Snow Day

Really, really, really, really, really, really big boy bed

Clayton got a queen sized mattress!  He’s such a cute little lump of blankets at the very top of it every night (he still sleeps curled in a ball with the blankets over his head).

Arachnimania!

This is a HUGE cat face spider I found in our house today.  Can you see the cat’s face?  It’s cool!  But way too big and freaky for me to be sharing my house with.  Should’a taken it’s picture next to a coin or something.  YIKES!  But COOL!

The big catch

Lillian caught her very first fish.  We wrapped it in foil and it’s in our freezer.  Every day, Lillian wants to take it out to look at it.  Every other day, Clayton wants to eat it for dinner.

School Days

I was so worked up about Lillian starting school.  Then I totally left everybody hanging and never posted about the start of school.

My big girl started school with some transition days.  On a Wednesday, Lillian, Clayton and I went to spend some time in her classroom.  Clayton had so much fun playing with all the toys – but he would not leave my side for more than a minute.  Lillian did some exploring of her own and then the children got together for community time and read a book and sang a song to learn each others names.  As they went around the circle singing “rickety, tickety bumble bee, won’t you say your name for me…” each child would sheepishly say their name on their turn.  When the guide (teacher), Robin (just Robin), got to Lillian she very confidently and loudly said pronounced her name.  Robin, who had not had a comment on any other child’s response, said, “I like how you say your name with such authority and confidence!”  My girl.  Where did you get all this confidence and flair for the dramatic.  I cried.

On the next day, Thursday, Andy took off work to join us for the first real good-bye.  We walked Lillian to her classroom door to leave her there for an hour and a half.  We made her a name tag and Clayton asked for one, too.  Robin said, of course he could have one.  I stuck it on his shirt and said good-bye to Lillian.  I didn’t expect it, but Clayton was so sad that he didn’t get to go into the classroom with his sissy as he had the day before.  We walked away and he was just so confused and sad.  I cried.

On Friday we were to try out the drop off loop where we drive through the parking lot in a line and the Guides at the school retrieve the kiddos from cars.  We weren’t ready for that yet, so we just walked Lillian up to the gate and said good-bye.  I cried.

On Saturday Lillian asked if she was going to school.  When I said no, she was highly upset!

On one of those days we practiced eating lunch out of our new little plastic boxes on the back patio.

On Monday we had our first ‘real’ day of school.  11:45 am to 3:30 pm.  Lillian carried her backpack, water bottle and lunch into school and I cried and cried.  Clayton and I went home and I couldn’t believe how quiet the house was without my sweet girl in it.  It’s amazing how contently and silently Clayton will play, all by himself, with no interruptions from his sister.

On one of the first days, I rode my bike with both kids in the trailer to drop Lillian off at school.  I had packed two identical lunches – one for Lillian and one for Clayton and I to take to the park after we dropped her off.  Clayton had a blast during his “mama-time”, eating, sitting on my lap and continuing a game he and Lillian had made up – retrieve rocks from the river and running up to the little ledge on the bank and throwing the rocks to see how big of a splash can be made.

Just about every other day, Clayton will stop what he’s doing, look around and say, “Where’s Sissy?”  He forgets that we dropped her off at school – even though he was in the car.  I guess it has something to do with the lack of permanence in the 3 year old brain.  Then he says, “I miss Sissy.”  I say, “Me too!”

Best First Snow

Our first snow of the season that stuck!  And a lot of it!  One local paper said it was the “best” first snow and another said it was a record low! Yikes!

Autumnal Equinox Party

Ruth Ann ~ A Remembrance

Ruth Ann Dye Burns passed away September 4, 2009 at Sable Palms of Largo, in Pinellas County, Florida.

Born to the proud parents Joesph Ralph Dye and Evelyn Mae Huffman Dye, on Tuesday September 3, 1929  at 1:27pm at Aultman Hospital, Canton, Ohio Ruth Ann weight was 7 lbs. 1 3/4 oz. The birth certificate states that Ralph was a Laborer in a steel mill and Evelyn was Housewife, both were 18 years old. Residence was 1619 Tuscarawas St. W. Canton, Ohio.  The delivery was by Dr. Bowman, and nurse was Lola Sowash.

From Ruth Ann’s Baby Book: First Laugh October 11, 1929 in front of Daddy. First shoes December 25, 1929 white trimmed in blue given by Harold Bixler. First steps August 7, 1930 in front of Uncle Bill and Aunt Betty & Mother from Mother to Uncle Bill. First Word was Daddy. First Playthings Rattle from Grandma Dye. Rag Doll from Aunt Nadine. First Lock of baby’s hair Near the age of one year. Brown. She was a little rascal and is very good child.  Exceptionally quiet.

Ruth Ann is survived by the rest of the Dye clan three sisters and a brother.

