2010 March 28

Ruth Norris Abbott

March 28, 2010 at 7:09am · 

Abbott Update

because some of you aren’t on facebook and don’t otherwise hear from me. For the others, please ‘scuse any repetition.

There’s no way I can go back and reconstruct the past couple of months…and don’t think I’d want to “relive” them anyway. Just say that Midget and I are adjusting to being on our own. We’ve had LOTS of support from family and friends. Mary Lou has been excellent in assuring that Midget isn’t left alone which translates to spending more time at Grandma’s house and getting to go for rides in the car.

With warmer weather coming on that will probably need to change again but Midget seems to be grieving less. The first couple of weeks she slept a lot, and always on Tom’s pillow. Yesterday my friend Rick came and put some chicken wire fencing in the front yard so Midget can’t escape up the street while we’re sitting on the Lanai. I have a sheet of lattice that I put across the walkway which keeps Midget & Sammy confined. Both seem to enjoy the freedom of being outdoors…and do I.

Adding a “roof” over the Lanai has proved to be a good decision. It changed the look of the entrance again but has made the porch more friendly…a place to savor morning coffee or linger in the late afternoon. Then a week ago Mary Lou and I added a small, pre-formed waterfall. It’s molded to look like rocks and is a perfect scale for the Lanai. By transferring Judy’s fish into that and consolidating our plants, I was able to get rid of the big black buckets…which was a visual expansion. It does have “tropical” ambience with many pots of plants.

Have been wanting to get out and “dig in the dirt” but restricted myself from planting anything new for the time being and confined my energies to pulling weeds of which there are an abundance! The rose garden is starting to bloom again—yellow at the moment—accented by the recent addition of pots of pink geraniums from Evie. Jan, the “lavender gardenia” (a lemon geranium) is trellising up the front corner support for the porch roof. So far it’s doing well but hasn’t bloomed.

My current focus is on completing the myriad tasks necessary before leaving for a trip. I’m planning to drive with my friend Brenda to Arizona this coming Tuesday (30th) when she goes to visit her sister. I’ll spend a few days with friends in Apache Junction and Mesa; see all the grand kids for Easter and celebrate a belated birthday with Valerie. My friends Gil and Sue are celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary on April 3rd with a big party. Sylvia, Rececca, Theryn and Susie have planned a lunch at the local tea house. Anna is looking forward to sharing coffee at Starbucks.

On Monday (4/5) the itinerary shows me flying from PHX at 7:45 am for Springfield, MO. Then I’ll drive a rental car down to Mountain Home (AR) to spend a few days with my Auntie Helene. She has arranged for us to take a tour which will include the arches in St. Louis—which I’ve never seen. The following Monday I’ll fly from Springfield to Monroe, LA (just over the AR line) where I’ll get to spend some time with Tom’s family.
Becky said Jim is planning to meet me so I won’t need to rent a car and they have room for me for a couple of nights. I think my return flight is mid-afternoon on Wednesday which, with the time changes, will have me back in San Diego about 9 pm.
No worries about Ms. Midget. She will be staying at Grandma’s house and being spoiled by Mary Lou. Probably back to eating 3 cheerios with a teaspoon of milk for breakfast.

With the loss of my laptop and it’s carry bag (which contained my memory drives), I lost my master Abbott Update distribution list. I’m working on reconstructing it…and I know there have been several address changes/updates recently. I hope I won’t miss anyone.

By the way, I “created” a website for Tom’s memories which you can find at:
http://memorialwebsites.legacy.com/TomAllenAbbott/homepage.aspx
It has a guest book so you can write notes…or just read those left by others as well as my journal. It’s also possible for guests to add photos and I’d welcome your contributions. The project been very cathartic for me. I have more photos to add. These are just the first

Oh yes, I now have Skype …and need friends to practice with. (After I return, I guess). My address is ruth.abbot Don’t ask what happened to the second “t’ I don’t know. Kathy brought her laptop when she came for Mom’s 90th birthday. She has established links so Mom was able to talk with the great grandchildren in Argentina and in Indiana which was a special treat.

Mom’s birthday was “just right” I think. She got a flood of cards in the mail—several each day for two weeks or so—and was able to savor each one. She loved that. My sisters came again from Colorado and stayed at Mom’s house. The agenda provided for each of them to have one-on-one time with Mom; and then we all went to the beach one afternoon, out for lunch (3 days in a row) and had light suppers in the evenings at my house. Judy got us matching tee-shirts (even Sammy) which we wore in our photo op

That’s all for this edition—Make it a good week!! 

2011 April 24, Easter Sunday afternoon

April 24, 2011 at 6:52pm · 

Abbott Update

Easter Sunday afternoon

April 24, 2011

I’ve had repeated comments about folks missing the “Abbott Update” blogs. I don’t know what happened to them. Life has gotten “BIZY” with the mundane, I guess. Doesn’t seem like there’s much to “write home” about…

It’s a (finally) quiet Sunday afternoon here and I thought I’d start a few lines. There were moisture drops on my awning when I got up this morning and intermittent sprinkles on the car’s windshield on the way to and from Church. Had the fireplace on for much of the afternoon. It adds a pleasant ambience as well as warmth.

