stop laughing in class because the teacher said something, not meant to be funny, but we thought it was hilarious.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We were both going to be nurses, and we both changed our minds.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But we had fun in that year we were together in school.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I went on through, to the second year without her, and graduated with an Associate’s Degree in Liberal Arts.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Mom was right there cheering me on. During this period in my life I was married with 3 small children and also babysitting a couple of kids on a full-time basis.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was tough trying to find time to study, let alone raise a family and maintain a household.</span></div><span style="font-size: small;"> </span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: small;">My diary from the time I was living in <st1:country-region w:st="on">Germany</st1:country-region> with my dad, and attending <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:placename w:st="on">Frankfurt</st1:placename> <st1:placename w:st="on">American</st1:placename> <st1:placetype w:st="on">High School</st1:placetype></st1:place>, jarred my memory on a few things that I had forgotten about. Like, the time it took our bus 2 1/2 hours to get to school because of the snow, and the time a bunch of my friends were at a sleepover at Ruth's house and I woke up to find my bra in the freezer, and one day a month after our arrival in Germany my sister and I mailed out 31 letters back to the states. </span><span style="font-size: small;">Little did I know at the age of 16 that my long lost friends from school would become my friends on Facebook many years later!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> Obviously, times have changed since the 70's.</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> And whoever would have thought I'd be blogging my stories on a computer.</span></span></div><span style="font-size: small;"> </span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: small;">Another thing that I realized from my entries was how my memories of my kids always being these angelic-like beings, who never fought with each other and never got on my nerves, was wrong. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They did fight with each other and they did get on my nerves.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s so funny how those memories fade over time and how you remember all the good stuff more.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One day when my two oldest were 3 and 1 1/2, they kept fighting over their toys and crying at the same time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I threw my hands up in despair and said, “I don’t want anymore kids!”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And my 3 year old daughter said in a ha-ha tone to her voice, “I don’t want no more mommies either!”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And then she added, “And no more daddies, too!”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It made me realize something there.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Maybe I was getting on her nerves, too.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Of course, I was blessed to have another child a year and a half later.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span><br />
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One of my diaries was all about the home building process of our log home two decades ago. What a job that was, building a house with our own hands, and working full time, raising 3 kids who were all involved in sports, dance, and music, and trying to have a life outside of building a house. </div><span style="font-size: small;"> </span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: small;">Having diaries is just a small part of the many things I have done over the years to preserve memories. I have also saved things.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I guess I learned this from my mom.