So Happy To Be Home

A few of the leaves / backyard.

It feels like a long time since my last writing.  And it also felt like I had a fair amount to say.  And now, it feels like I've forgotten it all.

The leaves are coming down.  The Husband swept up some of them last week. But there's still a good 30% left on the cottonwoods in the back.  They'll all come down at once, I suspect.  The honey locusts in the front haven't really begun to drop their leaves, it seems like they're the last trees to leaf out in the spring and the last ones to lose them in the fall.  I love our trees.

Table Centerpiece

We spent a couple hours with the kids in Utah Valley last weekend.  The littlest guy-grandson had his 2nd birthday and we were anxious to see him and give him a couple little gifts.  He seemed to like them and it was so delightful to see all three of them, we don't see our kids and grandchilluns near enough. We also had a brief surprise visit from the kids across this valley.  Fun to see them all.

Through the windshield.

The Husband's trip was worthwhile and good.  But I'm always comforted when he returns home. We headed to CA for the wedding.  Haven't ever been to a Chinese wedding before and it definitely was a new experience for us.  The young couple really did seem to glow, they're well matched and we wish them the best.  The wedding took place at a country club - I thought the whole thing was pretty classy, though I seriously missed any inclusion of any sort of religion. And my mind simply cannot fathom the amount of money that had to have been spent on the event.  (The picture shows one of the centerpieces - 2+ feet tall, there was one on each of the 11 tables, it was beautiful!) We pondered the difference between our simple little ceremony and this one and of course, there's no question which one I prefer.

We are still congratulating ourselves on our brilliance - decided to stay at a hotel near the airport to simplify our return home.  And further simplified by returning the rental car the night before our flight home (we walked back from the rental car return to the hotel about midnight - perfect night for a walk though I was a teensy nervous - it was only about a mile).  Our trip home was pretty uneventful and fine (though we were 25 minutes late taking off, we were only a few minutes late landing).  The Husband heard this morning from a coworker who also came home from LAX the same morning. They wer staying outside LA - close to where the wedding was.  They left at 5:30 in the morning for an 8:30 flight, which they missed. They finally got to the airport around 11:30.  Truly - the traffic there is totally horrendous!  Every time we go back there, it reaffirms our decision to never live there again. They might have some great weather (and so do we) but they also have ugly traffic issues, scary wildfires, and unpredictable earthquakes (yes, I know we're overdue for a big one here, but I'm playing ostrich on that particular issue). I had to take a picture of the trees along the road near LAX - which doesn't do them justice, it was a pretty, pretty sight.

One footnote that left me chuckling:  when we checked in at the airport, the guy told The Husband that he looked really young for his age. Just a spontaneous and out-of-the-blue comment.  I think that optimistic nature of his keeps him young all around.

Love, love, love the beach!

At our little park.

We spent a bit of time walking along the beach, I never get enough of the beach.  I made sure The Husband had a hat, his sensitive skin doesn't need more sun damage/issues. And even though we didn't even take off our shoes, it was pure balm for my soul. 

I'm so grateful we were able to go (on a shoestring budget) on this teensy overnighter.  But I'm even more grateful to be home.  It really is my favorite place to be.  I'm grateful for groceries in the fridge, a fresh haircut, a new song to practice on the piano (a piano-organ duet I'll do with my friend for Sacrament meeting in December - a Christmas song!) and a great washer and dryer.  I'm grateful for the luxury of silk pajamas.  For a treat of frozen custard from Freddy's on the way home from the airport.  And most of all for The Husband.