A Remarkable Milestone...

October 28, 2011 marks the 60th wedding anniversary for my parents, Marvin and JoAnn Janne!  I feel very blessed  to be able to be near them and celebrate this remarkable milestone event in their lives!  My sister and I are planning a family reunion and celebration next March to honor our parents in a special way!  Mom and Dad, thank you for setting the example of what marriage truly is! We cherish each and every day that we can be together. Mom and Dad, I love you with all of my heart! HAPPY 60TH ANNIVERSARY!!

A Pleasant Evening, and then..."a bump in the night!"

On Sunday, October 23, we enjoyed a pleasant dinner with Mike, Corissa and their children.  The weather has been cooling off in the evenings, so we all went for a walk after dinner to enjoy the weather and see some Halloween decorations in our neighborhood.

When we arrived back home, we enjoyed some home-made apple crisp and gave Mike and Corissa their anniversary gift "early"!  They will celebrate their 5th wedding anniversary on October 28!  Amazing how time flies! 

Grandpa had a fun time entertaining Landon!  We will "entertain" both children this weekend so Mike & Corissa can "escape" for an anniversary celebration!  We wish you much happiness for your special day and many more happy years together!  We love you!!!

At 12:30 a.m. on Monday morning, I awoke from a sound sleep to what I thought was a ringing doorbell....Naaah, it couldn't be!!  Then, I thought I heard someone knocking, so I jumped out of bed, and realized my cats were all scurrying away from the noise too.  The knocking became louder and louder!!  I looked out the peephole of the front door, without glasses, and I couldn't see anything but a hand!  Whoa...I ran to get Vince, who was still soundly sleeping!  (He used to be the "light sleeper", but guess those days are gone now!)  Anyway, after waking Vince, and retrieving my eyeglasses, I went back to the front door...realizing it was a policeman who had been knocking and waiting!  I cautiously opened the door, and the officer immediately apologized for the "late hour"--I'm sure I looked fairly bleary-eyed!  He then proceeded to ask me, "Is this your scarecrow?" as he pointed at my fall decoration by the front door.  I said "yes" and he then explained that my "scarecrow had been borrowed" by some young boys, and they admitted to the police when apprehended that they had taken it from our front porch.  The police officer said he was able to stop the pranksters from smashing too many pumpkins, however, he was obligated to ask me if I wanted to "press charges" for the theft. In all seriousness, I looked over at Mr. Scarecrow and replied, "since there doesn't seem to be any physical harm or damage to him, I would not need to press charges."  The officer thanked me and went on his way...and Mr. Scarecrow continued to smile!  He probably had loved his little "joy ride"!!

OCTOBER BREAK!!

One week in October is designated "October Break" in our school district.  It's timed to start soon after the end of the first quarter...by then, everyone NEEDS a break! ;-)  I spent some time at home catching up on a few projects:  fun things like paperwork at my desk, cleaning out a closet, running some errands and reading.  The highlight for me, however, was my "escape" to Strawberry, AZ to stay with my folks at their little house in the woods for a couple of days/nights.  The weather was beautiful!!  I helped with a few small chores, but enjoyed their company immensely. I also enjoyed sleeping through the night without cats waking me, and daily naps in the afternoon.  Woo-Hoo!!

One morning, Mom and I went "into town" (Pine, AZ) and shopped at a couple of stores; our favorite is always "Moose Mountain"!  If you've never been, it's a great store filled with unique gifts and collectibles.  One night we ordered pizza from "Mama Joe's" in Strawberry...really yummy pizza!  It's around the bend from the Strawberry Lodge as you head to Pine!

The apple trees are loaded with fruit this year, and on my last day, we did pick a bucket full.  Some are small but surprisingly sweet! 

 They even had a few beautiful pears on their pear tree...

Mom and Dad, thanks for being wonderful hosts!  I appreciate all the delicious food, and reminiscing with you was especially meaningful!  Until next time, I better get going on that apple cobbler I promised to make for Vince!

FALL & FAMILY...

Fall is in the air in Arizona...mornings and evenings are cool and makes me want to get outdoors and enjoy the weather!  I'm sure it must be the same for people who live cooped up all winter inside away from the COLD...but here we escape to the indoors because of the HEAT!

We hosted a family brunch for Vince's brothers and families yesterday...it was a wonderful chance to see everyone again...as too much time had passed since we were all together.  Unfortunately, Martin, Kim and Troy were unable to join us due to Troy's baseball tournament in Peoria.  We pressed on, however, and enjoyed four hours together!  Above are cousins, left to right, Alissa, Michael, Austin, Josh and Josh's wife Beth.

Here, right to left, are my daughter-in-law Corissa, niece Natalie, and Giana who is Austin's girlfriend, all "cousins" in their hearts!



My son-in-law, Alan, was keeping his eyes on the little ones--Cailyn and Landon are bundles of energy, for sure!  Note the "gel stickers" all over Cailyn's doll, Bella--she was pretending that those were barretts in her hair! ;-)

After eating, we enjoyed relaxing on our patio...catching up on the family news!  Later, Art and Vince went to the pond and "netted" some mosquito fish from our pond to share with Art & Dianne for their backyard pond.  We have plenty of fishies to share!

Landon and Cailyn took good naps in the afternoon.  Here's 8-month old Landon wearing his Ohio State-wrapped doc-band, along with his ASU football jersey!!  He's crawling all over now, and pulling up too!  There's no stopping this little guy!