Welcome to John and Sharon's Photo Album -- 2011

How to find contents...

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This photo album has been progressive. It began by posting photos as a companion to our 2010 annual Christmas letter. The feedback was very favorable. We then started posting vacation photos especially to our Scott Valley home. We live in Southern California and have a second home in northern California's Scott Valley, what we like to refer to as California's northern frontier since it is near the Oregon border. When you scroll down, click on "Older Posts" to see each additional segment. All of the postings are identified in the right hand margin by month. Hope you enjoy your visit.

Christmas 2011

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Our 2011 Christmas letter wouldn't be complete without photos. So, here they are...

The order of the photos follow the contents of our Christmas letter:

PS: For those that came to our on-line photos, expecting "Scott Valley" photos, all you need to do is scroll down past our "2011 Christmas Album" then "click" on OLDER POSTS at the bottom.. We think you'll enjoy your visit to our Valley.

2011 Christmas Album

Dec. 2011: John says goodbye to City Hall

Being fully retired also means having the

time to catch up on my reading.

....and there's a lot of catching up to do.

The books shown on their side are...

those "in progress", and the "yet to be read" books.

Brief Preview of our Scott Valley Hideaway....
A total change of pace!

Welcome to our Scott Valley back porch...

Valley Ranch

Cozy fire on a cold evening.

Common view from the back porch.
Deer are daily visitors.

Don't forget to visit the rest of our Scott Valley photos

that follow our 2011 Christmas Photos.
-just click on "OLDER POSTS"

Our Marriott Desert Springs Time Share
One of our annual getaways!

Marriott Desert Springs Villas

During each of our annual visits to our time share,
we can count on ducks and geese visiting in the A.M. and P.M.
for a handout. This year we were blessed by a family of
black swans, accompanied by their fuzzy babies.

The swans typically gathered at the back patio for their daily
handout. They seemed to know who the soft touches were.

Sharon's Birthday Bash at

Mammalucco's Goomba Lounge!

Owner John Marcuso, celebrated Mammalucco's grand opening
in September 2001;and the grand opening of
the Goomba Lounge in April 2011.

Reflections on 70 years of a life that made a difference for so many people...

My wife, best friend and soul mate!

Cutting the birthday cake. Almost too good to eat!

Yum, yum!

Son, Russ and granddaughter, Terra
Sharon-photos--"life across the years" were added to every table
as a center piece.

Sharon's daughter, Kelli and son, Russell

A big kiss for Nana from grandsons Matthew and Justin!

Jive talk!

A great place for a celebration!

...right here in Brea.

Mammalucco's is known for their authentic NY Pizza!

Annual Visit to our Marriott Palm Desert Villas'

Time Share

...Included a visit to the Palm Springs Air Museum.

P-47 Thunderbolt built by John's former company,
Republic Aviation Corporation on Long Island
--his first job as an aircraft-systems design engineer on the F-105 & A-10-
(this may be the only time you'll see John in shorts)

Sharon admires a vintage WWII U.S. Army motorcycle.

Now for the Rest of Our Family!

John, Jr. M.D. and Family

Dr. John with son, John III (Snooks)
"Well, son, it's never too early to check out medical schools."

Like father, like son.

Snooks: Now, isn't he adorable?

Snooks (John III)--always ready with a smile.

Lisa, John, Jr and baby John

Baby John (Snooks) or the Easter Bunny?
Only his parents know for sure.

Sons, Jordan, Curtis, Ryan and baby John

John, Jr, and his family visit Mount Rushmore.

Is there a resemblance between John, Jr and

George Washington or is it purely coincidental?

Snooks!

Daughter, Kelli and Family!

Husband, Pat and granddaughter, Kenzie

Kenzie: Studio photo by Kellimac Images

Daughter, Terra and granddaughter, Kenzie.

Life and fun on the Colorado River...

Matthew and Christie ...going for it.

Justin revs up!!!

Pat and Justin

Pat...the daredevil! Taking a parasail ride.

