My little brother showed me a great time, introduced me to the intricacies of mandolin and fiddle shopping on Ebay, bought me some Japanese kimono fabric for a (very early) birthday present and took me to visit my nephew Eli and his new bride Rachel. Eli is wearing the CA vintage Hawaiian shirt his favorite Aunt (that would be me) brought him. I was meeting Rachel for the first time. We enjoyed sharing ice tea and chocolate and conversation about the communities we serve. Rachel works with kids who have behavioral challenges, caused by any number of difficulties that you have probably worried about. Eli does work similar to mine. He is planning some fun summer "camps" including a Star Wars Camp, one of his particular favorites!
Here is more family, my Dad and Mattie and, of course, Suzi. Mattie and Dad are both gardeners, as is my Mom, so I come by it honestly. You can see a corner of one of the front yard azaleas. I am always surprised, no matter how many times I notice, there are fewer fences in KY than in CA. Robert Frost and his "good fences make good neighbors" would not go far in KY....
Family visits HAVE to end with picture taking in the front yard.Well, time to fly back to CA....other adventures ahead. My brother the ham....my suitcase is not THAT heavy, although I will admit to shipping a box of fabric home....
Travel to CA. Home to my own bed and my own kitties.
We drove for about 2 hours out east and followed some small windy roads and found Amish greenhouses, some gorgeous petunias, Amish cheese from Ohio, peach jam and picturesque laundry flapping in the breeze.
With permission I took photos of the buggy that is so indicative of the Amish lifestyle. Relected in the windshield, see the house on the hill and the beautiful green that was all around us.
One of the gentlemen who ran a greenhouse on his farm, allowed me to traipse across his back lawn to put my camera into a peony, one of my all time favorite flowers...they say there is a peony that I could grow in OC, but not like these...
I am not sure what flower the bee has found, perhaps a rhododendron?
Give me a peony every time!
Richard, my little brother, resident of Paduah for 30+ years, a great cook and a great eater, knows all of the best places to go! When he first moved to Paducah he had to cajole my mom into shipping him tortillas and refried beans, because there were NO Mexican restaurants or supplies at the Piggly Wiggly...I kid you not. Now, however, there are lots! Artisan Kitchen, while not south-of-the- border, does offer gourmet meals to go AND, now this is the best....excellent desserts including snickerdoodle cheese cake and others that sounded even more decadent! You must arrive before 6pm and you cannot take a slice out of a whole cheesecake, but there are usually 5 or 6 to choose from! Too good to miss.
That is one of the owners in the foreground...pointing out some specialities!
And if you should need some exercise, just wander through the downtown. Here is the facade of the Market House Theater. This building was originally the destination of farmers come to market, close to the Ohio river and side doors that opened to the drays full of produce. Now home to an excellent community theater, it is oftne the center of attention in the uptown area. See their web site at 
Or stop in at Allen Music where all of the locals get their gig needs met...I bought a tee shirt and a polishing cloth for my ukulele....
Have you been to Hancocks? It is warehouse size, but nicely organized and there are lots of nice salespeople to help find just what you need! 
This is just the front of the store. There is a huge back room with flat fold and sale items.
I, of course found fabric I could not live without....some Dia del los Muertos and skulls and some Wizard of Oz too.
Here is Liz with her Dobro....lap played instrument.
Richard plays lead guitar, fiddle and mandolin, writes songs and sings. He is a very talented guy if I do say so myself.
Then Stacy who grew contemplative about God and Nature. See Stacy's work at 
Terry is a junior high English teacher who brings a high level of creativity to her teaching and of course her beautiful quilts. Her work is at 
Here is the outside back cover, mine. I kidnapped the elephant, having found him on a thrift store treasure.
My photos don't do justice to the great colors and creative expression included in the book, but you get the idea! I can't wait to do another one! What do you think CLQ's?
Devon was the ersatz Easter Bunny. Check out those very cool aqua jeans. Pippi and Jack got off to a twisted start...that was Devon's doing. Five times around, eyes closed, then Go Fot It! There were eggs in the trees, in the "jungle"(my friend Becky's/Grammie's flower garden), under and in the patio furniture and EVERYWHERE! 
The Easter Bunny even brought me one! It was pink! There were several bunnies in attendance. Here is one that Pippi made at school.
There were, of course, PEEPS! 
Oh yes, a bunny cake too.
Wendy/Mom and Pippi found princesses in Pippi's eggs and Jack found Stitch! That's Auntie Chris in the background, lots of photo opps on a sunny CA Easter Sun-day.
Somehow I missed getting photos of Uncle Ceaser snoozing on the chaise, Chris playing Hillbilly Golf, great fun by the way, and the wild bunny who hopped across the patio and into the "jungle" while we were enjoying Impossible Pie and Mimosas! Yes of course he was real....he wasn't even pink! Grammie Becky was the instigator, no photos unfortunately, but parties at Becky's are ALWAYS fun! Thanks Becky, now you can rest those sore feet again.
