Home Again

Home Again . . . We arrived home from Hawaii Monday at 12:30 pm, tired but safe. It is strange to come home from a warm climate where we were able to wear t-shirts, shorts and sandals to snow on the ground and wearing coats.

We had a great visit with John, Laura and Danya. Danya loves to talk and interract with mom and dad and whoever will listen to her jabber. I can't wait to see her again. Thanks John and Laura for sharing time with us.

Missions Accomplished

When Gary and I left Minnesota we talked about what it was that we would like to do while visiting Laura, John and Danya (after all we had a 6 hour flight from Seattle to Honolulu to talk).  One of the things that we had decided (and Gary did most of it) was that we would help Laura and John by building a fence/gate for their backyard so that if Danya was to go outside unsupervised she would not be able to get to the front of the house.  Several days we would make our mornings adventure time going to see Diamond Head (at least from the bottom); catching the waves on the North Shore where they are the biggest; shopping for little things like coffee and treats for those back home; and going to the beach.  Then in the afternoon, while Danya slept Gary would work on the fence/gate.  Well, he kept saying that he had the fence but not a calf to look at it so Laura brought out a little people calf and proceeded to take a picture so that Gary could say he was like a calf looking at a new gate.  Okay, cheesy, I know but the mission was accomplished and now Danya is safe to be in the backyard and cannot get to the front of the house.

Minnesota / Hawaii

This has been a great week to spend away from Minnesota.  We have heard from many that it is COLD, snowy and windy.  When we have cold, snow and wind we bundle up like Ralphy's brother on "The Christmas Story" and head outside to school, work, or play in the snow.  We are challenged to shovel the walks/driveways, make certain the car is in proper working condition, and then head out to do what we in Minnesota do.

As we have been here in Hawaii, where it is most of the time sunny and warm we were reminded today of a different environment entirely.  To preface I need to tell you that a couple of weeks ago the island of Oahu had a storm that knocked out power to the entire island, as well as knocked down trees and caused flooding.  There was much damage and the state took a lot of flack for not doing something about it.  Yesterday all of the weather forcasters said that there was a mighty strong storm coming on shore and to "batten down the hatches" or prepare for what might be very strong winds (gusts up to 60 miles an hour) and rain.  

As we were preparing for supper last night, John received a phone call from his supervisor that told him he would not have to come in to work today because of the potential of the storm (he works for the State of Hawaii).  That meant that state offices would be closed along with all of the schools on the island.  The news showed kids celebrating a 4 day weekend because of the holiday on Monday.  Today it is windy but nothing that we (Gary and I) haven't seen back home and off and on rain but even sunny weather.

Just seems odd to me that we are in a warm climate and the schools were closed for the day but in Minnesota with the windchill in the -30 degrees range the schools continued.  That's one of those Hmmmmmmm moments.

We Arrived

After a six hour layover in Seattle, where we got to spend some time with KJ, Kelli, Bryce, Oscar and Annie, we arrived in Hawaii late on Saturday night.  It always amazes me when we leave Minnesota in the cold and snow and arrive in Hawaii with it's sunshine, green landscape and warm weather.  When we arrived it was raining and Laura said that it was supposed to storm through the night.  It was windy and rainy but nothing like a good old fashioned Minnesota thunderstorm.  We spent Sunday, just getting reacquainted with Danya.  She is one cute, clever little girl.  She wouldn't really come to me but I knew that sooner or later it would happen and I would be loving on it.  Today, is another story.  We went to Walmart (I know, not very glamorous) and Danya decided that Nana carrying her was much more fun than riding in the cart.  Then it was off to Lowe's (supplies for projects while Papa is in town) and again it was "hold me Nana".  It does a Nana's heart good to be so wanted.  When we put her in the car she clearly said "Nana -- no, no".  She did not want to be in the car seat yet again.  She jabbers all of the time and occasionally you can actually hear a word.  We are having a great time.  Tomorrow it is promising to be sunny and warm so we are headed to beach.

Off to Hawaii

If you have read Laura's blog at all you know about the surprise that Gary and I did for her birthday. Well, today is the day. We leave for Hawaii this morning. With a brief stop (6 hours) in Seattle, where we hope to meet up with Kelli, KJ, Bryce, Oscar, and Annie, we will arrive in Honolulu at 9:38 (their time -- they are 4 hours behind us) to spend some time with John, Laura, and Danya. I'll post pictures soon.

Happy Birthday John and Laura!!

Happy Birthday to John and Laura who share the same birthday. Our wish for you today -- have a wonderful, God blessed, fun-filled day.

New Traditions Out of Old

After Gary's mother died, as we were cleaning out her house, we found a box of what appeared to be material scraps. Everyone decided that I should have them, as they all knew that maybe I could make use of them in my sewing (which, by the way, I have not done for several years now -- it seems manufacturers are making the eyes of the needles much smaller these days!). Anyway, I brought the box home and began to dig through to see what, if anything, I could use. Much to my surprise in the box were not "scraps" of material, rather pieces of quilt squares that Mom had begun. There are quilt beginnings for about 5 quilts -- one of them with the names of her classmates embrodiered on. My goal is to one day have a quilt that I can give to each of my girls, completing the quilts that their grandmother began. As we looked at the pieces, Gary began to identify the material as pieces from either his mom's or his dad's clothing from years ago. What an incredible find.

As Christmas neared, I decided to use some of the squares and make Christmas Stockings for Danya and Oliver. Each stocking is made from two of the quilt squares that Gary's mom had put together. I simply used a pattern and cut out the stocking, lined it, and put Danya's and Oliver's name on it. Then to make it extra special, I put a label under the cuff in the back so that sometime in the future they will know when it was made and by whom. Both Margaret and Laura loved them and Margaret asked "are you going to make more for when more grandbabies come?" Now, I have to decide to I make a quilt for my daughter or stockings for my future grandbabies.

Here is Oliver's Stocking:
And Danya's Stocking:

Happy 1st Birthday to my Grandson

Happy Birthday Oliver from Mormor and Morfar. What a wonderful year we have had watching you grow and become an inquisitive little man. It is fun to walk into a room and have you recognize Mormor and want to come to be held by me. My wish for you this next year is to discover so many new things, enjoy each and every moment you have with those who love you so very much, and to keep laughing and making noises, which will soon be lots and lots of words.

We love you so much.