2008 REYNOLDS FAMILY NEWS

Serving God and Others in Porterville, CA USA

Here are highlights from our year…by Steve…

You may also get our news at FACEBOOK: Steve’s * Cindy’s * Family

·         How could we miss a whole year? I don’t know, but it looks like we did…

·         January & February:

·         March:

·         April: Tax day again!

·         May: Cindy’s & Jason’s birthdays,

·         June: School ended on June

     ---Week one (6/8-12/09)

·         July/August—.Andrea’s birthday in July; family trip to San Francisco, Monterey and Cambria, CA.

·         September to December—Steve’s birthday in September; Kristen’s birthday in October.

2009 REYNOLDS FAMILY NEWS

Serving God and Others in Porterville, CA USA

Here are highlights from our year…by Steve…

You may also get our news at FACEBOOK: Steve’s * Cindy’s * Family

·         January & February: School vacation, trip to San Jose area looking for a car for Andrea, trip to So. CA getting a car for Andrea, dealing with aftermath of bite on Steve’s foot, preparing for a trip in March.

·         March: Steve and Cindy spend Spring Break in the Bahamas and Key West! 1) Sunday, depart for Miami, 2) Monday, Miami and boarding the ship, 3) Tuesday, Nassau, 4) Wednesday, CocoCay, 5) Thursday, Key West, 6) Friday, Miami, Los Angeles and home to Porterville

·         April: Tax day againJ

·         May: Cindy, Kristen and Steve were invited by friends to spend the May 9^th & 10^th weekend on AngelIsland, San Francisco Bay, CA (click for videos & more). We left Friday afternoon and spent the evening in Gilroy, CA. On Saturday, we drove the rest of the way to Tiburon and boarded the ferry boat to Angel Island. We toured sites on the island, watched the fireworks from KFOG’s “KABOOM” and relaxed. Sunday and our return home came too quickly!

·         June: School ended on June 5^th for Steve and Kristen.

     ---Week one (6/8-12/09)

     ---Week two (6/14-20/09)

         ---Monday, June 15^th—Phoenix’s brother, Toby, came to join him. We now have two dogs.

         --- Friday, June 19^th, Jason graduated from DeVry University. The ceremony was very nice (held at CART in Clovis, CA. Afterwards, we went to dinner at Takumi Japanese Steak & Sushi Bar restaurant in Fresno, CA. It was a culinary first for SteveJ.

·         July/August—We took a roadtrip: Hurricane, UT/Zion National Park, Grand Canyon North Rim, Durango, CO, Santa Fe, NM, Grand Canyon South Rim—CLICK for details.

·         September to December—things did happened, but I didn’t write about them here…oops!

REYNOLDS FAMILY NEWS—Summer 2009 Roadtrip

Serving God and Others in Porterville, CA USA

Reynolds Family Roadtrip--Summer 2009…by Steve 

You may also get our news at FACEBOOK: Steve’s * Cindy’s * Family

The end of July and first of August, we took a roadtrip…click on linked items for information, pictures, videos, webcams and more…

·    Friday (7/24/2009) & Saturday (7/25): Kristen, Cindy and I departed Porterville, drove through Bakersfield, Mojave, Barstow (lunch at the Barstow Station), Las Vegas and spent the night in Hurricane, UT. Saturday, we visited Zion National Park (NPS/planning & pictures)—left the car at the entrance to the park and road the shuttle—lots of rock formations, waterfalls, canyons and vistas! We ate lunch in the lodge cafeteria—good food, good service and a beautiful view! Michael Fatali is a photographer; we visited his gallery at the entrance to the park.

·    Sunday (7/26)  & Monday (7/27), we left Zion and drove to the Grand Canyon, North Rim (NPS, planning & pictures). Ate lunch in the cafeteria in the lodge as well as an evening meal in the big dining room—wonderful view. Day hikes—we hiked out to Bright Angel Point (information, hike, pictures) as well as the trail along the rim near the lodge.

      We stayed at Kaibab Lodge—5 miles north of the entrance to the park. The lodge is in a beautiful meadow—enjoyed looking at it from our room and while we ate meals in their restaurant. Our cabin was small and at night,  we felt a bit like we were camping—here’s a view of the inside.

·        Tuesday (7/28) we drove from Kaibab Lodge to Ouray, (information, Buen Tiempo restaurant, images) took pictures of the Durango Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad, walked the downtown, ate dinner at the Irish Embassy restaurant, spent time in the pool and springs at Trimble Hot Springs and had lunch & visited with my cousin Tracy who lives and has his office in Durango. My upper back & neck got stiff between the Grand Canyon and Durango, so I visited a good chiropractor, Dr.Wood. .Want more good information about Durango? Click:  Durango Magazine.

·    Sunday (8/2), we drove from Durango, CO to Santa Fe, NM—Saw my cousin’s Cumbres & Toltec Scenic Railroad (C&TSRR) in Chama, NM, crossed the Continental Divide, passed near Georgia O’Keefe’s house (NPS, info, pictures)  in Abiquiu and arrived in Santa Fe (info, more info, images) late in the afternoon.

      Monday through Friday, Cindy attended the “Creativity and Madness” conference during the day; Kristen and I swam in the motel pool and visited places close by—Whole Foods Market, Wal Mart, park. Late afternoon and evening, we toured: ate at nice restaurants (Gabriel’s, India Palace, Olive Garden, IlVicino Pizza (photo), visited Santa Fe Plaza downtown (info1, info2, images, webcam),  and the Georgia O’Keefe museum (info1 & info2).

·    Friday (8/7), we drove from Santa Fe through Petrified Forest National Park (info1, info2, images) and spent the night in Flagstaff, AZ—good food and nice swim in the pool.

·    Saturday (8/8), we drove from Flagstaff, AZ to the Grand Canyon South Rim (info1,

info1, info2, images), but we didn’t want to do any more driving as we got near Needles.

