Allan's Aviary Sanctuary

Dad has been home for ten days now from his basic bird business bash with Aaron. Another name for it is taxidermy school, where he learned to strip, clean, dress, prepare, sew & much more a total of six fowl. The stuffed items now adorn the interior of our home as light accents, stairwell greeters and windowsill habitat scenes. Excitement at learning this art is an understatement. May you enjoy the ride in the aviary sanctuary & be sure to duck. Ha! Ha!!

Gratitude Granny Gives Great Advice

Here is the Gratitude Granny with only fifteen days until Thanksgiving asking your comments on the things you are grateful for. Not those everyday ones we all enjoy like good health, family and such, but the ones you have to think about. These small everyday things are what make you happy. Tell us five things you’re thankful for.

Here are my five:
1. Pomegranates are now in season. At Peterson’s they’re only $1 this week.
2. The DI for helping turn my trash into treasures for someone else. Yeah!
3. Big garbage cans to put lots of leaves, grass & junk in every week.
4. Cream cheese desserts with fruity toppings oozing off the edge.
5. Fall leaves that turn the world into a patchwork wonderland.

Big Bull's Birthday

Here it is two days since Dad's birthday & I totally forgot to post anything about what a great guy he is and all. I guess all the extra sleep I got hogging the whole bed, not having to fix any meals & staying up late every night got my brain all fuzzy on how to be a good wife. Well he did help in the yard, finally fixed the radio (It works!), put the cover on the cooler and still doesn't complain about much.
That is reason enough to remember how terrific he is as he comes to everyones rescue be it leveling dirt, helping to repair equipment, fix whatever, baptise a grandchild or just his loving presence and patriarchal position.

Jory, Mauri, Aaron, Brayle & Hunter came to his dinner of pork roast, baked potatoes, stuffed mushrooms, crepes and apples w/carmel. He got a new jacket, four shirts and awaits the much sought after gift from his wonderful children. Thanks for your many calls and cards of love. We Love You, DAD!!!

Here on Halloween

Paula went above and beyond the call of auntie duty and made an adorable Cowardly Lion outfit for Zach and a Dorothy dress for Sarah. She has worn the dress nonstop since it arrived in the mail on Monday. Blue & white gingham with white blousy top, full ruffly skirt and big white buttons makes me a believer when I see Sarah dressed up with her red Dorothy shoes on and her hair in braids.

Alicia has kept Sara busy this week doing those projects every child dreams of making with their mom from Oreo spiders, painted paper pumpkins, napkin ghosts, pudding Frankensteins to every conceivable hanging Halloween object you can imagine.

Entertaining me hasn't been a walk in the park for this hostess. Although I have tried not to be too demanding, we have gone to Boo at the Zoo, the Botanical Gardens, walked across the Brooklyn Bridge, seen the play Wicked, Chinatown, and many more that blur in crowd of exciting things. The Manhattan Temple had an opening for a session. I managed to find it with accurate directions and slept through the session there as easily as I do at home. It is as beautiful as any the Church has painstakingly built and it is a must see if possible. The NY Marathon is on Sunday and we may sneak into town to view a few runners if we find out the route and make a stop at church first.

Alicia's apartment is spacious with every room almost floor to ceiling windows that face Manhattan. It's a view that only a rich person enjoys in a very posh apartment building. I actually think it is the prettiest tower on the ridge. The ridge is a 200 to 300 foot high rock wall that runs along the length of both New Jersey and Manhattan for about five or so miles. Below the ridge is the town of Edgewater, that is only about 1/4 to 1/2 mile wide full of four plexes, condos and quaint homes.

If her camera download cord wasn't lost we would send some pictures. I am going to see if Dave will make a disk and maybe I can figure out how to do it from home when I get back on Wednesday. Start watching for cheap airfares for next spring, because you need to enjoy the Big Apple when you can feel almost like a resident. Just ask Breann.

Geo goes crunch!

Saturday night was the fateful time for the good old reliable Geo. Jed was just closing the blinds in the front room when CRASH! As he watched out the window, he saw someone pull out of the neighbor's driveway and crash into the Geo. The drivers side front door and fender went crunch under the speed and weight of a Chevy pickup. (NOT our neighbor's, but someone they obviously know.) Jed went running out front in his slippers and the lady driving aforementioned pickup pulled over (expletive, expletive, bleep, bleep!) We exchanged insurance information. I got an estimate on the repairs today. Having the car fixed will be more worth it to us than having a check for the total worth of the car. (It gets great gas mileage you guys! Plus, it has fairly low miles, considering it's a 1994!) We'll keep you informed on what's to come in the next few days!

Miss Makayla is Marking Another Birthday

Memories of Makayla at four as she entered into our lives with her round freckled face and long dark tresses are still strong. We worked at getting to know her and making her feel welcome, as well as her dad. Dad said she was a finicky eater. We thought her appetite was the best in the family. Broken arms, cropped off hair from wayward gum or glue and many adventures are all under the bridge now, as she emerges from her cocoon.

Much has changed since then, as she’s grown into a lovely and busy teenager of fourteen. Although we don’t see her often, we are grateful when she is here to help with the little ones, pal around with Brayle & is a very pleasant person to be with. Happy Birthday, M.

Jamestown, Yorktown & Williamsburg, the Historic Triangle

Jamestown was settled in 1607 (yeah, like 400 years ago). They showed how tough it was to make a go of this new land of America. It actually took about 100 years before anyone was willing to stay. There were some major challenges such as: Indians, food supplies, getting crops to grow and the Spanish. Women came in about 1625 to help encourage the men to stay. We are so valuable. See how lonely this guy looks.

Yorktown is where the final battle occurred that turned the Revolutionary War to our side & the British decided to leave us alone. The French actually came to our rescue & were instrumental in our success. That would be the reason for the Statue of Liberty. Don’t ask me why NYC got it instead of Virginia. We drove over the battlefields, stood on the exact spot of surrender and viewed the York River where the British were trapped. This cannon is on the actual battlefield.

Williamsburg is an early American town that has been preserved with Capitol building, Governors Palace, courthouse, shop smith, church, home sites, printing office & so on where fulltime employees pretend to live the real lives of those of the day. Many reenactments, performances & such take place during each day for visitors to attend. See Kristine Pryor playing & me in the background.