Christmas Parties Were Great!!

12-25-08 - This was our first party with the Gienger side of the family. Had a great time with gifts and good food. Then had to catch-up on what was going on with family members. Did our usual gift exchange and everyone was happy. We are so blessed.

12-26-08 - Had our own family Christmas at our house. The ten of us just fit into our small home. The four grand kids had a lot of great gifts and they all enjoyed opening the stockings. Even the parents had stockings to open and that is always fun. Then had a very good meal and lots of sweets. Then did our usual family pictures to remind each of us that we were here. It was really a nice time with all the snow outside.

12-28-08 - This was our final gathering of family for a Christmas celebration and it was for the Crabtree side. Had a smaller group this year as one family had some sick kids. Had a men's exchange for gifts and also the ladies. Then had way too many sweets, and other good food for a great time. Got in the picture taking so we all remember the event.

Thats all the Christmas parties for another year and was a great time.

Just about packed to head South!!

12-29-08 - Wow time is short!! We have been busy all day putting thing into the Motor Home and doing things in the yard. Taking down all the Christmas lights and getting everything ready for a Wednesday take off. Will be on the road early on the 30th of December. Can't wait to get away from all the cold and snow we have had in December this year. I think we had a grand total of about 25" of snow. It was really beatify for the Christmas stuff but also a lot of work, shoveling snow, etc. We went for about 14 days before the temps got above 32 degrees. We got some pretty good pictures to remind us of all the snow.

Are planning to get to Happy Trails RV Park, Surprise, AZ by Saturday afternoon if everything goes well. Their weather hasn't been real warm either but the 50's plus will beat the 30's and 40's.

Pickleball Court covered in snow!

Our pickleball court covered in snow.
Patio table covered with about 15" of
snow. You can see the pickleball post
just behind the table as the net had
been put away!

Snow at 600 Garden Dr, Lynden, WA

Lots of snow at our home at 600 Garden Dr.
in Lynden, Wa - In fact we have a total of about
15" on the ground.

Christmas Eve and all is quiet!

12-24-08 - Wow! We are really going to have a white Christmas as we woke up to 8" of new snow on top of about 5". Then it snowed until late afternoon today with another 3" of snow coming down. Which meant more snow to shovel. I have been busy shoveling around our home to make room for cars to be parked tomorrow for the Gienger Christmas. Our temperature stayed at about 26 degrees all day.

Ione has been busy in the house getting everything ready for the big Christmas tomorrow. Which also means there are lots of goodies laying around to snack on. Wow this is really a good time of year and the mean reason is to celebrate the birth of our son Jesus.

Talking about a quiet Chrismtas Eve is exactly what it says as these folks don't have anything on
tap for tonight. So I guess we will take in a little TV, etc.

A Day of Shoveling Snow!!

12-22-08 - Time is really counting down and Christmas will be here before we know it. Today was a busy day shoveling snow from around some rental property we have. Then after that was done and came home. Had to do more shoveling in our yard so there is enough room for people to park for our 1st Christmas which is the Gienger's one and that is Christmas Day afternoon.

So after all the work this older guy was ready to rest and take it easy. Oh, I had to run down to Lynden Service Center and bring home the motor home. It needed a little work, replace a couple of springs on the rear leveling jack. Then had to have a transmission repair kit installed because we had some leaks. So mission accomplished and think we are getting closer to heading out of this mess to the warmer country.

This evening we have a special guest, Jada Renee our youngest granddaughter for a sleep over is that is going to be fun. She had been practicing reading for her assignment for 1st grade, and her and Grandma are playing Go Fish!!

That's it for today and the wind is still blowing and the temperature is about 26 degrees. So that is about 10 degrees higher then we have been getting the last few days.

Snowy Sunday Morning!!

12-21-08 - Alter the night of snow we played hooky and didn't go to church today. I have a little bit of a cold and Ione was preparing for her girl friends party in the afternoon. She has three friends and they get together for special occasions. So they had a fun afternoon and I went to dinner with Mark Heutink at The Nuthouse Grill. That we explored around in his 4-wheel Drive P/U to check and see how bad the roads were West of Lynden. Really the snowplows had done there job and the road weren't bad. No more snow today and that was good. We watched a really good Christmas movie in the evening after everyone had gone home.