·        Sunday (8/9)—we drove through Barstow, Mojave, Bakersfield and HOME!

2010 REYNOLDS FAMILY NEWS

Serving God and Others in Porterville, CA USA

Highlights from our year…by Steve

You may also get our day to day news at FACEBOOK: Steve’s * Cindy’s * Family

·         January: On the 2^nd, I took Cindy on a surprise venture to the Tenaya Lodge near Yosemite National Park to ride in a horse-drawn sleigh! It was great fun! We ate brunch at the lodge, spent an hour on the sleigh ride, saw the ice rink and had a snowball “fight” at the lodge, drove to the Wawona Hotel in Yosemite, then returned to Oakhurst to spend the night at the Yosemite Gateway Inn—bought food at Raley’s, ate dinner in our room and watched the movie “Oklahoma”. Before school resumed, I began attending the Aspiring Principals Institute in Burlingame—one session per month. I stayed at the Bay Landing Hotel; very nice!

·    February: On the 6^th, we listed our 1998 Dodge Caravan @ AutoTrader; sold it soon thereafter. Use the money to buy a new washer and dryerJ On the 7^th, we watched the Superbowl.

·    March: Spring Break vacation—CLICK for details on our adventure.

·    April: Tax day (15^th); this is what happens when I don’t update regularly. The hard drive on our 2001 computer ceased functioning (May) and I didn’t get the FTP program installed and running on another computer (2003 vintage) ‘till June. Attended the final session for Aspiring Principals Institute 2010; the series was very helpful.

·    May: Earth Day @ PEC on the 4^th, Jason (13^th) and Cindy (15^th) celebrated birthdaysJ Jason and Bekah gave us a gift certificate to use at Roger Rocka’s Dinner Theater in Fresno. We “cashed it in” on Cindy’s birthday—Oklahoma! Food and musical were very good; we had funJ

·    June: School ended on Friday, June 4^th. On the 10^th, Cindy, Kristen and Steve traveled to San Francisco in preparation for Friday the 11^th and a flight to Kahaului, Maui, Hawaii: CLICK for vacation details. June 10^th, Cindy and I celebrated our 32^ndwedding anniversary! We’re praying as Jason and Andrea deal with health issues.

·        July: We’re going to help Nate celebrate his birthday on Monday, July 5th. I’ve had a couple of opportunities to perform with the play structure for our backyard. Saturday the 10^th—helped Espe celebrate her 50^th birthday; good time! Sunday the 11^th—update work on family website pages, including this oneJ. Tuesday the 13^th—visited the dogs for a walk, repaired Phoenix’s dog collar, played play structure.

·        August: 3^rd—went to Fresno, Fish Camp and Yosemite. It took 35 minutes in line to enter the park. Rode in the cab of a Shay steam engine at the Yosemite Mountain Sugar Pine Railroad; thanks to Greg, Scott and Ed for sharing their knowledge about firing and operating the engine; referred to and discussed the “Firing Steam” booklet I bought earlier this year in Napa at the Wine Train depot.  4^th—more work on the play structure—foundation created and is now sitting on the concrete piers. Loops…I lifted too much and am having to take time off to recuperate. 5^th—enrolled returning students to home & hospital for the 2010-2011 school year. 6^th—bought wood for the play structure floor. Carrying wood past our boats--it’s been too long since our sailboats have been in the water. Take a look at the West Wight Potter site for some boating action: http://www.westwightpotter.com/ 7^th—Sam and Michelle got married! 8^th—worked on Powerpoint® and items for school. 9^th—visit to Fresno. 10^th—began 4 days of inservice and preparation for school. 16^th—Kristen & Steve started school. 17^th—Andrea started school at COS; Nate had a break earlier and continues his studies at DeVry University in Fresno. 21^st—chores and paper grading for school. 22^nd—clogged shower drain! 23^rd—back to school night @ Kristen’s school—Summit Charter Collegiate Academy.

·        September: I really need to do this weekly!  What happened in September? Well, Bekah, Kim Bott and Steve celebrated birthdaysJ. Cindy and I took a day to visit Cambria, CA…that was nice. Andrea took a roadtrip to visit schools in the LA area, the CA Central Coast and the Bay Area.

·        October: Some nasty cough/ache “thing” became Nate and Steve’s reality for awhile. Kristen’s birthday is on the 19^th. I’m typing this update on 10/10/10.

·        November: Thanksgiving--visit to Disneyland and Cambria on the California Coast.

·        December: School the first half of the month; Caroline joined us on the 20^th. Family together on the 24^th PM and 25^th PM—Jason & Bekah, Nate, Andrea, Kristen, Caroline, Toby, Cindy and Steve. CLICK for family Christmas newsletter. December 31^st, we’re heading to the coast for New Years Eve.

2010 REYNOLDS FAMILY NEWS--Hawaii

Serving God and Others in Porterville, CA USA

Hawaii 2010 Update—by Steve

You may also get our day to day news at FACEBOOK: Steve’s * Cindy’s * Family

As you read, refer back to this clickable map of Maui from about.com.

·         Spring 2010: We made plans for Summer 2010—Ireland or Hawaii? Hawaii won, so we began making plans. Friends told us about the book Maui Revealed. We bought and continued our planning. If you’d like, click and view the Maui Vacation Planner. Thoughts as you plan: If you have time, you can volunteer while you’re there. Here’s a link to Maui webcams.

*    Thursday, June 10th: Early morning, we packed our suitcases in the car and began the drive to San Francisco. Enroute, we stopped at Casa de Fruta for lunch. We arrived in San Francisco around 4PM, drove the Great Highway to Golden Gate Parkand the DeYoung Museum. We were too late to see the exhibit about the Birth of Impressionism, but looked at items in the gift shop and made reservations to see the exhibit on Sunday following our return from Hawaii. Our room was at the Bay Landing Hotel. Upon arrival, they gave us an upgrade to a suite-- regular rooms are great; the suite was wonderful! We bought dinner @ Panera Bread and took it to the room—early bedtime.

