Wistful Wednesday: Easter

Here is a polaroid photo of our niece Bethany in 1986.

A big rabbit, Bethany with an Easter purse and Baby Snuffer.

Since this is a Polaroid and was in Far Guy's parents photo album I am certain Far Guy's Dad took the photo.

Baby Snuffer was our Snuffer's puppy.  Snuffer had a rendevous in Florida when we were stationed there...she had four puppies, Fatty, Blackie, Brownie and Flowie (Trica named them...she was just shy of 2 years old)  Far Guy and I are pretty sure that it was Blackie that became Baby Snuffer and went to live a good long life in Indiana with Far Guy's sister and family.

Far Side

Wistful Wednesday: Christmas 1971

This photo was taken at my parents home at the farm in 1971.

Far Guy holding Snuffer our dog. The lady laughing is Far Guy’s Aunt Beryl…she was widowed in January of 1971 (Uncle Ron was just 52 years old when he died.) My Dad with a big grin on his face is handing Beryl a snow shovel with a poinsettia on it. My other baby brother ( age 11) and my sister (age 5) look on.  I believe that Aunt Beryl had complained about an old beat up snow shovel.

Far Guy is holding Snuffers muzzle to keep her from barking…she was a great watch dog!  She was just a few months old.  She was a $5 mutt part Scottie that Far Guy bought at a garage sale for my birthday. ( Snuffer lived a good long time and helped raise our girls to like animals.)

I believe that this photo was taken on Christmas Eve 1971.  Far Guy had a lot more hair back then…we were both college students at Moorhead State College now Minnesota State University Moorhead.

Wistful Wednesday: Home On leave

June of 1973, we were home on leave in Minnesota.  We had been at Lowry AFB in Denver Colorado and were headed for MacDill AFB in Tampa Florida.

Trica was 14 months old then and we had a little Scottie mix mutt of a dog named Snuffer who would live a good long time.  We traveled light.  Everything we had fit in the back of a pickup truck.

 

My baby brother was home then, he was honorably discharged from the Navy due to a knee injury.

Being home was bitter sweet, we didn’t know when we would be back or when we would see loved ones or relatives again but we were excited to see a different part of the United States.  Florida is a long way from Minnesota.  Far Guy orignally had orders for Bitburg Germany. (He had requested Grand Forks ND, Minot ND and Mountain Home ID) We were upset with the orders for Germany…I wouldn’t be able to go for a long time because we would have to save up for my plane ticket and Tricas and our dog Snuffer would have to be quarantined for six months either that or stay with Far Guy’s parents.  One of the single guys offered to trade his spot at MacDill and Far Guy took the trade…the next day we could have had Mountain Home and $100…but a trade is a trade.

Military life had a fair amount of twists and turns.

Thank you to the Veteran’s in my life.  My husband, my father, my baby brother, my nephew, my uncles and many of my cousins.

1982 Again and The Big Sort

Here is our family photo taken the same day as the larger group family photo I shared the other day.

Yes the dog is in this one.  The cranky old photographer said “Yes that dog can be in the photo but I don’t fuss with animals.” So Snuffer just looks like a pile of fur facing the wrong direction.  I liked that photographer until that day.

The sort continues… progress is slow. ( I should not READ everything.) I did a big sort of family genealogy papers…Far Guy has a good bunch of Family History all in one place now (was that even on my original list?) I have asked a cousin on his Mother’s side of the family to share the Canadian/English History. 

I managed to get a couple of obits typed up…ran into a name problem…Almeada Clara was really Clara Almeada according to her obituary and funeral pamphlet…so I made that edit at Find A Grave.  I wonder what her birth certificate says….census records say Clara A.  Finding that info lead me down two different rabbit holes….and still no birth record…but I found one for her husband in Canada.  All this time I thought he was born in Wellington County Eramosa Twp …wrong it is West Luther Twp…I saw the record of birth online…it also said he was born on Jan 27…family history/find a grave/obituary says Jan 26.  See now I have more questions that I bargained for.  That is what happens some days.

Our weather is lovely …sunny and in the 30’s F…we sat outside ysterday…and it felt good.
 

Flashback to 1982

I am still in the process of sorting and organizing.  I should be ashamed of myself for tucking so many things away in different places.  I will blame it on the three moves between 1995 and 1998 and putting “stuff” into storage several times.

Yesterday I found a piece of heavy cardboard in a drawer, tucked inside were many old 8 x 10 photos. Now they are on my desk to be scanned. They will make good blast from the past blog fodder.

We gathered at the top of the hill overlooking Straight Lake at my parents resort (Bass Bay).   Mom had hired the cranky old photographer from town.  He really didn’t take his time to get good photos.

The year was 1982.  At this time my parents had six grandchildren. My Mom is holding Katie (6 months old) and Dad is holding Benjamin (2 months old).  Jennifer (age 7) is sitting uncomfortably on the edge of the two lawn chairs.  Trica has her eyes closed (age 10).  Our dog Snuffer is running around someplace…irritating the photographer.

Back row: Julie (my sister), me, Far Guy, Jody (my other baby brother) She who sees Robin’s first with Josh (age 2), Beth and Carey(my baby brother) holding Kirk (not quite 2).
This summer will mark 35 years since this photo was taken.  It seems impossible…but the calendar doesn’t lie.

Just Wondering

Well today I am just wondering what unique and very personal gift Far Guy will give me tomorrow? Today is my last day being 56, unless of course I croak by the end of the day...but we won't go there.

Far Guy has a way with gifts. In 1971, he went to a garage sale and bought me a puppy for $5.00. Now this may not seem like much to you, but back in 1971 $5.00 would actually buy a fair amount of groceries besides bread and milk. He bought me a puppy that was a Scottie mix, we named her "Snuffer" and she lived with us for 15 years. In 1975, two days after I gave him his dream of two little girls, He gave me a can opener. It was an electric can opener, top of the line, Avocado green. I still have it, someplace up in a box upstairs with a post-it-note on it that says "Jen, This should be yours as your Father gave it to me two days after I birthed you..enjoy!" Then there was the orange wheelbarrow, sometime in the 1980's, I still have that too. It makes my life easier. One of my most favorite gifts I HAD to sell..the mud flaps with Yosemite Sam on them that said "Back off," those mud flaps looked great on my old Ford Bronco II that served me tirelessly for 18 years. Through thick mud or a snowstorm, inches of ice..drifts ten feet high..oh wait..gosh I miss that vehicle.

I am sure there are those of you out there whose Husbands shower them with Flowers, Candy, and all sorts of things that you have promptly forgotten. My Guy.. Far Guy gives me gifts that are very memorable. What will tomorrow bring? Stay tuned as I wait with visions of puppies, can openers, wheelbarrows and mud flaps dancing through my head:)