Randy & Judy, Mom, Matt & Ashly with Tyler, Caleb and Nathaniel were here at noon. Judy brought dinner…and the boys had a great time looking for their plastic Easter eggs. Between everyone’s eggs there were NINE DOZEN (so 36 for each boy). They chose colors—Tyler got yellow & purple, Caleb got blue and pink, Bubba got orange & green. Those were the ONLY ones they were allowed to pick up. Worked fine…in the end every-one had 36. Then they opened and dumped the “haul” into plastic containers (discounting what got popped into their mouths).

What? Where’s Mary Lou? Oh, she’s in Arkansas visiting Auntie Helene (heading back tomorrow). She and a friend from San Diego took my Odyssey & drove. Challey is visiting her parents in Oklahoma (with her 2 children). If all goes well, they will be back in town on Thursday afternoon/evening.

As I looked back in my Abbott Update file, I see that almost exactly one year ago I was the one visiting in Mountain Home, AR and enjoying the dogwood and redbud. That was sandwiched between spending Easter with my kids in Arizona and visiting Tom’s family in Arkansas & Louisiana. I covered a lot of miles on that trip and have taken several others since.

In fact, I just finally got my 3rd suitcase unpacked. I was at a retreat in Pine Valley on March 5 & 6. Flew with Mom to Denver to visit my “Colorado sisters” on March 16-19; attended the Mary Kay Career Conference with Brenda in Long Beach on April 1 & 2; and left the following morning for a 3 day trip to Utah with Judy. The day after our return, Kathy & Duane, David & Kristin, Katie and Josh were in Escondido for a visit with Mom. David’s family lives in Indiana…and this was the first time Mom had met her great grandson. Starting Sunday after next (May 8th) Judy has a time-share condo in Dana Point for a week …and I intend to be in Arizona for Valerie’s graduation on May 26th. I’m hoping that can be a driving trip and last for a few days. So you can see that the dust doesn’t settle here.

In order for Mary Lou to enjoy a break from her routine, she left her cell phone with me and carried the one that was Mr. Tom’s. I wish I had a nickel for every call I’ve fielded!! It has been one BUSY week for me…often both phones ringing simultaneously. AND quite a few ministry messages to be handled. Some of the requests can wait or be handled as convenient, but Friday we had another young couple who would have spent the weekend sleeping on the floor without delivery of a bed. It is both rewarding and exhausting!!

For quite some while my Mary Kay business has kinda’ rocked along…doing a volume about commensurate with the energy I invested, which suited me. Since the first of the year, though, it has kicked up a notch. Kelli recruited in February and Jan in March along with HER new recruit, Cathy. In April I added Challey and then Cassie. We had Cassie’s Debut Party last night and Challey’s will be NEXT weekend. I think Cassie recruited at least one other consultant at her party last night…and so we GROW!!

My third involvement is as Church Treasurer. I enjoy my participation at Valley Baptist and am excited by the continued growth of the congregation. Last month we added picnic tables to seat 120 for the barbeque/potluck. Tom enjoyed monitoring the census growth from 12-15 per Sunday to consistently over 100 in 2 services. And he would have loved all the babies who have been born into this group; now 12-18 months old, starting to walk & talk. When the “6 and under” are excused to Sunday School, there is a steady stream of young walkers.

If you have access to FaceBook, you will find more and current day-to-day updates and photos on my Wall. We also started a FB page under “Helpfulou” where we post photos of some of our loads and chat about the ministry. We’ve developed quite a nice following of interested folks. In mid-May Mary Lou is speaking to the Escondido Rotary Club about the military ministry of HELPFULOU.

It’s 6:30 pm and I think I’m going to curl up in my comfy chair and read a book (or listen to something drone on TV until I doze off).

Hope you’re enjoying a Happy Easter and a beautiful spring.

Bubba/Nathaniel

 

Caleb

Each boy got 2 colors...9 dozen plastic eggs

2016 May 2 God's Fingerprints...

Ruth Norris Abbott

May 2, 2016 · 

God's Fingerprints on our Road Trip: For those of my friends who missed it before: "Miracles are not always visible to the naked eye, but those who live by faith can see them clearly. Living by faith, rather than sight, enables you to see My Glory." -Dear Jesus by Sarah Young, p. 24
Then Jesus said, “Did I not tell you that if you believe, you will see the glory of God?” -John 11:40

