After a loop around Ancil Hoffman Park, Sharon and I took off for Pollack Pines about 1 pm. Morgan and Daniel hosted Easter at their house. As an aside, Erin and Cormac hosted Clan Frame.
The group include Clem, Lee, Morgan, Daniel, Drew, Carmen, my sister Sharon, Sharon and I. We had a wonderful afternoon. Morgan and Daniel have a great yard. Clem and Lee are a fun age.
We had a great meal. Morgan and Daniel had a expansive charcuterie board. They made a prime rib. Carmen and Andrew brought a green salad. We contributed potato salad. My sister Sharon bought a carrot cake.
We headed home about 6 pm and were back in Sacramento by 7 pm.
After a hike around Ancil Hoffman Park on Sunday morning, Sharon and I got cleaned up and headed to the Ryde Hotel in the Delta for their Easter Brunch. We had a nice table on the back lawn. The food was good. The facility is more than a little rundown...
We spent the morning watching the Masters Golf Tournament. Sharon was rooting for Brooks Koepka. Leading by three strokes at the start of the fourth round, Koepka finished second four stokes behind Jon Rahm.
In the early afternoon, we headed to Sharon's brother Tom's house for Easter dinner. The group totaled 19, including: Tom, Kevin, Leah, Lydia, Amelia, Terry, Steve, Eric, Ashley, Erin, Cormac, Will, Tim, Kathy, Jim, Mary, Sharon, Jack and I.
Eric, Jim, Jack and I played bocce ball before dinner. I actually won the game.
We had a very nice meal outside. The dinner included a honey baked ham, lamb, au gratin potatoes, aspargus and slug salad.
Tiber, Sharon and I started the day with a long walk to Marlynn Street and back. This is an area that we haven't really explored.
In the early afternoon, we headed to Sharon's brother Tom's house for Easter dinner. The group totaled 12, including: Tom, Kevin, Leah, Lydia, Amelia, Eric, Ashley, Jim, Mary, Sharon, Jack and I. Morgan, Daniel and Lee were going to come, but Morgan was under the weather.
We had a very nice meal outside. The dinner included a honey baked ham, lamb, au gratin potatoes, aspargus and slug salad.
Last Easter, I said that it was odd not to be either on a trip or attending a Frame Family function. I also noted that had been a long time since we haven't gone to Mass on Easter. Unfortuanately, not much as changed in the last year. Over the last twenty-five years, I have grown to appreciate the large Frame family holiday functions. I for one miss them.
Sharon and I spent the morning cleaning up the house and the deck. Sharon's brother Tom showed up after 2 pm. With the weather in the 70s, the three of us had a nice visit on the deck.
Sharon had picked up a take-and-bake Easter dinner from Obo' Italian Table and Bar on Saturday. It included an artichoke appetizer, a salad, ham, potatoes and a cake for desert.
Drew rolled up at the end of the day. He is here this week to lend Morgan a hand.
It was odd not to be either on a trip or attending a Frame Family function. It has also been a long time since we haven't gone to Mass on Easter. It didn't really feel like the Easter Holiday. While everyone else slept late, I took Tiber on a long walk in the park.
In the late morning, Sharon, Jack and I did a long hike around the Effie Yeaw Nature Perserve and Ancil Hoffman Park. The county closed the park and the golf course for Easter weekend. As a result, the park was eerily quiet on both Saturday and Sunday. Selfishly, I wouldn't mind them keeping the park closed a little longer. The three of us ended up hiking 4.1 miles in an hour and thirty-three minutes. I will post a map and a couple of pictures later in the week.
In the late afternoon, Sharon convinced Jack and I to sneak on to the golf course. Grabbing a couple of clubs, we walked down the trail and jumped on the course at the 14th hole. I only took one club: a hybrid 4. Jack carried a driver and a nine iron, while Sharon had a driver and a seven iron. We played 14, 15, 16 and 17. There were a couple of other people out on the course hitting balls.
We then walked back across the course and played the par three 5th hole. Just as we were on the green, we saw the ranger driving down the course saying on the loudspeaker that the course was closed.
