End of November Catch-up

We have spent the time since my last post with John's sister, Joeen and her husband Ben. They have a beautiful home in Seal Beach,  California and we had a great visit! We explored downtown Seal Beach and discovered some wonderful restaurants and an unbelievable bakery----yes there seems to be a pattern in our ability to uncover really good bakeries!!!---maybe its a gift!! The pier on Seal Beach is at the end of  Main Street  and we were there on Saturday evening for the Christmas Tree lighting and "snow" they produced for the kids to play and wait to see Santa. It was actually quite chilly at the beach..not at all what I was expecting for southern California. It was quite a different experience to see the Christmas tree lighting followed by sunset over ocean----stunning!

Note to self--don't wear jacket with reflective stripes in flash photos

We spent Thanksgiving day in Simi Valley with Ben's family. His brother Dan had volunteered to have Thanksgiving dinner at his home for the first time this year  and we all had a wonderful day----he said it was sort of  like  a 'dry run' for next year--- and it will long be remembered! We were a little concerned when we arrived and the front door was locked and Ben had to go around back and come through and let us in----Dan had gone to pick up  their mother! Joeen and I helped do the last minute food prep (with the help of  Dionna, Joeen and Ben's grandaughter)....and we would all have to agree that Marie Callender's Holiday feast is delicious. Dan insisted on doing the dishes, which I guess is his normal role on the holidays---and that was great. There were enough pie selections for dessert to make  your head spin---so it was necessary to do the annual 'combo platter' of  desserts! I fell asleep in the car on the trip home!~ It was so nice to have a 'family' for the Holiday and John and I really appreciated being included.

On Friday we drove down the Pacific Coast Highway to San Clemente---along the way we drove through Huntington Beach, Newport Beach, Laguna Beach,  and Dana Point----unbelievably beautiful!We met Joeen at the Harbor at Dana Point for a late lunch and then drove back on the freeways with a quick  drive through San Juan Capistrano. It is so nice to see the bright blue skies in November!

Saturday Joeen's daughter, Nina, and her husband Don came to visit with Dionna and we once again ventured downtown Seal Beach for a great lunch at the Beach BBQ--great food! and shopping!!

On Sunday we met my cousin Toni Rae for lunch----she is my dad's sister's daughter and we had not seen each other for lots of years so it was fun to catch up on family history.

At the beginning of the week we will be heading east to be in Indiana for the holidays....
now we are resting in El Centro, California....Debbie and John