Trip for Two

Last Sabbath Bob and I got up and got ready for Sabbath School & Church. In the car on the way Bob suggested that we go to Sabbath School then come home for an early lunch and then drive over to the Marin Headlands to my favorite spot and just enjoy the nature and the view.
So that is what we did. The day was a little hazy but not too bad. This is a view of the Golden Gate bridge looking back at it after we crossed over it.


Here is a shot of the marina by the old military base park with Alcatraz in the distance with the Treasure Island and the Bay Bridge barely visible in the background.


Close-up of Alcatraz and lots of sail boats sailing in the bay.



Here is an old military base that has been turned into a park for the public. In the background is Angel Island. There is a ferry to the island. You can only ride bicycles on the island unless you live there, then you can drive your car.. so there is very little traffic.


This blimp was new. You can tour the San Francisco Bay area now on a blimp. Just call the number on the side. Looks like that would be fun.


Up atop the Marin Headlands. We hiked up to the top of the hill and there are benches up there to sit on and watch the sights from way up high above the bridge and the city. I just love it up there. Here is freighter going out of the bay under the bridge with San Francisco in the background.

A close-up of the old fort underneath the south end of the bridge. We didn't go there this time but we have been many times. It is a memorial museum 4 stories tall and free to the public. There are normally people in uniform performing different activities to give you a feel for what it would have been like to be stationed there. It is always cold and windy on the top level.


This is a freighter ship on it's way out into the ocean with the west side of San Francisco in the background. Most of the area there is housing.


Bob sitting on the bench eating his tootsie-pop we took with us and talking to Nate on the phone.

Here I am.


The freighter with the blimp high above and the bridge between with the city in the background. So much activity! It was getting late so we left to go back home.


On the way home Bob decided we should stop and eat at the Macaroni Grill.


These are the chefs doing the cooking. We were sitting next to them as we waited for our table. It was really interesting watching them do so many things.


This guy was making the pizza's and baking them in the brick oven behind him.

We had a good day and it was really special for both of us. We rarely get to go anywhere, just the two of us. So it was a special treat. Micah took care of Grandma for us at home. Thanks Micah!

Quilt Show

Cathy and I went to a quilt show in Modesto on Sunday. I bought a couple of embroidery patterns:


I got this one with all these purses, watering cans, and planters, etc. I just thought they were all so cute and there are so many things I can think of to do with them. Aren't they adorable?


I can do something like this. This lady had the cutest booth. I just loved everything in it.




And an alphabet one..

Here's a close-up of it. They just made a cute wall hanging with it but there are so many uses.




I loved this picture too.. but didn't buy the pattern. I think I can do that easy enough, just by looking at this picture. I hope to make some things to decorate the house with. They would make good gifts too.. for some of my friends.

Well, there ya have it. I went to a quilt show and didn't take any pictures of any of the quilts. How ridiculous is that? I just took pictures of stuff I want to make. lol

Christmas 2008

O.K. So I'm behind in my blogging. But I'm going to go ahead and post this anyway and try to do better in the future.


This was our fire place for Christmas. This picture was taken at night. We never did have a real fire.. but the candles made it look like we had a fire going and made it seem really cozy. All but one of the stockings were purchased in N.Y. when I was there a year ago visiting Cecelia.


Here is a picture of the fireplace during the daytime. The holes up on the wall above the fireplace are for the T.V. It's that big black thing in the lower right corner. We are going to have it mounted up there.

Will came home for Christmas. He was supposed to be here Christmas Eve but they canceled his flight. :( Thankfully, he made it on Christmas Day. : ) He was only home for 5 days but we were so happy to have him there to make our family complete. We had a great time together. Played lots of board games, ate, and visited together. It was great! But I didn't take any pictures. After everyone left I realized that fact. Oh well.. we had fun.

Thanksgiving at Joel & Sherry's

This is my brother Joel and his wife Sherry. I took this picture of them in front of their home in Florida. We stayed with them through Thanksgiving.


They have always had a lovely home with many decorations to make the holidays special and this year was more beautiful than ever, it seemed to us. I was telling Cathy in CA how beautiful everything was and she wanted me to blog about it show it in pictures. So here it is.




The front of the house




A little closer to the front door.




The entry..



With a grand piano,



Entry table,



Christmas tree,




With a little saying about family being the best part of Christmas by the tree,




..and even decorations in all the corners and spaces everywhere. I didn't take pictures of everything.. because they are in all the bathrooms and little areas where pictures just do them justice but everything looks great.




The living room from the entry..




Fireplace,




From the dining room,


sideboard,




end table,



coffee table,


and really beautiful candle screen.


Looking out toward the pool and golf course from the living room.




An angel collection in Sherry's office.




The dinette area in the kitchen, complete with gas fireplace.



a different angle,




looking out the window while sitting at the dinette.


Joel on the golf course. Well..



Actually, he's in the dining room. This picture was painted by a famous artist in their area and it was in the home when they purchased it. They didn't realize until later that it was actually a canvas painting on the wall. They have talked to the artist about it since and he told them he painted it for the former owners. When Joel & Sherry remodeled the home, the original artist helped them to preserve the painting so they wouldn't ruin it and could keep it in the home. It's a beautiful picture and was painted to look like the golf course behind the home. I'm sorry I don't remember the artist's name.



The family room with a real, wood burning fireplace.


Comfortable furniture and good friends, Don,




Julie, and their daughter visiting with Grandma.




The coffee table in the family room.



The dining room table decorations.



The Cornucopia




Thanksgiving dinner..







Joel & Sherry and their daughter Autumn. Autumn's husband, Michael had to work during the week but they spent Thanksgiving together in Williamsburg, PA.




Here's a picture from L. to R. of Autumn and her dog Star, Will, Nate with Sherry's dog, Chablis, and Micah. We were all so happy to get to spend some time with Autumn that week before Thanksgiving, even though she had to leave the day before.



Mom with Joel & Sherry. She was so thankful to be there with them and to see all the family while we were there. That was the highlight of her life this past year. Sorry, I didn't get many family pictures.. but that's how I am I've noticed. I take pictures of things.. more than pictures of people.. and when people are around I'm visiting and don't seem to think about taking pictures unless someone else starts taking pictures. Oh well.. I have lots of happy memories in my mind. :)