Looking Around

I was out enjoying my surroundings today. I remembered that visiting the Madonna Inn at this time of the year is always so pretty. This place has a very interesting story. A husband and wife were very successful in business and they needed a tax right off. So the wife decided to create this hotel and decorate it with unusual colors and decor. Hopefully it would not be successful. But it was and is.

 A beautiful wishing well.

 Unusal chimmey. Beautiful fountains.

 Decorated with flowers.

 Impressive doors.

 So many lights and decorations for Christmas. Their main color is pink.

 A pink seated bar and roses in the carpet.

 Then I was off to San Luis Obispo which is about 45 minutes up the coast of California from where I live. This is a college town and the students have created their own gum alley. I am sure it is one of a kind.

If you want to get rid of your gum, you just put it on the brick wall of the alley. It is something to see.

Red Hats

Today our red hat group got together to celebrate Christmas. We had lunch together and enjoyed talking to one another.

 This is our Queen. Someone sent her a blue wig for Christmas and she thought we would enjoy seeing her in it. It fits her personality. She loves to dress up.

 Here is Linda.

You are suppose to wear a purple hat when your birthday is in that month.

Celebrating 12-12-12-12

A couple of my very best friends Claudia and Marlene and I got together today for lunch at noon. We hadn't seen each other for awhile and it was time to enjoy each others company.

 My friend Claudia was nice enough to have us to her house. This was the shrimp and ahi tuna she got from the Chop Street in Pismo Beach.

 Then we placed it on top of this salad and with a choice of dressing.

For dessert she had pumpkin pie with whipped cream. It made for a very special time together.

Big Day

It was a big day for our family yesterday. My son Steve completed his masters degree with honors from Cal Poly. Our family was so proud. He is the first one to get a masters degree in our family.

Here are my two granddaughters Catherine and Emily, then Steve and myself.

Back to Sewing

It was my Granddaughters 11th birthday yesterday. Luckily I had bought the fabric before I left. Even though I couldn't get it done on time at least it is done. These are pajama bottoms out of soft cotton knit. I think she will be quiet happy.

Walking

I have begun walking and swimming trying to get back into my exercise program. I am realizing being gone almost three months you see many changes as you walk. Some businesses have gone out of business and some new ones. Some people have changed their landscaping and gardens.

 I had to go and check on the neighbor that has such a creative garden. I have never seen this done. She has used her old pumpkins to put plants in. This wouldn't work in Minnesota with freezing, but here it will act as a compose for the plants. I think it looks attractive too.

I took a picture of this tree to show that California has a few trees that change colors. Of course, not anything like the beautiful fall in the midwest and east coast. So I am enjoying taking in my new surroundings.

Little More on the House

My sister Mary and her husband Todd continued working after I left this week.

 There was a lot of mold in the house and it all had to be removed before we could sell. This is what the basement looked like after all of the cabinets and tiles on the floor were removed. The mold was removed.

 It looked wonderful with the mold removed and painted white.

 This is the other side of the basement with the newly painted walls. Mom and Dad had a old stove hooked up in the basement and it still works.

This is the laundry room with the washer and sink removed and all the plaster board had to be taken out to get the mold out

 Then my sister oiled down all of the cabinets and it looked really nice in the kitchen.

 Then there was a hole in the plaster in the den. Now it is plastered.

And painted.

We are selling it as is and there is a lot of work still to be done. We have accepted a offer from my sister Roxanne's son who is 28 years old. My sisters whole family have a lot of knowledge in fixing houses up, so they will do a nice job of bringing this house back to life. Once it has a new life there will be people invited over for dinner just as my parents did. We are praying that all goes well with the hoops that the house has to jump through until the papers can be signed and have its new owner.

Home

It is taking me awhile to get used to the time change, so I haven't been doing much. Everyone is so happy to see me back. Especially my husband.

 These artichokes greeted me in my garden. I would of like to of been here to eat them, but you can't beat seeing them bloom.

