What A Year!! (A look back on 2008)

Well, it looks like we are gonna make it to 2009!! It.s been quite a year.
We took our first escape in 2008 to the Tuscon Arizona area in mid January. We spent a week in Oro Valley where the sun was shining every day! It was a bit chilly in the morning, but got into the mid 60's by mid-morning. We were told that it was about 10 degrees cooler than normal. It was about 20 degrees warmer and 100% dryer than at home.
In February we went to Las Vegas Nevada With Joyce's sister Patrice and her husband Paul (from Chicago) for a 3 day stay. We had a great time, and in my infinate wisdom, I made a $20.00 bet at a sports book for the Mariners to win the World Series (they proceeded to lose 101 games).
The month of April saw us taking the plunge on a used motorhome (2002 37' Pace Arrow) and a 2005 Chevy Cobalt tow car. We started planning our USA tour for when I retire in August.
August 1st I retired with 30 years of service credit to the Washington State Department of Transportation. August 15th found us pulling out of Keith and Sheila's in Stanwood to start our big adventure!! Our first stop in Eastern Oregon had us cooking in 107 degree heat!! We managed to make it to Florida for our Carribean Cruise departing on September 7th. Along the way we made stops in Salt Lake City Utah to visit Tom & Jandora, And Dallas Texas to visit old neighbors Craig & Wendy and their girls. Between Texas and Florida we dodged Hurricanes Gustav and Hannah. Then Hurricane Ike came along while we were at sea, and disrupted our shore excursions in Cozumel Mexico, and Grand Cayman Island. The cruise was a blast, and we met new freinds onboard (Ron and Diane from Oklahoma,& George and Karen from Tennessee).
The 15th of September we headed up to South Carolina. From there it was up to Virginia with a day spent at Arlington National Cemetary. It's hard to believe the amount of history there. While in the Carolinas we spent a day with our Seattle freinds Pat & Steph who were in North Carolina for a wedding. Very strange to meet them so far from home. When we left Virginia, we headed into Tennessee. There we spent a day with cruise freinds George & Karen. Also while in Tennessee we visited with Seattle freinds Gail & Randy who were there for a wedding.
From Tennessee we headed North up to the Chicago vicinity To spend some time with Patrice and Paul. Spent 5 days there and gained 5 pounds!! By now we are nearing the end of the first week in October. Our plan was to be home on the 15th, so we started heading West. It is begining to look and feel a lot like fall. When we got to South Dakota, the first snowfall of the year was dumping on Montana, Wyoming, and the Dakotas. We hung out on the Western edge of the storm for a couple extra days until it was safe to go. We still managed to make it home on the 15th of October. We put 8,000 miles on the motorhome and 4,000 more on the tow car. The trip certainely wasn't without a few mechanical issues, but it was a blast!!!
November was a quiet month with a small gathering for Thanksgiving. All of the poltical B.S. was finally over and hopefully things will settle down and get back to what we consider to be "normal". Time will tell. I wish that I could be a optimistic as a lot of folks are.
December found us off and running again with an escape to Disneyland with grandkids Monica and Chandler for 4 days. The weather was great(mid 70's), and all had a good time. Just after we got back the snow started to fall here. As of today, I still can't get away from the house without chains. There is still about a foot of snow, slush, ice, and combinations thereof on the street in front of the house.
Christmas was relaxed this year. We had lunch with my mother on Christmas eve, and Christmas day Josh & Brynn came over in the morning, as did Kristin and Matt. Josh and Brynn both had to work in the afternoon, so Joyce & I and Kristin and Matt went to a afternoon movie.
Santa didn't bring us a new motorhome, so I guess the 37 footer will have to do! (maybe he just couldn't get it here because of the snow)
Kristin turns 23 on the 31st and Sheila turns 38 on the same day.(tax exemptions) It's hard to believe I've got a 38 year old. I can't believe that I'm over 38!
We escape next month for 12 days in Hawaii. We leave on the 12th of January. That is Joyce's birthday, and she might not like me saying this, but she's over 38 too!!
I'm sure there are some things that I left out of here, and I'm also sure that there are some things that I should have left out of here.
Until next year,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,Ernie

P.S. Thru some unknown malfunction on my part I am unable to add captions under the pictures.
#1 Is Turkeys in South Dakota.
#2 Is Disneyland in December.
#3 Is the gates at Arlington National Cemetary.
#4 is Patrice & Paul, and Linda & Bill in Chicago.
#5 Is Ernie & Joyce on the pier in Jamaica.
#6 Is Ron & Diane (Tulsa Oklahoma)on the cruise.
#7 Is George & Karen(Smyrna Tennessee)on the cruise.
#8 Is our cruise ship at the pier in Jamaica.
#9 Is Joyce on our way to Levenworth Wa. on Ernie's birthday.
#10 is Hairold the cat under the Christmas tree.
#11 Is us, Joshua & Brynn, and Kristin & Matt at our house on Christmas day.

