GOLF CART PARADE

I guess I have to interupt our Kentucky trip to take care of Christmas. Right now we're babysitting a golf cart, so Don suddenly decided we should be in the parade. As a joke, we took Blossom along. Here she is with her own little tree on the back.

Our sign was on the front.

Don rigged up the inverter to our battery charger and we had light.
The elf was ready to drive!

FAMILY FUN

We had a couple serious (?) Texas Hold-em players.

In case you have dirty thoughts-his shirt says Kentucky!

There were also serious ping pong players.

There were lots of gin rummy games which I won and I even beat a few of them at Scrabble. Grandma hasn't lost it yet!

THANKSGIVING

Scott and Jeff flew in on Wednesday night and were there until late Saturday. We had the typical huge meal on Thanksgiving, which was delicious. Jenna helped with some of the preperation, including making Christmas cookies. One of her friends helped too.

Lining up to fill our plates.
Enjoying the meal.
Watching football, some with their eyes closed after dinner.

Yet another wonderful feast!

JAKE'S HOME AT U OF K

Jake is a freshman at the University of Kentucky and seems to be doing very well. It's a pretty campus, even on a rainy day.

This is the dormitory area.

The football stadium is nearby, although they're known for their basketball team.

So, where do the years go? It seems like yesterday that Jake was a cute little blond haired boy who argued with me from the moment he could talk. (He still does!) Now he's making mature decisions and starting his life. Russ and Carrie did a good job preparing him for his future. They're soon to have five teenagers this year-five reasons to be proud! (If any of you remember having teenagers, I'm sure a few prayers would be appreciated.) So far, they've made friends with great kids, done well in sports and have gotten great grades. It will be fun to see what the future holds for them.

HOME, CONT.

They have a nice living room.

And kitchen.

And dining room.

The kids are able to walk to the high school, Joe is bussed to the middle school and it's in a very nice neighborhood. They've all made friends already, like school and work, and seem to be doing very well.

RUSS AND CARRIE'S HOUSE

Since the kids moved to Kentucky and started work immediately, they still have some boxes to unpack, but have settled in quite well. Their house has 5 bedrooms, 31/2 bathrooms, and many other rooms. It also has a tricky driveway-it reminds me a little of Weenie's old one.

This is one direction looking from the patio at the back yard.

It has a large foyer and a loft/computer room at the top of the stairway.

KENTUCKY TRIP

Russ and family moved from Omaha right before school started, to Lexington, Kentucky. They invited us for Thanksgiving, so we flew there for ten days, and did some sightseeing while we were there. We visited the Mary Todd Lincoln house in downtown Lexington.

Mrs. Lincoln lived a very interesting life. She was raised in a prominent family and married Abe, who had no money. Even though she became a First Lady, she had a lot of tragedy in her life. She not only saw her husband shot and killed, but she lost several children also. Her son had her committed to a mental hospital in later years, but she was able to get out and live abroad. A very interesting lady!

It was a lovely house inside, although pictures weren't allowed-the gardens in the backyard were also pretty.