Happy New Year

My grandson Gage's First Christmas.

As the New Year approaches I find myself doing things that remind me of my childhood.
My mom and dad had us kids clean house on New Year's Eve.   The beds made with clean bedding, grocery shopping, floors washed, cupboards cleaned and stocked, laundry washed, ironed and put away.  All in all the whole house cleaned.  I can remember my dad putting a penny on the window sill.

So as the New Year approaches, my wish for all...
May you always have a warm, sheltered place to lay your head when you need rest,  may you always have food in your cupboards to satisfy your hunger, may your closet hold clean clothing for any type of weather,  may good fortune always put a coin or two in your pocket and may you be blessed with good health, laughter, peace in your heart and love!

2011 had many moments that have brought laughter into our life.  There have also been times of sadness with the passing of loved ones and dear friends.   We continue to take life "one day at a time",  make new friends, cherish our old friends, and take joy that you have joined us in this journey we call life.

Below you see some of the wonderful moments that filled our 2011 with precious memories.

Celebrating Elizabeth's birthday

My new Grandson, Gage Moore born in Berkeley, California  

 St. Patrick's Day corned beef and cabbage dinner in Bethel Island, California

My birthday celebration

Jennifer's Flute recital in Spring Arbor, Michigan

 A Mother's Day celebration in Menlo Park, California

 A Tram ride up to the top of San Jacinto Mountain, Palm Springs, California

A visit to Yosemite National Park

Hoover Dam, Arizona

Jennifer's college graduation, Spring Arbor, Michigan

Saturday Pancake Breakfast, Sky Valley, California

Water Volleyball at Caliente Springs Resort, Desert Hot Spring , California

Norb and Barbara Kabuss, Palm Springs, California

Family gathering together in Spring Arbor, Michigan

Kevin on his way to Sturgis, South Dakota

Becky came to visit sunny California

Kevin, Elizabeth and Gage

  

A visit with my very good friend, Keith.  Park Forest, Illinois

Family visit to New Lenox, Illinois

Long ago advice: "You need 4 hugs a day to survive"

Sharing happiness

Make room for the new addition to the family!

Barbara and Ginny, life long friends.

Remnants of an old volcano near Amboy, California.

Hoping to "Win Big" with Mary and John in Laughlin, Nevada

Chile Cook-off contest, Caliente Springs, California

Playing in the park with my bud!

Picking pumpkins in the pumpkin patch 

Nothing fills the heart more then visits from family who live far, far away

Fancy Christmas Dinner celebrated with friends at Caliente Springs Resort

A Merry Christmas hug

Discussing work at the Employee Christmas party, Caliente Springs, California
NOT !!

Christmas Caroling

Let the feast begin!

Christmas group hug

A very proud Grandma

From  Emmanuel's Book II - The Choice for Love

You live a lifetime.  At the end of it you say to those around your deathbed, "What a long life!  Why, I lived ninety whole years.  Do you know how much I did?"  And then you die.

You wake up and ask, "How long was I gone?"  The Being of Light who is with you answers, "We hardly noticed you were gone at all.  You just sat down and dozed off for a second and here you are again.  What kind of dream did you have this time?

  

Ninety years...so long, so short.  

Happy New Year

Paul and Jo

The start of a very busy month!

We joined in the "Welcome Back Chili Cook-off".  There were 12 pots of chili entered into the "cook off".  Even though I didn't get to sample them as I was one of the servers, Paul did!  He came across a variety of different chili's.  Some had carrots, some pineapple, some plain, one seemed to be sweetened with brown sugar  but the one he liked best had corn in it!  As he said to me later, "It gave it a bit of a crunch"  I didn't take first place with my chili, but I didn't take last either, so I think I did okay.

Setting up for the tasting contest

Packed in and ready for a great night.

After the tasting contest and dinner that was all the chili's and the many different dishes that people brought to share we sat back and enjoyed the live music.  The Van-Horn's sang and played music that got the place hopping.  People danced, clapped, sang along and had a great evening. Since I missed being able to line-dance while serving for the taste-testing, Paul went up and asked them to play something so I could line dance.  They did ... I did ... what a great time!

Good music and dancing!

Sharon and Ted (Storage Security)

Chaplain George Cooper and his wife 

 

Dorothy and Dick (Garden Club)

Paul pumped up the tires on our bikes with his air compressor.  He's a man with a machine and knows how to use it!  We took off for a ride with our GPS's in hand and ready to find some hidden geocaches in the area.   We weren't disappointed!  We found some very interesting and unique hides.  Being mindful that there are rattle-snakes and scorpions, Paul and I took extra care when reaching under the brush or into the piles of rocks.

