Christmas in Charleston

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas! I always love to go the the Battery over the holidays to see what the people have done with their magnificient homes. This one belongs to the family that owns the Piggly Wiggley food stores in the South. There are two large cement pigs in the front yard that you cannot see at night. Very comical. It is warm here, but cool at night, which makes it feel like Christmas. I hope to be sharing holiday pictures with you soon! Merry Christmas to each and every one who sees this blog!

Time to Meet Hannah!

Here is Hannah, my granddaughter from Pennsylvania (where we moved from)....with her boyfriend, Lance. Hannah is a beauty, loves to dance and plans to be a dance instructor one day! She likes Brad Paisley, is a good student and loves to have fun! We are working on having her pay us a visit in sunny South Carolina, as she is not crazy about the cold! We love you, Hannah!

Back in the USA!

 

We are back in the USA (Seattle, to be exact)after driving through fog and rain into a windstorm as we crossed from Canada to Washington. All in all, the drive was still beautiful with the fog and the snow on the mountain tops. We had a great time in Canada and will take the ferry to Victoria in the morning. I hope that the fog and wind have cleared so that we can see all the beauty that the Pacific Northwest has to offer. God is just amazing with His creativity in how incredibly unique each part of the country is. I have never been to the Northwest before and it is breathtaking. It is Fall and I had almost forgotten how beautiful it was. After being in the cold weather, however, I will be glad to return to sunny and warm South Carolina. We will return to SC late Saturday evening.

Check out my Slide Show!

Another beautiful day in Canada

 
 
 
We had another great day today, a little warmer and clear skies. We took a nice hike to a waterfall and saw more of Mother Nature's beauty. Tomorrow may bring a little rain, so we need to get outdoors while we can. They get 33 feet of snow a year here, but we will be long gone before that happens.

Bobsledding Tom

This picture did not make it to the last post, so here it is!

We Have Arrived in Canada!

 
 
 
 
What a spectacularly beautiful place! We arrived in Seattle on Friday afternoon. Drove for 4 hours into the Canadian wilderness to the beautiful resort village of Whistler, a world-class ski resort. It is so beautiful I could not believe it. The fall leaves are spectacular......here are some pics. The one with Tom and the hydrant gives you an idea how much snow there is in the winter. Note the flag at the top of the pole! You can also see that Tom is signing up for the bobsledding team for the 2010 Winter Olympics. Go, Tom! There is snow on the mountain and it is quite cold, believe me! This place will be jam packed in the winter with more than 38 ski lifts......more pics to follow.

Jackie and Tom go kayaking!

 
 
 
 

Will wonders never cease? Jackie has wanted to go kayaking for some time now, and Tom has not been too receptive to anything smaller than an aircraft carrier....well, after a stroke of luck and running into someone who happens to own both canoes and kayaks, we decided to take the great adventure on the Cooper River. I loved it and Tom was a little less than enthusiastic....the getting in and out of the kayak was a little challenging. BUT, we did not flip them over, which was a major concern. The river was just gorgeous and we navigated some creeks so that we could stay away from the "big boats" and crazy people. The wildlife was abundant and it was incredibly peaceful. The water was like glass, and it was a perfect day except for the heat. I would love to do it again, not so sure about Tom!

Fun in the sun with the sons and the kids!

 
 
 
 

What a great Labor Day Weekend. We took a 12-hour jaunt to Ocean City, MD, to see the kids (Jeff, Monica and Jason) and the grands (Andrew and Abby). What fun. The weather was spectacular and the beach was great. We spent quite a bit of time at the beach, with some time at the playground and a boat ride thrown in for good measure. It is always a joy to be around the kids, although it makes me realize why we have them when we are young. God knew what he was doing with that one! Abby and Andrew go non-stop from morning until night, just being kids. Ocean City is a fun place to raise kids, with lots to do in the summertime. I am so glad that we oldies get to be a part of it!

Baylee goes under the knife!

 
 

Poor little Bailey, our Yorkie, had to have surgery to remove what is thought to be a cyst, and we pray that it is only a cyst. We were shocked to see the size of the incision and feel so bad for her. But we have to admit that we cannot help but to laugh when we look at her in her collar, which looks a lot like a lampshade. When Tom picked her up at the vet, he asked where her switch was! I hurt just looking at her, but she has been a little trooper. She does sort of bump into things when she walks with the crazy collar...but it is necessary for the time being. We will get the results of the tests on the removed tissue on Monday.

Kiernan the Fisherman

Kiernan did not have to go far from home to land this big fish! The Charles River runs right behind his home outside of Boston. Now I guess when it is dinner time, Terry and Amy just have to give him a pole and send him down to the river! Great job, K, you are really becoming quite the sportsman!
(That is Dad with the fish).....