Waiting for the big Storm!!

12-20-08 - We are still waiting for the big storm, consisting of high winds and 3-6 Inches of snow. So far we aren't getting this storm and will check again in the morning. It is 10 PM and time to call it a day.

We had to make another run down to the grocery store before the new big storm. So I think this may be the last trip before Christmas. We are so blessed in America and have soo much!!

We didn't have to wait long as about 10:15 the snow started to fall and by morning we probably had about 3" more snow but was hard to tell because of all the wind that was blowing and drifting the snow.

No 2 UConn rallies past No 8 Zags!!

12-20-08 - The game was played before a sell out crowd at Keyarea in Seattle. This was a good game all the way with Gonzaga leading with 12 minutes to go by 11 points. In order for UConn to catch up they throw up a bunch of 3 pointers. They hit one at the buzzer to go into OT. The game was tied 74-74. Then in the OT Gonzaga lost another player via fouls and just couldn't pull the game out and ended up losing 88-83. This was a great game against two well coached teams.

Stocking up on Groceries!!

12-20-08 - Time to stock up on groceries before the big storm arrives this evening. The weatherman says we will be having high winds (60 miles an hour) and from 3" - 6" of snow. Should be a very interesting night to say the least. The temperatures have been down in the low teens so not nice for upside work.

I believe we have enough food to last for all three Christmas's we are going to celebrate this coming week. The schedule is Gienger Christmas on Christmas Day afternoon. Then on Friday the 26th we will celebrate our family Christmas. Then on Sunday we celebrate the Crabtree Christmas. We are very blessed to have all our family within about 100 miles and can get together for this special day.

Winter is still here!!

12-19-08 - Wow! It is really cold here in Lynden. We have a temperature of 14 degrees and no more new snow a good wind is blowing. So not a day to do outside projects. The snow is drifting some so not making for a good day.

Lynden Lions Girls Basketball!!

12-16-08 - Well the Lynden girls ventured over to their old rival's gym at Ferndale High School.
We were not disapointed and had a whale of a ballgame. In the 1st halve Ferndale used a strong man for man defense. So Lynden just couldn't get their offense going. We were like two points apart at halve time.

The second halve started out a lot better. We used a pressing halve court defense and also used a zone defense. This worked very well for us and kept our offense working much better. Then down the stretch we were getting to the free throw line often and at one time 8 in a row. So in the end we prevailed and won the game 64-55. So now our girls are 4-0 for the season.

Packing Motor Home to Head to Arizona!

Well, this cold weather sure has stopped us from doing any outside projects today. I still have lots of shrubs to prune but they will have to wait. So worked on getting things ready to install two flat screen Digital TVs. A 22" up front and a 19" in the bedroom of our motor home. Have ti stay ahead of the networks switching from analog to digitial signals. Also getting all our paperwork in order before leaving. Ione was a busy beaver getting clothing, etc. ready to put in. Can't put things in until it gets warmer.

Lynden Boys Basketball!!

12-15-08 - Our Lynden Lions boys team just won their 1st game of the season against Blaine. It was a close game down to the wire. Lynden boys only had one week to practice after coming off a football season that got them a State Championship in Football 2 A. So they were rusty but ended up winning by 7 points.

Northeaster is still blowing!!

12-15-08 - The temperatures in the low 20's and not fit for man to do anything outdoors. So we will see how long these winds and temps hold on. They are saying later in the week the wind will slow down.

Lynden Lions Girls Basketball!!

Our Lynden girls are off to a very good start and are 3-0 for the season. Our granddaughter Jessica plays on the JV team and has been doing pretty good. She is one of the tallest on her team and is averaging about 5 points a game.

Sunday 12-14-08 - Not much snow but really cold!

Well our Northeast winds are still at it and the temperature is 21 degrees at 9 AM. They are saying some more snow this afternoon will keep you posted. Well the snow didn't come this afternoon. We went Christmas shopping and got a few things for the big day. This is our favorite time of the year except could do without this cold.

Northeast Winds & Snow!!

