3 July 2008 – Thursday

Today was my dentist day. I had my teeth cleaned and then Shauna put me to sleep so she could take care of all my problems. I woke up some 7 hours later remembering nothing about what went on. I am told that with Tom’s help I walked from the office to the house and carried on a conversation, but I did not remember any of it. The nice thing is that by the time I woke up my mouth hardly hurt at all.

When I did wake up, I had a bowl of cereal and went right back to bed.

I should mention that in the morning I took a nice long walk while it was still cool. I love looking at all the plants and flowers that grow so well here. I almost want to move here just so I could enjoy gardening almost 12 months out of the year.

William and I had a good time playing with his cars. He is a very sharp young man and if you take the time to talk to him, he can clearly talk back. We shared eating Cheetos together – he brought them to me and was happy to sit next to me and eat.

2 July 2008 – Wednesday

I slept pretty well but woke up a little early. After trying to go back to sleep I got up and went to Roth’s to get fresh pastries for everyone. The mornings are perfect here with a crispness in the air that reminds me of spring and fall in Utah.

During the morning I took William for a walk. He seems to love to walk and explore. At one point he stopped to play and when I said for him to come on, he did not want to. So I told him ‘goodbye’ and started to walk away figuring he would get worried and follow me. Instead he said ‘goodbye’ and started walking in the opposite direction. So he called my bluff and made me go back to get him. Once I got him turned he did not give me any trouble and was happy to walk with me back to the house.

When we got back I laid down and took a short nap. I woke in time to drive with Tom up to Southern Washington to get some things Shauna needed for work that they did not have time to order because of the short 4th of July week. It was a nice drive and we talked about a number of things. We stopped at Roarkes on the way home and had hot-dogs.

Mary and I went plant shopping. I had promised myself that all I was going to get was some mallow plants, but of course that is not what happened. We ended up with three plants from Al’s – one was a different mallow – and then a number of things from another nursery including a nice hanging basket for only $15. Now we just have to get them home without destroying them, plant them and hope they survive our next mission.

Tonight was the girl’s night out – Shauna, Mary, Taylor and Kelli went to Salem to see a movie while Tom, William and I stayed home. We did not do much – mainly sat around and read. William watched TV and rode his trike. When the ladies arrived home they said they had a great time and the movie was great.

01 July 2008 – Tuesday

I slept like a rock – the new guest room is dark and quiet. I was surprised to see I slept until 6:30 (7:30 Utah time.) I got up and went to Silverton to get fresh pastries and the newspapers. It is kind of a morning ritual for me to do this.

When I got back I found I was tired and soon found myself going back to bed and sleeping for another couple of hours. I guess the driving really tired me out. Both Mary and I have spent much of our time reading – it is great to just relax.

William is the king of the hill – he loves cars, his tricycle, and running around. He is very good natured and easy to get to smile. He got a large splinter in his foot and so Shauna took it out with a needle while Tom and I held him still. He of course yelled and cried but almost the second we were done he stopped and started smiling again.

About 1:00 Mary and I went into Salem to get some lunch and to pick up a banner for Shauna that will be used in the big 4th of July parade. It was for the Grand Marshal. We had lunch at a place we found some 4 years ago and liked. The food this time was OK but not outstanding – at least my food was that way. Mary really liked her’s. After eating we went to the Wild Bird shop and looked at the latest outdoor art objects. We will probably go back and buy something before we go home. I told Mary we could not buy any more indoor art because we have no room. But we can buy outdoor art because we have lots of room there.

I should mention the huge field of California poppies that we saw on our way into Salem. I took a picture but I am sure it does not start to show how magnificent it really is. I want to go back and take a couple of more shots before we head home.

We ordered in Chinese for dinner. Of course Tom had hot dogs because he does not do Chinese. I only ate a small serving because I was still full from lunch.

It was a good, relaxing day for us and it does not seem like it could possibly be almost 2 years since we were here last. Both Mary and I have been spending much of our time reading some of the many books we missed while we were gone. Lucky for us Tom buys almost exactly the same authors that we like the most so we have lots of reading to catch up on.