It was a Memorial to Remember...

for a man we will never forget.  After months of planning and preparation, arrivals of nephews and nieces, aunts and uncles, children from coast to coast, and so many friends that it was overwhelming - we lay Mark brother to rest in Lompoc this past Friday.
It was a beautiful day, the weather cooperated to the best it could - and there must have been 130+ people here to enjoy the food and drink, friendships and stories and laughter.  Mark would have been proud, he would have been tickled to see people gathered together, talking about old times, planning on having new times together and just plain enjoying one another.

I will miss him always.  I am so happy and proud of the things he has taught me, and also for the lessons he continues to teach me about myself and our families, even now that he is gone.  But, he would have loved the way we celebrated him - friends and family, food and golf - it could not have gone better.

Appropriately during the day many people left to watch nephew Dalton play in the quarter final CIF baseball game held in town on that day as well. It was so great to be able to have the game in town, have relatives that had not seen him play were able to watch what may have been his final high school baseball game.   After an unbelievable try for a fly ball that was missed on young Daltons part that cost the team two runs, one of them being the go ahead run,  there must have been someone watching out for him as he then stepped up to bat in the bottom of the 7th with two outs and drove in the winning go ahead run to win the game 3-2.  Chaos, and all the while I KNOW Mark was watching - it was a grand day!  As Mark would say "and the crowd went wild!"

Now it is on to life as we have grown to know it.  Elizabeth will stay the week and I will watch her belly grown with my new grandniece in it - Nate will continue his stay through graduation day, continuing to make his stay something I will cherish forever.  Vic has returned to Johns Hopkins and the job she adores, and our new found Ashley - Nates girl, will start her new job tomorrow in Oregon where she and Nate will set up house and begin anew.  I really like her and hope that she continues to be good for Nate and they share continued happiness.  Marks friends enjoyed their time together with our family, hit the small white ball around in the wind during their stay - and we drank more wine that maybe we should have.  One thing I know for sure - we will "Just keep playing" at the game of life that Mark loved.  We will do it for Mark, and maybe more importantly, we will do it for ourselves because it is what he would want.

Cheers Mark Brother - I love you!

A little Pomp and Circumstance is a GREAT thing.....

     It's graduation time!  One year ago today we all sat proudly, Mark Brother included, to watch the 111th Commencement of Southern Utah University as Phillip graduated.  This weekend I returned to Cedar City to do it all over again as Challis Pascucci made the walk and received her degree in communications.  Phillip met Chall about three years ago and she has become a nice addition to our extended family and I was happy to be able to come and support her.  I didn't think that leaving Cedar City for a "final" time would bother me so badly,  I know I'll be back to visit but it will mean making plans for it being the destination, instead of visiting college students.  I got all teared up, I was reminded that the Mark was here just a year ago when we visited and how life continues to change.  I was reminded about how looking forward while also looking back is a constant in life.

     Phill came back to California with me with Malia (grand dog) in tow as he hopes to get a summer job in Huntington Beach.  He will attend the Memorial for Mark and Dalton's graduation the first part of June.  We all look forward to the arrival of Nate, Lizzy and Vicky and we have lots going on. It's been awhile since all the cousins have been together and when Christine arrives the "brat pack" will be complete.  It seems strange to have them continue to age, Nate being in the 30's and Mackenzee being 15 but I must say that I love the everything in between ages that they all bring to the table and it's  great to have the kids around lending a different aspect to life and all it's twists and turns.  Lots of focus being on family and activities, baseball games, travel, meals, moving of kids here and there, trying to finish up work is a bit of a struggle for me, but I love the activity and I have laughed and cried more lately than I have in awhile - I love my life!

Days like this, are why we live on the Central Coast...

When the sun is up before you are on the Central Coast of California, it's gonna be a GREAT day!
These are the days that we live for around here because we already know that the traffic is light, there are wide open spaces, places to grow, and think, and plant something.  Not so many "things to do" - no bowling, not much shopping, few movies, not many activities - but plenty of outdoor space, family time and sporting events.  I believe the reason I love to cook so much is because being in the kitchen keeps me busy, gives me something to do, to plan to create and I love that.   And when the weather is nice, there really isn't a better place to be - the air is clean and clear - you can see FOREVER - the sunshine makes people generally in a better mood, and..... life is good.

It's been 15 years, yet seems like just yesterday

I have a best friend named Jane, she and I have been friends for over 40 years.  We were in each others weddings, have children the same age and have shared in each others lives since childhood.  15 years ago Jane's husband came home one day and said he would like their family to move to Mexico - near La Paz to start a fishing business.  Shortly after a late night visit, at least one bottle of wine, some tears, some laughter and lots of girl talk - they packed up and moved.  It took some time but we have all adjusted, I miss her being here on a daily basis, but with the internet and cell phones it isn't all that bad.  But, with their business and all our kids and just life, we haven't seen each other all that much in the past 15 years, until this weekend.
Jane's mama passed away in San Jose, California in March and over the weekend they had a memorial service for her and Jane and her family came to California.  It has been 15 years since we have seen one another, and with a huge hug, some tears and lots of laughter - it seems like just yesterday we saw one another.  I love that feeling when it just seems like you pick up were you left off talking, as if it were yesterday.   My mouth is sore from talking and laughing, we played catch up and decided that now that her youngest child will graduate from high school, we will have more time to plan to spend time together.  I think we both realized, maybe because we were saying goodbye to her mom, the importance of our friendship and how we should continue to work at spending time together.  Our families have been friends for so long, and this loss was yet another death that has been hard on my mother, she and Marge were also best friends.  Our families have a strong bond, of that their is no doubt and I look forward to working on not having our visits be so few and far between.
Marjorie Mead Thomas would have been proud to have us all together again, the weekend and our visit were not for the happiest of reasons - but we took the lemons and made lemonade and it will be a day we will always remember - as if it were yesterday.....