TWENTY-THREE!!!

Big D turns 23 today!! Our extraordinary young man never ceases to amaze us ~ and NEVER ceases to make us laugh! Our ever responsible, never-say-never guy with the positive attitude has shown by great example what hard work and determination can get you. Derek has amazed us with his ability to not just thrive, but excel while balancing school, playing on the golf team and working, but his talents don't end there... among his other skills, "ichiban" also sings a mean karaoke! Seriously though, we are all EXTREMELY fortunate to benefit from Derek's loving, nurturing and always caring nature and support. Big D, you are an inspiration to us all!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY, DEREK ALAN!! WE LOVE YOU SO VERY MUCH!!!

BIG surf

The surf was HUGE this afternoon and expected to get BIGGER! These were the waves just before low tide.

Oh what a night...

Derek and I had the extreme pleasure of attending the Billy Joel concert last night in Anaheim. To say we thoroughly enjoyed it would be an understatement ~ it was phenomenal!! What an amazing musician and performer Billy Joel is ~ and what an incredibly talented band he works with!! Song after song...it just got better and better! I was so lucky to be able to go with Derek ~ an awesome mother and son outing to say the least! Thank you Derek for the invite ~ and a HUGE thanks to Michael Brown for "hooking us up"!! It was truly a night we'll not soon forget!

P. S. Notice the last pic ~ it's a true sign of the times. Gone are the Bic lighters calling for an encore ~ now, everybody turns on their cellular phones!

Nice Long Weekend

Michael and I had the luxury of a four-day weekend. We spent time with good friends, took in a high school basketball play-off game (Go Royals!), visited with Robin and Bob at Cachuma, shared a most delicious meal at Trattoria Grappolo and enjoyed some relaxation time at home... just to name a bit.
Koko was busy playing with her new Valentine toy and hunting gophers on the hill.
We ALL had a fabulous weekend!! Here's to many, many more!

Basketball Season Comes to an End

Kelly and Devin just finished their first season coaching the Frosh/Soph basketball team at San Marcos. Overall, the team had a winning season. More importantly, Dev and Kel had the fortune of gaining coaching experience at their alma mater ~ they both thoroughly enjoyed it and look forward to more coaching in the future. Congratulations, Sons! You make us proud!!

90 years young

Today we went to Uncle Al's 90th birthday party. It was the perfect day for such a grand occasion ~ and good fun!

Early one winter morn

Last Friday morning, we woke up to an amazing sight in the morning sky... two incredibly bright planets so close together, they seemed only inches apart. We had been watching these bright celestial beings for days before from the luxury of our bedroom window ~ Venus has been exceptionally brilliant! This past Monday, the moon joined the planets in the sky ~ a sight definitely worth getting up for!!