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She saved elementary school papers and drawings I did, post cards from camp, and letters from Dad in <st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Vietnam</st1:place></st1:country-region>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I continued the tradition and started my own collection and saved a lot of things of sentimental value to me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For my kids, I saved everything from baby clothes to baby teeth, favorite t-shirts from camp, vacations, or school sports, toys, books, hair clippings from first haircuts, lists of their vocabulary at certain ages, growth charts, school papers and art projects, newspaper clippings from their sports (all put in scrapbooks), notes, and so on.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I didn’t save everything, of course.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>At the end of each semester in school I would go through their school work and save my favorites, or their favorites, like stories they wrote, etc.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And I would put them in a separate folder and label it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They each have a folder for every grade, even some college.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I saved their favorite toys and the blankets my mom made them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So now, each of my three kids has about 16 plastic totes, with their childhood memories tucked safely inside.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I know they appreciate that I did this for them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But I didn’t do it just for them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I did it for their children, and for their grandchildren, and I did it for me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It made me feel good.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I can’t explain it, but I guess it makes me feel like I kept their childhood alive. </span></div><span style="font-size: small;"> </span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: small;">I realize now and have always known that my kids are my greatest blessings in life. I know that I am not perfect.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have made mistakes in my life, I didn’t always do things exactly right, I have wanted to go back and change some things, and I have missed out on opportunities that were presented to me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Aside from that, I am who I am because of the woman my mom and dad raised me to be, and because of the family values that were instilled in me, and because of my life’s circumstances that lead me down the path I’ve taken.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I may not be someone who has accomplished great things, but I do believe I am a good mom.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Reading my diaries gave me a glimpse of my past and reminded me of all the things I did do right.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div><span style="font-size: small;"> </span>Jerihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13504638305053813301noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7422849198192746464.post-8823744935937863132011-07-06T22:15:00.000-07:002011-07-10T12:16:32.630-07:00What the Heck is a Haboob?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div>I sure never heard of a Haboob...until last night when I was sitting in my living room watching TV. Suddenly a special alert came on the tube showing a large sandstorm had just entered the Gilbert/Chandler area. I thought, oh no, we are right in it's path, and there's no way we are going to miss this. It was HUGE! It looked like a giant exploding vacuum sweeper bag! Sure enough, within minutes it was here. My daughter called and said, "Welcome to Phoenix!" I'm used to thunderstorms, snowstorms and blizzards, from living in Iowa, not sandstorms. I learned later that this was an exceptionally large sandstorm, called a Haboob, one that many valley residents have never seen the likes of. It's more of a middle east type of storm. This one was over a mile high and 100 miles long! It lasted about an hour, with sustained winds of 50 to 70 miles an hour, with a sprinkling of rain afterwards...just enough to put sand and mud spots on everything! We are in monsoon season now and typically it means there can be rain and blowing dust. Sometimes a lot of rain at once. This is a Haboob... <br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOtqQNXS2fTeMICMi2IyO3NnMztTnUetchD2HqgGaMbJbjvV1uUJwXko5Y4Xtg9U7BFAf7XkgblqKGCxI7f4a-YG0JvjFuIc2ZBJYNLHxztRoSCgi1rN93j2Qk9Wdwplgzz7-dPNEWNPk/s1600/dust+storm.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOtqQNXS2fTeMICMi2IyO3NnMztTnUetchD2HqgGaMbJbjvV1uUJwXko5Y4Xtg9U7BFAf7XkgblqKGCxI7f4a-YG0JvjFuIc2ZBJYNLHxztRoSCgi1rN93j2Qk9Wdwplgzz7-dPNEWNPk/s320/dust+storm.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
