CHEER UP {the rain will stop}!!!!!!!!!
Like Old Faithful the rain will come to an end.
I hope pictures of beauty will help each of us to have a beautiful day.
Remember the old gospel song
'There is Sunshine in My Soul Today"








Bar Harbor Maine























New York

























Closer to home A fall day on the Lake of the Ozarks























One of my favorite spots in the world----Alley Springs,Eminence Mo.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY JOE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Finding old photos was challenging as someone in the family did not send any to me. In my vast photo library there are minimal photos of Joe by himself. In fact there are minimal photos that can easily be cropped into one picture. After all on your birthday you should not have to share your picture with someone.
Except for photo one all others have had one or more people cropped out. In fact photo one is the oldest photo I had of Joe.Photo one is before kids.
Photo two is with about one year old Todd cropped out.Photos three, four, and five, are with two or more being cropped out.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY JOE, Nancy and I are proud to call you our son in law.

SOMETIMES THE PHOTOGRAPHER IS
QUICKER THAN THE BOY!!!!!!
{ JAMES does not like to have his picture taken}
Featured is our youngest grandson caught by the old photographer. In addition his uncle gets a cameo appearance.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY NANCY!!!!!!!!!!
My memory says that this is our fiftieth year of celebrating birthdays together. The scary part is you still have and wear what I think I gave you for that first birthday present.
In the first photo Nancy helped me pick out but she is not sure where photo was taken. This is the earliest photo I could find.
Even thought the second photo is long before I entered her life I do know it was taken on the decorative false well in her parents back yard.
The third photo is her high school graduation picture.
The fourth photo was taken after she became a married woman but before the children came along. The developing was a sepia tone process that became popular in the fifties.

The last photo is one of my all time favorite travel photos. It was taken in front of the Grand Tetons with the Tetons reflected in the lake. In addition it is a good photo of Nancy. She has always been photogenic.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY NANCY!!!!!!!!!
I LOVE YOU and hope to spend many more birthdays with you.
Ed

ALOHA!!! TO CRAIG, PATTY, and FAMILY
I like the Hawaiian word Aloha as they use it both as a greeting and a farewell.
Featured in photo one is Craig, Patty and the girls.
In photo two Craig and Patty are opening some gifts.
In photo three we have my daughter Sherri with Patty. They have been friends so long they cannot remember how long. Before Craig and Shawn they would take an annual trip together to Florida


The fourth photo features Meghan with my granddaughter Kayleigh and grandson Paul. In the last photo we again feature Meghan with Kayleigh.
Sorry it took so long to publish but I had lots of birthdays to get through.

RECENT OUT OF TOWN VISITORS

We had to get through some of the April birthdays to find the space for other parts of our life. Recently Nancy's cousin Bill and his wife Lorraine stopped by on a visit to St Louis from Orlando. St Louis greeted them with a bright sunny cold and windy late March
A long time ago {before kids] Bill taught be how to water ski. Over the years I enjoyed the thrill of coming out of the water and flying [That is how it felt} over the water. Bill also let me drive his little foreign car {maybe a Triumph} so long ago neither of us were married.

My guess is that Bill and Lorraine have traveled more than anyone we know. One of their adventures was a driving trip through Central America and their story of his night in a local jail should be made into a movie.

A VISIT TO SEE BABY COEN!!!

The purpose was to visit the baby but I believe big brother was the show.
It is hard to believe I am a Great Uncle. When did I get old?
The photographer [me] did not shoot a good picture two but I had to include to keep the Great Aunt happy.
Aunt Becky was also getting her hold the baby time.
Big brother knows how to perform for visitors.!!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY ED

For my first blog I want to wish my dear husband of 48 years a HAPPY BIRTHDAY.

In the first picture you see him as a child around the age of 3 or 4 years old. We aren't sure exactly where this photo was taken but isn't he cute!

The second picture is his high school (Roosevelt) graduation picture. Isn't he handsome!

The third picture is his second most favorite job. He got to take pictures of the Clydesdales and people at Grant's Farm.

In the fourth picture he sitting in his favorite place - seats from the old Bush Stadium on the deck that Richard built. He is now a tour guide for the new stadium. Being a tour guide is fun and he enjoys it the most of all his jobs.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY ED - I LOVE YOU
Nancy

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TERRI!!!!!
It may have been a few years ago but I remember that first April 5th as if it was yesterday.{ I was only 22 and your mother 21} I had no clue on fatherhood but we survived.
The first photo was taken on the front porch of our apartment on Loughborough. Our rent was $65.00 a month and my income was $425.00 month but we lived comfortably. Obviously we still took pictures in black and
white.
The second photo is a Christmas card and the last card with only you in the photo. By this time we were living in our own home in Shrewsbury.

By the third photo we had moved four times and were back in St Louis living in a rental house on Hale. I remember when we transferred to Independence being concerned about what taking you out of kindergarten what do to you..
By now you were in your fourth school and doing well.
In case you forgot your band playing days I put in photo four to remind you. Kelsey, your mom also played in a jazz band.
The fifth photo was taken on Forman Road and my guess is it is around high school graduation.
The last photo is the first Christmas you and Joe celebrated together.

Terri happy birthday !!!!! mom and I are so proud of you.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY KAREN!!!

Obviously I was not there for your childhood photos so I decided to lead off with you and your mother. After all she was there.
The second photo is from December 1996 { oldest photo I could fine} This was about 32 months before marriage.

It was impossible to find photos of you by your self so thank goodness for cropping tools. The third photo has no date but my guess is December 1997.
The fourth photo is from December 1998 your first Christmas as a married woman. Both photo three and four are from what we call a picture of the outlaws. { Joe, Shawn, and Karen}
I had to have at least one photo that could get me in trouble. This photo was taken at The Lake of the Ozarks in June 2002. The Taylor's and Tritschler Sr. were spending a week of vacation together. On Tuesday the Stones and Tritschler Jr. decided to join us. At the end of week together Uncle Shawn rented a boat and tool all of us for a lake cruise. It was a fun filled day.
The last photo was taken at the new stadium in 2006. I tried cropping Edward out but the photo did not look right. { I have cropped out two kids and a stranger}

Happy birthday and WE are glad you are part of our family.

OUR FAVORITE ARTIST IS SECOND PLACE WINNER!!!!!!!!
in Belleville East High school art show. Todd came in second out of 96 artist. The first photo was set up by Belleville News Democrat newspaper photographer. My favorite artist is in the front near his creation "THE FOOT"
The second photo proves how old I have become. On the right is the artist Todd with his arm around his friend Jen. and on the left is granddaughter Kelsey. When you start taking pictures of grand kids friends you know you are old.
The third photo is Todd with his very creative work "THE FOOT"
The fourth photo is of course the proud grandparents with the artist.
The fifth photo is the proud parents with the artist. On the boards behind us are other pictures, photos, and of course the ribbons he won.
The last photo is the mother and grandmother are is it mother and daughter.