VA Friends in CA!

After visiting visiting with Grandma for two days, we were on the road again and traveled a few hours to see these friends. Once I heard the word that we were moving to CA, seeing these smiling faces was on the top of my list of things to see in CA;)  We met at our VA church back in 2008. I felt that she was a friend at first sight. From the moment I met her with her first little newborn son wrapped in her arms and her Navy husband by her side, I knew she was a kindred spirit. I wished we could have  more time together in VA, but baby timing made our visits few but sweet. By the time one of us was recovered from birth and ready to face the world again with an infant, the other was newly pregnant and home bound and then the cycle repeated :)

Together we chatted a million miles a minute as we walked to the park.

A seesaw! They still make them?!

E loves the swing and her daddy's silly faces. We are enjoying seeing more of E's personality. She is as adventurous as they come while M was cautious. It is not too far off to say that M just started to enjoy swings.

I adore this silly shot.

It was a joy to see these friends and an all-around perfect day. We originally had different plans, but these were far better as it freed us to catch up on life while walking to the park and hanging out in her living room. As the Navy would have it, her husband was on duty that day. But thankfully N was able to go visit with him on his ship that evening.

After we left their house, we drove into a shopping center. As we rounded the corner, we saw a Chick-Fil-A! I almost shed a tear at a sight I hadn't seen in 100 days; it was as if the earth had shrunk and for five minutes I was back home. An even more funny side note~ While I am going through the drive-thru, my husband decides to make a phone call to someone he hadn't spoken to in a long time. I had not yet ordered and was hit with the conundrum of what to do. Do I shout "An order of number 8, a fruit salad, and a watered-down lemonade" just as his friend picks up, or do I wait in the line and drive around the Chick-Fil-A without ordering at all? I decided to keep quiet and drive around the building and then drive around and order once he got off the phone. Lesson learned.

What I was Given this Christmas

brought tears to my eyes. It was not wrapped with bows and tucked under our tree with my name on a tag, yet it was wrapped with joy and the memory is now tucked dearly in my heart. I had the pleasure of seeing Grandma meet her great grand babies for the first time on Christmas Sunday morning during service at her own church. She had mentioned repeatedly how much it meant to have us worshiping with her at her church.

She lives six hours ( or so Google says) away from us in California. We drove halfway down Saturday night and stayed at an Air Force Base so that we would be able to wake up, drive a few hours and worship with her and God's people Sunday morning.

M is such an affectionate little one. We told her this was another grandma, and she was thrilled to be with her. When we had left for the day, M said, "She is a new Grandma Ajji." It made me smile that she was thinking of her other great grandmother that she had been able to visit with while we crossed the country.

After church supper, we drove a few minutes to Signal Hill. The view was a treat for Grandma just as much as it was for us because although she lived a few minutes away she had never been there.

It was an exceptionally clear view for the Los Angles area.

Being a few hours south of home, we noticed and enjoyed seeing many more palm trees.

Beautiful! This was no white Christmas, but it was gorgeous!

Monday afternoon Grandma suggested we check out one of her favorite diners in town.

Another tree ~ another picture

After lunch, we enjoyed a stroll on the beach of Long Beach.

There are a sparse number of sights that are more wonderful in my eyes than seeing my husband bjorning our daughter.

 

On the beach was a wide sidewalk. It was a pleasure to walk on solid ground and be sand free while enjoying the sights, sound, and smell of the ocean. 

The oil rigs are designed to look like highrises.

This is the only Lone Sailor Memorial to be placed overlooking the ocean. This spot meant a lot to Grandma~ and there she was with her very own sailor.

 

We had a wonderful time with her, and I am pretty sure she loved being with us. We brought her little gifts and trinkets, yet our main gift was framing pictures of all six her great grand babies up on the wall. I usually take forever to get pictures printed, framed, and on our walls, yet I picked up my pace  for grandma as I was able to put pictures on her walls which we took that same day.  Presently, I walk the earth in a body that is twenty-five and a face that thinks it is sixteen again, but I often feel that I have a mind of an eighty year old. I know that in a heartbeat of life I will be that woman wishing and hoping to see my family's families. I can imagine the joy of meeting my M's grand babies for the first time. And seeing that joy first hand this Christmas morning was a tearful joyful experience.

Friends, Family, and Fish

 The view from downtown Monterey, CA.