·         Friday, June 11th: We’re getting excited!  Up early for the Bay Landing Continental breakfast and our journey to the San Francisco airport. The Bay Landing has a “Park & Fly” package, so we left the car there while we flew to Hawaii. Our United Airlinesflight left before 7AM and we landed in Maui before noon.

·        Enterprise Car Rental: The Enterprise shuttle took us to the lot to get our car for the week—a red Chevrolet Cobalt. We drove it off the lot, through the town of Kahului to Costco and Wal Mart, where we bought food and supplies for the week.

·        Map of Maui: We pulled out our map of Maui and began our drive to Kapalua. Feeling adventurous? Here’s a link to an island virtual field trip:  http://satftp.soest.hawaii.edu/space/hawaii/vfts/maui/maui.vft.html

·     Quam Properties & Kapalua Bay Villas number 15B4: B*E*A*U*T*I*F*U*L…our condo for the week was a bay view unit in building 15; click on the link to read about it and to see pictures. If you stood in the right place by the front window, you had almost 180 degrees of ocean view! Kapalua has created an interactive map of the area…click to view and tour. If you’d like to send a virtual postcard, click here. More pictures? Video tour?

·     Maui Dive Shop & snorkeling: We rented snorkeling equipment at Maui Dive Shop. Our first adventure with the equipment was at our condo pool. The following day, we ventured to Kapalua Bay (photos). This was probably our best day…beautiful fish, coral and formations! We snorkeled here two days in a row. Our next snorkel venture was at Honolua Bay. Parking is back from the bay; we left the car and hiked in to the bay. Snorkeling was pretty good…lots of coral and some fish, but the visibility wasn’t as good as at Kapalua Bay. Later that day, I tried to snorkel at Oneloa Bay—in front of our condo. Wave action was such that I came back in before observing anything worth seeing. Before you move on, click to see the Maui Dive Shop video and the Pacific Whale Foundation video.

·         Lahaina is a fun community to visit and Front Street was fun for us (info, info and more info)—shops, restaurants, galleries, historic sites, ocean views, Banyan tree and park are a few of the many sites we visited. We also drove through the grounds at Lahainaluna High School and saw the Sugar Cane Train in action (website). Click to view photos of Lahaina. Here’s a link to webcams in Lahaina.

·        Yes, we drove the road to Hana: The drive has vistas of Hawaii as we picture it in our minds—lots of lush vegetation and beautiful ocean vistas. There are many one lane bridges and one lane sections of highway. Here’s a link to a clickable map. Here’s a photo link to many sites. Some of the things we saw along the way—Keanae, Hana Health/Hana Fresh, Hana Bay, Heavenly Hana. If you could fly into Hana, it would probably look like this. Beyond Hana, we found a fruit stand selling smoothies. Power for the blender came from people—a bike with alternator was connected to the blender! Kristen got to peddle. The grave of Charles Lindberg is nearby. Soon thereafter, the pavement ends and the landscape becomes quite barren.

·        Old Lahaina Luau: Thursday evening, we experienced luau food and story. It was a wonderful experience. Click to view factsheet, menu, the luau, photos and a webcam.

·        Nakalele Blowhole: We ventured 10 miles from Kapalua and found the Nakalele Blowhole. Worth seeing! Click for information and photos—Wikipedia, Yelp and You Tube. You can continue traveling and arrive at Kahului…we didn’t do that, but the venture is described by John Fisher at his West Maui pages at about.com.

·        Saturday, June 19th: We cleaned and were out of our condo by 11:00 A.M., dropped off snorkeling gear, did last minute shopping and took photos in Lahina.  We continued our journey and drove to southwest Maui—Kihei, Wailea, and Makena. We ate lunch at Jack in the Box in Kihei. Late in the afternoon, we returned to Kahului and Wailuku. We made quick visit to the Iao Needle--Maui State Park, got information and took photos, returned the car to Enterprise, went through agricultural and security inspections at the airport and had dinner at Stinger Rays (airport restaurant). Bought Hawaiian Spring water before getting on the plane. To pass time ‘till boarding, we played a Monopoly card game. Boarding the plane began around 9:30 P.M. and liftoff was at 10:00 P.M.

·        Sunday, June 20th: Happy Father’s Day! Enroute, we watched the movie Alice in Wonderland and the sun came up as we landed in San Francisco. We picked up our car at the Bay Landing Hotel and were on the road by 6:30 A.M. Returning to the DeYoung was going to have to wait ‘till another time. Breakfast was eaten at Casa de Fruta and we were home by noon. We had a great time; hope we can do it again.

2010 REYNOLDS FAMILY NEWS—Spring Break

Serving God and Others in Porterville, CA USA

2010 Spring Break

You may also get our day-to-day news at FACEBOOK: Steve’s * Cindy’s * Family

·         Friday: San Francisco

·         Saturday: San Francisco

·         Sunday: Fort Bragg

·         Monday: Fort Bragg

·         Tuesday: Willits

·         Wednesday: Napa/American

·         Thursday:Napa/American Canyon

·         Friday: Sacramento

·         Saturday: Home!

