John Clay's Graduation

Congratulations John! I'm so proud of you. I know some day that your hard work, study and investment of time will bring its dividend. The sacrifices you make today to attain your degrees will indeed payoff. Hopefully for you and your family, they will payoff in monetary ways but even if they don't, you will reap the reward of making this world a better place to live.

I am proud to call you my son-in-law!

Here are some photos of the graduation: John's Graduation

The Happiest Place on Earth

Well, that may or may not be true but I know 2 little munchkins (3 if you count their Grandmamama) that sure were happy when we got to Disneyland. It's so great to watch their excitement when they see the full life characters in person. Goofey, Pluto, Donald Duck, Mr. and Mrs. Incredible, Hercules, Cinderella, Bear in the Big Blue House, Stanley, Pooh, etc. But no Mickey. No, they didn't get to see him. We were just not in the right places at the right time. Oh well . . . next time we will.

Oh so much fun! The adults didn't ride that many rides or do much of anything geared for adults. It wasn't our day, it was theirs! One of the most memorable moments was being there for John David's first big time scary ride . . . The Tower of Terror! What a great ride! He was so brave to even attempt it. He was so cute approaching the ride and saying "I'm getting a little nervous . . ." While he yelled and screamed and ultimately cried a little bit, it was a huge hurdle for him. He'll ride it again and others like it.

Another great memory was seeing Julia so, so excited at the Disney Playhouse for Bear in the Big Blue House. She jumped and danced and yelled and clapped and smiled ear to ear the whole time. You could see it on her face, she was overwhelmed with happy!!

The rides, the food, the sounds, the colors, the incredible sensory stimulation of all that's Disney was alive and well. What a happy place! What a beautiful family. What a happy Dodie!!


Check out the photos here: Disney 2006

not soon enough!

only a couple of more days until i get to see my lala, john david, julia and john clay!

(actually, i'm not sure when we get to see john clay). i can't wait! it's going to be soooo much fun . . . i'm going to squeeze and hug and kiss and tickle and swim and jump and hide and seek and laugh and read and sleep and ride and run and fall down and eat and . . . .

get it? it's going to be great! i can't wait to see my babies at six flags. we've been waiting a couple of years for this. they can ride as many rides as long as they want to. also, hot dogs, ice cream, snacks . . . yoo hoo!!! i better get me some better shoes!

rainy days . . .

this is unusual, but nice. i'm so used to the sun always shining in colorado that a couple of days of rain seems rather strange. i do like it, but now my plans to work in the yard on saturday may give way to a fun relaxing day with my girlfriend. we might have to sleep in a little, go to the movies, maybe do some shopping, etc. sounds wonderful . . .

i may even get inspired and cook a nice dinner saturday or sunday night. and we really do need the rain. the grass has really responded to the extra moisture. and i might add that our trees in the back are looking great! i can't wait to finish up with the landscaping so we can just sit on the deck and enjoy it.