Memorial Day 2011

Ted and I have taken a moment today to remember the brave men and women who have died while serving in our armed forces and hope that you will take a moment to remember them also.

This morning we left chilly San Francisco and made it to Bakersfield this afternoon.  There was roadwork on I-5 so was slow going.  It is much warmer here in Bakersfield, in the 80's!  We are on our way to Palo Duro Canyon in Texas.  We are attending an RV rally there with the "Traveling Supremes".  They are owners of the same manufacturer of RV's as we have.  This will be our first time with the group, having met John and Ramola, former Travel Surpreme owners in Texas who got us involved.  Sounds like they do fun things and we look forward to finding out!  We are scheduled to be there by Monday the 6th of June!

We are both pretty tired tonight, trying to recover from a busy, emotional and wonderful weekend!

Too tired to figure out why, but..."Ain't Life Grand!"

What a beautiful wedding!

Ted and I took a cab from the RV park to the hotel.  Craig asked us to be there by 2:00.  We were one of the few that were on time for everything which meant we were an hour early for the pictures!   Fortunately the hotel was great for people watching! 

The photo taking of the groom, groomsmen, bridesmaids, grooms family (us) and grooms close friends lasted about one and a half hours!  The photographer took pictures inside the hotel.

And then we went out on our own and took pictures in front of the Hotel;

and in Union Square!

The beautiful bride in her beautiful dress just minutes before the wedding, surrounded by her beautiful bridesmaids!

The ceremony was beautiful. Attorney, and pastor for the day, Dave did a wonderful job! He first talked about how Claire and Craig met and added his own personal comments. I thought he was going to cry before he had hardly gotten started! During the vows Craig choked up a bit but managed to get through it. The ceremony was very touching.

After the ceremony the guests headed up to the 32nd floor for happy hour. The wedding party took pictures for about an hour, and I now present Mr. and Mrs. Meredith:

Presenting the newest edition to the Meredith family!

Beautiful rings!

Claire's family:  Jennifer (sister-in-law), Quint (nephew), Ernie Jr. (brother), Ernie Senior (dad), Claire, Linda (mom), Craig, Mackenna and flower girl Aubrey (nieces)!  Not sure on the spelling of the children's names, but my best guess!

The wedding party had a lot of fun taking pictures, they even took a few goofy ones!  But when asked to pose by the phographer, they did a good job!

After the photos were taken we all went up to the 32nd floor for happy hour.  What a beautiful view!  The toasts started with Ernie (Claire's Dad).  His toast was getting a little long so the DJ played the jeopardy time's up music!  He took the hint and then the best man and maid of honor did their toasts.  The brother's toasts were next and they brought the tears.  They both gave wonderful toasts to Claire and Craig, and Ted and I were so proud of them.  We remember when Chip couldn't even order his own dinner and now is the life of the party.  His toast was very touching and beautiful.  Stephen still seems shy but he stood up in front of everyone, pulled a joke on Craig and then brought the house down with his love for Craig and Claire.

Next was the first dance!

Next we had dinner.   They started with a wedge salad that was very good and then the main dish of chicken or steak.  Ted and I chose the steak which was very tender and tasty, good vegetables and potatoes. 

After dinner there was dancing.  The DJ was very good and he did a lot of fun dances. 

About 9:00 they cut and served red velvet cake!  It was a beautiful cake! 

Craig and Claire were very civilized and fed each other nicely!

We left about 10:30.  It was a beautiful wedding and we enjoyed every minute of it!  Craig and Claire, and of course, Ernie and Linda, planned a beautiful and enjoyable wedding and reception.

This morning we were back to the hotel by 9:00 (old hands at the Bart now) for brunch.  This time we had a view from the 12th floor.  Even with a lot of partying the night before there were about 70 people for breakfast.  The food was delicious and the service was excellent.

A wonderful wedding..."Ain't Life Grand!"

Made it to San Francisco!

We arrived at our campground in the town of Pacifica Thursday afternoon.  Pacifica is just south of San Francisco.  The campground is great if you are going to be busy away fromt the campground!  It is somewhat of a parking log but man what a view!

