More Anniversary Pictures

A few days ago I posted a picture of my husband Max and me having dinner at Applebees on our 25th anniversary.

Last night we went out to dinner with our friends June & Roger Dorner (at left) who were celebrating their 54th anniversary. There were married in 1954!



We were pretty proud of ourselves at 25, but we have a loooong way to go to catch up with June and Roger!

Congratulations to them. They were prolific home builders in Wenatchee for many years but are enjoying retirement now. They are an amazing couple and we're proud to be good friends.

Life is good!

Christmas Day 2007

Clair and Beverly came up from Corbett to spend a few days with us this Christmas. I wish I had taken some pictures of Clair in the kitchen making a fabulous clam chowder for Christmas Eve dinner.

The clams were compliments of my cousin, Steve Klock. Story is we ended up losing a can of clams (store was out of fresh) between the store and home so when I was talking to Steve's Mom, Kathy, I asked her to see if Steve had any clams on hand. Kathy showed up on our door step with a 51 oz can of clams. We were NOT short of clams in the chowder. Yummo.

Here are some photos from Christmas day.



Clair and Beverly after Christmas dinner.

Beverly helped Max unwrap his garden (see previous post) and Clair helped him put it together.

Happy Holidays!

P.S.: We would love to hear from you!
CarolWilliams@charter.net

Quick Trip To Wapato Point

Here is Max at the marina in Manson. On Monday, May 21st, we were able to sneak away to Wapato Point for a couple of days. One of my clients had a time share they were unable to use for the week so kindly they offered it to us.

Unfortunately, I had a golf event in Yakima early Thursday morning so we had to get back home Wednesday. We didn't get to take advantage of the full week.

But, we did have two nights at a nice condo at Wapato Point Resort on Lake Chelan at Manson. Being the week before the Memorial Day holiday, we beat the rush of the crowds and had a leisurely time just hanging out and taking it easy. We found a nice little Mom & Pop type restaurant in downtown Manson called Bison Bistro. We ate a light lunch there Monday and a hearty breakfast both Tuesday and Wednesday mornings. I like supporting these family owned restaurants. They give friendly service and provide good food.

We went into Chelan and had dinner at MacDonalds pub the first night. We didn't try any of their ales, but we did have a great steak dinner. We figured since our accommodations were free, we could spring for a nice dinner together. Not being the gambling types, we never did get to the Mill Bay Casino.

Sometimes these short spur-of-the-moment get-a-ways, not far from home, are just as good (or better) than straying too far from home. This particular trip reminded us of our many trips, in days gone by, traveling up the lake and camping on our Bayliner.

The picture to the right is a blast from the past... a photo taken sometime in the late 80's of son Jeff with his now ex-wife Lena (don't know how he let her get away) and Max on the dock at the Lake.

Click on the image to enlarge if you want to see what they all looked like 20 years ago!

Thanks Wayne & Susan!

Apple Blossom Activities: Pancake Breakfast

It's Apple Blossom Festival time again in Wenatchee. It's an annual tradition for Max & I to meet our friends Carl & DiAnn and Tom & Jane at Triangle Park for the Kiwanis' pancake breakfast prior to the Grand Parade (the first Saturday in May).

Today was no exception. Triangle Park is also where the floats are staged prior to the beginning to the parade. After breakfast we like to walk around, look at the floats and talk to some of the participants.

In some ways it's better than the actual parade because you can get up close and look at your leisure... and even talk with delegates from the various cities. This year, according to the Wenatchee World newspaper, there are 119 floats scheduled for the Grand parade today.

Weather Delay

Whenever we travel we watch the weather channel for the storm patterns that might affect our journey. Our scheduled departure from Palm Springs on March 1st didn't look too good because of storms coming through the Siskiyou Mountains where we would be traveling on March 2nd. We spoke to our condo landlord and they gave us permission to stay a few extra days (at no charge) if we wanted to. We did decide to stay one extra day which was all we needed for the weather pattern to clear for smooth sailing home.

With the bonus day, Dorothy McIntire, invited me to join her at one final ladies day event at Cathedral Canyon Country Club. At the upper left are Dorothy, right, and another member named Marge. Not sure of her last name. Anyway, we had a great time and it was a perfect day for one last game.

