Our Yard Rocks!

Tuesday Stoneys delivered 2 tons of large river rock for our front yard.

This is what 2 tons look like....not much!  But moving 2 tons feels like moving 2 tons!  If you get my drift!
It was not enough!

So on Wednesday, we got 4 tons of large river rock and 2 more tons of the next size down.  This is what 6 tons of rock looks like.  The sound is deafening when they dump it and look out for flying rocks.. Both Nate and Lyle got hit!   AND...Really fun to move!  NOT!


Here is after many rocks had been moved around the front yard.  Improvement!Lyle brought Clayton over to enjoy the show and watch us work!  It was a good outing for him.  But he was tired by 11:00 and I took him back to rest.Well, after moving about half of the pile, we decided to move the rest tomorrow morning when it is cooler and there is more shade on this west side of the house.  It was time to go in and have lunch!  Thanks Nate for all your help...even with the rickety old wheel barrow.

On a different topic, Yesterday, I applied to be a substitute for Kings County.  

I could not believe all you must do to qualify even after 36 years of teaching.  

I had to be fingerprinted...paid $46 to see if I was a criminal!  Duh!  They did not accept my originals from 33 years ago! 

After an hour of how to get your sub jobs on the Internet,  you get to watch videos from the 80's for safety training, reporting Child Abuse, and Workman's Comp.!   This process was from 2:00 - almost 5:00...3 hours!  

I guess the children of Kings County will be much safer now that I have put in 3 hours of sub training!

Oh, I forgot to mention the 10 pages of paperwork to fill out 

even after my school district sent over all my records!  

I was waiting for a call today to see if I did something wrong or forgot a signature on something....no call..... I guess I am in.  

Well, enough of this!  

Papa Bee & Crazy Mimi

Oops, I was trying to edit the last blog and add in these pictures that Nate provided from his camera.  I guess I made a complete new blog....

Thought you would enjoy Papa Bee!
And a better perspective of the outdoor concert!

Grinnnnnnnn!

Double Grinnnn!!

Our Anniversary and more

Friday was our 33rd anniversary.  We had a great time together and went to one of our favorite Mexican restaurants...Javier's in Fresno.  
The food always tastes the same yummy flavors.  I always have a burrito to bring home for the next day!  

After dinner, we went to the movie, UP.  It was amazing and fun to see.


Sunday we sat with Shirley Maciel and her daughter Rose.  Rose is due any minute!  She is having a little boy who will be named Carson.  Maybe she has already delivered!
Nate came to Hanford today.  When he was not fixing our computers....which was quite a huge job for him!....we spend a good part of the day going through things from our younger years!  Here Nate, almost 30 is holding the sign that told everyone that passed by our 11th Ave. house that Nate was a big boy!  We took this picture and have now trashed the sign.

Well, we broke out my old accordion I played in a marching accordion band in Denver...50 years ago!  I serenaded Nathan and Lyle with 3 requested numbers...Beer Barrel Polka,  The Blue Danube, and Du Du Letzmer Inhersion....grandma's favorite!  All this music...wearing grandpa Bruce's favorite dress hat.  What fun!
Here Nate is sorting and reconstructing his Transformers.  We are going to keep them a little longer.  But, behind Nate, you can see much of our past that will be put out for a yard sale and then on to the 2nd hand store.  Of course, Dottie was loving Nate's visit as well.

More to come later with Nate's visit.  Oh yes, tonight he helped me customize my blog with a better look.    Hope you enjoy it!   

Thanks to Nate, I was able to send out our new email address.  If I missed you, give us a call, and I will let you know our new address.

Clayton's 89th Birthday Fun

Today was Clayton's big outing for his birthday. After a ride into the country to see the trees and a ride through the Hanford Mall, he was treated to his favorite vanilla milkshake, hamburger, fries, and apple pie at Freedom Park. It took a while, but he polished off all the food!

Then it was time for his park tour. Lyle and Clayton had never been to this park before. So they took advantage of all the sites. Not pictured, but 1st, they went by the splash fountains. There were kids enjoying the water even during the mile 77 degree weather. It was a perfect day!

Here is Clayton and Lyle enjoying the huge jungle gym. It is all wheelchair access, so there was nothing stopping them from enjoying the entire adventure.

Clayton was wondering which room had been my classroom. Lyle pushed him up to the gate that connects my old school (which is the newest in town) with this new park. My classroom was the one farthest to the left at the far end of this wing. Room 504....but I turned in my keys when I retired last Friday. It is not mine anymore....Just had to get that into this blog! Excitement!

Then after doing the entire walking trail and stopping to watch the dogs at the dog park, we took Clayton back home so he could get a nap before we returned after dinner.

Here he is with the balloons back on his chair in front of his room 302. We know he liked this special time. He thanked us over and over again. He did really well and it seemed to be just the right amount of time to not totally wear him out. (We will see how tired he is tomorrow to be sure.) Well, Happy Birthday Clayton! You have lived a long time! Glad you had a nice day! We love you!

