Summer's Bounty

It has been a productive summer. The garden is winding down. Still picking lots of tomatoes and tomatillos. Starting to get some canteloupe, but that is a battle beating the bugs.

I have slowed down a bit on the Socks For Soldiers after having my over enthusiasm questioned. I still have a pair on the needles at all times, but now I am getting some other projects done.

Have fifteen items entered in the county fair this fall and hope to bring home a few more ribbons.

Got a clean bill of health from the heart doctor I recently saw. I was sent there after a weird dizzy spell. Heart and circulation good, no explanation of the dizzies, no repeat of that either thank heaven.

Recovering and Knitting

It has been a while since I updated my blog. Breaking my shoulder really slowed everything down. I still managed to get a lot of knitting done. Broke my own record for sending socks to SFS!!!

I finished a pair of socks I started last year. They were a special request from Kim, but I had to wait to get a size. Almost forgot what pattern and where it was. Luckily I had put all the information in the bag with the yarn.

North to Red Bluff

Took off for a great trip to meet our newest great grandchild, Warren Parker. 

 We had a great visit with every

one and a chance to spend some time with Michelle, Rock, Cora and Lania.

We had a woderful visit and trip until we were almost home.   Mandy, the wonder dog, tried to catch a ground squirrel and took me flying. Dislocated and broke my right shoulder. Things are healing and I am starting to knit again.  Looking forward to Maryanne's wedding in April.

Visit from Donald and Joyce

The group
A visit from the north.
Weavers compare cameras.
Donald surprised us with a visit from the north. He arrived in on the wings of one of the rain and wind storms that have been coming at us this February.  We had a nice visit even though they were unable to take a trip into the desert, it was covered in snow! 

Instead they headed home by way of the coast. Donald is finding himself with a bit more time on his hands these days as he searches for a new job.  His health is good and he is enjoying life.

Busy July - birthday and all

Janet and Pug sent me a beautiful bouquet of sunflowers for my birthday. It was the highlight of the day!

The garden has been producing great tomatoes this year enough to can a few jars and even try some sugarless catsup. (This needs a little more work. The taste is great but it is a bit runny.)

It has been a busy month with lots of knitting and travels. We went up to Fresno to see our great granddaughter Shelli marry and to meet our newest great granddaughter, Delania. The next week we were off to Bob's 55th high school reunion.

Kathy and Scott are trying to work things out as there marriage dissolves. Tough times. At the same time there have been a number of fires in the Trinity area which prompted Kathy to spend a lot of time in Red Bluff to get out of the smoke.

April and Jesse spent a lot of time clearing brush to enlarge the fire break and save their place from on coming fires. Things seem to be slowing down now and they are out of danger.

June and Graduation

The Graduate

We headed north to give some support to Kathy who's marriage has fallen apart and were surprised to enjoy the graduation of great granddaughter Corabella Lingeman. The entire school turned out to give a play based on the Cinderella story, but with a Texas theme! What fun.









Cora
and Coby played cows on the Texas ranch.

We enjoyed the play and all the little kids running here and there full of excitement, relief and pride that they made it through their parts.


After that we joined the family for lunch and had more fun watching the grands and great grands interact.


Coby, Lania and Cora play hide and seek.

Memories of Nancy

We started from Bakersfield on Friday. It was a lovely day and our trip was lovely, wildflowers blooming on the hills and deserts. Saturday we spent visiting with Janet and her family. Got to see Nelda who is frail but doing fine. The view from Janet's is as always spectacular!


Sunday we all met up a the Moretti Ranch to place Nancy in her final resting place on the hill above the home she cared so much for. A view of Mt. Baldy still covered in snow.

She was surrounded with family and with the grandchildren she adored.

Mac

Rolynda and Marco

She loved the ranch and I am so glad that she at last can spend her days there among the cougars and eagles. Many lovely yellow violets surround the huge oak where she can be a peace.

Spring

February and spring is here.



Our almond tree started popping out a few blossoms on the eighth and is in full bloom by the eleventh!

We had a surprise visit from Karen and Rick on their way home from an Ensenada cruise given Karen for her 50th birthday by her son Jason. What a great gift!


