December 2008 Christmas Events

Family Christmas Party 6 December 2008
Sara hosts the event and we all contribute, food, gifts and giggles. Kate greets us at the door...













Denise is followed by daughter Avery. Soon after Barbie and Lee made it and even first time attendee Nick made his appearance. Yeah! Nick. Glad you could make it.














Sara adds final touch to the drinks as the group moves in for the appetizers... soon the area is full of the stories, laughter and the click, click of cameras Ah, music to my ears.











Rich & Suzie put their appetizers together, then pose for the camera...almost.













Time to move on to the next phase...dinner for 30... where will they all sit. Most found room in the living room/dining area once the furniture was moved out to the garage.


This years menu included a yummy garlic marinated green olives (Rich & Suzie). Tasty not too spicy salsa & my favorite cheese broiled stuffed artichokes crowns (me). Sara provided the chicken enchiladas in a creamy white sauce, tamales, & corn cake, corn casseroles (Barbie & Denise) and lots of yummy green salads(Stan & Nancy, Rich & Suzie)...beans and rice (Toby or was it Lisa?). Don't let us forget the many bottle of sparkling apple cider, favorite fizzy drink for the kids (Steve & Elizabeth "Izzy")
Head table is always reserved for my Mom or Great Grama Gerry Davis and my Great Great Uncle Chisholm Brown.











Afterward there was more time to mix and mingle before game time... Elizabeth & Steve decide it's time for some hot cocoa while we wait to watch the slide show.

Another favorite event from my earlier years was gather together to watch my dad's slide show. Doing this with the combined DB families meant we got a bonus with Uncle Chisholm's slides too. This year was no different, (except Roger and Linda got the flu and couldn't make it), we saw some really old ones this time...back when the corner of Harbor and 19th Street in Costa Mesa was still farm land...plow horse and all. That slide got some ooohs and ahhhs. Mom proclaimed it to be in the early 1930s and the property was next door to my dad's house at 1865 Harbor Blvd. (Had to include that trivia)

Now it's time to draw numbers for the gift exchange...oh, what will the coveted prize be this year?

A "mandle?" Paul can answer that one...something about a guy gift & a vanilla scented candle....???









The laughter begins to pick up a few decibels. Now a few gifts have been opened & Lee takes his turn. Great Grama Davis has a reputation to maintain and it's a well know fact that she wants no kitchen utensils or pot holders.


Rob always manages to keep us laughing with his one liners. One more time... and it's Nancy's turn...







Things the kids do to entertain themselves ...very creative "pillow people" there Avery and Kate...hot cocoa, and a little computer laughter from Sara's hobby room /laundry room (one in the same for her family of 6) as the boys gather to play Chad's game on line.


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We love the hot cocoa in the snowman mugs. Yum!!









Some of my favorite party faces...
Mom Gerry 89, Uncle Chisholm 95 1/2, Barbie 64, husband Lee 65, Chad 9,











Ayden 5, and sister Avery 10,

Baby Caden Skye next to mommy Taylor from Rich and; Suzie's family, Emily Holmes 14, Toby Ramos 35, son of Barb and Lee, Kate Holmes 6, James 2, Kylie 15, also from Rich and Suzie's family, Rob Brown Stan's son, Rich my brother, Suzie Davis, Nancy Brown Stan's wife, Tanner Holmes 17, Paul and Lisa Ramos Medvene, Steve, Elizabeth Teichrieb Whiting with sons Mathias 4 1/0 & James 2 1/2

November 2008 Rocket Launches in Lucerne Valley, CA

Lucerne Valley is home to "ROCSTOCK"...a monthly Orange County rocket club event held on the dry lake bed off highway 247. Twice a year they hold the really big rocket launches and air space is opened for the "really big" rockets that might cause air traffic controllers some second thoughts had they not granted permission for the flights.

On our way out to the launches we passed a man flying low next to the highway in some sort of ultra light jeepy looking home made thingy. The picture was zoomed out of our car window at about 65mph.

It was a beautiful clear day. Rocket trails went straight up for thousands of feet before the wind caught them...then it was only a slight change in direction.

We enjoy watching the serious " rocketeers." Some were observed by a group of the Civil Air Patrol. A large group of the rocket people spend the night on Friday and participate until Sunday when the weekend event comes to an end. Friday nights launchers show off their skill with LED lit rockets. The fire power is well observed as they take off into the night sky.

The Scouts are out in force during these events, working on their merit badges. Grampa Thomas gets to sign off on those badges as the Science guy.

During previous events we've seen a paper towel size cardboard tube used for the center of the rocket come down "ballistic" right through the roof of one man's new motor home (driven for the first time). We've watched many rockets come down without their parachutes and smash into pieces on the desert harden lake bed. Those are expensive toys to crash. A fair majority spend up into the thousands $$wise just for the motors. That doesn't include the countless hours spend designing and building their rockets. There is usually a heartbreak moment for one someone during these events.

The Boy Scouts love to start out their rocket careers with the smallest rockets...one called the mosquito. They can be shot pretty high considering their small size. We've seen JPL out there and during the June event we've met people from Switzerland and Germany who flew to SO CA desert just for this event.










The last shot is of a rocket that was just visiting the event. The motors to launch cost in the neighborhood of $2,000...they're "saving for the next launch it again some day." Young rocketeers and scout groups are on the scene at most ROCSTOCK second Saturday events between Barstow and Big Bear off 247.