MEA Weekend in Southern California

For MEA this year, we travelled to Southern California to see Grandpa and Grammie Liz and start our first college visits for Canyon to get a sense of what he likes. We visited Mom's alma mater (UCLA) and Aunt Jamie's alma mater (USC). We also visited Pomona College (one of the Clarement Colleges). We ran into other MN families that were also visiting for MEA weekend. Not sure if we honed in on any specific schools or characteristics but it was fun to start to get a sense of what this process might be like over the next two years.

At UCLA...


At USC...


On our visit, we were also fortunate to spend a bit of time with our good pals, the Grays. We stayed with them Friday night and then participated in the Walk Fundraiser for Club 21, something the Grays started over 7 years ago. So proud to see the amazing community and network they have built.

Ron with Estelle at the Walk...


Presley inspired us to hike to the Wisdom Tree in Griffith Park (the only touristy thing we had time for while in CA)...


On Saturday, all the cousins came over. Great night and great to spend time with family!


And no trip to California would be complete with out a trip to In & Out. This was our first "walk-up" In & Out...

NYC With Friends and Family

Ron traveled to NYC the weekend of October 14th to celebrate his longtime friend, Steve's 50th birthday. The birthday party was a surprise for Steve and a very special weekend for all. Grandma Harriet and Auntie also traveled to NYC for the event. It was a beautiful celebration planned by Steve's wife Alexia and included his dearest friends and family. Ron was invited to give a toast at the party. On Sunday, the celebration continued as Ron, Grandma Harriet, and Annie traveled out to Steve's place in Cutchogue, NY for more special time together!! Happy Birthday Steve!

End of Season Shoot Out

Presley's soccer team had an end of season tournament. During one of the first games of the tournament, the game ended in a shoot out. which is a big deal because Presley plays goalie. One of the parents captured some of the game's highlights on camera including Presley's game winning saves and the team celebration at the end of the game. Special photo credits to the Parker family!

Visit with Granny and Pergande New Car

Since Carol died, I have been trying to get down to see Granny every couple of weeks. This past trip, we enjoyed a nice lunch at the St. James Hotel in Red Wing and then I took her "stock-up" shopping at Target. Granny absolutely loves to shop and loved wandering the aisles. We definitely stocked up on supplies to keep her loaded up for awhile. Great visit!



Over the last few weeks, we discovered that Mom's car's transmission was dying. Ugh! On this last visit to Red Wing to see Granny, the car was shuttering so much that we realized we need to get a car sooner than later. I learned from Auntie that there are some great car deals going on this month as the new 2018s make their way on to dealers' showroom floors. So we decided to do some research and get new cars for both Ron and I this month (Ron's truck is over 14 years old). Knowing that we will have a new driver in the house in less than 6 months, we want to ensure that we have safe and reliable cars to drive. Well the first one is on the books. Got a great deal on a Jeep Cherokee and they gave me the maximum trade in price for the Buick (thank goodness they didn't test drive it).

Buddy Gets Adopted

Our first foster, Buddy, got adopted this past week for his forever home. He was such an awesome first dog for us to get to forster. Mom was an absolute puddle when he got picked up but we are happy knowing that he is going to a great family. I have included some pics from our short 3 week experience with him.

Buddie loved driving shotgun...


One of our many visits to Homeward Hills Park...


Getting cozy in Stanley's old bed...

Mom's last play date.