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas!
Kenzie! an absolute sweetheart.

Sharon with daughter Kelli and her clan.

Of course, the family wouldn't be complete without

Harley!

Son, Russell & Family...

Russ, Julie, Max, Parker & Bradley...and Ruby!

Halloween on the front porch of Russ and Julie's home.

Everyone doing their best to look scary!

Russ, Bradley (and the Mighty Mites)

The boys with their new puppy, Ruby!

Max's graduation from Tiny Tots.

Bradley's 7th Birthday.
(Bradley, Max and Parker)

Parker's 4th Birthday Party
On Mammalucco's patio.

Max's 6th birthday.

John & Sharon, with Russ and Julie and their sons (Bradley, Parker & Max)
Russ, sporting a Halloween-owie!

Daughter, Debbie and Family.

They love to camp.

Kevin, Samantha, Katie, Debbie, Andy, Thomas and John

Thomas holding 2nd place prize.

Samantha, on right.

Thomas with his awards!

John, second on left; Kevin in background; Thomas on right

Debbie, second from left with Katie, Samantha and Thomas

Samantha, home from college for the holidays

and sister, Katie

And family dog, Shadow

Daughter, Brenda and Family.

Husband, Travis and Brenda
Colorado cowboys!

Brenda with oldest son, Matthew.

Brenda's boys (Michael, Daniel and Samuel) demonstrating their imagination.

Daniel

Samuel

Matthew and Michael

Brenda's girls, twins: Sarah & Shoshannah, Leah and Hannah

So very, very sweet!!!

Girls' imagination at work....

Brenda's son, Daniel--Mr. Fix-it at work!

So what's a family without a pet?

Enjoying the popcorn machine from Grandpa and Nana.

Brenda with John's 99 year old mother.

She will turn 100 in March 2012

Son, Jerry...

One of his many trips.

He spent time in S. Korea, China and Japan for his former employer, Kinkos.

Visiting the Great Wall of China

Jerry on the beach in Delaware.

Rusty

Thanksgiving 2011

...at the Beauman's

Thanksgiving feast for 18-- and we didn't even need a shoehorn.
Thanksgiving preparations with our extended family--including in-laws (Sue and daughter-in-law, Julie).
Julie's family: mom, Sue; dad, Connie; brothers Randy and Jeff (and his son, Garrett)
and Kelli's family, husband, Pat; sons Matthew and Justin, and daughter, Terra.

Master chefs, Kelli and Sharon!

Kelli's sons, Matthew (Joe) and Justin.

Russ and Justin

Randy and Andrea

Jeff, son, Garrett; grandsons, Parker and Bradlley

It wouldn't be a holiday wrapup
without our fur babies!

Cosmo...one curious guy!

Cosmo
"Here we go again, another picture. How much longer do they
expect me to pose like this."

Cosmo decides it's nap time.
The ironing will just have to wait.

Waiting for his tummy rub.

Mitzi
"Here they come with their camera. I guess it's my turn to pose."

"Where do you want to go next, Cosmo?"
"I don't know, little sister. I'm pretty comfortable right now."

"One way or another, I WILL get their attention."

Outside Kitty, Dinah... a sweetheart.
"If I stare at them long enough, I know they'll breakdown and feed me.
John is the real softy, so, I know he'll give in pretty soon."

"Can Mitzi come out and play? Please!"

Continue to scroll down for our Scott Valley albums...
-- just click on OLDER POSTS --

Oct-Nov 2011 Visit to Siskiyou County -- California's Northern Frontier!

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Welcome to our Back Porch...

We hope you enjoy your visit to our Scott Valley home...

Scenic Scott Valley......

The purpose of our web based photo album was to create a convenient way to share our Scott Valley home in Siskiyou County with family and friends. Siskiyou County in general and Scott Valley (28 miles long x 1-6 miles wide) in particular reflect the best of small town, rural California. We hope you enjoy your visit.

