Corona Virus

I've not written in this post since January.  I know. Bad.  But since I got my new computer I haven't been able to access my post page.  Until now.  Rayne, Dom and Allegra are here right now and Dom, after months of frustration on my part, figured out the problem.  So now it works; I can post.  So I am.

The blog format is different now.  And more frustrating.  It just erased my total catch-up entry!  No amount of "undoing" helps.  Sigh.  So now I begin again.  

These are unusual times.  Never-before times.  In March we, and the rest of the world, received a gift from China; the Corona Virus.  It spread quickly, inciting panic all over the world.  The almost universal response was to quarantine EVERYONE!  This has never happened before so no one knew quite how to respond.  Our state governments responded in various forms of pressure for everyone to stay home.  Businesses and schools closed.  Nothing was happening for several months.  Those who ventured out to shop for food wore masks.  In some places they were mandatory.  Life changed as people locked themselves away.  For about a month it seemed to work.  But as time went by people began to risk venturing out.  Many continued to wear masks.  Some businesses failed with the shut-down; many workers lost needed income.  The Government sent most of us money to compensate.  It is a crazy, new world!  How dangerous is this virus?  We don't really know, except to say that it prefers the elderly and those with compromised immunity.  These are not normally in the work force.  So why lock up our workers, who have a high resistance to the virus or who tend to quickly recover when they get it?

It is June now and after going through various stages of reopening the economy, things are almost all opening up.  How will this all turn out?  We have yet to know.  And so I proceed with our lives here, beginning in February.

February offered Seth and Angelica a chance to go to the High School's Sweetheart Ball.  They each had dates and planned it for weeks.  Seth ordered a special jacket for the event.  What do you think?

Angelica also looked lovely but I didn't get to take her picture.  Gerald and Frances were here for awhile.  We so enjoy them and it is good for the kids to have their folks nearby, parenting them in the flesh.  Frances is a wonderful cook and made meals for us most nights they were here.  She's also an enthusiastic photographer.  Here's a sample of one of her shots.

Gerald always get involved with all the kids' activities.  He is a gifted Dad and a blessing to have with us.  

Here's Gerald and Frances, in Taiwan.

We had other family visitors too.  Rayne and Dominic have visited several times.  Dominic loves Idaho so they come to take in the world of Idaho quite often.  In fact, they came just this past week, with Allegra.  Dom loves to bake so he made bread several times.  He also loves to set a fire in our fire pit. We enjoyed a marshmallow roast one night as we took in a beautiful sunset.

Before the lockdown my girls and Rayne came for a girls' weekend.  One of the things we did was paint to a youtube video, using acrylics.  So fun.  Here is the result, showing me, Jessica, Rayne and Audrey.

When the lockdown began, school was cancelled and the kids were home all of the time.  So I began home schooling.  After awhile the high school figured out how to offer classes online so the kids continued their studies that way, ending my homeschooling efforts.  In spite of no outside school, they keep busy.  They are keen on exercise and cooking as well as online school.  Here is Seth working one of his culinary creations.  He shares!

 

Seth is moving in on 6'5" tall now!  Angelica is way into dancing.  She's been working hard on doing the splits.  With lots of stretching, she has accomplished it.  Here she is working on it but not quite there yet.

The glam flavor was accomplished by one of her friends, eager to try her hand at creative photography.

Spring came under quarantine.  Blossoms sprouted all over the neighborhood.  It is hard to imagine a lovelier sight.

We are blessed by regular visits from family, even with the ever-present virus threat.  Thankfully, no one we know has been victimized by it.  Here is a taste of our family visits.

Audrey and Cliff came one weekend.

They were joined by son Chase, his wife Morgan and kids Hunter and, here, Hazel.  Chase just earned his Master's degree and is so excited to be done with school and on the brink of a new job in Utah.

Here is a close-up of Hazel, who we all agree, at one year old, is a feminine version of her Dad.

We had some fun adventures with family but mostly we just hang out together.  Here you can see some genuine bonding between Layne, Angelica, Rayne and Dom....or can we?

Reed and Dorothy live near us now. What a blessing that is.  Here we are immersed in a card game...that I lost soundly with every round.  You can see observer Reed, master players Dorothy and Morgan, winning hands of Audrey, sitting by the hands of Angelica.  I stopped losing long enough to take this shot.

This past week we have enjoyed a visit from Dominic, Rayne and Allegra.  Allegra's birthday is this month so I took her shopping one day and we planned a special dinner for her on Saturday.  She wanted homemade potstickers, and made them herself with the help of Angelica and Rayne.  

As of today, things here are opening up. We can go shopping now and do just about everything almost normally.  It is a new normal.  The death of a black man at the hands of a policeman has set off protest demonstrations all over the country as protestors cry foul, enraged by extremists who love to create chaos and destruction.  What will come of it?  I can't imagine any good thing.  But our life right here in this spot is peaceful and lovely.  I'm grateful for that and pray that peace, intelligence and goodness will be the forces to spread, and that we will be better for the struggles of the past few months.  Here's hoping.

