Grandpa..tell me bout the good old days....

Brrrrrrrrr.....what am I doing back in NY where it goes down into the 30's in May??? Next year we will be doing a lot of sightseeing in the southern states on our way back from Florida!! You can take that to the bank!!

We are having fun with our island family and friends. We were invited to Rex and Janet's (Ennis) for dinner last week, along with Brian and Patsy Parker. Lots of catching up on the winter happenings.

Janet our hostess and fabulous cook!!

Patsy and Brian....this is one of the few pictures you will see of Patsy without her infectious smile....sometimes candid pictures do not do justice!

Friday was Emma's "Grandparent's Day" at her school. Off we went across the mighty St. Lawrence at 7:45AM. Emma caught a ride with us....not too many kids ride to school the way Emma does!

Especially with such a good looking river captain, who also happens to be her Grandpa....

So we here we are at school...Emma who has a hard time being serious....

This is the serious pose I requested....I love her spirit and zest for life!

You can also see how much "Pop" is enjoying that grape juice and store bought muffin...!!!

Some Grindstone neighbors we met up with.... Dick and Chris Matthews with their granddaughter Taylor.

Grandma did get in a picture....it was taken by one of Emma's friends so it is a little blurry, but at least it's documented.

For those of you who ask us how close to Canada we are....this is the view from my office window. The island to the left is Deathdealer which is a Canadian island. The town in the background is Gananoque, Ontario. Make sure you bring your passports when you come to visit. As of June 1 they will no longer accept birth certificates.

We are all looking forward to the Memorial Day weekend. Robin will be flying in on Friday evening to spend a week with us (yippee..). Saturday is Uncle Clyde's memorial service and Monday we will be celebrating with my brother George and his family at their home in Clayton.

In my daughter's eyes.....

Finally back to the blogging. Life has not been exciting enough to record much of what is happening. We have been working, working and working. 7 months of paperwork filed, house spotless and starting to work on the gardens and beach. Salt is doing more of that than I am....it's still too cold,and muddy for me. I am spoiled after 7 months in the south!!

We have been enjoying the beautiful sunsets from our deck.

Things will be picking up over Memorial Day. When Robin called for Mother's Day, she said she had 5 days off over the holiday and was thinking about just bringing her books and coming to the island where should she could get some quiet time to study for her tests the following week. Within 2 hours she had tickets to fly in on the 23rd. Betty will be giving her some math tutoring while she is here. I'm excited, I love having the two of them together....we always have so many laughs. We have a pretty big weekend planned with Uncle Clyde's memorial service and a cookout at my brother and sister-in-law's (George and Cheryl). We are sorry to be missing Kate's graduation party in Binghamton!!!

Friday Salt and I will be attending our 4th annual "Grandparents Breakfast" with Emma. She always gets so excited about this day and I always am so glad that it means so much to her.

This is her latest project. Frank, her dad carves decoys, and he is now teaching Emma. This is her first decoy which she gave her mother for Mother's Day. She of course, had a lot of help from her dad, but is learning quickly. As everyone is encouraging her in this new pursuit, family and friends are placing orders. She now has 3 orders.

The sun is shining and there is not a ripple on the river. I'm off for a walk and then for a canoe trip!

He say, I know you know me....One thing I can tell you is you got to be free....

Grandma was able to make it home in time for Emma's art show. I LOVE her art teacher...she really lets the kids express themselves, and is so encouraging.


Here is Emma's Black and White Positive/Negative Collage for which won a first place ribbon (top).
This is her second place elephant mask....The painting was to keep with the African theme.


Here is Paige Durdon....(one of my very favorite little girls). Paige won not only first place for her sculpture, but also "Student's Choice Award".

Congratulations to both of our little budding artists!!

Emma has also been chosen to display one of her pottery pieces in the Hand Weaving Museum art show.

Salt and I have been pretty much hanging close to home just getting caught up on 7 months of absence. I am ordering new flooring and new seats for my boat so I can get it in the water and then have a bunch of appointments to attend to in town.

Jim came to the island today but we haven't seen him yet. Janet Ennis came over for coffee yesterday and since she spent the winter here on the island, it was fun catching up on all the happenings. Now that May is here the island will start getting busy. Can't wait for all my girlfriends to get back.....gonna be some good times coming soon!!