Day 5 – A Time To Visit!

 Day 1 – Day 2 – Day 3 – Day 4 – Day 5 – Day 6 – Day 7 – Day 8 – Day 9 

We were up by eight and decided to have breakfast at the B&B before going to Colleen’s home.  There, we met up with Gale, who always dresses up as a witch during Halloween.

Breakfast was terrific, complete with blueberry scones!

The dining room has yet to change to Halloween, but it will be transformed into a more haunted look today!

The dining room was just as we remembered from last year.

Magic began to occur as Mary stepped out the door, and perhaps I had a unique lens on the camera!  Maybe the place is haunted!

Time to go!

We got to Colleen’s around 10:00 am and spent the rest of the day visiting and getting ready for another family dinner this evening.

We arrived at the Perry’s.

I can remember Colleen as a little girl, and I had to get after her for a messy room.  Today, her beautiful home is immaculate and decorated by a professional, Colleen!  We loved the family pictures on the wall and took notes!

We love family!

Mark is going to BBQ sirloin tips this evening, and Sarah (Jon’s bride)  will make her world-famous oysters.  We needed supplies, including a cake, so we went to the local market.  Logann selected the cake, but we also needed one for Calhan!

We are shopping ahead of a family dinner.

On the way back home, we stopped at McDonalds and, of course, Dunkin’ Donuts!

That morning, Mary attempted to renew her DEA license and discovered that her California Medical License had expired; it was panic time. After calling the California Medical License Bureau, Mary found that the agency needed to send updated cards. You’ll need to go online and print them out.

While at Colleen’s, Mary and Colleen worked together to bring everything up to date.  Mary’s license had NOT run out after all.   Colleen saved us; we needed a printer to print out the medical licenses!  We even went to Staples and had them sealed in plastic.  Now Mary is all up to date!

While that happened, I received a text from Colleen, who recommended my Halloween costume for this year.  I went online and ordered it from Amazon.  I get to be a patriotic Santa.

We are ready to go!

Sarah and Jon arrived first, and then Sarah went to work to prepare the fried oysters.  The aromas coming from that stove were quite impressive.  Mary and I wandered over and watched the process unfold.  And let me tell you, it was like watching a magic show, except instead of a magician pulling a rabbit out of a hat, it was more like watching someone try to assemble an IKEA bookshelf without the instructions!

Mary assists.

I tried to take a picture with our oldest grandson, Jon, but he’s so tall that when I made him sit down, he still towered over me.  It looks like we are taking a photo with a friendly giant!

Our oldest grandson, Jon!

Jacquie and Nate also watched the cooking activities and shared stories with everyone.

Chuck stays close to Mom and Dad!  Emmy will be here soon!

We have four generations below. From left to right, we have son-in-law Mark, great-grandson Chunk (1 1/2 years old going on four), great-grandson Calhan, great-grandpa Liles, and grandson Jon. Another nature has a plan; she improves the looks of each generation.

Four generations!

We cannot leave the girls out!  Emmy demanded equal attention!

We allow girls in also!  Emmy was quite happy.  Where is Jacquie?

Great-grandpa Liles and four great-grandchildren are trying to determine if the beard means he is Santa Claus!  What a collection!

Meet great grandkids!  Logann, Emmy, Calhan, and Chunk!

Emmy had to leave early as she had to return to school tomorrow, so we sent her home with some cake.  This slice was for Chunk!

The cake is a vital necessity!

In the front room, Jackie was charged with watching the kids (including Mark)

Jacquie had everything under control!

The dinner bell rang, and the oysters were ready to make a dramatic entrance!  They rolled in on tiny oyster-sized roller skates, wearing tiny chef hats and performing a synchronized dance routine.  It was quite the show!

I downed six of these puppies, and Mary even had one, even though she very seldom eats shellfish!  They were amazing.  The sheet pan was emptied in minutes, and even the kids enjoyed oysters—imagine that!!

Sarah did oysters!

Mary attempted to help, but the kitchen with Mark, Jon, Sarah, and Colleen all working together was like a ballet… we decided to sit in the first row and applaud!

“Can I help??”

The grandparents also get a full circus show with the four little ones running around the house.

Fun with family!

While heading home, I recalled many thoughts about my daughter, Colleen.  It turns out that she and Joe are just like me in so many ways; Mary agreed!  Seeing them with their own family is a pretty fantastic feeling.

She turned out to be an amazing woman and a fantastic grandmother.

Around 9:00 pm, we headed home to the Silver Fountain, exhausted from a full day of visiting.

Going home… in the dark!