This was my grandparents house - it's a bit different now - has new siding. In the back my grandpa had built big gold fish ponds on both sides of the bridge that you see. Grandma had lots of dahlias and other flowers planted around the ponds. He built the bridge and light post from rocks he had collected. My cousin lived just a few blocks from here and we would often stop to visit and feed the fish on our way to the dairy that was just across the alley. He also had build a bird bath from rocks but that has long been gone. I loved that back yard. In the winter he would house the fish in big aquariums in the basement. I was only down there a few times because it was kind of scary as a kid. :) I don't know how many years he had the same gold fish but the were really big.

Since I didn't have any sisters my cousin was "my sister" I spent a lot of time at her house. We would kid that her mother was a "mole" because she would always close the drapes during the summer heat. And yes, it was cooler but you felt like a mole because it was so dark. There was no front porch, her bedroom was the dormer on the right and the house was painted white. There was a big apple tree where you see the driveway. We would climb the tree and although Dianne would eat those green apples (with salt :) I couldn't.

Houses I spent time in as a young girl

This is the house I grew up in. It hasn't changed at all. The upper window was my bedroom. (no air conditioning tho) It seem much bigger when I was little. There were red brick posts on either side at the end of the sidewalk and next to these were spirea bushes. The longer window in the front was the living room. We lived just 2 blocks from the entrance to the park where I spent a lot of time. Roller skating on the sidewalk was fun. There was another brick post opposite of me. Apprently this was taken in the winter.

It's been awhile

One whole summer has gone by without me blogging. The first summer without Lowell. I was really busy with music stuff: Northern Light Opera took up a lot of time especially evenings. We all did terrific performances of Fiddler on the Roof. Next Summer we're going to perform Music Man. I also was the piano player for the Hubbard Prairie Radio Hour that was performed two weekends in July in the new Akeley Community theatre. All this was very helpful in that I didn't have a lot of time to sit around. I still have a few moments here and there that I will get a bit weepy but for the most part I'm doing good.

And then there was my class reunion - 55 years!!!! I've gone to all my reunions but this is the first one without Lowell. He enjoyed them as much as I did. I expected to have a good time and I did but what I didn't expect was the emotions I felt when I went to church the next morning. It was the church Lowell and I grew up in and where we were married. Physically it hasn't changed much. I automatically sat in the same pew that we sat in when we visited and thought about our wedding and I remembered as a child (when I was bored) counting the ceiling tiles although I gave up before I got them all counted. They are the same tiles.

After church my sister-in-law's mother, sister and husband invited me to have lunch with them. After lunch I drove through the park where with a bunch of girlfriend spent much of our time. Then I drove around town: past the house I grew up in, my cousins house where I spent a lot of time and my grandma's and grandpa's house. My school is no longer there and I couldn't quite remember which house was Mrs. Marsh (my piano teacher). I took pictures which I will post.

So now it is Fall (with the snow it seems like winter) Classis Chorale is back in full swing although without Erich. He has taken a job as music minister in Washington State. He had been our director for 10 years and we will miss him. I was able to schedule my piano students all on Wednesday afternoon so that frees up some days that I can do other things.