Homeschooling

The Corona Virus still rules.  Shut-downs continue to increase.  We are counseled to stay home and away from other people.  It is a different world!  We are staying home for the most part, but still venture out for the necessities.  Today, Sunday, was a Church-wide fast for the Virus scare to end.  In the meantime, I've started a homeschooling program for the kids.  I've decided that the most important subjects to teach are American History and Economics.  American History because school curriculums these days are quite anti-American.  I can't understand why we would teach our children to have contempt for their own country.  Especially since this country is the best the world has ever seen.  Far from perfect and not without many faults, but I challenge anyone to find a better system or more benevolent country than this one generally is.  So I've started the kids on Hillsdale College's course on American History.  I'm taking it too.

The other subject, Economics, I feel is also important since our children are also being conditioned to think that socialism is a superior system.  Which it most certainly is not.  So we are also beginning a study of Economics and Capitalism.  I'm also having them write and do keyboarding and a little bit on Ethics.  There are many offers of curriculum online that appear in my e-mail since just about all American students are now home.  So there is plenty to do and plenty of choices to help us do them.

Granddaughter Rayne and her husband, Dominic, have been here all of this past week.  They are now working from home, like so many people who are still able to work through this quarantine.  So they made their home with us for awhile and we loved it.  Dominic is full of fun; he cooked for us and so did Rayne.  We broke Dominic into Pride and Prejudice while they were here.  We watched an episode every night.  I think we hooked him on it though he would never admit it.

Here's Dominic at work in the kitchen.  I think I've gained a bit of weight from all the cooking that went on this week.  So yummy!

Grandson Isaiah arrived on Friday night and spent the night with us on his way home to California.  All three of them left on Saturday.  It seems a little empty around here now. 

Here's Rayne and Dom, with Isaiah below, saying goodbye on Saturday.

We had Church at home today.  I really enjoy that.  Layne and Seth blessed the Sacrament and each of us gave a presentation on the Come Follow Me curriculum. 

There is a lot to be said for being home without obligations.  Except for homeschooling, our time is open to our own desires.  I have a lot of personal "to do's" so there are no boring moments.  Perhaps this new experience with wide-spread quarantine will teach us all some lessons in self-reliance and caring for others.  Surely some good will come of it. 

The Post Page Returns

Wow, after several months of not being able to access the post page for this blog, it has suddenly reappeared.  At least on my old computer.  Still no luck on the new one.  So I will give a shot to catching up with three months of Galbraith Gab.

Corona Virus.  There has been nothing to compare with the panic this virus and the hype that has accompanied it has created in the world, in my lifetime.  We are all home; no school for the foreseeable future; many businesses are closed, by government mandate.  Should government have that kind of power?  It seems to me that people are smart enough to deal with the potential dangers without being forced to respond as dictated.  How dangerous is it really?  I can't help feeling that our societal response is overdone.  But I could be so wrong.  In the meantime, I'm enjoying being home with no obligations outside of my own pursuits.

But I awoke Saturday morning with the strong impression that we need to hold a home school curriculum with Seth and Angelica.  So I'm hot to establish one for them, starting on Monday.  They could potentially be out of school the rest of the school year.  Wow.  Imagine kids home for the next 3 months.  And then its summer vacation and more time off!  So study time is coming up.

And so, a quick catch-up.  Audrey, Cliff and family came to our place after Christmas.  It was a full house and so much fun.  We had Adams-Harts everywhere!  We had a Christmas exchange and made our usual visit to Caldwell to see the Christmas light display.  That is always magical.

L to R:  me, Rayne, Dominic, Seth, Timothy, Vincent, Reed, Dorothy and Bruce. 

Friends Pat and Larry Green joined us for a quiet New Year's Eve.  We were a little noisy at midnight though.  Just a bit of a mess after our midnight shouts.

Our winter brought very little snow.  But here is a sample of some that did arrive.  It soon melted.  I love the snow in winter so I'm a little sad about our warm winter.  But there are plenty of other who are rejoicing.

Our great-grandchildren are growing and getting cuter and cuter.  Here are Hunter and little sister Hazel.  Below is Alex, enjoying Seattle snow.

We've got lots of January birthdays, including mine.  Grandson Bruce and I celebrated ours together at Dorothy and Reed's house.  Birthday pie for Bruce.  He reluctantly posed with me below. 

