We found out today, that Aaron and Candice are having a BOY! Boys are good. I ought to know, I have 3 of them! This will make 1 granddaughter to 3 grandsons. The boys are winning. See the bar above to follow the progress.
Happy Day to All. Stay cool......
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
Tuesday, June 9, 2009
Trip to Greece, Part 2
As promised, I will continue telling about our trip to Greece.
Our Greek Island cruise continued to Rhodes Island. First we visited the city of Lindos. Lindos lies at the foot of the Acropolis and is probably one of the most beautiful places in all the Greek Islands. As you can see in my pictures, its white buildings stand out against the contrasting Acropolis above the city and the surrounding deep blue Mediterranean Sea. Lindos was built somewhere around the 11th century B.C. It is believed that Lindos was the most formidable city on the island at the time. It is also believed that the ships sent to the Trojan War all departed from Lindos.
The Acropolis lies atop a massive triangular rock. Tools found during archaeological digs have dated back to 3000 B.C. I'm not sure exactly to what era the ruins existing today date to, probably between 1000 and 500 B.C., but the massive walls that surround the city today are attributed to the Knights of St. John who controlled trade and shipping until 1522.
After we visited the Acropolis and Lindos, the bus took us back down to the water to our ship. Just as we were passing "Old Town", my friend Joyce and I begged to be let off. We were the only two who didn't want to go back to the ship to eat lunch. We wanted to find a good Greek restaurant in Old Town, and did we ever! We found some fabulous Greek food. We're pretty sure they took advantage of two American tourist ladies, by charging us too much, but nevertheless, the food was delicious.
"Old Town" on Rhodes (Rodos)is a medieval town that is still inhabited. The old town is surrounded by strong medieval walls. Massive towers and bastions project from several places, and have elaborate stonework. A wide dry moat provided the first line of defense for the town and you can still see some of the heavy stone balls that were old ammunition. One of the main streets is called "The Street of the Knights", and at the end of this street is the "Palace of the Grand Master." It actually dominates the entire Old Town. The Grand Master's Palace was built in the 14th century by the Knights of Rhodes. We had a blast wandering the streets of this old city, and taking many, many wonderful photographs.
The next morning at sunrise, we arrived on the Isle of Patmos where St. John was exiled, and wrote the book of Revelation. We went to the cave, (the Apocalypse), where they believe he wrote the book. The Apocalypse has since been converted to a church, and since we were visiting on a Sunday, a church service was going on as we all filed through. (Believe me, it was NOT a Pentecostal Church! No shouting here. They also would not allow any photography inside the cave.) We then continued on to the top of the hill to a monastery dedicated to St. John.
We left the Isle of Patmos about 10am and sailed for a few hours to Asia Minor, and the country of Turkey where we toured Ancient Ephesus. This is the Ephesus where the Apostle Paul lived and preached for a time. Ancient Ephesus is one of the most well preserved of the ancient cities, covering a very large area. As we walked the streets, it was very easy to actually get a feel for how the city must have been.
In one picture you will see me standing in front of the ancient amphitheater. This is a theater where Paul preached. It seats 25,000 people. It is still used for concerts, etc. to raise money to continue with the excavation of Ephesus.
Here is a funny story about Ephesus. In my pictures you will see the Ancient Celsus Library and just to the right of it in the picture there are two arches. These are the Gates of Mazaeus and Mythridates. The people went through these gates into the market place. So, while the women went to the market, the men went to the library. However, in the library, there was a secret tunnel that went underground, across the street to a brothel. The women weren't allowed in the library, so supposedly they were none the wiser. (Ha! They just didn't know how intuitive women are. I'm sure they had a pretty good clue as to what was going on. Just my opinion. ;-))
Another funny story. In my pictures you will see latrines...or toilets! These were built in the men's meeting halls where they discussed politics and business. They were all built side by side, so I guess you could say they would discuss business while doing their business! LOL These toilets were made of stone, or marble. In the summer, things were fine. In the winter, they got awfully cold, so each man had his own servant to sit on his toilet and warm the seat before he would use it. Oh, the life....HA (Just a side note...as a mother of boys, I sure would not have wanted to ever visit that room right after the men had their meetings!! PHEWEEEY)
We arrived back at the Port of Piraeus early Monday morning and drove up the coast of Attica to Cape Sounion. I will continue on our journey in Part 3.