Mary Lou Benshoff  of Milton, PA

Joy Lynn Zimmerman of Lewisburg, PA

Jo Alyce Nolan, of St. Louis, MO

and Ned Dye, of Largo,  FL

Ruth Ann was Baptized at a Luthern Church. She attended numerous schools and graduated from Canton Township High School in 1947. Her friends called her “Dee”.  She was a member of Calvery United Methodist Church and Malvern Methodist Church. Ruth Ann was a daughter, student, mother, volunteer, Malvern Band President, Real Estate Agent Century 21, Hairdresser at Judy’s Salon, and child caregiver.  She found comfort in McLeods Daughter’s, Tennis, Horses, Plants, Florida Gulf, Football OSU and Bucks, glass collecting, quilts and sewing, cooking, Least Heat Moon, Barbra Streisand, Engelbert Humperdinck.

Ruth Ann’s favorite thing about school:  Recess and chasing people around.

Favorite thing as a child: Going fishing.  It seldom happened.

Favorite holidays:  Thanksgiving and Christmas

Ruth Ann married William Edgar Burns on June 29, 1947 and gave birth to four beautiful children. William Dale Burns of Belleair Bluffs, FL; graduate of Malvern High School 1966, graduate of  Canton Area Technical School 1968.  Deborah Ann Burns Otto of Longmont, CO; graduate of Malvern High School 1971, Canton Business College 1972, Hondros College 1999.  Cindy Lee Burns Green of Dunedin, FL; graduate of Malvern High School 1972, Ohio State 1978, Florida State in 2000.  Ralph Henry Burns of Massillon, OH; graduate of Malvern High School 1975 and Electricans Appriticeship Program 1976.

Will be remembered by eight grandchildren: Janna Otto Vance, CO; Benjamin Otto, OH; Kyle Otto, OH; Travis Herbert, FL; Evan Herbert, FL; Melissa Burns Baciak, OH; Christopher Burns, OH; Deanna Burns, OH

Her Littlest Angels, Great Grandchildren,

Lillian and Clayton Vance, CO; Sophia and Evander Otto, OH; William Otto, OH; Devlin Herbert, FL.

She will be sorely missed by all who knew her, learned from her and loved her.

Our humble thanks to  Dr. Ziegler, Dr. Sheets, Hospice of the Florida Suncoast, Sable Palms, National Cremation Society.

God Befriend and Bless you

May every blessing this life can hold

Be yours in the fullest measure.

May content, that is better than gems or gold,

Fill your future days with pleasure.

May clouds ne’er gather about your way.

Nor grief nor gloom oppress you.

And every hour and every day

May God befriend and bless you.

Given to me on my first Communion by a dear Num Sister Eulalia of Mercy Hospital, who taught me so much.  May she rest in peace. I believe her to be the Perfect Nun.  June 9, 1955

“A thing of beauty is a joy forever”   — Keats

A Christmas Thought and a Prayer

God open my eyes I may see

And feel Your presence close to me,

Give me strength for my stumbling feet
As I battle the crowd on life’s busy street,

And wide the f\vision of my unseeing eyes

So in passing faces I’ll recognize

Not just a stranger, unlived and unknown,

But a friend with a heart

that is much like my own…..

Five me perception to make me aware

That scattered profusely

on life’s thoroughfare

Are the best gifts of God

that we daily pass by

As we look at the world

with an Unseeing Eye.

– Helen Steiner Rice

On life’s busy thoroughfares

We meet with angels unawares -

For, while “angels” dwell in Christmas skies.

We too must come to realize

That all year through in many places

We catch a glimpse of “angel faces.”

– Helen Steiner Rice

God bless and keep you through the year

And fill Christmas Day with Joy and Cheer.

Signed  Mother & Dad and Grandma & Grandma & Grandad

May you be inspired

by all that is positive from your past,

and may you

hold in the Stars

the richness of your future.

Our Heavenly Father, help us to forget all the small things, things of no consequence that agitate us.  Give us Direction.  Help us to make something really wonderful of life and bring us closer to Jesus, so that we may grow in things spiritual until we triumph over things material.  In His name we pray. Amen

Dec. 10, 1947  Bill and I went to KY to get Corky.  We slept three hours and started back home.

Dec. 25, 1947  Bill got me a Singer Portable.  I got him a shot gun sight.

Dec. 17, 1949  We went up to a sale at Poland, OH to buy a John Deere.  Got new one instead $2150.00

Feb. 20, 1951  Combine Delivered

April 2, 1951   Went to Milton with Dale on train to see Mom

April 10, 1951  Came home with Grandma Grace and Bix

Sept. 5, 1951  Dale and I came home from Milton, Pa. in an airplane. Sure was nice.

Feb. 1952  Bill bought a GMC truck and is hauling steel.

August 16, 1952  Deborah Ann was born

Nov. 1952   We bought a 1949 Pontiac 8.

Jan. 1953  Bill smashed the truck but didn’t get hurt- 3 mo to fix it. Got a Lemon T.

