Tag Archives: Family

Saturday Morning Fun!

 

We started our beach walk at 6:00 AM today! The sun has not shown up in all it’s glory yet…

The colors in my photos change as the sun comes up over the hill.

We saw a lot of crabs today. The tide was not as far out and we couldn’t get as far on the sand this week.

 

The Pirates were afoot and we snuck by their ship.

 

Dear braved the surf while I took the higher road.

 

“Here’s looking at ya”

We finished our walk on the beach and were home by 7:45 AM. I then got ready to head out to San Marino, California to meet my nieces, sister, and mom for a birthday breakfast.

 

On the way to breakfast a car fully engulfed in flames was worth a photo! :0)

Julienne Restaurant in San Marino, California

My sister Kathy and her daughter Michelle

 

The sisters, Michelle and Melissa

My niece Debbee and me

My Mom

I decided on the Earl Grey Tea. Look at that pretty little bag the tea leaves come in.

A Gruyere omelette with scallions and avocado and rosemary potatoes.

 

Me, my mom, and my sister Kathy

 

Kathy and her daughters. Happy Birthday Kathy.

And yes it is hot in Southern California today. This was the hottest my outside temp registered when I hit Woodland Hills. (109 degrees)  Notice that I’m standing still in traffic so no one was in danger when I took this shot. We’re breaking records today. Thankfully it is a lot cooler than Woodland Hills in our town…

Photobucket is holding all my photos from 2007-2015 hostage and they have blacked them all out. I’m slowly working at restoring my posts without their help. Such a tiresome bother!

May Birthdays!

 

So many people I love are having birthdays in May. In Picture order not birthdate order…

My niece Annie, May 16th ~ My friend Lucy, May 20th ~ My niece Debbee, May 12th

Jan my good friend in Washington, May 14th ~ Jody my good friend in Washington, May 24

My nephew Levi, May 27th ~ My dear Father Moisi, May 25th ~ My sister Kathy, May 23rd

Beautiful people who bless me with their love and friendship. A very Happy Birthday to all of you in the Merry Month of May!

I’m off today to celebrate my sister Kathy’s birthday at Julienne, a lovely breakfast spot in San Marino, California. Hubby and I walked the beach at Emma Wood at 6:00 am this morning :0) so I’m getting a lot done this morning. I’ll probably crash when I get back from eating yummy morsels. Have a wonderful weekend everyone. I’ll be posting my average walking steps on Monday. Keep walking (Lord knows I need to if I keep eating well at all these lovely spots around town!)

Photobucket is holding all my photos from 2007-2015 hostage and they have blacked them all out. I’m slowly working at restoring my posts without their help. Such a tiresome bother!

My Sweet Niece and Me and Vitiligo

 

I love this photo of my sweet little niece with her Aunty ellen b. Look at her great eyebrows. After we left Dallas she cut two bottom teeth within the week. She’s just 3-1/2 months old. Before we left for Dallas I had my first ever trip to the dermatologist because my face was discoloring. I thought I was getting brown spots. At my visit the dermatologist discovered that I’m not getting brown spots but instead I’m losing the pigment in my skin, a condition called Vitiligo. It’s the same condition that Michael Jackson has. I’m not wearing any cover-up in the photo above so you can see my loss of pigment especially next to my dear niece’s perfect baby skin. So from now on if I post any photos of myself out walking you’ll see me with my Dallas souvenir on…

 

Here I am last Saturday at Emma Wood State Beach with my new UPF50+ hat with a 3″ rim. The areas of my skin that are losing pigment are very sensitive to the sun so I need to add extra protection. A sunblock with helioplex broad spectrum uva-uvb and avobenzone 3% are highly recommended for protection. I’m using a Neutrogena product that has both of these ingredients in it. The only downside to this condition for me besides my vanity, is the fact that I don’t wear hats well and then the added condition of bad dented hair from the hat after my walks!

Between my back issues and my face issues I was happy to have memorized ~ 2 Corinthians 4:16-18 ~”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.”

Have a wonderful day y’all and keep on walking. I’ve had a good week of walking and I’ll be posting my average steps every Monday from now on.

Photobucket is holding all my photos from 2007-2015 hostage and they have blacked them all out. I’m slowly working at restoring my posts without their help. Such a tiresome bother!

Mother’s Day 2008 ~ Whittier

 

Our Mother’s Day Celebrations started early this year. I was away from all my children this year so they got together and created the best gift I could possibly ask for. Each of them wrote to me and included a photo of themselves. Each note was unique just like they are. They were put together in the book cover you see in the center of the collage. I was in Mom heaven! On Mother’s Day morning Dear was very sweet and took me to the Rose Bowl Flea Market with a pocket full of cash. I’ll post more about that later. After we walked the isles and isles of goodies at the Flea Market we headed to Whittier for a smaller family gathering with my Sister’s Family and my Mom and Dad. My brother Steve was able to come, too.

