Once again, we bid a fond farewell to the old...

and welcome the new. We hope that 2010 brings everyone good health, prosperity, great joy, and peace.

More beautiful holidays lights...

Very, very early on Christmas morning, Margaret had switched on the TV, expecting to see the news. But, instead, there was an hour long show, produced by the local news division, of fabulous holiday lights displays all over the Los Angeles and Orange County areas. One neighborhood that was visited was just a couple of miles away, right in Costa Mesa. We took a drive over a couple of nights ago and these are some of the delightful lights we saw there!

Riley and Isaac's 1st Christmas Eve...

Finally, videos as promised!
At just under six months (Riley) and not quite three weeks (Isaac), the tiniest members of our family won't remember Christmas Eve 2009. But, the rest of us, at least the grown-up ones, will remember what sweet angels they both were!

Kissin' Cousins...

...we love to see how affectionate the bigger kids are with the babies.

One, two, three... unwrap!

And a wonderful time was had by all!

A couple of days before Christmas...

...we went to Roger's Gardens, a Newport Beach nursery that does quite a display of lights pre-Christmas. These aren't all the greatest photos we've taken, but they give a feel of how festive a place it is during the holidays. Larry was seated in "Santa's Chair" inside what was the original bandstand at Disneyland many years ago.

A golden bell for our tree...

Rogers does a rousing gift business in addition to selling plants. Among all the great things, we found one beautiful new ornament to add to our collection.

Christmas Eve...

Heather is tough! Despite just having given birth to Isaac less than three weeks ago, she still gathered us all together in their home for Christmas Eve. (Sadly, she is not in any of these pictures. Andrick is barely seen, as well. So sorry!) The kids dined on pizza - eating as much as you would expect excited little kids to eat, while the big folks enjoyed caeser salad and lasagna. (Dessert of pumpkin and lemon pies had to wait - those kids had packages to open.)
It was a beautiful evening; we were blessed to all be together, and to share a first Christmas Eve with our two newest arrivals, Riley and Issac.
We took some video, too. (Now, we just have to remember how to load it to the computer and edit it!) As they say, "Film at 11..."

Wishes for a blessed Christmas...

Holiday lights...

On Sunday evening, we celebrated my birthday at a restaurant on the marina in Seal Beach, then drove through the streets of this quaint sea-side town, looking at holiday lights. (There are more "light" photos that we'll share after Christmas!)

Eight months ago today...

...we exchanged our wedding vows! Margaret's sister, Carol, gave us this ornament in April. It's our favorite on the tree this year!

The Hong Kong Orchid Tree at Sunset...

I know we posted pictures last winter of the orchid trees in bloom behind our condo... They are so beautiful that I just had to share them in their glory as the sun was setting this evening. The storm that blew through here a week ago took many of the blossoms with it, but there were obviously lots and lots of buds ready to bloom left!

How the Christmas Cactus Blooms...

Just can't get over how beautifully our Christmas cactus are blooming this year!

More of Mary's Marvelous Sunset Pictures...

Mary sent a couple more night's worth of spectacular late fall sunset photos. The colors are truly amazing. She mentioned in her email with the first two pictures that the sunset seemed to go on forever that night.

Christmas is a-comin'...

It is definitely looking a lot like Christmas here! The tree got decorated today. (Not without the usual holiday hassle - four branches on the bottom of our pre-lit tree, did not light! Larry fixed it and it is best not to ask!) Nica just had to get in the shot! Everything is done, decorating wise, with the exception of wrapping lights and garland on one stair-rail. (Out of deference to Margaret, whose achy ribs still beg for a little support when climbing up!) The bouquet of "fakes" that sits in the corner of the dining room catches the late afternoon sun and just sparkles. Had to share!

Isaac James Huerta...

The first pictures we've received of Isaac, taken at the hospital, and then in his car seat, ready for his first ride home. Just spoke with Heather a few minutes ago. She and the baby went home yesterday and are doing well. And, he's definitely a cutie!

Same sunset - different view...

