My last post was Memorial Day, so I thought I would catch you up on everything since then. Most of it you already know, but here goes...
In June we went to visit Granny McKeldin in Baltimore, like we always do. She was in good spirits, and really enjoyed her time with Barbara. She went to dinner with us and had her favorite crabcakes, but otherwise they mostly stayed around the "home" catching up on family and friends. In our free time, Barbara and I took walks around the neighborhood, visited bookstores and Buckys, and enjoyed the wonderful June weather in Baltimore. I went to the Naval Academy a couple of times and golfed, which was a special treat for me.
When we returned, we had the rare pleasure of dog-sitting Jameson for a couple of weeks, and we spoiled him rotten. He had the run of the neighborhood and the football field, and was much less concerned about his well-being than we were. We couldn't imagine him tangling with a "rez-dog" or a snake, but he still stuck his nose down every prarie dog hole. When he wasn't sleeping or outside, he sat by the door looking for new friends.
Then Garret and Owen arrived, and we had them all for a couple of days. The kids had fun with Grammy, and we were sad to give all of them back to the parents.
Much to Barbara's dismay, she had to go back to work at the beginning of August, so August and September were same ol', same ol'. But then in October we went back to Denver because Barbara's week off coincided with the Air-Force - Navy game. Brendan, Garret and the Williamses went to the game with me, which was a lot of fun, and Navy won. When we got back to Crownpoint, the Bergs from Kelso arrived for the weekend, and we went to Chaco Canyon, where we had an unfortunate flat tire in the middle of nowhere. Then we went to El Morro and to Zuni. The Bergs also had the experience of going to a Navajo Rug Auction, but did not leave with a treasure.
Speaking of the rug auction, Grampa and Sig have now been to two of them, and they have the bug. So we anticipate seeing a lot more of them in Crownpoint in 2009.
Then came November and December, which were a whirlwind. We planned to go to Vancouver for Thanksgiving, and Denver for Christmas, with a short interlude for Brendan and I to attend the Army - Navy Game. Then Granny took seriously ill, and died just before Thanksgiving, so we also went back to Baltimore for services and the funeral. Brian and Brendan also went to the funeral, which was a great comfort for Barbara and me. We still managed to do everything that was planned, and finished off the year tired but happy.
I'm writing this on January 5th, where we are snowed in at Crownpoint. There has been over a foot of snow that has fallen in the last 2 days, school is cancelled again, so the Christmas holidays will last over 3 weeks. We are concerned that all of the school closures will cause Barbara to have to work into June to make up the days. Well, we will see.
All the best to everyone in 2009. We have a lot to be thankful for, and much more to look forward to.
We love you,
Barbara and John
