It's Friday again already . . .

I'm not sure what "they" do with the time. Maybe someone sneaks in, when I'm not looking, and turns all of the clocks ahead.

At least this has to be the quickest week EVER!

And since this weekend will begin the first week of June, I am reminded that I have only 5 months to finish all of my 2008 Christmas shopping!

You watch and see how fast that time flies by.

And speaking of Christmas; do you think maybe we can "sort of" let this one go by?

Just hop into 2009 after blinking our eyes several times.

What do you think?

MEMORIAL DAY ~ 2008 ~ GOD BLESS YOU ALL...

As this is an election year may I first take this moment to thank all the families of the men and women serving in the Armed Forces ~ this day and in the past ~ for the many sacrifices that are made each and every day of the year. To those in all branches of the military - GOD BLESS YOU and THANK YOU, FOR YOUR WILLINGNESS TO PUT YOUR LIVES ON THE LINE FOR EACH OF US.

In this democracy in which we live; may we always have AMERICANS willing to do whatever it takes to keep our country safe and FREE.

It is our GOD given right and obligation to vote this year, for the continuing right to be able to live in a country that is free from dictatorship and in the interest of lessening government control. VOTE your conscience - do your part - so that Memorial Day won't (one day) be in vain...

Sundays are FAMILY days . . .

It was really nice to have the CA/Taylors' part of this clan - w/ Heather & Nicole Ronzone, too - gathered to meet Taylor's new wife, Katie.

I think Katie held her own very well, sitting at the head of the table, while Duncan (dad) put her through his "rank and file" English briefing. It's not "me and her," first of all . . . and you know how it goes.

Poppy's long term memory is shot as he proclaimed the Bingham boys - once thought to be fine as long as they were outside - as pretty darn near angelical ... NOW!!!

We were sorry not to be able to see Cathleen, but I truly think she had all she could do to keep up with all the activities with her family! Surely you had a good time, even though you are probably totally wiped on Monday!

I hope everyone has a restful Memorial Day and we'll see you whenever you are ready to face the drive(s) again! Remember Father's Day is coming and hope you can, too...

Can you believe this weather?!!

I don't think it got above 60* today and last Friday it was almost 100* ~

I think the newlyweds arrived in CA today ~ or sometime this past week. What a bummer this weather is for them!! Staying at the beach!

Cathleen is leaving VA in the morning and I hope she brings some sunshine and warmer weather along with her.

She is committed to two days of graduations so maybe I should take that back! Cooler weather will be just fine.

What do you bet she barely gets any sleep while she is here. All of her sisters and brothers will be gathering and it's the first time she's seen her dad since his chemotherapy treatments.

There will be much to celebrate and I'm sure her mom is going to be in 7th heaven!!

Have a ball, Cathleen, and hang in there at home with the CB's, Greg!! xo

What a difference clean windows can make...

I noticed it right away.

Everything inside the house looks a bit more grimy than usual.

Which I suppose is OKAY since the windows are one of our more recent purchases.

The thing I don't like about them is the insects that having them cleaned must have dislodged.

This morning, for instance, a HUGE black spider crawled out beneath the covers on MY side of the bed, as I was making it...

Did I mention that spring cleaning is now the order of the day?

I don't know where the darned thing went, it moved so fast, but the two of us can NOT find peace and harmony in the same room, much less the same bed!

Just another day in the senior Taylors' household!! xo

Presenting the newlyweds this Sunday . . .

Having been fully reminded by daughter, Debbie, that son, Taylor, and Katie would be honeymooning in San Clemente, CA, BUT to expect NO visits or calls from them, I was very pleasantly surprised to receive an email from Taylor requesting visitation privileges this coming Sunday.

Taylor & Katie have obviously other thoughts and ideas about visiting and frankly I think Taylor is anxious to introduce his Katie to the CA branch of the Taylor-Baker clan.

Since we have confused things by being sealed amongst each other, the "family" bonds are closer than most blended families...

I, of course, am thrilled with this opportunity and I'm only hoping that everyone who can will come meet the new bride and celebrate their marriage!! xo

Fun with Denise and Andrea...

Andrea decided to come out and spent time with Denise and Seth at the beach today. They came to our house to get that sand out of bathing suits and have a bite to eat.