Our good friend and great photographer, Mary, sent this picture of last nights sunset, taken from her vantage over the beach in south Orange County. It is beautiful and ominous all at once.

The first winter storm of the season...

The rain started early this morning and has been pretty relentless through the day. But, late this afternoon, the sun peeked out for about five minutes, just long enough for us to be reminded of how beautiful our Southern California late fall/winter sunsets can be.

Baby Isaac has arrived...

Isaac James Huertas arrived at 2:02 am Sunday! He weighs 7 pounds 10 ouces and is 20 inches long. Mom and baby are doing great and we'll be posting pictures soon!

Belated Thanksgiving Greetings...

It's a few days past Thanksgiving and we think we've come out of our turkey coma! Margaret hasn't spent too much time sitting at the computer this past week, or doing much of anything else, for that matter! Last Sunday, she took a fluke fall off of Beautiful Bella and cracked a couple of ribs. (Having done this before she knows that only time takes care of this kind of injury.) Thankfully, Larry the kitchen whiz carried on to prepare all the stars of the Thanksgiving meal - the turkey, mashed potatoes, the dressing, and the cranberry relish for the two of us and our best neighbor buddies, Chuck and Christine, who brought the veggies and dessert. It was a fabulous meal with terrific company. We loved our simple table setting, and, we just had to share a photo of the giant (12 1/2 lb) turkey breast that Larry roasted. (When you ask the butcher to cut a breast only for you, you never know how big it's going to be!)

As the weekend draws to a close, Margaret is incredibly grateful for the wonderful care that Larry has taken of her the past week. And, she's also grateful that he has taken on the first stages of our holiday decorating. Even though she's still spending a great deal of time propped against ice packs, the holiday season has begun at Chez McKay-Israel!

More pictures of the birthday boy...

As mentioned, we weren't able to stay around for the presents and cake at Jonathan's birthday bash a week ago Sunday. But, Heather made sure we got to see the highlights - and that we can share them with the rest of you!

Jonathan's Sixth Birthday Gala...

Our Jonathan turned six and the whole gang turned out to celebrate! Larry tried and tried (and tried!) to get a picture of the "guest of honor", but he was on the go from the moment we arrived. Except... for when he decided to lay down on the driveway for a minute. Not resting, mind you - he was quite adamant about that. He just decided to stretch out for a couple of minutes! Since Brandon's family birthday dinner that was supposed to take place a couple of weeks ago was canceled due to a whole lot of people being sick, this was our first chance to give him his birthday gift - a new board. (The last one met with an unfortunate accident!) Looks like Grandpa did a good job picking out a replacement!

We had to get back home before Jonathan's cake was cut and presents were opened. But we still had lots of time to visit with the "big kids" and play with the little ones. The weather was perfect for everyone to stay out on the patio and watch the kids play.

Congratulations to "Chef Tracy"...

A year ago in August, we posted a photo of my niece, Tracy McKay, who had enrolled in the Pastry program of the Cordon Bleu School of North America in Chicago. Time has certainly flown. On Sunday, with her four kids, her mom, and her step-dad in attendance, Tracy graduated from the program! With school behind her, she is returning to Mt. Horeb, Wisconsin, where she will be managing the pastry department of a historical restaurant about to open under exciting new management. We are so incredibly proud of Tracy and want to share our pride and her joy on the big day. The second photo was taken with her four great, all grown up, kids!

Special friends come to visit...

On or about our six month anniversary last month we got an email from David and Pat Graham. (David is the minister who married us in April.) They wrote to let us know that they would be in the San Diego area for a visit with their two daughters in November. Could we get together with them on Monday, the 9th? Of course, we could. We met in San Juan Capistrano - deemed close to a halfway point, and we knew that David was anxious to try out our favorite BBQ place "Bad To The Bone". We had a great visit over lunch, then we packed them into our car and went to the stable so they could meet our third four-legged daughter, Belle. From there it was a quick ride to the Dana Point Marina for a nice stroll the along the water, and a stop for ice cream cones for the "boys". It was a bit hazy at the harbor, but the sun was warm. And the company was terrific. We were glad to hear that they always plan to see us when they are in the area. We will hold them to that.