FAMILY NEWS 2011

Serving God and Others in Porterville, CA USA

Our 2011…

Click links for information * Daily news @ FACEBOOK: Cindy * Steve * Family

The last day in December 2010 and January 2011—On the 31^st of December, we took Kristen to David, Terri and Lexi’s in Springville and we began our venture to Arroyo Grande, CA—on the coast! Mike and Susan invited us to join them for New Years. Enroute, we stopped at Le Vigne winery/Sylvester Vineyard in Paso Robles to pick up a case of “Bella Muscato” wine; delicious! Cookie Crock Warehouse supplied us with lots of “good and junk” items to munch on all weekend. Friday night, we ate dinner at a Thai restaurant in Pismo, we then returned home to “wait & celebrate”. The game “Apples to Apples” kept us busy for awhile, then we watched TV ‘till the ball dropped in New York; Happy New Year! Saturday, January 1^st--We doubled the size of our group for lunch at Steamer’s in Pismo. Then Cindy, Susan, and Deborah visited at Deborah’s house while Mike and I took his 4x4 Toyota Tacoma “on the beach” at Oceano Dunes SRVA. Late afternoon, we four each had a WONDERFUL foot and back massage. We dined at Applebee’s and returned home for talk and hat-knitting. Sunday, January 2^nd--We ate raisin bread Cindy had baked before we left Porterville and more from the “good and junk” collection. We took in a movie. In the theater—Gulliver’s Travels, then shopping, dinner at Tahoe Joe’s in San Luis Obispo and another movie at home—Extraordinary Measures. What a film! It’s based on a real-life story of the Crowley family; if you’ve not seen it; consider taking it in… Monday, January 3, 2011—came more quickly than we’d have liked. Rain continued off-and-on all weekend. Before departing Arroyo Grande, we shopped at one of Cindy’s favorite gift shops and at Doc Bernstein’s Ice Cream Lab—yelp, video 1 & video 2, photo & Periodic Table of Ice Cream. Click to take your own tour right now! On the way home, we tried to visit Parkfield...”Earthquake Capital of the World” (info1, info2, info3) but we were greeted with a “Road Closed” sign where the Cholame Valley (Parkfield) Road met CA Highway 46 (see it). Tuesday, January 4^th—Steve visited CSU Fresno (business department, winery, energy lab, farm store and University High School), and Clovis (Visitor’s Center, Adult School and Senior Center) and on Wednesday—Kristen, Lexi, Erica and Steve saw the movie Tangled. Saturday & Sunday, January 16^th & 17^th, Steve whisked Cindy away to Cambria. Porterville was overcast when we left; halfway to Cambria—sunshine! After lunch @ Lynn’s and a bit of shopping at Carin’s Corner and other stores in town, we checked in at Pelican Cove Inn and room 422 was ours for the night. A wine and cheese reception was followed by a walk on the boardwalk and beach and the movie Rumor Has It. We had dinner at Cambria Pines Lodge, dessert back at Pelican Cove and enjoyed our time together thereafter. Next morning, we had breakfast at the Inn, then spent time painting (Cindy) and leatherworking (Steve). We took a quick trip to San Simeon, 6 miles north of Cambria and we should have gone another few miles to the Elephant Sea Lion breeding beach. January/February is when the young are born. Time to head home came too quickly; we did enjoy our time together! The last two weekends in January, we watched football and worked on stuff for the house—flooring the first weekend and cleaning the computer desk in the dining room the second weekend. Nate is preparing to leave for Australia in March and Cindy is getting ready for a seminar in Ireland.

2011 February through December—Nate leaves for Australia; Cindy leaves for Ireland. Family splits up in March. June 10, Cindy moves to her new house. 

FAMILY NEWS for 2012

Serving God and Others in Porterville, CA USA

Steve’s Reynolds Family News for 2012!

Click links for information…

January 2012—Andrea, Kristen and I celebrated the arrival of the New Year; we finished the movie “2011 Christmas letter! *

On the 13^th through the 16^th…Lexi joined us on Saturday and the 4 of us, Andie, Kristen, Lexi and Steve went to the

 Olive Garden in Visalia. Our wait was 60 minutes, so we did a bit of shopping at World Market and Best Buy. 60 minutes

expired and we were called; dinner tasted wonderfulJ 22^nd—Nate and I went to Porter Street for dinner. It was good to

catch up; he’s learning & becoming a truck driver and plans to be “on the road” soon. I’m excited with him! 27^th-30^th—

Kristen, Andie and I were together. We watched the first three episodes of Star Wars—New Hope, Empire Strikes Back

and Return of the Jedi.

February 2012—11^th—Kristen performed in Visalia with the honor choir; she and the group did a wonderful job! 18^th-20^th 

I joined my brother Greg for a snowy weekend @ Wuksachi Village in Sequoia National Park. Hiking w/ snowshoes, driving,

eating in the dining room, talking together and Star Trek were highlights.

March 2012—9^th through the 18^th/Spring Break! On the 11^th and 12^th, Andie, Kristen, Lexi and I joined my brother

Greg @ his house and we ventured to Disneyland! World of Color evening show was GREAT (CLICK to see and

control an online version) as was our time together. Friday night the 16^th, Kristen was part of the musical program

@ her school—“Spring Festival of Music” including band, orchestra and choir. She and the group did a good job!

April 2012—Hmmm…news-wise, got behind here; ceiling fan installed in Andrea’s room.

May 2012—Ceiling fan installed in Steve’s room, Earth Day 2012 @ PEC, Jason’s birthday, Andie’s last day of school,

Steve spent Mother’s Day afternoon @ Redwood Meadow/Trail of a Hundred Giants, Kristen’s music performance and

awards ceremony, the last day of school for Steve. Veteran’s Day 2012—thanks to those who’ve served for our freedom.

On the 26^th, school ended for Steve.

June 2012—School ended for Kristen, Steve spent a weekend with his brother, Greg…brief visits to both Knott’s Berry

Farm and Disneyland. A number of us were together to celebrate Father’s Day at the George Family residence in Lindsay;

delicious food and fellowship! Mother’s Day and Father’s Day…thinking about my children, Cindy’s parents and my

parents…Dad & Mom…miss you both! June 23^rd…we joined the festivities at the George residence to help Jacen and 

Jaina celebrate their first year birthday (June 21, 2011 to June 21, 2012.)

July 2012—Nate ventured to venture” pages; take a look…

August 2012—Last week, Andie began studies at the Healing Arts Academy in Porterville, CA * website * Facebook page.

