It was a busy weekend.  We had two of our grandsons overnight and they helped their grandpa around the house.  They learned how to lay cement and they helped him clean out a shed.  They were a great help and he said he would gladly have them help him again.  I will have to show you the concrete pad they laid right outside my shop door.   We all put our handprints in the cement and I wrote our names and the date so we will remember this day.

Sunday after church we headed to my hometown for a birthday party.  It was my sister-in-law’s seventy-fifth birthday.  She was married to my oldest brother, Jack.  There were relatives there I hadn’t see in ages.  And I mean ages.  They all got old on me overnight, it seems.

 

This man is my oldest nephew.  I remember when he was born.  But when I was talking to his sister, I asked her where was Doug, and she said, “He’s right here! ”   He was standing beside her.  He use to have red hair.  I gave him a big hug because I haven’t seen him since my mother died in l994.  He’s not suppose to be this old.  I remember babysitting him when he was a boy.

 

This is my sister-in-law, Carroll, who was celebrating her birthday.  She always remembers to send birthday cards to me and David.  Her cake was so pretty and good, too.

Of course pictures had to be taken for posterity and this is Carroll with my two nephews, Doug and Tom(who I did recognize) and my two nieces, Cindy and Sandy.   I really remember when my niece, Sandy, in the brown shirt was born.  My brother was in the military and gone on duty and Carroll went into labor and called my mother so Mom packed up me and my brother and went over to Richmond where we picked up Carroll, Doug, Tom and Cindy and rushed to the hospital.  I was only a few years older than Doug, but Mom told me to stay in the car with all the kids while she took Carroll into the hospital.  Carroll almost had Sandy before she got into the hospital.  Mom came back to the car very soon after and said I had a new niece.   She couldn’t believe how fast her new grandchild had come.

A picture of my brothers and sister.  That’s my “baby” brother in  the red shirt.  All the others are older than I.   They were all shocked at my red hair except for Joanne who I had already told.

This is my brother-in-law, Clyde, who is married to my sister.  He had a kidney removed in July.  If I had had a kidney removed in July, I would probably still be in a fetal position laying in bed and having David wait on me hand and foot. Clyde is tough. He’s already mowed his yard.  He can’t stand to be sitting doing nothing.  Keep him in your prayers that he will make a full recovery and be able to keep his big garden next year.  He really hates that he couldn’t plant one this year.  He and my sister provide a lot of food for the people at their church.  My sister puts me to shame with all the food she cans and preserves every year.  Clyde is a special guy.

My sister doesn’t like her picture taken so, being the bratty younger sister I am, I kept snapping one after the other of her.  She laughed.

These are cousins of David’s that came to the party.  I haven’t seen either of them for ages either and we had a nice visit.  They are both retired.  Carolyn use to be a school teacher.  A very good one from what I always heard.  Wally is a card and likes to joke around.  They are both  special people too.

David and I drove back roads to get to my hometown and along the way we saw some neat barn quilts.

By the way, have I shown you the barn quilt I painted for our house since we don’t have a barn?  Here it is:

 

I thought it would look good with our chocolate brown house and in the Autumn it will blend in with all the Fall colors.

On one of the back roads we came upon this.  Something you won’t see on the interstate.

Not exactly sure what town this was near as we were just wandering around, but this bridge was built one year after our house was built.  How neat is that?

I will leave you with a picture of some of the last of the roses of the summer.   I love these roses.  Yellow with just a tinge of pink on the edges.

Here’s to birthday celebrations, family and taking the back roads.  Bye.