Sorry, there are so many pictures in this slide show, but there were just too many beautiful pictures to choose from. Enjoy!
Our Greek Island cruise continued to Rhodes Island. First we visited the city of Lindos. Lindos lies at the foot of the Acropolis and is probably one of the most beautiful places in all the Greek Islands. As you can see in my pictures, its white buildings stand out against the contrasting Acropolis above the city and the surrounding deep blue Mediterranean Sea. Lindos was built somewhere around the 11th century B.C. It is believed that Lindos was the most formidable city on the island at the time. It is also believed that the ships sent to the Trojan War all departed from Lindos.
The Acropolis lies atop a massive triangular rock. Tools found during archaeological digs have dated back to 3000 B.C. I'm not sure exactly to what era the ruins existing today date to, probably between 1000 and 500 B.C., but the massive walls that surround the city today are attributed to the Knights of St. John who controlled trade and shipping until 1522.
After we visited the Acropolis and Lindos, the bus took us back down to the water to our ship. Just as we were passing "Old Town", my friend Joyce and I begged to be let off. We were the only two who didn't want to go back to the ship to eat lunch. We wanted to find a good Greek restaurant in Old Town, and did we ever! We found some fabulous Greek food. We're pretty sure they took advantage of two American tourist ladies, by charging us too much, but nevertheless, the food was delicious.
"Old Town" on Rhodes (Rodos)is a medieval town that is still inhabited. The old town is surrounded by strong medieval walls. Massive towers and bastions project from several places, and have elaborate stonework. A wide dry moat provided the first line of defense for the town and you can still see some of the heavy stone balls that were old ammunition. One of the main streets is called "The Street of the Knights", and at the end of this street is the "Palace of the Grand Master." It actually dominates the entire Old Town. The Grand Master's Palace was built in the 14th century by the Knights of Rhodes. We had a blast wandering the streets of this old city, and taking many, many wonderful photographs.
The next morning at sunrise, we arrived on the Isle of Patmos where St. John was exiled, and wrote the book of Revelation. We went to the cave, (the Apocalypse), where they believe he wrote the book. The Apocalypse has since been converted to a church, and since we were visiting on a Sunday, a church service was going on as we all filed through. (Believe me, it was NOT a Pentecostal Church! No shouting here. They also would not allow any photography inside the cave.) We then continued on to the top of the hill to a monastery dedicated to St. John.
We left the Isle of Patmos about 10am and sailed for a few hours to Asia Minor, and the country of Turkey where we toured Ancient Ephesus. This is the Ephesus where the Apostle Paul lived and preached for a time. Ancient Ephesus is one of the most well preserved of the ancient cities, covering a very large area. As we walked the streets, it was very easy to actually get a feel for how the city must have been.
In one picture you will see me standing in front of the ancient amphitheater. This is a theater where Paul preached. It seats 25,000 people. It is still used for concerts, etc. to raise money to continue with the excavation of Ephesus.
Here is a funny story about Ephesus. In my pictures you will see the Ancient Celsus Library and just to the right of it in the picture there are two arches. These are the Gates of Mazaeus and Mythridates. The people went through these gates into the market place. So, while the women went to the market, the men went to the library. However, in the library, there was a secret tunnel that went underground, across the street to a brothel. The women weren't allowed in the library, so supposedly they were none the wiser. (Ha! They just didn't know how intuitive women are. I'm sure they had a pretty good clue as to what was going on. Just my opinion. ;-))
Another funny story. In my pictures you will see latrines...or toilets! These were built in the men's meeting halls where they discussed politics and business. They were all built side by side, so I guess you could say they would discuss business while doing their business! LOL These toilets were made of stone, or marble. In the summer, things were fine. In the winter, they got awfully cold, so each man had his own servant to sit on his toilet and warm the seat before he would use it. Oh, the life....HA (Just a side note...as a mother of boys, I sure would not have wanted to ever visit that room right after the men had their meetings!! PHEWEEEY)
We arrived back at the Port of Piraeus early Monday morning and drove up the coast of Attica to Cape Sounion. I will continue on our journey in Part 3.