Most people have not heard of Scott Valley in northern California. The Wikipedia describes it this way: "Scott Valley is a large, scenic rural area of western Siskiyou County, California, known for its vistas of the Marble Mountains, cattle and dairy ranches, and its historic background as a gold mining area, dating back to the days of the California Gold Rush. The towns of Fort Jones, Etna, and Greenview are found within Scott Valley." The 2010 census lists Siskiyou County's population at 44,900. The County website states that it is the fifth largest county in California by area; which explains why so much of it is a scenic rural wilderness, with plenty of space for its large farms and ranches.

Scott Valley is on CA Route 3, several miles southwest of the City of Yereka on I-5. To get to SV, one most travel over Forest Mountain Summit, elevation 4,097 feet. It's a scenic drive in which road signs cautioned one to watch out for--the ever present--deer.

Our home is situated between Ft. Jones and Etna on Route 3. Click on the adjacent link for a satellite aerial view (map) of the area: http://www.mapquest.com/?version=1.0&hk=6-2vMv5tZr The blue line on the map is Interstate 5. Once there, you can change the scale of the map by zooming in or out, and even scan different areas of the region. To return to this photo album, just click the backspace on your web browser.

If this is your first visit to our online photo album, I suggest you also visit our July-August trip to our Scott Valley hideaway, posted below (August posting)--for an introduction to and overview of Scott Valley--California's northern frontier bordering Oregon. Most TV broadcasts are transmitted from Oregon's "Rogue Valley" (including Medford) stations.

Autumn was definitely in the air back in Oct.

...with Fall colors in full bloom!

The Valley was ablaze with Autumn colors!

A ride along Eller Lane: One of the many country roads crisscrossing Scott Valley.

View from the porch: Morning fog.

View from the porch: Evening sun set.

Our property did its part, beginning its transition to autumn colors....
View from the back porch.

The weather was cooling down but still delightful.

Even though November began turning colder with some evening temperatures
dropping as low as 18 degrees,

the wood burning stove added a toasty glow to our stay....

It pays to have plenty of firewood on hand.

Country living does have its seasonal chores...

In the Fall, our numerous oak trees seem to take delight in shedding their summer foliage.

....which of course, meant cleaning gutters--and raking leaves....

Adding gutter screens to the stand-alone garage to prevent having to repeat the cleaning-process next Fall.
Why didn't I think of that last year?
Of course, the house gutters were next.

It's burn day in the Valley....

A hand crafted "fire pit" is a handy--and safe--way to dispose of all those leaves!

The area is highly agricultural, where farmers must burn off remnants of the old crop in preparation for planting the new;
burning leaves is a tiny fraction of the overall burn.

Of course, the leaves didn't get there on their own....
Leaf-raker gone wild! Well, maybe not that wild. After all there are a lot of trees.

There's always time to relax on the back porch.
Well, maybe not total relaxationI; had just finished
reinforcing the rocking chair joints.

The deer are tough competitors.... we did manage to get
...some of the apples.
But, ground squirrels and deer ate all the pears
right off the tree.

Born and raised a NYC boy,
I never tire of viewing the wildlife--especially deer--
and the numerous cattle, horses,
and even alpacas on local ranches...

I found this pinto (paint?) especially beautiful. Even more so than the palomino in the background.

We stare at them, they stare at us! Each animal seems to have its own unique personality.

Valley Alpacas.

I love this scene.... There's something about it that I find very special.

A regular sight, right across the road from our house.... What a blessing.

Our house from the road....

View from the front window...deer crossing the driveway.

A common sight: three deer crossing front lawn.

Views of and from the back porch.

Our back porch provides a "window" into the daily lives of so many of God's amazing animals and birds.

Him and her rocking chairs. A great place to share quiet morning and evening moments together.

Stellar Jay feeding. Just one of the many varieties of birds visiting us daily.

Leaves were just beginning to fall when we arrived in mid-October.

The hubcap conveniently collects rain water for the deer and birds.

