Now that the house is mostly settled and we are mostly moved in (the only remaining boxes are in the basement and they are things that we need to "deal with" in one way or another), I've had the good fortune of realizing we are in a neighborhood of great people.

A couple of months ago, K (one of the neighbors) asked if I wanted to get some exercise and do some talking by walking with her one morning. Well, that first morning was great fun and she showed me the route that she took with some of the others that walk on Saturday mornings which went down by the Cabrillo Beach. Now, I'm not likely to go on the Saturday walk because it starts at 7 AM and I'm just not the kind of person that wants to get up that early on a Saturday to begin with, let alone be social (laughing). But during the week, K and I have been doing an 8 AM walk that works out pretty well for both of us. Now there have been the occasional day where we've needed to cancel due to rain - maintenance visits - other appointments - illness, etc. but it's been good for both of us health wise and it's been especially helpful in making me feel more acclimated to the neighborhood. I think this week will be the first week since we started that we won't miss a single day - fabulous. I mapped the walk out and we're walking 2.6 miles or so and we've noticed this week that we are doing it in a little shorter time than our previous hour. I can't say that I've lost any weight because of this extra exercise but I'm hopeful.

Since we arrived, I've gotten involved in the local "Spouses Club" and it's been interesting. We recently held an auction to raise funds to give away as scholarships and it was a huge success. David and I attended and bid on 4-5 items actually winning the 2 we REALLY wanted. We both had to agree that it was more fun than we had anticipated we would have. But then again I should have known better since the people around here are pretty fun and energetic. I don't know where some of them find the time and energy to do all that they do but I admire them for it.

David and I bought some solar lights to illuminate the path from the back door to the patio area we have. They look pretty good and we're debating some more. We have a lovely patio area here but it's not lighted at all. One of the neighbors put Christmas lights on the fence in her area to light it and I have to say that it worked pretty well. When I put away the Christmas decorations I kept some lights out to do just that and with the solar lights I think that we'll have an area that is illuminated subtly but beautifully. At this time there isn't any huge rush since we're not using the area at the moment .. but in a few weeks we're getting a grill and I think we'll enjoy spending some nights out there cooking on the grill and/or entertaining. I must say that I'm considering hosting one of the "Neighborhood Parties" but I think it must wait until there is guaranteed better weather because we'll need that outdoor seating (smile).

Since we moved in, we'd been slowly adding to a pile of stuff to give away in the garage. A week or so ago I scheduled the pick up and we have space in the garage to park a car again. . once we get done doing more rearranging. But theoretically we're going to be able to park a car in there and still have some stuff stored out there. I'm very excited about this possibility. We actually had a night home last night and went to the local hardware store to get the shelving that we figure we'll require - only to find they were out of stock of what we needed. Sigh. So we have to check back with them this weekend to see if they have it. Exciting weekend plans eh? Rearrange the garage and the camping stuff. I would say that I feel like spring cleaning except we're not really cleaning and we're not really clearing out anything additional . . so does that mean I'm feeling like Spring Organizing? Hmmm. . .

I'll admit that I've been holding off on pictures of this place until we have all these last items taken care of. Then again I suppose I shouldn't hold off too long or we may end up moving before I get pictures out to any of you to see what it actually looks like. I know several of you are convinced that we are still living in England since we've not felt any of the recent earthquakes and our house has not been buried in the mudslide but I guarantee you that there is more to California than those tragic items. Rest assured, we miss our friends and family in Iowa and Illinois and we miss our friends and the home we enjoyed in England.

The first of our visitors arrives really soon as A comes out from Rockford for a good visit. Speaking of which, I have a tentative schedule and a list of stuff she wants to do so I guess I'd better start looking at the planning of this wonderful time of fun and exploration.