A year ago, I thought this year would take forever, but here we are - fortunately-putting up the tree, caroling, and planning for 2016.
We greeted the New Year on an absolutely gorgeous day, with calm seas and sunshine on the Sonoma Coast with family and friends. The weather was stunning, with a large group of family and friends we watched kids and dogs run in the waves and explore some sea caves.
Tim and I flew to Palm Springs in January to visit Amanda. It was in the 70s, except when we took the tram to 8,000 feet on Mt. San Jacinto, where it was snowing! We had a great visit, hiking at Joshua tree and other local trail lands, touring downtown Palm Springs, visiting the Living Desert, and getting to know her desert home. On the trip began my saga of the knees - more on that later - so I was kind of limping around, but it was still fun!
With California being in its fourth year of severe drought, spring brought beautiful but dry weather, but our gardening this year was kept to a minimum, and my hiking was limited, and even kayaking (hard to get in and out of the boat), but Tim was outdoors a lot, sometimes knocking off 5-10 mile hikes after work, usually working a photo shoot into that. I accompanied him sometimes, and also spent a lot of time swimming at the gym. Kyra turned 12 in March, and celebrated with a birthday party at House of Air (a trampoline gym) in San Francisco with family and friends.
In early May, we hosted Tim's 97 year old mother for a few days, while Tim's sister took some well-deserved time off. Although a little anxious about not being in her own home, she soon learned to love spending mornings sitting on our sunny deck. A highlight was taking her to the Saturday morning farmer's market, which she initially resisted - then thoroughly enjoyed. We even lost her briefly, as she took off on her own with her walker to see the sights!
In May we also celebrated great niece's Katie Jensen's graduation from Sierra College at Lake Tahoe. It was a really fun weekend, and a family reunion in a way, as my brother Don's family is based in the North Shore Area.
May culminated with an event we had planned for several months - a trip to Mt. Shasta to climb the 14,162 foot peak! Tim reached his goal this year of losing 70 pounds and he started months before conditioning himself for this ascent. Jocelyn, Martin, Terry, some friends with their kids and all our grandkids settled at a nearby campground with a great lake for swimming, near Mt. Shasta City. Tim backpacked in to Horse Camp (the base camp at 8, 000 feet) with Martin following shortly after. The next day, we womenfolk and kids decided to hike in to say hi. It's only 1.5 miles but a constant uphill, challenging trail. Two year old Odin won the race, running almost the whole way, as he was so excited to be outside! The kids were thrilled to find snow patches on the way; for Odin and some of the older kids, it was the first time playing in the snow! Later on, Terry, Lily and Jackson, friends, Craig with his kids, and Eli, made the same trek. Being at the hut at base camp - a building built in the 1930s by the CCC - held some nostalgia, as my Dad and uncle - Don and Doug Joslin - climbed Shasta when they were young, as well as my brother Mike, Tim, And Terry. Martin now has the climbing bug, too. He's in very good shape, but not so used to climbing on snow with crampons. He and Tim started out at 1 am, and reached the halfway point, but Martin suffered a severe leg cramp, so they didn't make it to the top, but it was about the journey...and the mountains await!
June was a blur of doctor's appointments for me. After five months of unpredictable knee pain, being on crutches, and not being able to do much except swim I decided to have arthroscopic knee surgery. I actually made it to Shasta base camp, per above, and down again! I thought, "Oh, well I can't do any more damage at this point!" The surgery went well. I was walking that night; I actually drove -only two blocks - the next day, and was going on some short walks within a few days. Amanda stayed with us for two weeks in June, as she works on-line and can travel frequently. On July 3, we went to one of our local beaches. Jocelyn was to join us, but said she was lost, even though she's been going there all her life. We waited...and as we were ready to leave, she arrived, so then we wanted to spend time there with Odin and Kyra. FINALLY, arriving home, salty, sandy, and tired, we opened the door to SURPRISE!!! Our kids had been planning a birthday party for Tim and me, complete with a Medicare themed cake!! It was a wonderful party and a spirit-lifter after a two week convalescent period for me. Thank you, kids!
Summer was spent catching concerts and events, and trying to get outdoors as much as possible. We also spent some time, when possible with Lily, Jackson, Odin and Kyra, going the beach, pool or park, or just having play days here.
September we were guests of our friends Bruce and Martha at their beautiful Webb Farm outside of Portland. I like to joke that we drove 650 miles to work in the garden and can tomatoes. It was a long weekend spent visiting, good food, family, discovering (gasp) Powell's books in Portland, and yes, canning...er...tomatoes!
Lily and Jackson celebrated their birthdays together (Jackson turned 5 in November) so they could have a pool party with friends and family. What a blast!