12-13-08, 11 pm - Is it cold or what. It is now down at 20 degrees with winds at about 25 miles an hour. We don't have a lot of snow but the wind is soo strong that the snow can't hit the ground. We can't wait to get to some warm weather. Will sign off for now and see what tomorrow brings.

Cedar Park 8th Grade Basketball!

12-11-08 -We went down to Cedar Park Christian School which is located in Bothell. Evan had a game with Bellevue Christian School. When we got to the gym and were watching them warm up we weren't sure our eyes were working right. Bellevue has a boy on their team that is probably 6'5" and this is 8th grade. He was a problem for us at times. We were leading by about 10 points with about four minutes to halve time and the coach put in ab out three subs. Well they cut our lead really fast and at halve time we lead by 1 point. So the second halve was a dog fight and the most we ever lead was by about one or two points. Well we came out with a win 44-41 and Evan was our leading scorer for the team as he ended up with 22 points. So Cedar Park!!

Lynden Lions Football Team - 1st in State!!

Saturday Dec. 6th. We went to the Tacoma Dome to watch Lynden play Prosser. We just about didn't go because there wasn't a seat in the car. We didn't want to drive by ourselves. Then Pam & Brett had room so we went together. Sure glad we were there. Lynden played a really good Prosser team which won State last year. We weren't doing that well and we down 21-6 with 2 minutes 22 seconds left in the game. Well we score a touchdown which makes it 21-12 then make a 2 point conversation which makes it 21-14. We weren't done and kicked an onside kick which took a Lynden bounce and we recover. We are on the Prosser 47 yard line and two plays later are on their 4 yard line. One play later we are in the end zone, score is now 21-21. So we go into OT and we each score in the OT now 28-28. Then in the second OT we score first and lead 35-28. They then score and now it is 35-34 and they try a 2 point conversation. We knock down the pass into the end zone, WE WIN 35-34. So our kids got an early Christmas present. Great game!!

Yard Work!!

Wow! Where has the time been going. I have been trying to prune all the shrubs at four different places and the weather hasn't been cooperating. So have our home done, Ione's mom's is done and am now working on our neighbor Janet's yard. Just about 1/3 done there. So the beat goes on.

Ready for Zip Lines!!

Faster then a speeding bullet. My first Zip Line
station ride, what fun!!

Well we are now ready to do some Zip Line

touring from those stations high in the mountains.

Staging area for Zip Line with Canopy River Tours

11-13-08 -This is is the staging area where we all got
our gear, safety talk, etc. What a fun time
getting ready to fly on a Zip Line 700 ft. above the Cuale
river and we did this from 10 different stations.

2A Volleyball Tournament at Kennewick, WA on Friday November 21 & Saturday 22

Go Lynden Girls Volleyball!! We came into this tournament with a 16-1 record and high expectations. First game on Friday was at 2 Pm. First on the list was Othell High School - their record 8-6. We played three pretty good games and won 25-12, 25-17 & 25-14. Next opponent was at 8 PM Friday with Pullman which was a good team with a 6'4" Sophomore, 6'1" Sophomore and just a good all around team. The first game was close with a 25-22 win, next game we lost 23-25, then we win 25-23 and then cruise in final game at 25-15.

This puts us into the quarter finals and we have a really good team ahead. They are the Tumwater Thunderbirds and come into the tournament with a 14-0 record. We start in and things didn't really look good. We just couldn't get into a rhythm and lost 18-25 and the next game started better but just couldn't put them away and lost 23-25 so our backs are now to the wall. We are now down 2-0 and have to really focus. We come out and did better winning 25-19. So the next game is a must win and we can't service from the get go and still make it close and lose 23-25. Our dream of a State Championship is now gone. The girls held their heads high and didn't give up. Will be now playing for 3rd place. So Saturday about 9 Pm we finally start our game against Black Hills Wolves. On paper they are also a pretty good team and only lost three games all season. We have three close games and win 25-21, 25-18 & 26-24. So we come home with a trophy and the girls are happy. This was a fun tournament held at the Toyota Center in Kennewick and was a really nice facility. This is the best finish for Lynden in three years and maybe the best ever. Wait until next year!! When our granddaughter Jessica Biesheuvel and her friends get the team going for a great 2009 season.

