Pete's Promotion Ceremony

Just a few photos from the promotion ceremony.

We are very proud of Peter.

This promotion is quite an honor and exciting for the rest of the family.

Trip to Virginia

On May 26, we flew to Virginia to visit with Susan, Peter, Nick, and Caroline.
The primary purpose of this trip was to be in town for Peter's promotion to Colonel.



Of course, it was really great to have some time with our grandkids, Nick and Caroline. Nick will turn 14 this month and Caroline will be 10 in July. They are growing so fast. Nick loves it that he is finally taller than I am.

On Thursday and Friday evenings, Susan prepared dinner for all of us. There were about 15 of us, including all of Pete's family, Barb and me , and Susan's dad and Karen. Susan and Pete had been saving the wine that they purchased in Italy for a special occasion. So they brought out all of the bottles for us to sample.

Nick showed us his report on photography that will be presenting in school. He took some excellent photos. He has a keen eye for the unusual. Very impressive.

One evening a poker game was started. Nick really dressed for the game.

On Friday, we all cleaned up very nicely to go to the promotion ceremony.

Lunch with Carolyn

Today Carolyn drove to St. Charles from Creve Coeur to have lunch with us. We went into Old Town St. Charles and walked the streets.

St. Charles was the first capitol of Missouri and their old town is a nice quaint area with restuarants and small shops. We spent time browsing the shops, looking a jewelry, art work, household items and checking out restuarants.

We chose to have lunch at the Little Hills Winery.

Joan, Scottie and Scotch Eggs

Yesterday we met up with Joan and Scottie for lunch. Joan wanted us to see her son's new restuarant, The Highlander. It is located in St. Louis near the Science Center. It is located on the property that used to be the Highlands Park back in the days when we were kids. It had all of the merry-go-rounds, ferris wheels, and other carnival events. We absolutely loved going there as kids. Hasn't been around for many, many years. But everyone from St. Louis who grew up here knows of the Highlands. So the restuarant being called The Highlander seems appropriate.



If you look closely on the right side of the menu in the white section, there is an item called Scotch Eggs. Apparently this is a very favorite item in the bars of Scotland. We ordered them and they were quite unique...........hard boiled egg, coated with sausage/breading mix and then deep fried. They are served with a tangy mustard. Very good !!!

After lunch, we went to the new casino in the south St. Louis area. We had never been there. It is a very glitzy casino and we were impressed. We split up and played for about an hour. I was the big winner.....................I left there with $1.59 more than I arrive with.

It was good to see them and spend the day with them.

hugs,
linda and barb

Four Days of Rain

It has been raining here every since we returned from visiting Linda and Nancy. I have spent days working on projects........computer and motorhome. And Barb has gone to visit her mom and play some cards and dominos.

We did get away one day. There was a break in the rain for a few hours and we drove to the Botanical Gardens Nature Reserve. They have wonderful trails into the wildflower glades. We took a mile hike and saw glorious flowers blooming up and down the hillsides.

It felt good to get out of the motorhome and have a day's outing. The only problem is that we did come home with ticks. Found several on me, on Barb and on Bailey. So I guess we won't go back this season.


love and hugs,
Linda and Barb

Visit to Linda and Nancy

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On Monday we drove to Bonne Terre, Mo where our friends Linda and Nancy live. Their home is on the lake and is one of the homes that are circling the lake above. Their yard from their home to the lake is beautifully landscaped.

Since it is almost two hours for us to drive there, we usually stay the night. We arrived there around lunch hour and they had a wonderful lasagna prepared. They always have wonderful meals for us.

We spent most of the day talking, catching up on news and events. They talked about the movie they had seen and loved so much. So we watched "It's Complicated" with them. That was the third time they had seen it. By the time the movie was over, it was dinner. So we went out to a steakhouse in town. We had a great visit with them, as always.





Bailey had a good time playing with Lulu. Nancy tried to get them to pay attention so I could get a photo but they were more interested in the treats than posing for photos.

Mother's Day Weekend

On the Saturday before Mother's Day, Breeze Park, where Barb's mom lives, had a mother/daughter tea. We met first in Elsie's room to give her the presents we had for her so that she would have a new outfit to wear to the tea. She really loved the new top and jacket plus a new pair of white pants.

We had a lovely afternoon. The tables were decorated with flowers and we were served chocolate candies and scones. The girls from a local girl scout troop served us coffee or tea. It was quite elegant. A local singing group entertained us with music from the 40's and 50's...

big band favorites and popular songs from that era. Barb and Elsie spent time reading the program so that they would know what song would be sung next.

Then on Sunday we went to the main dining room at Breeze Park where they had a very nice dinner at noon. The tables were decorated with linen table cloths and each table had a flower. Dinner include glazed grapes, chicken wrapped about an asparagus stuffing, fettucine, and cheese cake for desert. We ate too much and enjoyed ourselves.

Breeze Park is really a wonderful place for her to reside. She receives wonderful care; everyone loves her and enjoys her company. She has a good time with all of the staff.

Love and hugs,

Barb and Linda

Our First Week in St. Louis has been busy

We have been in St. Louis now for about 8 days and seem to be busy every day. Of course, Barb has continued to go visit her mom everyday. I have joined them a few of the days. While there we take her for walks and play cards.....Kings on the Corner.

Barb and I have started a routine of walking every day. I think we are averaging about 1.5 miles. I would like to work our way up to 2 miles. But this is a good start. We are feeling good about this exercise and it gives us a chance to talk about the day and plans that we have.

We have also been busy e-mailing friends and family to set up dinners/lunches so we can see everyone while we are here. We have already had dinner with my cousins, Janice and Mitch. It was really great to see them. We were at a Chinese buffet and sat and talked until everyone had left and they were cleaning up. We litterly closed up the place.

This weekend is Mother's Day. On Saturday we will go to a Mother/Daughter Tea with Elsie. On Sunday we are planning to attend the Sunday afternoon dinner with her. I am sure we will take several photos and I will attach them on the next blog.

Hope all is well with everyone. Love and hugs,
Barb and Linda

We are in St. Louis

We are now in St. Louis We pushed up our travels so that we would arrive before the storms. With all of the bad weather going on around the country, we did not want to get caught up in the midst on tornados while driving.

Our plans are to spend this weekend with Barb's mom and then start making plans to see friends. Yesterday Bailey spent the afternoon at the groomers and Barb and I went to the Ameristar Casino. We both won. IT WAS A GREAT DAY !!!

love and hugs,

barb and linda