Sorry, there are so many pictures in this slide show, but there were just too many beautiful pictures to choose from. Enjoy!
Tuesday, May 26, 2009
Still Here...
Just letting my blogger friends know that I am still here. I have been running since I went back to work April 13. I hope life slows down soon, I don't think I have much stamina left. (smile)
I promise I will finish posting about my trip to Greece just as soon as I get a free day.
Actually, I had a free day yesterday, but I took advantage of it and went to Yosemite. We hiked up to the top of Vernal Falls. They say this is an easy hike...well, maybe for people who go hiking a lot!! I rested a bunch of times, but hey, I made it. After that we hiked to the bottom of Lower Yosemite Falls. That one was really more like a walk instead of a hike, that's why we did it. All in all, I think we walked about 7 or 8 miles because we walked here and there also. It was a fun day. There is no place like Yosemite. It is some of God's most beautiful art!
I hope you all had a good holiday, and took time to "remember" on Memorial Day.
I promise I will finish posting about my trip to Greece just as soon as I get a free day.
Actually, I had a free day yesterday, but I took advantage of it and went to Yosemite. We hiked up to the top of Vernal Falls. They say this is an easy hike...well, maybe for people who go hiking a lot!! I rested a bunch of times, but hey, I made it. After that we hiked to the bottom of Lower Yosemite Falls. That one was really more like a walk instead of a hike, that's why we did it. All in all, I think we walked about 7 or 8 miles because we walked here and there also. It was a fun day. There is no place like Yosemite. It is some of God's most beautiful art!
I hope you all had a good holiday, and took time to "remember" on Memorial Day.
Friday, April 24, 2009
Trip to Greece, Part 1
As promised, I am finally going to start telling you a little bit about my trip to Greece.
On March, 25th we boarded our flight about 5:30PM, from JFK to Athens. It was a 9 hour, overnight flight. It is so difficult for me to sleep sitting practically straight up!! I was very tired from spending a busy 4 days in NYC and had ear plugs and an eye mask, but I still had trouble sleeping. I did sleep about 3-4 hours though, (not consecutively), which is more than I usually sleep on over night flights.
We landed in Athens about 9am the next morning. By the time we all cleared customs, boarded our bus and drove to the hotel, it was about 11am. When we got to the hotel, we only unloaded our luggage. We immediately got back on the bus for our tour of Athens. First we had a drive around Athens to get us aquainted with the layout. Our first stop was the Acropolis, where the Parthenon, Erechtheion and Mars Hill are located, (among others). It was an amazing feeling standing on Mars Hill where Paul preached to the Athenians about the altar they had built to their "unknown god".
Next we stopped at the Panathinako Stadium where the 1896 summer olympics were revived. It was a very pretty stadium, and I could hear the echos of the cheers from crowds long ago.
By this time, it was getting to be early evening and the bus took us back to the hotel where we checked into our rooms. Dinner was at 7pm, so most of us took a nap since we could hardly stay awake another minute!
On day two, March 27th, we woke up early for breakfast, then boarded our bus again. We were taken to Piraeus, Port of Athens. This time, we boarded our ship, The Aquamarine, for our 3 day Greek Island cruise. We arrived at our first stop, the Isle of Mykonos at sunset. Mykonos is a very beautiful island, but by the time we actually got on the island it had become dark. Because of this, I didn't get to enjoy this island as much as I would have liked.
This was the beginning of our incredible trip to Greece. I'm not sure when, but I will eventually tell you about going to Rhodes, the Isle of Patmos, Ephesus, Corinth, Sounion, The Temple of Apollo, Plaka and more....Stay tuned.
Here is a slide show of a FEW of the pictures I took of the first two days. Enjoy!
