Iowa

I just completed my last trip to Iowa that I'll probably ever make. Kasey and family are moving in a few weeks and I can't imagine any other reason to visit there again. I had a great and productive trip (we did lots of packing for their move). Lee was there half the time, Alex was there a couple of days at the start of my trip. The weather started getting humid yesterday so it was a good time to leave.

Sienna gave me the same act she gave Kelly and Alex. When I got in the van she put her blanket over her face and would just peek out. If I looked at her she'd hide again. We dropped the kids off at their weekly babysitting group and Kasey, Alex and I went to a restaurant for some divine Chicken Marsala. Once we got home, Sienna was all over me from then on. I called her the Poker because if I was busy she'd come up and poke me to remind me she was still there. She was always climbing into my lap if I was sitting down and giving me hugs and kisses. She is such a cuddler and so, so beautiful. I just love looking at her dimple! She always wanted Grandma to brush her teeth every night too. One of the things that was so cute is she sleeps in the computer room next to where I slept. Every morning she'd wake up, get out of bed and open the door a little, check us out, and close the door again. She'd open it up again after a few minutes, come kiss my arm and head upstars to Kelly. So cute.

Crazy Lexy Lu (Alexa) is just that-crazy. She talks so fast, so often and so dramatically that all you can do is just laugh. Her favorite thing to do is for us to go on a walk, get a treat at the gast station and then go to the park where she swings from bar to bar on the jungle gym till her hands are calloused. Someday you'll have to ask her why she loves the monkey bars so much-it is hilarious!

Kaden is so handsome and so smart. He can read like crazy now-sounds out everything. Lee took him to a minor league baseball game and he broke the bank with all the food he ate. He loved hanging out with Grandpa. We got to see him play ice hockey and also baseball. He is so cute and is a good hitter. Alexa also played t-ball (when she wasn't goofing off on the field that is). I took Alexa to see Speedracer and Kaden to see Narnia. Speedracer was boring but I enjoyed Narnia. Lee took them fishing at a nearby pond and they caught a fish!

Kasey looks beautiful and it was fun to hang out with her, shop and eat. We only saw Matt for a little while one day and then we sent them off to a night on their own to celebrate Matt's graduation. Although we did a lot of work, I also had a lot of fun in Iowa. I won't really miss Iowa but I already miss Kasey and company. I can't wait to know for sure where they will be heading.

3 HOURS

That's how long I have here in the Sacramento Airport until I board my plane back to McKinleyville. This part of the airport is especially small with only about 6 gates and one little restaurant/bar. It is going to be boooooooorrrrriiingg. I've already traveled for 5 hours from Kasey's. This is the part I hate about traveling especially coming from Humboldt County. I always have long, boring layovers. Usually it is at the San Francisco Airport though and that is not so bad because there are places I can walk, good eating places and lots of people watching. I guess I'll play Scrabble and blog about my trip to Kasey's and maybe go get a new book. And I just broke a long fingernail and don't have a file so I can hunt one down too. Don't you just hate layovers???

Crazy Cohen

Alex brought Cohen up with her this weekend. That kid is really a laugh a minute. He has absolutely NO idea he is little and we are big. He has no problem telling us off if we do something he doesn't like. We went to a Redwood Park one day and after we unbuckled him he was off-to the large slide. And never looked back and I mean he didn't even look to see if we had come along too. He was having a great time with himself. We could have dropped him off and picked him up 2 hours later and he would have been fine. After about 15 minutes we finally called to him so he would know where we were sitting but he never acknowledged us until we left about an hour later.

Sunday he wanted me to lay down with him for his nap (he always wants to lay in my room with me). I fell sound asleep too. I heard some soft sound and thought I'd just peek one eye open and check things out. Cohen was about 1 inch from my face, standing on the ground before me. He scared me to death!! I was NOT expecting to see anyone that close to me.

