Christmas Fun!

We're enjoying mild though slippery walking weather here. Relaxing by the fire is top of our list. We've had some great walks, coffee at the Choco Cafe, and we're heading out to see Blindside today. Lots of fun! We had a wonderful dinner at Pete's house last night and several rounds of Rummikub.

Thanksgiving blessings....

We had a wonderful family gathering at Ellen and A.J.'s. They outdid themselves hosting us, feeding us, and keeping us all happy! Here's a few snapshots of our fun times.

Holy Cow!

John, this one's for you!

Autumn Fun!

Girls Day Out

Fernwood was the happening place today! We enjoyed a fun collection of trains and fairy tale houses in the middle of a complex structure made of tree bark, etc.

Celebrating Our Life!

This weekend was an explosion of fun times! Praise God for all the ways he's pouring out His love on us!

Portland/Vancouver Experience!

We had an awesome weekend celebrating the Lord and all the wonderful ways He has loved all of us! It was so great to be a part of the historic event of Andrew (East, NOVA branch) wedded to Jenny (West) drawing the whole POP closer together! We had a great time with our traveling buddies Mary and Gloria. Jeannie was a great tour guide! Columbia River Gorge, Washington Park Rose Garden, etc. etc. It was amazing!

Rainy Day in South Haven

Kiplink, kaplank, kuplunk!

Happy Day!

August 1991. What a great celebration of Mom and Dad's 40 years together. What a privilege to gather with their friends and all the relatives! All the grandkids had their part in honoring their grandparents. Thank you Lord for this great memory!

Peter takes off....

Here is a slide show of Pete Pete walking! He is one happy boy!

Grandma Visit

I'm busy keeping up with all the fun! I'm still getting to know these three little people.

They have quite the imaginations. Today we were camping. I explained all about making a camp fire and sleeping inside a tent. Soon we had a living room full of pillows and a camp fire piled with books!

And they imitate. If one gets on the swim suit the other follow "suit". If one wants a drink you can be sure the other will need one also. Peter sits quietly watching. Soon enough he'll be part of the fray!

Other Adventures and Side Trips

We enjoyed visiting with all our cousins in Galway. An overnight in Connemara was an unexpected treat as our cousin Marie spontaneously offered to accompany us and booked us in at the hotel in Renvyle. She took us to hidden nooks and crannies where we enjoyed picturesque countryside, unusual cottages and lots of interesting people. We had fabulous meals at the hotel. Dan and Mike got to play a round of coastal golf. They came back with great excuses of the wind carrying off their drives!

We spent our days between Galway and Dingle in Ennis with Catherine. In addition to a great visit with my cousin Maeve we had a glorious day hiking around the Burreen. Our evenings were filled with Irish music and dance!

Then after Dingle we headed for Cork which was overwhelming after the old country days in Dingle! We had a wild night in the city but the next day Catherine wowed us with the beauty of the southern coast. We had fabulous weather in Kinsale and we learned a great deal of Irish history as we toured the Charles Fort. Our meal on the patio at “Fishy Fishy” was a leisurely feast of fresh Hake, Sea Bass and Scampi and lovely desserts! Then we walked the cliffs of “Old Head” and sat to gaze at waves, birds, butterflies and bees. Catherine then treated us to “tea” at her new location and topped the evening off with “Crunchie” bars!

Galway Visit

Our trip started out with an unexpected tour of New York! Because of bad weather our plane was delayed and Mike had to fly off without us. Our friend's daughter picked us up in NY and let us crash at her place! The next day she and her boyfriend gave us a great tour and we took the subway to the airport. Our flight went very smoothly and we arrived well rested.

We found Mike and drove from Dublin to Galway via Clonmacnoise Abbey which is a beautiful spot on the Shannon. We arrrived at the Dolan's house without a hitch. It is now called "Castlefield House" because of the field on the property that has the ruins of a castle. The field next to the house is filled with sheep so were greeted with much baaing! It was our most rainy day so far but we were cheered up with a rainbow that evening.