Our local aquarium was having a free admission week the last month of the year, and I was determined to go see the fish even though it is the busiest of months.

A bjorning man is a great man indeed :)

I can barely get M to take off her rainboots. She loves them so. As she can put them on by herself, I love them too.

Here is M with a new friend from church. It was nice that we were able to meet up with her family. It made the trip extra special to M. Her family has been a great source of joy and comfort during our time out here in CA.

Jumping

and jumping

The ocean water was clearer than I had expected it to be.

These tan colored thin fish were unique as their mouths faced downward.

These sea dragons were beautiful.

Watching the penguins

M has barely worn any other outfit this season. I love it so. I originally got her this same dress in a smaller size from TCP two years ago at a consignment shop. I now scour ebay looking for the matching plaid pieces for the girls. Between the girls I have ten pieces to my "collection." There is a skirt, jumper dress, and formal dress.

After our time at the aquarium, we stopped to have lunch at our favorite Indian cafe recommended by our pastor.

Both girls love the food even though it has some kick.

Beautiful Monterey

My Prayers and Hopes for 2012

Through reflecting over the past year and looking forward to this new year, I am humbled by the repeating theme of God pouring out His blessing upon me and my own failings and short comings. By reading through this list for this new year, you will quickly get a glimpse of the ways that I fell short this past year.

~ Keep a prayer journal

~ Read through half the Bible

~ Be meticulous in my expenditure recording 

~ Rediscover the joy in the simple pleasures of keeping house

~ Take more walks with the girls

~ Entertain friends and families from church at least monthly

~ Correspond more with my loved ones through letters, thank you notes, and birthday cards

~ Do my short pilates tape consistently on weekdays/ aerobic exercise three times a week

~ Save up towards my dream car in preloved condition

~ Organize, edit, and delete through years worth of pictures and order family photo albums

~ E-mail, blog, and text more while greatly reducing my total time spent on the internet and fb

December Happenings

Husband picked out this wreath, and we have been enjoying its wintery evergreen smell greatly. It is on its way out, yet I am just not yet ready to say good bye to the sweet greeting it gives me when we come home.

N sang in our new church's Christmas choir evening. I was really pleased that he decided to do this, and it made me feel like an old members of this congregation even though we are still in the process of officially joining.

M and a new friend. His mother dresses him and his brothers as handsome as can be!

Little E enjoying a new food

We enjoyed a fun afternoon with our church friends decorating "gingerbread" houses at their home. I was pleased with myself that I sat back and let M decorate in true three year old fashion ;)

She had a very nice time, and I got some good laughs viewing the holes in her roof while it adorned our dining room table for the month.

Little Miss Red Bow

She was thin and reminded me of a Charlie Brown tree, but at least she fit inside our car! 

Our vacation ornament from Colonial Williamsburg in 2009.

Our vacation ornament from New Orleans in 2009.

Back in VA, I was surrounded by several Dillard's stores. (They are a department store a little more upscale than a Macy's.) And every New Year's Day they had a great one day sale. It was my annual tradition to head out early and hit the three stores near me to pick up some beautiful Christmas and house decor at 75% off. This was one of my first finds the first year I went, and baby E got a matching one two years later. I missed the tradition this year as we don't have any Dillard's around, but I was comforted by the simple fact that New Year's Day fell on a Sunday this year.  Even if I was back home in VA, I would not have gone out shopping on the Sabbath day anyway.  

Our first ornament was a gift from my friend Angela for our wedding. I like its style, that it holds a photo like a locket, and that she got it engraved for us. This gift started the silver and white theme on the tree.

When baby M was on her way, I asked my friend Angela if she would be willing to give me an ornament as my baby shower present.

At our new church one of our church elders makes wooden toys, puzzles, and carvings. He is very generous with all the kids of the church and gives out new figurine toys every week. We visited his work shop to see him in action and get a tour. How much fun for this mama who loves wooden toys!

We were graciously given these items plus a few more.

December also marked saying good bye to dear friends we had just met only months ago. They invited us over to their home the first day we came to church, and we were delighted to learn that they went to our church in VA a few years ago! It was such a joy to be able to talk of people we knew in common! The girls got especially attached to her in the few months we were together, and she was so helpful assisting me with them during our full Sundays at church. Thank you, M! It was wonderful getting to know you!