May 11, 1924

Today is my mothers 86th birthday. It is hard to imagine the changes that my parents have lived through. Mom grew up on a farm in Vicksburg, Michigan. The third daughter of 8 children born to immigrant parents from the Netherlands. I have seen the one room schoolhouse where she and her siblings walked to school through all kinds of weather. Work was the next step in her life. Times were hard and high school was not an option especially for girls. She was a working girl when she met my Dad who had returned to Kalamazoo after serving in WWII. They were married in 1948 and she and dad celebrated their 61st wedding anniversary last August. She worked throughout her life, taking years off to be a stay at home mom while my brother and I attended grade school. She retired in 1983 to spend more time being a grandma. The annual summer trips to Camp Cornell were very special to all of us. She is a champion for Mike. Never seeing the negatives of Down syndrome but always bragging about his accomplishments. Now there are great grandchildren and they are just as special.

Time to relax today mom, and enjoy your Birthday!
We love you.


This is a picture of Jessica and my Mother taken in 1983 when she was 59.


Happy Birthday Mom.

Mothers Day and a Birthday

I had a great weekend with friends and family to celebrate a birthday and Mothers Day. Mothers Day is still a reminder of John, but with the addition of my birthday to celebrate on the exact same day and being with Mike and Jesi and AJ how can we not be happy. It was so much fun to see Steve and AJ playing with the golf clubs. Mike and Steve cooked dinner and we skyped with my mom and dad.

A continued reminder that we must celebrate life.

Super Saver Wins the Derby

Saturday was a fun party at Belmont which included the watching of the Kentucky Derby. While there was no "real" betting involved Steve and I had picked our horses before we went over to the club. Since it is well known that I am a frugalist, Super Saver just seemed like a natural for me. Steve chose Ice Box...I think he uses a more scientific formula for choosing than I do but between us we did manage to pick the first and second place finishers.

May is the official start of the golf season at Belmont. The weather in April allowed more golfing than I think I have ever done in April in Ohio. Hopefully the nice conditions continue throughout the summer. My goal this year is to get a short game. For every hour I spent on the computer I will have to dedicate an equal hour to practicing golf.

The Rules of Golf

I attended a rules meeting last night and it is amazing to learn all of the intricacies of the rules of golf. Of course the most discussed was the Brian Davis ruling from Sunday at Harbour Town. Being in a hazard he struck a blade of sea grass that was not growing (thus making it a loose impediment) on his backswing. This forced him to incur a 2 stroke penalty for moving a loose impediment in the hazard prior to his swing. It was kind of a catch 22 because he really could not tell if the grass was implanted in the sand or not prior to his swing. The only way he could insured he would avoid the penalty would have been to start his swing at the top. It would not be a penalty to hit the loose impediment on the downswing.

I am off to play golf today and knowing the rules will help. Of course keeping the ball in the fairway and on the greens is another easy way to avoid penalties.

How time flies

"The day the Lord created hope was probably the same day he created Spring." ~Bern Williams

It has been a busy week. Jessica flew in on the red eye from California arriving Thursday morning early and we attack the Masters Party preparations. She also spent as much time as possible with nephew AJ. The party was again a success and it was great to have the weather co-operate letting some of the crowd socialize on the deck this year. It has gotten to be a rather large party and it is hard to spent much time with anyone but it is so much fun to at least see everyone and get quick updates on every ones family. We call it the official start of the golf season and I know many games for the coming months were set up on Saturday.

Sunday was a recover day and get the house back into order. With the major clean up before the party and the after party cleaning I think I can slack off on housekeeping for a week or so. More time to help my friends with computer issues. I have taken on another "client" and enjoy spending the time showing her how to navigate the computer for email and surfing. At the rate she is learning and with grandchildren in the area I am sure she will not be needing my help long.

Of course with the golf season starting we are also starting the mowing season at home, and that is where I am off to now.

Spring is beautiful

The weather has been just gorgeous and we have been enjoying it. I played golf on Friday and Steve and I played together on Sunday. Perfect weather for the golf season. We have the patio furniture out and we are ready for the season to begin.

Looking forward to the Masters this week. Will Tiger make the cut? My guess is YES! Will he win? My guess is NO. As we avid watchers of golf know a lot depends are on the day. Watching pros take big numbers on a hole or hitting the ball into a water hazard only reinforces that it is a tough game. There will always be something to improve on.

Jessica comes in tomorrow for a long weekend and Mike will be home to visit her so I will enjoy a full house. Hope everyone is enjoying the week.