He loves my pantry. He is in it 24/7 looking for chocolate (or any other sweet). He is his grandmother's child I guess. One day I found him breaking big sticks I have in a floor vase in my room. I wasn't too thrilled and asked him what he was doing. He turned around with my reading glasses on him and said he was Harry Potter and was making a wand so he could go abracadabra! Seriously, I had a laugh fest this weekend. He talks a mile a minute, all the time, even to himself and is hilarious. Love you Cohey!

Observations at 55

When I was 30 I thought 55 was ancient. Not so anymore. I turned 55 today. Here are some of my thoughts about reaching the age of 55.

1. I still think in my head like I'm 30 or 20. I still initially think a new style would look cute on my 30ish body and then I remember I no longer have a 30ish body. It's the pits. I hate the ody you get around age 50 when everything starts to sag and you realize you are definitely your mother.

2. Wrinkles stink. Please pass along any ways to get rid of them.

3. I thought at age 55 I'd be so much more wise, so much more perfect. I still don't put off the "natural man" as much as I thought I'd be doing by now and I am still, too often, an "enemy to God". I still have trouble remembering morning prayers and scripture study is still sometimes a struggle (even though I really love the scriptures)! I really thought I'd be more perfect by now!!

4. I am trying to make healthier food choices. That does not mean no chocolate. I still have chocolate every day, just less. I still love me some McDonald's quarter pounders but I only have one once a month.

5. I hate having to watch what I eat. Until the age of 40, I could just about eat anything I want. I miss those days.

6. There still is never enough hours in a day.

7. I am approaching the age when more and more people you know die. I hate this. I really miss my mom but don't want to join her too soon. I am comforted to know of God's Plan of Salvation.

8. One of the few good things about this age is the opportunity to travel more, which I love.

9. I still am a night owl. I love to stay up late and sleep in till about 8:00 or 9:00. I love a quiet house late at night by myself to read or watch tv.

10. I order fish at a restaurant now instead of steak or prime rib like I did when I was 30 and it's a matter of preference not a health choice.

11. I have become more of a loner. I love quiet time to myself more and don't need to be in a big group like I did when I was younger.

12. I really do love my job as a nurse in the endoscopy department and probably would get bored if I didn't work at all. Every other week is perfect. I am so glad I went back to school when Alex went to preschool.

13. My favorite time of year is still Trinity Lake time.

14. My husband really is my best friend. (My daughters are right there also). As annoying as he can sometimes be, he is funny and fun to be with and being empty nesters is okay most of the time (except when I get crazy wanting to hold and kiss a granchild). I am amazed how patient he is with my annoying habits and irritations because he is not known for his patience.

15. Family is everything. My children, their spouses and my granchildren are my life. I crave being with them, treasure them and love them with all my heart. I also love the family I was born into and Lee's family.

16. The Gospel of Jesus Christ has enriched my life, made my joys more wonderful, my sorrows bearable and been a rock and guide in my life. I cannot imagine my life without it.

17. I've made pretty good choices and been very blessed. There is not much I would change about my life.

p.s. It gets harder and harder to find pictures of yourself you would publish!

Deja Vu

One of the activities we did when our kids were young was to pack them all up along with numerous relatives who used to live in the area, hot dogs, potato salad and sodas and head to the beach. After talking about doing that again numerous times, we finally did this weekend when Kelly and Jody and kids and Alex came to visit. What a sweet experience it was to see Ammon and Cohen loving the beach experience and roasting hot dogs and marshmallows by the fire. They loved it and so did we. I can't believe it was so many years ago when we did it with Chris, Kasey, Kelly Lindsey and Alex. Time goes by way too fast. We will be doing this a lot more in the future when grandkids come to visit. Isn't it amazing how good a hot dog tastes when you roast it on a stick?

Thanks for coming this weekend family and celebrating my birthday early. We had Chicken Garlic Pasta and German Chocolate Cake, two of my favorite things. It was a great weekend complete with gopher hunting and hide and seek!