The Reunion, Part One

I suppose there is no other way to put this, but going on vacation often is more tiring than if you stayed home and didn’t go! Of course, we saw many places and visited people that we only see once every year or two, so that makes all the hassle worthwhile.

Now that it is over I will explain the event a bit more. Hubby served in the early 1960’s in the Army. He was a fixed wing pilot on the Otter and the Caribou Aircraft. Twenty-five years ago a few of the men who flew with Hubby in Vietnam started an organization of fellowship for these men and their wives. We joined 22 years ago, and have attended as many reunions as we could.

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This year the Reunion was in Columbus, Georgia. Many of the men and their families were based here at one time or another. Hubby and his former wife even owned a home here. So there was a lot of reminiscing and a lot of touring around and visiting Fort Benning.

There is also the most fabulous museum dedicated to the men and women of the Infantry, right from the Revolutionary War to the present day. On Thursday we had tickets to tour The National Infantry Museum .

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Quite honestly I thought it would be totally boring and I had Hubby and our friends drive out so that we could leave early if it was as boring as I thought.

How wrong I was! What a totally wonderful museum. I felt full of pride for our country, and the men and women who have served it. The displays were authentic and tasteful and so well done.

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The time flew by as we received a docent-led tour of the museum and the World War II Buildings that have been moved to a site nearby. They had housed the Army forces at Fort Benning, and included a barracks, mess hall, orderly room and supply room. There was even a church which had been lovingly restored, and is still being used for weddings and funerals.

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Hubby and Jim in Mess Hall.

When our tour was finished, we hopped in our rental car with our friends, and went on base. Both Hubby and Jim had served there and we drove around, as they looked for familiar places. Sadly, the base is not what they recalled and I think we all left feeling a bit disheartened that such a fine base is being wasted.

That night we went out for “Real Bavarian Food”. About the only thing that was authentically German in the place was the beer! We all ordered a cold tall one, and enjoyed every gulp!

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I found that by the end of each day, all I wanted to do was collapse into bed and go to sleep. So forgive me for not writing everything out day by day. Trust me; I was on the go from early morning until late at night.

I will try to get it all written down before I forget. This was such a special Reunion and full of so many great times.

Stay tuned for Part two, tomorrow!

Part 2: Boston to Washington DC to Atlanta

We knew that we would not make the flights leaving directly from Boston to Atlanta, so we threw caution to the winds and went over to the regional carrier for Delta and got seats to Washington, DC! Delta had the same thought for a few other passengers and so we saw 8 passengers from our canceled flight at the gate.

We were boarded on a CRJ-50 and once the door closed I heaved a sigh of relief, thinking that we were finally on our way.

We took off in the rain and wind and after a short time we hit some really  bad turbulence! In fact, the woman seated in front of us said quietly, “Oh, sweet Mother of God, we’re going to die!”

I sat there thinking that she might possibly be right, and I grabbed Hubby’s arm to calm my nerves! The turbulence went on for some time and I must admit that my life passed briefly in front of my eyes, before I heard Hubby mumble, “pull back on the power”, to the pilots in the cockpit, who I know could not hear him.

Then, just as if they had heard everything that he said, the power came back a bit and the plane stopped lurching around!

The flight was uneventful after that and we came in and landed at Reagan National Airport right on time.

We hopped onto the next flight to Atlanta, and I was excited by the prospect of flying up the Potomac  River as we took off! I had never done that before. We got down to Atlanta after our connecting flight to Columbus had departed, so we rented a car in Atlanta and drove the rest of the way. We actually made great time on the highway, and the weather here was beautiful, warm and bright!

When we got to our motel we discovered that we not only got breakfast each day, but dinner as well, and since we both were hungry and exhausted, and arrived just before they stopped serving, we sat down and ate supper before settling into our room.

We’re having a great time and just to show you one picture from our day today, here are Hubby and I at the National Infantry Museum. What a great place!

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Happy Friday Everyone!

22 Years & Counting…

Today Hubby and I are celebrating our 22nd Wedding Anniversary! We have been so lucky. Although we’ve shared the ups and downs that life throws at you, we’ve always managed to get through it because we had each other.

We were friends for a long time before we fell in love. Perhaps that is the key to a long relationship. Being friends first.

Whatever it is, we are blessed and thankful to have shared this time.

Our 22nd Anniversary from Dackel Princess Maribeth on Vimeo.

Happy Anniversary, Sweetheart!

Thursday In New Hampshire

Today Hubby and I visited an exhibition of two WW II aircraft. The B-17 and the B-24. We were allowed to walk through the planes and take tons of pictures. So many, in fact that I actually put together a slide show.