Feb. 17, 1954  Went to stay with Grandma Burns until the baby comes.

March 11, 1954  Cindy Lee was taken rush C section 6:14 am

Aug 6, 1954  Went to Colorado to see Bill’s Uncle John

Nov. 1954  Bill bought a bigger truck trailer.

Dec.11, 1954  Bought Sub Zero Deep freezer from G.C. Miller

Aug.   1955  Moved to Canton  2309 40th N.W.

Nov.    1955  Bought 53 Pontiac

Dec. 6, 1955  Ralph Henry was born 8 pound 1 ounce

Remembrance prepared by Janna Otto Vance.  September, 2009

Ruth Ann Dye Burns

Being so far from my grandmother for these last two years has made it very hard to believe that she is really gone.  I’ve been digging through old pictures (under the guise of cleaning up the closet and getting rid of all of those old, horrible pictures – you know the ones: the ones that show only a corner of Ben’s face, or Ben posing like HeMan, or the 2,000 pictures of my Cabbage Patch Doll, or the 1,000 pictures of Snowball, my kitty.  You know, pictures taken by a kid and that kid was me.) and every time I come across a picture of grandma, I think, “How can it really be possible that I will never see her again?”  When I look at a picture of her, some small part of my brain thinks, there she is, and she’s about to walk around the corner or through our front door.

In February of 2000 I moved from Ohio (just having finished college) to live with grandma.  I lived there for about 7 months.  It was a very repetitive time in my life.  I was working during the day, just around the corner.  I would come home, change, walk 3 miles around the neighborhood and then eat with grandma and Dale, the same thing almost every day.  Then I would usually head to Clearwater Beach to watch the sun set.  Those were good times.  Grandma would harass me about smoking too much, drinking too much beer, talking on the phone too much… all the things that good, responsible grannies harass their grandchildren about.

I moved in with Andy sometime that fall.  While I was a little ways away in St Petersburg then, I enjoyed being able to go and visit grandma whenever I wanted… but I didn’t do that too much, until my babies were born.  Then it was fantastic to take a day trip with the little ones to see Grandma.  She was always amazed at how often I left the house with the babies.  It was very different than the time when she was raising her kids.  I remember her saying, “You made the right decision, not going back to work and staying home with Lillian instead.  But you should keep that baby home more!”

There is something that happens when a grandma or great-grandma holds a baby.

While I was pregnant with Clayton, grandma was diagnosed with cancer.  I think it hit us all really hard.  I believe now that I always thought cancer wasn’t something that happened in my family.  After I got over that, I believed that grandma was so tough that she would certainly get through this and live for many, many years in remission – pain free and happy.  Unfortunately, that wasn’t the case.  Her cancer was too far along when it was discovered and even if it would have went into complete remission, her body was forever changed.

When Clayton was 10 months old, we decided to move to Colorado.  Grandma was doing pretty well at that time.  But I still had a feeling that I was fleeing at a bad time for grandma.  We left Florida in April of 2007.  We returned for a visit in June of 2008.  And miraculously, grandma made it to Kyle’s wedding in Ohio in October 2008, but we only saw her briefly at that time due to all the commotion of the wedding.

I will never forget the morning that grandma was to leave with Cindy and Dale and head back to Florida.  They had talked about having one last breakfast together at the lodge dining room.  I woke up about 20 minutes past the time that was talked about and threw on my clothes.  I knocked on their door.  I ran down to the dining room.  I ran back up to their room.  They were nowhere to be found.  I felt this horrible sinking feeling that I had somehow missed them.  I finally got to talk to my mother and she said they had skipped breakfast and hit the road.  I felt so terrible.

But I feel even more terrible now – knowing that would become the very last time I would see my grandma.  That was almost one year ago.

As I think back, there were so many sweet times with grandma.  So many times we would spend long hours at the farm or in grandma’s kitchen baking cookies.  We would sew and knit and do silly things with our hair.  Grandma did have a great laugh.

For one reason or another, we often ended up at grandma’s house.  Especially around the time my mom and dad were splitting up.  That was such a fragile time for me and even more so for my brothers.  She was always there to fill the void of our “whole” family – and distract us, usually with something that involved a wooden spoon and a LOT of sugar.

How can it be that even though I have seen her and talked to her so rarely in the last two years… the world seems so different now, without her here.

I love you, grandma.

Magic!

I a bit tardy on posting this one, but wanted to get it up here anyway.  This was the most magical rainbow ever!  I fell confident in giving it this label because

1.) As we walked out of the grocery store we saw it and all commented on how it was the BRIGHTEST rainbow we’d ever seen.

2.) The kids stood perfectly still for over a minute (for those of you without kids or who forget what 3 and 5 year olds do – they NEVER stand perfectly still for over 5 seconds)

3.) It is a DOUBLE rainbow!

4.) Everyone who came out of the store behind us said, “WOW!  That’s the best rainbow ever!”