"A curious bird is the pelican. His beak can hold more than his belly can."

A Sunday drive to the city...

Since we both were feeling a whole lot better we decided not to waste a warm, sunny autumn day - we drove into LA to see the Museum of Tolerance. It was a first visit for both of us and we were so very impressed by the breadth of the exhibits; the exploration of prejudice spanning age, gender, race, and sexual preference. One floor is dedicated to the holocaust. Another was a series of vignettes representing the lives of famous individuals who have explored their family trees and their roots.
We especially enjoyed an exhibit of childrens' toys made from trash, collected all over the world, on loan from Childrens Fund International (formerly Christian Childrens Fund). Some of these pieces were just amazing! They showed such imagination, and the determination of kids with nothing to create their own fun.

While some of the exhibits are difficult to look at, we left there feeling upbeat, reminded that things are improving and that, through communication and education, they can grow better and better still.

When we left the museum it was way past time for lunch. Many years ago Margaret had enjoyed a terrific meal at Aunt Kizzy's (Southern style cooking) in Marina del Rey, not all that far from where we would be getting back on the freeway. We called information and got an address. When we arrived I knew it wasn't the place I'd eaten before, but it was a second store opened by the same owner! And, it had patio dining available - perfect for a sunny afternoon meal. We stuffed ourselves on Southern fried chicken, dressing, green beans, black-eyed peas and mustard greens. Sooooo gooooood!

New pictures of Riley and Ava...

These just in from Andrick. (Emailed and a little Facebook thievery, too!) Such little cuties, both of them!

Beautiful flowers to cheer us to better health...

Our wedding invites clearly stated "No gifts please, our house overfloweth". Our good pal, Marti, understood the "overfloweth" part, but choose to ignore the "No gifts" part. We've been getting beautiful floral arrangements from him regularly since two days before our wedding! This gorgeous autumnal display arrived today. We just had to share...

Notes from "Sick Bay"...

Things just haven't worked out like they were supposed to the past few days... On Sunday, the whole family was to meet at Heather and David's to celebrate Brandon's sixteenth birthday. On Friday morning we got a call from Robin that there was a plan change - Joshua had developed the sniffles and, with Andrick's immune system depressed by anti-rejection drugs, they didn't want to risk exposure.

Little did they know that by Saturday, our birthday boy was going to be running a temperature of a hundred and two! Lots of masks being worn in the DeeMinter household.

Back in Costa Mesa, the truth was, we were a little relieved that we didn't have to be the first to spoil the party. Low grade fevers, coming and going, had both of us feeling punky on Friday, as did the body aches that went with them. We've been slowly recovering, but not soon enough to leave on Tuesday for a four night get-away in San Luis Obispo. (That's right, the trip we never got to take last year!)

Good new is that today we're both feeling the best we have. We are contemplating a couple of possible day trips to take this week to make up for our lost vacation. And, the whole family WILL be together again soon. On the fifteen we'll have a double birthday celebration for Brandon and Jonathan at Heather's.

Sunday at the Long Beach Aquarium...

We are having the most wonderful autumn weather -not too hot, just pleasantly warm, and perfect for adventures, for more "day-trippin". On Sunday we combined a day-trip with a kid-visit. Heather, Jonathan, Sophia and Joshua joined us in Long Beach at the Aquarium. (Sadly, David was home sleeping; his work schedule can be a little brutal.) Larry is still having a ball with his new camera and he got some shots of the area around the aquarium before the kids arrived.

It's always a great time with grand-kids...

Time spent with our kids is a blessing. The aquarium was such a perfect place to get together and enjoy each other. Heather and David have taken them there often; Jonathan and Sophia know there way around the place and know exactly what they want to see and in what order! In another year, Joshua will start to appreciate the sights more - for now he's pretty much along for the "buggy-ride". He was a happy-camper most of our time there Sunday, and Grandma M discovered that he really likes the Bumble Bee game - great for putting a smile back on his face.
By the way - the lorkieet on Larry's back in this picture isn't the one that bit him, but bitten he was ;)