#2 Grandchild is Baptized

We went on a quick 3-day weekend to Vancouver Washington. Michael and Danielle had just started school on Wednesday, so we went to have lunch with them there, lucky for us, they were 1 right after the other. We had to sit at a 'special visitor table' but both kids were all right with that.
The happy boys!
Proud Grandma J with her 1st grader!

Grandpa J had promised Michael a ride on a 'real' train on our last visit. We didn't have time for a trip to Seattle, so we planned a shorter trip, just 2 stops north. We went from Vancouver WA to Centralia WA.

The 1st train was called the Mount Hood, and we got seats with a table between them. We enjoyed HOT chocolate from the cafe car on this ride.

The train back was a double decker called the Coast Starlight. It was going all the way to Los Angeles, so some people were prepared for a very long ride. We enjoyed hot dogs for lunch on this trip.

This was a fun adventure, and it kept everyone occupied as we passed the time for the main event of the weekend: Michael's baptism.

It was a wonderful baptism. Michael was the only one from his Ward being baptized this month, so he was able to have his 'own' meeting. Grandpa J was honored to be asked to baptize and confirm Michael, and both he and Michael did a great job. They had practiced the method, and there were no surprises. We did realize though, that we sould have practiced the handshakes around the circle after the baptism, because as soon as Michael's confirmation was done, he hurried to his seat..never looking back.

We are so very proud of our 1st 2 grandchildren who have chosen to be baptized. They are great examples to their families and cousins too. We are grateful that we are able to be there for these special times in the lives of those we love.

Where did the summer go?

It is now September, the summer is gone. Another fun-filled summer is over. I have a theory that when the 'ber' months arrive, the year is pretty much done! Septem'ber' is busy with the beginning of school, Octo'ber' has birthdays and Halloween, Novem'ber' has Thanksgiving, (more birthdays) and Decem'ber' has (birthdays again,) and Christmas...all so busy, and they can pass in just a blur. So I thought I'd post a few of our Summer happenings, just for a reflection, maybe you'll enjoy it too.We went to Capitola and Jerry & I had our 1st experience staying in the Packard Beach House. What fun that was. We were sorry Teri Le and her family couldn't make it, but enjoyed our time with Tyler and his family. During our trip to Hawaii this summer, for the 1st time, we went to the Hawaiian Temple Visitor's Center. It is really beautiful! So peaceful, and the Sister missionaries there wear Hawaiian Dresses.
I met up for breakfast in Carlsbad with good old friends. Linda Bowman, Marilynn Scheller, Diane Smith and I all worked at Westwood Elementary in the 80s and 90s. We have remained friends, though we are now scattered all over the place. e had a fun GNO group with 4 other co-workers. We went fun places and celebrated birthdays, weddings and events for several years in San Diego.
Jerry did a whole lot of remodeling of my kitchen. No, it isn't quite done, but we are at the point where the 2 big things left will be subbed-out: Counter tops and flooring! The carpet will go in within the next few weeks too! I can hardly wait. Here is my new micro-hood.
We spent a fun day in Newport with Tyler, Tanya, Taylor, Ashlynn and Andy. This is one of my favorite pics from the day..my cute dimpled guys!!

Have you ever...?

...just thought you needed a change, something different? Well, I have been pondering this for quite awhile, and today was the day! I had an appointment to 'cover the gray' and decided to let my hairdresser go at it! She has been wanting to do something different for years now. Now mind you, I get lots of compliments on my hair, so doing this was a HUGE step for me.

My grandkids have posted their 'Back to School' cuts, so here goes...here are mine: Before:

and..

After:

Now, my question to you is...have you ever done something like this...and wish that you hadn't??

Yes, I know, it will grow back, but do I have the patience for it? I guess we';; just have to see.

Quiz Your Friends - Take Your Friend's Quiz

Quiz Your Friends - Take Your Friend's Quiz

Our Trip to Capitola California

We had a really terrific 4 days with Tyler, Tanya, Taylor, Andy & Ashlyn.

We met up at Casa De Fruta...the kids (as well as the adults) had fun riding the Carosel and the train. The kids went on the playground, we put a couple of guys in the stocks, and we had dinner. Oh yeah, we also bought fruit and vegetables for the vacation!
Are they cute, or what??
We let them go, when they promised to always be so fun!
The next day we went to the beach and in the afternoon we went o the Santa Cruz Boardwalk! We had a really fun time, the twins are old enough to ride the rdes without Mommy & Daddy, is that a good thing?

Friday we took off to see some Redwoods on a really fun ride on a train. The scenery was beautiful and we all enjoyed ourselves.

Some of the pics are out of order...but you can see how big Andy & Ashlyn look as they driver their own dune buggy!

These next 2 pictures are really the main reason for the trip. Jerry's Dad will be 93 in October, and has been struggling with some cancer issues. He had never met Ashlyn & Andy. Andy is the only Jorgenson Great-Grandson, to carry out the Floyd Jorgenson name. Grandpa has 45 Great-Grandchildren, but he only has 2 sons, and the other Jorgenson grandson had a girl...so Andy is it, (for now).

It was important that we get a 4-Generation pictures for posterity.

Jerry, Tyler and Andy all have the middle name of Dale, which originated with Jerry's Uncle.





It seems we always manage to toss some of the kids around. As you can see, the 'Dads' are farther apart for Andy and he goes much higher. They both enjoyed it and laughed and laughed!

The kitchen?

Can you still call it a kitchen if there is no stove or oven?

Jerry spent the past couple of days re-configuring the cabinets for the new appliances. He worked really hard getting everything exact and I know that it will really look good.

This evening we had the missionaries to dinner, and we bar b qed steaks, baked the potatoes at the Red House and cooked the corn on the burner on the bar b que.

Who needs a kitchen??

Summer time joys!

Well, today my blog frustration level is very high. I haven't posted for awhile, and can't even seem to remember how to change the pictures! Goodness, now I guess I'll create another post about our last vacation trip...if I can!

We spent 10 glorious day is Hawaii, this time we went to Maui for 4 of the days.We stayed in an old Inn in the heart of lanai and enjoyed the local flavor there. We went for a day - long drive and experienced more local flavor, the best smoothie ever, made in an old special-needs school bus and the best banana bread on the planet, from a small family-owned stand.

The bread was delicious, and the hospitality was amazing.

While in Maui, we went on an all day excursion. We rode the Trinity catamaran to a small, privately owned island. We saw amazing scenery, including a pod of spinner dolfins just diving and jumping and spinning all the time! It was amazing, But we didn't take our camera, dumb!

We went snorkeling there, and that was another adventure. We saw a sea turtle and followed him for awhile...way cool! That was probably our favorite day of vacation..and we have no pictures to show!

Back on Oahu, we ended our vacation in a BIG way. We stayed at the Outrigger Reef, and our room was right over-looking the beach, It was a corner room, so one balcony looked over Diamond Head, and the other; the ocean.

When we picked up our rental, we 'up-graded', for very little $, and had a BLAST in this car!

Come on, how could we NOT have fun?

We drove around a LOT and took an extra loop through town before we turned the car over to the valet!

We really had a great time, and are looking forward to the next trip...it was quiet, and a little lonely without any family, but it was a great way to celebrate our 34th anniversary!