New Blog Site

   
  Well, had a post and it disappeared.  It was the one What'd you Say?  Not to worry didn't want it on the web so everyone in the United States could see it. So we are testing this one and will see how it goes. When it is finished we will be sure to let you know where it can be found.

Hugs to All,
Barb

Holiday Fun!

        Well, another New Year and hoping for a better one! December 2014 was a pretty busy month, with the holiday’s and all. Put the tree up, wasn’t going to, but I was reminded it was tradition. Which is true. My Mom had her tree up every year regardless of how she was feeling. It was great having those of you that could be here with me and I’m glad we have video with those that couldn’t be here, great to be able to do that! That meant we went to Texas for Gabe testing his new Roller Skates. California for Christmas presents opening. Enjoyed hearing the excitement in their voices when opening them! Also visited Florida for a chat with LaVella! Those of you that couldn’t make it that were sick, sorry you all were feeling bad. I did make sure they had some food sent to them. Didn’t want them to miss out on everything. It was a very busy day!

Went to a Christmas Play with Emily and her Dad, his wife Paula and her Sisters, Brother Josh and wife. Emily had us all for dinner at her house, then off to the play. Was a very good meal. Mike and I got separated from them as we took the elevator up to the 2^nd floor balcony. They ended up on the 3rd floor. But all was ok. By taking the elevator we got real good seat in the Handicap area. A lady came over and took off the towel and said, “These are available.” I told Mike we will never find them, the seats are good . So we sat and had a good view and had fun. Thank you Mike for making the evening easy for me! Even though you poked my sore arm all evening. LOL!!

Carol fixed Christmas dinner and really dirtied up my stove. Never had grease run down the front of it until that day. We laughed so hard. I told her “you are sabotaging my stove.” She did get it cleaned so it would set off any more smoke alarms. Thank you, Carol! It was so much fun doing that with her. The dinner was great.

Izzy , Crystal’s little one, was having a great time . She, by the way, had the most attention. She had all the adults making over her. Falling in love with her as she is so cute in her reactions to things. What a cutie she is. Oh, and for Christmas, I received group photos of all the great-grandchildren together. Loved that. As you all know I am a lover of pictures and taking them. All in all Christmas was fun.

Then came the New Year! We’re off to a great start!

New Year: Day 1
My sewer line backed up. Had it fixed.
Candy called said, “Happy  ****  New Year!”
Well, after that . . .

New Year: Day 3
I went to the basement, the toilet down there was stopped up. So by the 6^th of January everything is fine. Man, great start for the New Year. So, I am saying, well, it is an older home things like this happen. Just to make me feel better. It did. So presently we are just fine at the homestead.

Almost. Now we are coping with this frigid weather. Which, really, let’s face it. It’s January. We have had a very good string of good days. Warm then cold. Warm then cold. Not really bad. So I am taking it in stride and going to deal with it, as I have no choice.

Well, that is it for this month. Have a great New Year and enjoy life. You are always in my thoughts and in my heart.

Love to all, 

Mom, Barb, Auntie , Friend.

Happenings in 2014

Happenings in 2014

Emma Jo, Gabe & Mischa. Photo by Keith Bates

In July 2014 the BB Riverboats had a cruise up the river to Coney Island. The anual event is called The LaRosa’s Hot and Cold Air Balloon Glow. They served dinner and cruised up to Coney Island, then let everyone off the boat to enjoy the beautiful hot and cold Air Balloons that were being displayed. The little ones enjoyed the rides and fireworks. Then we had a cruise back down the river to Newport to the Port of the Cincinnati Belle. What a glorious time it was. Keith, Jenni and Gabe were here on vacation and we thoroughly enjoyed having them here for the cruise.

We had a few loved ones leave us this year. My children lost their Father to cancer. One of my cousins, 2x removed on my Dad’s side of the family, lost her 16 yr old Grandson. Two months later she lost her son. What a tragic time for her. Life is so precious and you just never know when it is going to be taken away from you. My cousin Marcella, who lives in Harrison Ohio, called me to tell me about it. She is 86 yrs old and still does a lot of things around her home. She always says, “Barb you and I are so much alike. We want something done we do it ourselves.” She has the cutest giggle when she laughs. She has the warmest heart I have ever known. She has two sons. One son lives with her. He now has a few health issues and she is right there taking care of him. Supporting him through it all! Bless her!

We also had a celebration for Emily. Mike popped the question!

