Part III: New kitchen

We finally have a finished kitchen at the cabin, in working order. Bob (and Eric, Steve, and Mike Drake) did all the finish work last week and even took time to get some finshing in. These are the cabinets over the back counter - including a new cabinet over the frig....

Around the whole kitchen, we have no more soffets. They closed all the cabinets off to the ceiling with boards that match the cabinet doors...

The lower cabinets around the dishwasher and the new granite counter....

The new sink and faucet...

The granite on the counter next to the stove.....

The 9 inch deep sink.....

And the new cabinets over the sink with under-counter lighting.....

Can't wait to get up there on Saturday for our 2 week vacation!!

Part II: Installation

Bob left for Truckee on June 21, not planning to return until the cabin was livable again. He was by himself for 4 days until Bill Ferguson got there on Friday. Steve Silvestrini, and Matt and Cheyenne drove up the following Tuesday. Matt promptly got sick and had to return home with Cheyenne on Wednesday. The new floor was installed, the new electicity connected, and the cabinets were moved into place. By Friday, July 2nd, the kitchen was usuable except there was no counterops or sink. Chris, Becky, Tyler, Haylee and I arrived on Friday night and spent the holiday weekend there with Becky's father, stepmother, and sister. Not having a sink was the hardest part. We ate on paper dishes, but at some point, you have to use pots and pans. The bathtub and small sink in the bathroom served as our wash basin. On Monday morning, the countertops were installed with the sink, but it was not connected for use until Tuesday morning. Would you believe we did not take pictures of the new countertops or sink? Bob is heading back up next week to do the last little things and to get some fishing in. More pictures to come....

Part I: Delivery & Demolition

Monday morning, Bob, Eric, and Steve Silvestini left our house with 3 trucks loaded to the gills with all the new kitchen cabinets for Truckee. They even cleaned up the garage so I could finally put my car in. They arrived in Truckee, and with energy bursting, decided to demolish the existing kitchen. They emptied all the cabinets, took all the countertops and cabinets out, and loaded them into the 3 trucks for the ride home the next day. I could park my car in the garage for ONE day!! Now there are some of the old cabinets and the last remaining pieces of the new ones taking up space in the garage. Here are the first pictures:

Steve and Eric emptying cabinets.

They even had to use the bathroom to store some of the kitchen appliances - like the coffee maker...

The new cabinets are just sitting and waiting to be installed - but there is not much room to walk....

The kitchen looks rather large without cabinets....

Steve took care of vacuuming up before they left to come home....

Bob will be back up there next Monday for the long haul. We just picked out the stove and dishwasher tonight.

Tennessee or bust!!

Our Easter break trip this year took us to Tennessee. (Tigris, Silvestris, Drakes, Del Carlos and Fergusons) We flew into Memphis the day before Easter and went to Mass on Easter Sunday at St. Mary's Catholic Church, the oldest church in Memphis. The usher gave us lots of history after we got him to take our picture after Mass. The Easter Bunny had paraded all the children out to the side yard of the church for an Easter egg hunt after Mass. We then took a trip 2 blocks from the church to see St. Jude's hospital - an amazing sight. The pavilion dedicated to Danny Thomas was full of memorabilia, pictures, awards, and memories from our childhoods'.

Sun Records was the first place Elvis Presley recorded, and he did quite a few, until, Sun Records, going bankrupt, sold Elvis to RCA in Nashville for $30,000.00. They have tours during the day but still act as a recording studio at night.

We visited the Civil Rights Musuem on the anniversary of the death of Martin Luther King, Jr. (just by coincidence). It is built next to and includes, the facade of the original Lorraine Motel (see visitors in the window). A perpetual wreath adorns the balcony where he was shot. We were also able to go across the street and see exactly how and where James Earl Ray set up his shot.

Of course, no visit to Memphis would be complete without a tour of Graceland. I was surprised that it is not a palatial mansion but a small and simple house with massive grounds around it. The house was already built when Elvis bought the property, and he added to the structures.

Elvis is buried near the pool in the side yard, next to his mother, father, grandmother, and a small plaque for his twin brother, who died at birth.

On Tuesday, we drove to Nashville (about 2-3 hours) and visited the Country Music Hall of Fame. An orchestra from a Florida high school was performing on the steps as we went in.

In a park near our hotel, a replica of the Greek Parthenon still stands as a reminder of an Exposition held in Nashville in the late 1800's.

We took a side trip to Bowling Green, Kentucky (about 2 hours) to visit the Corvette Factory - the only place where Corvettes are made. 80 pre-ordered Corvettes are turned out every day. They are very strict and will not let any cameras, phones, blackberries, purses, etc in the front door. This is the only picture we could get.

And , of course, since we were in Tennessee, we had to go to Lynchburg to see Bob's 1 square inch of land that he owns at the Jack Daniels' Distillery. We took a very interesting and pungent tour and got to see and smell the fermenting "sipping whiskey". All our sinuses were opened after that. It is located in Moore County - a "dry" county. You can buy but you cannot drink it.

Our last night, we went to the Grand Ole Opry and saw a "show". We were actually watching a radio show with a commercial every 10 minutes. But there was great music in between the commercials.

By the end of the week, we were all ready to sleep in our own beds again. But what a great time we had - good food (we never missed a meal), good friends (we laughed all day), and a beautiful part of our country.

