Communing with the elephants (and all the other animals) at the San Diego Zoo...

Jonathan and Sophia LOVE elephants, so a visit to the newly opened Elephant Odyssey at the San Diego Zoo was at the top of their summer wish-list. Last week their dreams came true and we think some of Heather's pictures from the day are just priceless!

Under the Big Top...

Heather and David took the kids to see The Ringling Brothers Barnum and Bailey Circus recently. Looks like a great time was had by all!

The "rebirth" of the Orchid tree...

The two orchid trees outside planted directly behind our unit (on the street side of the wall) are unusual in that they drop their leaves during the spring/summer time. For weeks the area around them is littered with brown, hearth-shaped leaves, and the suddenly, in mid-summer, little green leaves begin to appear at the tips of all the branches, and those beautiful orchid flowers return to the tree. It won't be that many more months before those branches will again be so laden with blooms that they'll reach nearly to the ground. (Check out one of "our" songbirds perched among the new growth.)

Practise makes perfect...

In the ten plus years that Margaret and Larry have known each other she has heard him say "This is the last camera I'm ever going to buy" four times... That does include last week's purchase of a Nikon P90 Coolpix with all the bells and whistles he'll ever need without breaking his back carrying all his gear around. (His Canon digital and three large telephoto lens are at the shop on consigment.) Since he brought the new camera home he's been taking pictures of everything in sight. Here are a few of the flowering plants he's shot around the condo community - Cape Honeysuckle, daylily and lantana. The bee about to land in a Bower Vine blossom in our patio really is amazing! And, the squirrels that hang around at the stables are fast becoming his favorite photo subjects. Larry IS the art/photography major in the family, and right now he's a very happy big boy with a new toy!

What a beautiful girl she is...

Belle hasn't had any face time for a while either. Here she is playing in the turnout at the stable yesterday. Look at the wonderful dapples that cover her summer coat.

Phase one of the staining is done...

We hadn't worked on "ole Stumpy" for a while, but between us we've now finished the "low" lights with a dark stain. One of these days we'll "highlight" with something like a yellow oak. We think that our little piece of folk art will be something fun to talk about... some day!

Safe haven...

Some years ago Heather gave Larry a bird house kit to build and decorate for his birthday. Once completed, it was hung in a tree near our condo, but far enough from the house that it m-i-g-h-t actually become a "home" someday. Well, based on the twigs sticking out of the hole, "mission accomplished". It's great fun to think that one or more of the many birds that show up at our feeders were raised in that little red house!

More fun with Sassy and Nica...

Our littlest "daugters" haven't had much face time lately, so we are sending them out to you "in motion".

Did you think we've forgotten about sunflowers...

Not since last fall have we had a bouquet of sunflowers in the house. When we saw them at the Farmer's stand this week, Margaret just had to have a few!

Sophia is becoming quite the little swimmer...

Thanks for sending the great pictures, Heather!

Joshua is learning early...

...to put his dishes in the dishwasher!

The circus has come to town...

...and Heather and David took the kids to see it arrive! Heather thought we'd all like to share in the excitement...

The Northern California branch of the family tree...

We got pictures mailed to us from cousins Dale and Bob Bates over the weekend and decided we wanted to share this beautiful family picture of them with their kids and grandkids!

Family reunited...

It's finally time for Brandon to go home, spend time with his mom, Andrick and Ava, and really get to know his new baby brother, Riley. We took him back to Long Beach mid-morning , early enough for him to get to see Andrick's mom and step-father before they fly back to Sacramento today. It was Margaret's first chance to see Riley in person and she couldn't wait to hold him. Brandon, wasn't so sure... He hadn't held him yet, but with a little prodding we got him to pick up Riley for the first time. Even little Ava got her first chance to "hold the baby" - we love the picture of her giving him a little kiss!

Fifteen year old in the house...

Over the eleven days and nights that Brandon stayed with us, we were constantly amazed by his ability to multi-task, i.e. watch tv, while sending text messages to his friends, holding a conversation with us while listening to his Ipod, and for the highest degree of difficulty, text-messaging, while listening to his Ipod (with one ear-bud in), AND playing Scrabble with his Grandpa and Margaret! This photo is actually a very unusual look at Brandon, at least during the time he spent with us. He's actually talking on his cell phone, not texting!

Brandon joins us on our quest to see the California missions...

We made it to the last of the "day-tripable" missions yesterday, Mission San Diego de Alcala, the first of the missions built in the California system. Having Brandon along with us made it an extra special treat! The plaque Brandon is standing next to commemorates the starting point of "El Camino Real", the trail that begins at the mission in San Diego and marks the route from this to the farthest most north mission (and last built) in Sonoma.

Statues, fountains, and always, the bell towers...

Margaret is fascinated by the bell towers - has photos of them from each mission.