Of course she said, “YES!”, so the race began for her to get a dress. That was so great to see her trying on the dresses. Then they’d say, “How do you like this one Grandma?” Well, how can you say you look beautiful when you are choking back tears because she was gorgeous in it? She stood there with little birdcage hat and that dress, all I could do was just look. Wanting to just cry because I loved it on her. She is going to be a beautiful bride. More on this later as the wedding is in late spring 2015!

As I mentioned before, Greg, Sarah and the children came in on Thanksgiving this year. They came over the day after and we had a great visit. Emily was here. Emily and Sarah talked about the wedding and girl things. Greg and I talked technology things. Hahaha! That’s what we do. Since all my family works in theTechnology world what else would you talk about? LOL. Greg calls me his techie Grandma. You know you just have to keep up with the new stuff. Anyway, Sarah decided to have Zillah’s birthday party on the 6^thsince they were in town. That way we could all enjoy it with her. She was turning 4 yrs old. It was so cute, every present she opened she would say, “Oh that is just what I wanted.” She is so cute.

I video chat with Gabe (Gary’s grandson (my great-grand son) who is in Texas, on his birthday. It was so cute. He said, “I am in Richardson.” He was cute. So, I told him I was in Kentucky. He thought a moment and shook his head yes. He knew where I lived. He is getting so big like all the rest of the great-grandchildren. Gabe is full of life. I love seeing him interact with Gary. He is like a little Chameleon when he is around Keith, you can see Keith.

Went to Cross Roads Church Last Night,  12/22/14 to see a Christmas Play. It was Fantastic. Really had a fun time with Mike, he made sure I got to the elevator and was placed in a seat safely. The only thing was he kept poking my arm all evening! Not really, but it was fun. Throughly enjoyed his company. Thank you Mike.

Well, Sonny and I went down to iHop for breakfast Dec 23 2014. When you go to iHop they give you a receipt for you to do a survey online. Then they give you a code to write down. You get a small stack of pancakes for doing the survey, it’s a good thing. Well, the waiter we had is a person with high anxieties. I don’t think he knew which end was up or down. To make this short. By the time we had our food served we had enough food for four people. He had the orders mixed or something. Ended up bringing home a small stack of pancakes and a senior rise and shine breakfast. I think they had eight slices of bacon on two egg orders. He put them down and I said, “No,  . . . that”, and before I could answer he said; “Its Free. Its free.” Now a couple across the way from us was laughing so hard. When they left they said the same thing happened to them. The poor waiter was having a very bad morning. He said, “You could ask for me if you want, the next time you come in.” Now, I don’t know if he wants to wait on us or not. Could be he wants to retrieve some extra money in tips to make up for the mistakes he made. I did leave him a good tip. I gave him the tip with the bill money. Sonny said he was up at the register holding his head trying to figure out why we gave him so much money. We gave him the right change for the bill and the tip with it. After five minutes he came back and said you gave me too much money. I couldn’t figure out why I had so much. So I told him the extra money was his tip. His face was red. The poor guy just was having a bad day. So when he saw how much the tip was he proceeded to tell me we could ask for him the next time. I early felt sorry for the guy. He gave me the receipt and said to be sure to do the survey for another free stack of pancakes. I said I sure will. Thank you and Have a Merry Christmas.

After the holidays and ending of 2014 a New Year begins 2015, hopefully a better year than the last. But the last story was a winner for the year. God bless you all and please have a very Merry Christmas. A blessed New Year!

Love to all!

Barb

Ending 2014 - Barb

2014 – HAPPENINGS

Emma Jo, Gabe & Mischa. Photo by Keith Bates

In July 2014 the BB Riverboats had a cruise up the river to Coney Island. The anual event is called The LaRosa’s Hot and Cold Air Balloon Glow. They served dinner and cruised up to Coney Island, then let everyone off the boat to enjoy the beautiful hot and cold Air Balloons that were being displayed. The little ones enjoyed the rides and fireworks. Then we had a cruise back down the river to Newport to the Port of the Cincinnati Belle. What a glorious time it was. Keith, Jenni and Gabe were here on vacation and we thoroughly enjoyed having them here for the cruise.