I've shared some of this with several, but want to try to record the amazement of our safety and protection on the trip from which Mary Lou, Midget and I have just returned. Our log book documents that we traveled a total of 6,692 miles in a trip listing 3 weeks and 3 days. It took us from Oceanside CA on the west coast to within an hour or so of Myrtle Beach, SC on the east coast. If you look at a map, we pretty much followed I-40 for the outbound part and I-20 on the return. (I'll see if Mary Lou can help me print a map.) We literally did not close that loop until we got on 15-South in Temecula, CA -- about 20 miles from Escondido.
The morning of our departure was very foggy but as soon as we hit the freeway, the ceiling lifted and visibility cleared. We saw pockets of fog in the valleys, but nothing to obscure driver safety.
Our first overnight was in Flagstaff, AZ (it was cold!) and the second in Tucumcari, NM. We left NM in the breaking dawn and saw sunrise from TX. As we were leaving Amarillo, we narrowly escaped being sideswiped by an 18-wheeler. That driver put on his signal and immediately began moving his rig into our lane (apparently without looking). Since his trailer was equipped with one of those "1-800 how is my driving?" numbers, I notified his dispatcher. Quite some while later, as we were approaching Oklahoma City, we had a similar experience...a truck just started moving into our lane. Then I noticed the brand (the same as in Amarillo). Then I glanced at the vehicle number...the same as in Amarillo! Then I hit re-dial and spoke to his dispatcher again.
While we were 3 days in Claremore, OK with friends, our accommodations were in a nearby Microtel (which we enjoyed). The week after we left, a tornado came through...right over that Microtel. We didn't hear of damage to that building, but the storm took part of the roof from our friends' house, as well as taking out their back fence and destroying the trampoline in their backyard (which was weighted with 400 pounds of sand!) A piece of their trampoline went through the roof of their neighbor's house. Being California girls, we have a healthy respect for earthquakes, but tornados are terrifying.
We were 4 amazing days in Branson, enjoying spring in the Ozarks and visiting Mountain Home AR, Carthage MO, and Eureka Springs AR. Followed by a night in Nashville TN (literally...a NIGHT. No shows!) and the next afternoon and evening in Gatlinburg, TN.
While starting the engine in Mountain Home, the van made a strange sound. One of those curious things. The next morning Mary Lou greeted me with the news that she had heard that sound again...and possibly the starter was going out. Great! With a 2-hour time difference, it was too early to call California, but as soon as I thought they MIGHT be open, I called Honda of Escondido for advice. We were headed to Springfield that morning (enroute to Carthage) and planned to pick up some maps from AAA (as my faith in GPS continues to diminish). Lo and behold! a half block from the Starbucks store was a Honda dealership, so we stopped. The service advisor there told me what California later reconfirmed...that there is no test for a failing starter; unless we were able to recreate the problem, they couldn't diagnose it. And that replacing a starter was expensive enough that we wouldn't want to do it as a "rule out" procedure. And furthermore... starters in Odyssey vans have problems so rarely that it might take a day or two to procure the part. That was one of the days on which my devotional reading was specifically about trusting...and I decided that's what we had to do. And we are still.
My next story is about leaving Gatlinburg TN at 5:30 a.m. It was pitch dark and a little foggy up there in the Smokey Mountains. The map said turn right...and that took us on an increasingly windy road that climbed (it seemed to the stars, since they were so clear). The "winding" became switchbacks in which it seemed the tailgate was still in one turn while the nose was into the next... with tall trees on both sides. When we lost the signal for our XM radio, it was a bit spooky. Then our GPS said to make a left turn. Sure enough... there was a sign (someone painted a board on a wooden stick) that said I-40 > so we turned. In completing the turn from the highway, we could not see the roadway in front of us; it fell away that steeply. So, we started down...and the pavement quickly became a gravel road but it was too narrow to turn around so we kept going. After what seemed like a long time (but was probably only a couple of long minutes) I saw a light down the hill... which was an encouragment that there WAS civilization ahead. In the yard of that house was a big storage trailer which could in no way have come down the road we just did, so it seemed that things were going to improve...and in fact within a very short while we came to a stop sign which gave access to the interstate. Whew!!
About noon we reached Moorsville NC and despite our GPS sending us on a "D.U." tour (destination unknown).. we eventually reached Mike and Jan's place. The plan was for Mary Lou to stay a couple of days and then Jan would bring her to Fayetteville to meet up with me. That allowed me a bit of extra cuddle-with-the-baby time. So after lunch and oh! so many instructions and programming my phone and my GPS, etc. I set off by myself for Fayetteville. Now I'm a west-coast girl and out here highways with numbers have numbers. Back there they have names and you're just supposed to understand that they also have numbers... which isn't very reassuring. I'd been on my own for probably 10 minutes when I pulled into a parking lot to call for confirmation...the Moorsville Police Department. (That made me laugh).
Neither Mary Lou nor Jan were answering their phone. I'm sure they weren't expecting to hear from me so soon. So there I was. The electronic maps weren't working and I had no idea whether that street name corresponded with the state highway I was supposed to be following. It's was a curious thing... I wasn't sure I could even retrace my path the way I'd come...had no idea where I was supposed to go... but blessedly I wasn't anxious about it. Eventually Jan got my message and called...and I was right on course. Then I had a detour around an accident but eventually got back on the right course again after which the GPS started working again. The roads were 1-lane each way with no shoulders so about every mile I had to find a driveway to pull out so the backed up traffic could pass. The cars all seemed to drive faster than the posted limits...but I had no wish for a speeding ticket. Despite all of the adventure, I DID succeed in finding Val and Matt's place without additional coaching. Yay! me.
After we left Fayetteville we drove through South Carolina and Georgia into Alabama. Our target for that driving day was Fairfield AL (near Birmingham) but we didn't get quite that far. We'd run through one really heavy rain shower (about 15 minutes during which the wipers couldn't seem to keep up) and as it got dark and we were tired, we decided to find a place and call it a day. The place was Oxford AL where we checked into their last non-smoking room and had scarcely gotten our overnight stuff inside when the skies let down again. We sat in our beds and watched the tornado reports on the TV... in the area we would have been driving had we gone forward. Thank you, God!
By morning the rain had cleared and the air was fresh. We again headed toward Birmingham. Mary Lou had been very sick during the night; possibly some food poisoning. She slept most of the way through Alabama and Mississippi. As we were tooling along, I noted that the sensor was telling me it was time for an oil change in the van. I called my service advisor in Escondido to ask whether I could make it to Dallas since the car had been at the dealership there before (years ago). He messaged back that I should just look for a Honda dealer and get the oil changed; I would not make it to Dallas. As I closed the phone, and before I could really consider how to resolve the problem I noticed a large blue "H" alongside the road-- Freeway Honda in Birmingham. I hit the off ramp and was soon in their service drive. I explained that we were traveling and that I needed an oil change and asked how long it would take. They weren't too busy, he replied--30 minutes. So, Mary Lou sat in the customer lounge, I walked Midget, and they got the car serviced... and 45 minutes later we were driving out their gate with a clean report.
And on and on it goes. Thursday morning we left Phoenix AZ with virga above and a haboob blowing up from the south. I was concerned that travel through the desert might be dicey. There were black clouds to our north, west and south... but as we traveled, we watched the storm lift over us. There was the usual wind on the Whitewater grade outside of Palm Springs but we didn't encounter rain until we saw the "Escondido" sign!!

