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For the Thanksgiving holidays Shirley and Bob visit David and Gillian in Alabama and we all then drive on Wednesday up to southern Illinois for Thanksgiving dinner hosted by Jeannine and Ray at their home in Scheller on Thursday. As the Thanksgiving picture below taken by Mary Kay shows, there are 44 family members and friends. On Friday we drive back to Birmingham with David and Gillian.
Our friend and neighbor Reenie picks us up at 6:15 AM and drives us to the Park & Ride bus stop where we get the 7 AM Groome Transportation bus to San Francisco International Airport.
All goes smoothly and we board a Delta Airlines flight to Atlanta, Georgia. We disembark at our terminal and find we are right next to the terminal for our Birmingham flight, which is great because boarding for that flight soon starts. Our seats on both flights are First Class - luxurious. Our lunch served on the first flight is pizza (ok) and cake (good) and salad (not worth eating, so we both don't).
At Birmingham airport our luggage soon arrives, we get our rental car, and Shirley gets us to our airbnb with Bob driving. Airbnb has odd smell and Shirley calls owner to explore the heating system.
 Los Vaqueros Reservoir |
 Clifton Court Forebay |
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Bob and Shirley go shopping at Walmart, then stop at Gillian and David's to walk with David and dog Sheriff (Gillian is at work). Shirley and Bob next go shopping at Publix grocery store. Bob and Shirley drive home, park car and Bob walks across the street and pets the neighbor's cat. Shirley prepares dinner, including wonderful cranberry sauce, and Bob watches the news on TV.
Gillian and David come over for dinner around 7:45 pm. Both have had long work days. After dinner Shirley does the dishes.
Shirley gets news from our neighbor at home in Oakmont that a friend Tony was walking, tripped on a loose shoe string, fell, and hit is head. He died.
Shirley and Bob go to Publix to get chocolate birthday cake (and candles and match sticks) for Gillian's birthday (which had been on Monday actually). Going there on the other side of the road police were stopped.
We come back and walk neighborhoood together. After eating lunch Bob walks neighborhood then comes back and we nap. Shirley prepares dinner. Gillian and David come over and we all eat dinner and cake and ice cream with chocolate sauce Shirley prepares. David and Gillian leave, Shirley does dishes then watches TV while Bob does Sudoku and writes in diary.
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All four of us walk with Sheriff in the nearby park, going also to coffee shop for Gillian. We all then go to the Farmers Market, eating lunch at El Barrio. We return home after dropping off David and Gillian, then nap. Later we return to Gillian's and work on putting together a 3D puzzle.
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Bob, Shirley, Gillian and David walk up and around Crestwood and back (about 1.7 miles). Later David and Bob walk in mountain park up to a view point.
Shirley prepares dinner and Gillian and David come over. David and Gillian return home, Shirley cleans up (Bob helps a little). Then Shirley and Bob go to visit David and Gillian and watch movie before returning home.
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Shirley and Bob drive up to and walk along Altamont, then come down a little to path along Clairmont Ave. Then shop at Publix, We drive to David's and walk with Sheriff in Avondale Park. David goes back to work. Bob finds Clyde behind shed and pets him. Bob and Shirley visit library, where Bob checks out Robert Crais's novel A Dangerous Man. Then they return home.
Shirley makes dinner and David and Gillian come over. After dinner we all go to their place, decorate their Christmas tree and watch Christmas Chronicles 1.
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Shirley and Bob go shopping at Publix and Walgreens. Then walk in the neighborhood. In evening go to Gillian's for chicken pizza dinner. Watch Dancing With The Stars.
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We drive to Illinois for upcoming Thanksgiving.
Bob and Shirley go to Gillian's at 8:15 AM. and all four of us get out on road by 9:15 AM. We stop nearby for coffee for Gillian, then start driving to Illinois. Along the way we stop at a Walmart where Shirley gets Thanksgiving dinner items. We make another stop for David to get some stuff.
For lunch we stop at McDonald's and get carryout. Once we arrive in Sesser, Illinois, we check into hotel. Next we go to a large family dinner at our often visited Scheller Playhouse restaurant. Shirley and Bob share veggie pizza. After dinner Shirley and Bob return to hotel while David and Gillian visit with cousins before returning to hotel (some cousins were staying at some hotel).