Even a very young Robin stops to take a drink. Thank God for hubcaps and rain.

But, we did get a bird bath....

...while a young buck curiously visits the nearby "recycle" compost pile.

Quail are routine daily visitors...and with each visit a lot of laughs!
If you ever watched a family of quail travel--at "lightning speed"--you'll know exactly what I mean.

Family of quail crossing our driveway.

This delightfully entertaining bird was a joy to watch. Anyone who has seen quail knows what I mean--their tiny legs move so fast, they're almost invisible.

Not only entertaining but beautiful in its own very unique way, especially its distinctive head feather.

None of this would be the same without my wife
...and best friend, Sharon, to share it with.

City of Yreka is the Siskiyou County seat.

Of course every visit to Scott Valley includes shopping trips to Yreka

...a city of 7,765 people per the 2010 census; up from 7290 in 2000.

We pass through Yreka to get to Scott Valley.

Yreka, fire station (photos from our July-August trip)

Downtown shops and restaurants seemed to always be busy.

I'll let the sign over the shop speak for itself.

After checking out new carpeting for the house and picking up some groceries,

our shopping trip was over,

...so it was back in Scott Valley...

Etna (population 731)

City Hall (on left) / Police Station (on right)

Etna (our mailing address and closest town) is located at the base of the Marble Mountains Wilderness

in the Siskiyou Mountain (Cascades) Range.

Etna was first settled in 1830.

Saying goodbye wouldn't be complete without mentioning our Neighbor "Bo"

Things wouldn't be quite the same without

a daily visit from "Bo"!

Goodbye Bo; goodbye Scott Valley....until next time!

Time to head back to Southern California at the close of our Oct-Nov visit....

...also time for another trip to the county landfill to dispose of last minute garbage

before we start our 700 mile journey...

A final Look at Siskiyou County...

Our final look at Siskiyou County before getting on I-5 included a last trip to the county landfill.

Since we're not full time residents with scheduled trash pickup,

we generally take our trash to the county landfill during our weekly trip to Yreka.

Here's a photo of the entrance to Siskiyou County landfill

...referred to by most as "the County dump".

So why a photo of the county dump?

Serving as a long-time member of the Orange County Waste Management Commission,

may give you a hint why I posted this photo.

Something for my colleagues on the WMC...

...you might even say it has a degree of sentimental value.

"Please visit us again!"

Don't forget to checkout our June-July visit below, before logging off.

June-July 2011 Getaway....

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June-July 2011

Scott Valley, Siskiyou County, CA

One positive aspect of retiring from the City Council last December, as well as several other public agencies, is having the freedom to pick up and go; which provided an opportunity to spend part of June and most of July at our Scott Valley home.

This web-based photo-album provided a convenient way to share our Scott Valley home with family and friends. We hope you enjoy your "virtual" visit to Scott Valley as much as we enjoyed sharing it. So, sit back and enjoy your visit to rural, small town America in California's northern frontier.

Majestic Mount Shasta in Siskiyou County

City of Yreka (population 7,500) gateway to Scott Valley.

Yreka is the last city in California on I-5 before you enter Oregon.
Statue is a reminder of the area's 19th century gold rush days.

Yreka City Hall and City Council Chambers

Forest Mountain Summit looking south, approaching Scott Valley.

Some have asked if it snows: Here's a view of Forest Mtn. Summit last winter.

We cross Forest Mountain Summit each time we enter and leave Scott Valley.

This was taken about 25 miles south-west of Yreka,
as we approach the turnoff to our house.

Road to our house, our second garage can be seen on the left as we approach.

View from the road. Second garage can be seen just behing the house.

After years of wear and tear and the elements, it was time for a new driveway!

Delivery of the foundation layer for our new gravel driveway

A real backhoe ballerina!!!

How it's done!

Final top layer of gravel being spread at the back garage/workshop area

The final layer ready to be spread.

Compacting the base layer before pouring gravel.