Evan's Select Basketball Tournament - Woodinville

Evan's team had their first basketball tournament of the season at Woodinville High School November 8th and 9th. They started out great and beat Ingelmore 43-34 and Evan had 10 points. Next they had a win against Juanita by a score of 54-31 and Evan had 4 points. Next on the list was a big fast team from Woodinville and we came up short, losing 51-29 with Evan getting 6 points. Then the way the tournament was set up we had to play the same team again for the Championship and we didn't do much better and lost 63-40 with Evan having 9 points. Since this was the first games of the season the boys did well. So Evan ended up the tournament with a total of 29 points. Good job Evan.! GO BOTHELL!!

Canopyriver.com, Puerto Vallarta, Mexico

While on vacation in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico from Nov. 10th thru the 19th. I treated my self to my 71st birthday present. Which was the zip line tour that you see on this slide show. It was a really a fun time and Ione did take some photos. She wasn't about to go on of these lines and be over 700 feet above the Cuale River. There were 10 different stations on this tour and would recommend it to anyone. The company was very safety minded and had no problems.

Zip Line at Puerto Vallarta

Lynden, WA

This is our landmark on front street in Lynden.

The Windmill is really a hotel as there are a total of 7 rooms for rent. It is a very nice thing.

The other photo is front street in Lynden with the fall leaves. This town really has trees everywhere.

Day at the movies!

Nov. 6th - We took Jada to the movie "Beverely Hills Chihuahua" and we would recommend it to anyone with children, grandchildren because it was very well done. We had the usual soda and popcorn and thoroughly enjoyed the evening with our granddaughter.

Brother & Sister!

At our last game of the regular season against Squalicum I took a picture of our grandson Colby and his sister Jada. He was dressed to fit in with the yell group during the game. Jada just came down for the picture after the game. What fun!!

Trunk or Treat!

10-31-08 - This event was a great success for our church. We had so many kids come through (1,526 by count) which didn't include parents. It was a great opportunity for our church to have people come through that usually don't come to church. The weather was great with no rain and there was inflatables for the kids to enjoy, also hot chocoate, hot cider and more. It was so much fun to watch all the children come through with their outfits.

The picture of the trunk was our own car with the Cougar theme. Jada said,Grandpa, your car trunk

is my favorite trunk. So was that nice or what!

The Lynden Volleyball Team undefeated for season!

November 5th, 2008. Lynden came out with all eight cylinders clicking. We were minus a starting player and never looked back. The scores were 25-16, 25-10 & 25-11. So that gives the girls, a undefeated season , finishing at 13-0 in league and 14-0 overall. Their next games will be coming up in District Tournament play. If they come through that part of their schedule will be going to State in Kennewick on the 21st & 22nd of November.

Trunk or Treat!

Word of Life is having their second annual Trunk or Treat fun night. They have the trunks lined up with 3,300 lbs. of candy ready to give away. We have our car ready and have decorated the trunk in Cougar colors. Should be a fun time seeing all the kids dressed up in their costumes. Jada our youngest granddaughter will be coming with a big sack. Wow! It will be fun so hope this rain stops.

Lynden Volleyball Girls roll on!!

Wow! Lynden's Girls Volleyball team is really rolling and only one more league game to complete a undefeated season. They are now 12-0 league and 13-0 total. They just beat Mt. Vernon who we second in league at Lynden Wednesday evening 10/29/08 by the scores of 25-17, 25-17 and 25-11. They still have only lost one game to Sehome a few weeks ago. Still ranked #1 (2A) so the beat goes on. GOOD JOB GIRLS!!

Cedar Park Christian Schools!

Middle School - Boys Basketball 2008-09 Schedule - Evan's Basketball

Day, date Time Visting Team At Location

Saturday 11/15/ 08 TBA Jamboree Tournament - CPC
Monday, 11/17/08 4:00 Overlake v. CPC - CPC
Monday, 11/24/08 3:30 University Prep v.CPC - CPC
Monday, 12/01/08 5:00 Bear Creek v. CPC -CPC
Wednesday, 12/3/08 3:30 CPC v. University Prep - University Prep
Tuesday, 12/9/08 4:45 Seattle Academy v. CPC - CPC
Thursday, 12/11/08 4:00 Bellevue Christan v. CPC - CPC
Tuesday, 1/6/09 3:45 CPC v. Bear Creek - Bear Creek
Wednesday, 1/7/09 3:30 Overlake v. CPC - Overlake
Monday, 1/12/09 4:45 CPC v. Seattle Academy - Seattle Academy
Thursday, 1/15/09 3:45 CPC v. Bellevue Christian Bellevue - 1st Presbyterian
Thursday, 1/22/09 4:00 Overlake v. CPC - CPC

Weekend at Dwayne & Lisa's!!

