Category Archives: Friends

Blessed With Blogging Friends…

When I started blogging in 2007 I never expected to form so many friendships through my blog. What a sweet surprise it has been to develop these friendships. Some friendships have developed just with comments back and forth and some have had the added blessing of meeting face to face.

 

On our trip back to Washington from California Dear and I had dinner with Sandy from The Reluctant Entertainer and her husband. We had our fabulous meal and time of fellowship at the Winchester Inn in Ashland, Oregon. I knew Sandy lived close by and it worked out that she and her husband were available to meet us. We didn’t run out of things to talk about. Sandy shares my passion for food and fellowship around food. Her blog is about simple entertaining and creative hospitality. If you haven’t visited there yet click on over. This is Sandy’s photo that I asked for since my photo was blurry. Thank you Sandy! Look at those great salads! I’ll be posting more about this great Inn later…

 

Our dinner was worthy of a Top Chef episode. We even had an Amuse Bouche, that small cup of soup. Amuse Bouche loosely means fun in the mouth. Ours was served before the salad and main course. My salad was a work of art. The lamb was delicious.

The Monday before we left California Cori G! met me in San Marino for breakfast at Julienne. I was a distracted blogger that day and forgot to get a fresh photo of the two of us at Julienne.

 

I really love the graphics that Cori G! creates and she gifted me with this sweet little jar of Sugary Sprinkles with a beautiful example of her graphics on the gift/recipe card! Look at those little blue birds…

 

This was taken at our first meeting last year. Thanks for driving to San Marino and meeting me for breakfast Cori!

Photobucket is holding all my photos that I stored on their site from 2007-2015 hostage replacing them with ugly grey and black boxes and asking for a large ransom to retrieve them. It is a slow process to go through all my posts deleting the ugly boxes.

Celebrating Family and Friends!

 

We invited family and friends over to celebrate our son Dan.

 

When our youngest little guest arrived she stole the show!

 

Just 9 days old here. She’s our son Dan’s best friend’s first baby.

Precious!

 

The new dad and Dan.

 

Jamie, Dan, Josh, and Scott

 

 

 

I managed to not get a decent photo of the mom…bummer!  Hey Beth if you see this could you send me Sarly’s email so I can send photos to her…thanks.

Hope all is going well wherever you are…

Photobucket is holding all my photos that I stored on their site from 2007-2015 hostage replacing them with ugly grey and black boxes and asking for a large ransom to retrieve them. It is a slow process to go through all my posts deleting the ugly boxes.

Reunion…

 

I’m headed across town today to meet up with a high school friend of mine that I haven’t seen in probably 36 or so years. We lost touch and then got connected again on Facebook this year. I’m looking forward to filling in the gaps and hearing about her life. It would be really cool if I could fly across town and avoid the freeways but that’s not to be…

Have a great Thursday! I’ll catch up with y’all tomorrow.

Photobucket is holding all my photos that I stored on their site from 2007-2015 hostage replacing them with ugly grey and black boxes and asking for a large ransom to retrieve them. It is a slow process to go through all my posts deleting the ugly boxes.

Saturday ~ Beach Gatherings…

So not as early as usual Dear and I headed to Emma Wood State Beach for our Saturday morning stroll. Today we were blessed with seeing an over abundance of Pelicans just hanging out on the sand. There were plenty flying over the water, too!

 

Later in the day we headed south to Long Beach for a mini-reunion with my high school class of 1968! We met at a restaurant on the water and tried to remember names and faces. It was fun to see good ole friends.

 

Our class of ’68 really was a great group of people. We were commenting on what a rich melting pot we were. We had a large Jewish, Armenian, Russian, Mexican, and Japanese population at our school. This varied population really added to our rich high school experience. 1968 was a very emotionally charged period in the history of our country. A couple major historical tragedies that occurred just before we graduated were the assassinations of Martin Luther King, Jr. and Bobby Kennedy.

And 41 years later it was great to re-connect and have conversations with these friends!

Photobucket is holding all my photos that I stored on their site from 2007-2015 hostage replacing them with ugly grey and black boxes and asking for a large ransom to retrieve them. It is a slow process to go through all my posts deleting the ugly boxes.

Aren’t They Cute?

Our drive to and home from the funeral on Saturday was quite treacherous at times with rain squalls that turned the freeways into rivers. We saw a few cars that had hydroplaned and ended up in the medians or in accidents with other vehicles.

But we made it there and home again just fine and it was worth it to see these cuties, my mom and dad.

Here are the song sheets from the funeral with the same songs in Russian and English side by side.

A closer look at the same song here in English and below in Russian…

I was pleased that I understood most of the Russian message at the funeral service. The English message delivered by my brother Steve was challenging…

Welcome to my bi-lingual world…

Some of you asked if Dear is Russian and the answer is no. He took Russian in college and he can read Russian. He sang with our Russian choir when we were dating. Dear is half Swedish and half English, Welsh and Cherokee. :0)

A Wonderful Bloggy Face to Face!

On Tuesday I drove to Orange County for a family dinner at my parents’ apartment with my sisters, SIL’s, and nieces. Cori G. form Gingerbread Crumbs & Co. and I have been regulars on each others blogs and she happens to live in Orange County so we arranged a face to face meeting close to my parent’s apartment. We had a very short time to meet and “talk” but what a joy it was to spend this short time asking questions and sharing a little bit more of our lives in person. I was surprised how fast our time went.