April 2017

April 23, 2017

I usually feel more "inspired" when I sit down to compose an Update, but at the moment it feels as though if we wait for an inspiration, you may not hear from me before Christmas.

Our weather has zipped from "rainy season" into full-blown SUMMER with very little warning.  One day there were moisture drops on the awnings and the next day the plants need to be watered with a hose!  I don't have many that have to be watered by a hose.. but I celebrated the Easter season with a few annuals tucked in here and there--crystal blue Lobelias, lavender Violas, purple Pansies--and I'm enjoying their little faces.

My rose garden just exploded into bloom! But it's moisture supplied by an automated watering system which Alberto regulates for me when we aren't having enough rainy days.























I don't know HOW warm it's been. Brenda sent a photo yesterday of the dash thermometer in her car showing 107 degrees. I honestly don't think it's been THAT warm here but it was 80 degrees in my family room with the windows open and a pleasant breeze. 

The downside of that is that many days I'm not here until late-dusk so the house is closed. Once I get the windows opened, it does cool down but it takes awhile. Last night it cooled 10 degrees and is a pleasant 72 at the moment.

I don't think I mentioned in my last Update that when Mary Lou took "Lil Truck" for service the last time, the mechanic told her the compression is dropping and ...don't pull the trailer with a load again. I honestly don't know what that means but I think it's mechanics language for "terminal". We had a couple of interesting weeks finishing up the pending projects without being able to pull the trailer... but God provided substitutes to pull the load.  That's a story of its own.

On Thursday of Easter week we went to a lot in Fallbrook where Mary Lou had located some Toyota trucks...and, oh shucks! ...one followed her home! Our new "Lil Truck" isn't quite so "little". It's a 2005 Tacoma with 59,000 original miles; one owner. It has a sport package which includes upgraded shocks for an almost car-like ride. The extend-cab means I can put my seat back far enough that my knees don't touch the dash :) and Midget has a space of her own. The color is called "Sand" but we think it looks gold. 

Yes, it does have a tonneau cover. No, we can't move furniture very well with the cover on. We are tentatively planning a roadtrip beginning in late May during which we intend to deliver items to various destinations as we go so we decided to leave the cover on until our return. 

The trip:  If you live along a path that is roughly between San Diego and Indianapolis and would like to see us, we are beginning to plan the itinerary.  We know the first stop is Mesa, AZ for birthday celebrations over Memorial Day weekend. Our farthest point (as of this moment) is Indianapolis, IN with visits in Bartlesville and Claremore, OK and Carthage, MO. 