On March, 25th we boarded our flight about 5:30PM, from JFK to Athens. It was a 9 hour, overnight flight. It is so difficult for me to sleep sitting practically straight up!! I was very tired from spending a busy 4 days in NYC and had ear plugs and an eye mask, but I still had trouble sleeping. I did sleep about 3-4 hours though, (not consecutively), which is more than I usually sleep on over night flights.
We landed in Athens about 9am the next morning. By the time we all cleared customs, boarded our bus and drove to the hotel, it was about 11am. When we got to the hotel, we only unloaded our luggage. We immediately got back on the bus for our tour of Athens. First we had a drive around Athens to get us aquainted with the layout. Our first stop was the Acropolis, where the Parthenon, Erechtheion and Mars Hill are located, (among others). It was an amazing feeling standing on Mars Hill where Paul preached to the Athenians about the altar they had built to their "unknown god".
Next we stopped at the Panathinako Stadium where the 1896 summer olympics were revived. It was a very pretty stadium, and I could hear the echos of the cheers from crowds long ago.
By this time, it was getting to be early evening and the bus took us back to the hotel where we checked into our rooms. Dinner was at 7pm, so most of us took a nap since we could hardly stay awake another minute!
On day two, March 27th, we woke up early for breakfast, then boarded our bus again. We were taken to Piraeus, Port of Athens. This time, we boarded our ship, The Aquamarine, for our 3 day Greek Island cruise. We arrived at our first stop, the Isle of Mykonos at sunset. Mykonos is a very beautiful island, but by the time we actually got on the island it had become dark. Because of this, I didn't get to enjoy this island as much as I would have liked.
This was the beginning of our incredible trip to Greece. I'm not sure when, but I will eventually tell you about going to Rhodes, the Isle of Patmos, Ephesus, Corinth, Sounion, The Temple of Apollo, Plaka and more....Stay tuned.
Here is a slide show of a FEW of the pictures I took of the first two days. Enjoy!
Friday, April 3, 2009
Incredible Trip!...(and other news)
I made it home last night about 8:30PM. It was sure good to sleep in my own bed, which I did, for about 10 hours.... I have some major jet-lag going on. I will post pictures and details of the trip soon. I'm too tired to do so now.
As soon as I made it back on U.S.A. soil, I turned on my phone. A text from my son, Aaron came through. I am going to be Grandma again. Whoo Hoo!!! Candice is 7 weeks, and due in late November. Why does everyone in our family choose November??? We already have 6 birthdays that month! I know, I know, it's not a choice, and there are other birthday months for us, but that is the most popular.
Aaron is a twin, and Candice is a twin.... Would love to have twin grandchildren!
Stay tuned for pictures and details of my trip.
As soon as I made it back on U.S.A. soil, I turned on my phone. A text from my son, Aaron came through. I am going to be Grandma again. Whoo Hoo!!! Candice is 7 weeks, and due in late November. Why does everyone in our family choose November??? We already have 6 birthdays that month! I know, I know, it's not a choice, and there are other birthday months for us, but that is the most popular.
Aaron is a twin, and Candice is a twin.... Would love to have twin grandchildren!
Stay tuned for pictures and details of my trip.
Friday, February 27, 2009
Time for an Update??
If you read my blog, you are probably wondering how I am doing, since I haven't posted in a LONG time.
My knee is really doing good. I walk now with (almost) no limp. I started physical therapy a couple of weeks ago. That has both of my legs pretty sore. I can sure tell I have been "babying" my legs for far too long, and it really does feel good to exercise them more than I have been.
I haven't posted a blog is so long, because I haven't been doing very much...therefore not much to blog about. One thing that I have been doing though, is browsing the web looking at things to do in New York and Greece.
Yes...I'm going!! The UPCI singles trip to Greece is coming up March 25th. We fly from NYC, so I asked my sisters if they would want to go to NYC and spend a few days there with me before I go to Greece. They were both excited about doing that, so we are going to NYC March 20th. When I leave for Greece, they will fly back home. My sister Verlaine, and I have been to NYC before, but Pat has not been, so we are going to show her all of the sights. I am getting so excited about both trips! When I return home, I will have only one more week off and then I will have to return to work. I'm not real excited about that, but I am really thankful that I do have a good job to return to...