Went to Dwayne & Lisa's for a over niter on Saturday night 10-25-08. We accomplished some painting projects on Saturday. Two walls of the dinner room were completed and really look nice. Then Ione & Lisa went to watch skating on Saturday evening. It was "Skate America" competition in Everett. The program ran from 7 PM until about 11 PM and saw some great skating.

County Cross Country Meet!

I am so proud of our Lynden Team. They went out today and ran a great race. They came in tied for 6th for the team ranking. Colby had his best time of the season, which was 17:48. Then Colby said 5 of his teammates also had personal best times. So they will be heading down to district at Whidby Island next Saturday, Nov. 1st.

The beat goes on!

The Lynden Volleyball team is on fire. They played Lynden Christian tonight and playing without two of their starters just did them in. The scores looked like this, 25-16, 25-16 & the final game 25-11. Just got the report that Lynden is now ranked #1 (2A) in the State. Their record is now at 11-0 in league and 12-0 overall.

Soccer Game Watchers!

Watching Jada's Soccer game, are Grandpa,
Grandma & Jada's Mom (Pam).

Lions continue to roll over Opponents!

Monday Evening Oct. 20th, 2008 -Lynden volleyball is at an all time high, they rolled over Ferndale. The scores were 25-17, 25-11 and 25-21. Lynden's hitters were just to tough. They now go to 10-0 in the NWC league and 11-0 overall. Go Lions !!

Snow in Lynden!

We are staying home
for this maybe. This
was taken about 2 yrs
ago with Jada getting
grandpa with a snowball.

Fall Is In The Air!

Fall is here and
and the leaves are
falling. The colors
are beautiful!!

Palm Desert Pickleball Tournament!

The 4th annual Palm Desert Pickeball Tournament will be held in Palm Desert on February 5,6,7, & 8th. Should have all the information on the usapa.org website very shortly. So pickleball players lets get out and support this great event.

Volleyball!

Lynden Volleyball girls do it again, win against a good Fife team. Scores were 25-16, 25-17 & 25-20. They played some good games and the girls left friends. Infact Lynden provided pizza to the Fife team.

Volleyball Picture!

This is our volleyball playing granddaugther Jessica! She is number 4 in the picture.

Car Shows!!

This is a 1948 Ford Two Door and I owned one
as my second car and why didn't I keep it. This
car was at Mid-Nite at the Oasis, Car Show in
Yuma, AZ

Cedar Crest Golf Course, Cross Country

Lynden's cross country team had a good meet at Marysville, WA. Colby had a good time of 18:13 for his run. It was a rainy day for cross country but they seem to like the rain.

Volleyball Update!

Lynden Lions roar over Nooksack, the girls won 25-14, 25-07 & 25-17. Lynden was at the top of their game and just too much for the Pioneers. Lynden now goes to 9-0 for the season.

My Partner!

Ione is my partner through thick
and thin. It has been a great ride and
will have our 49th Anniversary in
May, 2009

Basketball!

Basketball is his game. Our grandson Evan
is always out shooting hoops. His basketball
will be starting in a few weeks.

Soccer!

Soccer!

Then our youngest granddaughter Jada (7) is playing soccer. We watch her games every Saturday and she scored her 1st goal last week. Was she excited or what!!

Volleyball Watching!

Will be watching volleyball for the next few weeks. Our granddaughter Jessica is a good volleyballer and her team is ranked 2nd in State. Then will be off to Mexico from Nov. 10th thru the 19th. Then will be heading to Kenewick, WA for the State Tournament on Nov 22 & 23. Wow! We are really getting in the volleyball watching.

Colby's Cross Country

This was Lynden's Cross Country Team at Bethusen's Park. They had a good day and the weather was great.

Editor!