And, the statuary and fountain were as beautiful in San Diego as they are at nearly every of the compounds we've visited.

In the chapel...

Often we aren't able to linger inside the main sanctuary, but that wasn't the case this day. There was much inside that was very, very beautiful. The painting on the old woodwork was really exquisite.

Riley at eight days...

Larry and Brandon made another trip to Long Beach this morning to visit with Robin and Andrick and to spend some more time with baby, Riley. (Once again, Ava was napping, so Riley got to hog all the camera time!) Andrick's mom is staying with them for a few days - you can see her in one picture of Andrick and Riley. And, Grandpa Larry did get to hold the baby for the first time today, handing off the camera to Brandon. (Okay - maybe Brandon needs a little help with lining up his shots! It's true, underneath Larry's hands there IS a baby!)

On the way back from Long Beach, the guys stopped and picked up Brandon's oldest and best friend who is spending the afternoon with us - shooting baskets and swimming so far - and will join us for dinner before going home. We think Brandon is probably thrilled to have someone his own age to talk to for a while!

Grandpa shares his secrets for great guacamole...

Brandon may go back home with a couple of kitchen tricks up his sleeve. (Bet Robin and Andrick would love to have him share in the cooking!) Margaret has a theory that men who take the time to learn to cook usually become among the best of them... (Grandpa Larry sure proves that!) We'll see if Brandon decides to practise his kitchen skills when he gets back with the rest of the family.

More of Brandon and Nica...

Nica is no less enchanted with Brandon than when he arrived the first time back in June. And the feeling is totally mutual! (Margaret was allowed briefly into one of their "boy and his dog" love fests.)

The Pacific Marine Mammal Center...

Located on Laguna Canyon Road, the main inland entrance to Laguna Beach, is the Pacific Marine Mammal Center. The Center is a non-profit facility that rescues, rehabilitates, and releases seals and sea lions found orphaned, ill and/or injured on Orange County beaches. We had visited the Center a number of years ago at the recommendation of a screenwriter friend working on a documentary about sea lions. While we still have Brandon here visiting, we decided it was time to go back for another look. Sadly, there were quite a few animals at the facility this time, but it's wonderful that there are so many concerned folks, donors and volunteers, to help them find their way back to the ocean.

A summer read we want to share...

One of our Fourth of July guests brought a book for us to borrow entitled "The Daily Coyote" - its a true story of a young woman living in Wyoming who adopted a ten day old orphaned coyote pup, has raised it to adulthood and integrated it into her family. Early in this adventure she started a blog in which she continues to post pictures of the growing coyote pup, named Charlie. We would strongly recommended that anyone who loves animals would truly enjoy the book. Or, if you want you can visit her blog at http://www.dailycoyote.net/
You can cut and paste this into your browser if you like. I'm also adding the web address to our favorite links in the right column so you can find her site with just a click. Either way - ENJOY! It's a heartwarming animal story with a happy ending! I've stolen a couple pictures from her site so you can see how adorable Charlie was just days old.

Robin and Riley are home...

Robin and Riley were both released from the hospital this afternoon and are resting at home, reunited with Andrick and Ava. Larry and Brandon visited for a short time once they got settled in and of course Grandpa took lots more pictures! Brandon picked up some more clothes, his skateboard and some videos he wants to share with us - he's going to hang out here for a few more days. And we couldn't be any happier!

Happy Independence Day...

Riley with his mom and dad...

Andrick emailed these photos of our beautiful new grandson to us last evening.

The pool is finally open...

After nearly two months since the pool company blasted the plaster, tore out the tiles, and chopped away the coping, our pool was declared ready for us just in time for the Fourth of July weekend! While we celebrated poolside with a number of our neighbors early last evening, Brandon initiated our beautifully revitalized pool and jacuzzi. Summer at Longwood Greens can now officially begin!

Chef Brandon is in the house...

We've nothing new to report about Riley - he and his mom are still at the hospital, both getting stronger daily. We'll post new pictures when we get them. In the meanwhile, we are certainly enjoying having Brandon back at our house for a few days. Last night he fixed us his "signature dish" - Broccolli and Pine Nuts over Bow-Tie Pasta. It was sooooooooooo good! Grandpa Larry was his sous chef du jour and salad maker. Now that we know Brandon's such a good hand in the kitchen, he may just get pressed into helping with the prep of brats, cole slaw, and some other goodies we'll be serving to a few friends on the 4th of July!

Welcome Riley Brett...

Born July 1, 2009 at 4:17 p.m., he weighs 7 lbs 5 oz and is 20 inches long. Since he was in such a rush to get here (born 18 days before his due date!) his lungs need a little more time to develop. He was admitted last evening into the hospitals "Nursery" and will spend a little time in an incubator, not on oxygen, just being more closely monitored for a bit. Larry and Brandon visited Robin at the hospital last evening. These are the first pictures of our newest grandchild!