After my birthday I flew to California to stay with my BJ kids for 5 days or so while Ben took his Jessica to Hawaii for her birthday.  It was very busy with 8 babes but so much fun.  I loved spending time with them.  They are kind and obedient and willing to accommodate a grandma's different ways with smiles on their faces.  I feel like I had a good connection with each one.  It it work but so worth the effort for the family connectedness that results.  So I got a babysitting job for my birthday, not a trip to Hawaii but before you feel too badly about that I will tell you that I was compensated with a pair of apple ear buds that are super!  Love those BJs.

The last part of the month my buddy Pat Green and I attended a Shen Yun performance.  "It will change your life" the promise goes.  Well, it didn't do that, but it was a lovely performance that told some Chinese history in dance.  You can't go wrong with dancing, you know.  We had a fine time.

We got most of our medical visits done over these few early months.  It seems that all is well.  My doctor told me that, based on my current health status, I should live another 20 years.  But do I want to?  That would make me pretty old indeed.  Old goes on for such along time, it seems.

Reed took me to the movies.  Just the two of us.  We saw Little Women and both loved it.  It has been a long time since I've been on a date with my son.  It was lovely.  

Angelica came home from Taiwan hot to get her braces.  She even made her own appointment.  How many people do you know that are excited about braces?!  Looks like she will have them for a couple of years.  If you look closely you can see that they are pink.

Eagle High's Sweetheart's Ball happened in February.  Seth and Angelica (especially) talked about it non-stop for many weeks preceding.  It's a girl-ask boy event so there was much ceremony involved in inviting and responding.  Angelica made a special sign for her date and Seth received one from his.  They stressed over it, then enjoyed weeks of preliminary connections to get better acquainted with their dates and have fun with their date groups.  Seth ordered a special Asian themed jacket for the dance.  Here they are, sporting their Sweetheart's outfits, Angelica with her date, Miles.

You know by now that Seth is crazy for basketball.  He played in the JV team for Eagle High, sitting most of the time.  But it's a start and he's optimistic about bigger opportunities to come.  During the season, someone (maybe his mom) took this great picture of him on the court.  You gotta say, he looks pretty yummy.

Gerald and Frances were here over Chinese New Year, and stayed for about a month.  It was great to have them.  Frances cooked just about every night.  Loved that.  She also took lots of photos.  She's good at that too.  Sadly, they left with promises of returning soon.  But then the Corona virus arrived.  So who knows when we will meet again.  Here is a sample of Frances' photos:  Gerald, then me with Seth and Angelica.

March has brought dramatic changes with the Corona Virus.  Our lives are very changed.  No school, no English classes, no nothing actually.  So here we are at home with all the activities that presents.  Just a little confining.  But so far we are having fun. And staying well.  My girls even came for a visit and we painted together.  That's alway a great way to use the time.  Here's me, my Jessica, Rayne and Audrey and our masterpieces!

Thanksgiving and Beyond

At last here I am.  I have had trouble accessing this blog and today, for some magical reason, here I am.  At this Holiday time my heart is full of gratitude, for family and for all the magic that the holidays bring.  Thanksgiving this year was especially sweet for us as most of our family chose to come to our home to celebrate.  We set up numerous beds and cooked tons of food and enjoyed the happiness that comes from being together.  Crazy, wild and wonderful.  Here's a sample.

Angelica, Gerald, Seth; Gerald was with us for Thanksgiving, a first!

Chase and his baby girl, Hazel.

Seth has his Dad's touch with children; Audrey's grandson Hunter loves him.  

Sisters, Tia and Olivia in their fancy dresses.  Daughters of Ben and Jessica (number 2).

Game time for Vincent (L), Jacqueline (center), Angelica, and Abigail (back view).

Daughter Jessica holding nieces, Tia and Olivia.

Olivia, rearranging the "what-not".

Two beautiful granddaughters, Angelica and Peyton.

Grandchildren born the same year, 2002; Miles, Jacqueline, Seth and Vincent, in poses to match a photo of them as babies.  Take a close look.

Another set of grandchildren born the same year, 2003; Angelica, Timothy, Peyton, and Alexis, posing to match their baby picture.

Jessica makes sure we always have a puzzle to work on.  Gemma, Alexis and Jessica are hard at it.

The whole gang gathered after dinner upstairs for a Thanksgiving discussion.

Some of us walked through the sights in Boise.  Here are Miles, Gemma and Vincent in a jump.

It was wonderful to have family here with us.  By the end of the week everyone left for home.  Christmas is soon to follow; perhaps too soon.  We began singing with our singing group the Monday after Thanksgiving.  We had performances most weekdays for two and a half weeks.  It was so fun but demanding.  Layne sang a solo with us, "Hallelujah".  He was fantastic.  

After our singing was finally finished this past week, Layne and I drove to Utah for a couple of days.  We spent the first day and night with Bob and Maryanne and the second with Lynn and Camille (Layne's twin brother).  It was lots of fun even with a quick trip.  We are home now with a couple of days to get ready for Christmas.  I think I can do it.

