So Far this Year

We enjoyed a wonderful New Year’s Eve with the Merrill’s in Colorado.  Koko Head joined us and we skied together for Louie’s first time skiing. We read stories and Louie ate a whole pot of mussels.

Then, Dianna and I flew to Kauai thanks to Rick and Laura where we had a wonderful time barbecuing fresh, local fish, drinking great wine, enjoying the beaches looking for big shovels with Jordan, playing golf with Dan and seeing all the sights with Jason and Cris. Jason took the H3 on the beach and we wheeled along the beach. Jordan loved swimming in the ocean with Uncle Paul. Rick and Laura showed us an incredible time on the garden isle and we are very grateful. Jason and I concluded the trip with an awesome helicopter ride on Air Kauai with Ernie the pilot.

We threw a surprise 50th birthday party for Gary at the Quent Cordair art gallery in Burlingame and so many great friends attended.  Thank you for making his birthday such a memorable one.

Aunt El came to visit my mom in June and all of us had a wonderful time. We had terrific meals at Caesar’s in SF and at Austin’s in the casino.  Mom took us to a SF favorite - Beach Blanket Babylon. Gary hit the Blazing 7’s for mom and Aunt El.  On the way back, Gary took us to Crawdad’s for a fun afternoon on the Sacramento River. The following weekend, Gary came down to the Bay Area and we had fun celebrating Father’s Day for Jason, and also Cris’ and my birthdays. Jordan was a real Zoro and Aunt Joyce and Matt came over to celebrate with us too. I had so much fun reading the Spideman book with Jordan and playing the evil Doc Ock.

Had a great time meeting up with Eugene and Janelle for dinner and some fine wine at Il Fornaio. We’ll have to do a rafting trip soon.

Gogo, Koko Head, Aunt Diner and Uncle Paul flew to Texas to celebrate Jennifer Regalado's and Matt Kraemer's wedding.  We went swimming in the pool and had races. Then, we got to meet several family members and friends at the rehearsal dinner. The next morning, Koko Head and Uncle Paul went swimming again and played Tyrannosaurus Rex and the Moth.  Afterwards, we took a Jacuzzi. Then, we were honored to be sponsors in their wedding. The reception was exceptional, opening with a fantastic Elvis impersonator.  The mariachi band played crowd favorites. And, the main band had everyone dancing all night. We enjoyed seeing Uncle Lino and Aunt Maria, Lulu and Hector, Randy and Beatrice, Rudy and Linda and all the family, even if only briefly.  It was wonderful seeing Eddie and Daniel again and meeting Eddie’s family.

Next day, we had breakfast with Aunt Maria, Uncle Tranqulino and Cousin Debbie - and we laughed at the gringo who couldn’t figure out why you can’t have “one of each” when there are only two meats and three chalupas.  We visited with the new bride and groom, Rudy and Linda, Eddie and his family, and Daniel, Dana, and Tomas and Zelma.

On the drive back from DIA airport home, we were telling scary stories.  Uncle Paul told the story of an eerie mist that made Uncle Pill, Aunt DineDine, Granny and Luigi forget who they were.  A policeman pulled over the car and interrogated them.  Everyone who showed the police officer their driver's license got back their memory. Needless to say, 4-year old Luigi did not have a driver's license and he had to go with the policeman who kept him in jail forever after.  Well, Louie did not like my scary story at all and said it was his turn to tell a scary story. We all knew that things would not end well for Uncle Pill. Louie told the shortest scary story he has ever told. It went like this. "A big crocodile ate Uncle Pill and I said, 'See ya'." Revenge was sweet.

While we were in Texas, Mom, Gary, Jason and Cris took Jordan on his first Disneyland Adventure.  The Horn arranged for a special tour of Disney’s best and Jordan loved it. Jordan also got to live in medieval times when swinging swords and jousting were popular, his favorites. They took in all the attractions, including Sea World in San Diego.  And, they had fun visits with Ralph Scelfo and his family, and Dean and Trish and their family. Gary also gave everyone a tour of celebrity homes including Superman, Lucille Ball and Hef’s mansion.

On the 4th of July, we had a bbq with Mom, Aunt Cathy, Uncle Richard, Gogo, Lacey and Koko Head. Then, Dianna and I watched the Loveland fireworks from our backyard. I don’t remember them being so clearly visible and so large from our house. The show was really something special this year – my favorite was one that contained sparkling red, white and blue stars that flashed for 1 minute straight. There were very clever designs like hearts for Loveland and spirals and even smiley faces.

Dianna went to Jess’ mom’s 85th birthday party while Paul extended his business trip to attend his 30-yr. high school reunion. He had a wonderful time seeing Leonard and meeting his wife Cidalia and meeting 2 of his children. Paul played golf at Sharp Park with Sam and Howard and he not only shot a great game, he had a blast and enjoyed the views so much.  Catching up with Charles and having dinner at Stella Apina was awesome.  Charles created a wonderful set of content for our class reunion and I enjoyed it immeasurably.