January 2012

Happy (belated) New Year!

I spent the last few weeks of December in Northern California

with my sisters, Nancy & Judy.

(also known as my personal chefs)

and am now trying to get into a regular routine again.

When I first got home, I would say

"That sounds good!"

But no dinner magically arrived.

Sheesh.

Judy & I relaxed & played games & did some shopping.

It was just what I needed after being laid-off!

I kicked back & watched TV with my BIL, Walter -

learned about gold mining in Alaska & bidding on storage lockers!

I did not have to think about anything at all - YAY!

We did Christmas with my nephew's family,

with my niece & her boys there too, as well as both sisters & Walter.

Yummy Chinese food for dinner, a new tradition for us.

On New Year's Day my sister Nancy & I took a drive up into the mountains,

where we stopped in a little town

called Downieville.

The first shot is of a river/stream that was rushing along side of the highway 49.

I looked up the Downie River, but I'm not sure if this is part of it

or part of the Yuba River or one of their tributaries. 

It was beautiful up there,

cold & crisp but clear blue skies!  We even saw a little snow off the sides of the road as we were driving along.  We stopped whenever we saw something interesting & there was a safe spot to pull over.  A few times I just rolled down the window & snapped pictures with my arm out the window, until my hand would get too cold!

OK, so they didn't all come out perfectly.

Let's call this one, um, artistic, OK?

Nancy paints - oils, acrylics, water colors -

whatever strikes her at the time.  She's going to be in a show/sale this coming weekend, and asked me to help her pick out the 4 paintings to enter.

What fun!

It was hard for me to only pick FOUR!  But I perservered, pointing at one, then another. 

"I like that one, um, and that one....  Yes, I really like this one, I think it's my favorite, you have to put that one in."

The next day we went back into her studio to give them all names &

for Nancy to decide on pricing.  But she didn't do that one that was my favorite!

(These were taken in November)

Then, after picking her 4, she said:

"That one's not going in the show, because I'm giving it to you."

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I haven't taken a photo of it yet,

but this is the stream that is the focus of the painting.

(Her painting is much better than my photo)

Do I have an awesome sister, or what?

The next photo trip we took was to take some shots of cows.

She wants to do a painting with at least one cow in it.  :D

Wouldn't you love to have thick eyelashes like these?

Love those horns!

Well, I think this has gone on long enough.

More photos soon.

Happy Leap Year month!

sue