Today we spent time with people dear to us. The day started with a visit to my Uncle Dick and his wife my Aunt Sue in Ney, Ohio. Dick is my father’s youngest brother. Dick is eighty years young this year and Sue is seventy-eight years young. They both enjoy hunting and fishing and due to health issues have needed to curtail both this past year. They are still going strong and take care of each other lovingly.
They have an amazing yard
full of flowers, gardens (both raised beds and ground level plots). They shared
fresh onions and radishes with us. YUM! They also have bees and birds that
visit their yard regularly. We have been invited back to see the Orioles (birds
not the baseball team). Uncle Dick has offered to dig up some of his rose
bushes that he had started from bushes in his parents (my grandparents’) yard after
we get settled in Minnesota. The red and pink roses were in bloom and smelled
so wonderful,
Aunt Sue enjoys crafting. Today
she shared with us her recent work on a dollhouse. The dollhouse had belonged
to her older sister, then her, and then her youngest sister as children. Her
older sister had it in storage for years and Sue was able to ‘rescue’ it and
she has been refurbishing it with new floors and wallpaper. She is making
furniture for it, and I was impressed with her level of detail in the work she
has accomplished so far.
We will try to get back to
see them before we leave for Minnesota.
Next, we went to Defiance, Ohio
to visit my aunt Doris (ninety-two years young) and her daughters, my cousins, Deb,
and Kim. My aunt is in assisted living as she undergoes physical and
occupational therapy. The hope is that Doris will be able to return to her home
sometime toward the end of next week. Doris is one of my mother’s three
surviving sisters. I had visited Aunt Janet in Pelion, South Carolina earlier
in our trip and plan to visit my Aunt Judy in the next few days.
Deb, Kim, and I grew up
together. Sadly, their brother, David, passed away in October 2019 at the age
of 62. Deb is a year older than me. David was the same age as my brother Kenny
(aka Buddy), and I believe Kim is the same age as my sister Jeni. Oh, the six
of us had so much fun together as children! I remember we would jump on the beds
(we were always warned not to and yet we always did it) and would slide down
their carpeted staircase in all kinds of fun ways – on our bellies, bumping
down each step on our bottoms, and occasionally a run at sliding down the banister.
It was great catching up
with Doris, Deb, and Kim. We will see them at the Hudkins family reunion coming
up in late July.
Then we were off to watch
my great-nephew, Joss, play baseball in Defiance. Joss recently turned eight and his
baseball skills are impressive for his age. He is quite the runner. He can
outrun a ball hit to the infield and fielded cleanly. Guaranteeing him at least
a single if the ball is in play and a double if the ball gets into the outfield.
His team, the Dodgers, won 7-3. Joss belongs to my niece Courtney (I’ll write more
about her later) and he has 3 siblings.
Courtney is the daughter of
my youngest brother, Todd, and Cindy. She is also the sister of Caity (of Caity
and Hunter fame) that we visited this past Sunday, June 11th. We
hope to have time with Courtney and her family next week.
Courtney, Todd, and Cindy
met us at the game. After the game Todd, Cindy, Joe, and I went to dinner and
spent a couple of hours together chatting. Cindy has been working as a
caretaker for a disabled man. She has been with him for many years, and he has
become family. She has a huge and warm heart for others. When she’s not working
she likes spending time with her grandchildren and children.
The drama of the evening
was driving back to the cottage as the sun was setting. Deer are rampant this
year and they seem to think crossing the road at dusk is a good idea. Todd
recommended we try to go back on freeways to improve the odds that we would not
hit nor be hit by a deer. We took his advice and got back to the cottage at 10:22
pm with the car and ourselves intact.
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