Cori also was so sweet to bring me a gift. I’ve always loved her graphics. She’s one talented lady. I was thrilled to get some beautiful creations of hers. She also gifted me with 4 beautiful Homer Laughlin plates. Oh she knows my weakness for pretty plates!

Cori G. is a Victorian Lady at heart and she proved to me that she wears petticoats and Victorian striped stockings. How cool is that. You can see her post about these stockings at her Happy Birthday Eric Post. Cori and I look forward to getting together again…

 

John 13:34 ~ “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”

International Talk Like a Pirate Day!

Shiver me timbers! I almost forgot it’s talk like a pirate day Mateys! Here are a few of my favorite pirates and the words to that Yo Ho Song on that ride at Disneyland, Pirates of the Caribbean…

Yo ho, yo ho, a pirate’s life for me.
We pillage plunder, we rifle and loot.
Drink up me ‘earties, yo ho.
We kidnap and ravage and don’t give a hoot.
Drink up me ‘earties, yo ho.

Yo ho, yo ho, a pirate’s life for me.
We extort and pilfer, we filch and sack.
Drink up me ‘earties, yo ho.
Maraud and embezzle and even highjack.
Drink up me ‘earties, yo ho.

Yo ho, yo ho, a pirate’s life for me.
We kindle and char and in flame and ignite.
Drink up me ‘earties, yo ho.
We burn up the city, we’re really a fright.
Drink up me ‘earties, yo ho.

We’re rascals and scoundrels, we’re villians and knaves.
Drink up me ‘earties, yo ho.
We’re devils and black sheep, we’re really bad eggs.
Drink up me ‘earties, yo ho.

We’re beggars and blighters and ne’er do-well cads,
Drink up me ‘earties, yo ho.
Aye, but we’re loved by our mommies and dads,
Drink up me ‘earties, yo ho.
Yo ho, yo ho, a pirate’s life for me.

Ha! Sounds kind of like a politician’s life to me…

And here is what my daughter carries her lunch to work in…

Now I should go Scrub the Deck!

Have You Ever Meme ~

I saw this over at Susanne’s and decided to play along…

Susanne’s was a meme for a busy day. Mine is a meme for a laid up day. I’m still in bed with back pain and so between memorizing, blogging and reading, I’m calling on God so I don’t lose heart.  2 Corinthians 4:16-17 “Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal”

A view from my jail room while I’m recovering…

Lousy photo yes, but it was fun taking a picture. I’m suffering a bit from picture taking withdrawal.

So now to the temporary things of this earth that I’ve seen and done…

Have you ever:

-Gone on a blind date no
-Skipped school yes
-Watched someone die yes
-Been to Canada yes to British Columbia, and to Ontario from Detroit.
-Been to Mexico Yes, but not to a resort. Tijuana and Tecate to buy tile…

-Been to Florida No
-Been on a plane Yes
– Been lost  yes but not for long
-Been on the opposite side of the country yes
-Been to the capital of your country yes

-Swam in the ocean or waded Yes, in the Pacific and the Atlantic
-Cried yourself to sleep yes
– Played cops and robber Yes, and cowboys and Indians.
-Recently colored with crayons Not recently
– Sang Karaoke Yes

– Paid for a meal with coins only? probably
– Done something you told yourself you wouldn’t? Yes
– Made prank phone calls Yes, so very embarrassing…
– Laughed until some kind of beverage came out of your nose unfortunately yes
– Caught a snowflake on your tongue Yes after we moved to Washington state.

– Danced in the rain Yes, in Washington probably after a goal or a touchdown. 🙂
– Written a letter to Santa Claus no, not that I can recall.
– Been kissed under the mistletoe yes
-Watched the sunrise with someone you care about Yes
– Blown bubbles Absolutely

– Gone ice-skating Yes, but not successfully
– Been skinny dipping outdoors Yes in the dark in a hot tub with nobody looking (I hope)
-Been out of North America Yes, Great Britain.
-Been in detention Yes, room 208 at Montebello Junior High.
-Regreted something you blogged  probably…

I won’t tag anyone but if you do it let me know so that I can come and read!

Fun Monday ~ Quotable quotes and words that inspire

Robin at Pensieve has chosen this theme for today’s Fun Monday.

Quotable quotes and words that inspire.

Here are a couple of quotes for you. One from a Russian and one for an admired American.

“How easy it is for me to live with you, Lord!
How easy it is for me to believe in you!
When my mind is distraught and my reason fails,
When the cleverest people do not see further than this
evening what must be done tomorrow
You grant me the clear confidence
that you exist, and that you will take care
that not all the ways of goodness are stopped.
At the height of earthly fame I gaze with wonder at
that path through hopelessness-
to this point from which even I have been able
to convey to men some reflection of the Light
which comes from you.”

-Alexander Solshenitsyn

Solshenitsyn: A Pictorial Record, 1974

“All the masterpieces of art contain both light and shadow. A happy life is not one filled only with sunshine, but one which uses both light and shadow to produce beauty.”

Billy Graham

Day by Day with Billy Graham, 1976

To read more Fun Monday Quotes click over to Robin’s.