Me and My Game Buddy

 The first part of November, I got to spend the morning with Grace.  One of the things I love about her is that she will play games with me.

 This game was "Go Fish" played with the Little Golden Book Characters.

 I think that my expression here really belongs to Ann.

 Grace is very competitive and there is no cheating!

I think she is cleaning my deck.

Morning After the Storm---And Earthquake

This week has had lots of "weather".  High winds on Monday night caused power outages.  Ours was out for 2 hours. Joleen's was over night.   Ben and JoLin was closer to 20 hours.   Shannon's family slept in the basement because their home is surrounded by trees.   At least we now have fewer corn stalks to cut.

This is the post to the arbor that snapped in the heavy gusts.

The poor arbor was pretty heavily laden with wisteria. 

Hopps cover this oblisek in summer and I like to leave the bare branches during the winter just for the look.  The wind just whisked them all away!

Then Tuesday morning we had the earthquake.  It rattled the dishes in the cupboard.  But by the looks of the red oak leaves with the morning sun shining through, all is peaceful......for the moment.

We had thunder and lightening in the middle of the night last night with rain and hail hitting like a ton of bricks. 

Joleen's Birthday Yesterday

We were delighted to spend last evening with Joleen, Phil and Brooke for Jo's birthday. It was a happy day. However, I had to laugh when I heard Brooke say to her mother, "If you didn't nag me so much, I would be more likely to do it." Oh, my! Had I ever heard that one before, but directed at me???? We all nodded.

Happy Day Jo!

Thomas and Percy

Playing with Thomas (the blue engine) has comsumed more days than I can count. If I am really good, I get to play with Percy (the green engine) and together we create the most amazing train adventures. Our best efforts are during Quinney's nap, as she hasn't quite got the hang of the trains staying on the track. I must confess, this is more fun than I deserve.

50 YEARS OLD!!!!

Even black and white was able to capture the sweet smile at 4 years old

Helping Grandpa Blood build the yellow house.  Could life be better than having a hammer and some nails to pound.?  This was the best busy summer and for only being six, Kemp was a huge help.

Just sittin'  and thinkin' about things.

Eighteen and the world in front of him.

Although Kemp seemed to be dealing with memory and hearing loss issues today, we wish him a very happy birthday.  50 years is a lot!