Oh... to be a KID again!

 "BUDDY" doll was our Grandma's "LIVE IN" grandchild.  EVERY grandchild played with Buddy and he was their "BEST FRIEND", even the grandsons. Buddy went everywhere in the house with us. He wore size two clothes and was always "happy" and "Smiling" and "approving" of our games.

When I was in Michigan this past week, I asked Aunt Jean (mom's only sibling) if she knew where Buddy was. They located him in her house and we had such a sweet and memorable visit with him. We estimate he is 55+ years old, at least. The overalls he is wearing were originally my cousin, Gail's. There was a second "Buddy" when he began to wear out, but this is the REAL DEAL Buddy.

Good to see you again, Buddy!

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Someone collected these observations about the "good old days" we had as children. They were so insightful and I recall most of these feelings at some time in my youth. I miss the "good old days".

Oh, To Be a Kid Again...

Decisions were made by saying "eeny-meeny-miney-mo."

Mistakes were corrected by simply exclaiming, "Do over!"

"Race issue," meant arguing about who ran the fastest.

Money issues were handled by whoever was the banker in "Monopoly."

Catching fireflies could happily occupy an entire evening.

It wasn't odd to have two or three "best" friends.

Being old referred to anyone over 20.

The worst thing you could catch from the opposite sex was cooties.

It was magic when Dad would "remove" his thumb.

It was unbelievable that dodge ball wasn't an Olympic event.

Having a weapon in school meant being caught with a slingshot.

Nobody was prettier than Mom.

Scrapes and bruises were kissed and made better.

It was a big deal to finally be tall enough to ride the "big people" rides at the amusement park.

Getting a foot of snow was a dream come true.

Abilities were discovered because of a "double-dog-dare."

Saturday morning cartoons weren't 30-minute ads for action figures.

No shopping trip was complete unless a new toy was brought home.

"Oly-oly-oxen-free" made perfect sense.

Spinning around, getting dizzy, and falling down would cause giggles.

The worst embarrassment was being picked last for a team.

War was a card game.

Water balloons were the ultimate weapon.

Baseball cards in the spokes transformed any bike into a motorcycle.

Taking drugs meant orange-flavored chewable aspirin.

Ice cream was considered a basic food group.

Older siblings were the worst tormentors but also the fiercest protectors.

Home church "reunion"...

 Mrs Mae Noe with Georgia, Raymond, and Wil Bice

in the new building for Galilean Baptist in Plymouth MI

Me with Mrs Noe. She is such a sweet blessing

to me. I have quoted her teachings many times over

the years. It was good to hear she prays for me each week!

Going back to our "home church" to see my "preacher's wife" was a sweet trip. The church is in a newer building in a different city, but many of the same faces greeted me last night. It was wonderful to see God at work and hope for better days among the congregation. I shared with them a little bit about our church's GROW ministry and they peppered me for details after the service.

After the meeting I finally dragged myself away to get a bite with the Bices and Shirley McFadden and spent another hour or two just remembering and enjoying each other. Good times!

Siblings together again! Mixed emotions...

 

The house on Winifred in Wayne where Al lived from 

Kindergarten until his folks passed away.  

Its vacant and in foreclosure.

 

Ernie and Agnes Leasure with their daughter, Carol (aka Kirk),

who babysat Al & I often in her teens. The Leasures

lived across the street from Al's family and Ernie worked 

and carpooled with my dad to Ford Motor Co. They were

the COMMON LINK that brought our families together.

 

 SIBLINGS: Bill, Rose, Barb and Vicki 

Siblings with spouses, minus Al: Dan & Rose, Barb,

Vicki, Cheryl & Bill 

Its been a roller coaster ride of emotions this week. Driving down the street I used to ride my bike on, seeing the aged homes looking so much the same as then, feeling a bit of excitement to be there, but apprehension at what I might find around the next corner... Seeing the lot where I lived with a new home and the same old address was a totally unexpected experience.

Its is SO HARD to see the economic crisis here. So many homes are on the market, with so few persons to buy them. 

Driving out to the country where my sisters live, memories flooded my mind of the country afternoon rides with dad when we drove through fallen leaves at breakneck speeds on dirt roads, hunting down the elusive hickory trees on the roadside. When we found hickory trees, we jumped out of the car and gathered as many nuts as we could before heading out to locate more trees. (Dad LOVED ice box cookies with hickory nutmeats!)

I spent much of the week trying to copy family photos for the siblings. After several days of computer vs scanner conflict, I finally called my other sister, Rose, to see if she had a functioning scanner. We spent the evening scanning over 250 photos before I headed back to Pinckney for bed. 

Today the brothers and the sisters came together again for the first time since I was here last... about ten years ago. It was a wonderful time of remembering and getting to know each other again. If you still have your siblings close enough, get a hug while you can (I can certify that we hugged on each other all afternoon!)

Back "HOME"... not what it used to be!

I don't have a photo to share, but my sister's dining room table is covered from one end to the other with stacks of photos I want to scan or photograph before I leave here. However, the scanner that I brought with me "hiccuped" so often that it finally quit altogether. There seems to be a problem with my 64 bit processor vs the old scanner software.

Next choice is to wait on my sister bringing her scanner back from my nieces tomorrow night, so I will be scanning all afternoon Sunday! It will be an interesting rest of the week here.

I have found some wonderful pictures and cannot wait to share them with my own family.

See you soon, family! (and Al, of course!)

Never FORGET 9-11; 2 pg memory

Our trip to the local fair turned suddenly somber when we discovered the two beams from the World Trade Center. The story is in the captions. NOTICE the somber faces of the children of all ages!

Thanks for looking!  

Online gallery views:  LARGE COMPOSITE

LEFT 

RIGHT

Cousins... a photo to scrap!

During a church dinner, the oldest three granddaughters were goofing off and posed for a cell phone. The companion print of their "goofy" faces might make a nice second page!

Thanks for looking... ONLINE GALLERY VIEW... HERE