Second garage and workshop just behind the house (before the new driveway was laid)

Our back porch. A great place for relaxing, bird watching and just enjoy life.

View from the back porch -- birds and wildlife included.

Local (as in "common to the area") quail along with steller jays, robins, doves, are daily visitors.

Steller Jay. Just one of the many varieties of birds in the area.

An early morning visit from a young buck, seen just to the right of the garage.

A Scott Valley sunset as seen from our property.

"Weed Whacker" gone wild!

Sitting on the back porch is nice, but there were still a lot of chores to do as well.

Rain or shine, the chores must go on.
Setting up the lawn automatic-watering system.

A view minus the "weed whacker!"

Our neighbor Bo came for a visit. Great dog!

No, I wasn't napping.
Replacing the kitchen and bathroom faucets (along with a lighting fixture and window blinds)....
just part of another country day.

Frontier Hardware (est. 1861) in nearby Ft. Jones (population 839), the "go-to-place" for parts and special tools for many of the chores.
--just a few country miles "up the road apiece".

There really are stars up there. How come we don't have them in Orange County?

Our new gravel driveway. Just one of the many things we accomplished.

Driveway: 30 years of wear and tear and ready for a facelift.
It definitely was time.

The old gravel driveway before it was resurfaced. One of the chores of country life.

A young buck came to call. Deer showed up daily.
Another common and enjoyable sight from the back porch.

A doe and her fawns

Daughter Debbie; husband, Andy; and sons, John and Thomas (shown in photo) came for a visit.

Our neighbor's ranch.

A beautiful horse--checking us out.

Round hay bails are a common sight.

Statue is a reminder of Etna's historic gold rush days
"Just a few country miles down the road apiece from our place."

(Does that shound like country talk? I hope so. I'm trying to fit in.)

Main Street, Etna -- City Hall and Police Station (white building)

Bluegrass festival being kicked off on Main Street, Etna (population: 737)

Scott Valley's annual bluegrass festival!

Neighbors relaxing from their harvest work.
Just us plain country folk kicking back.
It wasn't all chores. Bluegrass music and country restaurants (shown below)
made our Scott Valley summer stay that much more enjoyable.

4th of July Weekend!

Lake Shastina, Siskiyou County

Sacramento River headwaters....bubbling right out of the ground at Mt. Shasta City Park.
Cold, crystal clear and pristine! What a treat.

Visitors fill bottles of every size and shape with Sacramento River water....
So did we! (see below)

Our turn: John and Sharon holding a bottle with Sac. River water.

Back in Etna....
We'll let the signs speak for themselves.

Saying goodbye to Scott Valley--in pictures!

Wild flowers along driveway.

One last look at our house.

Our last look at Scott Valley along Route 3

We're blessed in having neighbors who watch each other's backs
and keep a watchful eye on each other's property...
Happy Trails!

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June 10, 2011: Kevin and Katie Harvey's HS Graduation!

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We are proud of our grandchildren, Kevin and Katie Harvey at graduation and all year long.

Kevin and Katie receiving recognition for academic accomplishments at grauation ceremony

The Harvey family on graduation day.

Left to right: Samantha; John; Kevin & Katie (the graduates); Thomas (foreground); daughter Debbie and husband Andy

Katie and Kevin all dressed up and ready for big moment!

El Camino High School at Ventura College

Comments?

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Feel free to add your comments at any point on the blog that has "comments." or at end of blog. Just click on "comments". After adding your comment, just click on "HOME" to return to the blog itself.

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Snooks (John III) standing for first time. What a guy!

Christening of John III, shown with brothers: Jordan, Curtis and Ryan

Lisa, John Jr, and John III, Enjoying the Great Colorado outdoors.

"Now, son, here's a list of medical schools. You need to start thinking about which one you would like to attend."

December 7, 2010 Council Meeting

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A Final Goodbye "in pictures"--after 9 Years of Public Service...

