Day 294

Tracy picked up a friend for Sven, Olaf, at an after Christmas sale. Matt whipped up some pancakes for the crew. Lynn and Jamie ran down to The Button, the Needle, and the Wardrobe to pick up a patch that Heidi produced for folks in It's a Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play. On the way back they stopped for lunch at P.F. Chang's wonderfully heated outdoor eating area (smoked old fashioned). Sam got to request our New Year's Eve menu, so we had chicken piccata, wine lover's rice, and asparagus with a very good mustard drizzle that Lynn made. Matt found some books in his office for Jamie to peruse as part of his Torah study and for planning a trip to Israel (in the dreaming-about stage). After dinner the adults enjoyed some different shows that were on Fox in the 5-8pm time frame. At 9pm, the AdAmAn club shot off the first round of fireworks for the night from the top of Pikes Peak which we were able to see and then did it again at midnight which is the normal time (Lynn got up to see the midnight round). A group known as the Frozen Five started the tradition in December 1922 by hiking up the cog railroad route and picking up abandoned railroad flares along the way to add to their arsenal. Read the History section of their website (link above). There are a couple good videos on their Home page, too.

WVAR: Village Arts Radio (jingle and all)

Reminded me of Lot's wife...

Day 293

More post-Christmas fun. Legos were a huge deal today. Lexi went to another tennis lesson for this week. While Matt and Jamie were at a CHP class, Tracy messed with plans. A puzzle got completed. And we all enjoyed Matt's carnitas tacos for dinner (except the couple kids that wanted cereal).

Mandalorian Razor Crest

Day 292

We got our first "heavy" snow of the season over night, 2-3 inches. So, first thing this morning was our first serious driveway shoveling of the year. As you might imagine, this was another post-Christmas day with much attention to playing with, building, or otherwise interacting with gifts from Christmas. This included the late arrival (today) of the battery carrying case as seen on Fox News; three of them, and we darn near filled all three.

Matteo's Lego piano. Very cool.

Part of the piano already operable via bluetooth.

Day 291

Another rather leisurely post-Christmas day. All three dogs got groomed today (professionally). Lots of Air-Soft action. A little reading. Tracy's car got back from the shop, too (regular maintenance and some tire fixing). Too bad as we were enjoying a 2021 loaner of Nana and Papa's 2017 model.

 

Day 290

It's always interesting to see what gifts the kids are spending real time with a couple days later... Tracy and Sam got tattoos today. And Lynn came up with a neat way to save/show each year's Christmas card from Nipomo.

3. 2. 1. Liftoff!

Lite-Brite. I got one of those as a kid.

Simon Trouble

Nipomo Fosters

Day 289

A handful of Compound Dwellers headed for Boulder, CO today to say Merry Christmas to Uncle Craig. We met up at Rosetta Hall for lunch, which turned out to be a great suggestion from Craig. They've got a unique approach to providing lots of cuisines, and for at-table ordering and delivery and payment. We ate on their outdoor rooftop patio - very pleasant up there! For dinner, Matt thinly sliced the leftover prime rib and re-heated it in a broth bath - au jus. French Dip in a Grandma's Roll!

Everyone ordered by phone including selection of
various options. No waiter, really, only delivery person.

Six different kitchens, one for each cuisine offered.

Pearl Street promenade. Fun shops and eateries.

"What Do You Meme?"

Day 288 Christmas Day

Christmas Day! Non-stop activity from morning till night! Traditional breakfast of omelet casseroles, bubble bread, and fruit pizza. This year the Santa Gifts were in the dryer! Matt whipped up a great prime rib and Tracy and Nana filled in with all the other goodies including rainbow jello, whipped potatoes, grandma's rolls, ceasar salad, etc. All topped off with a fabulous 2014 Regusci Cabernet Sauvignon. Lots of photos here.

Hope and Home ornaments for the three foster kids this year.