Wednesday, July 12, 2017

Onward .... Stop #2, Ohio


After a busy week in Boston, it was on to Ohio. My brother was waiting at the exit and drove home via our old home in Euclid ... 3000 Hadden Road.

The maple tree in front of my bedroom window is still there ... only a lot bigger and missing all those lower branches with robin nests in view.

The street trees were no longer silver maples, but as big as what was there when I was a kid. Of course the roses are long gone and the path out to the point at the top of "Old Baldy" was closed off. I would have loved to walk out there once more but we would have had to get permission to pass through someone's yard to do so.

My "little" brother's house is in such a beautiful setting.

I think the deck is larger than my total living space and the cool shady area much quieter and inviting than my Tokyo surroundings.

Saturday and Sunday morning was spent preparing for a grand gathering of family, and, as my sister-in-law is really a cousin I grew up with, the extended family was expanded in all directions.

I think Sunday's party was actually a run-over into Monday.

When many years pass between visits, there is a lot of catching up to do.




My siblings are all amazing and we had a lot to talk about.

This is me with my brother, Pete.


I don't think there is anything around that he can't fix.   If you want it ... make it yourself with improvements.

Garden, deck, house, furniture, appliances, ... you name it and he has a finger in the pie. Behind where we are sitting is an old player piano and a shelf of tapes from the "old days".
All in working condition.

As is my usual style, I took my camera along and forgot to take pictures until the very end.

Luckily, others did take pictures and I only need to figure out how to get them from my downloads into a place I can use them.Maybe that will be a task to learn now that I am with my Guru son in Colorado.

My niece, Missy, took this picture for me at the end of the gathering , Brother Pete and Sue, Sister Cyndi next to me with her husband, Bob behind.

We really had a lot of catching up to do and at one time someone took a picture of the group sitting together ... all hands sewing on something and lots of chatter in progress. Cyndi is a great quilter and Missy was sewing patches on to a girl scout vest ... active in both boy scouts and girl scouts so we have more in common than just genes.

Multiple bird feeders were constantly welcoming feathered guests ... and a few squirrels ...

It was nice to get re-acquainted with the birds I had grown up seeing daily and almost forgotten.








I have a feeling that if the flower boxes were laid side-by-side and end-to-end, the total space would be larger than my "garden" at home.


Monday was spent putting things back in place and I think poor Sue had her ears talked off by the time I was ready to go on Tuesday.

One thing about quilting, is that you can move your mouth as well as hands. We did a lot of catching up and a lot of reminiscing.
Without much chance to use English at home, I probably over-did the chatter and there was quite a bit of laughing going on ... which I understand to be good for one's health. The TV never went on and there was no discussion of politics for a change. Focus on family seems to be of higher value.


Though I had planned to do some stitching on the plane to Colorado, I pretty well finished off quilting behind the dog. Probably it was a good thing too as the ride was in a rather cramped space and even pulling a book out of my bag was challenge enough.

Now I need to come up with a quilting pattern for the border. Maybe a cable is enough but getting the dimensions right to make the corners meet will take some fiddling with numbers ... not my forte!

I will be a week in Colorado. There seems to be a Rocky Mountain adventure in the plan for the weekend. That may take a bit of wardrobe adjustment as I haven't brought my outdoor gear. Well, we shall see ... stay tuned for the next edition ...

6 comments:

  1. You can tell that you and Cyndi are sisters. You look like each other. The sweater dog is looking great! Have fun in Colorado!

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  2. What a change of scene! Hope you have a wonderful time connecting with family and places. Talk all you want!!
    Mary

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  3. So fun to see your old home and be with family, love seeing you and the family together and it sounds like you had a wonderful time with them. Colorado sounds like another fun adventure.

    Debbie

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  4. You are covering quite a bit of ground in your travels. It is so lovely to be with family. Looking forward to the next stage in your adventure.

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  5. It is SO nice to meet up with family and friends. I am so glad you had the chance to make this trip.

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  6. Thanks for sharing the pictures of you with your family - so nice to see this and I know you are having a great time.

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