I Love a Parade

The annual Route 66 Parade here in Duarte is always a lot of fun. This year, with my being Mayor, I decided to try out a T3 scooter, owned by the Sheriff's Department, in the parade. It was a lot of fun to zoom around on and I felt like I got to see more of the people. James and Gavin are shown here on Route 66 before the parade began.
The Grand Marshall this year was a young man, 14, named Jordan Romero (center). He is the youngest person to ever climb Mt. Everest. He did that with his family this past year. He has summited all of the highest peaks on each continent except Antarctica and will be attempting to summit that mountain, Vinson Massif, this coming January.
Ellie and Margaret rode the T3 also on the parade route.
Here was the car that Brad, Ellie, Gavin and Margaret (part of the time) rode in for the parade. It was a 51 Chevy convertible.
I took this picture from the T3 scooter. The kids liked riding in the parade and seemed to enjoy waving at all of the people. The next day after the parade, Gavin wanted to know if they could ride in a parade that day too. Have to wait till next year, Gavin.

The Stay- Cation

Everybody was a little bit sad that we didn't get any camping in this summer so we decided that a campout in the backyard would be pretty "rural" . Hotdogs and s'mores were cooked over the fire pit in the backyard, followed by an "outdoor" movie complete with popcorn. Above 3 of the kids are shown waiting for breakfast after a night of camping.
There was reading of stories before the kids bedded down for the night in the cabin tent.
Ellie had her flashlight that she used that night.
Gavin was warm in his sleeping bag and he too had his own flashlight.
A few days later, after a picnic at Encanto Park with cousins and Great Grammie and Grampie, the kids got a bath in the big bathtub. . .and they had a great time.

Evan with New Companion

When Evan was transferred the last part of August, he was give a new companion, Elder Amasio, and coincidentally he is from Anaheim. Elder Amasio is Tongan. Evan said he really enjoys talking with Elder Amasio about California and that he is a great companion. Evan said that he will most likely be here in San Pedro for about 6 months. . .which he is fine with him because he really likes this city, surrounded by a lot of agriculture. Also, San Pedro is located on the Parana River.

The Sun Comes Out

After the first two days of fog at Morro Bay, we finally had a beautiful day and went out on the sand spit down near Montana de Oro. Of course, Fums headed straight for the water. Auntie Lana saved him before he got totally wet.
As we were sitting having "happy hour" on the sand spit, we noticed a caterpillar. We thought we had put him far enough away from the kids so they wouldn't step on him accidentally. Then when Fums was walking down to the water, we noticed that someone had hitched a ride behind his ear. . .and Fums was totally unaware of it.
Here we all are having "happy hour" on the sand spit.
James and Ellie walked down to the water to test the waves.
After a day at the beach, the weather was so beautiful that we had dinner out on the deck of the house. Following dinner, we hiked Blacks Hill and watch sunset. A great weekend!!

Morro Bay to Beat the Heat

We all decided to get out of LA and the 90 degree weather. Morro Bay did not fail us. We have had foggy weather the whole time. In the picture above, we walked along Morro Strand in the fog.
One day we drove up over the Irish Hills and looked back at the fog that was shrouding Morro Bay.
James, Ster, Steve and Alana went on the tour of Hearst Castle while Brad and I watched Ellie and Ethan. We went to San Simeon Beach and the kids played in the sand by the San Simeon pier.
What's a trip to Morro Bay without a trip to Bali's frozen yogurt in SLO!? Cousin Allison joined us for our dessert and dinner before she heads out for Denver.

Evan in San Pedro

This past week Evan was transferred from the "big city" of Buenos Aires. He is about 3 hours away by bus due west of Buenos Aires in a city called San Pedro. It is located on the Parana River and is a vacation area for people from Rosario and Buenos Aires. He said it reminds him a bit of San Luis Obispo in that it is a smaller city surrounded by a large agricultural area. He likes his new companion, Elder Amasio, who is from Anaheim, CA. Evan said that he expects to be in this area for approximately 6 months. Pictured above is a new convert with Evan in his new city.