We had a few loved ones leave us this year. My children lost their Father to cancer. One of my cousins, 2x removed on my Dad’s side of the family, lost her 16 yr old Grandson. Two months later she lost her son. What a tragic time for her. Life is so precious and you just never know when it is going to be taken away from you. My cousin Marcella, who lives in Harrison Ohio, called me to tell me about it. She is 86 yrs old and still does a lot of things around her home. She always says, “Barb you and I are so much alike. We want something done we do it ourselves.” She has the cutest giggle when she laughs. She has the warmest heart I have ever known. She has two sons. One son lives with her. He now has a few health issues and she is right there taking care of him. Supporting him through it all! Bless her!

We also had a celebration for Emily. Mike popped the question!

Of course she said, “YES!”, so the race began for her to get a dress. That was so great to see her trying on the dresses. Then they’d say, “How do you like this one Grandma?” Well, how can you say you look beautiful when you are choking back tears because she was gorgeous in it? She stood there with little birdcage hat and that dress, all I could do was just look. Wanting to just cry because I loved it on her. She is going to be a beautiful bride. More on this later as the wedding is in late spring 2015!

As I mentioned before, Greg, Sarah and the children came in on Thanksgiving this year. They came over the day after and we had a great visit. Emily was here. Emily and Sarah talked about the wedding and girl things. Greg and I talked technology things. Hahaha! That’s what we do. Since all my family works in theTechnology world what else would you talk about? LOL. Greg calls me his techie Grandma. You know you just have to keep up with the new stuff. Anyway, Sarah decided to have Zillah’s birthday party on the 6^thsince they were in town. That way we could all enjoy it with her. She was turning 4 yrs old. It was so cute, every present she opened she would say, “Oh that is just what I wanted.” She is so cute.

I video chat with Gabe (Gary’s grandson (my great-grand son) who is in Texas, on his birthday. It was so cute. He said, “I am in Richardson.” He was cute. So, I told him I was in Kentucky. He thought a moment and shook his head yes. He knew where I lived. He is getting so big like all the rest of the great-grandchildren. Gabe is full of life. I love seeing him interact with Gary. He is like a little Chameleon when he is around Keith, you can see Keith.

Went to Cross Roads Church Last Night,  12/22/14 to see a Christmas Play. It was Fantastic. Really had a fun time with Mike, he made sure I got to the elevator and was placed in a seat safely. The only thing was he kept poking my arm all evening! Not really, but it was fun. Throughly enjoyed his company. Thank you Mike.

Well, Sonny and I went down to iHop for breakfast Dec 23 2014. When you go to iHop they give you a receipt for you to do a survey online. Then they give you a code to write down. You get a small stack of pancakes for doing the survey, it’s a good thing. Well, the waiter we had is a person with high anxieties. I don’t think he knew which end was up or down. To make this short. By the time we had our food served we had enough food for four people. He had the orders mixed or something. Ended up bringing home a small stack of pancakes and a senior rise and shine breakfast. I think they had eight slices of bacon on two egg orders. He put them down and I said, “No,  . . . that”, and before I could answer he said; “Its Free. Its free.” Now a couple across the way from us was laughing so hard. When they left they said the same thing happened to them. The poor waiter was having a very bad morning. He said, “You could ask for me if you want, the next time you come in.” Now, I don’t know if he wants to wait on us or not. Could be he wants to retrieve some extra money in tips to make up for the mistakes he made. I did leave him a good tip. I gave him the tip with the bill money. Sonny said he was up at the register holding his head trying to figure out why we gave him so much money. We gave him the right change for the bill and the tip with it. After five minutes he came back and said you gave me too much money. I couldn’t figure out why I had so much. So I told him the extra money was his tip. His face was red. The poor guy just was having a bad day. So when he saw how much the tip was he proceeded to tell me we could ask for him the next time. I early felt sorry for the guy. He gave me the receipt and said to be sure to do the survey for another free stack of pancakes. I said I sure will. Thank you and Have a Merry Christmas.

After the holidays and ending of 2014 a New Year begins 2015, hopefully a better year than the last. But the last story was a winner for the year. God bless you all and please have a very Merry Christmas. A blessed New Year!

Love to all!

Barb

Fond Memories

I have been thinking of some of the things I really enjoyed in years past. Thought you might also.

Gatlinburg 2011 – Let’s Try This Again 

After our first trip in 2010 ended in such a sad way, we headed back down to the Smokey’s and enjoyed a nice October in Gatlinburg in 2011. No more high elevation in December like 2010 for me, we stayed at a cabin in the valley close to town. Greg and Sarah came this time and it was so much fun having them. Zillah was a little tot. We had a real good trip that time. Went in the mountains and got a lot of pictures and took some hikes. Of course my knee was in a little pain so I sat and waited on them while the kids did their thing. I think there were 16 of us that went. Was it a lot of fun spending time with the family? Yes, it was!

