Christmas in California

We drove down to Santa Barbara on Christmas Eve day to pick up Kristen, who flew in from Denver to join us for Christmas!  We enjoyed a nice late lunch at Brophy Brothers seafood restaurant which is located in the harbor and since we were sitting out on the deck with a view of the water, I had time to check out all the beautiful boats. 

We exchanged our gifts on Christmas Eve, as we planned to drive to San Francisco on Christmas Day.

We drove up to San Francisco on a rainy Christmas Day and enjoyed hanging out with the family at Denise and Tim's new house.

 Tom, Helena, Tim and Grant

 Kristen, Helena with Ginger, and Denise

After spending the night, we headed for home, after checking out the Golden Gate Bridge.

Happy Birthday Kristen!

August 6th is Kristen's Birthday!  Happy Birthday to you, happy birthday to you, happy birthday, dear Kristen, Happy birthday to you!  Wish I was in Denver to bake you a little lamb cake - I think it was your favorite!

1st Birthday

2nd B irthday

3rd Birthday!

Some July Photos

Tom's sister, Phoebe, dropped by for a visit a week or so ago. She and her husband live in Silver City, New Mexico. Her daughter, Jennifer, lives in Grover Beach, California, which is about 45 minutes away from where we live, so when she visits Jennifer, she drops by to see us, too.

Jennifer, Mom, Tom and Phoebe

We have been lucky enough to see a pair of orioles in our yard - they come to the humming bird feeder in the late afternoons. They normally don't hang around this area, but seem to like our yard this year! We're happy to have them and hope they stay all summer.

And we always enjoy seeing the deer - even though they eat our plants! This young buck already seems to have a girl friend. But why not, he's certainly handsome!

A perfect July sunset

My daughter, Kristen, has been in Paris to attend a class and just returned home. (Besides being the librarian at St. Mary's Academy in Denver, she also teaches an advanced placement art history class, so this was related to that.) I've been anxiously awaiting her email telling me she's home safe in Denver, and just received it, along with this lovely photo of her. I always breathe a sigh of relief when I know that she's home safe and sound. She had an amazing time.....walking all over and absorbing so much art that she says her head hurts!!!!

Do You Know the Way to San Jose?

All good things must come to an end.....yesterday we had to take Kristen back to San Jose to catch her flight back to Denver. We made a day of it by driving the scenic, long way on Highway 1 through Big Sur. It was a beautiful day, and we had lunch at Nepenthe, a first for all of us. (http://www.nepenthebigsur.com/) We stopped at Point Lobos State Reserve, drove through Carmel and Monterey, then headed on up to San Jose. It was a long drive, but the scenery was spectacular!

Welcome to California

Kristen experienced her first earthquake this morning at 5:30 - a 4.5 centered near San Simeon. It was big enough to rattle the furniture.

Balloon Ride over Templeton

Here's a little video of part of our balloon ride this morning. We took off at Eagle Castle Winery and soared over west Templeton, getting a fantastic view of vineyards and the rolling countryside.

And here's what we looked like 25 years ago! Pounds thinner and lots more hair.
Pat, my maid of honor, me, Tom (with beard) and his brother, Eric.


Our beautiful daughters - Stacy, Kristen and Denise.

And my mom.

25 Years Ago

On June 17th, 1984 Tom and I got married on top of Lookout Mountain near Denver, Colorado! So, this is our 25th wedding anniversary! We celebrated by going out to dinner at our favorite Japanese restaurant with my mom (Charlene) and my daughter (Kristen). Here is a photo of Tom and I 25 years later! I'll post some photos from 25 years ago tomorrow!

And here is a photo of Kristen and me! She just flew in today for a visit. Look for more adventures while she's here! We're planning several exciting adventures - one especially that will be very uplifting!

Beads by Charlie

Mom is still creating her beautiful beaded jewelery. We found these large vintage crystals at a bead shop a couple of weeks ago. She beaded around the crystal and then made the beaded chain. It's going to be a birthday present for a special person.

Valentine's Day Dinner in Cambria

Our favorite restaurant for "special events" is The Sea Chest in Cambria. They don't take reservations, so you have to get there about 30 minutes ahead and stand in line. Except on Valentine's Day you need to be there even earlier! We were treated to a lovely sunset while we waited!

Visit to Sonoma and San Francisco December 08

We drove up to the Bay Area right before Christmas to see the grandkids. We stayed in Sonoma for 2 nights and then drove over to San Francisco to pick up Grant and Helena for a pre-Christmas lunch.

It rained the day we arrived in Sonoma, and we saw this beautiful rainbow.
Another drive down the crookest street! Nice view of Coit Tower in the background.

Beautiful view of San Francisco Bay with Alcatraz from the Presidio.