Walkers at Coffee

So here are my neighbors with a few extras. Patti is not a walker but she has lived here the longest. There are two extra walkers from outside our area who have somehow weaseled their way into our elite bunch. Three of us began walking together each morning in 1990 and we know so many intimate details of one another’s families that we would never want to share with others. However these additions seem to be getting along quite well in our group and we are opening up to fill them in as we go. This is very inexpensive, high-caliber counseling. We walk every weekday morning from 6-7 though some in the group stay in bed during snowy weather even though they could walk with the Yak Trackers. (I hate that slipping feeling)

Our snow is gone but I’m still ready for Palm Springs. We have such a good group of cousins and Claire too. We might have a few therapeutic conversational sessions there and I know we will stay busy.

It is difficult to stay productive around here though a wall did get painted this week. Another day I attempted these Super Hero capes for the twins. JoAnn's had some fabric with something powerful on it. You can see pirates, Batman and Spiderman and they really don’t go together. Maybe boys aren’t that into proper designs if they just can wear a cape.


Ron has been having plenty of company at his cabin. He is feeling good now and limping around on his new hip. Jill has started her new judgeship in Olympia. Turns out the opinions she issues are initially written up by law student clerks so her days are so far not overwhelmingly busy.

Miles and Lucas are spending the night so I’m resting up today. They are very good however as long as there is a Wii, an iPad, and a few videos around plus lots of junk food. Grandmas can get away with this stuff.

Zipping Through Costa Rica

Now you can see what a self-centered grandma I am as I teetered on this high precipice and watched my two grandsons in the hands of a complete stranger glide hundreds of feet across the yawning river basin to the other side of the valley. Then I also watched my son and daughter-in-law and followed them to meet the boys who were very excited that we had 9 more zip lines platforms ahead of us. Aargh!

The boys also liked feeding chicken to the crocodile from the boat and feeding the white-faced monkeys who came on the boat to get their bananas. I know you would be very much against this practice of feeding animals in the wild but the tourists love it.

Costa Rica was also good for swimming in the ocean and building sand castles as well as a good location for picking up a few Spanish words and perhaps getting the idea than not every place is like Spokane. Thank goodness though we do love it here, especially with the sun shining on our snow.

We returned on Christmas day just in time to spend time with Cyd’s family in Seattle. A few days later the twins turned 5. This is how the day ended with the perfect party though the first part of the day was pretty hairy. Peyton and Walker like to decorate and dress for parties and like organizing the goody bags for everyone. Linda, Sara, and Esther came so we had a camera person to record the event.


Happy New Year! This is our seventieth year. I think we’d better make these days count.