Tag Archives: Family

Remembering in a Good Way: Looking at Old Photographs

We had one simple assignment from Logan’s school lately. They want us to pick out one baby picture and one picture from either Kindergarten or First Grade. Sounds simple right? Well if you are picking photographs of some other person’ kids, maybe, but our kid (or your kid) I don’t think it is possible. All sorts of things start happening when you start looking at old pics, especially if a little wine is around. You start laughing and almost crying almost at the same time. But in our effort to pick out two photos we are about half done, maybe. Until we find another box of pics.

This is a candidate. Logan has always loved books, even before he could read. He is still quite a reader.

And this is our probable candidate. He has always been a beach baby and swims like a fish.

And this is another favorite.

This is beyond baby stage but this is my almost all time favorite picture of Logan. Napping on the beach at Destin a long time ago. I’m kind of cheap but I’ll spring for the chairs and umbrellas from the beach service every now and then, just cuz. This is the one picture I’ve had of Logan in my office for over a dozen years. No matter how stressed I get, I can look at this and chill out. How do you like that thumb action.

Switching gears. This is Logan and his Boompa, Boompa was Logan’s best buddy. He is no longer with us but his memories remain. He was the world’s greatest father-in-law and we miss him.

And look at this. Here is me, actually getting married. And she still lets me hang around. Twenty six years!!

And here is me, in the pre Heather days. See, I told you I had hair. Not much hair but I had it, and about 40 less pounds. This was at my parents house in Albuquerque. There I was with keys in my hand impatient to get back to Houston. Why was I in such a hurry? What did I think I was going to miss?

My advice to everybody, look at old photographs more often.

Father’s Day

While we were on our family vacation in Hawaii, The Smokey Bear facebook site posted this photo below. I would have missed it by myself but we had some family members who subscribe to the site who tagged me in it. It was quite a thrill seeing this picture. It shows my Dad and myself at the Pecos Ranger Station in New Mexico. I have a Smokey Bear and dad is pointing off in the distance. I was just two years old at the time and of course have no memory of it. Dad was the District Ranger which put him somewhere below the President and above just about everybody else in my mind.

The photographer who did the shoot for the Forest Service sent Dad a bunch of prints including this one where my Dad is pointing off in some other direction and brother Bob was looking elsewhere.

Dad is now retired in Idaho. I have always been proud of him. Way back then and even more so today. He has always been my idol.

Happy Father’s Day Dad!

Tulsa’s Redbud Valley Nature Preserve

We recently ventured out to Tulsa Redbud Nature Preserve for a family outing recently. The preserve is in east Tulsa and you drive past trucking yard and pipe coating mills to get to it and it is worth the drive. It is a fairly small preserve but important and was acquired by the Nature Conservancy before it was transferred to the City of Tulsa because it has plant and animal species found nowhere else in northeastern Oklahoma. Since the emphasis is on preservation and not recreation they have restricted hours and allow only foot traffic. Leave your bicycles and horses home. Check the link above for the hours. They are generally open from eight to five and are currently closed on Monday and Tuesday.

They have about 2.5 miles of hiking trails. Much of it is along a cliff face that contains caves and springs and requires some care while hiking. It is fun but watch your step.

This is our family portrait. My fancy schmancy wrap around camera tripod was missing a part so we did the old wedge the camera in a tree any which way we can trick.

Here you go, bark bokeh.

Two and a half miles doesn’t sound like much but it took us a while and we enjoyed it.

And of course with Garmin you can follow along on our hike.

Linking with Our World Tuesday

A Week in Photographs

I take pictures all the time. I carry my cell phone, an ipod, and my Nikon point and shoot with me everywhere.

I take walks at lunch. Generally about one or two miles and I go all over downtown. I always pay attention to my surroundings and nearby people and I’ve had to pay extra attention. We have a new crop of homeless people downtown. It has changed the complexion of downtown and how people perceive the homeless. The new, younger, more thuggish group is a lot more aggressive than the older people who were the most polite homeless people I’ve ever seen. There is a lot more drug dealing downtown and it is done right out in the open and the participants don’t seem at all concerned about who sees them. This is a disturbing trend.