Chris is in France at the Cannes Film festival, successfully plugging his movie, "Point Break." (Part 2)

There has been a lot of ($$$) interest in it - so Chris should be very happy.

Andrea is home with the 3 kids - home is in LA in large, but sheltered house.

This scares her to pieces and since the kids have to go to school, she has invited people to come stay the night with her. She's booked up until Chris returns on Thursday!

The last time they left the house for a weekend it was robbed . . . no wonder she is scared.

Have a great week, everyone!! xo

Happy Birthday, Mother . . .

Although she can't read this I feel the need to remember her all the same. It is time for me to do her work and I'm making a promise to do this ASAP.

The day of her passing is June 1st - so maybe I can get it done by then...

Thanks, Greg, for remembering some of the grandchildren things about your very fine grandmother. Duncan remembered that she left you each a small monetary gift when she passed away and she has left an indelible impression on him, too...

I remember her sitting for hours with Sydney - reading, reading and reading. Sydney sure pushed all of her buttons, but that's a Taylor for you - all the way!!

We have been discussing how much we miss her and what a wonderful "mother/ grandmother-in-law" she always was.

Duncan/dad remarked that she took great care of us and good home cooked meals were an every day occurrence when she was living with us.

So, Happy Birthday, MOTHER, we'll be with you again someday. xoxoxo

Dorothy Perle Jodoin Nourse Ronzone Brown

My mother - GRANDMA BROWN - was born May 17, 1917 in Connecticut. Until she was 60 years of age she always believed she had been born in 1918...

Having been given up for adoption she spent an unknown quantity of time in an orphanage in NYC. My grandparents adopted her when she was about 3-5 years of age and to replace a daughter lost during that time.

They were outstanding people in every way and my mother was always pleased to have been chosen by them. She enjoyed a childhood of privilege & wealth, living the years until she married my dad, (in 1939) in Scarsdale, NY.

She was involved in summer stock and off Broadway productions and attended Alveney School of Dramatic Arts. Her 18th birthday was celebrated at the New York Athletic Club with an orchestra and dancing.

Grandma could recite poetry like no one else I have ever known. Hence the depiction of "The Highwayman" on her cemetery stone in Lake Forest, CA.

Thank you, dear MOTHER - always - for being a light and an example for me.

Remembering Jeanette . . .

My friend Jenny lost her only daughter May 15th, just weeks before she would attend her Senior Prom and then graduation.

It has been a number of years since then, over ten years, but I still remember and Jenny always carries that ache in her heart.

It reminds me that life is so fleeting and that it is important that we value each day as if it might be our last.

Sounds a little gruesome - I apologize - but Jeanette had everything before her and in one moment - one loss of a heartbeat - she was gone.

I do value each person, too...

SO . . . to all of my children (natural and unnatural) and grandchildren I will close with this little ditty I found.

"a little kiss, A little hug, I give you these, with all my love. xoxoxo

HOME SWEET HOME!!

Yesterday was a "leaky" day. Kind of a misty showering and not over 70* - a perfect day to feel the blahs.

Today the sun is brightly shining and if the weather news outlook for the week is correct it will rocket to 100* in the next couple of days.

I prefer the blah type days a whole lot more, to tell you the truth.

Our weekend in Utah taught me a few things - time is waiting for no man - or woman - and our Bingham grandkids are growing up and away.

Taylor and Katie seemed so ready to move on with their lives. They will enjoy a wonderful relationship together, I feel.

It was surprisingly melancholy for me - but I could see other family members had various emotions about the Bingham family reunion of sorts.

Grandma Mary being the most memorable for me. Being a few years older than me I can just imagine myself relying on a cane for balance and experiencing that slowing of the body that so often occurs.

It also comes with the realization that family begins to outgrow you before you are exactly ready for that to happen.

Grandma Verdaun and I - still enjoying the companionship of good husbands - are blessed to have a different viewpoint on life, at this moment.

Watching Duncan and Sydney involving themselves in the activities of the weekend filled me with LOVE & gratitude for the relationship(s) we enjoy together!

Seeing our beautiful grandaughter, Megan Taylor, was such a special experience for us, too.

But life is moving forward with a rush that tends to scare me at times. Every day that begins like any other day is another day to be lived to the fullest and cherished equally.