Tigri family - long overdue update

Lori, Stacie, and Kelly came out for a visit in March and the family decided to try to get as many of the 4 generations together as possible. We all met at Carol & Mike's house in Santa Rosa. We had 22 of the possible 33 attending. Adam, Monica, Stacie, Kelly, and Allison were all outside watching Hannah and Tyler ride Hannah's "quad" up and down the street.
The 2 best friends stopped in the middle of the street for a cozy picture.

Even Haylee wanted to go outside and watch all the action.

Kelly got to hold the newest addition , Trevor, just about 1 month old. Mommmy and Daddy are Adam and Heather.

And, of course, the always popular San Honore cake to top off the meal. (Even if the bakery spelled "famiglia" wrong.)

Grampa Mike in his glory holding his newest grandchild.

All had a great time and can't wait to do it again on Lori's next trip out to California.

Trip to the snow

Bob & I drove up Friday morning and Chris, Becky, Eric and the kids got there by late afternoon. At first, we thought there was a water problem, but that was resolved. There was, however, no phone. We set up an appt for AT & T for Monday.

Tyler and Haylee couldn't wait to get out in the snow so we bundled them up and sent them out. Haylee just doesn't like to wear anything on her head, so she did not stay out for long - even though she wanted to (it was about 30 degrees).

Tyler stayed out for quite a while having lots of fun sliding down the hill in back of the house - UNTIL - the sled stopped and he kept going, landing face first in the snow on a double bounce. As the weekend progressed, so did his war wounds (only superficial).

Daddy and Tyler built "Frosty" (a little difficult when the snow is like ice) and Tyler was very sad that he did not come to life when they put his hat on. Maybe he does not like Mexican hats?? (He also kinda looks like an alien...)

Saturday night, we went to Boomtown for "all you can eat lobster" and Bob & I took the kids home after dinner while Chris, Becky, and Eric stayed a while longer to gamble. (Eric actually came home with $20.00 more in his pocket.) Tyler and Haylee were in a giggling mood while we all sat in the rocking chair waiting to go to bed.

Sunday, Tyler went outside with Daddy and Uncle Eric to play in the falling snow. Haylee stood at the window begging for them to come get her. If you opened the sliding door, she was out the door.

It snowed for about 3-4 hours that afternoon, It was so pretty to look out and see the snowflakes falling.

We woke up to 16 degrees on Monday morning as we packed up to go home. Chris, Becky, Eric and the kids stayed another day. Tyler was sad to find out that when he goes back to the "cabinet" in the summer that there will be no snow, but he is excited to go fishing again.

January birthday celebration

Saturday, the Tigri clan got together to celebrate Hank & Al's birthdays (1/19 and 1/20) as had been a tradition for many years. In this last decade or so, the tradition had waned, so we all decided to start it up again. In one week, we had gotten everything planned and 22 of the 29 people attended. This family is expanding as we speak - we are waiting for Heather to have her baby any day now (might even be another January baby). Everyone had a great time and enjoyed the food, laughter, and especially the company. We had to set up 2 tables - 1 in the dining room (1st and 2nd generations) and 1 in the kitchen (3rd and 4th generations).

Here Mark and Patti are looking over our Italian vacation pictures because they are planning a trip of their own this summer. Adam and Heather (and baby-to-be), with Chris, Becky, and Matt. (We missed Sarah.)

The two oldest birthday brothers (86 and 83) who started this whole family explosion.

Gil, Andrea and Mike enjoying drinks and appetizers.

The two best buddies of the day - Hannah and Tyler. Hannah turned 3 on 1/15/10 and will soon have a new baby brother. Seems like they took up just where they left off 2 years ago on the first (and only) day that they met.

When Tyler was sent to "time out" for pulling Hannah's hair, Hannah didn't know what else to do, so she joined him in "time out" to keep him company. Tyler was not happy as you can tell from the expression on his face.

The St. Honore cake was always the tradition for the January celebration but we had a hard time fitting all the names on the cake. There was Al, Hank, Hannah, and Arlene. We better not have any more babies born in January. There was only a small piece of the cake left by the end of the night.

Hannah's grandma, Carol, made special birthday cupcakes for the 4 little ones and they definitely enjoyed the chocolate cupcake and pink frosting, party hats, and goodie bags they got....

....especially Cheyenne - who dug right in and never came up for air until the cupcake was demolished.

New Years Eve

New Years Eve/Joe's birthday, as always, is celebrated at Uncle Al & Lala Elsa's house with a big Cioppino dinner. This year, the count was up to 40. The little ones have a back bedroom to run around in. This picture was taken before Aiden got there. When he did, leave it up to the 2 oldest (Peyton & Tyler) to put Aiden in the shower because he was running after them. At least, they did not turn on the water!! Haylee and Cheyenne waiting for the cioppino to cook in the garage.

About half of the crowd enjoying the cioppino and polenta. Check out the "Happy New Year" sign on the garage door. Each year, everyone has to sign it or update their year. This sign was made by Juliane and her friend, Mary, in 1973. Uncle Al rolls it up every year to protect it for next year.

The other half of the group filling up on the scrumptious meal.

Kamdyn and Cheyenne enjoying dinner - Cheyenne even tasted a little crab and shrimp. Haylee was already taking a snooze at this point, getting her 2nd wind for the later festivities.

Tyler and Peyton just could not wait for the "Thief" game to start. All they saw were presents - they had no idea that the contents of those presents were not worth the wait.