Good evening all.........and a special tag to @sueinmn. I have now been in Minnesota for 6 or so years and I think I have made up my mind. Tonight I reviewed all of your posts just to make sure I haven't missed some place or forgotten another. Believe me......this "discussion" has great value and I was glad I decided to review it.

Number 1. I truly believe that I was born to live the last phase of my life in Minnesota...... particularly in St. Cloud where we live right on the Mississippi River along with seven acres of trees and treasured plants.
Number 2. Yes, I miss my Cavalier, Roxie, but oh what fun I have training chipmunks. They generally live about three years and we become pretty close friends. In the beginning, when they are frightened, to the time when they share their wants and wishes with us, and enjoy being petted and held, we get to watch their unique personalities develop.

And then there are the birds. In addition to the three-window wide feeders in the kitchen, we now have new ones on our bedroom deck. Sometimes our guest meals are pretty quiet, while everyone attempts to identify all of them by using the guidebooks on the table. Somehow, we now have flying squirrels that also pay us visits. And....our eagle famly has been with us for years.

One of my worries was the fact that I had no friends here. Guess what? I do now. I carefully limited my expectation to a number that I could have time for and were participating in activities that I loved and wanted to share. As you might expect I have also developed an interest in some new concepts from Eastern Philosophy to weekly Mahjongg.

Now, you are probably wondering about all the grandchildren and their families. We have four now (3 girls and 1 boy) from (5-25)and they visit us in St Cloud a few times a year. My heart almosts bursts as they come running across the front patio to jump into my arms. The quality of our time together is right next to spectacular.

Is everything perfect? Just imagine and be ready to forgive and forget when needed. My heart is pitter pattering as I write this.

Finally, how are we doing? As you might imagine, health must be attended to more frequently at 77 and 82. We are fortunate to have the Mayo clinic very close. And we have learned enough from all of you to watch carefully for new aging issues.

Just this morning, I srolled around the Mississippi River front, enjoying the spectacular beauty of natue and the quiet of our gracious surroundings.

Good luck to you all.
Chris