Great music recommendation!

I have dreamed for the last several years of traveling to Tuscany, one of the most beautiful places in the world, bar none. Pictures truly look like paintings. It is just gorgeous...I really hope to go there sometime soon. The scenery is magnificent and I can only imagine the food. Well, I recently discovered a DVD of Anrea Boccelli's songs over pictures of Tuscany (he is from there). His music is world-class and combined with the photography, I think that I have died and gone to ......Tuscany! If you love great music and beautiful places, try 'Under Tuscan Skies" DVD with Andrea Boccelli.

Southwest photos

Babes in Beantown

Recently, I got the visit the Boston grandkids and what fun it was! Bridget, who is now almost a year and a half, had grown so much and is a precious, petite, happy little girl. Small enough to bathe in the kitchen sink, but big enough to enjoy being read to, sometime the same book again, and again, and again.
Kiernan has REALLY changed from a little boy to a young man. We went for canoe rides, walked in a bog(in water up to our ankles at times), got to watch him play ball and all of the fun things that young boys do.
Boston is a great city, especially for kids. There is no end of things to do. I look forward to my next visit.
A Cook's Tour of the North End was a great treat for me, as I got to experience the sights, smells and tastes of Boston's North End, the home of some of the best Italian cooking in the world.
I hope to see you again, Kiernan and Bridget before too long. Grandma Jackie loves you!

Waiting on De Plane!

I am currently at Sky Harbor Airport waiting on a plane that is broken. What a comforting thought! I guess that I would rather ride on a fixed plane than a broken one. Oh well, getting up at 5:30 AM is not exactly my favorite thing, and then to find out that my flight has been delayed is a bummer to say the least. I am beginning my journey to Savannah and now only have a 1/2 hour layover in Atlanta, a rather LARGE airport, to make my connecting flight. The joys of travel. But I consider myself very lucky to have made the trip at all. It is one of my all time favorite vacations. We drove about 1300 miles and saw some of the most beautiful scenery in the US. We ate some of the finest food in the US. Altough I hate to leave, I am going back to a place that I love, which is a good thing. From the high desert of New Mexico to the Lowcountry of South Carolina is a real journey, each place having its own unique beauty. I love them both. The people here in Phoenix are rejoicing that it will be only 106 degrees here today, which is the lowest it has been in a few weeks. The air here is equivalent to what you feel coming out of a hair dryer, no joke. Dry heat is hot hot hot......but no complaints here. There is nothing I hate more than being cold. Signing off for now. Stay tuned for a more exciting blog in a week or so with great slide shows of all my many pictures and may even some music!

Books and Pueblos

Hard to believe, is it not, that Jackie found a bookstore! I LOVE the name, Moby Dickens. It is a quaint little bookstore in the middle of the plaza at Taos and I HAD to get a book or two there dealing with the local history. We got to make our much anticipated trip to the Taos Pueblo, which has been in existence since the 1200's. There are about 50 indians still living there. There is much history surrounding the pueblo, including the fact that it was sadly taken from the Indians by the US government and then at last returned to them by Richard Nixon. I took many pictures there, of course, since it just begs to have pictures taken of it. It is so hard to imagine what it was like when it was fully populated. Originally it had only tiny windows and no doors. The only access into the homes was to go up on ladders and climb down through the roof. That way in case of attack, the ladders could be raised and the enemy had no access to the pueblo. The Indian artisans that we met there were incredibly friendly. We will be returning to Santa Fe tomorrow, (Sunday) and go to a flea market there where I hope to find some treasures at a fraction of the cost that I would find them anywhere else. Then one last night in Santa Fe and the long journey (8 hours) back to the heat of Phoenix on Monday. This has been one incredible trip. If you have not been to the Southwest, please put it on the list of things that you must do one day.

I am ready for National Geographic!

What a day. The dream of every photographer, even the super-amateurs like me is to find a place like Canyon Road in Santa Fe. I did not even have to go into a single gallery to get over 100 incredible photographs. The outsides of the galleries were as beautiful as the insides, if not better. The shadows and color made it easy for me to look like a halfway decent photographer. I just love it. There was beauty everywhere I looked. The nickname for New Mexico is "The Land of Enchantment" and it truly is.
We drove today from Santa Fe to Taos, which is an artistic community one hour north of Santa Fe. It is a truly eclectic mix of cowboys, burnt out hippies, artists galore, and artist wannabees. It is truly a fascinating town. We hope to go to the Taos Pueblo tomorrow and get more great pictures. I should be able to set up a slideshow for you once I get home.
To take a road trip with a girlfriend that you have known for almost 50 years is incredible just to think about. I am so glad to have such a great buddy and traveling companion. All women should have such a friend. Stay tuned for more tomorrow.