 

As we drove through Whittier to my sister’s house we were greeted with the beautiful purple blooms on the Jacaranda Trees.

 

My Father and Mother who are always a joy to be around.

 

My Father and Jackson (Great grandson)

 

Jackson with his friend.

 

We were surounded by beautiful blooms on potted plants and fresh bouquets.

 

We started lunch with my mother’s Borsch and then had fondue. Main course of beef, chicken, cheese, bread, and vegetables. Then a dark chocolate and milk chocolate fondue mix for our fruit and wafers and biscotti. Everything was very good.

I brought my mom, sister, and niece these Johnson Bros. mugs filled with 3 kinds of Tea.

My nieces gave me the potted pink hydrangea in the top collage.

It was a beautiful day of honoring mom’s and enjoying each others company. Thank you Len and Kathy for always opening your home to family. Len’s 95 year old mother was able to join us at the table for a little while and had us in stitches with some of her remarks. How lovely the day was. Thank you Lord.

Photobucket is holding all my photos from 2007-2015 hostage and they have blacked them all out. I’m slowly working at restoring my posts without their help. Such a tiresome bother!

Happy Mother’s Day Mom

 

Mother Knows

Nobody knows of the work it takes
To keep the house together,
Nobody knows of the steps it takes-
Nobody knows but mother.
Nobody listens to childish woes,
Which kisses only smother;
Nobody’s pained by the naughty blows-
Nobody, only mother.

Nobody knows of the sleepless care
Bestowed on baby brother;
Nobody knows of the tender prayer-
Nobody knows but mother.
Nobody knows the lessons taught
Of loving one another,
Nobody knows of the patience sought-
Nobody, only mother.

Nobody knows the anxious fears
Lest darlings may not weather
Storms of life in coming years-
Nobody knows but mother.
Nobody knows of the tears that start,
The grief she gladly smothers;
Nobody knows of the breaking heart-
Nobody, only mother.

Nobody clings to the wayward child,
Though scorned by every other,
Leads it so gently from pathways wild-
Nobody can but mother.
Nobody knows of the hourly prayer
For him, our erring brother,
Pride of her heart, so pure and fair-
Nobody, only mother.

ht: Poem from Moral Lessons of Yesteryear

To all the mom’s out there who come by here I wish for you a wonderful Mother’s Day filled with thanksgiving to God for giving you the privilege of being a Mom.

For Katie and Flower~ Check it out…

 

Hi Flower! I thought of your blog site when I saw this window in Old Town Camarillo today!

Fun Flower Power!

Katie, these 5 cups cost me $2.00!

What do you think?

Here’s the bottom of the cup…

Photobucket is holding all my photos from 2007-2015 hostage and they have blacked them all out. I’m slowly working at restoring my posts without their help. Such a tiresome bother!

Dallas Arboretum ~ The Star of Texas

 

It was a beautiful day at the Dallas Arboretum last Saturday.

 

Just in case there’s any confusion as to what state you are in here’s the Star of Texas, a Longhorn, an Armadillo and a cowboy hat to set you right.

 

It was so lush with pinks, purples and many shades of green.

 

 

 

 

 

Lots of beautiful trees. The crape myrtle had such smooth interesting bark.

 

We were a little late for the wisteria but I can imagine how lush this was about a month ago. On our way out I bought a souvenir here that I will share in a future post. The afternoon was so lovely, sunny but not hot.

Photobucket is holding all my photos from 2007-2015 hostage and they have blacked them all out. I’m slowly working at restoring my posts without their help. Such a tiresome bother!

Hospital-i-Tea Blogathon ~ Favorite Tea

April 27 – May 3
Tell about your favorite tea. How do you prepare it and serve it? Milk and sugar? Plain? What are some of your best memories of serving or sipping on this tea.

Truth be told I generally enjoy tea steeped with a tea bag. If I am going to steep loose tea I enjoy a good Earl Grey or English Breakfast Tea. I always have to make sure I have good ole Lipton tea bags around for my family especially my brother Leonard. Some of my sisters have moved on to herbal teas. When I was younger I put lots of sugar and milk in my tea. These days I drink most of my hot beverages black with no sweeteners. In honor of this weeks assignment Dear and I went to Cost Plus bought a tin of Twinings Earl Grey Loose Tea and steeped ourselves a cuppa this afternoon. Lovely…

 

My best memories of tea are from my childhood when I’d have tea with my maternal grandmother. Also whenever we get together with my side of the family we enjoy tea at the end of our meals together. Sometimes I’ll have it black, sometimes with lemon, and sometimes with milk. Then the next best memory of tea is when I travelled to England for the first time in 1973. We were part of a Christian Rock band singing at local schools and churches. We would be housed by local families who were interested in our ministry. How very special it was to have a knock on the bedroom door in the morning, open the door and see a tray with a teapot steeping and tea cups and milk to get us started in the morning. What a wonderful treat and memory. I also love how when staying at Bed and Breakfasts in England we’ve been greeted with tea upon our arrival. This next photo is of our daughter enjoying a cup of welcome tea in our flat in Edinburgh.