Also in September Tim traveled to the ghost town Bodie and the Eastern Sierra again with his photo group.
In October I attended the state Physician Assistant conference, which is always held in Palm Springs, conveniently close to Amanda. The conference was interesting, but I remembered why I stopped going - eight hours of sitting in conference rooms. The highlight was sitting with my daughter poolside at the hotel having a glass of wine and talking, then playing ukulele and singing until midnight at her place! I also met some of her friends at a gallery reception and we had lunch with her Palm Springs mom, Barbara. It was still in the 100s, so outdoor activities were limited. Also in October Tim returned to playing karate. The combination of the weight loss, physical conditioning, and the desire to improve his health caused him to give one last go at attaining a black belt in Goju-Kai. He is training with the same instructors from when he started studying in the 1970's, who (also) have gotten a bit older over the years. He hopes to go for promotional exam early next year and possibly advance in rank (first time since 1975).
Amanda continued her travels this year. She loves exploring the Southern CA desert with her friends and dog, Bucky, hiking whenever possible. In September she had a reunion in Page, AZ with photographer friends for some thrilling and beautiful canyon tours. She also went to Las Vegas, and visits friends in the Bay Area and Humboldt when she can. Bucky sometimes makes the trip with her (here), or stays with "Auntie" Barbara and doggie friends Opie and Gigi when she needs to leave him. Since moving to Palm Springs in Sept 2014, Amanda has discovered a love and commitment to yoga and CrossFit-style workouts (Tim has also been doing CrossFit training). Tim's weight loss inspired her, and she has lost 35 pounds and counting. Another of Amanda's new hobbies is playing ukulele. Her friends have her almost convinced to play an open mic night!
In November, a couple from our paddling group planned a Thanksgiving feast on the beach. They BBQed turkey, set up complete table service and the 35+ attendees all brought fantastic food. Some people paddled, as it was a beautiful day, some of us hiked and everyone had a good time. It definitely made us feel thankful. On Thanksgiving Day, we once again shared the meal with our nephew and Dave and Sue Jensen and 25 friends and family. Lily sang a song about being thankful, accompanied by her mom Lauren on the piano, which kind of summed up how everyone felt. The following Sunday, we had a little Thanksgiving with our family; with Amanda visiting, it was chance to all get together. The cousins always like to see each other. One sweet moment was when 5 year old Jackson put his arm around 2 year old Odin's shoulders, inviting him to come play. Breakthrough - they didn't dissolve on the floor wrestling!
Tim's mother suffered a fall two weeks ago, and was in the hospital for week. Amazingly she didn't break anything, but needed to be stabilized for discharge to home on her 98th birthday on December 14th. She has had a long and amazing life, has been relatively healthy and living on her own until this point. We are hoping the best for her these next few days. She has been a wonderful grandma to Terry, Jocelyn, and Amanda. I reminded her, that often picking them up from an overnight visit, I would find them cuddled up with her reading stories or finishing an art project.
Kyra is a seventh grader this year, and started in a charter school this fall, after being home schooled for two years. She loves it there. She recently represented "Hercules and the Twelve Challenges" by making a diorama completely out of candy - which the class devoured! She is president of the Comedy club, and doing well with her studies. Odin is an adventurous and comical almost 3 years old. He loves anything that has moving parts, and is Mr. Fix it. For some reason, he likes to show off his muscles by somehow twisting his shirt round so one arm is sticking out (you'd have to see it!) Jocelyn and Martin traversed the state this year - they made a second trip to Shasta in the fall. When they left, Jocelyn was driving, and much to Martin's surprise, when he woke up from a nap, they were in Lava Beds National Monument, where they explored another couple of days. Later in the year, Jocelyn and her kids drove to Palm Springs to see Amanda, and go to the Living Desert (a fantastic zoo and botanical gardens).
Lily, at 7, is really showing us her blossoming talents. She's a real adventurer, loves to read, and is learning piano. Jackson is thriving in kindergarten - they both LOVE to talk, and have so much to tell. Looking through a book I have on space, he is full of non-stop questions. He also loves anything sports related, and is becoming quite the jokester. They had fun this summer, going to Santa Cruz with their mom, spending time with their other grandparents, and being flower girl and ring bearer in a friend's wedding. I'm hoping this year, if my knees cooperate, we can do more camping and also sometime next year both Tim and I will retire.
We are always thankful for friends and family, and watching our grandkids grow. With two friends this year in serious car accidents - thankfully on the mend - and others facing some health challenges, we try to appreciate every day. We're also
thankful for RAIN! After devastating wildfires and severe drought, we're hoping for a wet /snowy year.
Have a wonderful Christmas, New Year's and holidays with friends and family. See you New Years day!Tim and Sharon Morgan and Family
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