Township tour

Last week we went touring in two townships in East London. Here is a little video I recorded at a primary school we visited. They were rehearsing for a fundraiser for the school. We had fun with the children, knowing that Gavin will be doing stuff like this soon.

We took lots of pictures, some of which you can see at Patricia's Blog.

Phone in Germany

When we arrived, we were somewhat lost without a phone here in Germany. Our friend Holger came to the rescue and loaned us his son Tim's old phone. So last evening, we met Holger at Timones, my favorite Italian ice cream place in my old haunt Sillenbuch, to thank him and hear stories from his recent trip to London with his son. And lots of pictures on his phone.

Patricia getting ready to watch Holgers London pictures

San Diego Fair Photo Entries

Once again Patricia has hit the jackpot.  She entered 5 photographs for the Exhibition in the San Diego Fair and 3 were accepted.  Yay!!  Winners will be announced on June 7, and she may or may not be one of them.  In any case, a ton of people will see her pictures and admire her work - and our grandson, one of the accepted entries.

Our Grandson, Gavin titled "Wide-eyed Wonder"

Black Faced Monarch photographed in Australia in 2011.

Sydney Opera House from the Inside looking out.

These are the two that weren't accepted.  Go figure!

Eastern Spinebill from Australia.

Cattai Wetlands "Lilies Forever" Australia

We're on the move agin

After having had a few great days with Mom, we are leisurely making our way back to Oceanside.

Mom looks better than ever at 96. Hope I look half as good.

Our first stop was Nevada City for dinner and an overnite with Cathy, Patricia's cousin. We love spending time with her; she is such a ball of fun.
From there, we went over to the coast to Templeton, south of Paso Robles, where we stayed for two nights at a place we found on AirBnB.  This is a great place in the middle of vineyard country with lots of wildlife and wide open spaces to enjoy. (Deer and wild Turkey)

Better pictures to come from Patricia

We spent the day checking out the area, and walking along the beach in Cambria, and it gave Patricia a chance to take some great photos.

There is a flower here somewhere.

We also went to check out the stores in Cambria and found a great accessory for Patricia.

This looks like a perfect fit.

Tomorrow, we move on to Santa Ynez where Patrica grew up stopping first in Santa Maria to visit her uncle Bob (Cathy's father).

Wow what a ride

The New Year has started, and I have had almost no time to finish the old one.  I could easily have used another month.
Counting backwards, on the last day of 2012, we saw Nicole and Daireus off to their new home in Denver, Colorado.  We wish them all the happiness and may their dreams come true.

Daireus, Patricia and Nicole

Daireus, Nicole and her parents, Ken and Tracy

This year was Gavin's first Christmas, one of many firsts to come.

OK what am I supposed to do now?

Aariel and Oma feeding Gavin

Patricia is now officially retired.  December 21 was her last day at GENI, and I think she will have fond memories of the many years spend there interacting with all the young people from all over the world.

On her last day, some of Patricia's pictures were projected on all the screens

Patricia in the hot-seat, telling her side of her story.

We spent a few great months with our friends Whitney and Don in University Heights. We discovered it's a bit different than living in the burbs.

Don & Whitney

Then there was Mom's 96th Birthday. We went to see her in Fallon, Nevada, and had a great time staying with Patricia's sister, Barbara, and George.

Pretty good for 96, and it has all to do with genes and lots of walking

The sister act, Barbara and Patricia

On this trip, Patricia wanted to show me San Francisco.  We loved spending three great days there, just hanging out and experiencing the town.

Patricia is in paradise at Britex, four floors of fabrics and notions.

Of course, we do need to take photos for the memories

Here she is, living dangerously

On September 22, Daireus and Nicole promised to spend their life's together, and what a party it was.

They made it

Then there was, for us, the most important event of this century, the birth of Gavin Fischer Paradee, a gift to all of us.  Please note the middle name:>)

Gavin graced the world on September 16, 6 1/2 weeks early.

Arriving at home at last, almost too small for the car seat.

Introduction to the family, he seems to take it in stride.

These are only the last four months.  All in all a busy year, and if you follow the blog, you got most of what happened earlier in the year.
We wish everyone a Happy and Prosperous 2013.
Stay in touch; we love to hear from you.

Taking pictures of the picture takers

Last night we had a great time at the Photographers' Reception at the Del Mar Fair (Diego County Fair) where we could see Patricia's and Tom's pictures displayed.
To top it all off, both got awards: Patricia got 2 Honorable Mention for her beautiful photos, and Tom got first price with his stunning picture of a beetle.
Here are the happy photographers.

Patricia with her 'Grevillea with Raindrops' (Australia)

'Grevillea with Raindrops'

Here is a quick video on how some of the judging is done.  After the experts
have their say, the viewers put a piece of paper on the picture they like, and those are then counted.

'

Patricia showing her 'Forest of Fangorn' taken in Australia.

'Forest of Fangorn'

Here's Tom, the first price winner in his category.

Tom with his First Place prize.