HAPPY BIRTHDAY DARLING GRIFFIN!!

Happy Birthday to Griffin, almost a day late. I waited for Julie to call me so I could have some help getting Griffin's picture up but she has disappeared! Maybe she jumped in the fish pond and got her telephone wet. I'm sure Griffin had ample attention for his birthday.

Candice and Gil came home, once again, from their travels. We have missed them. Today, Tanner comes back from CA. And I do hope that Sophie is having a better day. I also need Bart to call him Mom! Love to all...

Zak's Joke A Day Cartoons

I miss Zak's Joke A Day. So here are some cartoons to start us off again...

This is Morgan

This is our Morgan.

She is an Artist.

This is her self-portrait --->>

Spinning Wheel

SpinningWheel
Originally uploaded by gdawney

I have been spinning for almost a year now. I started out on a hand held spindle. Last year, for Christmas, my kids bought me a spinning wheel. This is what I do for relaxation.

It's quite the process, so I created a little slide show for you. Jessica took the pictures. [When you get there, to go to the next photo, click on the little picture to the right. If you click on the arrow you won't see the captions]

Daniel and the Dunking Tank

Today, William Beaumont Army Medical Center had a carnival day for all employees at the local minor league baseball field. The kids had a ball!! Daniel took it upon himself to become the designated dunkee at the dunking tank. Jenna and Sophie also took turns being dunked, but they grew tired of it after 45 minutes or so and left for other activities. Daniel stayed on the platform for the next 2 1/2 hours. When it came time to leave, I went to get him. He said "No, Mom. I'm the only dunkee they have. I'm staying." Well, anyone who has tried to convince Daniel to do something he has decided not to do will know what comes next.
When I reached in to grab him, he simply moved away and splashed me a good one. Shocked, I stupidly reached for him again. He, of course, splashed me again. He was giggling. The onlookers were laughing. I realized i had no way to get him out so I decided to go in after him, which I did. We had a good wrestle in the dunking tank. Of course, I couldn't get him out until someone else's kids said they would take over being the dunkee, then he voluntarily climbed right out. He took his self-imposed responsibility seriously. It wasn't until I had climbed out myself that I remembered my phone...Yikes. So, it is currently drying out. I am hoping hoping hoping that it will still work when I put the dried-out battery into the dried-out phone. Nobody call me.

Cheeeeeeeeese — and sausage pizza

I finally got to taste a world famous Chicago pizza. Gil gave specific instructions on how to eat it! You're supposed to cut off the crust first (but still leave a little pizza on it) and then you can eat the crust part separate from the pizza part. He loves the crust. I liked the pizza. It's different by how the sauce is on the top and there is an entire layer of sausage on the bottom - not little balls. It was very good. Actually we also had pizza last night at a competitor's pizza place. I thought they both were great. I had a great day, but missed you at home. Thank you for my phone calls and singing messagaes. They made me laugh. Tomorrow, Gil and I are going to the beach and walk down Miracle Mile and then hang out at Millenium Park. I'm actually saying, "Cheeeeeeese" in the photo.

I really am smart!!!!

Homemade Granola RecipeTop of Form
Bottom of Form
Ready in: 30-60 minutesDifficulty: 3 (1=easiest :: hardest=5)
Serves/Makes: 7 cups
Top of Form

Bottom of Form
Ingredients:4 cups old-fashioned oats1 1/2 cup sliced almonds1/2 cup packed light brown sugar1/2 teaspoon salt1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon1/4 cup vegetable oil1/4 cup honey1 teaspoon vanilla1 1/2 cup raisins or dried cranberries
Directions:
Preheat oven to 300 F. In a bowl mix the oats, almonds, brown sugar, salt and cinnamon. In a saucepan warm the oil and honey. Whisk in vanilla. Carefully pour the liquid over the oat mixture. Stir gently with a wooden spoon; finish mixing by hand. Spread granola in a 15x10 inch baking pan. Bake 40 minutes, stirring carefully every 10 minutes. Transfer granola-filled pan to a rack to cool completely. Stir in raisins or cranberries. Seal granola in an airtight container or self-sealing plastic bag. Store at room temperature for 1 week or in the freezer for 3 months.
This recipe for Homemade Granola serves/makes 7 cups
I get real generous with the vanilla and the cinnamon because I like them.

Also, last time I added a handful of chocolate chips And a hand full of coconut … just to empty a couple of bags….

Here is a hot tip!!!!!