The knitting progresses with another prayer shawl and several pair of socks. Some for Socks For Soldiers and some for family. It is a bit early to start on the garden but I am beginning to get the urge. Any day I may rush out and start digging!

Year's End - New Beginning

The year ended well with a wonderful gathering at the Calomiris household. We got to catch up on all the latest with the Weaver/Calomiris clan. Great grand daughter Shellamia showed off her engagement ring and Poppy showed of his new Ipod to great grand daughter-in-law Cherise.






We all enjoyed the delicious Greek food and









it was great seeing some of our many great grandchildren including
Samantha, Alexis, Romelo and Destin.





The new year started out with lots of knitting and crocheting. I was delighted to receive two lovely scarves crocheted by daughter-in-law Kay, who has taken up the craft to keep her busy while Rob, our son, is away in Oregon on business.

Cross Country Adventure

We began our trip on the second and spent the first days going through our lovely deserts. Lots of road work, a little weather (wind) in Oklahoma and on to Indiana to visit with the Winslows.

From there we headed north to visit with Aunt Glenna and a myriad of Weaver cousins. Going up as far as Detroit (more road work) and then swingin south/east through Ohio. Stopping for a quick visit with my Socks For Soldiers gal and then on to see yet more Weaver cousins.

We then proceed to South Carolina and a short visit with Aunt Doris, before she fell and had to have surgery to repair a break in her pelvis. Then it was back cross country with a stop in Quartzite to visit with an old National Guard buddy of Bob's.

We ended our trip crossing another beautiful desert. Skipping a stop at Janet's because of the many fires burning in San Diego county. Janet and all of our relatives made it through without loss. Thank God.

We are home, unpacking and trying to recover. It was, as usual, a bit more than we had planned on.

Hanging the clothes on my solar dryer in Bakersfield I thought back to how much easier things are now.

When I was very young my mother had to wash and iron five sheets every week. There was no throw them in the machine and then hang them out. It was separate the clothes, beginning with the whites, put them in the washing machine and start the agitator. Run the machine a while and then pull item out one by one to run them through a wringer (to press out the soapy water) and into a tub of clear rinse water. Usually there was some blueing added to help the whites look white. Then into yet another rinse through the wringer and out to the line. Then you started on the colored clothes, choosing the least dirty ones for the second wash and the dirtiest for the final wash. One of my first lessons on using the machine was to learn where the emergency release for the wringer was located. Luckily I paid attention and remember how to hit it when my hand got caught!

Then we carried the clothes to the clothes line, everyone had a clothes line. After the clothes had dried we took them in and most of them had to be ironed. This didn't mean putting them on an ironing board and steaming our a few wrinkles. This meant taking a bottle of water with a perforated cork top and sprinkling the clothes, rolling them up and putting them in a basket to await ironing later that day. I learned to iron by practicing on my dad's handkerchiefs and on pillow cases when I was 9 or 10 years old. It took a while before my mother trusted me with my dad's shirts.

Mom had the pleasure of dealing with the sheets. I never did learn to use the mangle. This was a long ironing machine that sat in the garage. Every one of those five sheets went through it each week. There were five sheets because we took the bottom sheet off of the five beds and moved the top sheet down, putting a clean sheet on top and clean pillow cases. There was a lot of laundry for my mom to do with four girls to keep up with.

I had four kids too, but a lot of things didn't need ironing by then and you didn't have to stand over the washing machine. I could throw the clothes in and come back later to hang them on the line. I still hang most of my clothes on the line. Since we have so much good weather and I enjoy the sight of the clothes hanging it is more pleasant and cheaper than using my drier.

Memories of Nancy

One of Nancy's hobbies was making exquisite china dolls and dressing them. In her bedroom sat a lovely doll she had made for her granddaughter Rolinda. She had made a number of dolls for her over the years and had lost them all to wild fire. This doll was a replacement.

This is how I remember the days after Nancy left us. The daffodils were blooming, she loved them, and it snowed.

It was too soon for Nancy's beloved roses to bloom, but there were a few bright hips decorating them.







Nancy's last days were spent in her home with her beloved cats. One of the first tasks for her friends and neighbors was to take all of her many cats to their new homes once Nancy was gone.