| As we have been Roaming through Retirement we have created some rituals, which we like to call "RICH--U-ALL." This includes dividing our time staying fit, sightseeing, spending quality time with friends and family in the USA, Canada and Mexico. Occasionally we get the rare opportunity to get all of our kids and grandkids together. This picture was taken during Dakota's and Sierra's birthday. Escaping winter for the past five years has been a nice side benefit of our rich-u-all--in fact we flew to Mexico a couple days after this picture was taken. Keep us informed by clicking on the email link Larry and Glorine. | ||
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| While in Vancouver, we visited Carolyn Johns (left) at her apartment overlooking downtown Vancouver. What a splendid view. Marilyn Mitchell has a home in White Rock, which is on the USA/Canadian border and she was free to join us for a wonderful meal and a great visit. We all met in Ajijic. | Later that week we caught up with Anna Hanson, who was gracious enough to let us use her home while she was biking in eastern Canada. Here we are touring Lake Alice Park near Squamish, which is halfway between Vancouver and Mt Whistler. It was cloudy but turned out to be another wonderful adventure. | |
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| Strolling through the rain forest where the trees were covered with green moss on all sides was spectacular. The on again - off again mist added to the journey. | Here we are at Shannon Falls Provincial Park at the base of BC's third-highest waterfall (1,105 feet tall). We did not know if it was misting or was the over spray from the waterfall. | |
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| We spent Canadian Thanksgiving at Marilyn and Brian's home in White Rock. Here we are touring one of the many big fishing boat marinas, most of which sell their catch right off the back of their boats. | We dined out one night at one of the many restaurants that line Marine Drive, which runs parallel to the ocean and provides a wonderful vista to the islands and sea traffic. What a fun night we had catching up with good friends. | |
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| Canadian Thanksgiving is much like what we Americans celebrate a month and half later. Turkey is the centerpiece, with potatoes, and all the trimmings. Here we are joined by neighbors of Brian and Marilyn. We have lots to be thankful for. | After a great Thanksgiving weekend, we got the RV winterized and prepped for the winter. Thanks to Larry's cousin, Jerry, we are storing the RV next to his storage shed south of Seattle. He had not completed this portion of the shed, so we bought a tarp to keep the rain out. Here is Larry and Jerry celebrating the fact we got it covered before it started raining. | |
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| From Jerry's house, it was a three day drive to Southern California for a two week stay at Carmen's. Here is Mt Shasta located in Northern California. At 14,179 feet, it was a part of our windshield view for some 100 miles or so. | Once in Fullerton, we jumped in with both feet to help out with the grandkids. Carmen was at a conference in Boston, which meant 24 hour care. But we only get to be with them three or four times a year so it was fun. | |
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| What is California without beaches? So off to the beach we went to build (and destroy) sand castles, bury one another in the sand, then try to rinse off all the sand in the cold California ocean. | Saturdays are YMCA days for the kids, and on this particular Sunday it was DADs day with the kids. Area YMCA clubs got together at this park to have kids participate in competitive events. Everyone went home as a winner by receiving a participation metal. Sierra also took home a third place metal for one events. | |
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| School carnival (wow what memories that brings back for us). This is at Dakota's school. Here Sierra had her hair colored red and all the kids went home with trinkets. | We planned a three day get-away-trip to the mountains east of San Diego, near Julian, known for its apple orchards. It was the end of the season and the pickings were limited, but Dakota found a nice round plump apple, thanks to a lift from Mom. | |
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| Here is Carmen and Sierra posing by some well-dressed scare crows. Sierra is sporting Nana's hat, primarily to keep the sun out of her eyes. | Here is something the kids don't see every day, a painted stallion. It was as calm and gentle as any horse could be. It especially liked the apples the kids fed him. | |
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| The place we rented called the Labyrinth in the Oaks was a three bedroom house on about five acres and it was extremely kid friendly with a wonderful playground. The kids loved it. | Inside, the house was filled with lots of unique amenities, like this Karaoke machine. It also had a butter churn and an ice cream maker - quite a unique experience and a joy for all of us to play inside and out. | |
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| The kids had their own chairs and picnic table. Everyone had a wonderful time. Now where is the FOOD? | At about this same time Conan O'Brian, was renting out his Burbank studio to some lucky contestant. To our amazement, our friends from Ajijic, Lil Lewis, Linda Howard and Michelle Brenner won and here they are posing with one of Conan's guests--Tom Selleck. | |
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| On October 25th it was Sierra's fourth birthday. One of Carmen and Mike's tradition is to serve the birthday child breakfast in bed. Waffles, juice and a cup of milk--hmmm. | Later that day, we had Sierra all to our own. We asked her where she wanted to have brunch and she chose Monkey Business, a cute little restaurant with a great breakfasts. Doesn't she have an infectious smile. | |
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| Chucky Cheese is Sierra's favorite place to go to, especially on her birthday. So the whole family packed up and spent several hours enjoying the games. | On October 28th it was Dakota's happy sixth birthday. This was a school day, so breakfast in bed came mighty early. Pancakes, juice and a cup of milk--hmmm. | |
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| Dakota is taking piano lessons and practices nearly every morning. Larry was lucky and got to take her to piano lessons one afternoon and listen in as she learned new music. | Who could not resist giving little Hunter a treat, rather than a trick. Here he is at Carmen's work (the college) at their annual Halloween party for the kids of faculty and students. | |
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| The big birthday party is about to begin. The table is all decked out with pumpkin carvings, spider web cake, witches fingers and much more. | Here is Mike and Craig, enjoying their time together. Craig, Dennis, Clara and Chase flew in from Minnesota to California to help celebrate the girls' birthdays. | |
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| Clara brought her Halloween outfit for the big party. Here she is in her lady bug outfit. And as cute as a button. | Here is Spiderman (Chase). Looks like he is trying to figure out who to save! | |
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| Here is Sleeping Beauty (Carmen) posing with her sister Denise. They are typically running around managing activities that it is hard to capture a picture of them together. | Carmen planned several events to keep the kids entertained throughout the day. | |
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| Looks like Sierra is enjoying her gifts. | And just what Miss reader wanted--more books. Dakota loves to read, so it is just what the doctor ordered. | |
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| The most fun event for the kids was to have people drag them in this plastic sheet, from the back of the yard to the front and back again. Here Nana and Papa are taking their turn to pull. One time was enough. | And the winner for the furthest travelers are Mike and Carmen's friends. They are from Italy and planned their winter vacation around the girls' birthday. | |
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| The boys spent some alone time reminiscing about the fun day they had. Maybe they are talking about Papa's old doll that Hunter inherited. That doll is over 60 years old and has seen many moments with nearly all of Larry's nieces and nephews. | It is time to say good night and good bye. Clara is leaving bright and early the next morning, so one more picture of them all lined up in a row--Dakota, Clara, and Sierra. And within a couple of days of this picture we were on a plane to Mexico. What a wonderful time October was! | |
October's web page includes October 1 through October 31.