Posted below are photos taken at the December 7th Council meeting, a farewell to my nine years of community service, and recognition of the completion of Ron Garcia's term as Mayor--all rolled into one! I was proud to offer the farewell comments for and present the gifts to Ron in recognition of his service as Mayor! He will always have my vote.

I truly appreciated the send-off, with so many family, neighbors and friends in attendance.

My last formal vote as a member of the City Council

A warm handshake from Mayor Garcia.

Proclamation from Jody Roberto of State Senator Bob Huff's office

Ron recognizes some of my accomplishments during my nine years of service

Family and friends enjoy Ron's humor

My wife Sharon is recognized for her support

The audience's view

Several words of thanks to everyone

Closing comments

My final goodbye!

Recognition of outgoing Mayor Ron Garcia and his wife, Marcy

Step-daughter Kelli and husband Pat Mcguire; son, Jerry; Sharon and me;
step-son Russ Bartling and wife, Julie

John Marcuso of Mommolucco's Italian Restaurant, Brea.
Best New York style pizza in the county

The celebration continued at a friend's house

My very last "Richard Nixon pose!" Sharon enjoying the cake;
and newly elected councilmember, Brett Murdock

Former Mayor Bev Perry

A joint celebration included
Brea's newest council member--Brett Murdock!

Celebrating as incoming president of the O.C. Division of the League of CA Cities
Reception held at the Nixon Library in nearby Yorba Linda.

I wanted to close with a photo taken at the Nixon Museum celebration my election as President of the League of California Cities, Orange County Division.

My service on the Brea City Council and other regional agencies has provided a wealth of fond memories and great relationships. A special thanks to everyone that touched my public service life over the last nine years.

January 2011 -- Another Year to Remember!

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Decided to begin 2011 by posting those special moments as they occur: Snookie's (John III) first Christmas.

Welcome to John and Sharon's blog -- December 2010

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John & Sharon Beauman

"2010 Christmas Letter"

This blog is a companion to the 2010 Christmas letter we sent to friends and family. We hope you enjoy it.

Jesus is the reason
for the season!

"It Was a Very Good Year," was Frank Sinatra’s 1966 Grammy Award winning song included in his album, the "September of My Years." Both titles connected with John when he made the decision to actually retire and not run for a third four-year term on the Brea City Council. This means that we are both actually retired together for the very first time. John sees this new phase of life as the "September of His Years", one of the events that prompted out 2010 Christmas letter. Our last one was in 2006; each letter was prompted by certain milestones in our lives and those of our children. Since 2010 is a transition year for us (retirement), we felt it warranted picking up the pen one more time. To add a little zest, we decided to post some family photos on this newly created blog as a companion to this Christmas letter.

The table has been set just for you.

Welcome to our home-blog. Thank you for being our guest. The table has been set as our way of saying "Welcome".

We wish you and yours a very blessed Christmas and joyful holiday season...

Retirement is finally here for the Beaumans!

John as Mayor, shown in his City Hall office

December 2010 ended John's 9-year political career as a member of the Brea City Council, which began in November 2001. John's decision not to run for reelection for another 4-year term, launched us into a life of retirement, versus several years of semi-retirement. John retired from the corporate world in 2003 and Sharon in 2001 when her company was sold. She remained active in our church and still is active in leading a women's Bible study.

Political life pretty much took center stage for a large portion of the last nine years.

John's installation as president

at the Nixon Library.
Does the pose look familiar?
John says he got caught up in the moment.

There were certain joint activities in which we both participated. John's installation as President of the Orange County Division of the League of California Cities was one such event. The adjacent photo was taken at his installation, held at the Richard Nixon Library in the adjacent city of Yorba Linda, Nixon's birthplace.

John was careful not to let the
Presidential Seal go to his head.

A very familiar sight.
Cosmo helping John study for City Council

Preparing for City Council meetings
took hours of study time.
Cosmo thought John's Council packet
was somehow the best place for his afternoon nap. John decided an afternoon nap
wasn't such a bad idea after all, just as he was getting ready to doze off, himself.