Yesterday was the rehearsal and dinner.  We met at the hotel at 4:00.  Ted and I took the Bart for the first time (successfully)!  The hotel was only 3 (flat) blocks from the station.  The Westin St. Francis Hotel is right across from Union Square, very centrally located!  When we got there Craig was out running an errand.  He had forgotten a pair of black jeans that he wanted to wear to the rehearsal!  One of the groomsmen (whose name will not be mentioned) told us that Craig brought about 10 shirts and 6 pairs of pants for the weekend...but he wanted black jeans and it's his special weekend!!!   Fortunately he found them without delay!  We met in the lobby of the hotel before heading up to the rehearsal.

The chapel is lovely, very warm and intimate.  I think Craig and Claire decided they wanted this room and so the guest list was shortened accordingly!  I believe there are 120 people attending!  On Thursday Craig found out the pastor was ill and would not make the wedding.  Then the person the pastor recommended backed out.  Then Craig had a great idea.  One of the partners in the law firm where he works could do it.  His father was a minister and so Craig asked him and he said "of course".  Dave spent all day Thursday and Friday getting his one day, one marriage license!  He made it to the rehearsal on time and I think he will be great and he knows Craig and Claire so well.  Craig and Claire had the whole wedding planned out (on paper) and so Dave can step in without any trouble.  They walked through the wedding three times and then it was time to go to dinner.

To get all 35 of us to the restaurant, they reserved a cable car trolly!  It was a bit cold but lots of fun!  Especially the return scenic trip to the hotel! 

We had dinner at the Firenze by Night restaurant.  A nice Italian restaurant with an intimate back room that just held us all!  Claire had a surprise for Craig.  She knows he is crazy about  Jimmy Buffett and found the perfect t-shirt.  The t-shirt says "Bar Exam"..."Margaritaville" (Craig and Claire are in law school)! Then the baker that is making their wedding cake made a cake that matched!  But it didn't just say the words, it really looked like someone put a t-shirt over the cake!!  It was so cool!  We had a great dinner, I had the sole and Ted had chicken and all was delicious!

The entire afternoon with Craig, Claire, his brothers, their girlfriends and the rest of their friends and family was wonderful and we are excited about the upcoming wedding!

Loving the kids..."Ain't Life Grand!"

Leaving for San Francisco this morning!

We are leaving Fresno this morning for the "Big" weekend and will be camped in Pacifica, just south of the city of San Francisco.  This will be a busy weekend with Craig and Claire.  The rehersal dinner is on Friday night, the wedding on Saturday and a Sunday morning brunch!  They start back to law school on Tuesday and will go on their honeymoon in July.

Last night we had dinner with our middle nephew, Chip and his girlfriend Hayley.  We met at Yosemite Ranch, a steakhouse.  We had a delicious dinner and  enjoyable evening with the kids!  They are both really busy between school and work for Hayley and work, coaching and other sports for Chip.  Hayley is working on her masters degree in a nursing program and working in a dental office for the summer.  Chip has been substitute teaching at a high school and coaching wrestling. 

 It was a breezy but beautiful evening in Fresno.

Enjoying sunsets in Fresno..."Ain't Life Grand!"

Dinner with Marissa & Stephen

Last night we had dinner with Stephen and Marissa at Sakura Chaya!  This restaurant is Stephen and Marissa's favorite restaurant for Teppanyaki.  Stephen turned 21 last Monday so we celebrated his birthday!  Stephen and some of his friends are going to go to Vegas for his birthday some time in June.   It was a fun evening, great catching up with them on what they have been doing and the food was delicious! 

Love these kids..."Ain't Life Grand!"

The Meredith/Tuttle Pre-Wedding Party!

We arrived in Fresno Thursday afternoon.  Claire and Craig were meeting with their pastor and met us about 8:00 p.m. for cocktails.  It was great spending time with the two of them and catching up on wedding plans and to get our instructions for the pre-wedding party!!!

On Friday we met Craig for lunch at the "Elbow Room"!  It's a nice restaurant/bar near where Craig works at the law office and it's next to a Coldwater Creek Store that I love to shop in!  After lunch (and shopping) we got our errands run and got ready for the pre-wedding party!

