Huntington Beach, CA

Huntington Beach, Ca.............Beautiful place, wonderful food at the end of the Pier at Ruby's.

Jeremy and Jenette on the Huntington Beach Pier.

One thing I noticed about this area is how clean it is.............you don't see trash laying around, tons of people out enjoying the beautiful weather, surf and sand and so clean......
Surf City USA - Huntington Beach, CA

Silvio

This is Silvio the Grand kitty.......lol

He is a funny cat, very verbal and has a little bit of a mean streak....lol

He knows who "Butters his bread" so to speak...one of my mothers phrases.

He did love up to me way more than my first visit last year. Last year he would only set across the room and stare at me. This time he let me pet him and snuggled my feet.....lol. What is it about feet cats like?

A Day at the Spa.......

Jenette is just the sweetest host......She had the guess room all set up with a gift bag of goodies for me to enjoy. Fresh linens and a Gift Card for her and I to enjoy a day of pampering at Burke and Williams Spa. I have had massages before that was fabulous, but this was full blow luxury!

Giant hot tile hot tub, steam room, sauna, cool mist room, library, private showers, water and iced wash clothes, I could just go on and on. We each had appointments for massages and nails. We both felt so relaxed and pampered. Thank you Jenette ( I have already made a decision that once a year I will be going for a visit to California) Next year this day of pampering will be on me. Burke Williams Spa will just have to be our tradition every year.

My first evening in beautiful Huntington Beach Jeremy and Jenette prepared a most delicious meal. Jeremy grilled the fillet steaks and Jenette cooked cheesy potatoes (from scratch) and stuffed mushrooms that was to die for...................Jeremy told me what a good cook Jenette was, and I can attest to that.....it was better than any meal we had out and we ate ate some really great places this trip.

Stuffed Mushrooms......yummy!

I like my steak medium rare and Jeremy got it just right!

Going West...........

June 12th I took off for Sunny California to spend 4 days with my son Jeremy and his beautiful girl friend Jenette! Who by the way bought me the ticket for my Mothers Day Gift! I can't Thank You both enough!
It was a wonderful flight. I love those flights when the seat next to you ends up vacant. Had a window seat and the visibility was just great. We took off from DFW Airport and flew over down town Fort Worth, then across Lake Worth near our house. It was so cool to see all the landmarks I know from the air. We flew over Possum Kingdom Lake (that's where we have our home away from home) and it was like looking at a map. I could make out the area with such detail. Here in Texas at that time we had already been in the high 90's for awhile. There in the Orange County area the temps are usually in the mid 70's during the day and low 60's at night. Oh I love that weather!
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Cutting through the low hanging clouds on our descent into Santa Ana, CA

Seconds away from touch down.

I have so much more to post about this trip......I took over 2000 pics on this trip, kind of hard narrowing down just a few to share with my friends on this blog.

Number 5

Like I said in an earlier post this summer has been a whirlwind........Right after I finish Scott and Monica's pics in the park I ran home and grabbed my bags to head to Lawrence Kansas for a very special appointment. Getting there was a bit scary, I drove through the worst storm I had ever attempted to drive through. 70 mph winds and driving rain that had me wondering if I would see my family again!

June 1st was a very special day.....one I will never forget. This was the day we found out what Grand baby Number 5 would be! I had never seen a Sonogram that early on in a pregnancy. It was amazing! The baby moving and kicking around so much I was just amazed, and then when I heard the heart beat for the first time well........I just fell in love.

It's a Boy!

ELI LEON BATTEN

Nana can't wait to meet you!

After our trip to the Doctor we all (Kim, Nick, Sharon (Nicks Mom) and I had a celebratory and Birthday lunch (Happy Birthday, Nick) then off to Kansas City to do some shopping. Us two Grandma's had to be the first to buy some sweet little baby clothes for this little guy...........

Congratulations Kim and Nick!

Engagement Session

May 30th I met up with Scott and Monica in Down Town Fort Worth. It was so hot but we got some fun shots of them. Their wedding is in late Sept. Should be cooler by then, but then who knows this is TEXAS! This has been a summer to remember! The breeze was heck for the balloons, but very welcome with the heat.....

Had to get a shot under the Texas Ranger sign.

Loved this one....

At the end of our session in Fort Worth they let the balloons float away to the heavens.

Scott and Monica requested some shots with their dogs. It's luck of the shutter click to get a decent pic of a dog.......lol, but we managed a few.

Who can resist a swing?

Had a great time, I'm so looking forward to the wedding. I friend and photographer from my hometown in Flora, IL (Dawn Cox) is flying in to help me shoot the wedding. With the both of us we should get some great coverage for this sweet couple. Dawn's sister and I have been friends since the 6th grade, and she is coming along for the ride! Becky and I were somewhat partners in crime...lol in our youth.....Dawn and Becky I promise it won't be all work on your visit to North Texas.

Congrats Scott and Monica.......September is almost here!

Monica - Bridals

When I returned to Texas the end of May I got together with my Sept. Bride to do some bridal pics. These are a few of my favorites.

Monica is such a beauty! It was a hot day, but we made the best of it.....

We took the most pics in the beautiful Fort Worth Botanical Gardens.

Loved the Balloons!

Monica and Scott are getting married at a venue in the Stockyards, so we had to stop by for a few shots there.

Oh yeah, I also started back to work that first week back, but thanks to my boss I was able to keep all my summer plans for my travels. I will post pics in order of my travels.....so much to come! It was a pretty fabulous summer.