Christmas and New Year Activities

We did a lot this Christmas break, starting with making Christmas cookies. Gavin and Ellie did a great job rolling out the cookies (and eating the raw cookie dough).
On Christmas Eve day, we all went down to the Holyland Exhibition and learned about life in the Holyland.
We all went into downtown LA and had lunch at the iconic Philippe's. They have a great French Dip sandwich.
Gavin and Ellie love being with Aunt Erin. All of us got to talk with Uncle Evan in Argentina on his mission. We talked with him for an hour and a half.
All of the kids got new pajamas from Santa Claus for Christmas. Gavin, Elise and Ellie are shown here with their great grandparents, Georgine and Bob, who came here for Christmas (and to get out of the freezing temperatures in Ohio.)
Megster made the cutest gingerbread houses - and we had the most fun decorating them. Thanks for giving us a new activity for Christmas, Megster.
After Christmas, we all took a quick trip to Morro Bay - and went out to the rock to see "ginormous" waves breaking over the jetty. We also visited Big Sur and Hearst Castle.
Alana and Margaret went kayaking on the bay on one of the beautiful days at Morro Bay. The otters came within about 20 feet of the kayak.
On New Year's Eve, we had the traditional dinner of Chinese food. Cousins and friends all joined us by the fire pit and then we went out on Colorado Boulevard for the New Year's Eve celebration.
The Redlands cousins had a great time celebrating on the parade route on New Year's Eve.
Ellie and Gavin watched the parade on New Year's Day on Colorado Boulevard. Their favorite floats always had airplanes on them.
All four of the kids enjoyed the activity and music at the parade. Thanks to Mardene for saving us the seats.

The Mayor's Moments

The 2nd meeting in November is when newly elected officials take the Oath of Office in Duarte. The City Clerk is administering the oath, and then I was selected as Mayor by my colleagues on the city council. It is my 4th time as mayor, and I will serve for a year. Then I will finish the remainder of the four-year term as a councilmember. We rotate the job annually.
Many of my family members and friends were there at the meeting for the Oath of Office and my installation as mayor. Thanks to all of them for help with my election. . .I couldn't have done it without them.

My first official act as Mayor was to switch the lights on the 50 foot live Christmas tree in our city. Ellie and Gavin helped, as did about 25 other little children in Duarte. It was a great evening.

Thanksgiving at Morro Bay

Thanksgiving at Morro Bay this year was a considerably smaller group than in previous years. Grammie and Grampie had 5 of their grandchildren to celebrate this year. Jim and Sue had all three girls there (Tat from Hawaii and Ne and Tica from Chicago). Dan and Helen had Erin and Allison to share the holiday with (Jeannie was out to sea off the coast of Florida on the Harriet Lane). Allison invited a friend from Cal Poly, Ilana, who was not able to return to her home for the break.
While the days were warm, the nights cooled off quickly. We enjoyed happy hour around the warmth of the fire pit while we watched the sunset over the bay from the new front deck. Everyone helped in preparing the Thanksgiving feast, with several new dishes added this year. Of course we all enjoyed the delicious smoked turkey - thanks to Grampie!
With the crisp autumn weather, we took a tour of Cass Winery, in Paso Robles. Allison has been working there for several months. We enjoyed learning more about the different grapes and wines that come from this region of California.
We hope everyone enjoyed spending time with family during this beautiful time of the year. Our time on the Central Coast was special.

Thanksgiving in Utah

We met Alana and Ian in Utah and had our smallest number of people for Thanksgiving that I can remember. Evan is at the Mission Training Center and leaving for Argentina on December 14. In this picture, we are on the balcony of the townhouse with BYU and the MTC in the background, toasting Evan and his mission.
One of the reasons we like spending Thanksgiving in Utah is that it starts out the Christmas season so appropriately - with shopping early in the cold on Black Friday and then going up to Temple Square to watch them switch on the hundreds of thousands of lights. Pictured above is the Assembly Hall.
We had Belgian waffles at a place near Temple Square that has the best Belgian waffles we have had since Brussels. We also attended the Christensen wedding reception, that had an incredibly beautifully decorated ward building - it felt like being in a home. It was nice to see the whole Christensen family again and also to be able to see the Warnick family. We love Utah but will be glad to be back in CA this afternoon.

Evan at the Mission Training Center

Evan sent pictures of life in the Mission Training Center in Provo. He says the work is hard but that his Spanish is improving quickly.
Evan is pictured here with his two companions. One is from Santaquin, Utah and the other is from Bountiful, Utah.
This is his District at the Mission Training Center.
This is the Provo Temple, located right across the street from the Mission Training Center. I think Evan got particularly homesick when the fall days were this beautiful and he could hear the cheering for the BYU football games - and he wasn't able to go to them. Just wait two years and he'll be back there cheering for his team.
This is Evan's desk in his room. He already has the pictures of family and friends hanging on the bulletin board.