After golf, I went back to the condo and packed up for an early morning departure the next day. Here is Max standing in the flower bed in front of the condo we'd be saying goodbye to early the next morning.

We've learned that it's best to get out early in order to get over to I-5 before the morning rush hour traffic hits. We were out of our driveway in Palm Springs by 4:00 a/m. and in stop-n-go rush hour traffic by 5:59 am. Once we hit I-5 at 7:00 a/m....it was smooth sailing from there on. I am sooooo glad I don't have to deal with that traffic everyday. Wenatchee here we come!

Today Shirley, Max & I went up the aerial Tram to the top of the world. From the top of the mountain, at about 8200 feet above sea level, you can see the valley floor and (to the left) the windmill farm, generating clean, renewable, power for the valley.

We had lunch at the cafeteria, perused the gift shop then took the ride back down to tram central.

After a short nap back at the condo, we went looking for hors' deourves at Babe's Restaurant (at The River complex) but discovered they no longer serve them for happy hour. We were told this is an inexpensive dinner... but it has been discontinued. Strike One.

While at The River, we took this pictures of Max and me.

So, we went to the Fresh Grille at Rancho Las Palmas where we were told they serve Krispy Creme Bread Pudding. But, they no longer have it on their menu. Strike two.

We ended up at the In-N-Out Burger joint which seemed to make everyone happy. In-N-Out is actually a cool place to eat because they have a very simple menu. Hamburgers, Fries, and drinks. Nothing fancy... no complex choices. Just burgers, fries, and drinks.

On the way home from the In-N-Out, we stopped at Stater Bros. and bought some Krispy Kreme doughnuts as a substitute for the Krispy Kreme Bread Pudding we didn't get to have.

Life is full of alternatives.

Lana, Rob, & the Girls

Lana, Rob, Rebecca & Michelle came over from San Juan Capistrano (about 110 miles away) for 3 days last week-end. They arrived on Friday and left Sunday evening.

Here is Grandpa Max on the condo patio with (from left to right): Lana, Michelle, Max, Rebecca and Rob. Lara is loving life at BYU and wasn't here for the photo opportunity.

Saturday, as reported on the post below, Rob & I played golf where the elite meet hook and slice. Lana, Max and the girls hung out around the condo and pool area. Sunday Lana, Rob and the girls all got up early and went to the College of the Desert Street Fair while Max and I slept in. Max & I hope to go again this week-end when my cousin, Shirley, is here from Eugene.

And here at the lower right is Grandpa with Michelle and Rebecca. Pretty good looking trio, I'd say.

Hopefully, I'll be able to get some more posts done before heading north to the "real world" next Thursday.

Carol

College Of The Desert Street Fair

Our annual tradition is to go to the College of the Desert (COD) Street Fair the first week-end we arrive in Palm Springs. This is held every Saturday and Sunday from 7:00 - 2:00. We were so lazy yesterday, we didn't get there so today it was definitely in the plan. It's important to get there early before it gets so busy you have to park a long way from the actual vendors. There are courtesy carts running around to pick people up, but they aren't always available when you want them.

We love walking up and down the aisles just looking at all the vendor's wares. There is everything from shoes and socks to jewelry, furniture, luggage, purses, fruits and vegetables... and just about anything else you can imagine. There are even massage tables for the weary.

We always hit up the sock vendor for our years supply. You can get 3 or 4 pair of quality socks for just $5. Mostly we love looking but we did buy socks, a pair of new tennis shoes, a small nylon shoulder purse and some strawberries.

After our adventure at the COD, Max was hungry so we stopped at Carl's Jr on the way back to the condo. Here is Max with his "Famous Star" burger and a Chocolate Chip Mint milkshake.

Life is Good. Stay tuned...

Max & Carol Williams

Here we are during a lunch break at Macayos Mexican restaurant on our last day in Arizona with Connie & Bill. The giraffe and zebra were watching us during the entire meal.

They took us out for a drive toward Scottsdale to see some of the sights and, particularly, the decorative walls along the freeway system.