Winter Update

We finally got out of Georgia on the 14th after spending an extra 4 days in Valdosta - courtesy of the winter snow storm that hit the Atlanta area just as our original flight was supposed to depart. Guess they got hammered pretty good up there - 5 to 7 inches of snow is what I heard. Enough to close the airport for a couple of days anyway. We then got caught up in the clearing of the backlog at Delta. Pretty painless actually, especially since we had the extra time to spend with the grand kids, and I must confess that Delta handled the cancellations and rebookings quite well.

Been Skyping with Jennah and Makenna which has been fun and has been a good way to stay connected. Says she's been able to Skype with Mike pretty regularly since he's been deployed, and that he's doing well in Qatar.

We're already looking forward to a return trip to Valdosta in April - booked the tickets a few days ago. Plan to help get the house ready for sale by doing some painting while we're there next time since it appears that Mike may be up for orders once he returns from this deployment.

Things are pretty routine here in Vancouver. I was able to go hiking yesterday for the first time in about 8 weeks, and today am feeling the muscle soreness that comes with a long layoff like that. Need to get back into hiking shape ASAP - too much Christmas cheer during the month we spent in Georgia (and Florida). It's been warm enough to melt most of the snow along the Gorge I noticed yesterday so most of the trails appear to be open...pretty unusual for January. I can recall our first winter here a few years ago when I couldn't access any of the higher trails until June.

We're looking forward to taking off next week for a 6 week stay in Central Mexico. Will be staying in the village of San Miguel de Allende - one of the old Colonial silver mining towns in the central highlands (it's located at 6,200 ft. elevation), and which is supposed to be quaint, pretty, safe, and WARM...supposed to be sunny and in the 80's this time of year, although it gets down into the 30's at night. Should be a relaxing stay. The photo below is supposed to be from the rooftop terrace of our rental home.

San Miguel de Allende

Will post a few photos of the place once we get settled in.

Christmas in Valdosta

Just finishing up a very enjoyable Christmas visit with Mike, Jennah, Kevin and the grand babies in Valdosta. It's been a nice family time for all of us. Mike was informed just before Christmas that he was going to have to deploy to Qatar starting January 12, but was able to get leave the week after Christmas so we headed down to St. Augustine for a week on the beach (in the sunshine). What a nice change from the Pacific Northwest!

Here are some photos:




Granddaughter Makenna looking all grown up



Mike and Jennah heading out to the Squadron Christmas party. What a little love Jennah is. Mike shines up pretty well too.


Nana with Makenna



A nice family shot






Christmas morning




Shane fascinated by a robot toy


The beach house we rented in St. Augustine was a real delight...right on the beach and only 10 minutes from Old Town and the Fort. It was a real treat to wake up in the morning to views of the ocean, and to be able to meander along the huge stretch of beach looking for shells with the kids. Total relaxation.


Part of the view from the rear of the house



Shelling with Grandpa



Looking up at the house from the beach below


At the Fort in St. Augustine





Rita and I hadn't been back to St. Augustine since the early 80's when we lived in Jacksonville, and had forgotten what a neat place it was. They do have some tacky tourist stuff, but mainly it's a very charming Old Town across the street from the old Spanish Fort. Lots of old streets and neighborhoods to explore, and of course lots of little shops and restaurants to temp along the way. Made for some pleasant outings just meandering about the town. Gets pretty steamy here in the summertime, but winters are typically gorgeous as you can see.


A family photo op



Obviously a Hawaiian girl



Mike and Shane relaxing on the beach


Shane going at it with the new Ipad.

While we were in St. Augustine we were able to reconnect with Bill and Patty Kennedy, a former Skipper of mine from VS-28 from many years ago, who drove down from Orange Park for brunch on Sunday morning. Great to see them both again. Bill and I made an Indian Ocean cruise on the Independence back in '81, then a Med Cruise in '82 that was punctuated by an ejection during a Cold Cat shot...so we do share a few memories and experiences from our Navy careers.

The week at the beach passed much too quickly. After returning to Valdosta Mike was busy checking out and getting ready to depart on the 12th. We were supposed to fly home on the 10th but got caught up in the snow and ice storm that hit Atlanta and north Georgia about that time. Our flight was cancelled, then rescheduled, then cancelled and rescheduled again as Delta has tried to clear the backlog of stranded passengers. No big deal for us since it just enabled us to spend a few more days with the family. We're scheduled to leave this afternoon (the 14th) and so far traffic appears to be moving again on a regular schedule, but we'll believe it when we land in Portland later this evening. Till then, flexibility is our middle name.