On another noon day I went out to west Tulsa to find a geocache. It was the first time I had been noon geocaching in a long time. The cache was on an abandoned road. How exactly does one decide to abandon a road? Anyway, it was fun.

About two weeks ago I moved offices in our building from the 17th floor to the 5th. So my views to the west for sunsets is different. No more views of the refinery or the Arkansas River. Instead I get the above. I’m not complaining.

But hey I got a different view toward the city center also. Everything always seems to work out.

Got my teeth cleaned and xrays. No cavities!!! I hardly ever have cavities. The secret is regular flossing. I always floss the night before I go see the dentist.

This morning I took the kid to school on my day off. After I dropped him off I parked on the Arkansas River and walked a little and took some pictures. I loved this bench and the bare branches of the tree, along with the River and the swell of Turkey Mountain in the background.

Friday night Logan had a comedy improv show. Laughing Matter Teen Improv at Clark Theater is a lot of fun. Logan is second from the left. We have been going for years and it has been fun watching these young people grow up.

So that is what I’ve been up to, what about you?

Birthday!

It’s my Dad’s birthday today. He’s still doing great.

He worked long and hard during his tenure in the US Forest Service while being a great husband for over fifty years and raising three kids.

He deserves to sit back and tell a few stories

Happy Birthday Gramps!

Happy Birthday Mom

It’s my mother’s birthday. She has been gone for while but I think about her every day. Above is Mom with my brother Bob and me at the Ranger Station in Coyote, New Mexico. Once a month or so we would dress up and load up and head out of the mountains and into Santa Fe for church. Notice my brother Bob rocking the high waisted jeans and my bald head whiting out the whole pic.

I think that is my sister, Ellen in this picture. Mom loved children. Notice the mountain in the background. She always said she would never live anywhere where she couldn’t see the mountains. She was a true Forest Ranger’s wife.

Here she is with Logan in Idaho. They both seem pretty happy with each other.

Mom, the smallest, was part of a huge family. When Dad retired they moved back to Mom’s native Idaho where many of her brothers and sisters lived. She loved getting together with them, and their many kids and grand-kids.

A Very Patient Brother in Yellow

My brother Bob left this morning to head back to Corpus Christi. We had a great time while he was here. We Thanksgiving together, ran in a race, went hiking and geocaching, watched a couple of football games, and had a few beers.

He’s a patient guy. Maybe too patient. I was telling him that he needs to check my blog from time to time just to see what I say about him. He says he isn’t worried about it. So as he was leaving I said, “Hey Bob, since you are wearing yellow get under the tree.” He did so I decided to see what I could do with it.

So I ran it through Topaz Impressions and decided on this. I don’t know I think he’ll have to come back next year with the yellow shirt.

Linking with Monday Mellow Yellows

Thanksgiving on the Run

Thanksgiving morning my brother Bob, up from Corpus Christi, and I ran in a food run on the Arkansas River Trails. Bob has been running pretty steadily since the big running boom of the 80’s. Me, I’m a poser.

It was the Von Franken Family Food Run. There is no entry fee. They just ask you to bring a sack of non-perishable food items. No tee shirt, no medals, and of course no timing and no closed course but it sure is popular and fun.

I think they filled the truck before the event was over.

There were some dogs out there ready to be rescued. We are full up with our three mutts. I tried to get brother Bob to get a dog but he didn’t want one.

There was lots of selfie action going on. I love to take pictures of people taking pictures. Don’t ask my why.

Here is some more selfie action going on.

I mentioned that this was a low budget, low pressure, run. Well, I didn’t hear a gun to signal the start but Bob said, “Look they are running.” So off we went. It took a while for the starting group to unpack. There were all sorts of runners, walkers, waddlers, dogs, baby strollers on the course but we just ran around them and others ran around me.

Bob gradually pulled away and I was going on at an easy pace. My legs were a little sore so I just loped along enjoying the view. We still have lots of fall color up in the trees. I just love it.