 

I’d love that beautiful blue and white tea set! Tea is always a welcome refreshment when I am tired and after travelling a long way.

 

For more Tea Posts visit LaTeDah at Gracious Hospitality.

Photobucket is holding all my photos from 2007-2015 hostage and they have blacked them all out. I’m slowly working at restoring my posts without their help. Such a tiresome bother!

Mad Hatter Tea Bridal Shower…

On Saturday I drove 90 miles from Camarillo to Newport Beach to attend a shower for our future niece, Jessica, who is marrying my brother Steve’s son Timothy. Timothy’s lovely mother is my SIL Kelly.

 

This is a fun photo of 3 of my brother Steve’s sons. (Joe is missing) Timothy is the one in the middle flanked by his brothers Caleb and Levi.

Oh the destination and the setting and the beautiful ladies that we got to spend the afternoon with made the 180 mile round-trip so worth it.

 

 

The table was set perfectly for our Mad Hatter Tea. We gave thanks to the Lord for this wonderful occasion and began the festivities.

 

 

Michelle, the maid of honor,  was our hostess and the setting was in her parents gated community in Newport Beach. I can’t even begin to guess what the HOA fees are in this wonderful setting. Did I just say that out loud?

 

It was a Mad Hatter Tea which meant we were all required to wear hats. My SIL Letty and me.  Jessica, the Guest of Honor. Jessica opening her Samovar from my mother and a tablecloth that my mother made when she was 12 years old (that would have been in Tehran, Iran) The last photo is of the daughters and daughter in laws with my mom. Letty, Vera, My Mom, Kathy, Ellen b, and Kelly.

 

Jessica with her friends and most of these ladies will be her bridesmaids. Our hostess, Michelle, to the left of Jessica.

 

After we had our Tea/Lunch we walked over to the Rose Garden in the Community.

Some of my lovely nieces, Melissa, Debbee, and Michelle.

Ellen b. in a hat! You won’t see that everyday.

Well that hat won me a prize along with the great hat on the right that the mother of the hostess wore! I won a wonderful lavender scented candle.

 

We are having a very hot weekend in Southern California. See that 100 degrees for the outside temperature next to my odometer. That registered when I was driving home and reached the San Fernando Valley. Hot, hot, hot for Spring around here! (Looks like I need to dust off my dash!)

Made it home in good time praising our God for the blessing of family and friends to enjoy life with on this earth.

“May our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father, who loved us and by his grace gave us eternal encouragement and good hope, encourage your hearts and strengthen you in every good deed and word.”
~2 Thessalonians 2: 16,17

Photobucket is holding all my photos from 2007-2015 hostage and they have blacked them all out. I’m slowly working at restoring my posts without their help. Such a tiresome bother!

Fun Monday ~ What Was & Is Worth It…

Southern Doll is hosting Fun Monday this week and she has the following assignment. What have you done in your life that was worth doing?

I know that as soon as I publish this there will be other things that come to mind. I decided to start with high school and move on from there.

The thing in high school that was worth doing was getting baptised in my junior year. I started a more dedicated journey following Christ at this point in my life and would never turn back.

During my College years I was part of a Christian Rock band. I met Dear in this group and we became engaged and then married in 1974. We went on two summer tours in England together with the group which was an amazing experience in travel and ministry.

 

Getting a College Degree and a Teaching Credential was worth doing.

Getting married to Dear was and is definitely worth doing and we’ve been doing it for 33 years. Oops! I think I just probably embarrassed my children and myself by accident.

Having each of our three children was worth it big time in my life. Each of them is unique and I thank God for their individual gifts and personalities.

Developing close friendships and opening our home for fun and fellowship and spending loving times with my extended family has been worth it.

 

Much of this time is spent around food!

Moving to Seattle in 1988 and raising our children there and developing friendships there was worth it.

 

Starting a blog and meeting bloggy friends around the world has been worth it.

Growing older with Dear and being faithful to our marriage is worth it.

For more Fun Monday posts head over to Southern Doll’s.

Photobucket is holding all my photos from 2007-2015 hostage and they have blacked them all out. I’m slowly working at restoring my posts without their help. Such a tiresome bother!