So, when February 2013 came I decided if the Family wanted to go I would book a Dinner Cruise on the BB Riverboats for Labor Day. They all said, “YES!”. . . 

WEBN Fireworks 2013

In late March, I decided to build some shelves in the basement so I could get to things that had not been unpacked since I moved into this place. Got the shelves built, cartons unpacked and things taken to Goodwill. I felt great. So, I had two large book shelfs I needed to move and when I started to move them I tripped. My head hit the wall (thank the Lord it was drywall, my right shoulder hit the front of the shelving I built and tore my right shoulder beyond repair. I yelled for Sonny to come down and help me to get up, But as always he was on the second floor above me. Couldn’t hear me. He doesn’t hear me when he is sitting right next to me. I had a hard time getting up with one arm. And being as old as I am it was hard to get up. But I did and called Tammy to see if she could take me to the emergency room. Believe me it had to be bad for me to do that. I was in the office where they check you in and I heard Sonny and Tammy talking. Sonny said something to Tammy and her response was, “Yeah she is pretty hard headed.”  Don’t even want to know what he said to get that answer. Anyway the emergency room Doctor referred me to an orthopedic and the results were not good. Had to have a replacement done on it.

The Doctor wanted to do it before Labor Day. No.

Yes, that’s right, I told him,

“No. I have plans for the Fireworks. I have waited five months and it won’t hurt to wait a couple more weeks.”

That’s right. I was going on that Dinner cruise no matter what. We did, and had the best seat in the whole place. It was great. I need to do that again before the inevitable happens. One of the greatest times I had with my loved ones. Just wish they all could have been there. The kids from California and Texas didn’t make it. Everyone had fun. Great parking, Great Food, Great cruise and last but not least . . .

The Fireworks were the greatest I have ever seen!

So, after the Big Bang, I had my surgery. Everything went as it should.  I had therapy and it was good. I can move my arm and lift things, not too heavy. But I can reach in the cupboard and get a cup or plate. No pain! I don’t like the idea that it isn’t my real parts in there, but it works. That is all I care about. So now I am finished with the doctor runs every few months and I go back in a year.

Ok. Back to 2014 

Well, I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving. Emily came over to help me with the cooking, which I was grateful for. Our family gathering was great. Carol came down after the holiday. Greg and Sarah and the children came the Friday after. It was a great day. Crystal came with Mischa. Eric stayed home with Izzy, she was sick!   Well, until the next time . . .

Love and Hugs to All,

Barb

Since My Farewell

Hello!  It's me! I am back!

Really didn't want to get back to doing this, but what else is there to do except sit here on the computer and grow old. May as well be doing something that everybody says they enjoy!

It has been about three years since my last Blog. I am not really sure I should do them but a few people really enjoy my jibber jabber. So I will do this one and see how it goes. I guess in all reality a lot of things have been going on for the last three years. So here goes. Some of the things I will write about some of you will already know so bear with me until I get to some of the newer things.

First of all, November 2014 is here and we'll celebrate several birthdays and Thanksgiving! Gary and Greg have birthdays and so does "Little Barb", Barbara Dunham.

Sadly, I lost my dear little friends. First Mia got sick and had to go to pet heaven. It was really a hard time to go through, sad being without her. She was around a pretty long time. She was My best friend. She just had to sleep with me and she would shed her fur all over me! I had her for 15 years 6 months. Along with that my allergy's were crazy. But I didn't care. I had a best friend who would tell me when it was time to go to bed, to feed her and to let her sleep on three quarters of the bed. She was a big cat.
After Mia was gone I still had my little Honey, who was no bigger than a minute, she only weighed  seven pounds her whole life. We went through our pet grooming for  fifteen years and 6 months. Then she started losing weight and not eating as she should. I took her to the Vet and she said her organs were shutting down. Of course by that time she was 17 yrs 6 months. I was happy to have had her that long. They sure made a happy life for me. Without them it would have been a boring one. But now that I am as old as I am I will not have any more animals. It was a lot of work taking care of them. They were worth every minute of the things we went through together. Honey being a Persian required a lot of work. I do miss them. So, may they RIP with all the other sweet animals I had in my lifetime!

