Thursday, June 4, 2009

Mary Ann's Little Gang




Did you ever read the children's book, "When the Relatives Came"? I loved reading this book to my kids when they were little. It showed a picture of a car piled high with people and luggage flying everywhere, crossing the country, to go visit the relatives. For years,Doug and I used to take our children off to Chicago at Christmas, and stay with Mary Ann and Bill.

And then we started getting stuck in snowstorms, my kids grew up and couldn't be torn away from their peer groups/school/work, and we stopped visiting. The book showed a visit that seemed like an "invasion", generating chaos and exhaustion, but cherished. Mary Ann and Bill always made us feel cherished. . . and Mary Ann would promptly mail back to Grand Forks all the stuff that my kids would forget and leave at their house.

Now, Doug and I can visit them, without kids, and are discovering the delights of playing with little kids that aren't your own. Here's Andy demonstrating self-protection while sliding down the steps.



And here's Joy, turning into an incredibly gorgeous little beauty.

My sweet, sweet sister. (Sorry, Mary Ann, about the flash going off in your face.)

And this is Bill, who has mastered photo-bombing with aplomb!

And as an aside. I can't believe I finally figured this out! I've been grousing about how much better my photos look in Bridge, than when I post them. Finally, I realized that something I read in a book about CS3 is just not the truth! The book said that CS3 automatically converted to sRGB in the save for web process. IT DOES NOT!!! So at least one of my miseries re: color angst has been solved! Today's photos are the first in months and months that are correctly in sRGB instead of RGB.

14 comments:

Anonymous said...

Merci pour ces beaux sourires.
cordialement

Radar's Mom said...

Hey Angela,

What a fun blog! Have you ever tried hitting that "Next Blog" button at the top of your blog screen? Anyway, I did that on my blog tonight and landed on yours. And since I peeked into your home and family, I thought I'd just leave a quick note to say hey!

Hugs and pugs from the Bahamas (well, actually I'm in Florida for a week, but the pug is back in the Bahamas),
Christena

Anonymous said...

How fun! Your sister looks just like you:)

pat said...

OH man--love the sliding down the stairs!! I think the pillow is a brilliant idea. Joy is going to be gorgeous--Mary Ann better start reinforcing the locks on the doors.

Chell said...

Super fun pics and stories abotu your family. great memories

janett said...

I love visiting relatives! Your sister has a beautiful family! :)

Suzy said...

Well they sure sound fun! I love that y'all can visit and the sliding down the stairs pic rocks!

Maria said...

The first picture of Mary Ann has to be one of my all time favorite pictures of her. It shows off her beautiful features perfectly!

Nicki said...

Well captured memories: reminiscing, family, fun (great idea for padded protection on stairs), and lots and lots of laughs. Thanks for sharing.

Jeanne said...

Lovely photos and memories shared. Your sister has a beautiful smile and your bil looks like a laugh riot!

Reds said...

Fun fun family photos! Love the sliding down the stairs shots!! And how cute is your niece!!

Lou said...

I love that book! I read it to my kindergarteners every year. Your photos and post are so much fun.

Sharon said...

Looks like a fun family! And I like how everyone gets squinty when they smile, the same thing happens to us.

Amy said...

Love the shots of sledding down the stairs! My sisters and I used to do that. :)