Sunday, May 26, 2013

102, Monterey & the 17-Mile-Drive

Thursday evening we had dinner at Dick and Mimi Perry's. Very nice couple. He reminds me a lot of Blaine Allen. Telling stories and making jokes at everything. Very funny guy!  They have a way of making you feel really good.  It is unfortunate that in the last few weeks we are here, we are getting to know the personalities of many people in the ward. We have known who they are, but now we are getting to know what makes them tick. All those months in the hospital we were unable to get out much.  This ward is making it hard to leave.

Friday was Hunter's 1st grade play at school. It was a typical cute little 1st grade thing.

Sierra had her Social Studies final. It was a tough one. Hang in there kid.  Stacy and I are pretty proud of how she is doing. Given all she has been through this year, she is doing great.  She has had to deal with rejection, ports, plasmapheresis, 12 hour IV's, side affects, head aches, tests, hospitalization, biopsies, sister living in the hospital, then add on top of that going to 7th grade at a large school, and meeting new friends.  She is hanging in there.

Saturday ended up being a very fun day. We decided not to go to Reno for the basketball tournament. Megan would have only played in one game on Saturday. The rest of the games are on Sunday and Monday.  I'm not comfortable with my child playing sports on Sunday.  It wasn't worth it to her (and us) to travel 4.5 hours for one game then back. So we decided to go to Monterey.  That ended up being a good decision.

Before we left, I helped with the moving of some people in the ward.  They are in East Palo Alto moving to Salt Lake City. There was much that needed to be done. Stacy packed up 4 more boxes of 'stuff'.  It's going to be interesting to get everything done and packed before Thursday at 1:00.  The kids (especially Gage) is getting so excited to head to 'Eastern Oregon'. Every time we get in the Suburban to go somewhere, he thinks we are going "home to Eastern Oregon."

We left for Monterey around noon, and got there around 3:30. That is one thing I will NOT miss. The traffic! Bumper to Bumper, stop and go and stop some more, all the way. Good grief!! Coming home we made it in 1 hour 20 minutes.  Having said that, I still would rather be sitting on a freeway with my family than in the hospital. Still grateful.... Once there we went to the Old Fisherman's Wharf' for lunch then walked around and looked at the shops. Then we embarked on the '17-Mile-Drive'.  Ben Galbraith recommended it, so what the heck. It was a pretty drive through the famous 'Pebble Beach Golf Course'.  This is where they have hosted the US Open in '72, 82, 92, 01, 10 and in 2019. We saw a couple of nice 3 and 4 point bucks and the thought did cross my mind.....my 300 Short Mag....  Anyway..... we then stopped along the beach and looked at the tide pools.  After Megan's Oregon coast trip, she was excited to show her sister and brothers what lives in tide pools.  We then saw some beautiful ocean views and enormous mansions. We found a 2 acre lot for sale, no house, just dirt along the ocean. We all took guesses on the asking price. The closest was $4 Million. Not even close. Try $10,000,000. Wow! We took a picture of the mansion next to it. It was a fun drive.

After the 17-Mile-Drive, we stopped at some sand dunes. The kids had a blast (except Sierra)!  These were the things we couldn't even dream of  back in the day.

Sierra's post IVIG headaches came back in full force.  Usually 2-3 days after her IVIG she gets these horrible headaches, lots of tears and pain.  We felt so bad for her.  We gave her all the pain meds we could, but mostly she has to suffer through it. She missed the tide pools and sand dunes.  Again it's the reality of what she / we have to deal with.  I'm so proud of that kid. She will have IVIG monthly for years to come. She never complained.  She is a mature beautiful young woman.



Hunter at his "Field Days."  Lots of fun.





Hunter's 1st grade play. It was from the book, "Bringing the Rain to Kapiti Plain" by Verna Aardema. Very cute!


Hunter with his 1st grade teacher Mrs. Powell.

 
Old Fishermans Warf in Monterey



 Birds on Old Fisherman's Wharf



 Yummy Crepes

 Tide pools along the 17 Mile Drive





 Pebble Beach Golf Course
 The mansion next to the 2 acre lot for sale. There were 'houses' like this all other the place.
 She really does like being out of the hospital



 Hunter is way up there getting ready to slide down the sand. Upper left corner
Kids jumping off the dune. They were having a ball. Wish Sierra could be here. She was in the suburban in tears of pain with her mother. 
She is doing a little better today, but no run away.  

2 comments:

  1. Dog gone it!! Tell Sierra she is my hero, and I am praying for her right this minute!! She is a tough cookie and she will make it through this. Glad you all had a great time....well, almost all of you, and that you are almost headed home!! Special Kudos to Sierra, so, so special is she!! God Bless!!

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  2. Hi Binghams! I have a file on my computer called "Jokes for the Binghams" I have had the file since July of 2012. Over that time I have sent you the best that I have found. You are getting ready for a road trip though and even 2nd string jokes are great for long drives. Since you guys are getting to really go hom, I am emptying out my joke file.....here goes:

    Knock, Knock!
    Who's there?
    Spell.
    Spell who?
    OK, W_H_O.


    Knock, Knock!
    Who's there?
    Thermos.
    Thermos who?
    Thermos be a better knock-knock joke than this.

    Q: What is a pirates’ favorite restaurant?
    A: Arrrgh-by’s

    Q: Why do airplane pilots always fly past Peter Pan's home?
    A: They see the sign that says Never Land.

    Q: Why did Sleepy take firewood to bed with him?
    A: He wanted to sleep like a log.

    Alex: Why are kindergarten teachers so optimistic?
    Amy: Cuz every day they try to make the little things count.

    Knock knock.
    Who's there?
    Juicy.
    Juicy who?
    Juicy who threw that snowball at me?

    Who's there?
    Howie.
    Howie who?
    I'm fine, thanks, how are you?

    Q: What time is it when ten elephants are chasing you?
    A: Ten after one!

    Q: How do you know if there is a dinosaur in your refrigerator?
    A: The door won't shut!

    Q: How can you best raise a baby dinosaur?
    A: With a crane!

    Q: What is the best thing to do if you see a Tyrannosaurus Rex?
    A: Pray that it doesn't see you.

    Q: What's the nickname for someone who put their right hand in the mouth of a T-Rex?
    A: Lefty

    Q: What did the sink say to the toilet?
    A: You look a bit flushed.

    Q: What gets wetter the more it dries?
    A: A towel.

    Q: Why was the belt arrested?
    A: Because it held up some pants!

    Q: Why was everyone so tired on April 1st?
    A: They had just finished a March of 31 days.

    Q: what did the buffalo say to his son when he left for college?
    A: Bison

    The graduate with a Science degree asks, "Why does it work?"
    The graduate with an Engineering degree asks, "How does it work?"
    The graduate with an Accounting degree asks, "How much will it cost?"
    The graduate with an Arts degree asks, "Do you want fries with that?"

    To the optimist, the glass is half full. To the pessimist, the glass is half empty.
    To the accountant, the glass is twice as big as it needs to be.

    Have a wonderful and safe drive! Continued love and prayers, Dale and Mike Olsen







    Q: Why does a flamingo lift up one leg?
    A: Because if it lifted both legs it would fall over!



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