We've seen some beautiful places, had a lot of great experiences but all that pales when I think of the joy it's been to spend time with our California family.Above is a picture of their new home in Mill Valley, CA.Let me introduce you to the family: Below is Karen, our daughter. Doesn't she look like a California girl?
Mac, our son-in-law-- a wonderful husband, father, and Doctor. The dirty face came from a day of working in the back yard with Lee. He also turned out to be very good with the stump- grinder,
Next we have Mike -- the great pancake flipper!
Then there's Luke the ever ready battery- that just keeps going and going.
Below is Sporty, the beloved family dog a golden lab, who's obsessed with playing ball and getting lots of love.
This picture was taken from the inn where Mac and Karen were married.
Our first week-end there the boys and Mac were away so we spent a lot of time just catching up with Karen. We had a lovely breakfast out at a place called Mama's. We took the dogs on long walks and Karen showed us around the neighborhood.After the crew returned we began to plan our projects. Lee would tear out and cut down all the over grown vegetation in the backyard. He would then put in 2 redwood tie landscape garden boxes and build a pathway over the culvert that runs the length of their backyard. We wanted to open up visibility to the lovely hill beyond. Everything is now prepared for replanting. Karen and Mac want to put in a vegetable garden, sod one section, and put in some fruit trees.
Below is a picture of the summit meeting that started the entire project.
The first week of the project Karen and I were Lee's laborers. We spent our days hauling things from the backyard down the hill in the front yard to the dumpster. We filled 2 20 yard dumpsters.
One Saturday all the boys worked in the backyard and Karen and I made sticky buns. It was great to spend time cooking with Karen. I was able to share with her some of my favorite dishes and I discovered that Karen is a great cook!
The picture above shows the 2 redwood tie garden boxes and the picture below shows what Mac refers to as the sole survivor of all the uprooting.
We did save the rose garden below. Once it is properly pruned and watered it will be beautiful.
The following week Karen and I got serious about our projects. Mac and Karen moved in last August and all the walls in the house were still white so Karen and I wanted to add color and personalize it. We started with the dining-room and picked a color called Thyme a real pretty sage color. It picks up the green in the oriental carpet in the room. The next day was spent taping the hallway, kitchen, family room. We painted those rooms Indian Corn a real nice gold shade. The final phase of our project was to paint the statement wall in the game room. We selected a paint that matched the pool table top. The colors are warm,colorful, and entirely washable--very important with 2 boys.
The trail to the theater was beautiful. You can see the trail in this picture as well as the views we experienced. Most of the time we were walking under a canopy of trees. The weather was perfect warm but not too warm. We had a nice picnic when we got to the top. After the play the walk back down was just as beautiful as the climb up.
Mac took Friday off and took us to the Delta to go out on the boat. The boys did some serious knee boarding and Mike, Karen and Mac did some surfing. Lee was able to get up and get about 3 minutes in before his elbow gave out. Those 3 minutes will be relived a thousand times over the next 30 years. It's a moment he won't forget.
Just before we left we attended a performance by the band that Mike and Luke are in. They played at 19 Broadway and I believe the name of the band is "Fire on the Mountain". Luke plays keyboard, Mike plays bass, Mike 's friend Tye plays lead guitar, Wes plays the drums and Cora sang for the group. Luke also had a vocal and did a great job. He has a really nice voice and I'm not just saying that because I'm his Nana. It was a great time and we thoroughly enjoyed every minute. After- ward we went out for a nice lunch. A good time was had by all.
The night before we left we went out for a lovely dinner with Mac and Karen in San Francisco. The drive in was beautiful.
My 2 beautiful boys at play
Sporty and Nicky became good friends. The boys and I referred to them as the two bad boys on the prowl.
Sporty had such a good time he jumped in the car to go with us.
Thought for the day: the chief danger in life is that you may take too many precautions
The first week of the project Karen and I were Lee's laborers. We spent our days hauling things from the backyard down the hill in the front yard to the dumpster. We filled 2 20 yard dumpsters.
One Saturday all the boys worked in the backyard and Karen and I made sticky buns. It was great to spend time cooking with Karen. I was able to share with her some of my favorite dishes and I discovered that Karen is a great cook!
The picture above shows the 2 redwood tie garden boxes and the picture below shows what Mac refers to as the sole survivor of all the uprooting.
We did save the rose garden below. Once it is properly pruned and watered it will be beautiful.
The following week Karen and I got serious about our projects. Mac and Karen moved in last August and all the walls in the house were still white so Karen and I wanted to add color and personalize it. We started with the dining-room and picked a color called Thyme a real pretty sage color. It picks up the green in the oriental carpet in the room. The next day was spent taping the hallway, kitchen, family room. We painted those rooms Indian Corn a real nice gold shade. The final phase of our project was to paint the statement wall in the game room. We selected a paint that matched the pool table top. The colors are warm,colorful, and entirely washable--very important with 2 boys.The pictures above are the rooms we painted.
Sunday we hiked up a near by mountain to the Mountain Play theater. The play we saw was "Man of La Mancha". The play was excellent and the music great. It's about a 2 1/2 hour hike up to the theater. The views along the way are phenomenal.
After a week at Karen's we were in good shape for the hike because they have a built in stair-master at their house. It is 28 steps up to the front door, 30 steps from the garage to the family room, and 26 to the second floor. So you see we were getting lots of exercise.
The trail to the theater was beautiful. You can see the trail in this picture as well as the views we experienced. Most of the time we were walking under a canopy of trees. The weather was perfect warm but not too warm. We had a nice picnic when we got to the top. After the play the walk back down was just as beautiful as the climb up.
Mac took Friday off and took us to the Delta to go out on the boat. The boys did some serious knee boarding and Mike, Karen and Mac did some surfing. Lee was able to get up and get about 3 minutes in before his elbow gave out. Those 3 minutes will be relived a thousand times over the next 30 years. It's a moment he won't forget.
Just before we left we attended a performance by the band that Mike and Luke are in. They played at 19 Broadway and I believe the name of the band is "Fire on the Mountain". Luke plays keyboard, Mike plays bass, Mike 's friend Tye plays lead guitar, Wes plays the drums and Cora sang for the group. Luke also had a vocal and did a great job. He has a really nice voice and I'm not just saying that because I'm his Nana. It was a great time and we thoroughly enjoyed every minute. After- ward we went out for a nice lunch. A good time was had by all.
The night before we left we went out for a lovely dinner with Mac and Karen in San Francisco. The drive in was beautiful.
My 2 beautiful boys at play
Sporty and Nicky became good friends. The boys and I referred to them as the two bad boys on the prowl.
Sporty had such a good time he jumped in the car to go with us.I will treasure this time I've had with my California family and I'm sure I will visit my photos often.
I want you boys to remember that "NANA IS YOUR BIGGEST FAN'' !! I love you both very much. Karen I'll miss you terribly and Mac we love you dearly and are so glad you are part of our family.
Always be kind to one another and support one another in all you do. That's what being a family is all about. The world will always beat you down but home should be where you are built up. Love one another always.
I love you all
Good bye for now baby girl
Love, Mom
Thought for the day: the chief danger in life is that you may take too many precautionsAlfred Alder
1 comment:
What fun with your daughter and family! And you accomplished a lot at their home. Beautiful family!!
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