A really great cammo job on this cache. Can you spot it? Answer at the bottom.

Woke up to snow up on the top portions of the mountains.  The weather has been cool, I can't really say cold as it hasn't dropped to the freezing mark and probably won't happen.  But it has been in the low 50's to high 40's at night, and by the standards here, that is pretty darn cold.

I have always loved the effect a little rainfall can have on desert plants.

Yes, that is the bloom on a cactus!

The red thorns are new growth!

If you are ever traveling in the Desert Hot Springs area, make a stop at Caliente Resort.  As you can see, we are always having a good time!

Jo

[Hidden geocache: the bottom left bolt. It's modeled from clay and contains a magnet and nanocache]

October 2011

Once again it's time for a monthly update.

October has brought a few more "snow-birds" south for the winter.  We're told that the busiest season will hit after Christmas as the holidays are winding down and so are the northern temperatures!  Things are defiantly picking up, the telephones are ringing more as we make winter reservations for the travelers, answering more and more questions for the returning residents.  Yes, it is the start of out "In-season."   The view of San Janicto Mountain is ever changing with the clouds that make it this far inland.  Sometimes it looks like they are covered in snow, which will happen in the winter, and other times the clouds appear as lava flowing down the sides.  It's a beautiful view to look at everyday as I walk to the office.


Paul is staying very busy as the Assistant Manager here at Caliente Springs Resort, in the summer he also covered Sky Valley Resort, even though with less residents during the hot summer months, it was time consuming as he learned new things and took on more projects.  He's the one who does inspections for any improvements or changes to the exterior of their homes and approves all  landscaping.  He's had the pleasure of dealing with upset people when rules and regulations have to be enforced. He approves when a place can be put up for sale and makes sure all permits are issued and kept up to date.  He is the liaison between residents and upper management.

I've taken on the job, or should I say I've been given the job of billing for both Resorts, this is over 1600 home sites.  Doing the billing includes making sure their electric is billed correctly, rent charges are correct, late notices sent out when appropriate, cable being put on a vacation rate when they leave for the summer and  putting it on the regular rate when they come back for the winter. It also includes general trouble-shooting for billing errors and questions. There is a lot of computer data when we have new people moving in or out of the Resort.  I also work at the Front Desk, taking reservations for traveling RV'ers, answering phones and dealing with all the residents for a variety of issues.


This month we enjoyed a "Manager's Day Out" that included a wonderful dinner at Red Lobster and then Go-Carting afterwards. Of course not being the fastest driver or the most aggressive, I came in last for the go-cart races. All the managers had great time getting together to share each others company without being in the "work environment." 


We still continue to make weekly visits with our friends Norb and Barbara.  Going there is such a delight as we share stories of life experiences, sing old songs and do minor fix-it projects that neither of them can do.  Their dog, Baxter enjoys the company and taking a afternoon walk through the neighborhood.   Barb had decorated for Halloween and there were many chocolate treats waiting for us when we visit.  Our visits with them always bring laughter and fill us up with feelings of "family" that we miss with being so far from our families!

The weather is slowly changing to the Fall season, bringing cooler nights where we can actually sleep with the windows open to enjoy the sometimes gusty winds that come through the valley.   We've even added a blanket to the bed and used our fireplace to ward off the morning chill for a couple of days.  We are thankful for the cooler temps as the triple digits was getting exasperating day in and day out.


As you can see our October has been a busy month but we found some time to make a drive to Laughlin, Nevada and share some much needed relaxation with my cousin Mary and her husband John.   We played the slots, tried our hand at Blackjack, ate wonderful meals, shared jokes and stories.  All in all just enjoyed their company.  We lost, won, shared our winnings and collected many hugs.  Can't wait for the next outing with them both.


I've received pictures of my grandson Gage enjoying his first celebration of Halloween.   He is growing more and more each day.  I received weekly updates and pictures so that even though I'm far away I get to share in his life.  He is crawling and starting to stand on his own and will probably be walking by the time I get to see him for Thanksgiving.  What would we grandparents do without the wonderful technology that allows us to enjoy our grandchildren at long-distance?

The excitement in me builds as I wait to spend Thanksgiving with the enjoyment of family for the  holiday.  So far our Christmas plans will bring Paul's daughter and her boyfriend for a visit.  Christmas dinner at Barbara and Norb's home in Palm Springs.




Enjoy your holiday's and thanks for stopping at our blog.


Jo


Clouds come floating into my life, no longer to carry rain or usher storm, but to add color to my sunset sky. -Rabindranath Tagore