There were about 25 people and a really nice group of young adults that are friends of Craig and Claire.  There were appetizers, beer and wine and then a delicious dinner of Mexican food!  It was such a nice evening (in the 70's) and the party was in the back yard.  The party was for the groomsmen and bridesmaids to get to know each other before the wedding next week.  We left about 9:30 but of course the "kids" were going strong!  Craig's brothers Chip and Stephen (groomsmen) were there with their girlfriends Hayley and Marissa.  The party was at Claire's Mom and Dad's home (Linda and Ernie) and her brother Ernie and his wife Jennifer came down from Sacramento with their three children.  It was a lot of fun!

Spending time with family..."Ain't Life Grand!"

Leaving for Fresno this morning!

We've had a fun and restful week in Sacramento.  On Monday we went to see Thor at the movies.  We found it entertaining.  On Tuesday we had lunch with our friends' Lon and Nita Ponsford.  Ted and Lon went to high school together.  We met up with them a few years ago when they were managing the campground at Lake Piru.  They now live in Elk Grove just south of Sacramento.  We met them for lunch and had a good time catching up, it was great visiting with them!

Yesterday we went over to our friends Joel and Lale Goddard.  Ted and Joel worked together at the County of San Diego in the Department of Information Services.  They are also retired and live in Sacramento.  Lale had seen a restaurant on the Diners, Drive-ins and Dives with Guy Fieri on the Food Network that she wanted to try, so we did!  We went to Dad's Kitchen in Sacramento.  The restaurant looks tiny from the front and it is small but bigger than it looks.  The speciality is a bacon, bleu-cheese hamburger.  None of us tried it but my meatloaf sandwich was delicious!  It was a fun little restaurant.  We enjoyed our visit with Joel and Lale!

This morning we are getting ready to head on down to Fresno!

Visiting with friends and trying new restaurants..."Ain't Life Grand!"

Hanging out in Nicolaus

We've had a quiet weekend, rainy and chilly yesterday!  We took Max to the groomer yesterday, he looks so cute (warts and all)!  We did some shopping and had lunch at "Mel's Diner".  The first diner was the one from the tv show "Alice".  The orginal diner was started in 1947 and also had something to do with American Graffiti!

Today is our youngest nephew's birthday!  The big 21!  We will celebrate when we get down to Fresno on Thursday!  This was a picture of he and his girlfriend Marissa in 2010.

Our friends, Joel and Lale had to cancel todays lunch so we are going to the movies!  We will see them on Wednesday.  Tomorrow we are going to have lunch with our friends Lon and Nita Ponsford! 
Cute puppies..."Ain't Life Grand!"

Made it Sacramento!

We left Los Angeles on Tuesday, driving over the Tehachapi Mountains successfully!  I think Ted held his breath the entire time wondering if the truck would make it!  We spent one night in a campground off of Interstate 5 by Coalinga and then arrived in Sacramento yesterday afternoon. 

Our friends Jim and Della are visiting a friend here in Sacramento area over the weekend.  We hope to see them.  Friends Joel and his wife Lale live in Sacramento and friends Lon Ponsford and his wife Nita live in Elk Grove, just down the road.  We will try and visit them all while here.  We are here until Thursday the 19th and then we go down to Fresno!

Beautiful day today..."Ain't Life Grand!"

Moving on (hopefully)!

This morning we are leaving the area, keeping our fingers crossed the truck is good for another 1000 miles...kidding!  We are headed to Sacramento and will be there on Thursday!

We plan to visit some friends that live in the area and hope to reconnect with friends Jim and Della!

On the road again..."Ain't Life Grand!"

Truck is back!

We took off for Petaluma Thursday morning in our VW Bug.  It was a long 441 miles from our campsite to Bob's house.  Fortunately we got there in time for happy hour!  That night we enjoyed the company of Bob (our host) and his girl friend, Kathy and our friends Jim and Della and had a nice quiet dinner.  

The groups for the weekend parties were some Sweetwater High grads and some friends of Bob's.  It was fun meeting new people.

Friday morning Ted and I took off for breakfast and then Della and I took off to do some shopping.  We went to a thrift store and found a bunch of serving pieces for the two parties for $1.99 to $3.99!  Great fun.  Della had made her famous spaghetti and meatballs for Friday night and there were 10 for dinner.  Lots of talking, giggling and a little bit of wine!  Met some very nice people.  Didn't think about the truck at all!

Saturday was a barbeque.  There were 20 for dinner and we had a great spread.  Everyone brought great things to eat and everything was yummy!  Duane did the cooking of the corn and the hamburgers and everything was delicious!  After dinner we surprised Della with a birthday cake and some gifts.  Her birthday is in a couple weeks and who doesn't love a reason to celebrate (and have cake)!