Work (and some relaxing) in Hawaii

Right after my re-election campaign, I flew to Hawaii to do a different kind of work - getting the condo. on North Shore fixed up with a new bathroom and some painting. My parents flew over first with Helen and then I joined them. We made a lot of trips to Home Depot and Lowes and made some important decisions. Tat joined us for a good part of the time up on North Shore.
We took an afternoon off and went to the beach in the afternoon. The waves were pretty big at Shark's Cove.
All during the election campaign one of the things that kept me going was the thought of sitting in the hammock at Turtle Bay and reading Smithsonian magazine. . .I finally got to do it for a couple of hours and it was just as great as I remembered.
My parents and I would take a daily walk around Turtle Bay every evening for exercise. It was beautiful to watch the waves rolling in.

Can't Wait to See You in Two Years, Evan

Here are the last pictures as we dropped Evan off at the Mission Training Center in Provo. He is shown here with Gavin, giving him a last hug. It really helped to have Alana and Megan at the MTC to say goodbye to him. It was pretty tough to do. . .sending him off for two years to serve the good people of Argentina.
Here Evan and I are on the grounds of the Provo Temple. He looked very handsome in his suit. I will miss his smile and willingness to go places with me.
We got together with friends and family in California and Utah so that they could say goodbye to Evan. Valerie and Allyson Reeves joined us, as well as Nate and Annie to talk about his mission. Evan and Valerie and Allyson have been good friends since they were old enough to run around and play together when they were two years old.
Evan wanted feijoada (black beans and rice) for one of his last dinners with the family. Thanks to Megster for making it for him.
Cousins, Allison and Erin, came for a last dessert at Bali's. Evan will miss all of the family and friends that have been so supportive of him over the last many years. Good luck, Evan. We love you.

Morro Bay Memories

They look like rodeo cowboys but in reality they are Evan and Gavin riding the "ponies" at F.McClintock's Restaurant. Evan wanted to go there one last time before going to Argentina on his mission.
As was usual, the waiter poured water into Ian's glass on his head, blindfolded. There wasn't even too much water spilled on his head.

We went to the La Familia Pumpkin Patch and picked out our pumpkins for Halloween. The little kids got to see the animals on the farm and went through the corn maze.

Gavin and Lisi got to ride a "bale of hay" horse at the pumpkin patch.

Interesting InfoGraphic

Hey there. I saw this infographic on Mint.com the other day and thought it was pretty interesting. I was aware of most of it, but there were some new things to me. Mint.com usually has interesting little tidbits like this, so check them out. They are also and awesome way to track your finances, we have been using them for over a year now and love it! Click on the graphic to see a larger more readable version.

Happy 19th Birthday, Evan

What better way to spend your 19th birthday than at Disneyland with your nieces and nephews! That is what Evan wanted to do, 3 weeks before going to Buenos Aires on his mission. Gavin and Elise went on the carousel with Uncle and liked the slower pace of the ride.
We got to see Hillary Miller doing her job for Disney. She is doing an externship with them for her degree at BYU. . .Disney is lucky to have a talented and dedicated person like her working with them.
Disneyland was decorated for Halloween in creative Disney style.
Here is the group,waiting to go on the ride at Splash Mountain. Ster's sister, Ashley, and her two children, Brooklyn and Liam, came to Disneyland with us. Ellie and Ethan enjoyed going on the Winnie the Pooh ride, but Ellie really liked the Matterhorn the best.
At the end of the evening, Disneyland had fireworks and a spooky Halloween program that was pretty spectacular. Gavin had just about had it and relaxed on Uncle's shoulders during the fireworks.

Fun (and some Home Depot "work") at Morro Bay

We went to Home Depot for some supplies and Gavin and Ellie got to do a kids project.
We took a walk to the Elfin Forest - it was a gorgeous day.

Ellie and Gavin enjoyed lunch out on the deck.

Uncle Evan played with the kids out on the beach. Ellie loved doing the "jump" picture.

Buy me some m'lade and Cracker Jack. . .

We all went to the Dodger Game the other night to watch the Dodgers beat the Diamondbacks, 4 - 2. Ed, Thera, John, Stephanie, and Nicholas came out for a dinner of Dodger dogs at our house, with Grammie and Grampie. And then we took off for the game. Gavin turned out to be quite a Dodger fan - or at least a fan of the food at the Dodger games. He is pictured above with his favorite - frozen lemonade (or as he calls it, m'lade).
We had great seats and came close to almost catching a ball.
Gavin and Aunt Thera found a #1 fan finger mit - Gavin really loved his first major league game.

Monticello, Williamsburg, North Carolina and Coast Guard

We visited Jefferson's home, Monticello. It always amazes me that Jefferson accomplished so much in his life. What a different country we would have if it hadn't been for this great man. Naturally, Allison and Evan had to do a "jump picture".
Next it was onto Williamsburg, where Evan and I got "stuck" in the stocks.
North Carolina was # 34 for Allison and #48 for Evan. Who will win the "states race?" We went to see Kitty Hawk and the Outer Banks. What a great place to vacation.
We all joined Jeannie for dinner aboard the CGC Harriet Lane. Then she took us on a tour of the vessel. What a great trip to the East Coast!