Beyond that, I anticipate spending much of August in Fayetteville NC helping my grand-daughter after the arrival of her daughter (Brantley's sister) as Matt is deploying.  

Meanwhile we have been keeping VERY busy. Those who follow us on FaceBook know that we have been at the Warrior Warehouse at Camp Horno almost every Friday for close to 3 months. This is a Rotary Club sponsored distribution center located in the heart of Camp Pendleton. Like Helpful L.O.U. they "channel" furniture and household items from civilian donors to military families. They are open for distribution from 9-12 on "Friday only" so the hours between 7-9 are busy with stocking whatever has been picked up by their big box truck during the week. 

Mary Lou still has her own ministry and we are able to make contacts through the folks who come to the Warrior Warehouse. We are also still doing a lot of pickups.  Last month we did a clean out on a 3 bedroom 2 bath house in Ocean Hills; and are about to wrap up a clean out in Solana Beach. They were approximately 4 truck/trailer loads each.  Those projects represent a lot of work...and we are grateful for the volunteers who help.  

Whatever did we do before we had the use of the trailer??


We are grateful for those who "hands on" help and also for those who help in other ways.. especially for those to pray for our safety as we spend hours on the highway.

2014 December

                                   

ABBOTT AMAZEMENT JOURNAL

December 10, 2014   6:15 a.m.

The passing train had everyone awake at 3:30 this morning.  One of the perks of staying at Oceanside Harbor is a front-row seat of the train tracks, which are well-used. The plus side is that during the day the passing trains gives Mom something to watch; along with the seagulls. Definitely a change of pace from home.

We had the opportunity to spend 5 nights at the coast and, although this is a busy season, we opted to cocoon in our 3 bedroom suite to do some Christmas baking and writing of Christmas cards. Mary Lou is delighting our palates with her Pinterest recipes.

Monday afternoon we took Mom to O’side Harbor to feed the seagulls—one of her favorite things to do. We had a partial bag of sale corn chips which made her a very popular person to about 40 gulls…to her great delight.

                          

Meanwhile Mary Lou and I took a walk on the beach. The tide was SO far out that we could walk almost to the end of the breakwater!! But that’s where we found the sand dollars. Some of them were shades of purple (still living) but we collected several of the white (deceased) ones.  This reminded us of when we were at this resort in 2009 for Mom’s 89^th b-day celebration and found sand dollars on the beach.  

 

The sun is glinting on the crashing waves and we can see surfers (like tiny ants) out there enjoying the morning.  Coffee is hot and Mary Lou is producing enticing scents in the kitchen.  "Wish you were here" 

 

 I compared a photo from Monday with this similar shot from this morning (Thursday) and while the pix don't look so very different...the incoming storm front has changed our season from Indian Summer to Christmas! We are endlessly enjoying the gas fireplace and nesting in our condo. Our thinking now is that we will pack up and head inland this afternoon so that (hopefully) we can get unloaded before things get wet there.  Here we have an underground parking garage.

2014 May 26 GRATITUDE from Grandma's heart

Abbott Amazement Journal   Mesa, AZ

May 26, 2014

Not only is this an ABBOTT AMAZEMENT Journal, but an expression of the overflow of GRATITUDE from this Grandma’s heart.  I am SO blessed!  I appreciate the opportunity to spend my birthday week with friends and family in Mesa.

I don’t yet have the photos downloaded, but do expect to include a group shot from Thursday evening; taken when my local grands & greats were gathered here.  I KNOW that “Papa Tom” was smiling to see the 6 of them swimming, jumping on the trampoline, and cooperatively producing a fashion show while adults chatted. Our family is such a patch-work quilt of varied cultures and ages, stitched together with love. It’s beautiful…and so cozy to snuggle into its warmth.

Tom and I enjoyed the almost kaleidoscope variations. Now it appears quite probable that my American granddaughter will be vacationing with her husband in Sevilla on a visit with my Spanish daughter in early July. (Austin & Nichole are hoping to spend a week with Tamara & her girls).  There is much to commend “bucket lists” and the spontaneity to take advantage of opportunities.

Nichole is determinedly working her way through MY bucket list too. On this visit we took the girls to the Botanical Gardens…TWICE!  Tom and I were in Phoenix/Mesa for 30 years…but I’d never made the time.  In fact I had intended to take Nina to see the butterfly garden in more than one season…that passed by before we took advantage of the opportunity. Now we have a season pass…and a date for the Butterfly Breakfast in Sept.

  

We really did visit the garden twice in the same day. During the morning hours we walked the paths admiring spears & succulents as well as the small rodents, frogs, birds & butterflies who make it their home. When we learned that was the date for one of their occasional flashlight tours, we made plans to buy batteries and come back for "an hour” at sunset.  That deadline slipped right past as we enjoyed the 12 “discovery stations”…saw a great horned owl at very close range, pounded mesquite beans into flour with a rock.

