Category: Family

I saw this cartoon the other day and flashed back to my youth. There’s a common saying among mothers, “Make sure you have clean underwear on.   When you leave the house to go out for the day, make sure there are no holes in your drawers.”  My mom was a big  proponent.  She was so …

  Eva turned fourteen today.  She’s in the eighth grade and started in a new school this fall after the family move from Hamilton to Holland.  She’s adjusted well to her new surroundings and made the eight grade volleyball team.  Ruth and I have been attending her matches.  She does well and likes to play. …

If your an avid reader, you know we held a talent show at our fiftieth anniversary celebration a month ago.  As I hoped, everyone participated. My sister, Jackie, did test the waters by asking what would happen if anyone “chickened out”.  I simply told her I heard rooms were available in Petoskey, but they were …

People who use their right and left hands equally well are known as being ambidextrous.  They are extremely rare.  Approximately ten percent of the population is left-handed, like Ruth and my grandson, Brady.  Only one percent is truly ambidextrous.  My granddaughter, Eva, may be a member of the one percent.  I’ve seen her bat and …

My dad loved to play cards. He’d play any game, except bridge, as long as you outlined the rules before dealing. Most of all, he loved to play for money. His favorite place to play was Las Vegas. He played blackjack. He didn’t get to go as often as he would have liked. but he …

Ruth and I will be celebrating our fiftieth wedding anniversary with our family over Labor Day week-end. If you’re an avid reader, you know we eloped to Las Vegas on September 11, 1971. We’ve rented a home in Boyne City on Lake Charlevoix. It sleeps twenty-two. Our three kids and their families will be with …

If Mom was still alive she would have turned 101 last Monday.  While she had three children, Sharron, Jackie, and me, she often told me that my cousin, Gene, was more like a son than a nephew.  He was the oldest cousin from the Barner clan and the “go to” man in the family.  He …

Although I lived on a lake for forty-three years, I’ve never been a fisherman.  I’ve thrown my line in the water a few times, but seldom more than a couple of casts off the dock.  Most of the time I had one of the three kids with me or, later, my grandkids.  They’ve all caught …

Young Jackson James will start daycare in a week.  Part of the preparation is making a series of visits to the care facility.  Mike and Kate have visited several and chose the location because they believe it will be a safe haven for Jackson.  Great thought goes into making such decisions. California law requires a …

Eva is our family equestrian.  She takes dressage lessons and has become quite a “horse person”.  I’ve had the opportunity to see her in action, and she does very well.  Her trainer is working with her so that someday she may be able to show horses on her own. For those who may be unfamiliar, …