At breakfast, Donna and I practiced an elongated neck and wide-open eyes for a better picture. Fewer wrinkles, right? Billie laughed her way through the practice session.
Stacks of patriotic tires:
Today we rode the Shoreline Trail toward Buffalo from our hotel in nearby Kenmore.
What? This gate is locked on the weekends?!! Detour required.
The Peace Bridge to Canada across the Niagara River:
We stopped at a Tim Horton’s for a snack, decided we’d ridden far enough, and headed back. Along the way, we leapfrogged a father/son team from Michigan who planned to ride 90 miles/day to Albany. They were already a few hours behind schedule, but something else bothered me. The father’s helmet was more on the side of his head, obviously not level or secure. I waved them over at one of our stops and asked if I could fix it for him. He let me! LCI 3879 doing some good in the world 😁
Miles = 24
Adventure begins…
This morning I flew to Buffalo, New York.
I must be close to Canada 🇨🇦:
Billie and Donna drove from Roanoke (with 3 bicycles) and picked me up at the airport.
Fun ahead!
Vacation Bible School
I did the story-telling portion of Vacation Bible School this week. Last week, I covered empty cardboard boxes with plastic tablecloths that looked like stone walls and went on an Amazon shopping spree which included a realistic 14″ fire – how else would the bread bake?
Monday opening. We had a small group this year.
Tuesday: Mary and Martha. Martha works hard:
While Mary watched movie trailers and ate popcorn. Not fair!
Wednesday: sometimes army-crawling or rolling under the pews was more interesting. Sigh.
Friday. 
The end.
Val’s Celebration of Life
Val Martin/Lilienthal’s Rio Linda Celebration of Life (8/28/1955-3/1/2018) happened today at the Legion Hall. My favorite pictures from the past: at Archie and Sandi’s Christmas party 2016.
Making nocino, June 2017, at Justin’s with Val S, Maria, and Phyllis:
Today, there was a crowded gathering of family and friends from the Rio Linda/Sacramento area.
Walking around the lake
I’ve been trying to walk more to get ready for an upcoming bike ride. I got up to 3 miles twice a day. The early evening walks were warmer and more challenging but yielded this surprise:
Cubs v Giants
Ade and I took BART into San Francisco the next morning.
Thank you, Ford Motor Company, for these bikes available for rent:
We walked a mile or so to ATT Park.
Originally our seats were in the sun, but Ade knew we could upgrade. “What do you have in 119?” she asked. And this is where we landed (GREAT idea Ade!):
The game went into overtime. 13 innings later, the Giants won 5-4, thank you Buster Posey!
To Berkeley
This morning, Ade and I drove to Berkeley. We went to my favorite fabric store – Stone Mountain and Daughter then a stroll around Ohmega Salvage followed by lunch on 4th St at Betty’s Oceanview Diner.
After more exploring and shopping on 4th St, we drove back to Walnut Creek to spend the night.
Thursday at Merrilyn’s
On Monday! Savory BLT cheesecake and Mushroom Spinach Quesadillas:
Always fun!
Dinner at Val’s
Fun evening!
4th of July
In the morning, there was a bicycle parade in Thais and Lenin’s neighborhood. Carson pedaled all the way from his house to Auntie Leah’s. No one dared touch the handle to help him, either – he kept an eye on both of us!
It was less parade and more race around the block.
By the first corner, everyone was out of sight, Carson pedaled on. He made it all the way around!
In the afternoon, there was a barbecue at Leah and Jeff’s. All that pedaling made for a tired boy.
After getting her hair braided by an older cousin, Sophia tried to braid her mom’s hair. The attempt didn’t last nearly long enough.