Happy Birthday Clayton! and more...

Well, today is Clayton Arnold Bruce's 89th Birthday! HAPPY BIRTHDAY! (He is sporting his new buzz.) His hope and wish is that he gets to go for a ride! Today, we will take him out to lunch and visit a new park in town. I hope he has a great birthday!

This picture was taken on Memorial Day. He had just walked the length of the hall and was taking a rest. He wants to walk and keep up the strength in his legs. It is a hard life at this age.
Last Thursday, Epic Church had a Concert in the Park to raise money for their Africa trip. Cory's friend, Rico, brought his new puppy. This is the cutest dog. It is an African Ridgeback. Adia will grow to be about 90 pounds! They are specially bred and have many requirements for the owners when they can purchase this dog.

She is smart, obedient, and such a pup that she curled up on my lap and went to sleep for a lot of the concert. Thanks Rico for sharing!

Guess who came to the concert....The German! It was nice to catch up with Alex and find out what is going on with him. Now that he as graduated and is a working man living in Fresno, we do not see him very often. We love you Alex!

Jordan and Sara's band is great! It was a nice evening of 3 different bands, with Jordan's band finishing off the night. The pipe that is stretching across the front of the stage was a visual aide to let the people know how much money was being donated. Different lengths of pipe were sold for $10-$40. The hope was to stretch all the way across the stage. It was 3/4 there when we left a little early. We don't know if they reached their goal, but the music, fun and friends was a great evening for us! Thanks guys!

Then, Sunday evening, the Symphony Orchestra preformed in their Concert Under the Stars.

They have a new conductor and sound incredible! They had a singer who's voice was so clear and beautiful. This is a yearly event for us and we were glad to be entertained by these accomplished musicians! Hanford is a fun place to be in the summer with all the things that are scheduled and the good friends we love to see.

It is good to be back online with our new Internet provider..ATT. We will be getting out our new email address on Monday or Tuesday...after Nate makes some adjustments on our computer.

Retirement Celebration

Well, on Wednesday, May 20th, Hanford Elementary had their "Employee Recognition." I was called up for 30 years of service for HESD. This year I received an 8 inch bronze statue of a girl sitting and reading a book. It was nice. But my big moment came when our superintendent, Dr. Terry, called my name for RETIRING! That was my big moment! He introduced me as "The Advisor to the Superintendent." We both grinned! Although a bit blurry, you can get the idea. Board member Dennis Hill give me a big hug. I am not sure if he is going to miss me, like he said, or if he is just relieved that I am going! (Dennis and I have been through a lot with standing up for better education....most times in the past we were minority on the direction of the district and the superintendent.)

We are now blessed with a fabulous superintendent, who is turing the district in the right direction! It is an honor to be picture with Dr. Paul Terry. I love and respect this man for the decisions, vision, and witt this man has brought to our school district. He really cares about the children, teachers, and our reputation! Although I will miss working with this man and HESD, retirement seems like a lot more fun. I am not reconsidering! 9 days to go!!!!!

Busy Bruce's

It is time to catch you up with our happenings.
Last Friday night we went to Kristian's surprise birthday party. He was brought to the house in blindfold. He was welcomed by many friends and a Simpson German Chocolate Cake made by his mom. He acted surprised...but a hard guy to surprise!

Food and friends were great!

Lyle decided to celebrate with one of Cory's hats. I think he looks pretty cool in it!

Steve was taking a lot of pictures. I was just getting him back. I am posting a nice one instead of a bad one. I hope he is as kind to me on his blog!

Well, this is the look of the old shed about 2 weeks ago. It continues to be Lyle's work in progress. He is on his 6th or 7th dumpster! He is making progress daily!

One of my last projects for my school was to get the school sign painted above the stage. Student Council sold over $455 worth of pencils to help pay for the sign. This is Ruben Munoz on Saturday painting the outline. He will return tomorrow, to put in the gold color. It will be a time the kids can watch him finish it up.

Today was a 6th grade field trip to Tulare County Museum at Mooney Grove Park. These 90 kids were the best behaved group I have ever taken on a field trip. It was a lot of fun not having to do discipline all day.

Not pictured, but part of the day, we went to College of the Sequoias. We had a nice tour then got back to school for icee's, and a Read-Aloud from The Bronze Bow...one of my favorite books to read to 6th graders.

This is going to be a busy week of adventures for our classes. Tomorrow my scientist neighbor, Don Lord, is going to share his collections of trilabites and prehistoric artifacts. Thursday, author of the book "Double Luck, Memoirs of a Chinese Orphan," Lu Chi Fa, will be our guest speaker. If you don't know this book, go to: www.doubleluck.org It is a wonderful book! He is a very nice man from Morro Bay. Friday, I take the kids to the Jr. High for orientation. So...a very busy week. I may post, or not. Hope you enjoyed!