As Barry was planning our extensive trip to the Midwest and East Coast, he asked if there were any specific stops I wanted to make. I immediately said that I’d like to visit my Aunt Judy in the Columbus area. Our time in Ohio was going to be quite limited due to a scheduled reservation/appointment at the Newmar factory in Indiana.
We arrived at the Sunbury KOA on Sunday, July 24. Narrow roads, but a spacious deluxe site! The site had 50 amp, two Adirondack rocking chairs + four regular Adirondack chairs at the table that was complete with a large, easy crank-up umbrella. Amenities were awesome for families.
A couple of my cousins and some of their kids were going to be at Judy’s today, so we went over after we got set up. I don’t think I’ve seen my cousin Liz since she was probably in elementary school. Krista, I only remember as a baby, but we have been friends on Facebook for a several years. It was pretty cool to meet her in person. I felt like there was someone other than Judy, who I kind of knew. 🙂 We also met Krista’s husband, Tom, and their sons, Carson, and Josh. Krista’s daughter Megan, and son Jimmy, both from her first marriage came over. Megan was with her husband – Eric Berry, and their “CAN of Berries – (their three children), Cooper, Addison, and Negan. Jimmy was there with his financee’ Ellie.
Pool time!
Back Row: Eric & Megan Berry, Krista & Tom Hagans, Jimmy
Barry and I went back on Monday to spend the afternoon with Judy. Everyone else was at work, so this really gave us special time together.
Family means a lot to me, especially as I get older. It is important to make the time to connect. I am forever grateful that my Aunt Judy and Uncle Tom (Wilcox) flew out to Seattle in 2009. Even though I saw my Aunt Judy and Aunt Shirley when my dad passed away in 2003, it wasn’t till Tom and Judy came during the summer of 2009 for a special 50th wedding anniversary trip that I truly reconnected with them. Barry and I were their personal “tour guides” for five days of the their visit. What a blessing! They planned to come back in 2012, but unexpected health issues did not permit that.
Uncle Tom was a professional photographer, so he and Judy took their Washington pictures and made a photo memory book. Below are selections from that book. (They made a separate one as a Thank You gift to us.) It was nice to relive this trip together by looking at Judy’s book today.
Deception Pass area:
FRIDAY HARBOR and Lime Kiln State Park – WHALES!!!
Tom and Judy were thrilled- as was I. They saw more whales here from the shore than they did earlier in the week on an official “whale watching boat trip”! (Thank you, Eric Ogren for all the boat rides with you that educated me about this location.)
Judy knew I was disappointed that we didn’t see a bear last week while in the Smoky Mountains, so she gave me a print of a picture that Uncle Tom took of a waterfalls at Raging Fork, near Gatlinburg, TN. They didn’t see it at the time, but when he printed the picture…there is a little ROCK bear cub! Love it!
It was awesome visiting with Judy and learning more about my dad’s grandparents (his mom’s parents) coming to the U.S. from Germany. Judy even showed me my great grandfather’s naturalization certificate! That was so cool! To actually see the words: “…renounced and abjured all allegiance and fidelity to every foreign Prince, Potentate, State or Sovereignty; and particularly to The Emperor of Germany whose subject he has heretofore been;…”
The family recipe for lebkuchen and springerle cookies came from Minnie. Aunt Judy got the recipes from her mom, and made these for years. My dad looked forward to Christmas every year to get a container of them from her. I was never a fan of them growing up, but I think now I would like them since I finally drink coffee. The springerle were definitely dunking cookies!
Another picture of my great grandmother – Minnie (Wilhelmine Stopfel Ditzel)
A picture of my dad’s parents: Helen Ditzel Slack & Harry Slack
Even though my dad, his brother and half-brothers all served in the military, they all were Democrats-as were their spouses and sisters. Judy thinks maybe her dad was a Republican because of his reaction when my dad sent him a couple hand-carved wooden donkeys from Germany. The one below is absolutely adorable. If Dad was purposely doing that to be ornery, I love it! I think I may have a bit of that in me, too. I love you, Dad!
I was hoping to ask Judy more about her memories of my dad growing up till I realized there were 24 years between them. My dad was away in the army and married to my mom before she was even born!
It was cool to see some of the old cameras that Uncle Tom had. They made me smile as they prompted fond memories of my dad who had a Roliflex and old Nikon, and my brother – Montana, who was also a professional photographer.
Judy’s son, Tom made these plaques for everyone for Christmas. The wood came from a tree on the property. The message is great, but I loved how it used photography vocabulary.
Barry and I took a leisure dip and floated in her pool while we continued our conversations.
Before we knew it Liz was home from work, so we changed out of our swimsuits and went to Surve for dinner. Surve was the only local restaurant open on Mondays. Judy insisted on treating us.
Before we left, Judy gave us the “medallion art piece” that Aunt Shirley bought in Port Townsend when they visited my parents many years ago. It hung over Shirley’s mantle. None of Judy’s kids wanted it, so we are bringing it back to Yuma. It really is kind of a cool piece, and it is super light because it is made of paper! We were happy to help her find a “home” for it…or at least take that burden off her shoulders. I understand that completely. It’s too big for the motorhome, but Barry and I think we may have a place for it in Yuma. We’ll see. For now we just have to store it carefully till we get back to Arizona in late November.
When we got back to the motorhome, the weather was perfect for sitting outside. Since we had a “deluxe” site that included a great set of comfortable patio furniture and a nice fire pit, we decided to sit outside with a real campfire and watch for fireflies (or lightning bugs). Unfortunately the office/store was already closed, but we had an awesome neighbor, Shane, who gave us some wood. We tried to pay him $5 for it, but he wouldn’t accept it. We invited Shane and his wife, Rita to join us. They did. We had a great time chatting with them for a couple hours! And yes, we saw a few lightning bugs! The rocking Adirondack chairs were perfect–they even had a drink holder within each armrest.
We leave in the morning for Nappanee, Indiana.