Sharon had ordered a ham. Although it was supposed to show up on Friday, it never did. I ended up barbecuing a couple of Omaha Steaks. We finished the day with a nice dinner of steak, au gratin potatoes and green beans. Eating dinner, we watched the second half of Godfather II.
Up early, Sharon and I took Tiber on a creek walk. Afterwards, the three of us went to Mass at Our Lady of Assumption. We got there just after 7:30 am for an 8:00 am Mass. The place was empty! We didn't need to go early...
For the first time since 2015, we hosted Easter. Everyone started to show up about 2:00 pm. The group totaled 18, including: Tom, Kevin, Leah, Lydia, Amelia, Tim, Kathy, Erin, Cromac, Eileen, Will, Teri, Steve, Janie, Jim, Sharon, Jack and I.
With Easter falling late, Tim was able to join the group. Googling Easter, the holiday can fall from March 22 to April 25.
Before dinner, Sharon had an adult Easter egg hunt. This indirectly resulted in one of the sconces in the entry way being destroyed.
Sharon made a leg of lamb and au gratin potatoes. Everyone else contributed ham (Janie), green beans (Cromac), rolls, green salad and jello salad. Tom brought the lamb cake for dessert.
I set an alarm for 7:00 am. Sharon was up and moving before the alarm. We walked to St. Patrick's for the 8:00 am Easter Mass. I was astonished how quickly they sped through the service. It was done in less than 40 minutes! They ushered out through the side doors in the front as they were bringing another group in for an 8:45 am Mass.
Back at the hotel, we packed up and checked out. We caught an Uber to the Lamb's Club for brunch. It was a very extensive buffet.
After brunch, we walked back to the hotel and picked up our luggage. Sharon and I changed into more comfortable clothes. Calling an Uber for Jack, he headed to Penn Station to catch a 3:00 pm train back to Washington DC.
Sharon and I caught an Uber to JFK. Getting there early, we relaxed at Piquillo and had an adult beverage. The jetBlue terminal at JFK is very civilized.
We boarded the jetBlue flight back to Sacramento about 4:50 pm. We had the same seats that we had on the way to New York (5C, 5B). It was supposed to take off at 5:27 pm, but had a minor technical problem. At one point I looked at my watch and we were still on the runway at 6:20 pm. At more than 6 hours, it was a long flight home. I finished my book and then watched the Giants lose to the Dodgers. Sharon watched All the Money in the World.
We landed more than 45 minutes late about 9:40 pm. By the time, we got home it was almost 11 pm.
It was a great trip. When we started talking serious about going, I dragged my feet. Sharon pushed the idea hard. She was right. We had a very nice time with Jack. We started a list of things to do on an Easter trip to New York next year!
A busy day... Up early, Sharon and I had breakfast at the hotel. Afterwards, we caught a cab to Holy Trinity Church in Georgetown. Getting there a little after 9:00 am for a 9:30 am Mass, the place was already packed. Sharon made a quick decision to head up into the choir loft. We were able to grab seats in the last row of the loft! Given the number of people milling around over the next 30 minutes, I felt very lucky to have gotten some seats. At one point, the priest asked people to move together to make room for the hundreds of people in the back!?! Jack wandered over from his dorm and joined us. It was a nice service; I enjoyed the homily.
After Mass, we walked to Jack's dorm room. He changed clothes and then we caught an Uber back to the hotel.
The plan for the afternoon was to go to the Nationals versus Phillies MLB game. We walked to the Foggy Bottom/GWU Metro station and took the Metro to the game.
We had some very nice seats down the third baseline. Although it was a good crowd, the area right around us was empty, including the whole row we were in [Section 114, Row U, Seats 1, 2 and 3]. With temperatures in the high 80s, we were in the shade after about the fifth inning. [Note to self], you need to be higher up on the third base side in order to be in the shade in the afternoon.
Jack was very motivated to get a foul ball. He had one very good chance; a ball bounced on the seat right in front of him as it went for it. He was not empty with his effort.