I have been laying low, resting my leg, and reading. If I counted right, in the past 5 weeks that I have been off, I have read 11 books. I'm half way through the 12th one now. Oh, joy, joy!
You might be thinking, "laying low, not doing much, reading, browsing the web...she's probably getting fat!". Ha! That DID happen to me the last time. I gained 22 pounds in the 5 months I was off work in 2007. I still have 10 pounds of it, but was very determined to not put any back on while off this time. So far, so good! (Why is it so much easier to put it on, than to take it off...?) I am determined to get the rest of it off after I can move better.
The Amgen California Bike Race stage 4 ended here in Clovis last week. My son Ryan, and I went to see them at the finish line. It was a beautiful, beautiful day. Even though we stood there for a couple of hours before the bikers got there, it was kind of fun to see them come in. Lordy, they were going fast! I got some pictures, but not really very many good ones, because there was one guy in front of me that stuck his camera way out in my way....grrrr. They were handing out free chalk and letting people write in the roadway for the "Hope Rides Again". That has to do with Lance Armstrong riding again after his fight with cancer. So, when the riders came in, it really kicked up the chalk dust. There was a cloud of it!
There was one thing that really impressed me about the race. All of the racers had come in. There were a few stragglers, and then the last motorcycle escorts. Several minutes later, here comes one last biker. The crowd started cheering, whooping and hollering for him just like they did for the winners. It was great to see that. I thought, "at least he's not a quitter. He finished his course." He may have come in last, but come in, he did. We may not be running the swiftest in this race of life, but if we keep plugging along, we will still reach the goal.
My knee is really doing good. I walk now with (almost) no limp. I started physical therapy a couple of weeks ago. That has both of my legs pretty sore. I can sure tell I have been "babying" my legs for far too long, and it really does feel good to exercise them more than I have been.
I haven't posted a blog is so long, because I haven't been doing very much...therefore not much to blog about. One thing that I have been doing though, is browsing the web looking at things to do in New York and Greece.
Yes...I'm going!! The UPCI singles trip to Greece is coming up March 25th. We fly from NYC, so I asked my sisters if they would want to go to NYC and spend a few days there with me before I go to Greece. They were both excited about doing that, so we are going to NYC March 20th. When I leave for Greece, they will fly back home. My sister Verlaine, and I have been to NYC before, but Pat has not been, so we are going to show her all of the sights. I am getting so excited about both trips! When I return home, I will have only one more week off and then I will have to return to work. I'm not real excited about that, but I am really thankful that I do have a good job to return to...
I have been laying low, resting my leg, and reading. If I counted right, in the past 5 weeks that I have been off, I have read 11 books. I'm half way through the 12th one now. Oh, joy, joy!
You might be thinking, "laying low, not doing much, reading, browsing the web...she's probably getting fat!". Ha! That DID happen to me the last time. I gained 22 pounds in the 5 months I was off work in 2007. I still have 10 pounds of it, but was very determined to not put any back on while off this time. So far, so good! (Why is it so much easier to put it on, than to take it off...?) I am determined to get the rest of it off after I can move better.
The Amgen California Bike Race stage 4 ended here in Clovis last week. My son Ryan, and I went to see them at the finish line. It was a beautiful, beautiful day. Even though we stood there for a couple of hours before the bikers got there, it was kind of fun to see them come in. Lordy, they were going fast! I got some pictures, but not really very many good ones, because there was one guy in front of me that stuck his camera way out in my way....grrrr. They were handing out free chalk and letting people write in the roadway for the "Hope Rides Again". That has to do with Lance Armstrong riding again after his fight with cancer. So, when the riders came in, it really kicked up the chalk dust. There was a cloud of it!
