Moving Up in the World

It was great seeing Kendall, Darlene, and Jasper this past weekend here in Eugene. They were here to hear Conrad deliver one of his great sermons. The high point for me, however, was when Jasper called me "Grandma Judith". How lucky am I to be called a Grandma, bypassing the having kids part. Not that you 3 kids are not great to have a relatives. BUT I never thought I would ever be called Grandma. So your dear old auntie now has another nom de plume after having retired the professor tag.

I'm slowly beginning to turn my thoughts to my September trip to the Grand Canyon (North Rim) Sedona, Jerome, and Payson. Will let you know how that goes when I get back in mid-Sept.

Love to all of you,

Grandma Judith

Chelsea's New Car

Chelsea and Aaron going for a spin in her new car.

Mowing the grass

The funniest part of this wasn't captured on film... Jasper was running full speed all over the grass with his toy lawn mower while I was slowly, plugging away at the wet grass which was about 12" high with my neighbor's cantankerous lawn mower. I was cussin' and getting all upset, and then I look over and he's all smiles racing across the lawn. It was a great moment.

Mother's Day '08

Construction Finished

Well, after 5 months of construction (actually 3 months of construction and 2 months of waiting for a mirror), the guest bathroom is complete. Hurrah!!!! As a Lions Club buddy said to me today, "That ought to do it for your lifetime." I hope so. In any case, I love the new look using natural stone throughout. One of the young men who helped with the construction and painting asked if he could come over each day and use the shower because it was so cool. No deal.

Lions activities keep me very busy. I just finished revamping the site for our local Lions Club (www.eugenedowntownlions.com). Its much nicer looking that the old site and much easier to do more with, so I'm happy despite all the work. I have finished my first year as Trustee to the Oregon Lions Sight and Hearing Foundation. The "fun" part of that has been delivering a presentation about the Foundation to 8 other Lions Clubs. Great way to keep my public speaking skills up to date. Apparently I haven't lost the skill even in retirement as the feedback has been great. This weekend I'll be going on retreat up the MacKenzie River with the other Trustees as we prepare for another year. Last year we sweltered during the retreat; this year it looks as if we might even encounter snow in the mountains. Love this Oregon weather.

Of course, I am gardening like crazy. We had a really hot couple days in mid-May which brought out all the spring flowers and a host of unwanted weeds. No complaints, however, as I seem to enjoy playing in the mud. Maybe I wasn't allowed to do that as a young girl. I'll have to ask Conrad about that. In any case, I love being out in nature. There is a calmness and serenity that I gain when working in the garden.

I guess that's enough news from this front. Sorry it's been so long since I've blogged. Hopefully I will not be so lax in the future--but no promises.

Birthday party at Red Robin

Theeeeeeeey're Great!