California trip--February

We really were not planning to make a trip to California again this soon, but Cheryl's diagnosis sort of changed that.  And at first I was sort of waiting to find out if her Mom was going to make a trip out there, but I found out that she was going to go in March so that she could be there when Matt took his trip to D.C. with his students. So when I found that out, and when I found out that Grandparents' Day at Redlands Christian was going to be on Feb. 12, I got busy checking on air fares.

Cheryl had her first (of 6) chemo treatments on Feb. 1, and I flew out on  Saturday the 6th and came back on the 13th.  By the time I got there, Cheryl was getting past the nausea that came with the chemo, but she was still feeling pretty wiped out.  She also had picked up a bad cough from the kids, and also dealt with a headache that lasted a few days.  So she was not feeling really great the first few days I was there.  So I was happy that I was there to get the kids to and from school, and to spend time with Evan when he wasn't in school.

That Sunday was Super Bowl Sunday, and I went with Matt and the kids to a party with a bunch of their friends. (Cheryl decided to stay home and rest, and I think she enjoyed her quiet day.) The party was in Palm Springs at a home where their friend's parents were spending the winter. The pool was a much bigger attraction than the game for the kids, so I spent a lot of time sitting out by the pool watching the kids.

Josie, with Maddie and Kenzie

Evan with Katelyn

Of course there was lots of good food at the party, and once the kids were done swimming they found things to do in the house.  Evan was pretty outnumbered by the girls in this group, so while all the girls were playing "girl stuff" in one room, he found something to entertain himself in another room. 

He thought this keyboard was pretty cool.

He was checking out all the different buttons

for the different rhythms and beats. 

I really didn't do a very good job of documenting this visit in pictures.  I should have gotten at least one of Evan on his bike, because that was one of his favorite things to do. I did catch him doing some work with his tool bench, though.

Putting on his safety goggles

Hard at work

While I was sitting outside one day, I noticed a hummingbird flitting around near their empty feeder, so Evan and I decided that we'd better take care of that situation. So we made some hummingbird food and filled the feeder. 

Cooking up some sugar water for the hummers

One nice warm day we met Matt after school at a place that sells Icy treats.  Now I know this place has a name, and if I had done this more promptly I maybe would have remembered the name of it.  But......no such luck.  It was a nice treat on a warm day. I think Josie and Evan's lips and tongues showed the color of their treat for quite a while.

The parasols are a cute touch :)

By the middle of the week, Cheryl was feeling a lot better and was up to getting out and doing some things.  On that Wednesday we all drove down to Temecula to meet up with Matt's friend Aaron, who was in San Diego for a conference. We met him for lunch and then spent some time at a park.  We had brought cupcakes along, because it just happened to be Aaron's birthday. (no picture of Aaron, though.)

The cupcakes were pretty amazing!

Friday was Grandparents' Day at Redlands Christian.  Evan doesn't go to school on Fridays, so it was just a Grandma and Josie thing. 

School was dismissed at noon that day so that grandparents could take their grandkids out for lunch.  So I took Josie and Evan to one of their favorite places--Chick fil A.  Seems like it must be a favorite of a lot of kids, because there were lots of grandparents and kids there.

Oops, I almost forgot to post this last picture. Evan sometimes naps in the afternoon, and sometimes he doesn't. When he doesn't nap, he sometimes has trouble lasting through dinner time.  I think this picture was taken on a no-nap day.

 Evan and Puppy--all worn out

And that was my week!  I had an early flight back to Milwaukee on Saturday morning. 

Next post:  February birthdays