Banjos and Pictures

Ron has a variety of musical instruments, and some he has had for a very long time.  One of the older banjos he had needed to have the head replaced.  He ordered a couple new parts in hopes that he could get the banjo back up to operating condition.  He found out in the process that the head was a special size and it appeared to be not quite as straight forward as it might have been.  With persistence and determination he was able to resize the base to accommodate one of the new heads that he bought. 
 
 I didn't get a picture when he had it totally apart, but I had no idea how many layers and pieces there are to this banjo.  He has it all back together and ready to return to his grandson.  It isn't an expensive banjo, but it sure is impressive to someone who knows very little about what a fancy one is supposed to look like.

The guest room is coming along.  It even has a recliner. Someone posted on FB the other day that they were putting together a family picture wall.  I am not sure it will be a fancy picture wall...  it's in the guest room upstairs.  I will give it my best to make it pleasing to look at. I have lots of family pictures, too numerous to display on a wall, but I thought I could gather a few together and create our little gallery.  Right now many pictures are just tacked up as place holders.  Some will have to be printed in a larger format. I also have to find some new frames to help with the presentation.  This is my start.

Last but not least, my brother was driving through the area and got real close again.  It is not easy to find a place to pull a big rig over on our country roads, but we found a mini truck stop not too far out where we could have a quick chat/visit.  It was much easier than driving up into Columbus like we did last week. That is the second time I got to see him in less than one week.  Woohoo for Ohio!

Family

I remember in years gone by when 200 miles seemed like a big deal.  When we were kids, planning a trip to Vermont from Connecticut took us at least 5 hours.  Of course you had to stop along the way, but that was 5 hours to go 200 miles.  Fast forward to the 21st century and 200 miles seems like nothing... especially from a Texas perspective.  Our highways and fast cars have drastically reduced the time required to get from point A to point B.  Now, with our new connectivity, families have branched out and no longer stay "close to home"... in fact half way across the country is not uncommon.  We now have family spread almost across the whole country.  It is easier today to stay tuned to what is going on with our cell phones and social media, but being able to spend time with our loved ones is priceless.  My younger brother's new venture as an OTR truck driver has provided new opportunities for some of our family to stay a little better connected.

He called the other day and told me he was 4 hours out and it would be awesome for us to get together while he was in the area.  He actually was going to have a fair amount of time available, so I made him a good old fashioned supper, and my daughter was able to join us for a fun evening of family time.  We shared lots of memories and laughed lots.

Just a few days before our visit my two brothers were able to connect for a brief meeting in Florida. 

When the opportunity presents itself you have to be ready to jump on it, because those moments are not always available to us. 

Greetings from Ohio

In June when my grand daughter came to visit me in Texas, I had no idea what was to follow.  Her wish was to learn how to quilt, and she was very hopeful that she could complete a queen size quilt to return home with.  She was a very good student, and we used pre-cut fabric... mostly, and Grandma kept the momentum going to make sure the mission was accomplished.  She did an awesome job of piecing the strips and squares together, and got a little quilting on the longarm done before she turned it over to Grandma to finish.  She did do the binding.  So having never quilted before she came to Texas, she went home after 10 days with a quilt that was completed.  She had lots of help, but she had a full spectrum experience with quilting her first quilt.

Fast forward a few months, and here I am in Ohio in my new house, just minutes away from a few members of my family.  As I reflect back on how my grand-daughter's visit got me thinking about all the family time I was missing, I am now reminded of all the memories I acquired in Texas.  This is a group with some of my dear friends in Texas, and in the background is the quilt they presented to me as a reminder of all those precious memories.

I have not been very good about keeping my page updated, but I will make an attempt to post some of what is going on in my new life experience back here in Ohio. I won't make any promises though cause "things" have a way of getting busy sometimes, and before you know it months can go by. 

Visitors

Hard to believe how time flies when you are having fun.  I guess another hard thing to believe is that I have reached such a golden age.  70 used to seem like it was so old... age is but a number.



We've had a few visitors in the past year.  It started last June with Gideon coming for his first visit, followed by Brie in August, then Gideon came for a second visit in March of this year and close behind Gideon was Zoe and Ben in April.




















 This June we had a visit from Hannah and she came ready to get her first quilt done.  She did it in record time, and it was awesome... both the quilt and her visit.  We are blessed with some really great grand children.