What really hit me was how small the insides of the planes were. How these men were able to get around is totally amazing to me. Especially the area underneath the B-17, the Ball Turret, where the Belly Gunner sat. I looked and I just knew I could not have gotten in there. Or if I had gotten in, I never would have gotten out.

I spoke for a long time to the Belly Gunner of that plane, Smitty. He told us the story of when the plane had been shot down, and how he had lost his arm. He spoke kindly of the German Nun Nurse who cared for him. He told us about the struggles that the men went through.

I shook his hand with thanks, and by the end of the talk, I hugged both him and his wife.

I thought of all the young lives lost and also of all the lives saved by these heroic men. What a terrible time  in world history, and yet these machines that flew through the sky, primitive as they were, flown by these fearless men, conquered overwhelming evil and restored freedom to many parts of the world.

I was so pleased that I was able to hear about Smitty’s survival. He is a real American Hero.

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The pups and Greta got to go for a ride to the Vets office today so that Greta could get her stitches out. Everyone went wild for the puppies, and Greta’s stitches are now finally out. We returned home and I prepared a clean whelping box, set them inside of it, and noticed the little faces looking out over at me.

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Yes, we’ll be setting up that new box soon!


Great Day

My day was a full one on Saturday. I felt loved. You see I had my wonderful Hubby, all 8 of the dackels around me, plus several of my friends came to visit.

First my dear friend Alice came over from the great state of Vermont to visit me and the puppies. We had a great lunch, lots of puppy snuggles and enjoyed a lovely day. Here is a short montage from our time together.

Then just as Alice left another friend, who teaches in India, arrived with her pal and two of her kids. They were amazed at the dackels. Makenna and her sister came by, another neighborhood child, Jacqui and then my friend Dori and her boyfriend Bob came for dinner.

I was so busy, that I didn’t dwell on the fact that 24 years ago my life changed forever. Twenty four years ago, I had the worst day of my life, but lived to tell about it. You can read about it here.

No, today I lived. Happily and healthfully. Life was good.

Leaving On A Jet Plane…

By the time most of you check in and read this, Anneliese and I will be on our way back to the States. We’ve had an incredible time, seen some old and some new places, and met some great people!

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Uschi and I have talked until our jaws ached, watched movies, played with dogs and hopefully helped Anneliese become a Mommy.

But now I return home to Hubby and my other three babies. I sure have missed them. When I look back and remember how Hubby brought me here, as a new bride and showed me a city which will always remain special in his heart, I couldn’t help but wander around with my head full of the memories that we made here together.

But now I hug Uschi and Volker and say good-bye, thanking them both for all that they did. And I think how lucky we are to have each other!

All my bags are packed
Im ready to go
Im standin here outside your door
I hate to wake you up to say goodbye
But the dawn is breakin
Its early morn
The taxis waitin
He’s blowin his horn
Already Im so lonesome
I could dieSo kiss me and smile for me
Tell me that youll wait for me
Hold me like youll never let me go
cause Im leavin on a jet plane
Dont know when Ill be back again
Oh babe, I hate to go

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George Daniell

My beloved Uncle passed away just before midnight on New Years Eve. It’s sort of funny that he died on this holiday, because he was born quite close to Valentine’s Day and we always celebrated his birthday then.

Uncle George is the father of my cousins, Janet and Larry. His mother was the sister of my Grandmother. However, he was raised with my Mom and the two of them were like brother and sister, and all of their lives they just adored each other.

The family many years ago. Uncle George is in the back on the left, with his mom and my mom is on the left in the very front next to her mother and father.

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Then there is my other set of grandparents, my great Grandpa Daniell, and my Uncle Bob and Aunt Cynthia. Aside from my mom, they are all gone now. I miss each and every one.

One of my earliest memories of my Uncle is at the beach. It was there that he taught me to swim and to dive safely off his shoulders. I never worried about getting in over my head as long as his loving strong arms were around me.

I was perhaps 6 or 7 years old when during one of our beach trips, I stepped on a piece of glass and nearly sliced off my toe. I stood there crying and before I could call out, Uncle George was there. He lifted me up in his strong arms, examined the toe, and wrapped it in his t-shirt. Then he carried me home, a 5-10 minute walk from the beach. He drove us to the hospital and stayed with me while my toe was stitched up.

One time Janet and I decided to slip the noose of parental guidance and swim out to the raft in rough water. Oh ,we made it out just fine, but sitting on the rocking raft at Surf Drive Beach we sort of lost our cool about swimming back. Well, you guessed it; Uncle George swam out and helped us both swim in.