And then I got to wondering just how long was this race. I told Bob that it was about three miles but we just ran and ran and the turnaround wasn’t until 2.7 miles. I caught up with him there. And then he took off again while I stopped and got a drink at the water fountain cuz in this low budget wonderful race there are no water stops with no huge mess of water cups left over by the runner. I was surprised the water fountains were still running this late in the year.

There was a family playing football on the rugby field What a way to spend Thanksgiving morning right? I mean if you don’t feel like running. And anyway I caught up with Bob just before the finish line. We grabbed a cup of coffee and went home to get cleaned up.

We had Thanksgiving over at Nana’s house. I had smoked a couple of turkey’s on Wednesday plus we had all the usual trimmings. It was wonderful. Afterwards Bob and I watched the Dallas Cowboys lose to the Philadelphia Eagles. You can tell that Bob made friends with Nana’s Fiona. Bob should have got one of those rescue dogs is what I think.

I suck at inside Turkey Day photographs. Here is Heather and her mother Nana working in the kitchen.

And here is Heather and Nana working over my son Logan in a cutthroat game of Farkel during the game. They are way past the old let the kid win phase. He can hold his own in Farkel even against his cutthroat Mom and Grandmother.

So, I had a great Thanksgiving. How was yours?

Our World – A Walk on the River

A couple weeks ago me, son Logan, sister Ellen, her husband Irv, and their grandson Mr. Beans all met up in Idaho Falls to see dad and just kind of get together. We all except for dad decided to go for a walk on Idaho Fall’s greenbelt adjacent to the Snake River. Above, left to right is Logan, Irv, and Mr. Beans.

There’s Ellen sandwiched between Irv and Mr. Beans. The greenbelt has lots of places to sit and rest. We took advantage of most of them.

The Snake River is rather pretty as it goes through the greenbelt.

In addition to the benches there are lots of places for photo ops. We liked this two tone vegetative Elk.

Me and the kid. Do you like my high spf hat? I had a dermatologist take a divot out of my forehead earlier this year. I’m trying to prevent any more of those.

And here are the Falls. They are very pretty and make a pleasing noise as the water goes over them. A fun fact is that not all of the water goes over the the falls. The City of Idaho Falls has had low head electric generators on the river since 1900 and presently the city gets about 30% of its electrical requirements from these generators.

At the top middle of the photograph you can see the Idaho Falls LDS (Mormon) Temple.

I am not Mormon but I think it is a beautiful building well situated.

So, have you taken any family walks along a river lately?

Our World Tuesday

Idaho Falls M.A.D. 4.5K Road Race Report

Logan and I spent a long weekend in Idaho Falls, Idaho visiting my Dad. My sister Ellen, and her husband Irv, and their grandson Mr. Beans also showed up. Ellen is quite the runner these days and she convinced us to sign up for a race, the MAD. Marathon, Half Marathon, and 5K. So we rolled out of bed early Saturday morning and made our way over to the starting line.

Mr. Bean’s first experience with a running gel. I’m not sure he liked it.

The race started and took off through the neighborhoods of south Idaho Falls. I had been wondering if the race was a beer run or not but I got my answer when I saw these guys doing the traffic control. They are Mormon missionaries. So no beer I thought, but that is alright, these guys above and the other guys and gals on the route did a great job keeping the runners from getting run over. Notice Logan to the right, keeping his head in the run and not getting distracted like his old man.

We made our way over and irrigation canal.

And by a patriotic Christmas tree, or something. I am not sure what it was.

Here is another missionary and that is Irv waving bye. We were not that close to him. He was headed out of the park to the left and we had to head in.

And then this is where we cheated by a half a klick. I could have sworn that the course markings sent us down this route. See the blue shirts ahead of us? They were fellow runners so we were not cheating. See Logan to the right? He still has half a step on the old man.

We made it out of the park and started running a busy street. Time for a shadow selfie. See who’s shadow is longer than mine?

Here comes Irv. He finished the race and came running back to take my camera to get the finishing pic.

And look who finished ahead of his old man.

And the little (not so little) was gloating about it. Wait till the next race kid! By the way, do you have a ride home?

So, have you run a 4.5K race lately?

YogisDen.us

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