She’s excited, studying and practicing to become a massage therapist. I’m excited with her! 5^th of August—Jason, Bekah, 

Jacen and Jaina came by for a visit and lunch. Grandkids are growing; good to be with them!  6^th of August—I’m back @

school…getting ready for students to come on the 13^th. Thursday the 16^th…students have been back four days; Kristen

started high school on Monday, too. Took my first journey to Mineral King (info * webcam); beautiful!!

September 2012—Last day of September and I’m updating…highlights: Bekah and Kim celebrate birthdays on the 5^th.

My birthday was on the 22^nd. Good time together at Jason and Bekah’s. Nate begins working for Knight Transportation.

October 2012—Kristen celebrates her birthday with Andie and Steve @ Disneyland. Jason begins working

with Leffingwell AG Sales Company in Lindsay, CA.

November 2012—You’ve seen this before…I didn’t get to this page during November and now, that which happened

has vanishedJ Well, not Thanksgiving…I am; we are thankful! Thanks to Mike & Jonelle for hosting our get-together

and feast.

December 2012—Kristen’s piano recital and Monache High School choir concert; they were good. Last day of school

for Kristen and me was the 14^th. While taking a virtual venture through Laxa, Sweden, I scrolled to the northernmost

town, Hammerfest, Norway—click for their homepage and a webcam link. The Occasional Brass performed at Sierra

Hills and Lindsay Gardens. At one time or another, Jason, Bekah (click), Jacen (click),Jaina (click), Nate, Andie (click), 

Kristen and I were together to celebrate Christmas. T’was good to spend time together. Thanks to Mike and Jonelle for

our time together on Christmas and New Year’s Eve; thanks to Greg and Deb for our time together @ Lake Arrowhead—

good fellowship, food and trains…we spent lots of time making cell-phone videos of G-scale train adventures. Click

picture to view video clip—

I hope Christmas for each of you was WONDERFUL! Here are some LINKS: Me @ Christmas *  http://northpole.com/ * http://whychristmas.com/ * NORAD Tracks Santa * http://www.santatelevision.com/ * http://polarexpress.com/ * http://www.santagreeting.net/  *

 http://www.santaclausvillage.info/ * Christmas in Finland * Knowing Jesus *

My favorite quote this year comes from the pen of Wayne Jacobsen in the  “Living Loved” newsletter…”The reason this journey seems so difficult is because it is far easier than we dare to believe!” May the walk each of us is taking with God become,””…far easier than we’ve dared believe

…”

FAMILY NEWS for 2013

Serving God and Others in Porterville, CA USA

Steve’s Family News entries for 2013!

Click links for information…

January 2013—Happy January 1, 2013! Hope you and yours had a good day. Did a bit of tree pruning,

put the 2013 tag on my truck and worked on paperwork for school.  I also was able to talk with my Uncle

Louie. He and his wife, Celeste, live in Salina, KS. We had a good talk; wish they lived closer. I do this at

least once a year—view a video clip of Polka Parade and my dad, Howard “Razzberry” Reynolds.

Mid-month, Andie left for a visit with family and friends in the state of Washington. January 27,

Kristen, Greg and I did Disneyland.

February 2013—February 2^nd, I went to Sequoia—ate the veggie wrap at The PeaksRestaurant, did a

few hours of cross-country skiing and sketched out plans for a revised Integrated Science curriculum.

February 3^rd I watched the Superbowl. Another weekend, I ventured to Badger Pass Ski Area (webcam)

and cross-country skied halfway from Badger to Glacier Point! Midweek midmonth, I drove to San Francisco airport 

to get Andie; another weekend, Kristen and I took in the City of Hope Spectacular.

March 2013—Sunday, March 3^rd, we began our 2013 WASC school review.

April 2013—TAXES extension filed and Dessert Concert by the MHS choirs.

May 2013—Jason celebrated his birthday and Andie and I hiked the 4-mile trail in Yosemite (Valley floor to

Glacier Point. Took us 7.5 hours…next, Yosemite Falls and maybe…Half Dome?). School was out on the 24^th.

June 2013—Family Update—Jason/Bekah and family—twins turned two on (21 June 2013) Friday. I saw

them briefly today at noon and will be with them all for a birthday party on Sunday (23 June) @ 2PM. Baby

Zane was due Friday, so, soon, they will have 3 they can seeJ. Nate—is living with Cindy’s sister and family

in Coupville, WA and working for Domino’s Pizza. Andie—two weeks ago, her BMW Z3 got crunched, literally.

Last Monday she signed papers on a 2013 Honda Civic. She’s finished massage school and may soon be

working as a massage therapist @ Massey Missakian’s Chiropractic office here in Porterville. Kristen—is taking

tennis and piano lessons; she did great in school last semester. She’s in the Monache Technical Academy and

wants to do graphic arts for Disney…later, not this weekJ Me—learning, growing and healing. Enjoying the summer

and sleeping-in days and getting work done around the house. Applied for a VP position at one of our local elementary

schools; will continue @ Prospect Ed Center if the VP position goes to another. Working on learning the new

 Common Core State Standards (CCSS), helping our school site develop career materials, team-building and our

annual Earth Day event. Scheduled to attend two seminars in July (CCSS/Visalia and Career Choices/LAX) and a

mini vacation in SF—one night in Doug and Linda’s tree house, one night at the Bay Landing Hotel and a visit to

the new Exploratorium; girls may go with me. August—back to school…Do you Skype? Want to talk & view? 

 If yes, friend me & call: steve.reynolds77

Here are some family pictures: CLICK to see video clip of Jacen and Jaina—

Pictures—clockwise from top left: Nate @ the Cliff House in San Francisco, Jacen & Jaina on birthday

two, Nate at SFO enroute to Australia, Aunt Andie, Aunt Kristen, Kristen and Andie.