Bob flies helicopters for the movie industry and has some work coming up.  Della was near the phone and answered a call for Bob from Ben Stiller!  She said "he just seems like a regular guy!"  It was funny.

Bob and Duane had recently been to Viet Nam (they had both been there when in the military).  They showed some film from their trip.  They are working on a movie project regarding Agent Orange and what it does (and is doing) to the children.  There are still children been born with problems from it every day.  Some of the pictures were very sad but there was also some very touching moments.  It will be interesting to see what they come up with.

Our dog Max was out of his mind the whole weekend.  He was let loose and he and Ginger (Bob's lab) got a long fine as long as no one tried to give them both attention at the same time.  Max had the run of the house so thought he was the "king"!  He was exhausted and slept most of the time in the back seat of the VW bug all the way home and then all evening when we got home!

I called Ford this morning and they finished the truck this afternoon.  Luckily Ford stepped up and covered $1400 and our balance was $4200.  Still sucked but helped!  They replaced heads, injector, fuel filters, oil and generally everything to do with the engine!

Having a fun weekend with friends..."Ain't Life Grand"!

OMG not the truck again!

Yep, we were getting ready to leave Tuesday morning. We were all packed up ready to go and Ted checked under the hood.  He noticed the radiator reservoir overflow had a funny color.  He put a rag in and it wasn't oil.  Good news we thought as we had already had that problem once and it was pretty expensive!  We called our service guy and he said it was probably diesel fuel in the coolant and we should definitely bring it right in.  So off we went 1 1/2 hour drive over to Fontana.  He said it was major and so we rented a car and came home. 

They found an injector was frozen and one of the two heads had a crack allowing the fuel to get in the coolant (and they don't know which so they replace both of them) at a cost of $5600.00!  YIKES.  In hindsight, we would have had a nice down payment on a new truck if we had gotten oneat  the beginning of the year!  So we will start looking at trucks.

We have the rental car so our friend Della suggested we drive over to Petaluma (by San Francisco) to the party we were planning to attend with our RV.  We are staying at Bob's (the host) for the weekend!  We'll have some wine and some laughs and not think about the truck until Monday!

Thinking of wine and laughter..."Ain't Life Grand!"

Soledad Canyon

Still hanging out in Soledad Canyon, lovely weather!  Getting laundry caught up and decided to post some pictures that I couldn't post while in San Diego!

These are pictures from Mallorie right after her play Seven Brides for Seven Brothers.  Unfortunately she changed out of her "prairie dress" before she came out!  The young man is Noah, her long time friend and another actor from the cast.  Also a picture of Mallorie at her volleyball match.

We spent Easter at Tony and Gina's house.  Tony cooked the greatest roast ever!  It was a fun day.  Like father, like son!  Tony hams it up whenever he "poses" for pictures...Trent did the same! Both are rather good looking when they aren't "posing"!  LOL

One day we had breakfast with our friend Peggy.  This guy was sitting in his car when we came out of the restaurant!  He was waiting for Dad!  Too cute not to take his picture!

A cute pooch..."Ain't Life Grand!"

On the road again!

We finally left South Coast RV at 5:00 Friday afternoon!  (Thank god they close then or we would have probably been there later)!  The body work they did looks great.  When we drove to So Coast RV there was a loud squeal in the back on the same side that the tire had shredded.  When they got the wheel off they found that the bolt that held the brake pad on had come out and the brake pads had dropped off on the road somewhere.  Fortunately the rotor only had some scratches on it and could be turned and they were able to reuse the calipers on the new pads since they would have to order them from Oklahoma!  Dexter axles use special parts (of course).  We will be ordering a spare kit to have on hand for any future brake problems!

We are now up at a campground in Acton, California in Soledad Canyon.  It is nice to have the slides all the way open (unable to do that in our little spot at the RV repair facility)!  The campground is nice and green since there was lots of rain this winter - the campground had even flooded!  It's been a little bit windy today but we are just planning to hang out here and relax!  We will be here until Tuesday.

Diesel in San Diego: $4.59
Diesel on 395 driving here: $4.40
Diesel in Acton:  $4.56

Traveling again..."Ain't Life Grand!"