Peek-a-Boo

We are trying mighy hard to train Sofi to NOT beg while we are eating at the dinner table. Our lessons are not well received so Sofi spends most meal times locked up in "time-out." We can't help but laugh at her naughtiness sometimes, however. Here is some evidence of our little beggar. (Note: The first picture is of Sofi peeking through Lance's arm as he eats his lunch. She tries to be sneaky, by poking her nose through our arms at first. After that, she decides to be bold, and jumps up in plain view.)

Bringing Romance Back

Valentine's Day went by quietly for us this year. We did use a coupon at a local steak house and received a fairly decent meal after a long, long wait. Lance surprised me with roses a few days before Valentine's Day and I bought him candy after Valentine's Day (gotta love the 50% off deals!). Before you think romance has left our marriage, let me reassure you it hasn't! Romance just waits for the weekend now.


We went a very mini-retreat to Pismo Beach, a city north of Santa Barbara, and took advantage of my President's Day holiday. The drive up the coast was delightful and the central vineyards refreshing to my eyes. California is a geographic wonder - you can delight in beach, mountains, farmland, forests and lakes, all in the same state.




Our hotel came with complimentary fuzzy bathrobes, a living room and a balcony overlooking the ocean.

We had a late night dinner at The Cracked Crab and dined on the the famous Bucket-O-Crabs. The watress dumbed two kinds of crab legs and shrimp, potatoes, corn and cajun sausage on our butcher paper covered table. No plates or silverware. Only special crab cracking tools and bare hands allowed. Melted butter and crab legs. Yum.

Here is a view of the ocean from out hotel room.

Family Visits

February and March are going to be busy months here at the Hotel Smemoe. Below is a list of all of the current/upcoming visits.

• My brother Tom came to visit this past week for a few days. We visited the San Diego Zoo, ate at the Fish Market on the San Diego Bay, went for a walk on Point Loma, toured the Mission at San Juan Capistrano and ate at President Nixon's favorite Mexican Restaurant in San Juan Capistrano.
• Luke and his girlfriend Jamie will be here for a week at the beginning of March. I will be taking a day or two off of work to show them around. We will be hitting lots of amusement parks and spending a lot of time on the ocean during their stay. Sofi can't wait for some love from Lukie.
• The Loren Smemoe Family and Chris Smemoe Family will be here for a weekend. Right after Luke leaves, Loren, Kara, Arianna, Lincoln and Chris arrive for a quick weekend visit. Walt Disney looks forward to our patronage that week.

We hope to have more and more visitors over the years. I am hoping my brother David will come with his family soon.