Well, pretty many things have been going on around here since the last blog! Hope I can remember them!  When I think of them I will write them down so I can tell you about them.
Some time ago LaVella came up, I think it was in 2012, and all we did was go around taking pictures of the main attractions in Cincinnati. It was really a lot of fun. Got a lot of great shots. Emily is the Property Manager for The Reserve on 5th & Race and she asked LaVella to do the pictures to hang in the halls.

As usual, I have been doing a lot of work and research on the Family Tree.   Two weeks ago we went to Vincennes Indiana to do research on the Martin family. We did find their graves and went to see a lot of the historical places down there. The George Rogers Clark Memorial is sitting on top of the earth where my GRGR Grandfather’s house was, down along the Wabash River.   It is a beautiful river. Ever since I have had the song “On The Banks of The Wabash, Far Away” stuck in my head!  I have to admit I couldn’t quite remember the words so I looked it up on the web. The river looked so peaceful.

We went to the Archives down there and got a few things on the family, like marriage applications, and a couple city directory listings. Found their graves. No headstones for Magdalena or Henry. They did have headstones on the Laval family graves. So, all in all, it was a good trip. Just wish we could have come home with more. Do have some nice pictures that we had taken. I'm so happy I got to see where my GRGR Grandmother and Grandfather are resting in peace. They have some of the August Laval family with them in the same plot.

Found one of their sons, John H. Martin, resting in Texas. He died in San Antonio Texas in 1914. The informant that gave his information said Magdalena’s last name as Stiedle. Now, Grandma Ochs spelled it Steedle. I guess it all depended on how it sounded to you! So I have not found his wife’s name as of yet. The more I look, the deeper it gets. More brick walls! There is a lot of history in that little town.

I was telling Gary some of it and I think I got a little of it wrong. It was William Henry Harrison that dealt with the Shawnee Indians! Tecumseh and he pow wowed over giving the land so settlers could come and put their mark. Needless to say who won. So they have a statue of Tecumseh down there memorializing him.
Well, it is a beautiful cool day out there and I think I just may go out and enjoy it. Will try to do more the next time. Have to try to remember. I can think of things but have to save for the next time. 

So take care and Enjoy your life.

Hugs to all,
Barbara

More Family News

Wow, July is here already!

Well, as they say, “Summer is almost over”. It has been busy to start. I took my brother Sonny to the Doctor to set up a date for the colonoscope, as some of you already know. Had to call the coumadin clinic to let them know he was going off of medication for three days. They suggested I call his health care Doctor and find out if it is okay. They then called me to say I had to check with his Heart Doctor to see if he needs a Heprin Bridge. They have started using this on Coumadin patients who are going to have outpatient procedures. Anyway they had the wrong cardiologist name in his file. So I called his Cardiologist and they said they would let us know in the morning. Dr Hirsh was not in the office. In the meantime his regular doctor called and said that they contacted the cardiologist and he said it would be okay. Well his Cardiologist office called and wanted to know the name and fax number of the Doctor who was going to do this procedure as he doesn’t want him to have it if it isn’t absolutely necessary. So we were in limbo until we heard for sure on Tuesday. Don’t ever think, if you have more than one Doctor, that they know what the other is doing or knows. Well, it finally came together and we were informed he has the procedure on the 14^th.

I received word from cousin Marcella that a 2^nd cousin, Ceola Puckett had passed away due to an aneurism. She was 86 years old. I didn’t know her, as I said before after Mom moved us to the eastern part of town I didn’t get to know the extended side of the Sarver Family. My prayers and love go out to the family she left behind. She was very close to my Aunt Louise (AKA Sis) . Louise is the only surviving Aunt on my Dad’s side of the family. She will be 82 in September. Louise was named after Ceola’s mother. She is not taking her passing very well I am told.

On a lighter note we had a pleasant family holiday gathering we went to the the Dulle’s. Planned on staying for a couple of hours. Ended up staying around four. There were 1^st,2^nd,3^rd,4^th cousins there. Had a nice time and visit. My Cousin Charles (AKA Butch) was telling me he had test done . They found a spot in his lung. It is very small . So prayers are with you Butch. He has recovered from a lot of horrible things. He had an accident a couple years ago that was a miracle he pulled through. We all love you and sending those prayers for a blessing there isn’t any thing to heal . Prayers were answered. Butch let us know every thing was okay, no problems.

Love to All………Barbara