We're back home, safe and sound...

Happy Mother's Day to you wonderful mothers who do so much for your families!!!

Thank you, Greg, for the lovely phone call ~ I'm sorry to learn the twister was that close to you, but pleased to know all involved are okay (which IS the most important thing of all) depite losing a home and other damages!

Thanks, too, for the Mother's Day tribute via this blog.

Our weekend was memorable and Taylor & Katie's wedding/ sealing/ reception was very nice.

More about that at another time!

We spent Mother's Day with the entire Bingham family.

Loran just turned 80, Craig's sister's birthday was today and then of course all of Craig's sisters and brothers were there for the wedding except for the one black sheep...

That, too, would be a story for some other time, too.

It's good to be home - now I'm off to bed!! xo

We're off to see the wiz... the BINGHAMS...

We'll be off tomorrow morning for our whirlwind trip to Utah. Seems like the Baker family just did this last week, right?

We lucked out, though, and found cheap tickets so we could fly! Of course now we have to rent a car when we get there, so it surely wasn't a bargain.

Still it will be fun to see the Bingham bunch and all Craig's extended family members! I'm pretty sure that Katie is probably a bundle of nerves - but then you never know. She may be taking this all "in stride."

Okay - we'll be back on line in just a few days! xo

It's countdown until Taylor & Katie's wedding . . .

Taylor, #2 twin, was born minutes after his brother. So I guess it is only natural that he would be second in line to be married.

He and his twin, Riley, are about as different in personality as two people can possibly be. There are so many ways they are different it would be impossible to share in this blog.

But Taylor and Riley have several very important things in common. They have both served honorable missions and have chosen women they can be married to for time and all eternity, in the temples of their choice.

They have chosen women that are perfect for them! They love the Lord and they love their family.

These are the best qualities to have in common - anything else is just frosting on their wedding cakes... xo

DUNCAN / POPPY / DAD'S 68th birthday is finally here!!!

AND . . . beginning today he enters his 69th year!!!

Happy Birthday to my soulmate for eternity...

ALSO . . . countdown now begins for Taylor Bingham/Katrina Marsden's sealing in the Bountiful Utah Temple!

FIVE more days!!

The second oldest of our grandchildren to be married.

Since Debbie is sealed to Duncan and me, we can truly feel the bonds of this eternal ordinance performed in a temple of the Lord.

I am grateful the Lord has seen fit to allow us to celebrate this special event - in person - rather than in spirit, only.

We are blessed to enjoy a blended family that means the very world to both of us and Sydney, too.

AGAIN . . . Happy Birthday, Duncan . . . my eternal companion. xo

Happy Birthday EVE, Duncan ...

AND... happy Cinco de Maya, too!

Today, being Sunday, is the day the CA family celebrated Poppy's 68th birthday!

It is always nice to be with family for these important days, but we have to grab them as we can, rather than on the actual day.

This is very enjoyable to Sydney who loves celebrating for an entire week. Ice cream, cake, candles and that ever popular birthday song.

We do hope the Bakers will call to serenade Poppy; while we are out on an important Mexican holiday - dining at a Chinese restaurant!!

Today we had fajitas & guacamole, great Mexican carne asada. I think we have all the bases covered!

Welcome back dear Baker family. We wish you were closer, BUT it's good to know you made it back to VA, safe and sound! also, love the latest photo, too!

Theresa, I love the Mother's Day gift ~ you always put a lot of thought, into your very personal gifts... xo

MAY is a beautiful month for a birthday...

My mother, Dorothy (Perle Jodoin) Nourse, aka Grandma (Ronzone) Brown, always loved the fact that her birthday was in May.

Although she was adopted when she was about 5 years old, her original birth certificate (which she received at the age of 60), showed that she was born the 18th of May, but a whole year sooner than she had been told.

So, at the age of 60 she learned she was actually 61 years old...

She also learned she had a middle name, Perle, but she didn't choose to adopt it at that advanced age.

My mother's ancestry has always fascinated me, but I was never able to trace either her natural mother of father as listed on that certificate of her birth. She also had several older siblings, that were lost to her, too...

She never seemed to care; she just treasured the fact that she was born in the lovely month of MAY!