July 2013—Zane was born to Jason and Bekah!!! Click to view PHOTOS: birthday cake, Zane & monkey,

 Zane & Jason, Zane & Bekah, bath time, Zane says, ”Howdy, folks,” Zane? Kristen went to Point Loma and

 New York. Steve went to a Career Choices/Focus on Freshmen institute in Los Angeles. One night while there,

I ate dinner at The Encounter/theme restaurant at LAX. Venture home took me on a nostalgic trip up the coast

through Malibu, Camarillo, Ventura, Ojai (@102 W. Summer Street from 1978-1980) and home.

August 2013—school resumes—this semester: science instruction, advisory,  Russian Friends,

a virtual climb up Mt. Everest and the beginning of Career Choices at the Prospect Education Center. Kristen is singing and playing tennis at Monache High School.

September 2013—Steve celebrates a birthday. Here’s a photo of the happy Reynolds family—Jason, Bekah, 

Jacen, Jaina and Zane.

October 2013—October 15^th…finally taxes done and submitted. Kristen celebrates a birthday; she, Andie and a

friend spent the day at Six Flags Magic Mountain. The Occasional Brass performed at the Taste of the Arts festival

in Visalia (info). I made a quick trip to Sequoia National Park—hiked to the top of Moro Rock and to Tharp’s Log Cabin in

Crescent Meadow and ate dinner at Wuksachi Lodge. Fall MHS choir concert was beautiful! Click for video clips:

Silent Night * Believe. The last weekend in October, I drove a van with Monache High School students in

 Future Business Leaders of America(FBLA)—great experience! Conference was at the Marriott in Santa Clara

next to Great America. Saturday night, we ventured to San Francisco for a visit to Pier 39 (info) and

 Bubba Gump Shrimp Company for dinner. I had the Dixie Fishwich and Kristen had the Old Fashioned

Clam Chowder. On the way home, we stopped at Casa de Fruta (info) and the Harris Ranch Junction—I-5

and Highway 198. Andie’s now working at both Big 5 and Target. My aunt Celeste graduated to Glory.

November 2013—3 November 2013…updating this webpage and paying bills. Though my goal is to update

this page regularly, it hasn’t happened. Given to me and to others…CLICK for good advice from Kristen! 16^th 

& 17^th, Honor Choir in Modesto…great job Kristen & friends! Following the concert, I traveled on up to Sacramento

to visit Old Town. Parachutes in Lodi on the way home were impressive!

December 2013—Christmas choir concerts, Steve & the Occasional Brass in the Porterville Christmas

Parade and at Sierra Hills, 21^st—Christmas celebration at Jason and Bekah’s. Good to have Ray with us!

22^nd…Nate plans to fly from Washington to spend time with family. July 25-27, Andie, Kristen and Steve

plan to join Greg, Deb, Heather and Bree in Arrowhead.

Click to see train video:

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=10151206857868741

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=10151206773768741

Christmas links: Me @ Christmas *  http://northpole.com/ * http://whychristmas.com/ * NORAD Tracks Santa * http://www.santatelevision.com/ * http://polarexpress.com/ * http://www.santagreeting.net/  *

 http://www.santaclausvillage.info/ * Christmas in Finland * Knowing Jesus *

FAMILY NEWS for 2014

Serving God and Others in Porterville, CA USA

Steve’s Family News entries for 2014!

Click links for information…

January 2014—Happy January 1, 2014! New Year’s Eve, I went to the movie theater to watch “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty”.

School resumed on the 6^th and we taught our first Career Choices lesson on the 7^th. I attended the

2014 “Get Focused…Stay Focused” conference in Santa Barbara on the 9^th and 10^th. I stayed at the

 Avania Inn (3^rd floor view with balcony!) and the conference was hosted by Santa Barbara City College;

beautiful view and nice campus. The evening of the 9^th, I walked along the shore by the harbor and out on

the pier. Had dinner at The Harbor Restaurant; good food and atmosphere! On my way home, I stopped in Solvang,

took a picture of Berkholm’s Bakery and the motel (info/pictures) we stayed in on my 50^th birthday; also stopped in San

Luis Obispo for dinner at The Olive Garden and a visit with Terry and Karen Dunaway the evening of the 10^th. Weekend

of January 18-20—yardwork, Seahawks vs. 49ers and Disneyland!

February 2014—Spent a weekend with Greg and Deb @ Wuksachi Lodge in Sequoia—good time!

March & April 2014—Kristen, her friend John and I spent a day in Fresno at the too long without moving and drinking

in a chair that probably compromised my circulation…mini-leg pain that developed during the seminar became greater

and an ultrasound on the 31^st indicated DVT. A I already know about the condition and “what to do” should bring relief.

Thanks to you all for praying! Easter 2014—we were together @ Jason and Bekah’s in Visalia…Jacen, Jaina, and Zane

enjoyed finding Easter eggs and playing with all of us! My cousin-in-law, Ken Blasé, passed on to Glory on the 21^st of

February. A celebration of life will be held for him on Saturday, April 26^th in Saratoga, CA. Earth Day 2014…for the world

and Porterville/Prospect Education Center.

May 2014—Jason’s birthday on the 13^th. I hiked to Tokopah Falls, Sequoia National Park on Mother’s Day.

School ended on the 23^rd. Weekend of the 30^th—Disneyland, Knott’s, and swimming at my brother’s.

Hiked to Sillman Creek in Sequoia.

June 2014—Andie and I hiked from the Valley Floor to Yosemite Falls on the 6^th…9 hours enroute; 4.5 up, 1.5 at

the top and 2.5 back down. Dinner at the Tenaya Lodge.

Andie and Kristen are trading rooms…painting in process!

Father’s Day celebration @ Jason and Bekah’s on the 15^th; Andie, Kristen, Nate Jason, & Bekah—thanks for the picture update in my hall!

July 2014—2^nd was Nate’s birthday. On the 4^th, I performed with the Occasional Brass at Merritt Farms. The end

of the month, Greg and Andie celebrated birthdays, I spoke at Greg’s retirement party and he and I visited Disneyland

and Knott’s Berry Farm.