  

Grandma & Lexxie don't SHARE a birthday but the dates are close so we had one big family celebration on the 25th. Fortunately Nichole didn't put 69 candles on my cheese "cake" because even the few looks like quite a conflagration!

And on Monday, which was my actual birthday, Nichole and Tamara brought in dinner from Chili's, complete with a "molten" (warm chocolate cake with syrup in the center & vanilla ice cream on the top).  Yummm!

2014 Hawaii Trip

Morning Tryst

This past week has been so full...and so AMAZING...that I'm not sure where to start.  It is now 7 a.m. on Saturday, April 26 and I am sitting on the balcony of a condo in Waikaloa, Hawaii (about 20 miles north of the Kailua-Kona airport on Big Island).  The trade winds are providing soothing circulation and creating the sounds of surf in the fronds of the numerous palms.  A variety of birds are supplying a background symphony.  I'm enjoying all the sensations as I sip a cup of Tazo.

I am traveling with my sister Judy, who was "tapped" by the Gideon Int'l Auxiliary to coordinate a scripture distribution at a pre-natal nursing convention on Oahu this past week. Share a room, share a car...and purchase the ticket with accumulated points on my credit card made it pretty much of a "no brainer". 

You gotta eat no matter where you are...though I must admit we wouldn't have eaten like this at home!  At least once a day we've had some exotic repast...coconut crusted shrimp, fresh mahi, macadamia nut ice cream at the HaleKoa; we tried a ramen burger at Tanaka's Saimen and Italian pasta at Baca de Bepo.

In the afternoon following the first day of the convention, we met up with Zachalyn and her fiancé Keone.  Zachalyn and her brother Jacob (at ages 3 & 4) were a foster placement with Randy and Judy during the time they were stationed at Kaneohe 30 years ago, so they share a lot of history.  This was my first time to meet her; though Mom & Daddy and Mary Lou had all gotten acquainted with the children during Randy's military tour.

The second afternoon we drove out to Waianai and enjoyed a family evening with her family, including Zackalyn's father and her older brother, his wife and children.  Zachalyn has two children at home;  a daughter finishing her junior year of high school and a son who is a freshman basketball player.

Friday afternoon (yesterday) we flew inter-island to Kailua-Kona. We picked up a rental car and arrived at The Bay Club at Waikaloa near sunset.  Our accommodations here are "huge" --dual master bedrooms connected by a great room furnished as both dining & living rooms and a galley kitchen (with full-sized appliances). My "suite" has a king bed and a bath with a garden tub (no Jacuzzi jets).  Judy chose the one with dual queen beds. Surrounding most of the exterior is a wide, covered porch/ balcony furnished for alfresco dining and lounging.

Our time-share in Honolulu (downtown Waikiki) just opened in January (read, very modern) and is quite Asian in design.  I loved that most openings between rooms had wide pocket doors so the spaces could be rearranged to accommodate current use. Judy photographed the plumbing as soon as we got in...fascinated with water for the tub and shower that dispensed from the ceiling. The shower also had a wand if you preferred not to be "rained on".  And the tub--reminiscent of an antique claw-footed one--was a free-standing bowl (from which water easily splashed).

 Of the whole trip, the landing on Kona was the most emotional part for me.  Remembering the arrival and lei greeting on our family visit.  I find it difficult to believe that it will be NINE years come June since my last visit to "Big Island".  Our family (Mom, Mary Lou, Judy & Randy, Tom and I) spent a week in a condo at Puako (about 15 minutes north of where Judy and I are this week).  Some of the scenery is familiar and some has changed. There are new houses. It's amazing to see how they have been able to landscape the yards over the lava beds which is the primary "top soil" in Kona. I've learned that there is dark lava (from more recent flows) and lighter lava (older flows). At one location we read about the kinds of plants that begin to grow through the lava as it ages.  Another interesting study! And today we saw a house that was destroyed by a lava flow.  I've read that in total some 200+ houses have been lost to volcanic eruptions on Hawaii.  As we're driving along there will be an abrupt foliage change where a lava flow has come through; and in a few miles, we're back to the vegetation.

SUNDAY morning:  Another sunny day in paradise!  Back on the balcony listening to the birds and watching the feral cats from down in the lava canyon. (There are a number of them).  Earlier I saw a mongoose run across the lawn. Judy saw one yesterday. On our excursion yesterday we saw several Nene (state bird of Hawaii) as well as a wild pheasant and several wild turkeys. (Lots of photo ops!)  We also saw a large herd of sheep including a ram with curling horns.

