Happy Birthday Mom!

Last Sunday was mom's birthday. (yeah, I'm late posting) Mom wanted breakfast for dinner so everyone came over that evening and we had scones, bacon, sausage and eggs. It was delicious!

Happy Birthday Mom!

Wicked!

Wicked? you ask. Didn't she already post about Wicked? Yes I did, right here. But I got to go again. This time with Glenn and our friends Chuck and Katherine. It was funny how it began. The day after I went with mom & Erika, Glenn & I went to church. Just as I started to tell Chuck & Katherine that they really should see Wicked they began talking about wanting to see it. That's all I had to hear. It took a while for us to coordinate our schedules but we finally went last Friday evening. We were so lucky with our seats too. I got them 3 days in advance and we sat center stage, 1st row in the 2nd seating on the Mezzanine level. Nobody in front of us so lots of leg room and the view was perfect. Of course the production was excellent. A different actress played Glinda this time but she was just as good. The first time I went Jo Anne Worley played Madame Morrible, Carol Kane played her this 2nd time. I have to say Jo Anne Worley was much better. (I'm sorry Ms Kane)

The evening was lots of fun!

Welcome Home Robert!

Our son-in-law, Robert, came home from Iraq on Thursday. It was his 2nd tour and he was gone for 7 months. It was so exciting to have him come home. Erika told Anthony who is 12 a few days early but didn't tell Kourtnie (9yrs) or Launa (4yrs) until that day. Launa found out while we were getting ready. Kourtnie found out when Erika showed up at school to take her out. I think Kourtnie's teacher and the office workers were just as excited as we were.

The time for his plane to arrive was changed twice. The first time it was changed to 3 hours later which was discouraging. Then Erika received word that he would be here sooner so we had to quickly change and rush out. Of course there had been an accident on the freeway so we tried to get around by going through Ventura and Oxnard and maybe speeding a little. Ha! We were going from Ojai to Mugu base. When we arrived at the gate the guy told us the plane had already arrived. I could feel my heart sink thinking Robert was just standing there waiting for us. We got to the airfield and discovered he wasn't there yet after all. They arrived 45 minutes later. The first sighting of the airplane was great! We waited anxiously as they got off of the plane, looking for Robert. He was one of the last off.

Hugs all around
The family is back together. 7 months is a long time for a 4yr old. Launa was a little shy with daddy at first. Now she is talking his ears off.
Robert with Grandma Shirley and Mother-in-law Wenona
We had both houses decorated with signs and yellow ribbons to welcome Robert home.

Vacations!

Glenn just went back to work this week after a 2 week vacation. We spent 3 nights, 2 days in Cambria. It was great to just get away and relax.

Glenn relaxing on the patio outside of our room.
Wenona in front of our room.
The view from our patio.

The rest of the time we stayed around here. Glenn had a list of things he wanted to get done. (okay, I had a list for him too..Ha!) But, although he got a few things accomplished, we mainly relaxed and enjoyed the time together. I can't wait until Glenn retires!

Back in August we made a trip to Oklahoma City for our niece's wedding. It was fun seeing the family. We wish Greg and Erika could've made it but finances don't always cooperate with our wishes, do they? The wedding turned out so nice. Just look at this picture....aren't Amber & Jim a beautiful/handsome and happy couple? Glenn & I stayed a few days after the wedding to visit with family. It was great staying with Glenn's sister Peggy for a few days.

The Utter family at the wedding.

We'd never been to Oklahoma City. We saw the memorial site of the federal building bombing. It took us a couple of hours to walk through the memorial and what a wonderful job was done to tell the story. Also very intense. I found myself crying in a couple of the rooms. If you ever have a chance to go I do recommend that you try to see it.
Something we noticed about Oklahoma City as we walked around on Sunday afternoon is that nothing is open and the place is deserted. This is a picture looking down the center of a major street. No cars, no people. It was weird, like being in the twilight zone. But so peaceful! Our niece reminded us that Oklahoma is bible belt country. Wow, wouldn't it be great if everywhere was like that? Sunday could really be set aside for church, family and most of all the Lord.