My daughter took this picture from her second floor bedroom as the Haboob made it's way into her neighborhood. It crawled over the mountain, which you can't even see here. I live only 7 blocks away, so I got hit virtually at the same time. I wish I would have looked out the window to see it coming, but I certainly heard it once it arrived. Boy, did I ever! It sounded like a blizzard with sleet and ice coming down.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhl43C7TFCkyIX9yXPfJVxjhU9sLjHlt0q4UP9T6Dpcs28X1QEJL4evDWvf8hzKaxKBCzUlFjfBVDtGozG8MCrjapOCJ-8921clhoYPPPWv5dEkeqwkfDhpAC3TUZvkOj-G5yW8ind4QFA/s1600/haboob1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="210" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhl43C7TFCkyIX9yXPfJVxjhU9sLjHlt0q4UP9T6Dpcs28X1QEJL4evDWvf8hzKaxKBCzUlFjfBVDtGozG8MCrjapOCJ-8921clhoYPPPWv5dEkeqwkfDhpAC3TUZvkOj-G5yW8ind4QFA/s320/haboob1.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div>In this picture you can see the bottom of South Mountain. I saw my neighbor driving in to their garage during the middle of the storm. Unfortunately, they got caught in it. So many cars today were covered in sand and dirt and the news reported that the car washes were crowded all day. People's pools were full of sand, too. However, my neighbor's pool looked pretty clean, considering.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtzyuSEZjmdV6IxH9y3RZXEc9iuCqb_YG_vq6XcFnYChRq0wBaY4jDTdjWx-AWEQj5jCI6H3wu4t4sOQpwv9VNGyYB_qqmqaJk4bKauuWfned_xQTbgFiLPyJcWLzzM73Q5tMyH_Rmb7o/s1600/Haboob+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="215" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtzyuSEZjmdV6IxH9y3RZXEc9iuCqb_YG_vq6XcFnYChRq0wBaY4jDTdjWx-AWEQj5jCI6H3wu4t4sOQpwv9VNGyYB_qqmqaJk4bKauuWfned_xQTbgFiLPyJcWLzzM73Q5tMyH_Rmb7o/s320/Haboob+2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div>This is what my windows looked like this morning. And people who know me, know that I can't stand dirty windows! The first thing I did when I got up was go outside and start cleaning up. I even skipped my morning coffee! It actually wasn't as bad as I thought it would be out there. I hosed down everything, washed the windows, and raked the seeds that finally fell from my cypress tree, thanks to the wind. Everything was back in order 4 hours later. Oh, and my cypress tree is actually standing up straighter than it was before. hehe<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiVDn6Go1opX3BtNcFwSbooyEiy1_1TDewf8WxBk014b36LJC6qd1GIfZLeHsuPNsh-5VIl7lYakNRDGv-N6I19Dy1PVG3HSUc9Zd6HPYJqj2igJ3S5yEhGu1AysLtSzExOGFsOmn0RDg/s320/my+window.jpg" width="240" /> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> My daughter and her husband kept laughing at the pronunciation of Haboob, so.... I had to laugh when I saw this photo in my daughter's facebook album after she posted pictures of the Haboob. I commented that this is 'a little boobie'. Shame on me. Oh well, she thought the comment was funny, and we needed some humor after the experience we just had.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2kt3PFgDkUg_aGxMfGUaHboFzm-drlCStUq2H8iBqK42BsgM5JaiQP0zgbpOlD_d4Wi680sPzTD8vylk-nDjToo5Png5LK076SlzbxVeZIzVgNbBiayfCUZMTWxAb2YJnHvZdjMLU3EE/s1600/dust+devil.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2kt3PFgDkUg_aGxMfGUaHboFzm-drlCStUq2H8iBqK42BsgM5JaiQP0zgbpOlD_d4Wi680sPzTD8vylk-nDjToo5Png5LK076SlzbxVeZIzVgNbBiayfCUZMTWxAb2YJnHvZdjMLU3EE/s320/dust+devil.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">While I was outside working today I saw that the house that is being built behind me is going to be a two story, not a single story like I was hoping. Now, not only is my mountain view gone, but so is my privacy. I've got to figure out what to do about this. I need some fast growing, super tall trees and bushes. Or a cheaper way to go would be to annoy them somehow so THEY are forced to spend the money on some privacy plants. I'm such a clean, quiet person who isn't home much, so how can I annoy them? I was here first!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZVrf8sNQdAsLsQqbRIQZRQPKF0-jmFOWn1Z1yBZEDm16qGo9nSJAPuq94_FelZkctc1kYHNVGbMZDGdO-laWTSKQiqw9mn0Ku-AgVMbXtMS7JEEX0QwqZGpJqbSm9tqhECaorM93O7kc/s1600/IMG_3493.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZVrf8sNQdAsLsQqbRIQZRQPKF0-jmFOWn1Z1yBZEDm16qGo9nSJAPuq94_FelZkctc1kYHNVGbMZDGdO-laWTSKQiqw9mn0Ku-AgVMbXtMS7JEEX0QwqZGpJqbSm9tqhECaorM93O7kc/s320/IMG_3493.