Besides rescuing us, he also made us feel important. He taught us to bowl, to hike, to build a camp fire, and to love life. He didn’t do these things in a big flashy way. He never asked for recognition, he just quietly went about being a great Dad to his own kids and to those of us that were lucky enough to be one of Uncle George’s kids.

When I married for the second time Uncle George gave me away. It was such a special moment in time. We looked into each others eyes, and smiled. I felt closer to him at that one moment than I ever had.

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I’ll cherish that moment for the rest of my life.

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Uncle George and Aunt Betty loved my kids and always were snuggling with them. It gives me a lot of peace to know that they are both with Katie now. I know she won’t be lonely.

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I will miss this gentle man for all the days left of my life. He was the strong, silent type of man, who showed me what a real man was all about. I remember seeing him after Katie had passed away. He never said a word. He folded me in his arms and held me for the longest time, and once again, I was taken back to my youth, when Uncle George made me feel safe.

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So good bye for now, my dearest Uncle. You were greatly loved in this life, and will be missed. Thank you for making such a difference in my life. God Bless!

Me & My Sis!

Here I am with my sister, Mel. We’ve been sharing the last couple of days together, and Friday is our big shopping day. Just the two of us! I’m looking forward to that. We haven’t had a lot of time, just us two since we got married and started our own families, all those years ago, but here we are in our prime, with opportunities to be “sisters” once again. 

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One of the things I love the best about Mel, is that we have shared those first years in our lives together. She knows that I was a real Barbie Doll nut, and I know that she was almost never too busy to stop and play Barbies with me.

She read to me as a child, comforted me when I had bad dreams, and helped me do the dishes when I had to use a kitchen chair to reach the sink.

We sang silly songs together, played outside in the summer after dark, watching the fire flies and the moon, and we dreamed about what our lives would be when we grew up.

She found her Prince Charming and I found mine. Our kids are good kids, grown and with lives of their own now and she has wonderful grand-kids that I just adore.

Yes, I’m lucky to have Mel, and I sure hope she knows just how much I love her!

Mama Mia!

Hubby and I decided to take in a movie today. I’ve wanted to see “Mama Mia!” since with trailers first started to appear on the television a while back. As with almost everything, it takes movies a while to get to the back woods of New Hampshire.

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I was really amazed. It was so much fun, and the singing by people I have never thought of as singers, Meryl Streep, Pierce Brosnan, Julie Walters and Colin Firth, was actually very good!

I’m also 49 years old. All the music originally done by the musical group ABBA, was popular during the time when I avidly followed pop music. I remember listening to my radio in my bedroom at home as a teen and dancing up a storm. I also knew every word to every song back then, but my memory is failing as I approach middle age, so please don’t ask me to sing each word now.

Today, sitting in the movie theater with Hubby, listening to the music and following the movie plot, brought tears to my eyes. Part of me really just wanted to get up and dance! It brought me back to another time, when I was young, carefree and my body didn’t ache as much!

Go ahead call me menopausal, but I liked the movie. It had heart!

I must add here, go with your friends, husbands, wives, etc. Please do not take your 6 year old child in the hopes that said child will love the music so much they will sit quietly through a movie that is waaaaay over their little heads. The subject matter is adult, and the two little ones sitting in front of us, who were stuck sitting through a 2 hour movie so their Mom could see it, were bored to tears and really doing their best to ruin it for everyone else.

Do go see Mama Mia! I promise you won’t be disappointed and as our friends in Australia warned us, don’t go walking out of the theater until AFTER the credits have rolled through!

In A Flash

It’s entirely possible to view ones life in a day. You can see it flash before your very eyes if….you have a mother like mine, who tossed pictures in boxes and let them sit for 50 years! Today, my sister and I spent the entire day going through these boxes (and we know there are even more!) watching our lives unfold.

I was a cute enough kid growing up. I went from blond curls, to a pixie cut by the time I was 5. After that my hair grew in full and thick, but gone were the baby curls that my mother had so carelessly cut off. (I have never quite forgiver her for that!)

There were the pictures of me with my High School boyfriend, who became my first husband and the father of my two daughters. There were the pictures of me as I carried my two children through pregnancy. (I felt like no one had been as big as I was!) There were the pictures of me holding my babies for the fist time.

And there I was at the baptisms of my children… So small so sweet…that time flew by, too fast.

Then there I was with my current Hubby. The first few time I brought him to meet my parents and then the early years of our married life. Sharing the looks that only newly married couples share. Something so intimate and knowing.

Yes, my sister and I shared today. We watched our lives flash before our eyes. We watched our children grow, the birth of her grandchildren and the constant renewal of life.

In a flash…..