OK! I’m back! I know you’ve missed me because of all the emails I’ve received wondering where I went. I read them all, both of them! I’ve been collecting things to write about, but it is difficult since I lead such an uninteresting life. Here it is - for what it’s worth - enjoy.
We last visited back in mid May. Since then WonderMom and I have been kept busy by our children, their children, my family in Upstate, some friends, and some memories.
June began with Cutie Pie’s birthday #4, and we had a small family party for her here at the ranch. She had been counting the days, and was thrilled when it finally got here. WonderMom made her a beach cover for all of the swimming she planned for the summer - if it ever warmed up!
Shortly after that, we had the annual swarming of the prodigal children as Shimmy, Sysguy, Thing 1, and Thing 2 invaded from the west, while Socket, Mistletoe, and Pickle invaded from the east. Cricket, Paco, Scooter, Sweetie, and Cutie were already here. It was a grand affair, and we loved seeing them all together again.
Our first adventure was the newly remodelled zoo with a special Africa exhibit. We saw the lions, tigers and ... giraffes (no bears in Africa)!
Socket and family couldn’t stay for very long, but we did have a good visit with them, and Pickle got to see and play with her cousins for the first time in 2 years.
Shimmy, Cricket and I took Scooter and Thing 1 to the local air show in mid July. I always enjoy air shows, especially with the Thunderbirds on show, but the two kids could care less and didn’t like the noise! We’ll leave them home next time!
Shimmy and family retired to Cricket’s home where there is more room for five rambunksious kids to create havoc without driving the ‘old folks’ nuts. From there they went on other adventures such as Fun City in Iowa, and swimming in the local pond.
We had a few dinners here, one with my sisters from Upstate who came to see our seldom seen kids. I fixed some bodacious ribs on the grill for that meal, and a nice leg of lamb on the grill for another. We mostly ate out other than that so WonderMom didn’t have to make any huge meals this year - she made plenty of smaller ones though!
After the kids all went back home, things settled down a little, WonderMom and I went Upstate for a wedding reception (the wedding was 2 weeks earlier in Las Vegas) and reacquaint ourselves with some of my paternal aunts, uncle, and 1st and 2nd cousins. It was a nice party and it was good to see the family again (I’m the prodigal from that side of the family!)
In between family activities, I put on a couple of presentations for the local senior center computer club; one on the iPod Touch, and one on Moving video tapes to DVDs. WonderMom hasn’t been sewing so much this summer; she’s been too busy reading. She must have read 20 books so far. When she discovered she could order books from any library in the state on-line thru our local library, she was in literary heaven
This past weekend was kind of the grand finale for our summer. We attended my 50 year high school class reunion. It’s hard to believe it has been that long, but it must be true because there were a lot of old people there. Sunday morning we attended a breakfast and tour of the high school. This was a real treat, because it is the first time WonderMom has seen the building close up and inside. What makes it special is that the building is on the national historical register. It was built in 1934 as a WPA project. The design is Art Deco and the brickwork is fabulous. It was great to walk down those halls again.
We had a few dinners here, one with my sisters from Upstate who came to see our seldom seen kids. I fixed some bodacious ribs on the grill for that meal, and a nice leg of lamb on the grill for another. We mostly ate out other than that so WonderMom didn’t have to make any huge meals this year - she made plenty of smaller ones though!
After the kids all went back home, things settled down a little, WonderMom and I went Upstate for a wedding reception (the wedding was 2 weeks earlier in Las Vegas) and reacquaint ourselves with some of my paternal aunts, uncle, and 1st and 2nd cousins. It was a nice party and it was good to see the family again (I’m the prodigal from that side of the family!)
In between family activities, I put on a couple of presentations for the local senior center computer club; one on the iPod Touch, and one on Moving video tapes to DVDs. WonderMom hasn’t been sewing so much this summer; she’s been too busy reading. She must have read 20 books so far. When she discovered she could order books from any library in the state on-line thru our local library, she was in literary heaven
This past weekend was kind of the grand finale for our summer. We attended my 50 year high school class reunion. It’s hard to believe it has been that long, but it must be true because there were a lot of old people there. Sunday morning we attended a breakfast and tour of the high school. This was a real treat, because it is the first time WonderMom has seen the building close up and inside. What makes it special is that the building is on the national historical register. It was built in 1934 as a WPA project. The design is Art Deco and the brickwork is fabulous. It was great to walk down those halls again.
The classic main entrance
Statues at the entrance
The entryway frescoes painted in 1936 - restored in 1987
Well that’s been our summer here at the ranch. Looking forward to an equally busy fall wihat with grandkids’ school programs, and birthdays coming up. I’ll try to do better on keeping up so my 2 fans have something new to read - maybe.
