New toy!

Well, it came in yesterday! I noticed an ad for a small scanner that would convert old 35mm negatives to digital, and it finally arrived! It's about the size of a large cup of coffee, and it's a breeze to use.
One of the first film strips I found was some I took of the "Fall of the Wall" back in November of 1989. It is strange to think that this all happened 19 years ago! I was living in Berlin at the time, flying the corridors as a pilot with PanAm's Inter German Service. This is a photo of the Brandenburg Gate on the 11th of November, 1989. Those guys on the Wall are East German Volks Police.

This photo was taken on the return leg from Istanbul back into Berlin. We would takeoff just before the curfew of 10 pm, and return after the end of the curfew at around 6 am. The cockpit of that old 727 was COLD! The insulation had been removed years before, and it was icy up there until the sun came up.

Just another view of the Brandenburg Gate. The crowd was ecstatic! And the place was crawling with TV crews from all over the world. CNN and NBC had crews just to the left of my spot.

Yeah, I had to peck on the Wall for some chunks for the folks back home. There was a major shortage of hammers and chisels for several weeks. I was beating on the Wall here with another lad from Amarillo, Gary Boyd. Gary passed on a year of so back.

I'll be careful when I add photos from my old stash. I don't want the kids throwing rocks at me when I post an oldie of them picking their nose, or some other blunder...

Thanksgiving Dinner

Every family in the country probably had turkey for the main entree for Thanksgiving Dinner. We were no different, here's the evidence. Oh, it didn't come with feathers!
Also, it didn't come ready cooked. Judy roasted it in her roaster for about 6 hours, and it was done to perfection.

This was the finished article, before the slicing and dicing began, I'll spare you the image of turkey bones and other such refuse...

However, the diners were thankful and hungry. This was Peyton's first attempt at forks.
Hayden managed to stow away his share of the goodies, now, he's waiting for PIE!
After heavy feasting, things get a bit drowsy. Hunter didn't really get that interested in football.
Hannah managed to charm her way through the menu, if she has never tasted something, it has to be inedible No amount of cajoling or pleading will get her to try new and tasty offerings.
Well, Thanksgiving 2008 in a fresh memory now, some of the family made Black Friday forays into the Christmas rush traffic, but Momo and I just enjoyed having the three Blankenship grandkids for the evening, breakfast and lunch. Great kids, great fun.

The whole Amarillo family is looking forward with great anticipation to Christmas. We will have a crowd here at the house, us, the George family, Wayne, Kari and Carson, and the Fields clan, Mike, Holly, Zach and Will. We have 5 bedrooms in this house, but only 3 bathrooms. It will be cosy! With the 9 of us in the house, I expect long lines at the bathrooms. We can manage, this is what family is all about.

Just had to show this photo....

Once again, Judy has shown that she is a better photographer than I am. Of course, she did have a fantastic subject. Clik on it to make it larger.

One way to spend Sunday

Well, as usual, I got the cart before the horse when I loaded these photos. This is the result of a couple days work by a tile setter. He's almost finished tiling Judy's bathroom (carpet was a major mistake 11 years ago) and later, you will see the tile setters best side, at least that's what he said...
This is a new concept, multitasking in the bathroom. I don't think it will be a permanent solution, nor does it save water...

This the tile setter, doing what he does. He's a hard working guy, and has an assistant to cut the tiles to his specification.

Even after a few days with temperatures in the twenties, there are several plants that still have blooms...here's one

Here's another. The leaves on the cottonwood trees are all gone, but the red oak will hold on to it's leaves until after Christmas. I have to leave the bird net over the pond until oak leaves drop.

This is Thanksgiving week. We will celebrate with Wendy's family and Brad's. but dinner will be a late affair, probably around 6 or later..Meanwhile, here's wishing all of you a Happy Thanksgiving feast....

KINDER CHURCH

Last night (11 November) was the dress rehearsal for the upcoming opening of our children's wing of the new church addition. Following are a few photos of the facilities for the birth to kindergarten kids. There is another wing (upstairs) for the first thru sixth grade kids. We open this coming weekend! Several of the volunteers and nursery workers brought their kids to try out the security system, and to see if the planned procedures are workable.....
The main attraction is the indoor playground. This is HUGE! The bigger kids come here right after check in and get to play until the start of services.

This room is gigantic! I think you could drop a couple of houses in here and have room left over! The kids really gave it a workout.

There are dedicated spaces for each age kid. Comfort and security are paramount throughout the facility. This room is for the 2 year old kids.

This is one of the rooms dedicated to the 18 month old crowd. Lots of chairs for snacks, and there is another room just like this next door.

Colorful murals decorate the halls and the nursery rooms. There are two larger rooms in the kindergarten and 4 year old kids room that have stages!

While the big kids get to play on the slides and jungle gyms shown earlier, this is the toddler play ground.

The main sanctuary won't be open until February. It is also gigantic, seats over 4,000, and will be theater in the round. I will post photos of that when available...

Our grandkids will be able to attend here. Hannah and Hunter will be upstairs with the big kids, and Peyton will be down stairs with the infants thru kindergarten.

Security is always the first consideration in a facility such as this, especially after the episode in Colorado Springs, last year. Entering the facility where the kids are is allowed only with the badge made at check in. There are only two doors in, one upstairs and one down, and both of these are controlled by security.

First haircut

If having children and watching them grow up is deeply satisfying, then watching your grandchildren grow and mature is a quantum leap above satisfaction. Today, we watched our youngest grandson, Peyton Gresham Sanders, get his first haircut. The barber is a close and dear friend of Brad's, and calls himself Peyton's Uncle David. Since David's shop is basically a beauty salon, barber chairs are not in use, and Mama Paige got the privilege of holding our squirming little guy.
Since we have 6 older grandchildren, 5 boys and our only little petunia, Hannah, this was not really a "first" but still it was a very moving day. I made a short video that I wanted to post, but alas, it is a huge file, and after 30 minutes of trying, the blogosphere balked, and I had to resort to stills.

Probably due to Peyton's familiarity with David, it was fairly easy. There were no tears (at least from Peyton) and he seemed to enjoy the attention.

Yes, we saved lots of those little locks for his baby book. His granny (MoMo to him and all the other grandkids) stuffed several nice bunches in an envelope just for such use.

This is why it's called FALL!

Every October, we rig the bird net to keep the cottonwood leaves out of the pond. You can imagine just how big a mess it would be if I had to dip these leaves out of the water. It would be an impossible task! This is before using the leaf vac.....
More evidence of a healthy cottonwood, and the presence of our trusty bird net. It works!

Now, you can tell how well the vacuum works. I had to empty the bag three times. We use the bagged leaves, now about 1/10 the volume, as mulch in the various flower beds bordering the lawn.

Even the deck and my outdoor kitchen are clear. Nope, I know it won't last. I'll have to do this again next week, probably keep vacuuming leaves into February because the red oak waits until January or later to shed.

Here it is, the second of November, and the temperature hit 78 degrees! Normally, we would be wearing heavy jackets, a scarf and fur hat. Today, we went to church in shirtsleeves! I am still feeding the fish since the water temperature is still in the 60's. Weird weather, but I'm not complaining. Indian Summer! What a glorious Indian Summer! Fantastic weather, I have never seen it so mild this late in the year.