Archive
A family Christmas
The best part of the Holiday Season is family get togethers. Once again, Tanya and Shane did an excellent job of hosting a wonderful family Christmas day. The food was terrific, the entertainment was fun, but family togetherness was the best.
We had: Shane and Tanya, John and Romola, Stacy and Dallas, and John and Val. And of course all those dogs, that (thankfully) also get along together very well. But we did tire them out! Goes with our overeating, I guess. Thanks to all for your being there!
Breakfast in the making
Breakfast being eaten
Tanya, directing the dog choir. Enjoyed by Randy Quaid.
Gift opening
Shane gets a (masculine?) gift bag
John, Val and Romola
Dallas and Stacy
Shane, John, Val and Romola
Lots of wrapping paper
Puzzles are getting to be an annual event
Dallas’ prime rib roast
My plate: prime rib, roasted rib, corn casserole. green bean casserole, stuffing
Group shot
Family painting session
Last week, we had a family “painting” session. Held in Grapevine, TX this is a group painting class that teaches everyone to paint a specific scene or object. We selected to paint a pair of goldfish, viewed from the top down.
These sessions are a fun family group event, and usually includes a lot of snacks, wine, and laughter. Some of our activities shown below.
Tanya, showing her work in progress
Stacy and Dallas are quite upbeat about their painting
Shane and Tanya hard at work
Romola, applying the masters touch
Dallas and Stacy in full concentration
And, our final products!
Halloween party!
Stacy and Dallas thew a most excellent Halloween Party! We all had a great time, as may be seen from these photos:
Romola
Shane and Tanya
Tanya, Romola, Dallas, Stacy
John, Boone, Shane
Romola and John
Boone and Allison
Kurt, Tanya, Shane and Romola
Dallas, playing with fire
Alex, Dallas, Ahni
Stephanie, Jenny
Lyric
Mike and Kurt
Heidi, Stephanie, Jenny
Stacy and Mike
Mike and Lyric, newlyweds
Heidi, Jenny, Dallas, Stephanie (seated)
Alex, Link, Ahni, Nikita
Dallas, Stacy, Mike and Lyric
Machelle, Boone (Romola in Background)
Romola and Shane
Chinese Lantern Festival
The Chinese Lantern Festival has become an annual event in Dallas. This was our second year to visit it, and it was as spectacular as ever. Can’t fathom how much work went into the design, production, and setup of these very complicated show pieces. Pictures below.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12 (note the gymnast hanging on the pole…)
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
Vancouver, BC
Tanya and Shane booked an Alaska cruise out of Vancouver, with a few days beforehand to meet with family. So we stayed in the area so we could join them. We had a great time meeting family and sightseeing! Vancouver is one of my favorite cities, of course, I’m prejudiced since I grew up there….
Thanks to Jack and Cindy for putting us up for a few nights, and Al, Cheryl, Wilma and all the others for their help for a very tasty family dinner! We had a terrific time, especially meeting all 28 relatives!
Since I didn’t bring my computer, this blog covers 5 days and has been severly limited. Yet it is still long, some 30 pictures. Hope you like t TVhem!
A family affair
Since Vancouver ZIsland was only a ferry ride away, we visited my brother Anton (and Ita) in Qualicum Beach as well as sister Ane (husband Dick) in Victoria. We had a great time re-acquainting ourselves, and to talk about old time as well as new. Here are a few pictures:
Anne and Dick, sharing a laugh
Romola and Ita
Anton
Ladies Indoor Soccer League
Went to oldest daughter’s (Tanya) Ladies Indoor Soccer League last night. These ladies played fast and hard, and obviously had a great time. We did too, in the stands, rooting her team on. They lost, 4 – 3, but you know the saying: “its not who wins or loses, it’s how you play the game”. Yeah, right, try telling that to the ladies on the floor….
Geting the ball out of the back court
Going for the ball.....
Corner action, continued....
At the lake
We are in Hemphill, TX on the Toledo Bend Reservoir. Daughter Tanya’s mother-in-law Mary has a really nice place on the lake, some of the nicest real estate in Texas. We have gathered here with family to enjoy the season. We’re playing games, taking walks, enjoying conversation — and eating way too much!
View from Mary's porch
We parked our “house” right next to Mary’s garage. Son-in-law Shane was nice enough to take the time to install a 30A power outlet, so we have all the comforts of home — even if it is freezing outside! Mary’s place used to have a mobile home parked here, so there was an unused 100A line Shane could tap into. Thanks a lot!
Parked in front of Mary's place
And it’s not only us people having fun, Tanya’s labradoodles Buster and Brandy just LOVE to run and get into everything they can!
The dogs love it here!
Laninga's Travel Blog 