Twas the weekend before Christmas.................

Snow from the back deck 12-21-08

Snow from the front porch 12-21-08

Our tow car. It looked a lot better behind the motorhome.

Where did the yard go?

Barbecue on the back deck on 12-21-08

Barbecue on 12-20-08

It is officially winter, and there is no doubt about that in snowy Seattle. We got one of those strange weather phenomenas that happen every 15 years or so over the past week. Last night was the capper with about 8 more inches of snow with high winds. Temperatures are in the low 20's to mid 30's. Now they are calling for snow showers, freezing rain, or just plain rain for the rest of the week. Hopefully it melts off slowly to avoid storm drain issues. There is approximately a foot of snow on the ground here in West Seattle. It could be worse. At Keith and Sheilas (where the motorhome waits patiently) there is something in the neighborhood of 2 to 3 feet of snow. We have been fortunate enough to have maintained our power throughout this
mess. Just 10 days ago we were at Disneyland with temperatures in the mid 70's. Our weather seems like it would be more appropriate for the mid-west.
Three weeks from tomorrow we are off to Hawaii where temperatures are in the low 80's with overnight lows in the upper 60's. It will be easy to get used to. Hopefully when we come home, the last week in January will not be like the last week in December!
We wish everyone a Merry Christmas, stay warm and dry and we will up-date with a "year end" rambling next weekend. Will get some pictures posted later today.
Frozenly yours, Ernie

Back from Disneyland

Pre-flight jitters

Monica and Chandler ready for takeoff

Monica and Chabdler running the river

Kristin and Monica getting ready to put the groceries away

Just us

In front of the tree on Main Street

Two thumbs up on California Screamin

Kristin liked my hat selection

Everybody looks happy

After a trip down the river in the bright sunshine

We made it back home yesterday evening after 4 days in southern California. The weather there was nice with temperatures in the mid 70's during the day. We stayed at Worldmark Anaheim, which is a little more than a mile from the park. We went over first thing in the morning each day. We packed a lunch and stayed until about 3:00 p.m., then went back to the condo for dinner. We walked back over to the park about 6:00, and stayed until closing at 9 or 10:00 oclock. Then with all of the walking around the park, I figure we walked 7 or 8 miles a day.
I managed to come down with a cold on Thursday, and felt like crap on Friday. Other than that, we all had a good time. Grandaughter Monica survived her first airplane trip! I don't know what she was worried about before the flight, but you would have never known that she had not flown before. Grandson Chandler overcame his concern about riding roller coasters, and rode them all numerous times (except for California Screamin). Monica, Kristin and I rode California Screamin several times. The last time we were in line for about an hour. Joyce opted out of the roller coasters, but did ride her old favorite the Matterhorn. We all took several trips on the river raft ride at California Adventure and we were all soaked at one time or another. All in all we had a good time and now need to concentrate on Christmas. We will be heading up to Keith and Sheila's next Sunday for Christmas dinner.
Our weather has turned cold and there is talk about the possibility of snow over the next several days. Daytime highs are not expected to get above freezing with lows in the teens. But that doesn't look too bad compared with some of the other parts of the country.
One month from today we will be spending our first full day of our trip to the islands of Oahu and Kuwaii in Hawaii. I hope the weather is like this when we leave on that trip. It always makes the trip more enjoyable when the weather is misserable at home.
But for now it's back to reality-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_--Ernie

Remember Pearl Harbor

Can't get enough of the sunsets from the deck

New door from the inside

Old door from the inside

New door from the outside

Old door from the outside

Sunset again

Well here it is Saturday already, and we're fixin to get out of here Monday morning for what should be a great 4 days in Southern California. Extended forecast is showing low to mid 70's during the day and upper 40's at night. The kids are getting excited to go, and so are we.
I finally finished the hard part of my big yard project (almost). I still have a little "fine tuning" to do on the big tree, then it's just a lot of small stuff to do.
We got our new front door installed this week. Now I need to do the painting of the outside trim, and the staining and finishing of the door and the inside trim. The good thing is that the front area is all under cover, so as long as it's not too cold outside, I can work on it whenever I get the urge. It will be interesting to see if there is any difference on our heating bill. We went with the fiberglass door. When they are finished it's hard to tell the difference from a wood door, but the maintenance is a lot less. I will post pictures when it is all finished.
The Washington Huskies finished their season today with a perfect record (0 & 12). At least their basketball team is playing well and they are fun to watch. Speaking of basketball, how about the Oklahoma City Thunder? They are now 2 & 18 and on pace to challenge for the fewest wins in a season. The curse is on!! Check it out at "cursethethunder.com".
I'll get some pictures on here shortly, and next week we will have "fun"pictures.
As they say in California, Adios*************************Ernie