Monday, February 7, 2011

A Belated Christmas Story


We keep saying that time seems to go faster and faster as we age and I do think it's true.  Then why does it seem like it has been eons since I promised to show pictures of my Christmas trip to California?  My excuse is that there was so much to do when I returned that I didn't have time to devote to writing a lengthy post.  Then other things intervened like the tragic shooting of our Congresswoman, Gabrielle Giffords (who is progressing beyond the doctor's expectations, thank goodness) that needed to be covered.   

Well, a promise is a promise and I am going to keep mine no matter how tardy I am.  

Christmas with my family is always so much nicer than being alone and I really enjoyed the visit.  It was rather a strange Christmas because it was the girl's dad's turn to have them for the holiday.  They were at Gail's Christmas Eve and we all opened our presents Christmas morning.  Then they left to have dinner at their father's house. 


Gail and I decided that it was rather dumb to cook a big feast just for the two of us and so we waited until New Years to celebrate.  My son, Mark and his wife, Karen drove up from Van Nuys New Year's Eve to be part of Gail's annual fondue party.  Unfortunately, Mark was sick and after helping Gail with preparations he went to bed while the rest of us dipped all sorts of goodies in the hot fondue oil.  There was also the traditional Swiss fondue with the appropriate cheese for dipping chunks of good bread.  The part the children loved was the chocolate fondue with fresh fruit and marshmallows for dipping.  I'm just a kid at times like that so I did my share of savoring the chocolate.  You know me; the chocoholic.

Lynne drove down New Years Day from Napa and it was just super having all three of my children together again.  

 We just sipped wine and chatted the rest of the time.  We didn't even drive out to see the Christmas lights so I didn't get the anticipated pictures of the displays to show you.  
















I didn't want to take my good camera and heavy lens with me so I bought a little point and shoot Nikon.  The pictures are disappointing as a result.  They don't enlarge as well.  For what it's worth I am posting a few of them here.  Left click to enlarge. 





Other than going to the Mall twice we didn't do much else.

The pictures are of Gail (top) with her friend, Kelli (bottom), Rachel (now a blond) and her boyfriend, Danny, Sarah and her friend, Miranda,  The Mall decorations and a yard across the street from Gail's.  I leave it to you to sort them out.  


I got patted down at the airport because, now that I am a bionic woman, I set the alarm off when I walk through the device.   The only difference was that the patting down went up a little higher this time. ~ :-o. 

I had a non-stop return flight scheduled for all the good it did me.  There was some malfunction in the plane from Oakland to L. A. and we were all taken off the plane to wait two hours to leave for Tucson on a different one.  Both going and coming my planes were two hours late in arriving. Considering the time of year and the problems that the East Coast was having with canceled flights and crowded terminals I considered myself to be very lucky.  


All in all it was a wonderful trip to be stored in my memory.  I hope I haven't bored you with my flashback.  I did tell you I would report, didn't I?

 

16 comments:

Looking to the Stars said...

I loved all the pics. They were great!! The girls are growing up fast. I'm glad it was a wonderful time for you. Flying now a days is an experience in itself :)

Thanks for sharing, I enjoyed it :)

Nancy said...

Thanks, Darlene, for the nice account of your Christmas visit to Gail's and the pictures of your lovely Granddaughters and the rest of your family.

I enjoyed looking at the pictures and loved that you shared them with us.

Joy Des Jardins said...

I am SO glad you posted these pictures Darlene. My gosh everyone looks wonderful. I can't believe the girls...so grown up...and very adorable. And...that fondue looked especially wonderful. I just love that, but don't get to do it hardly enough. Cheers to you sweetie. ~Joy

Darlene said...

*Looking to the Stars - You are right; the girls are growing up too fast for me. Glad you enjoyed the pics.

*Nancy - Thank you.

*Joy Des Jardins - You should have seen the other fondue table. It makes me hungry just thinking of it because it was loaded with yummy food.

rummuser said...

Belated, but worth the wait. The photos are perfectly blogworthy! And the models are lovely too.

Rain Trueax said...

Never too late to tell about good times. The photos looked good on my monitor. The fondues sounded wonderful

20th Century Woman said...

Such good pictures, but not one of you! Your granddaughters are lovely.

Kay Dennison said...

What a great time you had!! And I love the photos!!!! I have a little Nikon and I love it!!!

Barry said...

Excellent. Thanks for sharing. Earlier today I had my iPod hooked up to the stereo system and set to random. It landed on a Christmas song more than once. So, between that and this post, I'm feeling rather festive. :)

Anil P said...

Nice pictures, and even nicer to read that a wonderful time was had by all. The decorations are lovely.

Darlene said...

*rummuser - I will pass your compliment on to my granddaughters. Thank you.

*Rain - I like fondue because it combines good food with fun.

*2oth Century Woman - I was the one taking the pictures. ;-)

*Kay Dennison - The Nikons are a neat little camera, aren't they? Mine is so small I'm afraid I will lose it. For the best photos, though I still love my Canon Rebel.

*Barry - How nice that you had another festive occasion with music and photos.

*Anil P - The best decorations were in the Mall, but our tree was floor to ceiling and very nice.

One Woman's Journey - a journal being written from Woodhaven - her cottage in the woods. said...

Darlene, loved all the pictures.
Your granddaughter's have surely grown - like mine.
Thank you for sharing. Fondue looked so good. I have never prepared this...

Hattie said...

Lovely. I would love to share pix but my daughters would rather I didn't.
I could do with fondue now, because it's a little chilly here, not bad, but it sounds good, you know what I mean?
I also know what you mean about nice cameras. I am afraid to take mind traveling, too.

Darlene said...

*Hattie - I don't know how my daughter feels about me posting pictures, but she hasn't complained so I assume it's okay with her.

Maybe I should ask her. ;-)
You know what they say about assuming.

I would hate to lose my good camera and it's bulky and heavy so a tiny point and shoot makes more sense unless I am going to be photographing scenery.

Vagabonde said...

I enjoyed your pictures – lovely family – the girls are stunning. I can’t believe March is in 3 days only – where did the time go since Christmas?

Darlene said...

*Vagabonde - Thank you for your very nice compliment on my granddaughters. I will pass it on.