Justin and Matthew (Joe) Maguire (daughter Kelli's boys)

visiting John at City Hall

And no, they're not standing on a box.

Kelli and husband Pat Maguire's only granddaughter, Kenzi (our only great grandchild)

Isn't she a doll?

Husband Pat, granddaughter Kenzi and Kelli

John Jr. / Colorado Beaumans

John Jr. (photo below) holds the newest addition to our family: our 20th grandchild.

John lives and practices family medicine in Colorado.

John Jr. with his son, John III (June 2010). See the resemblance?

John Jr. M.D.
Family Medicine

Our Hero!
While serving his second tour
in Iraq, John Jr. was awarded the
Bronze Star Medal
After 13 years in the Army as a flight surgeon,
he retired as a Lt. Colonel,
and entered private practice
in Colorado

John III at 6 months old

"Attention Walmart shoppers."
John III's first trip to Walmart.

(John III) Snookie"s first visit with Santa

Lisa, John III and John Jr., MD

John Sr.'s son, Jerry (Palm Springs, CA) 

Son, Jerry at the Great Wall of China
during one of his business trips to the Far East.
Other visits included Korea and Japan

It isn't all work and no play. Deep sea fishing provides a balance.

Son, Jerry, Hiking at Whitewater

Jerry's Best Friend: Rusty

John's daughter Debbie Harvey's family / Ventura

Debbie, husband Andy and their five children live in Ventura.

A very talented and musical family.

John, Katie and Kevin are all into Irish dancing.

We call them the O'Harveys. Not a drop of Irish blood in any of them,

but they might as well be Irish with the world champions awards.

Sisters Katie and Samantha

Samantha during her semester in Europe, at the Vatican.
I think she's smiling because tourists kept
dropping money into her hat.
Not a bad way to see Europe.

Kevin, Samantha, Katie, Thomas (foreground), John

All the Harvey kids in the same place at the same time. Wow!

husband, Andy Harvey

Daughter Debbie with sons
John and Thomas

The Harveys on their NYC adventure.
Husband Andy in background.

Harvey clan, getting ready to welcome in the New Year.

The Harveys!

John's daughter Brenda Rode's Family / Colorado

daughter Brenda and husband Travis Rode

Hats are a must when you live on the Colorado prairie.

Brenda and Travis' four girls.

Shoshannah, Sarah, Leah, Hannah

Rode boys:
Matthew, Daniel, Michael and Samuel

Our Scott Valley, Northern California Getaway

Our cozy Scott Valley hideaway

John being greeted by our Scott Valley neighbor--Mr. Ed.

The trip over Forest Mountain Summit in the winter is quite an adventure.

Bluegrass Festival in Scott Valley. A lot of fun.

Deer are a common sight.

We often wake up to deer on our front lawn.

Isn't God's nature wonderful?

View of a common sight from our living room window.
Scott Valley wild life

Back home again in Brea

Sharon's son Russell Bartling and wife Julie and their three sons (Bradley, Max and Parker), are Brea residents. Russ and Julie grew up in Brea and so did a whole host of their friends.

Russ, Julie and boys enjoying Kauai vacation

Hawaii vacation

Maximo the slugger!

Bradley, #81, at Pop Warner football practice.
Russ' friends that played Pop Warner football
are now watching their own sons playing football together.
It's easy to see why Brea offers that home town feeling.

Back at our House

Cosmo our big love bug

Our family album wouldn't be complete without our two fur babies:
Cosmo (5 years old) (top photo)
and Mitzi (1 year old) (lower photo)

Mitzi who we call Mitzischmitt
She flies through the house with the grace
and speed of a WWII German
Messerschmidt fighter

 Our totally redesigned backyard (barbecue not shown)

The local wildlife seem to love it. We have raccoons, skunks, opossums as regular visitors.
And off course: Birds of every type!

And on that note,

we will now close on the old year

in anticipation of welcoming in the New Year

by wishing you a very....

Happy New Year!

2011