Finally! Here we are at Donner Lake. After a race car ride from Las Vegas to Carson City, a scenic drive over Rose Mountain and along the north shore of Lake Tahoe, we found our way to the little lake, pulled into the Westend Beach, and immediately encountered my sister, her seven kids, six spouses (one was at the airport) and myriad grandchildren. We pulled in just in time for dinner; so we served ourselves plates of chili, pulled up a spot by the water, and sat down to eat and gab.

Brrr. I had forgotten how cool it gets in the evenings in the sierra. Heck, Coming from Arizona via Vegas I had forgotten that it cools down at night anywhere!! Well not really, but I will definitely have to find a hoody on sale that says Lake Tahoe, or Donner Lake or even Truckee.

We check into our cabin today! I am already wondering how we can get all the brothers and sisters here next summer for a reunion. I'm giving myself 2 years to figure out how to get all our own kids and grandkids together for a reunion.
Merrilyn and her family have come every summer now for the past 9 years. She drove around with us last night pointing out cabins where they have stayed, sites that we remembered from when we were young, grandad's cabin where I spent so many summers. Then we met back at Aly's cabin with a good number of the grown-ups. The grandkids were, I imagine, either asleep or entertaining each other.

We will be here until Saturday. Then the trick will be to figure out how to get home. I don't think I can face I-95 again! Mike really shouldn't do another 10 hour car ride in a mini cooper and. . . . Why am I planning the drive home already?

It's time for relaxation. Chao for now. K

Weddings and Funerals

My older sister went to a funeral this week for a friend she's kept since the 5th grade. Addie was working in her garden when she died suddenly and unexpectedly of an aneurism. Her oldest daughter spoke and my niece Gwen wrote: "At the funeral today, a very sweet picture was painted of Addie and Larry. Anne told about a blanket that hangs in their bedroom. They bought it the summer they met while working at Sequoia National Park. They each paid for half of it. Anne said that rather than cut the blanket in half at the end of the summer, that "for the sake of the blanket," they got married. I thought to myself, "oh how sweet - the blanket reminds them of their meeting and time at Sequoia National Park and of their engagement and marriage." But Anne completed her sentence by saying that the blanket hangs in their bedroom to remind them that there isn't much worth cutting that blanket in half for. Obviously they don't want to cut the blanket in half and go their separate ways." Maybe we all need that blanket hanging on the wall to remind us of how important hanging together is. Life is short. Sometimes much shorter than we expect and looking back at the bigger picture we can only be happy the the blanket is still in one piece. Be careful with your life and your love.

The New Year

A new year beginning
The old year is past.
Live this year better,
Look forward, not back.

Learn to do well--
Wash, become clean.
Use judgement, be better
In word and in deed.

Why should you be stricken
Or wounded by sin?
Reach out, feed your weary soul
Be made whole again.

Christ waits for your return
with patience and love
Turn to Him, don't despair--
He watches above.

Praise to the Lord,
The old year is past.
Now let us remember Him,
And come home at last.

Year end report

I hope your Christmas was Merry and that your New Year is happy!!

So many good things happen each day, let’s see if I can remember a few.
Grandchildren: We have visited with all five of our grandchildren this year. And they are wonderful!
Megan gave birth to a brand new baby boy, Derek Michael Watson born 10 days before Christmas—on December 15. (If he hadn’t been brand new the birth would have been difficult.) He is a wonderful boy.
Steven, Liz and Amara moved in with us in October and we celebrated Amara’s first birthday together. She is of course the most incredible one year old in the world. She started walking at ten months, bosses the dogs around, and wraps her Granddad around her littlest finger!
Nola and Talia came to visit for a couple of weeks before school started. We had a good time every day. We are just waiting to get the whole family out here from NYC!
Mike and Gabe came for visits last winter and again in the summer. Gabe and Granmuz went for lots of hikes. Gabe won every race to the tops of the hills! We miss them!
Education: Michael finished a Master’s Degree in Spanish this year, and Charlie and Leslie, both graduated in May. Michael came out for their graduation, and we celebrated 3 Master’s Degrees in the family. Ari is finishing her Master’s Degree at Pratt, and Maren is working and going to school for her Master’s at U of Az. She’s been hard at work recording Hopi oral histories. How can you call that work? Morris just finished his first semester at Columbia! Wow. It’s not the community college that’s for sure.
Life: Mo and Seung Hee are working non-stop. Seung Hee is at MOMA, and Mo is still working at TBRC. They’re busy, busy, busy!
Steven is working construction at the border, waiting to hear on a more permanent job. Liz is teaching me to make Mexican Hot Chocolate and other tasty treats!
*Graham’s working up in Phoenix, but he’ll be back in school in January.
Dogs: Dogs?? Since when? We agreed to take care of Megan’s bulldog Dozer for a few months while she was expecting, and he has really moved in. We were just getting used to Dozer when a friend offered us a pure black German Shepherd. Well, I do have a soft spot for German Shepherds, and so now there are two dogs sharing our space. Who would have ever imagined? Certainly not me!!

We’re happy, we’re blessed. We have 8 kids who are grown, and employed! We’ve enjoyed visits with all our kids and their spouses, all 5 of our grandkids, and with family and friends in California, New York and Utah this year. (California for a funeral, New York after our son in law was crushed in a horrible work accident--and made an amazing recovery!) I keep hoping the doctors will find a miracle cure for Mike’s back, but in the meantime life goes forward!


And may the greatest gift of this holiday season, Jesus Christ, continue to bless you and your home throughout the coming year.

We love you and miss you all.


Mike and Karen

Writing at night

Thanksgiving this year was great--happy, traditional, family centered. I should check the blogs more. I used to blame facebook for the slow down in blogging, but I don't have anything to blame for the very little I post on facebook!
Today was day one of year 38. What a lot of years together, and as the song wishes us: And many more!
I love reading Megan's posts. That's really what brings me to the blog spot! Ok, I am rambling.
Good night all.

Deja Vu all over again

Nearly seven years ago Michael and his wife moved to Rio RIco. They stayed with us while they found a house and got settled in. We had been here about a year, our garage was full of the things that still needed to be sorted after a move from a big house to a smaller one. We had two kids living at home, and then a third son came back. We were excited that our married son and his wife were coming to Rio; we looked forward to seeing them, being neighbors, attending church together. . .
But they had three dogs: 2 pit bulls and an old, much loved shaggy little dog.
I am not a dog person generally. We were going to move the younger boys into one room, but I did not want dogs in the house.
I thought it was reasonable for big dogs to be outside dogs, they disagreed. We compromised (?) finally when I agreed that the dogs could live in the garage, and Michael and his wife would also sleep in the garage. We moved our detritus to a storage unit.
This was in Arizona in late summer.
The dogs ended up in and out of the house. We all survived. But, it wasn't the best solution for a young newly wed couple. It's funny the things we dig our heels in on.
Michael moved away. Our grandson who was born here lives in California. I wish. . . .what? Lots of things.

Now a younger son has moved home with his fiance and 11 month old baby. No dogs.
We moved furniture out into the guest house (built since Michael lived here with the hope that it would provide a comfortable place for our kids to come visit, but now used by the missionaries.)
We arranged the other end of the house so that our son and family have a bedroom, bathroom and nursery. It's nice to have kids in the house again.
And, to bring it full circle--we have Megan's dog! Yes. He lives outside, and comes in to sleep in the evenings. He is happy here. His owner thinks he should be an inside dog. . . .
What is it with dogs?

Pretty soon

Pretty soon I'm going to post again