A Visit to California

Unfortunately our past trip to California signifies the end of a wonderful summer break. We had a wonderful time with the family. In addition to visiting family, the ten day trip consisted of a baby shower, an engagement party, birthday parties, a zoo trip, a Dodger game, beach days, a movie, and a trip to the ER. Seeing baby Izzy for the first time was a delight. She is beautiful. Mary and Robert are very capable parents and seem very happy, although a bit tired. Congratulations James and Tracy on your engagement. We hope the best for you two. As always, Grandma and Grandpa Gizmo provide wonderful hospitality with waffle breakfasts, gourmet dinners and delightful conversation. Sadly we could not work out a trip to Lompoc to see Nathan and his karate practice. We did enjoy spending time with David, Betsy, Nathan and Matthew at the engagement party and at the zoo. Thank you Dan and Danielle for driving us all over Los Angeles. The Dodger game with Ben and Luke was great. It is always good to see the Dodgers win in the ninth inning. Erin is adorable and knows more words than I do. Luke has a wonderful golf swing that he was able to demonstrate for us in the backyard. And it is always fun to play baseball in the front yard with Ben, Nathan, and Luke. Watching the kids play baseball reminded me a lot of playing when I was a kid. It was great to spend time with Aunt Noella, Uncle NoNo, Sue, Michael, Terry, Neil, and Dylan. Thank you very much for taking the time to drive all the way to Carpinteria, whichever route you decided to take. Our thoughts and prayers are with you, and we hope Uncle NoNo is healing well from his surgery. Even with Kim's fall and the subsequent trip to the emergency room, the trip was wonderful. We wish we could visit more often, and we really appreciate every one's efforts to spend time with us when we can make it to Carpinteria.