There was one thing that really impressed me about the race. All of the racers had come in. There were a few stragglers, and then the last motorcycle escorts. Several minutes later, here comes one last biker. The crowd started cheering, whooping and hollering for him just like they did for the winners. It was great to see that. I thought, "at least he's not a quitter. He finished his course." He may have come in last, but come in, he did. We may not be running the swiftest in this race of life, but if we keep plugging along, we will still reach the goal.
Saturday, January 24, 2009
This and That
Last Wednesday, Jan 21st, I had surgery on my right knee for the second time within 18 months.
The first time, the MRI showed a torn meniscus. It was very painful, and since I'm on my feet most of the 12 hours I am at work, it had to be repaired. So, off to surgery. The doctor did a lot of repair work on my knee, but said she didn't find the meniscus torn. Way too good! I was thrilled. After six weeks of physical therapy, and 12 weeks off, I finally returned to work.
My knee never did feel the same again. I couldn't kneel, or bend my knee all of the way, and the pain never did completely go away. I had a total of 2 cortisone shots, and a series of 3 ortho-visc shots in my knee, after I returned to work. (The ortho-visc shots are made with the gel from a rooster's comb and are supposed to help replace some of the gel in the knee.) My knee felt a little better, but after 10 months, I found myself back at the doctor with increased knee pain.
Another MRI showed that the meniscus was still torn. ARRGGHH! Nothing but surgery again, would work. I was not able, or ready to go through it again, so I waited for 7 months. The doctor didn't want me to wait any longer, because the longer I waited chances were that the tear would get too large to repair. Thus, the surgery last Wednesday. She finally found the tear and was able to repair it, along with the removal of some scar tissue, and a chondrotomy (repair of some cartilage).
All I know for sure is, that my knee hurts a whole lot worse this time around. Not just my knee, either....it hurts all the way down to the tip of my toes! At least there is hope of it getting better.
In other news. Just before Christmas, son #2 was finally called back to work after having been off for several months. Yeah! All three were working again, now. Then a couple of days before Christmas, son #1 lost his job. Today, son #3 was laid off. I despise this economy right now. We may all be living under the same roof again soon, if things don't start looking up. Wow. That would really be something. Y'all prayer for us, y'hear?
I suppose I should go to bed. This pain, and the vicodin has my body clock all messed up. It may have my brain all messed up too, and this post may not even make sense. G'night.
The first time, the MRI showed a torn meniscus. It was very painful, and since I'm on my feet most of the 12 hours I am at work, it had to be repaired. So, off to surgery. The doctor did a lot of repair work on my knee, but said she didn't find the meniscus torn. Way too good! I was thrilled. After six weeks of physical therapy, and 12 weeks off, I finally returned to work.
My knee never did feel the same again. I couldn't kneel, or bend my knee all of the way, and the pain never did completely go away. I had a total of 2 cortisone shots, and a series of 3 ortho-visc shots in my knee, after I returned to work. (The ortho-visc shots are made with the gel from a rooster's comb and are supposed to help replace some of the gel in the knee.) My knee felt a little better, but after 10 months, I found myself back at the doctor with increased knee pain.
Another MRI showed that the meniscus was still torn. ARRGGHH! Nothing but surgery again, would work. I was not able, or ready to go through it again, so I waited for 7 months. The doctor didn't want me to wait any longer, because the longer I waited chances were that the tear would get too large to repair. Thus, the surgery last Wednesday. She finally found the tear and was able to repair it, along with the removal of some scar tissue, and a chondrotomy (repair of some cartilage).
All I know for sure is, that my knee hurts a whole lot worse this time around. Not just my knee, either....it hurts all the way down to the tip of my toes! At least there is hope of it getting better.
In other news. Just before Christmas, son #2 was finally called back to work after having been off for several months. Yeah! All three were working again, now. Then a couple of days before Christmas, son #1 lost his job. Today, son #3 was laid off. I despise this economy right now. We may all be living under the same roof again soon, if things don't start looking up. Wow. That would really be something. Y'all prayer for us, y'hear?
I suppose I should go to bed. This pain, and the vicodin has my body clock all messed up. It may have my brain all messed up too, and this post may not even make sense. G'night.
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