Karina's New Adventure

This week starts a "New Adventure" for Karina. Tom is hard at work in Wyoming renovating the house and Amy is at a training seminar for the week in Washington. For the first time she is without a parent!

(I'll try and add photos daily, so check back often! )

That's the reason for the new sign that now hangs in the kitchen: "What happens at grandma's and grandpa's, stays at grandma's and grandpa's".

The adventure started with a new toy. LEGOS

Nana even shared and let Karina play with them.
After a little computer time



It was time to be out and about.


So after a visit to the library, to use Karina's very own new library card to check out some new stories, we walked around the town hall lake and checked out a new playground before heading off the Smithville.

Of course we had to visit some old friends!


Hard work deserves it's rewards:

With rainbow sprinkles for sure. Gramps was there to help with any drips from the cone!

Knowing how to take advantage of a good thing, Karina had her specific menu requests for dinner.

Nana and Gramps were relegated to "left overs"! Now before you feel bad about that, it was the left overs of linguine alfredo and shimp that we shared with Amy on Saturday night. Living large!

Tuesday was a beach day. Jogging on the beach is great fun!

When finished, nothing is quite so refreshing as cold watermelon.

As a treat, in the afternoon, Karina got purple nails!

Karina thinks they look "great"!

So Norma has said that she is worried that I am taking this cooking thing too serious!

I have no idea why she would think something like that!

Be that as it may, there was a heat advisory in effect today, so we thought our Alaskan skinned beauty should avoid the sun today. So what a perfect day for a little cooking!

What a great mixer!

It was fun to choose which design to use to cut out the cookies.

But her favorite activity was selecting the color of frosting - purple to match her nails and pink because its my favorite color. Quite the expert at frosting the cookies too!

How can it be anything but a great day when you end up with a tray of purple cookies and a plate of pink cookies!

Karina's visit

Amy and Karina arrived safe and sound (tired after 12 hours of traveling). So let the fun begin!


Lots of smiles all around!

But Friday was a new day! It was off to the beach!!


Sand pails and sand castles.


New Rules: Can't go into the ocean unless you are holding on to two hands!







Later it was off to visit the carosel and some old friends.




A little Italian Ice tastes really good on a hot afternoon!!



A walk through Smithville and then it was bed time!




(I'll be adding more pictures to the blog and events unfold. There are more in the album!)





On Saturday we learned that Amy and Karina really know how to build a sand castle.





and that Nana really knows how to do beach!!

Latter, Nana and Karina walked the beach and explored the jetty!

How else to end another perfect day, but at the playground!

New Rules

Just so you know.....

Why I like retirement

I received this from Nancy in a email. I simply loved it,....because its all true!!

Question: How many days in a week?
Answer: 6 Saturdays, 1 Sunday

Question: When is a retiree's bedtime?
Answer: Three hours after he falls asleep on the couch.

Question: How many retirees to change a light bulb?
Answer: Only one, but it might take all day.

Question: What's the biggest gripe of retirees?
Answer: There is not enough time to get everything done.

Question: Why don't retirees mind being called Seniors?
Answer: The term comes with a 10% percent discount.

Question: Among retirees what is considered formal attire?
Answer: Tied shoes.

Question: Why do retirees count pennies?
Answer: They are the only ones who have the time.

Question: What is the common term for someone who enjoys work and refuses to retire? Answer: NUTS!

Question: Why are retirees so slow to clean out the basement, attic or garage?
Answer: They know that as soon as they do, one of their adult kids will want to store stuff there.

Question: What do retirees call a long lunch?
Answer: Normal

Question: What is the best way to describe retirement?
Answer: The never ending Coffee Break.

Question: What's the biggest advantage of going back to school as a retiree?
Answer: If you cut classes, no one calls your parents.

Question: Why does a retiree often say he doesn't miss work, but misses the people he used to work with?
Answer: He is too polite to tell the whole truth.

My favorite???? QUESTION: What do you do all week?
Answer: Mon to Fri. Nothing, Sat & Sun I rest.

and Norma's addition to the list:

Question: Why does a retiree enjoy taking care of infants?
Answer: They have the same sleep patterns!!!