Granddaughter Angelica flew back to Taiwan to have oral surgery and will be there for the whole school vacation.  So it is Seth and us for Christmas.  I'm so glad that Reed and Dorothy now live here as we will spend Christmas Eve and Christmas with them.  Otherwise it would be a quiet Christmas.  But quiet or busy, the holidays are sweet.

October"s Rush

I'm glad that our family October birthdays come early in the month.  Because the rest of the month was filled with trips and visits.  So much so that the month sped by with not a moment to write about it.

Our fruit trees have outdone themselves this summer.  We spent lots of time processing those treasures.  By October it was apples that were left to us.  Our tree was loaded.  So I've been fitting in processing apples in between travels.

Seth and Angelica were in a fall concert at school, along with grandson Vincent, who now lives here.  The concert was amazing, as they always are.  Don't these three look great together?

My two girls and I planned a weekend together on Oct 12th.  We decided to go to McCall so I made reservations for Saturday and Sunday nights.  Then we discovered that grandson Jonathan was going to be baptized the morning of the 12th, in Palo Alto.  Whoops.  The reservations were not refundable.  So we made a quick plan.  Layne and I would fly to San Francisco Friday morning, spend some time with the family, attend the baptism Saturday morning, then fly back to Boise as quickly as we could.  So that's what we did.  Except the family wasn't available for bonding on Friday.  So I called my cousin Judy.  No answer.  Then I called my friend Hedy. She was in Utah.  So I called our foster daughter Michelle.  She was working.  We then tried our buddy Beverly Trutner.  She was sick.  Hum.  It was turning out to be rather a lost day.  We decided to go to the Oakland Temple and hang out on the grounds, eat some lunch and take a nap.  So we did.  It was there that we ran into an old friend from our Fremont days. We had a great visit.  It turned the tide of almost feeling depressed.  It was at last time when we could get in a visit with Ben and Jessica.

Here is the baptism boy, Jonathan, with his younger sister, Tia. 

That turned out to be fun.  Ben worked on my old computer and then talked me into getting a new one!  That was exciting.  He drove me to the Apple store in his Tesla.  It was an amazing ride; it almost drove itself.  In fact, for awhile that's what it did.  The technology in that car made our new little jeep seem outmoded.  But I still like the jeep!  We spent the night in a motel (no room at Ben and Jessica's), attended the baptism, where Jessica's dad spoke on baptism and I spoke on confirmation.  Fun times.  Then we headed for home, arriving about 5:30 PM.  Got Audrey and we drove to McCall and met Jessica at our motel there.  It was lovely.

Here is our motel, on the night we arrived.  Doesn't it look lovely?

We talked and walked on Sunday, then drove around the Payette Lake.  Lovely.  Altogether we walked about 6 miles.  It was a good day.  Audrey and I even managed to fit in a sacrament meeting at a local chapel that morning.  Monday we walked through the little town and found some bargains, then drove home after lunch.  Audrey flew home and Jessica spent that night with us.  My buddy Margie Thomas arrived just after we did and also spent the night.

Here are Audrey and Jessica just as we were beginning our Sunday walk.

Here's the three of us in Ponderosa Park.

Tuesday morning Jessica headed for home (I gave her some apples) and Margie and I drove up to Richland, Washington, to visit our good friends Gary and Nora Jacobson.  She is ailing a bit so we want to spend some regular time with them.  They are two of those special and rare people that are loving and pure of heart; eternal friends.  (I brought them some apples).  After a sweet visit, we drove back home the same day.  Margie spent Tuesday night with us, then drove back to Salt Lake (I gave her some apples too).

On Thursday I drove to Draper to visit my sister, Maryanne and her husband Bob.  I forgot to bring them apples.  But I did bring her a birthday gift and some pear jam (from our pear tree).  We did our usual visiting and started writing our grandmother Margaret's life story.  That was such fun.  We looked through all sorts of photos and records and it made her come alive again.  I'm anxious to write her story!  I drove back home on Monday. Here's a picture of the two of us, in Maryanne's study.

After a few days of recovery, granddaughter Allegra flew in for a a few days on Thursday.  It is always a treat to have this redhead with us. She stayed until the following Wednesday.  She is full of ideas and shares them readily.  I love it.

Halloween soon followed and the end of a very busy October.  The colorful leaves of fall have now faded into a dull brown.  It looks like winter now, only without the snow.  Fall is a wonderful time of year, full of cool temperatures, winds, showers and beautiful colors.  I'm sad to see it go.

Last Wednesday Seth got his driver's license!  He is a free man and celebrates it every day, so far, with various drives and errands.  Much of our travel time taking the kids to their various activities is now provided by Seth.  He's enthused about it so far.  I wonder how long that will last?  It is making for more open days for us.  Pretty fine!  Here he is, plenty happy with himself.

Now to finish up the apples.  Pie perhaps?