Look what I can do

I learned how to put pictures on my computer and put them on my blog. Here it goes! These are some picture from our California trip.

California family fun!

Memorial Day Weekend was sooo very fun for our family. We have long awaited the time for our family to get together again. Ryan and Jane opened up their beautiful home in Los Angeles to all 16 of us. They are perfect hosts. 5 bedrooms and 5 bathrooms to accomodate the family.

All of us went to Disneyland and had a really great time. It would have been better without the rain. I still laugh when I picture Ryan & Jane, Julia and Nathan sitting in the little Dumbo ride with all their children in the pouring rain trying to look like they are having fun. What parents don't do for their kids. It was great to spend a few days together again.

Aubrey brought her fiance' and so he got a extra dose of what he is marrying into. Poor guy.

Somehow even though we all live far from each other we have been able to find a way to spend time together here and there.



As you know I am not real technical or quick in these new ways of communication but I am loving the text messages. I find it easier than calling and chatting. Now I am working on the digital camera. I need to get some pictures on this blog cause it is boring without pictures. I know I am old fashioned but I am working on getting updated. I rely on my children to help me out with these things!

upcoming wedding

Our daughter Aubrey is engaged to be married in August. It is exciting to starting making arrangements for their special day. I met the groom- to-be last month for the first time. He is a keeper! They will be married in Salt Lake and then have an open house in Idaho (where he is from) and then another open house in AR... It will be a busy summer. We are excited for a new son-in-law.

Rain Rain Go Away

There is nothing like a rain storm in the south. It isn't rain it is like someone just dumped an ocean on you. I have never seen torrents of rain like I have here. Sometimes it doesn't just stop with rain but it adds other features to the storm. Like Tornados! Living in Arkansas has been interesting, in the spring we always gear up for Tornado weather. Our family has been here for 20 years now and I have never been fond of hearing the warning sirens go off. The whole family runs and hides in a small space waiting for the destruction to hit. Being transplants from the West we really haven't experienced a tornado, yes we have seen the destruction on tv and as we drive around but never have we been in an actual tornado. We have had sirens go off and the kids (sometimes Doug and I) would run to the window to look.... not a smart thing to do in tornado weather.
Last night I heard that there was going to be some rough storms. That always makes me nervous. Define rough storms.... TORNADO!!! I sat and watched TV stations tell were the tornado activity was and Celeste kept calling me. I told her nothing to worry about it is in Little Rock, Bryant and heading for Cabot and Beebe. Looking up during our conversation they show a little swirl coming from Morrilton headed for Conway. It was 8 miles from the town. Sure I could hear the thunder and see the lightening but that happens all the time. Doug was already in bed asleep. The tornado was at Toad Suck 3 miles from us and headed our way. The tv screen flashed red with the warning the sirens went off and fear set in. I never moved so fast in all my life. I ran in the bedroom, threw the covers off of a very sleepy husband and yelled "Get up we have to take cover, get in the laundry room"! His response was "What are you talking about, the sirens haven't gone off." (My dear husband has railroad ears and doesn't hear alot that goes on) I grabbed his arm, the phone and 2 king size pillows and ran to the laundry room, sat down and waited.... Our 24 hour emergency kits were in there and I knew we were kind of ready. We waited out the storm for about 10 min. then it was gone. The whole central part of Arkansas got pounded last night. This is not the first time this year we have had a tornado and I suspect it won't be the last for the spring. The last time (when 13 people were killed Feb 5, 2008 I got in my car and went to the church.... NOW that was scary and dumb. I learned something, better to stay home than go out in that wicked stuff. I have a new respect for mother nature! Can I just say I don't like this part of living in Arkansas... The tornado is gone but the rain and flash floods are lingering. The bright side: When (if)it all dries up we will have a beautiful green summer!

Grandchildren

I have to say that one of the most rewarding relationships is being a grandma. I had no idea how much fun it would be! It would be so fun to live closer to our children and grandchildren so that we could see them often. We live many states away from each other so we communicate over the phone. Of course the young ones don't have a clue who we are when they see us but it doesn't take long to get that bond going after being with them a short time. Today our little 3 year old grandaughter called me at work and said "Hi grandma, how are you doing?" then she sang one of her little nursery songs for me. It was adorable! We miss not seeing Luke, Brooklyn, Sydney and Courtney on a daily basis. Thank goodness their parents see fit to send pictures and call so we can keep in touch. We have a big family trip planned to Ryan & Jane's home in Los Angeles so that we can spend time together and Disneyland is on the itinerary...
I haven't been there for 25 years! There is nothing like family!!!

Hello

My daugther Celeste set me up on this. I have really loved reading Jane & Celeste's blog and going into their friends to see their fun set ups. This is all new to me but what fun it has been reading others. My friend Pam sent me her blog last year and I read hers daily. She is a fantastic writer and really adds her personality to her blog. Ryan and Jane have famous people they see all the time since their move to LA. Their pictures of the family are fun to see since they live so far away. One picture is of Ryan with a mohawk, I am sure I won't be having any pictures of Doug cutting our hair like that but it was fun and to know that it was a short lived style for our eldest son! In an effort to keep us all close and entertained maybe we can share some fun experiences to the blog world. Celeste trys hard to keep Doug and I in the 21st century and up to date on what is cool. So thanks Celeste! Julia has expressed a desire to set a blog site up, go for it Julia, would love to see the pictures of the kids. Derek, Aubrey, Jaren have Myspace pages so I go there often to see how their doing. Guess that is getting outdated cause all the posts are last year... this is the new upcoming thing now.

Hope you enjoy!