Our destination yesterday was the Merrie Monarchs festival in Hilo. Learned this was the 50th anniversary of Merrie Monarchs; primarily a hula-dancing competition but with many local crafters displaying their wares.  A tour of the Hilo harbor, "Loco Moco" for lunch at L&L, a little shopping at Hilo Hatties, a quick visit to one of Judy's Gideon friends, a hike up to see Rainbow Falls (didn't go all the way in because it was muddy & slippery).  On the way back we took a 4-mile detour; the scenic route. It was gorgeous! Very many reminders of our trip on the road to Hana (Maui) as in narrow roads and even narrower bridges, tall trees growing up from the canyon floor and water falls rushing down the hill. There's actually a Botanical Garden there but we opted not to pay $15 each to tour it in the rain that suddenly began pouring down.  A few curves further along we found a vendor from whom we purchased a container of chocolate macadamia nut ice cream (which we ate immediately, as soon as it thawed enough to use the plastic spoons) And a small loaf of  banana bread, which was our breakfast this morning, along with a fresh Papaya.  :)

I've been trying to catalog the beautiful flowers we see...almost like a kaleidoscope changing as we drive along.  There are red, pink, salmon and white Bouganvilla, white, pink and red Plumeria, pink, red, yellow, and orange Hibiscus, gorgeous deep blue Plumbago, orchids in a variety of sizes and colors.  We've seen several fish ponds with wild water lettuce and lily pads (pink on Oahu; blue on Hawaii).  Of course there are several varieties of Palms and other green plants. I'm particularly taken with something similar to a peace plant that is burgundy red on the underside and dark green on the top of the leaves. In front of our unit is a plant that resembles a gardenia but the flower looks more like the white star of Boxwood. Over toward Hilo we saw something raspberry red growing on the volcanic rock... resembling Sedum; fields of yellow daisies, delicate white orchids poking through other roadside shrubbery.

We've seen 2 Geckos (bright green), a good-sized cameleon (also bright green), 2 long-horn steers, 3 buffalos, a donkey and a zebra!  Tonight I found a small critter in my bathroom. At first I thought it was a spider, but upon observation found it's a tiny gecko about 2" long. Very cute!

Monday morning
When Judy and I made our first trip to Hawaii about 10 years ago, I spent a good deal of time on my bed, propped up with pillows, with her computer on my knees, trying to document our experiences and my impressions of Hawaii.  I was thinking last night that some things haven't changed a great deal. Propped up with pillows on my king-sized bed with my laptop across my knees... 

One significant difference between then and now... each morning we got up and took a walk on the beach (which was just outside the back door of our hotel on Waikiki).  This year we walked on the beach in Waikiki only once. :(  Yesterday we took a short trek on the shore at Black Sand beach. It truly is BLACK sand. Very coarse. I'm sure it's origin is volcanic rock.

Tuesday morning
A "down day"...  slow rolling start, a load of laundry, a bit of local shopping, lunch at the Food Court, nap time, a soak in the community pool after their social hour with free ice cream cones (!)  Our lunch portions were so large that we had the left-overs for dinner (which was plenty after double scoops of mac nut and Kona coffee ice cream), and then went for a walk on the shore. Actually it IS the ocean, but where we have beach access is within a quiet cove. Very pleasant. 

I did manage to download 150+ photos from my camera onto the computer last night. Next learning curve is to import photos into my blog. One challenge per day...  I'm liking the camera, which is water-resistant (to 33' but I'm not planning an underwater excursion with it).  It IS a point-and-click camera (perfect for me!) so the lens doesn't allow focus on the orange, yellow and white butterflies which flutter near the blossoms or the dragonflies that hover over the lily pads in the koi ponds.

Today's itinerary proposes a return trip to Hilo via the Saddle Road (between the 2 volcano mountains: Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa) and from there, south along the east shore of the Island to the active volcano area.

Of course we had to tour Kileawa, the only active volcano (at present). Some roads were closed due
to “bad air” which prevented a drive all the way around the caldera but we were told even if we could
drive there, we wouldn’t see molten lava. We did see a number of steam vents.

I would suppose a person could spend an entire vacation in that immediate area just learning about the
several kinds of lava; the age of the various runs, and the progression of plants that take root in volcanic
rock. I thought it was interesting to read that it would be possible to grow sweet potatoes under a pile
of volcano rock (as in moisture & temperature). There is also a lava tube through which tourists may
walk but we opted out.

Here are pics of our dinner at L&L. The "sides" are always 2 scoops of sticky rice and mac salad. The mac salad is always delicious but we discovered the recipe differs some from one location to another. We also discovered that one portion was sufficient for two meals.
                                                                                     
                                                                                                                                           

Garlic crusted Ahi

Garlic shrimp & steak at L&L 

                                                                             









We discussed a tour of an orchid farm on the return trip, but ultimately opted to continue on around
the island to Kailua-Kona rather than back-tracking to Hilo. This allowed us to enjoy a pleasant visit with
Judy’s friends Lanny & Tatiana Green at Ocean View. For the next bunch of miles we watched the sun
set. For some reason the camera wouldn’t capture the radiance, but it was glorious…and lasted quite
a long time. It was full-on dark when we got back to Waikaloa and without street lights, it’s DARK out
there, but we could still differentiate the sea from the sky; it was just picking out the roadway though
the approaching headlights that was challenging.

