Wisconsin

After a great weekend of catching up with friends in Minnesota my next stop was home to Wisconsin. I spent ten days with my family and even two of my oldest friends came home for a visit.

Lunch with Mom and Sharon. We are all still bundled up for winter in April.

A visit to see my Grandmas sister Dorothy and her husband Mac at their farm. What a long time it had been since I had seen them.

Mom, Dorothy and me The Sherry-Butt house in Viroqua, WI. Sherry is my Mom's maiden name.
Mom and I with the big Viking
Grampa and I pose for the camera
A visit to my Dad's house in Wausau. Those are my "little" siblings, Lauren and Karl
Me with Laura and Karen who came home for the weekend
Laura with her son Ari
Dinner with the Jankes.
Mom and I out to lunch again. Dave was there too but he was taking all the photos.

Minneapolis

I am a big fan of Minneapolis but not necessarily the weather. When I arrived in the Twin Cities Kari and I had a few lovely sunny days for touring the city. Then the wind started to blow and the snow fell again. Yes it was April! But we still managed to cover a lot of ground and took many fun pictures. While I was there Brenda and Soren hosted a dinner at their house so all of us old friends could get together. Thanks you two. It was great, but as always too short. I am already looking forward to the next time I get to see you all again.

A photo of my favorite sculpture at the Walker Art Center The Grain Belt Premium Sign..it's huge Liz & Kari at the "bou", yummy Dinner at Big Bowl with Gena Liz with downtown Minneapolis in the background Kinses and Liz at Lake Calhoun, great walk, but cold Liz & Keri hanging out Jeff and Andie at Bren and Soren's house Kari with baby Lucy (parents Andie & Jeff) Grace, Kari, Claire and Annika before dinner Claire and Annika pose for a photo (Kari's niece & Bren & Soren's daughter) Liz & GG (Kari's niece) Trying to keep Jack and Claire still for a photo (Kari's nephew & niece) A visit to the Como Zoo (St. Paul) A winter wonderland in April!
Me and Kari self portrait #5987, the Stone Arch Bridge

Going to California

After three weeks in Phoenix, it was time to say goodbye. Mark flew back to New Zealand with a laundry list of boat projects to accomplish and I flew to San Francisco to visit some of my dearest friends. We had a fantastic time and I was spoiled rotten while I was there.

Aiden, Kevin and Amy near the Golden Gate Bridge
The View of San Francisco from Mt. Tam

Amy, Kevin, Aiden and Murphy on Mt. Tamalpais

Our girls day in San Francisco

Self portrait

Homecoming

It took us 2.5 years to get to New Zealand and only 12 hours to get back to California. We arrived in Los Angeles after a fairly painless flight to a gorgeous sunny day. We spent two days with my brother Matt who was kind enough to collect us at the airport. Below is a photo of me, Matt and Phronsie modeling his collection of hoodies on a cold spring night in LA.

After a short drive we arrived in San Diego for a brief visit with our dear friends the Frickers. It was wonderful to see them and amazing how big our little pals Zoe and Millie have gotten since we have been away. We had a great night of Thai food and even got to visit with our friend Gwen her two kids Maddie and Jack as well. Just like old times.

After a drive through the desert we arrived in Phoenix for a three week visit. Lucky for us, Mark's niece Maggie was on spring break so we had lots of time together. We spent lots of time cleaning out our shed and running errands but still had plenty of time for hiking Squaw Peak and going out to all our favorite old places. Marks Mom was kind enough to host us.
A few appetizers at T Cooks with Maggie and Margaret
Maggie's first climb to the top of the peak

Lisa, Liz and Karena in Karena's new beautiful backyard

Lisa and Damond, these two came all the way from Vegas to see us
Mark and I giggling with Ray and Tracey Mark and I with some of his oldest friends
Margaret and Marie all decked out for St. Pattys Day

After the Biltmore Easter egg hunt My Dad and cousin Megan celebrating Easter birthdays together

Charlie, Megan, Amy and Uncle Bud getting ready from some cake

The newleyweds, Josh and Karena