After the game, we caught the Metro back to the hotel. Getting cleaned up, we headed to an early dinner at the Blue Duck Tavern. The Blue Duck Tavern was awarded a Michelin Star in 2016 is continuously listed as one of top restaurants in Washington, DC by the Washington Post, Washingtonian and Zagat. Sharon and Jack ate there last August and Sharon and I had a dinner there last October.
We had a very nice Cheese and Charcuterie Board for an appetizer. For entrees, Sharon and Jack had Moulard Duck Breast, while I had Braised Beef Rib. The food was very good. The service was not. The waiter was kind of a shit...
With a very early start on Monday morning, we put Jack in an Uber and sent him back to his dorms after dinner.
Up early to walk Tiber, we were able to drag ourselves to the 7:30 am Mass at St. Ignatius.
A little after 1:00 pm, Sharon, Jack and I headed to Tom's house. The group for an early dinner included: Tom, Eric, Kevin, Leah, Lydia, Tim, Kathy, Eileen, Jim, Sharon, Jack and I. I enjoyed hanging out in the backyard watching Lydia before dinner... We had a nice dinner of ham, scalloped potatoes au gratin, green beans, brussel sprouts and jello.
Sleeping late, Sharon, Jack and I scrambled to get to the 9:30 am Easter Mass at St. Ignatius. We spent the rest of the day getting the house cleaned up and the Easter Dinner prepared.
Everyone started to show up for Easter dinner about 3:00 pm. This year's group included: Tom, Becky, Kevin, Leah, Eric, Jim Dunn, Erin, Eileen, Sharon, Jack and I. Kathy was supposed to come, but was sick.
Sharon made a great dinner of ham, leg of lamb, green beans, potatoes and jello salad. We had the lamb cake that Tom brought for dessert.
After Jack, Eric, Erin and Eileen, took Tiber down to the park, the group finished the night watching the premiere of the second half of season seven of Mad Men.
Sharon, Jack and I went to the 7:30 am Easter Mass at St. Ignatuis. Although we didn't plan it, Tom ended up sitting with us. We spent the rest of the day getting the house cleaned up and the Easter Dinner prepared.
With Kevin in an afternoon play, we had a late Easter dinner. The Toms showed up about 4:30 pm with Kevin's group finally showing up about 5:15 pm. It was a big group that included: Tom, Becky, Kevin, Kevin's fiancee, her parents, Tim, Kathy, Jim, Sharon, Jack and I. Janie also stopped by for a drink, but didn't stay for dinner.
Sharon made a great dinner of ham, leg of lamb, green beans, potatoes and jello salad. I cooked the leg of lamb on the rotisserie. We had the lamb cake that Tom brought for dessert.
We have been scrambling over the last couple of weeks to get the house into shape to host Easter. It is hard for me to believe that it has only been a little over three weeks since we moved. It seems a lot longer. The last three weeks has included our annual spring training trip and a baseball tournament in Reno.
We had 10 for Easter dinner, including Tom, Becky, Kevin, Kathy, Eileen, Jim, Janie, Sharon, Jack and I. Sharon made a great dinner of leg of lamb and ham. During dinner, we talked to Tim at his office, Erin at Pomona and Eric at Gonzaga.
While I was doing dishes after dinner, most of the group walked down to the Effie Yeaw Nature Center and to the American River.
Rolling out of bed before 7 am, we drove into the park for the first time. Parking at the visitor center, we caught the shuttle to Zion Lodge for an Easter Mass. It turned out to be a Catholic SCAP (Sunday Celebrations in the Absence of a Priest) service; This was a new experience for Sharon.
After the service, we grabbed a bagel and jumped on a shuttle back to the Visitor Center. We had signed up for a two hour tour interpretive tour of the canyon with a ranger. Starting at the Visitor Center, this tour made four stops, including the Human History Center, the Court of the Patriarchs, the Grotto and Big Bend. At each stop and during the shuttle ride, the ranger talked about the history and ecology of the area.
