A Sweet Visit

Isn't this picture just the sweetest?  Too bad it's not the greatest quality, but I just love it!  (When will I learn that I can't zoom in with my phone?)  

Our time in Fl was longer than usual this trip which was great since it was full of wedding planning, attending Dan's graduation, and spending time with our family and friends.

I arrived in Orlando Tuesday night and was picked up by Natalie (Steve was in Nebraska for a meeting).  How great it was to celebrate her recent engagement and to see her beautiful ring in person!  Thanks Natalie for the sweet roses and coffee mug for Mother's Day!  We arrived in Ormond too late to see Silas before he went to bed, but we had a good visit with John, Tiffany, and Scott.

The next morning before it was daylight, Silas went to Steve's side of the bed and said, "Papa?"
Natalie answered and said, "no, it's Natalie."
He tried not to sound too disappointed and said, "oh, hi Natalie."  And then he got me up and we watched the sunrise.

Natalie and I left for St. Augustine later that morning to visit the wedding venues that she and Dan had chosen.  It seemed appropriate to do some wedding planning since Steve and I were celebrating our 31st wedding anniversary that day!  We got a lot accomplished and Natalie's going to be a beautiful bride- no surprise!

Working on Pre-K homework

On Thursday I spent the first half of the day visiting with some friends.  It was great being with them, but our time went by way too fast.  The second half was spent with my family.  One of the highlights was seeing Silas complete his homework- he's doing so well.  The other highlight was getting to cook for them.

Steve arrived around 1 a.m. Friday morning and we left later that morning for Gainesville to attend Dan's graduation.  Congratulations Dan!

                           Saturday was centered around Silas and it turned out to be opening day for the pool!

                     Silas had learned how to swim last summer and quickly picked it up again.

Silas helped me make a belated birthday cake for Tiffany!

           We celebrated Tiff's b-day at Dimitri's- good food, great fellowship and a beautiful view!

Sunday seemed to fly by.  We were thankful to see Scott again since he is moving to Canada on June 1st.  

He even took me for a ride on his friend's scooter.

Not sure when we'll see him again- we wish him the best!  It was great being home and our visit was rich and full of blessings!

Putting down Some Roots

Our Saturday began with the gift of meeting some new people from the church we've been attending, Pacific Crossroads.  Neighborhood parties were hosted at the same time in ten different locations all over L.A. with the purpose of providing an opportunity for meeting people who live in your neighborhood.  The church is quite large and it was a great way to start developing friendships and to strengthen community within the church.   The best part for me was meeting two ladies that I had planned to contact regarding a Bible study and a service opportunity, Julie and Kathy.  So thankful that I met them- Julie's picking me up on Friday so I can attend the Bible Study and I plan on meeting Kathy (and the other volunteers) tomorrow afternoon to visit residents at a nursing home.   It's past time for me to put some roots down!

After the Californian style Cinco de Mayo picnic (no hamburgers & hot dogs, but quesadillas, tacos, etc) & good fellowship  we decided to drive south and explore a little with Walter, of course.  (He also went to the picnic).

Our first time to visit Fisherman's Village in Marina del Rey

 

Not sure what community this is, but it was about 30 minutes from where we live- so beautiful!

And it wouldn't be complete without a picture of an enormous ship going out of the Port of L.A.!

Walter was very tired after his outing (though he slept in the backseat for most of the time).  He decided to watch the Dog Whisperer with us- maybe he'll learn a thing or two!