My husband along with the sprinkler system kept my garden alive. The weeds are alive too. It is going to take me awhile to get rid of them. I even got my sewing machine out today. I haven't had access to my sewing machine for so long that I had to do some mending. Not very exciting, but once it is done I will be able to get back to some fun stuff. I have to say that I have to get used to the weather again. It seems so warm here. I also realize in looking at my garden that I missed a season.

It is time to go home

My sister Mary and her husband Todd put on a wonderful turkey dinner for Thanksgiving. The table setting was with my Grandmother's dish set.

Today is my last day here in Minnesota. I have had a incredible journey and now it is time to go back to my California life. I think it will seem strange at first. 2 1/2 months is a long time to be gone. I have many memories to take back with me. I think I was able to accomplish what I needed while here. Goodbye until I come back again. Love to my family and friends.

Swedish Institute

Last weekend my two cousins, Kathy and Debbie and myself went to the Swedish Institute in Minneapolis.

 The college that I attended in St. Peter Minnesota had a office there.

 They had all the past year books from the classes. My cousins wanted to see if I was in them. I had forgotten that my roommate and I had worn the traditional Swedish customs and were in a dance for the St. Lucia Celebration.

 There a large amount of Swedish people that immigrated and settled in Minnesota. This is a old mansion of a man who published a Swedish Newspaper.

 It was all decorated for Christmas.

 A beautiful stain glass window.

 My cousins looking at one of the table settings in one of the rooms.

 There was a lace display.

 Here we are in front of the beautiful fire place in the front hall entrance.

Then I spend a couple days at my cousin Debbie's home. We made some sliced vegetables and roasted them for dinner one night. Truly a delightful time.

A Little More

This the house that the nurse nuns lived in next to the hospital that I was born in. This house has been remodeled for someones home now. The hospital has been torn down. When they were taring it down I took home one of the bricks and use it for a door stop at my home.

 This is the view from the top of the bluff looking out at the City of St. Paul. This is the view this home has.

This is the power plant that the hospital had and someone has made it into a house.

 This is a house that my Dad and I would drive by as it looked so different to us.

I have been saying goodbye to my friends and relatives. I went to the Jerabek Bakery yesterday to say goodbye to my Dad's friends.

Memory Lane

My children used to ride in the back seat in my Dad's car when we would visit and one said to me do we have to go down memory land again. Well I spend the whole day today doing just that. What a joy. It is 57 degrees today with the sun shining it's heart out.

 First stop was my Dad's house. I took a look at the shed in the back yard and remembered that after my Dad and two of his friends build the shed he painted the body of a cow on the front. You were suppose to put your head next to the body so that you became part of the cow.

 Then I looked up above and saw the mail box that you could no longer see the writing Air Mail on the box. That is how my Dad got his Air Mail at his house.

 I found this duck in some weeds and rubble which he had used at one time for decoration in his garden.

 This weekend my brother in law cut away some of the wall on the flower planter at the end of the porch that had begun to fall a part.

 Then I drove down into the old neighborhood that my father grew up in. This is one of the last little neighborhood markets. When my father was young and even when I was about every 12 blocks there was a small grocery store. My German Grandfather owned one. I used to visit it when my uncle would deliver the fruit and vegetables and sometimes I would get a banana to eat.

 This is the first duplex that my father owned. He and his brother had a paper out and he had saved his money and was going to buy a car. His father would not let him, so at 19 years old he bought a house.

 Then I drove to down by the Mississippi River. Here are the old mushroom sand caves. When I was five my father and I went down to one of these caves and they had the best white sand. He built a huge sand box under a large tree in the back yard and filled it with this wonderful white sand.

 You can see they have filled the entrance of these so people do not go in them any more.

Then it was to look at the High Bridge. It was the one that we had to cross over the Mississippi River to get to downtown St. Paul.

 Here is the library that I used as a kid. It was in the days when Carnegie was going through the country building libraries. I am sitting in it right now using the internet. It sure didn't have that before.

 Across the street is this historic house that I remember when I was a kid. The walls that are around it are typical of the old time walls on many homes. The above picture shows the carriage house that they use now as a garage.

Thanks for coming along. I hope you enjoyed our journey.