We had a good time with our cousins who have very busy lives and flat screen T.V.'s! The three Mannion kids, Niamh, Eimear, and John are all teachers and all speak proficient Irish. In fact John teaches at an Irish speaking school.

We went into the Skehana village and bought a few supplies at the Diamond's store. The Diamond's have had a store in the village for many years and now they have a new up to date place. One afternoon we thoroughly enjoyed a visit with the neighbor Sonny Killarney and a walk to the bog--lots of good memories of our mother as she loved the bog. (Today is the 10th anniversary of mom's death. We celebrated by having a mass said in Dingle this morning.)

Day in Dingle

We had a great day in Ballyferriter yesterday. The weather was superb! Dan golfed and Mike and I walked a little of the Dingle Way. It was brilliant. Then we had the family over for tea and a little "sup".

Cheers, Anne

Happy Mother's Day

I'm having an awesome Mother's Day. Lilly spent the night with us last night which was a real treat. She enjoyed a big walk with us along the river. We saw lots of really big turtles sunning themselves. Then she had a big swing at the park. The highlight for Lilly was sleeping in our "big girl bed".

Today Liz, Pete and Meg showed up with with a wonderful brunch which we enjoyed on the back porch. Then Liz, Dan and I went for a long walk and now we stretched out relaxing.

Easter and more!

Happy Easter to all. We had a glorious day here! Lots of family, friends and sunshine! Here are pictures of our recent happenings: Dan and drove to Indy to celebrate with Trish, then Trish came for a quick visit to the Bend, and then our Easter celebration. In the middle of all these festivities Dan surrendered his truck (it was recalled and demolished) and shopped and bought a new one!

Happy St. Pat's

Lilly had a fun time frosting shamrock cookies and singing and dancing at Fiddler's Hearth. She was quite taken with the Irish step dancer at the Hearth and she gave it a try!

Lots of love,
Anne

An amazing thought....

Notice the animal foot prints--must have been a squirrel.

From Rooftops

My neighbor Anne often has awesome insights. Yesterday she said she saw the snow on the roof and thought how no human could shovel it up there so perfectly. The perfection of the snow laying up there was something that only God could do!

It looks like our roof is iced--the snow is lying so smoothly!

From Rooftops

And then here's the cluster of roofs behind our house....

From Rooftops

Celebrating Pete!

We had a fun dinner with Lilly, Pete and Meg. Lilly really enjoyed our Mardi Gras decorations.
We're still shoveling snow and keeping the home fire burning! Most mornings Dan and I have forged through the snow to walk around the river. This morning the snow was falling and it was beautiful.

Double the fun!

Dan and I had a super time in CA. We enjoyed lots of time with my aunt and uncle and cousins. We were able to take the ferry to Sausalito which is Dan's favorite outing in the city!

Our friends, Tony and Nancy, joined us for a relaxing trip to the Napa and Somona valleys. They celebrated their 37th anniversary with all of us! We enjoyed meeting up with our friend, Kevin, who gave us a great tour of his favorite winery. We had lunch at our friend Denise's brother's restaurant in Yountville. The next day we had a wonderful outing to the Jack London State Park.

Then we returned to the city to enjoy a walk together to Baker's Beach for the sunset. At Tony's request Mike gave us an attic concert including explanation of the bagpipes and some history.

Grandpa!!!!

Grandpa videos

Two years ago this Sunday my dad died. Here is a video of him painting on the 3rd story of his Victorian style San Francisco house. Dad never worked without a song on his lips! Praise God for his full life of love and service. He enjoyed every day of life.
(Click on the photo and then click on it when it appears again.)

More Christmas Fun!

What fun we had together! So great to have so much time to play, share meals, etc. We enjoyed getting to see many old friends who came in for Sean and Gretchen's wedding. Great to have such a full life!