(This page last updated 03-27-03)
KAREN,
JOHN,
CHRISTINE, and JACK DARLING'S FAMILY EVENTS PAGE
KAREN AND JOHN AND CHRISTINE AND JACK
HAVE A NEW HOUSE!We realize the updating of this page is way over-due. But our new staff (yes, we replaced the old one) has pledged to do better in the future. We have a lot to report here and the first big news is that Karen and John have moved into their new house. They moved a few miles south from Pasadena to Monrovia and purchased a fantastic two-story mansion (by our staff's standards anyway).
The left picture shows the front view and the right picture shows the back. The windows to the left (downstairs) are in the office and the ones on the right are in the living room. Above the office is one of the bedrooms and above the living room is the master bedroom. The right picture is of the back. On the left, (downstairs) you can see the French doors leading from the family room to the patio and the back yard. The extension on the right is the kitchen with the back door leading to the garage and the back yard. The openings above the family room indicate the porch that adjoins the master bedroom and on the upper right (you can't see it very well in this shot) are the windows from one of the upper bedrooms. Honey and David report a great view from this porch. 
We though you ought to see some more views that emphasize the foliage - the left picture is another front view and the right picture is of the back. If you want to take Jack's attention from what he is doing all you have to do is take him outside and give him a hose. He loves to water the yard and plants and trees and anything else that's nearby.
The house has five, yes - five, bedrooms. Karen and John have converted one spacious downstairs bedroom into a study. There is a large bath between this room and the other downstairs bedroom which has been converted into an exercise room complete with a mounted monitor to watch "Saving Private Ryan" while running off calories (and stress) on the tread mill. Yes, there are weights there as well.
Also downstairs is a large living room with a fireplace, an ample family room with French doors leading to a patio and nice, well landscaped, enclosed backyard. Adjoining the family room is the dining room. And adjoining the dining room is the kitchen with a cozy breakfast area and service porch with pantry.
The back door leads to the garage and the back yard - convenient for taking food to the nice patio setting.
Upstairs there are three bedrooms - one an elegant master suite with French doors leading to a spacious balcony with city and mountain views. There are two other spacious bedrooms upstairs and two baths and plenty of closet space in the rooms and in the hall.
This adds up to 3,468 square feet of living space on a lot size of 10,744. Yes, they have a detached garage.
As providence would have it - the address is Lincoln Street! As a young boy John read a book about Abraham Lincoln and decided then and there he was going to be an attorney - and he has kept that promise with himself and has a thriving book in his firm.
We are so far behind in pictures we have chosen a few taken in early 2002. We will present later pictures with the next update. How about those ice-skaters. We were able to capture a couple of pictures of Karen and Christine taken at the rink:
And now we switch to a few pictures of Christine:
We can't leave Jack out so here are a few shots of Jack:
One of the benefits of a nice back yard is all the things you can do with it. When Honey and David were there last October (continuing their celebration of their 50th wedding anniversary) David's brother, Charles and his wife, Simin, were visiting their son and daughter-in-law and their two grandchildren, Clara and Chaz, in San Diego and they came up to Monrovia to visit Honey, David, and John and two children, Christine and Jack (Karen was spending a few days with her best friend from Minnesota). Simin made a great Mediterranean dinner and they all ate and visited on the nice patio in the back yard. What a great celebration. Oh, yes, the yard can be used for special occasions - like Easter egg hunts:
You can see that the family makes good and varied use of this great patio and backyard. And Jack keeps it well watered!
We think these two shots (taken in the back yard) do not need any explanation.
When Honey and David made their trip to California to celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary with their California families they spent the first week with Judy, Brum, Emily and Milo in Carlsbad, California. After the week in Carlsbad the six of them went to Laguna Beach to hook up with the Monrovia Darlings, John, Karen, Christine, and Jack. They met at the beach and the 10 had a good time. And there proved to be a good Samaritan there. Judy inadvertently left her purse in the restroom. She realized she had left it there very shortly after using the facility. She went back quickly but it was gone. After some worry and frantic searching and reporting it to the police and deciding it was truly "lifted", the police called == someone had found it and turned it in. So that story had a very happy ending ;-)!!
After the Carlsbad Darlings left to have dinner with Judy's relatives the Monrovia and Albuquerque Darlings left to meet a photographer at the beach. Karen and John have their Christmas photos taken at this picturesque setting and our staff thought it would be a fitting close to this edition of the Monrovia Darling's page with some pictures of that.
Obviously they were all enjoying themselves. And below is a picture of a Christine and Jack. Two children born in California with one parent from Minnesota and one from New Mexico. Do they like the ocean? You guess.
And before we close we need to say that Karen and John got a baby sitter for Christine and Jack and took Honey and David to a classy restaurant in honor of their 50th. They all dressed to the nines and had a great time dining and talking--and talking--and talking.
That's all for this edition.
DAVID'S HOME PAGE FAMILY EVENTS PAGE - 30 -