August 2014—School resumed; Andie ventured to Seattle, Washington. All the kids and Steve now have memberships

@ Six Flags Magic Mountain.

September 2014— Nate came back with Andie and was with us for a week. Happy Birthday, Steve!

October 2014—Kristen celebrated 16! I have been looking at the Kawasaki KLR 650. I haven’t owned a motorcycle

since my Honda S90 (yep, mine was red!) from high school and college days. The KLR 650 has been around for many

years and gets good reviews…I’m now registered at the KLR650 forum.

November 2014—Andie took a position with Big 5 in Washington and Nate did the same with Knight Transportation

in Kansas City. Nate came to visit and to share about the transition in his life—from Nate to Emily. Thanksgiving 2014

with the George Family…good food and fellowship! Kristen got to drive the Kawasaki Mule down pathways and

between Sumo trees. Home is decorated for Christmas and John asked Kristen to the Christmas Ball.  Steve

discovered Nick Vujicic’s writings and websites: Life Without Limbs & Attitude is Altitude. You or somebody in your

family feeling bullied? There’s HOPE! Also this month, Dawn Crater has been chosen and is returning to Prospect

Education Center as Director; welcome back, Dawn! November 12, 2014 marked one of the biggest space events

since July 20, 1969! The Rosetta spacecraft dropped the Philae lander onto Comet 67PCG.

Getting Ready for Christmas—Click on the RickSteves’ Christmas special to get ready for Christmas.

December 2014—The beginning of the month happened quickly…Kristen was in two musical events and we

put up decorations inside and outside the house. December 16^th—Panera Bread opened here in Porterville!

Great to have their food available!  December 19^th—last work day @ PEC for 2014. December 20—I saw

“Information 1 * Information 2 * On my way home Saturday, I spent a couple of hours at Railtown 1897 in nearby

Jamestown, then ventured home via Highway 49—through Ahwahnee, Oakhurst, Fresno, Kingsburg, Visalia, and

home. At the south end of Oakhurst, I discovered this gem—Chateau du Sureau; it’s beautiful! Perhaps a meal there

in the future? 29^th and 30^th…I put Christmas lights and a larger light on my avocado tree. Temperature will get

below freezing both nights; hope this will help! Today is the last day in 2014…December 31^st

Books are Special! Has Jesus Calling crossed your desk? It’s been a “most special” read for me this year.

I hope you had a wonderful year! * Steve

*******

A Rail Speeder Adventure: http://youtu.be/AlVgUrdvgME

A Rail Adventure--Copenhagen, Denmark

to Stockholm, Sweden: http://youtu.be/HzIRaRV2ghs

How to run a steam locomotive: http://youtu.be/YuknghzBYCg

Click to see train video:

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=10151206857868741

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=10151206773768741

Christmas links: Me @ Christmas *  http://northpole.com/ * http://whychristmas.com/ * NORAD Tracks Santa * http://www.santatelevision.com/ * http://polarexpress.com/ * http://www.santagreeting.net/  *

 http://www.santaclausvillage.info/ * Christmas in Finland * Knowing Jesus * Rick Steves’ Christmas Special *

FAMILY NEWS for 2015

Serving God and Others in Porterville, CA USA

Steve’s News for 2015!

Click links for information…

January 2015—Happy January 1, 2015! Kristen took this picture on one of our ventures to the snow in Sequoia.

Where we’ve been has been nice, but let’s not let the past block our view—let’s look ahead to the beauty before us.

I’m looking forward to 2015! 5^th—one more week before returning to school. 6^th—Kristen got her permit to drive.

I set up website pages—the first one to help with scam/spam/spoofing/phishing: http://reynoldsper.com/scam.htm.

 the second page is for present and past residents in my neighborhood—Creek Estates in Porterville, CA. Back to

school on January 12^th. Dawn Crater has come back to us as the new director @ PEC. On-site teachers met and we

decided we can do a community-wide Earth Day 2015; this year will make 10 years!

February 2015—each year, I pick a birthday greeting; this year, the Dapper Dans quartet from Disneyland.

I began the month with school work and some hiking. Shrove Tuesday concert in Lindsay with the Occasional Brass.

 My brother Greg took this picture when I joined him for a weekend at Avila Beach (info)—here’s our food-and-visitation

log: we stayed at the San Luis Bay Inn; beautiful place! We had dinner Friday night dinner at the Custom House,

Saturday breakfast at the resort, lunch back at Custom House, walked the pier (click for webcam), great golf course,

mid-afternoon snack at the Madonna Inn, dinner at Olde Port Inn, Sunday food at Moonstone Beach Bar and Grill, 

Main Street Grill, and Robin’s Restaurant in Cambria. Elephant seals were in and we saw them in the rain! Lots of

food & fun…great to spend time together; thanks, bro! Someday, hope to stay at the Moonstone Cottages—take a look.

March 2015—joined Jason, Bekah and the grandkids for a shopping adventure @ CostcoJ Spring Break/Easter

Vacation 2015: attended the STEM EXPO 2015 Robotics/Science Fair at Lindsay High School, hiked the

 Trail of the Sequoias, ate at The Peaks Restaurant in Sequoia, worked in the yard, posted information for PEC

Earth Day 2015, worked a couple of days on tax paperwork, movies—“Cinderella” and “McFarland USA,” read,

dreamed, drove with Kristen, tried to go to the bathtub race at Lake Kaweah (date, video, pictures, & links),

ate at Casa Mendoza in Three Rivers, talked with Andie & Emily, and relaxed. March 23--dinner with Greg

and Deb. March 28—with Kristen and the All-State Choir Concert in Pasadena, then time with Greg, Deb

and Knott’s Berry Farm.

April 2015—the first weekend in April, Kristen and I drove to Bakersfield and Yokohl Valley. Easter Sunday,

we were together at Jason and Bekah’s for eggs, food, and fellowship. Cindy and I helped Kristen get

a car—2009 Toyota Camry. April 9^th, Kristen and the MHS choir performed at the United Methodist Church

and on April 11^thwe drove to the Tule Indian Reservation and ate at Black Bear Diner. 18^th & 19^th—Kristen

passed the 50-hour mark in driving hours! Saturday we drove to Kings Canyon National Park, then to Sequoia.