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Shirley and Bob get up, get David and Gillian, and drive to family cabin to prepare food. Then we drive to Jeanine and Ray's home (for decades they have hosted the wonderful Thanksgiving get togethers) where Shirley carves the cooked and seasoned Thanksgiving turkey (Bob eats some fudge, samples pumpkin pie). The dinner is of course marvelous with an adult table in the dining room, a children's table next to the kitchen, and a garage filled with cousins and friends.
After dinner many cousins and friends played football in the front yard.
Shirley, Bob, David and Gillian visit the local cemetery where past family members have been buried, some as early as the late 1800's.
Later we all go back for sandwiches at Jeanine's and play Bingo in the garage. Then we go over to the large machine shed for entertainment - David, Dylan, Ryan and Brett provide musical entertainment (David plays guitar and sings). Then Molly, Rita, Kristie with little Savannah and Sawyer all sing along too.
Bob, Mary Kay and Ray all play table tennis.
Little kids (ok, Gillian also) ride around on miniature cycles. Others throw frisbees and balls. There is also a small model plane that is flown around.
Unlike other Thanksgivings, it is too cold to go for walks. (Below freezing). We drive back to the Sure Stay hotel, seeing at one point 6 deer near the road.
And here is the photo by Mary Kay showing all 44 of us!
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Bob and Shirley awake at 7 AM and exchange Anniversary cards.
We then go downstairs to car with suitcases, visit Mary Kay and Neal in hotel breakfast room. Then Eric comes in too. David and Gillian go outside for a walk.
Bob and Shirley go back upstairs and finish packing, then check out of the hotel. David and Gillian are at the car; we say goodbye to Mary Kay and Neal. We drive off to Birmingham, stopping at McDonald's, then at gas station (Bob gets lottery ticket). We drop of Gillian and David, return to our house, snack and watch TV.
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Shirley and Bob drive to Gillian's and walk with her, David and Sheriff in the neighborhood. Bob and Shirley then drive to Walmart and buy David a belt and return to Gillian's. Then we all drive to the Farmers Market, eat at Red Cat restaurant. We return to Gillian's and walk in neighborhood to Avondale Park then around in a neighborhood near Avondale Park, then returning to Gillian's.
Later, in the afternoon, before dinner, David comes over, we watch TV, Shirley prepares dinner, and we all eat. David then takes a dinner back to Gillian. Bob and Shirley watch the news.
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Bob and Shirley veg out, then drive to Publix. Return to house and David comes over to use dryer. Later, Gillian and David come for dinner and we all watch the movie Godfather. It is too cold to walk.
Shirley and Bob walk around neighborhood near Avondale library and drop off checked out books. Then go to Publix. It is cold outside (40's).
We come home, rest, and Shirley prepares dinner for all four of us. David and Gillian must leave home because of work being done under her house. They decide to go to a motel. (Pets could not stay at Shirley and Bob's Airbnb). David and Gillian get hotel that allows pets. They then come over to Shirley and Bob's for dinner. They leave, Shirley cleans up, and Bob does Sudoku.
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It's a chilly day. Bob walks with David and Sheriff. Shirley fixes dinner and Gillian and David come over. We all watch TV. Gillian and David leave and we go to bed.
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Bob and Shirley drive to David's where they walk with Sheriff (Bob throws ball for Sheriff while David goes over use of PIN on phone with Shirley).
Shirley and Bob drive to the airport, return the rental car, and go into terminal around 11 AM for 1:30 PM flight to Atlanta.
Shirley and Bob fly to Atlanta and then to San Francisco. There they take a bus to Santa Rosa Park & Ride, where Reenie is already waiting to pick them up. Not only does Reenie drive us home, but she also gives us pumpkin and banana bread she has made. Thank you Reenie!
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Photos by Shirley, Bob and Mary Kay
Bob Phillips [phillips bob 27 at yahoo dot com - no spaces]
Santa Rosa, CA
May 30, 2023