Year end

It's time to reflect and consider all of the things that happened in the last year. Here goes-It started off with a cruise on the Carnival Victory in the southern Caribbean which was wonderful and beautiful and one of the most relaxing vacations I have ever had. I heartily recommend it. February was fun with a big wedding shower here in Tucson for Aaron and Chelsea. So many friends and family who wouldn't be able to come to the wedding were here and blessed them with a wonderful array of gifts. We hosted Chuck's brother Rick and niece Tenney for a few days and that was so much fun. It was a great chance to reconnect and get to know them better. Melissa and Nick surprised mom with a visit here and that was the best. Mom was so surprised and happy. We also got to spend time with Mary, Rick, Steph and Kali which made it perfect. Chuck and I had a fun trip to San Carlos, Mexico for diving with some friends from church-strange weekend because it was punctuated with the deaths of Farah Fawcett and Michael Jackson. Still we did some great dives. In October we traveled to Southern California for Aaron and Chelsea's wedding which was a wonderful treat. The whole experience was wonderful with lots of family on both sides in attendance. I think theirs is a good match. The newlyweds came to Tucson the week before Thanksgiving for an early holiday dinner. Early or not it was a great visit. Christmas was so fun with Melissa here for a week. My friend Jennifer Boone and her lovely family joined us for Christmas dinner, it's always fun to have the little ones around. Melissa, Trinity and I went to see "The Nutcracker" ballet and it was so fun to get dressed up and go to town!! So here I sit on New Year's Eve, champagne in the fridge and illegal fireworks in the closet. I consider that probably the worst thing to happen was Arizona getting destroyed in the Holiday Bowl. That is not important compared to the safety and health of my family and the blessing of salvation. To everyone I wish a blessed new year! Nancy

Things get really crazy sometimes

We have so many things going on right now. Chuck has started a small remodeling on our house. He is taking out the wall between the dining room and family/TV room. This will make a really large area to gather, watch the Super Bowl and have have large family dinners. My sister paid me a nice compliment. She said that my house is the "family house" and she always feels comfortable there. She said it is the way she used to feel when we were visiting our grandparents house. That's prety cool and I know exactly the feeling she is describing. We are two months away from Aaron's wedding so the planning has ramped up. Work is getting really busy and the days have been very long. I'll survive. Hopefully the monsoon storms will come back-weather forcasts are indicating this. Chuck and I are trying to scale back our expenses so we can get some bills paid off, so lots of decisions to make. I will be hosting a baby shower for a work friend in September-planning is in full gear for that. Then after all that the holiday season is looming in the distance. Man I just stressed myself out!

Bad blogger

I have been so bad about putting up anything. It has been a busy month. We had a very fun trip to Phoenix to surprise my sister Mary for her birthday. Number 50 on Jun 14th. She was truly surprise by us but the best surprise was that her son Nick who is in the navy surprised her all the way from Everett, Washington. That was the best. I remember when Aaron did that to me and I was so happy. It is sweet when your kids do something like that. Melissa was in on it and helped set Aaron it up. Stephanie helped her brother set this up. Family-gotta love 'em. We also went diving in San Carlos, Mexico with our friends from church, Ron and Erin Brink. We also made some new friends as well, Larry and Roxane Raley. It was so much fun and we were able to get five dives in over three days. The weather cooperated by giving great dive conditions. It was the best. And we had great food-fresh ocean fish. Mmmmm yum.

Things are okay

We just got through with our small group tonight and it was so great. It is such a special thing when people are comfortable enough to really be candid. The sharing was so good and we helped each other with answers and guidance because our struggles are laid out for everyone to be a part of. I really needed the closeness and encouragement after my very busy day. God knows just what we need. This past Mother's day was special because my sister, Mary and her husband were visiting from Albuquerque-and they brought their granddaughter Kali. My mom was in heaven being with Kali. This picture is a very special one. Mom and Kali look so happy together so it made Mother's day that much better for mom.

I Like Science

When I was young I always wanted one of those chemistry sets and asked for one all the time. I never ever got one. Now I work inside a chemistry set. It is very cool. My official title is Biological Technician and I will have my 3rd anniversary at Ventana Medical Systems May 15th. It is very challenging and educational. I never expected to be doing this. I work in a cell culture lab doing science. It's pretty cool. I'll try to get a picture to share of the lab. Have a great evening and remember that Jesus is Lord!

It's been a long time since we talked

Here I am sitting and trying to think what I should tell you first. I guess a followup on the cruise was that it was beautiful, exciting, romantic and great fun. Diving was the best and here is my favorite picture.