After Glow

Yesterday we planned a short excursion to the Vanilla farm…and THAT part was reasonably short but on the way back to Waikaloa we “detoured” up the side of Mauna Kea all the way to Hawi (which I think is the northern most town) and back up to an elevation of 3500+ feet (and down again!). Lots of cattle up that way and riding stables. From the scenic overlook we could see “South Point” which is literally that.. the southern end of Hawaii. There are wind chargers farmed out there as it is a very windy area. Also saw the big propellers near Hawi.

Eventually we came out to an area I recognized from our trip 9 years ago. We took the turn off into
Puako and saw the condo where we stayed. The little Church where we worshipped is still there and
well upkept. Lots more houses added to the community. We found a “beach access” sign and waded
in the surf. Seems the shoreline has changed some; gets deep very quickly now. I remember using the
lava rocks as stepping stones; they are now submerged. The deep chocolate color of the lava makes the water along the coastline beautiful shades of aqua and teal…in contrast to the deep blue of the ocean.

While walking barefoot in the sand (from the shoreline to the car) I found a small piece of coral partially buried in the sand. It is water-worn into the shape of a heart. An emotional responses, I'm sure ...but I felt like it was a message from Tom.              

Wednesday morning
Last luxurious morning to blog on the balcony, gazing across the green golf course and through a screen of palms at the blue water of the Pacific while listening to several different bird calls. By this time tomorrow we'll be back in Kailua-Kona waiting for our inter-island flight to Oahu. From there it's a 6-hour flight to San Diego plus a 3-hour time change so it'll be a long day before we get home.

I think the agenda for today is trying to make room in the suitcases for everything we brought along as well as what's been acquired since we got here. We've tried to be good...and collect only small items, but even those will take up suitcase space! This is probably my least favorite part of the trip...

Well, maybe second to the lengthy delay in picking up our rental car in Oahu. We've decided to change the spelling of that company to "Hurts".  Even with a gold-card reservation it took us 1-1/2 hours to process...and resulted in getting caught in end-of-work-day traffic. Ugh!

Then we're going to go "up island" for a tour of the Vanilla farm (and maybe lunch). Would be interesting to see that process.  Yesterday we toured the Mauna Loa facility... watched nuts being dipped in chocolate or Kona coffee syrup, tossed with sea salt or garlic (or spam flavor!)  Of course the samples were the best part!!

evening
It's been another interesting day. We did make it up to the Vanilla farm...in the rain. We started in sunshine (and ended in sunshine) but in between was a trip through the rain forest!  The farm is 3 miles up the side of Mauna Kea volcano on roads that twist & bend & dip, with foliage nearly meeting in an overhead arch.  Although their brochure says they serve lunch Monday through Friday, today they were closed for inventory. We were still able to have vanilla-flavored coffee with vanilla sugar; and a Arnold Palmer flavored with vanilla bean.

Coming back from the Vanilla farm, we stopped off in Homoko at a place called Tex’s Drive Inn (NOT drive through) to experience Maladaves…a version of filled sugar donut (with no hole). We prefaced that with a Hawaiian hamburger which has pineapple chunks and Thousand Island dressing in addition to the meat patty, lettuce & tomato on a bun of “sweet bread:.

Thursday afternoon

Some 30,000 above the ocean…and above a layer of clouds that look like cotton balls below us…we are headed back to the mainland. We left Kona for Honolulu about 9:30 this morning. I think we completed an entire circuit of Big Island and crossed via the Saddle Road (mid island) twice. Judy found several “scenic detours”. The one called Manua Kea loop was especially fun. The two-lane road is unimproved so in addition to being somewhat narrow, it climbs and dips. As the car approaches the crest of a rise, the driver can’t be certain where the lane will continue on the other side. Along the way we saw a wild pheasant (on both trips) as well as a number of good-sized turkeys…and, common to Hawaii, bantam roosters with their flocks,Then just before the loop rejoins Saddle Road, the road steeply loses elevation…with a view like a roller coaster. Whee! So much fun the first time, we did it again the next day.

We just had sweet bread again for our in-flight dinner. A small loaf filled with chicken and sweet ginger peas. Different.

Because we needed to fuel and return the rental car before our flight this morning, we set our alarms
for 5:30, with a target departure time of 6:30. Consequently I slept with the phone next to my bed so I’d be sure to hear it. No worries! At 7 a.m. mainland time, my sister started texting me! Then again I guess it was a good thing I was up as Judy slept through her alarm.

We are blessed to have gotten TSA Pre-(check) on our boarding passes. It’s a nice perk not to be
required to take the lap top and cell phones & baggie of liquids out of carry-on luggage, and remove
shoes & jacket. In Kona, even with the Pre-Check designation we had to take out liquids. In Honolulu, they were sending everyone through the Pre-check line.

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Sounds like you had a fun and relaxing time in Hawaii!

Keep writing----love it ! 

Sounds llike a wonderful refreshing time! So glad you and Judy were able to go.