If you have a food processor…. Go to Costco and buy whole (raw) Almonds … then slice them in the food processor….. about one forth the price of sliced almonds in the grocery store!!!

Also, buy the Craisins and Raisins at Costco…. Eat lots of samples while you are there!!!

Love ya

I'M AS SMART AS AN 8 YEAR OLD!!!

With only one hour of stressfull instructions from julie I think I have finally been admitted to the club!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY CANDICE MUFFIN!!!

Happy Birthday to our CMPJ

who was born on this day 35 years ago!! We love you and hope you are having a wonderful day. You have brought much delight into so many lives. You are so special to all of us.

Hip Hip Hooray!!!!

Everyone say hello to...

Lt. Colonel

Don H. Hansen

Hip Hip Hooray! Hip Hip Hooray! Hip Hip Hooray!

Tanner says HI!

Tanner came again today

I thought I would take another picture of him, and I tried to get him to wave and say "hi" to his mom. These are the results:

I have a friend that is in a Women's Adult Soccer league. They play in Duarte and she has been asking me to play for about a year. I finally wore down, I joined and I played my first game today! I did not throw-up or faint, or have to quit from lack of stamina, so I thought it was a success. It was fun too.

STAR SIGHTING

Very Exciting for me!

Tonight at Outback Steakhouse, I spotted my first TV star in my regular life. I have seen stars at sporting events, etc, but never in my regular life!

I saw Andrea Evans. She acted in One Life to Live many years ago. She is now on another soap, Passions. I couldn't remember her name at first, then I remembered Andrea. I came home to google her, and found her right away. I talked to 2 friends there who work at the restaurant, they had NO idea who she was.

Ok, I walked by her to make sure, it was nerve wracking. (spelling?)

Oh, by the way, my food was fine - a bit too spicy for me - I had grilled shrimp.

Before and After

BEFORE....

AFTER!!

I am very pleased with how it turned out.

Swimming with Tanner

Tanner came over yesterday and we all went swimming. I thought Candice would enjoy seeing some pictures. Here you go: Tanner's pose:
Tanner's beautiful dive
It was a nice, hot, fun day. No one got sunburned. Griffin cried when Tanner left. I reassured Griffin that Tanner would still be his friend.

New Hair Cut

I got a new hair cut today. This the the before picture:



These are the after shots:





Of course, I had to go home and re-blowdry my hair because she made me look like a helmet head - but I like the way it turned out. We had a long discussion over color. I told her to be BOLD and pick a really dark color. It's the best color she's done.

Just wanted to share! I like blogging!

Pageant of the Masters

Last night Christopher, Steven and I drove down to Laguna and saw the

Pageant of the Masters.

It was Fantastic. You see these amazing works of art on the stage, yet they are made with real people. If you have a chance to see this sort of thing. I highly recommend it.This is one we really enjoyed. It was called The Giant, by N.C. Wyeth

These were our seats. Apparently I got our seats on the last row in the amphitheater. It worked out fine, we used binoculars.

Paris Photos!

For anyone who'd like to see . . . Gil put together a website of the photos we took in Paris. Just click here Paris Pics to check them out. There's a LOT, so be warned.
Hope you enjoy!

Love,
CMPJ

From Gil – A few notes for a better/easier viewing experience:

To go to the next image in the sequence, you just have to click on the big picture on the right, instead of always clicking on the corresponding thumbnail at left, or going to the "Next image" link at far right.

There are captions under each of the big pics at right that (more or less) describe what's going on in the image.

Also at far right is a "Full size image" link that will open a new window with the printable version of the image, in case you want to downnload and print one - or two - or three or more. Tnx!

Guess I clicked a wrong button!!

The ring on my hand (which you can't see very well) is a gift from Dad (Bumpa) for our anniversary on 13 Dec. I thought it would be fitting to get it on sale on this the 13th day of July! I'm so proud of the picture because Chase had to walk me through the directions bit by bit. And I didn't even hear him getting frustrated!! That boy is a marvel!! Anyway, I will see most of you in Vegas with the present on my finger. What a beautiful ring for an old hand!!

50th YEAR ANNIVERSARY!!

This is my 50th year anniversary present!

This is my favorite picture that we took in Paris. We actually have over 300! It was a great experience, but I'm glad to be back home. We did A LOT of walking. Our feet were very sore at the end of each day. Gil is putting the rest of the photos up on a website soon, so that should be fun to see. We'll post the link within the next few days. I'm happy to finally be a member of the bloggers! Au revoir . . . . CMPJ