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div align="left" class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><em></em>Jerihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13504638305053813301noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7422849198192746464.post-90419567061214365742011-07-03T22:52:00.000-07:002011-07-03T22:58:01.434-07:00For the Love of Art I drew a picture of my mom yesterday.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXwlzWHuxj54UgvMD-VB5d-zUjXFXzPtrXaxwhcMpD14f_rF5p_OBWYAeK0CMKWKDP5l5eqkXf_UI-nHq0Tw3s2dSjhQXwwCGGDFeNxthWkYFikJmfKZqujhnd5MCzScqKxVOygUlVXh0/s1600/IMG_3457.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXwlzWHuxj54UgvMD-VB5d-zUjXFXzPtrXaxwhcMpD14f_rF5p_OBWYAeK0CMKWKDP5l5eqkXf_UI-nHq0Tw3s2dSjhQXwwCGGDFeNxthWkYFikJmfKZqujhnd5MCzScqKxVOygUlVXh0/s320/IMG_3457.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;">I took art in high school and haven't painted a picture since then...until this one. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhekvelvV4y5N3jaqp-4eDOAm5xI6c4MGW2eJS9va3BAdOwns2xVjrtQqFZIm_oqlPy_Vxdj9W-bO9YxXdTVcr1eHKWMKmKy7yTQ52SPE__PR364sI0iqv3RtqgAWHpLwjEWaN260WBPpY/s1600/IMG_3462.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhekvelvV4y5N3jaqp-4eDOAm5xI6c4MGW2eJS9va3BAdOwns2xVjrtQqFZIm_oqlPy_Vxdj9W-bO9YxXdTVcr1eHKWMKmKy7yTQ52SPE__PR364sI0iqv3RtqgAWHpLwjEWaN260WBPpY/s320/IMG_3462.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div>Jerihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13504638305053813301noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7422849198192746464.post-41616896051514589982011-06-09T13:33:00.000-07:002011-06-09T13:53:13.889-07:00Reconnecting in Iowa<div style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span class="messageBody" data-ft="{"type":3}"> </span></div><span class="messageBody" data-ft="{"type":3}">I recently went back to my hometown in Iowa to take care of some business. While I was there I spent some time with my family. Even my daughter-in-law and grandson were in town visiting her family, so one of my sisters joined me in having dinner with them one night. Little Mason's hair has grown so much in the past month since I last saw him. He's adorable! The next day I drove up to St. Charles to visit my mom, and my daughter and her boyfriend met us there from Chicago. It was a great day, and mom was so happy to see us! Below is a picture of my mom and Alisa.</span><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSbCudeJbYG2hlU22u1bXwCnfD84ClVoM2YxMxkl78i3spckyhSJTSgskivi9xWGW9XyiJeXCe7GESS8UbsrQvTdLwhoT9KHE8rfuxHyRL9CPj1CUz00SbamPDbiT-dAhTk4kzaGw8ZEU/s1600/IMG_3381.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSbCudeJbYG2hlU22u1bXwCnfD84ClVoM2YxMxkl78i3spckyhSJTSgskivi9xWGW9XyiJeXCe7GESS8UbsrQvTdLwhoT9KHE8rfuxHyRL9CPj1CUz00SbamPDbiT-dAhTk4kzaGw8ZEU/s320/IMG_3381.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<span class="messageBody" data-ft="{"type":3}">Throughout my stay, it was also so great to see my sisters again, and to reconnect with them after all the heartache we've been dealing with regarding our mom and her illness. I feel so good that for the most part, it went very well. I feel like I have my sisters back again...with the exception of one, who appears not as eager as me to reconcile our differences. I'm hoping in time she will. I love all of my sisters very much. The picture below is with Vicki. Next time I will try to get pics of the rest of them. </span><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">I really can't come back home without getting together with some of my friends! It was nice that I was able to spend one-on-one time with three of them...so, for three nights in a row I had a friend to share fun girl talk with over dinner. A glass of wine always makes the conversation more interesting! </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Here's a picture of me and Michelle.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfoSvJpe1KtoMabaXwY_suuAB825WVd75FBGlgRkGCEtvUGPfAxs6hJOvxiBVyD2IPVa03g7uPaDhTKIpcIOTxAoJldn0cvoa9fMdCUJEWAD_So-v1lyjSUlSeQuUzu_W5axYUWnIX2bg/s1600/IMG_3410x.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfoSvJpe1KtoMabaXwY_suuAB825WVd75FBGlgRkGCEtvUGPfAxs6hJOvxiBVyD2IPVa03g7uPaDhTKIpcIOTxAoJldn0cvoa9fMdCUJEWAD_So-v1lyjSUlSeQuUzu_W5axYUWnIX2bg/s320/IMG_3410x.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
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</div>Jerihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13504638305053813301noreply@blogger.com1