Disneyland!

We had a lovely time at Disneyland with Adam, Savannah, the kids and the other set of grandparents. Savannah was our guide and organizer and we kept together most all the time. We went on several rides more than once because they were fun. 

I wasn't a fan of the rollercoaster rides, so I sat out with Miley.  One time we went on the steamboat and enjoyed a trip around the lagoon while others rode. Miley was fascinated.  Another time while Miley slept, Tom watched her and Piper and I went on bumper cars and on the Hungry Caterpillar  ride through all the partly eaten apples, watermelon and such.

King Arthur's merry-go-round and tinkerbell and Snow White.

Sleepy Miley

 It's a Bug's Life

 Christmas Themed It's a Small World

I think my favorite rides were Soarin, the Matterhorn, and cars. But really the most fun was watching the kids have a good time.

It was a sad parting on Tuesday evening.  It will be a long time before we see them again. We actually woke up Wednesday morning thinking about going back to Disney to be with them on their final day... but decided that would just prolong the sadness for another few hours... and then we'd have to be sad again. This is the hard part about going on a mission.

Wednesday we went back to picking up the pieces of life.  Working on my writing projects to finish, trying to learn the language.  Tom and I went clothing shopping. We checked out the sales at Macy's, Ross Dress for Less, a shoe store, Nordstom's Rack. I was mostly looking for comfortable dressey shoes.  Didn't find them. Did find a cool summer blouse.  And we lunched at In n' Out burger to get our fix there.  We also found the Sees candy store and bought some crispy mints. Mmmm.

Mom's old upstairs neighbor's husband passed away and his funeral was held on Thursday.  It was up near Griffith park in the Mt. Sinai Cemetery.  He was Jewish and it was interesting to see the Jewish ceremony.  Very respectful with good memories shared... and keeping him alive in your heart. But not much about living after death. However, they place a little soil from Jerusalem beneath the head of the deceased, so he can feel close to his homeland. And when people come to visit the grave site, the place a stone on the grave-- for permanence-- or a lasting memory. And these stones typically come from Jerusalem.  How important this land is to them!

It was an hour plus drive each way and we stopped to visit Sally on the way home and eat a 3pm lunch.  So it took most of the day.

Thursday night Tom started feeling crummy-- sore throat... then sneezles... then runny nose and cough.  He used lots of oregano, slept a lot, and felt much improved by Sunday.  While he slept, I got a lot accomplished on my writing. Sally came down on Friday and we had a nice visit as she helped Mom.

Saturday, I started with a sore throat.  I've been babying myself and took a long Sunday nap. Actually we all did.  Tom and I went to a 9 am Regional conference.  It spoke a lot about prayer, scripture reading and service.  We were encouraged to find and keep joy in our lives through gratitude and service.

After our conference we went to pick Mom up from Church... since Cynthia and Jim have also been under the weather. She had a congregational meeting and lunch. I stayed with her for that... Tom went home to study and rest.  We had a Choirfest we'd planned to attend at 2, but instead we all took naps for a few hours!

For dinner we had worst with sauerkraut, red cabbage, and potatoes.  Mmm good!