Sunday, we visited SCICON for the annual BBQ & Wildflower festival, then to the River Restaurant for dinner.

26^th—it rained a bit yesterday; today to Sequoia to see if there’s snowJ

May 2015— Friday, May 1, 2015--PEC 10^th Annual Earth Day celebration; join us!

May 9^th—Central California Youth Summit w/ Miss America! Jason—birthday and baptism.Last day of school was

Friday, May 29, 2015! Saturday, May 30—Kristen and I drove to Fresno, then we joined John’s brother Jonnel and

family in Poplar for Jonnel’sgraduation party. May 31—I helped Kristen wash and wax the truckJ

June 2015—SUMMER VACATION!!! 1^st—I had an appointment at Havens Orthodontics in Selma (FB) and ate lunch at George’s Hye Street Grill in Selma. Evening meeting @ MHS regarding the choir going to Hawaii next year. 2^nd—Saw the movie Tomorrowland, more…

June 8^th through July 31^st—Great Summer!!! Ventures in/to Washington State, Ireland, and Idyllwild—Click for details.

August 2015—1-2 August--paid bills, Skyped with Tim Park, Kagan Workshop Training. It was very good and I think it will help my classes along with our school and district climate, 7 August—afternoon—good food and great tour/information (NASA * towercam),late afternoon rode rides at Six Flags Magic Mountain—including Gold Rusher and Apocalypse,and I ate dinner at Marie Callender’s. It took 2.25 hours to drive home. 10 August—final day of “things-to-do-choice”

before pre-school activities 2015, [Alas—it happened again; too many things to do and I haven’t been back to this page

since August 10th!]

September 2015—Highlights include school activities, birthdays—Bekah, Kim, and me, and visits to Sequoia. If mom were alive, she would have celebrated 96 years! Color Run for Kristen’s choir.

October 2015—Kristen’s birthday, dinner @ the Vintage Press in Visalia, seminars on using Minecraft in the classroom.

 Got a letter from AWebHosting.com—they’re closing on November 10, 2016. My website will have to find a new host.

They’ve provided good service for many years. Kristen auditioned at Chapman University in Orange and visited Redlands University. 26th through 31st: visit to the pumpkin patch in Porterville, third Minecraft seminar, and dad’s birthday on the 31^st. If he were

still alive, we’d be celebrating 99 years! Next year—100!

November 2015—6-8^th @ Arrowhead and Knott’s Berry Farm with Greg. Career Choices and Google Classroom seminars,

Thanksgiving with the George and Reynolds families at the home of Mike and Jonelle George.

December 2014—I played 4 concerts with the Occasional Brass—Sierra Hills, Porterville Nazarene, Lindsay,

Gardens, and Park Visalia, helped students finish work for first semester, then school was out for the year! Kristen and

Charlie attended the MonacheHigh School Winter Ball. I Visited Greg, Deb, Heather, and Breanna at Lake Arrowhead,

spent Christmas Day with Kristen, Emily, and Cindy. Andie called me on the 25^th enroute from Coupeville to Shorline,

and again on the 26^th to tell me that Elias had asked her to marry him! Congratulations to you both! Excited with you!!! 

Kristen and Cindy began their journey to Paris on the 27^th and I began my journey to Washington on the 30^th.

***************************************************************************

Click to see train video:

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=10151206857868741

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=10151206773768741

Christmas links: Me @ Christmas *  http://northpole.com/ * http://whychristmas.com/ * NORAD Tracks Santa * http://www.santatelevision.com/ * http://polarexpress.com/ * http://www.santagreeting.net/  *

 http://www.santaclausvillage.info/ * Christmas in Finland * Knowing Jesus *

FAMILY NEWS for 2016

Serving God and Others in Porterville, CA USA

Steve’s News for 2016!

Click links for information…

January 2016—I’m going to begin the 2016 news with the picture Kristen took last year—looking back and

looking ahead. Em’s returning to WA and Andie, returning to CA, so I moved things for both of them. Cindy

and I traded cars for a bit and I left Porterville on December 30^thwith her RAV 4 filled with “stuff”-- arriving in

Anacortes, WA the afternoon before the beginning of 2016. It was good to be with Sam and Gloria Humble—

fellowship, food, and TV shows in the evening—I don’t watch much TV, so, visiting friends sometimes enhances

my knowledge of current TV. On Tuesday, Andie, Elias, and I visited the Pacific Science Center and visited the

first Starbucks. We went back to Shoreline, picked up Elias’s mother and had dinner at There was traffic through

Portland, then rain off and on until I got to Grants Pass, OR for a night of sleep at Motel 6. Thursday, I stopped to purchase

a set of chains at Les Schwab Tires and on the road by 10:10 AM. Through Yreka at noon, Railroad Park Resort and

the Pacific Crest Trail/Interstate 5 intersection an hour or so later. I was in Sacramento at 5 PM and

arrived home at 9:30 PM. Cindy and Kristen came over, we unloaded Andie’s things and traded cars. Journey--2,231 miles!

Andie and Elias have set their wedding date—April 22, 2017. Friday, January 29^th, students and staff from Prospect

Education Center visited Dry Creek Preserve.

February 2016—Andie is developing her massage practice.

March 2016—Continued HERE

Still here…trains @ Christmas 2012; click links below to view…

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=10151206857868741

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=10151206773768741

Christmas links: Me @ Christmas *  http://northpole.com/ * http://whychristmas.com/ * NORAD Tracks * Santa * http://www.santatelevision.com/ * http://polarexpress.com/ * http://www.santagreeting.net/  *

 http://www.santaclausvillage.info/ * Christmas in Finland * Knowing Jesus *