Another Great Book!

I just finished The Winter Sea by Susanna Kearsley.  It is a historical novel set in the year 1708 in Scotland.  Not only is that a great story, but the author writes her own story in between, where she goes to Scotland to do research for the book.  Lots of twists and turns and such a good ending.  You will love it!

4th of July!

In our family, the 4th of July has always been a special holiday.  I know it is my sister Darlene's favorite holiday.  Here's me in 1948 before the flag had 50 stars.  Alaska and Hawaii were not yet admitted to the Union.

Here's Adam with his Dad doing 4th of July black snakes that you light with a match and they grow long.  You can tell that Adam was in the pool before this picture.

When we owned the house in McHenry, Illinois, we had a family reunion on the 4th of July.  Here I am with my cousin MaryAnn, my Aunt Jo, and my cousin Barbara.

Here is a picture of the McHenry house with various relatives enjoying the day.

Here's my sister Darlene and her husband Robert clowning around near their house in Marion, Indiana, in the year 2000, which was the year they got married.  Duane and I also got married in the year 2000, and so did Heather.  Quite a year!  Duane took this picture when we were visiting them that year.

Last year Heather spent 4th of July with her friend Michelle, and here she is with my adorable grandson Reese.  Note the patriotic shirt.

June Birthdays

Maddie and Adam both celebrate their birthdays in June.  We had a little party at our house for them, and we had a great time. 

Maddie turned 7 this year and almost simultaneously lost her two front teeth.

Adam has always enjoyed birthday parties.  He hasn't changed much in 32 years.

Jason and Duane also celebrated Father's Day.

Maddie got a cute little puppy for her American Girl Doll.

Melissa is such a wonderful Aunt to Reese and Maddie.  We all love her to pieces.

Reese loved getting into the act.  Here, he's trying to take Maddie's birthday tiara off.

Just love those grandkids!

Grandpa got a Father's Day card that said to hold up the card and he can have the six pack he's always wanted.

God Bless Fathers!

Fathers are sometimes not given enough credit.  They are the steady force that we rely on for fixing our cars, faucets and scraped knees, not to mention killing spiders and holding us on their shoulders when we are tired of walking.  Lots of fathers I know should be given a hearty "Happy Father's Day!"
Here are a few of the best:

My Dad, Richard Grzonkowski, February 27, 1945, 5th from the left, after he and his comrades captured a Nazi flag.  He was in the infantry and saw battles in France and Germany.  I am very proud of his military service during World War II.

David Armit with son Adam and Daughter Heather.  Dave was a good father and died much too early.

My son-in-law, Jason with Heather, Maddie and Reese at Maddie's 5th birthday party.  Jason is such a good father, it is impossible to say enough about him.  He is totally supportive and involved in Maddie and Reese's lives.  I love him to pieces!

My wonderful husband, Duane, here with son Scott, who is getting a little shooting advice.  Duane does so much for our family, and I don't thank him enough-----sooo,  Thanks Babe!

My Step-Son Scott, with his "little" girls before they became all grown up.  Scott is a wonderful, fun loving Dad who loves to swim, bicycle and play ball with his daughters.  He is the "rock" they depend on.

Boating!

Boating has always been a part of my life.  In the early days, the family would rent a row boat at a lake.  Here, we have my Aunt Hattie and Uncle Stanley circa 1952 at Crooked Lake, Wisconsin where we all went on vacation.  Fishing was always a part of row boating.  Aunt Hattie, by the way, is my Godmother, and Uncle Stanley is my Grandmother's brother on my Dad's side.

Here we have Heather concentrating really hard and trying to catch a fish.  She is sitting on the back of a houseboat that we rented in 1977 on Lake Mojave, CA.  Notice the bleak landscape.

My Mom and I beside our cabin cruiser, about 1983.  We loved to take it to Huntington Harbor, and Long Beach in So. Cal.  Never got up the nerve to take it to Catalina.

Adam and Dave on the Fox River in Illinois.  Dave was teaching Adam how to row a boat.  Adam did very well at age 11.  This was what they called a "John Boat".  Don't ask me why.

This was the boat we had in McHenry, Illinois that we would take on the Fox River, Fox Lake, Pistakee Lake and other lakes within the famous "Chain of Lakes".  They were all connected and you could spend a whole day going through the lakes and channels that connected them.  My sister Darlene is waving.  She loves boating.

Finally, the cutest picture of all.  Maddie driving their boat with Daddy.  Guess it's in the blood.

My iPad

Well, my new iPad is fully operational thanks to great tutorials at Apple.com and Duane's help with technical jargon.  I do think he likes it better than I do :)  I already had an iPod and enjoyed putting music on it.  The iPad will do that too.  Next, I guess I need an iPhone just in case I run into a situation where I don't have WiFi.  Just a week ago I couldn't have said that and understood it.  We had one problem at first and it was that when you used the camera, everything came out looking like a photo negative.  Duane figured out that it was the black background, and changed it to white, and now everything is AOK.  Look out world, here I come.....

Lots of Fun in the Summertime!

Summer always brings with it memories of the beach, the pool and vacations.  Here's me about 5 years old wading in the Des Plaines River in the Forest Preserve near Chicago where we used to go each  summer.  I loved the water even if it was cold.  Note the beautiful waterfall in the background.

Here I am again (in the bathing hat) with my friend Pamela and her brother at Lake Zurich, Illinois.  Such a great beach that was with slides, rafts and other things to play on.

Adam has always been a beach boy, and loved finding shells, stones, driftwood and sand crabs.  I still have some of his collections.

Heather loves the beach too, but both kids spent a major part of their summers in our pool.  Both learned to swim and dive at an early age.  Here, she's probably 6 years old.

Loving the beach runs in the family, and here is my niece, Chantelle with her Mom and my sister, Darlene enjoying the warm California sun in So. Cal.

Another Book Finished!

This book, The Girls From Ames, by Jeffrey Zaslow, is not a novel, but a true story of eleven girls from Ames, Iowa who have remained friends for 40 years.  These girls allowed Mr. Zaslow into their lives, and sometimes their secret lives as they tell the tale of friendship that has lasted despite the normal ups and downs of life.  Except for one girl, they do not live in Ames anymore, but all over the United States, and still get together as a group whenever possible.  It's an interesting book that has you reflecting on your own friends and life.

Dancing Queen

We so enjoyed Maddie's performance at her dance recital.  Here she is in all her glory with flowers from Aunt Melissa and missing her 2 upper front teeth!  The tooth fairy was busy the night before.

Here she was last year missing her bottom teeth, with yet another bouquet from Aunt Melissa.

Mother's Day

I feel so blessed to have Maddie and Reese in my life.  Here he is eating pretzels---and did you notice the pretzel behind his ear?  Just like a little contractor with a pencil.

 Here we are in Adam's beautiful backyard.

iPad

Can you believe it?  I've actually ordered an iPad 2.  This time I am bound and determined to read all the instructions and actually learn to use it.  I have an iPod and have been able to download a lot of music onto it, but I know it has other capabilities that I have never heard of.  I'll keep you posted on my progress....