What a weekend!

It's amazing what you can accomplish in a weekend when you put your mind to it! On Friday evening, I went to bed early so I was up early on Saturday. Got my chores done so I got to go to the Pacific International Quilt Festival at the Santa Clara Convention Center. I spent 4 hours there admiring the amazing quilts and shopping for a few quilting essentials for myself - I'm sharing a few photos here, but trust me when I tell you that the photos don't do the quilts justice.  The skill involved in making these beauties is so advanced. I'm such an amateur, but I certainly appreciate these works of art.

Even though my "dogs were barkin'" after the quilt festival, Ron and I headed to a going away party for a friend. Got to see several people that I hadn't seen for quite a while - it was like old home week! Made me a bit nostalgic. I've missed those folks and it was great to reconnect and share contact information. Let's make sure we really do get together soon, okay?

Finally, today we headed east to see our Wild Thing who is now 9 years old! We picked him up, went to lunch then took him to his baseball game. We are thrilled that he seems to love baseball (much less chance for injury than football). He played really well - the coach had him pitch, catch and play 1st base. I'm no expert, but I think his strength is going to be in pitching. He caught a pop fly to end the game and was awarded the game ball. It was a great day!

After the game, we got Viliamu situated with a Halloween costume (it's a secret) before we headed back home. Finally, before we came back across the bridge, we stopped at a grocery store that had budget-priced pumpkins. I got all the pumpkins I need for a project at work. This is a trunk full of pumpkins...

...and home in time for a nice dinner. I feel deeply satisfied with all that we accomplished. Good weekend!

Better days ahead

It was overcast and cooler today. Just what I needed. In fact, I could almost smell autumn in the air! It was a much better day today than yesterday. Work was good; I had a nice lunch with Mandi and then the mail came. Look what I got...

I feel so official! This is now framed and hanging on the wall in my office. Yes, it was a better day :)

Some days are diamonds

"Some days are diamonds some days are stones

Sometimes the hard times won't leave me alone

Sometimes a cold wind blows a chill in my bones

Some days are diamonds some days are stones"

I haven't been able to get this song out of my head all day. Don't you hate when that happens? The thing is, my day wasn't bad. It wasn't great, but it wasn't terrible. So, why the melancholy? I have so much to be grateful for - I remind myself of this every day.  Still, some days are just blah. Maybe it's just the Wednesday blues (is there such a thing?).

In an effort to snap myself out of this mood today, I took a slow stroll through the courtyard and saw this beauty...

Not bad for a Samsung Galaxy 4, huh? Sometimes I wonder if the Sisters think I'm a little crazy because of all the photos I take...

And just in case you've never heard the song I was talking about, here's John Denver singing it...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vJzcpUKKxzM

A flower a day...

By now you know that I love autumn. I love all things fall - the changing leaves, pumpkins of all shapes and sizes, shorter days and cooler temperatures...so, where is it? When I got in the car to head home this afternoon, the temperature readout said 108 degrees!! Clearly, it wasn't that hot, but it felt like it.

While I wait for my favorite season to arrive, I will stop and smell the roses and enjoy the blossoms on Oakwood's grounds. I'm happy to share my little discoveries with you. Signing off now so that I can turn my full attention to the debate...here we go!

Large and in Charge

Over the weekend, Ron took me to a shopping mall that we'd never been to before. I was excited because there was a JC Penney at Serramonte. The reason I like Penney's is because it's the only department store that carries the Liz Claiborne line. I love her clothes. Even better is the fact that Liz Claiborne manufactures garments in women's sizes. Bonus! Or so I thought.

Ron dropped me at the door and left to do a few errands so that I could shop at a leisurely pace. Around and around the store I went, looking for Liz. I found her in the Misses department. Then I found her in the Petites department. Another turn around the store...hmmmmmm. Ok, time to ask a clerk. "Excuse me, where is the Women's department?" "Oh, I'm sorry, Ma'am. We don't carry those sizes at this store." I'm sure my face showed disbelief...disappointment...embarrassment and shame. "But you have a Petites department and an entire section of 49'ers apparel..." She shrugged and said "I'm sorry."

On my way around the store, I had picked up some little t-shirts for my nephew and there was nothing left to do but pay for them. The young lady behind the counter was very nice and asked me if I found everything I needed. I had to be honest. "No, I didn't." I told her what happened. She asked if I would like to talk to the manager. I couldn't imagine that it would make any difference, but she called the manager while she rung up my purchase. The manager came over, so I had to repeat my story one more time further increasing my embarrassment. The manager apologized and explained that the JCP at Serramonte was one of the smaller stores and didn't have room for everything. She went on to say that there were several brand names that they didn't carry at that store. "Yes, but there is a Petites department, right?" And again, "I'm Sorry."

I take full responsibility for my size and I'm not writing this so that you will feel sorry for the fat lady. I just felt discriminated against. It was not a happy feeling. Needless to say, I will NOT be going back to JCP...unless I lose a considerable amount of weight. Until then, I will tell you that Ron and I prefer to think of ourselves as "fluffy."

Testing...1...2...3...

Wow...It's been a while - well over a year...trying to see if I remember how to do this...a lot has happened since I last wrote...

This is one of the good things that happened...

my sestra came for a visit! 

I haven't exercised my writing muscles for a while. Maybe it's like riding a bike...I'm gonna start slow and see how I do.

Transitions

For several years I have been writing "Tales from an (almost) Empty Nest," but the truth is that we've been transitioning. When Beckie flew to New York to visit JB last week, I realized that for the first time ever Ron and I are here in California without any of our daughters. The nest is truly empty now and I'm trying to figure out how I feel about that.

Now that the girls are all doing their own things and living their own lives, it has occurred to us that we aren't tied to California anymore. Granted, we both have jobs here, but I suppose we could work anywhere. I'm not saying that we are hell-bent on leaving here, but the fact that the girls don't need us or a home base anymore opens us up to a new world of possibilities.

This new world includes a lot of work. First up, DOWNSIZING! We have started clearing the clutter, but there is so much more to do. The girls have accused me for years of being a hoarder. I have called myself a collector. Now that I'm having to deal with all of my "stuff" I think I'm starting to agree with the girls!We've lived in this house for 13 years and it's amazing how much stuff we've accumulated...sigh...

As we clear the clutter, we have also started doing little fix-it projects around the house. All this will lead us to be able to list the house for sale. After that, who knows?! We fix the house, sell the house and start looking for a new place to live. No big deal - just a little upheaval. I don't know - it's kind of exciting to think about everything that could be. I think I'm ready for something new.