It's me and Crush! We also saw trumpet fish, manta ray's, urchins, eels, lobsters and an amazing assortment of reef fish. Chuck is such a natural at diving and he gives me confidence. I would love to retire so I could dive every day.

We also had a great time at the Valentines Day Dinner that I was lucky enough to put together with some great help from Anna Ciurca and Denise Sullivan. Danny Dunning also helped tremendously with the music. We had a great turnout and everyone said they hoped it was an annual event! That is pretty cool. Here are some shots from that night.

These were my awesome servers and they did such a great job. They also made some good tip money which would probably encourage them to help out next year!!

Here is beautiful Anna bringing in her homemade tamales, which were the main course. They tasted great and were a huge hit. She and her husband also were busy putting up decorations.

We also had a shower for Aaron and Chelsea here in Catalina and the turnout was great. We had 35! A real house full for us. They were honored with a lot a wonderful gifts and a very special cake cooked by a dear friend Etta Benaglio, who was in the room when Aaron was born! The cake was butter pecan and lemon. Beautifully decorated and super tasty.

I love this picture of "the Girls". Lisa had already left or the picture would have been more complete. We were missing Lisa and Christina. I think you are pretty caught up. Hopefully I can stay more on top of this. Have a great spring and maybe next year Wildcats.

This is one relaxed couple, sitting in the lounge, enjoying the guitar music. We really had a great time. I will have more pictures to come.

Sorry it's been a while

Chuck and I had a great trip on our cruise and it has been crazy hectic since we returned. My mom just left for Texas to visit her brother and sister-in-law who are celebrating their 45th anniversary. My aunt Mary Louise has ALS and is not doing too well so mom wanted to see her. It is very sad and yet we are happy for them since all of their children and grandchildren will be there, along with brothers and sisters. As soon as I download pics I will get them posted. Thanks for being patient!

Puerto Rico

Well, we arrived safely in San Juan and after a good nights sleep in our room at Hosteria Del Mar we are sitting in the small hotel cafe, drinking amazing coffee, waiting for our breakfast to come and looking at the ocean which is about 60 feet away!! The music is exotic and soothing and the air is thick with sea and humidity. It is probably 75 degrees but it is so comfortable and I feel very free. We are planning to go to Old San Juan for the all day fiesta and a visit to the Hard Rock Cafe and maybe the Bacardi Factory (tasting anyone). I'll be back in touch.

It's been a while

I am waiting for Chuck to get home so we can pack for our trip to the southern Caribbean. I am so excited and it will be our first cruise. I hope it is as fun as I expect it to be. We will get to dive while we are there and hope to spend several days snorkeling on the beautiful islands we will visit. I just printed our boarding passes and now am trying to relax and get ready. Chuck called earlier and said "Guess what? I am on vacation!" I now exactly how he feels. We will be home on Sunday January 25th. I don't even want to think about coming home right now. I hope to have some wonderful photos and great memories to share. Pray for a safe journey for us.

Poor Chuckles

My poor fella just got back from having surgery on his right knee. The knee was pretty worn out and required a bit extra work but he is home now and Mocha is taking very good care of him.

She was very concerned when he got home and wanted to make sure he was properly cared for. I think she feels that mom and I get in the way. What a silly puppy. He is doing okay now that the percocet has taken effect. Now is the time to get him to agree to a move to Hawaii!!! But seriously the doctor said he should have had this done years ago. (This is where I say I told you so, but I won't)

That dog really thinks she owns us. He better be ready for our cruise to Puerto Rico and The Virgin Islands a week from Friday. I would hate for him to have to stay at home ;-)

Happy New Year everyone.

Hooray for Hollywood!!!

Yep, that's me and Denzel. Woo hoo! He is one of my favorites and I was silly that I found his block. I still have to find his star if he has one. I had so much fun with Chelsea in Hollywood. There were tons of people downtown, but the part that is so fun is the eccentric mix of crazies that walk around down there. And can you say "Cap'n Jack?" I found Johnny Depp! This was so much fun. What was so surprising was how small so many of the stars hands and feet were. My feet were huge compared to Judy Garland. John Wayne wore a mens size 9 !! Considering how tall he was I don't know how he got around. There was a block for all of the Harry Potter stars and it had the logo embedded in it very cool.

Hollywood Boulevard. It is sparkly, shiny, silly, crazy and a very fun place to walk around. It is fake in an expected way. People are bizarre but just what you would figure to see. I think the only place more weird would be Venice Beach. Maybe next time too. I want to go back and spend more time wandering. Maybe next October while we are there for Aaron and Chelsea's wedding.