more pictures

Love, Val

tubing at the lake

Love, Grandma

happy 16th birthday, jule

 Julia? Thank you for all the happiness you've brought us, for the way you make things special and funny, for you friendship and kindness.

Our maraschino cherry on top of a big sundae of family, the grace note, the curlicue, the voila that makes everything complete--that's you.

Happy Birthday, with love forever and always, Mom, Dad and Everyone

from the weekend

 Here's Julia trimming her nephew's hair.  It turned out well. Dannell helped.

 The mess goes on and on, but at the end, everyone helps get it all picked up.  See that green and red can on the stairs?  It's some kind of cherry lime water from Walmart.  I don't shop at Walmart normally, but I love that stuff.  I made a special trip even.

 Jay skiing

 Alicia's cute mom:

That guy in the blue shirt vented heartily about the conditions this summer.  "We can't go in the cabin. We can't watch any movies or play video games on the TV.   I'm sick of staying outside constantly. Covid! Covid!  It's so ANNOYING."

Yeah. Yes, it is.  We aren't cooking together in the kitchen like we used to.  No card games in the dining room.  There will be other years, and we'll do it again.  But not this summer.

We're enjoying the deck and the yard, glad they have their trailers--their own space for their families.  One day at a time.

Nothing but love, Val

a walk to the dam

 I'm always happy to see these lilies blooming in the swamp. When we closed on the cabin 16 years ago to the day, they were blooming like this that day too.

 Here's the dam.   The old dam was replaced about five years ago, maybe more. We were given an assessment of $500 for it. When my cousins told us they were walking to the dam on a Memorial weekend a few years back, I mentioned this to them: "I paid $500 for that.  Take notice of it!"  We laughed.

 It was a beautiful, perfect day, including the kid who insisted on bringing a dolly stroller along on the walk that was tiny, trinkety, and annoying and we had to carry it most of the way.

That's what you get when a person is almost three.

Glad for perfect summer days.   Love, Val