Merry Christmas 2021

🎄Merry Christmas and Happy New Year,

We now know why you need to be retired at 65.  Scheduling doctor appointments, attending doctor appointments, ordering prescriptions, picking up prescriptions, putting pills for the day in little boxes, going to cardiac rehab, getting your eyes checked, ordering glasses, picking up glasses and on and on.  There isn't time for going to a job.  😉

Amazingly enough, we did have a very full year, even though COVID did a number on our socializing.  We got our Mederna shots in March and the booster six months later.  

🎂Tony turned 80 this year.  For his celebration, we took the small motorhome to spend the night (in Moscow) at a friend's home, and Tony proceeded to try to drink an $80 bottle of whiskey that had been commissioned by friends in Colorado as we sat around a fire outside in the cold.

As soon as we got our second COVID shot, brother Bill and Janet, and Tony and I took off in our small motorhomes for a road trip.  Our first stop was at our niece's home in southern Idaho.  We found the World Center for Birds of Prey to be very interesting.  Other tourist stops that we enjoyed were the Mountain Meadow Wool Shop , the Historic Laramie Railroad Depot, Cheyenne Frontier Days Old West Museum, the Wyoming State Capitol. and the Museum of the Fur Trade, all while visiting relatives in Wyoming, Nebraska and South Dakota.

Our small motorhome was useful quite a lot this year.  What we now call the Moscow Six-Pack (Tony and I and four other like-minded, similar in age friends from Moscow) took a couple of overnight trips...one to Grand Coulee Dam in Washington and another to Elk River, Idaho.  Along with socials at our homes, eating out at least once a week, we have also visited the Wendt Pottery, attended a livestock auction and looked for graves at a graveyard (because one of us is connected with "find a grave") with these crazy people.  We partied and bet locally on horses during the Triple Crown races (complete with fancy hats and mint juleps).

My second great grandchild was born in late February.  Casey & Lindsay bought a house this year in Moscow to provide a home for their two children (Landon, age 4, and Nora Kobe).  Dennis' other kids ~ Cally graduated and is employed now as an RN in Seattle, Caily is going to college in Tucson, but will transfer back to WSU next semester, and Cody continues to entertain me with sporting events ~ baseball, football, and currently basketball.  

Kenny remains in Seattle near his daughter Kierra and son Phillip. All three of them make it over here at least three times a year for card playing and eating cinnamon cake.  Abby is still in Manila.

We continue to enjoy the senior center in Moscow.  I am still the Vice President of the board and have so far escaped becoming the President.  Tony talks with his brother in UK once a month at least to keep up with his family.

Unfortunately, one of our cousins, Steve Phillip, passed away this year.  See his memorial page on the Phillip Blog here.  Brother Bill and I left Friday morning and were back home by Sunday night after attending Steve's memorial in Nebraska.  We were pretty proud of ourselves to drive 2200 miles round trip in such a short time.  Great to see all the cousins and brothers and for me to get to ride on the back of Steve's motorcycle to the dinner afterward.

Our next adventure was to the Oregon coast for a get together with most of the people we camped with in Arizona for so many years.  Nearly 20 of us rented motorhome spots on the coast and had a great time watching the crabbing, hiking, clamming, sunset on the ocean, a tour of a the still working Umpqua Lighthouse, photography gallery, the Myrtlewood Gallery, chain saw carving, and one of the best museums I have ever seen in Reedsport, Oregon.  A day trip to Coos Bay, led us to the museum which housed a memorial to Steve Prefontaine, a famous runner, eating fish and ships on a boat on the water, and seeing the Marshfield Sun Printing Museum.

We made one more motorhome trip to Nebraska for my 60th class reunion, with a stop off at brother Jim's (where we saw the balloon festival and night glow), and cousin Judy's for the regular steak dinner on the ranch.  Cousin Janice and I arranged for our classmates to meet for Saturday morning coffee and cream filled bismarks (what we all remembered as kids growing up in Alliance).  A visit to the Knight Museum was included with the 60th reunion. 

And now....Tony decided he didn't want to travel long distances anymore, so...I went to the Oregon coast to a condo with friends for a few days, and a short week-end trip to Seattle.  We have joined Roadrunners of Moscow (a group that takes bus trips near and far).  To date we have gone on the Lewiston Ghost Tour and "A Christmas Carol" in Spokane (with Bradley Whitford as Ebenezer...formerly Josh Lyman on "The West Wing").  Next week we are scheduled for a bus trip to a quilt museum, locomotive park for Christmas display, dinner, and a musical.  We feel like kids on the bus because we text a lot (none of the men can hear)...and I think flasks are going to come out for this next trip!! 

Tony's home made elevator continues to aid his stair climbing as he goes back and forth to work in his shop many times a day.  One of his "shop" productions was a wishing well that sits proudly on our deck.  Our "at home" activities include jigsaw puzzles, binge watching "Netflix", and doing a lot for the Friendly Neighbors Senior Center.

Now...for my dilemma...Tony's green card runs out in May.  The cost to renew is $540.00.  I am tempted to set up two "go fund me" pages to see who wants him to stay here.  I wonder which one will get to the $540.00 first (UK relatives and friends to keep him over here or USA friends and relatives).  😀

The year is almost over...the popcorn balls, candy, and cookies are made...presents bought and wrapped...and now it's time to wish all of you a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.  Thanks to all of you for the cards, pictures, texts, phone calls, emails and personal visits to our home throughout the year and during the holiday season.  "Keeping in Touch" is so important.

~~Sharon and Tony