Elizabeth's birthday week

Yard panorama--out the south and west doors

I took these photos yesterday after we finished mowing. I ran a riding mower (Judy's)for the first time and was so amazed at how much time it saves. Wow. We finished in under two hours what it would have taken me three or four partial days to finish. That's because I can't keep it up for more than an hour or so with the push mower. :-) John mowed all the slopes and down in the gully.
It looks SOOOO nice to me. I have a view now, although I do get sad when we trim off the skirts of the spruce and firs.
The concrete blocks are still there, waiting for more foundation work....Don't tell Judy but I feed the chipmunks there. They sit on top the blocks sometimes and "chip" at me. Judy tells the cats to eat them. I yell at them if they do. The circular mark is from the little pool. And see how huge the raspberries are. John C. wants to put the hardy kiwi on an arbor north of the raspberry, strawberry, herb bed.
It looks as though nothing is blooming in one of the garden beds but the hydrangeas are really pretty. The lilies were incredible but are mostly finished and the roses are rebudding. The Knockout double pink had been really full of bloom. The luna hibiscus will start blooming soon and keep going until frost.
For some reason I seem to be trying to clean the upstairs bedroom and start the painting in Elizabeth's room on the same day. The paint is a Laura Ashley color "Cream Rose" in a Diamond Vogel paint. The closet is "Rosewater", also by Laura Ashley. The walls, however, will be so much lighter. I had a hard time distinguishing the new paint from the Dogwood White which was there. It does dry pinker and is a brighter color. I had great plans to take down the shelf in that room and buy a fairly large curio cabinet that is at Farm King. However, I realized that it's glass to the floor and maybe not grandchild friendly. :-{ So, I'm trying to figure out another home for the Ginny dolls. The old china cabinet in the kitchen and the old secretary desk/bookshelf (which has no glass now anyway) can both smell musty in humid weather so that's a no go.

JT is three!!!

We would have loved to share in JT's birthday party in Kenosha if we hadn't had a big show in Des Moines.
John J. did a great job of getting organized for the party. Some friends/neighbors enjoyed a cookout with JT. Looks like the hot dogs and pickles were a hit. Then, he played with new sand toys at the park (love the background of this park :-) and had a skype visit with Elizabeth and Brent who "shared" some cake and ice cream and the opening of a gift.

ArtFest Midwest--Pella

So, is going to the ArtFest Midwest just an excuse to stop in Pella at the Jarsma Bakery?? Hmmm... Well, we only stop about once a year. I also got raspberry strudel...
The ArtFest was a fairly good show this year. Slightly under last year, which isn't bad considering the economy. Lt. Gov. Patty Judge spoke at the show. She's a big supporter of the arts and she visited most of the artists for a brief chat. I was able to get a few photos of her speaking and talking with John.
I also got a photo of John with the featured Iowa Artists sign.

Father's Day Weekend

What a busy but fun weekend. We had an early 3rd birthday party for JT, who arrived with his Daddy on Friday night. Then Sunday was both Father's Day and the Snake Alley Art Fair.
JT woke up when he came in on Friday night and we told him that tomorrow would be a busy day and that we would go out early to pick raspberries and strawberries but that he would have to go to sleep and wait until it was light. Well, it WAS light at 6:45 so out we went! :-) We got several raspberries and the two ripe strawberries on my new everbearings. He later ate raspberry pancakes, raspberries, a whole kiwi, and some ham!
We then had to check out some of grandpa's new toys and get out the trains. :-)
John Wayne, Cindi, and Nathan arrived later on Saturday so they were there for the picnic. I had made the "Thomas" train cake on Friday and was proud of it, even if the frosting was too soft to pipe well. JT seemed to enjoy it! :-) He was so excited about playing that he could hardly stop to open presents. He got a train repair shop, a train signal set, Thomas poster, and a clear clock which gets put together with colored gears--from Grandma and Grandpa. Then he also received a circus train, talking Thomas, tropical fish floor puzzle, wind up boat (which he played with all the way home), fish squirter, books, hanging train card......
JT was up early again on Sunday, at about 6:15. Grandpa left just before 6 (he overslept) and that probably woke him up. We went out to check the cherry tree and I picked some cherries. JT wanted a taste but these were pie cherries so I quickly switched for some Bing cherries that were in the fridge. :-) We had cherry pancakes for breakfast. We were at the art fair, with a phenomenal parking place, before 11. It was a very humid and hot day. Doing anything made you red faced and sweaty and I think Dad had a bit too much. Sales were fairly good though and Dad won the Committee Spirit Award. That was an honor, although we teased him quite a bit. "I've got spirit, how bout you?" Dad also appreciated all the calls from those of you who weren't able to be home. :-)
I was excited to get a 1948 Eloise Wilkin Little Golden Book at the antique booths. (And a bunny book for JT). I also got a Queen Elizabeth Silver Jubilee plate in burgundy and gold. Each at a quite reasonable price.
As usual, it was sad to see John and JT get in the car and leave. They had a safe trip back, however, and JT will be with Daddy on Wed and get to play with his new toys.
WE HOPE ELIJAH FEELS BETTER!!! 105.4 is a little too outstanding!!!

Dr. George, Dr. Beth (aka Dr. Mommy)

George's graduation events were as impressive as I expected, having attended a few other events at the Univ. of Chicago. Friday morning at 11 a.m. the hooding ceremony was held on the Midway Plaisance. This was a divisional ceremony for the Pritzker School of Medicine and was more personal than the huge Convocation. The programs pictured each graduate, listed their specialty, and where they would do their residency. George received his green and maroon hood. He also received his Richard W. Reilly Award for outstanding aptitude in the field of Gastroenterology. His specialty, however, will be internal medicine/pediatrics.
After the hooding the class photo was taken and then we lined up for a really good buffet luncheon. We had two kinds of green salad, southwestern potato salad, a pasta dish, and lots of kinds of cookies. :-) John and I were present, Beth and the boys, Beth's mother, Elizabeth and Brent, and Judy.
On Saturday morning at 9:30 the processional began for the outdoor unified Convocation. What pageantry! From all the quadrangles marched the undergraduates, the graduate students, the faculty....each line led by bagpipes and flags. 22,000 chairs had been set up and an outdoor stage erected. Multiple giant screens offered a better view for those who could barely glimpse the stage. Therefore we got a good "view" of the speaker, Paul Sereno, known to anyone who reads The National Geographic as the "dinosaur hunter", and who is on the faculty at the U of Chicago.
A cloudburst just as the Business School PhD's were announced (but after the Med school)caused us to take shelter in the bookstore, where Judy purchased a nice frame for George's diploma.
After the ceremony we met George in one of the med school buildings for a sack lunch. These "sacks" were so nice that I saved most of them. They had the U of C logo and I plan to take my lunch to school in them next year, thereby hoping to impress the new superintendent so that he believes I deserve the sub raise. :-)
John, Judy, and I, along with John J and JT, attended the Convocation and felt really lucky that we accidently chose chairs near the pathway down which the Medical School graduates would later walk.
Saturday evening was a graduation party at their new apartment. Beth graduated in late May from Northwestern's Feinberg School of Medicine so this was quite a celebration for them. The photo shows George putting on a bow tie that Judy got him.
Yes, of course I'm proud of all their hard work and sacrifices over many years. It's been a long journey for them. So, I certainly also feel that any sense of pride belongs to them alone. Only they know how much they've given towards what they have achieved.

BEAR

BEAR
Oct. 2004--June 2010

We miss you Bear. I'm so sorry and I'll be sad forever that I couldn't be there for you when you needed me. You were the smartest and most gentle of giants.