Heading back to the room, we made a quick stop and then headed into town for brunch. We ate at Oscar's Cafe. This is definitely some place that I would recommend. Jack and I had pancakes, while Sharon had huevos rancheros. Sharon actually said afterwards that it was the best huevos rancheros that she had ever had!
After a quick stop at a rock shop, we packed up and headed back into the park. The plan for the afternoon was a couple of hikes. From the Zion Lodge, we hiked the Lower Emerald Pool Trail to the Upper Emerald Pool Trail and then back down the Kayenta Trail to The Grotto. In total, we covered about three miles. I am not fond of heights. The Kayenta hugs the cliffs above the Virgin River before descending to the Grotto. There a couple of nice pools and waterfalls on the Emerald Pool hikes.
Back on the shuttle, we went up to the Weeping Rock stop and made the short hike up the Rocking Rock Trail.
Just as we got off the shuttle at the hotel, it started to rain. Over the next hour, there was thunder, lightning and heavy rain. We hung out in the room, watched the rain and tried to plan the next two days.
With it still raining hard, we had dinner at the Spotted Dog again. Sharon and Jack had lamb shank, while I had gourmet meatloaf.
For the second year in a row, we got up very early and went to a 6 a.m. sunrise Mass at Good Shepherd Church. Given the architecture of the new church, I enjoy how the light changes during the early morning and late afternoon Masses.
Sharon had made an attempt to organize a family get together for Easter, but was unable to herd her brothers' families in the same direction. As a result, we made a decision to have an early dinner at Piatti Ristorante.
Up really early, we went to the 6 a.m. mass at Good Shepherd.
We spent the afternoon at the Breuner house. We had Easter Dinner with Sharon's two brothers' families (Tom, Becky, Eric, Tim, Kathy, Erin and Eileen). Janie and Jim also joined us. Sharon made a great leg of lamb.
With the passing of Sharon's mom, this may be the last family gathering held at her parent's house.
When the planning for the this year's Spring Training trip started, I failed to realize this was Easter. It was not until after we had brought the tickets for the games and plane tickets did we realize that it was Easter weekend.
Afterwards, we met up with the group and had breakfast at Harlow's Cafe. Carol found this restaurant a couple of years ago and we have been making it an annual stop ever since.
The schedule for the day called for us to see the Texas Rangers play the San Francisco Giants at Surprise. We were short one ticket for the day. Consequently, Wallen, Bill, Jack and I headed to the staduim early to buy another ticket. After buying the ticket, we watched the Giants take batting practice. We ended up with a couple of baseballs. Jack was able to get a ball signed by Erick Threets, a Giant's pitcher who was shagging balls in the outfield.
I had forgotten how nice the Surprise ball park is. It is probably my second favorite Arizona venue, behind only Maryvale.
After the game, we headed back to the hotel and hung out around the pool for the first time on the trip. For dinner, Wallen wanted to go back to the Italian restaurant that we went to last year, but it was closed. We headed into downtown Scottsdale and had dinner at the Italian Grotto.
With a number of people flying out very early in the morning (Wallen was planning to get up at 4 a.m.!), it was a fairly early night. I got Jack back to the room and in bed before 10 p.m.
After attending Mass at Good Shepherd, we had Easter dinner with Tim, Kathy, Eileen and Sharon's mom Rosemary at her mom's house. Tom, Becky, Erin and Eric are in the Northwest visiting Kevin and checking out some colleges for Erin.
Sharon invited a number of people for Easter Dinner. The group ended up totaling thirteen, eight adults and five kids, including Cindy and Joe Larkin, John and Deborah Cunningham, Tom and Eric Frame and Kathy, Erin and Eileen Frame. Missing in action were Tim (working on tax returns) and Becky (working on her paralegal certification).
Sharon had a great main course of lamb and a honey-baked ham. Deborah fixed an interesting asparagus dish, Kathy contributed potatoes, Tom brought a salad and the Larkins made an appetizer.
The kids were occupied in the bonus room for long stretches playing board and video games.
