Time Flies!

Hi everyone! Life keeps happening and I haven't done a good job of keeping up with it. Also, we've been so busy living life that we haven't done a great job of taking (and/or uploading) pictures. Anyhow, lots of things to catch up on. March was Mormon Prom (Allie and Jenna had a great time!) and then birthdays followed - Uncle Randy's being the latest. In the meantime, we had a great Easter and that same week Ali and Grant discovered that baby Staking (due just after Labor Day) is a SHE. I've managed to get some pics of a few of these happenings ... enjoy! Our next family gathering will be Mother's Day this Sunday and, as usual, we are looking forward to having the guys cook for us. Menu: Barbecued salmon with hollandaise sauce accompanied by mashed potatoes (possibly rice also), glazed carrots, spinach-mushroom timbales, broccoli, fresh fruit with marshmellow suace and pies for dessert (coconut cream, chocolate and whatever else Uncle Jeff decides to "whip up"). YUM. Take care y'all. It's a beautiful late spring in the Bay Area and we wish you were here to share it with us. But next month will bring many of us together at Hermosa Beach - yay! Before that, however, big congrats and celebrations are in order to Andrew, graduating (walking) at Chico on May 22 and Matthew, graduating from Cal Poly Pomona (June 11) - woot woot!

 PROM PICS....

Ali doing Allie's hair; Jenna (Ali did her hair also) doing her friend's hair

Allie and date, long time friend Josh Harmon

Jenna - aren't they gorgeous?

Left to right: Megan, Jenna's date Adam, Jenna, Allie, Josh, Chrissie

Happy February

So...you know how the new year goes, right? Everyone is too busy being busy to think about documenting it. The Bay Area family is hanging in there. Our Sunday dinners have been fun in February - we started out with the traditional (over the top) Super Bowl Party. This week we will be celebrating Valentine's day at the Stakings on Sunday. Everyone in the family will get to see Grant and Ali's place and I am making meyer lemon curd fruit tarts for dessert. However, we will probably completely forget to take pictures! Next weekend we will be celebrating Allie's 17th birthday - Jerry will probably come to the rescue on that with pictures, so stay tuned. And we'll finish out the month with our traditional Oscar Party. Who will win the "predict the award" winners competition that Jackie sponsors each year? Last year's winner and the one to beat this year is Claude - so check back later for details.

♥

Grandma and Grandpa's Holiday Party at L'Olivier's

Grandma and Grandpa welcoming their happy guests

Happy guests!

Looking over the menu - tough decisions!

Happy lovebirds ...

and more happy lovebirds enjoying the wonderful evening

The hip oldsters with their stylish parents

Happy New Year from the Robisons, minus one

Siblings smile and say "cheese"

. . . as do sister siblings

Robison siblings waiting for le diner to arrive

The Fish was delish....

and so were the other tasty dishes!

Thank you Grandma and Grandpa - see you again next year?

Happy Family! Missed those of you who weren't wish us - best wishes, all, in 2011! [Photo credits KB and Jerry]

 

 

 

Christmas at 1704!

Getting ready for Christmas Eve Dinner

Andrew chugs down the road from Chico for Christmas Eve - Jeff is happy to see him (we all are!)

Jeff and Jackie taking a break to say "cheese" between dinner and "the cousin gift exchange"

The kids' table for dinner has always been where it's at! [Even once the kids are no longer small]

Much laughter and general hilarity on Christmas Day playing a new card game while Grandma sleeps on the coach

Smile big for Kenny and Rachel and Zak!

Remember how Tinkerbell appears in Disneyland? Well Jordan will be photo-shopped in from Nicaragua same magical way! Just believe

ALL of the Staking clan is smiling at the same time - woo hoo!

Boy cousins make nice for the cousin gift exchange - handsome crew!

You know who - goofing off for the camera!!

Christmas Day: Brandon is chilling with his new Ipod and Grandpa is watching football (or is it basketball?) 

Family Portrait: Ali, Grant, and Petrie

Matt and Grant out back "running the dogs"

Decorating for Christmas!

On Sunday the 5th of December, the clan in town gathered to set up Grandma and Grandpa's Christmas decorations - and to celebrate "Aunt Kimmie's" birthday. Everyone found a way to help, but Aunt Kimmie forgot to take pictures of some of the excitement. Not pictured helper elves: Brandon who helped Grandpa put up the Christmas lights, Randy and Jerry who wrestled the tree into the house and got it set up on the stand, Grant and Ali who did the tree lights, and Sasha and Karri who set up most of the Christmas Nativities on the shelves that Grandpa had painstakingly emptied of their usual treasures. Pictured below: Allie and Jenna and Ali decorating the tree, Jocelyn and Aiden providing charm and the Christmas spirit of child-like glee (while concentrating on the tasks at hand), with help from Mama Terra and Grandpa/Grandma J. Also pictured below, all of us having our usual fun hanging out, eating, and singing happy birthday. Sorely missed this week but having fun in Texas, Aunt Colleen. Thanks to Brandon, Allie, and Grandpa for the photos! Joyous and happy Holidays, everyone!

Thanksgiving Tree Cutting

Hi family here there and everywhere! 

While we were having our customary good time together cutting trees this past Thanksgiving weekend (and musing about if Rachel and Zak would have a tree, where in Arizona Lauren would find a place to cut her own tree - but not doubting her for a moment - and wondering if Courtney would be "traditional" in the Van Vliet way and cut a tree herself or start a different Cooke family tradition - see, we DO talk about you all the time!), we decided to start our OWN Bay Area family blog and let you know, mostly by pictures, what is going on here. That is to say, we hope to make you so jealous of all the fun you are missing that you will get yourselves in gear, hop in the car and come over to see us more often. We miss and love you all! The Bay Area Family