Retire In Style Blog Too

Website:  grandparents.com for grandparents, parents and children Check out The Princess and the Frog ...a definite recommendation. List to Grandma Toys (all found in the kitchen drawers) Tape measures Set of measuring spoons Kitchen pasty brush Metal measuring cups Old purse with lots of zippers Sugar scoop Copier paper Old crayons ....all of these are better than anything they have at home!!!! Boy do I love being a grandmother....but when my son-in-law suggested that I might keep them forever I was afraid, I was very afraid!  Really, we can do whatever life demands, but somethings are better left to family much younger that I.  There are circumstances where grandparents must take over that job.   My hat is off to any grandmother that begins raising a grandchild/family at the age of 68.  If that is you, you are my hero! The other day we spent the day with our two grandchildren that are home for the holidays from China.  Their life in Shanghai is lived wit...

The Alhambra, Granada, Espania Tangier, Morocco  Shanghai, Republic of China Where will Tony Wheeler , founder of Lonely Planet be in 2010?  Check this out. Tony was one of the first people to write a travel blog way back in the 1990's.  How long ago and far away!  In the mean time the rest of us were traveling and collecting memories.  Who knew we could have been writing a blog, founding a company and becoming a legend in our own time.  I love this guy's blog/website! Have fun! b

This is a wonderful blog from Crone and Bear It...a Old Decade worth of thoughts. So I am posting a sign that says: WHAT SHE SAID ----> A New Decade Looms…Can We Stop Being Hyphenated-Americans? Having said all I really want to say about the past, let’s leap ahead to the future.  After all, we are entering into a new decade.  Does anyone know what we call this one?  The Tens?  The Teens?  Did we ever figure out what to call the first years of the century…the Naughts, the 00’s?  Year naming is confusing.  I can look back and recall something that happened in  ‘76 and just saying that word…Seventy-Six…doesn’t sound odd.  But in a few years we’ll look back and refer to something that happened in ‘10 and I’m telling you it’s gonna sound funny to refer to the year ‘10.... read more.

Prompt 96: Wanderlust Thanks to Tammie Lee of Spirit Helpers for this week's prompt, wanderlust .   Barbara (bottom right hand corner)  People's Plaza Shanghai, China why do we search the earth wanderlust desire looking for ourselves in exotic places. We are retired.  We have been trying to satisfy the wanderlust that lurked deep in our hearts for all of our working lives.  The journey has taken us to far flung places...Manila, Bangkok , Hong Kong , Malaga , London , Madrid , Seville, Shanghai, Beijing...we have looked in people's faces, bargained for their treasures and returned home only wanting more.  What is that thing called wanderlust?  My grandmother was born on the cusp of a new century riding in a carriage drawn by horses.  Her home was a canyon that held mines and brothels.  The railroad was the one built by her father.  Even though she never traveled to far away places, she lived with her hat hung close to the front door....

I have heard that time passes for an individual in relationship to our size.  If you are a small child you need to nap more because the morning seems like eight or ten hours.  A grown adult, on the other hand, can go for 12 hours without sleep.  Christmas past is forgotten when you are young because it is such a long time between the holidays.  Grown-ups feel that gifts need to be purchased in January because "Christmas is just around the corner!"  No explanation...it is just the way it is! I feel that acceleration of time mostly with my technology toys.  Things change so fast it is hard to keep up.  Year before last we started the tradition of taking pictures of our family adding one person at a time...we called it "Build a Hug!"  The lead up to the final photo was as fun to look at as the final picture.  The first year we even had to crop one grandchild in because he was not in the photo frame!  Sigh! Final Xmas Video 2009 This year we...

Iphone photo  taken on  an early morning walk Christmas 2009 I carry my iphone like a western gun slinger.  The holster on my hip is a part of every outfit.  It serves so many purposes I cannot imagine a day with out it. The plumber came last week to fix the water heater in the crawl space.  The problem was a tiny spider and the web it had built in the gas jet while the heater was turned off.  It turns out spiders love gas.  The repair man could not see the fitting even though the space was lit so he pulled out his iphone and turned on the flash light app.  I could just hear him telling his wife See...I told you that phone was just necessary! When I hang pictures, I use the level app tool and when we travel I use the map to navigate cities and towns.  I find restaurants, phone numbers and take pictures.  Was it hard to learn...well no!  If Amelia (age 2) can do it, so can I.  I may be old but I'm not through having fun! Have a ...

I love raw fish!  Up until a few years ago I would have never said that.  In fact, for those of us that were raised in the United States, it is somewhat of a odd taste.  Then I discovered sushi.  Here in the Portland Metro area all the malls both big and small have a sushi restaurant.  Some have more than one.  We are picking up chop sticks and using them as though we were raised in the far east.  Izakaya (sake) bars with their small plate menu are also very popular. Here in the Orenco Station area we have a new sushi restaurant on our  main street.  Yak i Restaurant and Sake Bar was added to our neighborhood during the time we were gone to Tucson this fall.  This business also has a location in downtown Portland.  That means we can now walk a couple of block and have the choice of five different cuisines.  American, Indian, Italian, Chinese and Japanese.  A wonderful wine shop that has been in business for 7 or more y...

One Single Impression # 95 Junction which road will you chose? how will life greet you in the years to come. we are expected to go this way or that but what if.....! would you want to remain youthful always feeling the uncertainty? or would you chose to fly to the ends of the earth? and then when that day came and the junction arrows pointed toward the completion of your day or the ever lingering twilight which would you chose? b

Image via Wikipedia Living with pain is a part of the challenge of being alive.  The old joke was the patient saying to the doctor "When I raise my arm like this it really hurts!" and the doctor saying "Don't raise your arm like that!" I have many friends that have lost strength in arms, hand, legs and in their body core because it hurts when they move this way and that.  I found last year after joining a Curves program that strength can be regained and skills that were forgotten can be relearned. As a result of this I have come to the conclusion that avoiding the pain is not a good thing.  I think that if you are not injured by a movement that may cause a little pain,  you should just get up and move.  Divert your mind when you get out of bed by thinking about what you are grateful for and then get up and moved.  You will find that you do not remember the small pain, your body gets stronger and you feel better. When you turn over in bed, lead with your arm...

Deviant Art Oregon Beach Sunset So you want good information on buying a new home or moving to a new location. I think you might wonder what cities have to offer and how much housing might cost.  I cannot give you all the information you might need but I can send you to some links that might help you find what you want.  That is what this blog is all about.  Come back often or subscribe to the link so an email will be sent to you when a new blog is posted.  Go back through the archives to find information on RV Travel, park model living and condo life...in Portland, Oregon AND in Tucson, Arizona .  Travel with me around the world.  Take a few minutes and read! ON THE NET Today I found a Twitter page called LocalMoTuc that invites you to ask questions about Tucson, AZ.  You can also subscribe to other cities on their home page and maybe get some of your questions answered.  If you are a Twitter user, this might be a good one to follow.  The...

Deviant Art keijukiset We will be traveling again tomorrow.  The plane will take us to Portland Oregon.  The rains will greet our arrival and probably stay will us until we return to Arizona in three weeks.  I have packed winter clothes so I will not have to dress like a clown and in my closet at home I have cashmere coats that will keep me warm. We will take one computer and turn our wireless internet on as soon as we arrive.  Our family will be our focus for three weeks.   I will cook, shop and then at the end we will return to our little house in the desert.  Then the cactus wren will sing it's song for us and we will be glad to be back home.   Until then our beautiful home in Oregon will be our nest. Have a very Merry Christmas and God be with you all. b