GIGI Maddy Sarah Ella Cassidy Taylor GIGI WHERE IT ALL STARTED Sherry’s mother
We have always been family – getting together –
That comes from the close bond Sherry had with her parents.
Even though she left to go to college
and never moving back home
she always made it a point and time to go back.
Sherry Bonnie Debby Barb BillBack row Tammy Kristie Natalia Nathan front row Debby Barb Nigel Bill BethanyDebby and Tammy
And she passed that thought onto her daughters – my step daughters
and almost 39 years later – they have passed it onto their children.
Barb ( GIGI) Debby (L) Tammy (R) and Sherry
When we moved to NVA 21 years ago – it was not long before both girls and their family followed and settled near us.
Debby’s Sarah Ella Maddy
Mike and Debby eventually settled in Lake Holiday – North of Winchester.
Cassidy and Taylor the twins of Tammy and Marcus
Tammy and Marcus have always lived within a few miles of us
Marcus has a residential and commercial carpet cleaning business.
Cassidy BODE Taylor
Now there is BODE – the only boy with five girls.
Sarah and her best friend Justin who lives next door to themMaddy and Ella
Maddy is now in her second year at the University of Lynchburg
An Academic All American in her freshman year –
she plays college soccer.
Ella is now a senior – plays soccer on the Blue ridge travel team
and on the High School team of James Wood.
Maddy earned MVP on her HS team and in the same year
Ella was named MVP on her team.
Taylor now rides horsesTaylor loves horsesCassidy and Ella and Sarah are our artists Ella now stands 5′ 8 1/2 ” almost as tall as Sherry and Sarah is catching up – Taylor will also and Bode!BODE is all boy – trucks – bikes – balls – runningTaylor Maddy Cassidy
Cassidy just drew a picture of Maddy in her soccer uniform
and wrote her a letter to send to her in college
such a sweet thoughtful little girl
and she is our gymnastic and tennis player
Sarah is our dancer and going to NYC girl!
Ella is a extremely good artist and plans on playing soccer in college.
She has plans to become a PHYS ED teacher just like her father.
Taylor at one year old & her horsesFamily has always been important to all of usMaddy graduating from 6th. gradeTaylor Maddy Debby CassidyCassidy and Taylor our favorite place to get together THE BEACH!
At first they played it on the cement pad around the pool
which got really hot!
Then they found some “NOODLES”
that had been thrown away by the previous guests in the garbage
and rigged it up to float!
That was a game saver!
Everyone took their turn – if you won – you played on!
Hours and hours in the shallow end
just dip down in the water to cool off!
You kept one hand on the floating game board to keep it steady
and there were ten open cups
When you put a ball in the open cup
you placed a red dish in it –
when you filled all ten red cups
you won the game!
Mash Ball on one end – then the deep part – and then shallow againAfter Mash Ball was over then nap time was over and the little ones came out to playLittle ones with parents and grand parentsKathy and KatieSherry with Sarah and Ella
Pool time became more and more as it got really hot on the beach.
The first sun rise of a new day!Our room King bedElla and Sarah’s roomOur bathroom we shared with the grand kids!
We were on the bottom floor – no climbing stairs with bags!
A small kitchen and game room on this floor and one other master bedroomThis floor went right out to the pool and bar!The pool was large with the deep part right in the middle!
Our floor was so that we could walk right out to the pool or beach.
We also were a five minute slow walk to the stores
and places to eat!
The beach looking North toward Va. BeachThe beach looking South toward N.C.
There were hardly any people at where we were at.
The local beach was sevral blocks North of us-
And even there – people set up 15 to 20 feet from each other.
I saw a few masks but the breeze and open air
we were and felt safe.
The nearest people set up to us!
This for the time being – will be our vacation life
as we continue into the pandemic.
Selecting spots that are quiet – social distance
and friends and family who also took safe measures before coming.
Dottie & Jim and I go way back – I was there when they got married.
Jim & I worked together and played softball together in the mid 70’s.
We met Buck and Cindy through them and ended up moving
into their neighborhood next to them and Mike & Carol.
Everyone smile – Cindy – down – smile – Cindy down – look this way!
Believe it or not – this picture was not easy to get –
They all were doing something other than looking! Lol
Now tradition demands a little Fireball –
And Cindy and Sherry are in charge of that –
Calling the “SHOTS” so to speak!
Jimmy is the organizer –
placing them the perfect way! Lol
Now – a couple of us – Cindy – Mike and I –
like to cut it with Rum Chata !
I am not much for wine or the hard stuff
but I can do the shots this way!
Now Captain Mike told his son –
“THESE GUYS CAN DRINK” !
BUT – we were on the boat for a total of 8 hours –
and I could not even sip my beer –
The boat would make you chip your tooth!
Cindy Sherry Me Carol
We really did not have that much!
A lot of water –
some beer
and everyone laughing!
Sherry & Cindy
The boat was beautiful – powerful and lots of room.
A 300 HP. V8!
You would have to get it up to 15 MPH just to have it plane out!
Mike said the fastest he had ever gone
was somewhere South of 50!
I think at one time Jimmy got it up to 35 MPH!
And that my friends was as fast as I wanted to go!
Thank you Carol and Mike for the weekendThank you to our friends for being our friendsA lot of years here – friends!“The Johns – Lake Chautauqua – established 2019 “What friends meanDottie Cindy Sherry Carol “TURN THE MUSIC UP”!Captain and first mate!
As the days pass we see new things helping out people from a distance
ZOOM – which Sherry has been using since it first
appeared – for her network business in The Juice Plus Company.
Now – there is the weekly “HENS PARTY”
A group that has met the last couple years or so
onec a week for lunch and a movie.
Now it is a once a week ZOOM PARTY!
Of course you do not get all dressed up no make up hats – drinks and lots of laughs
Now – we await our second “FRIENDS ZOOM” on Friday nights
for “HAPPY HOUR”!
There are four couples – who have been friends for I guess 33 years & more!
So – we decided to “ZOOM” and it was new to them!
But – a happy hour with fireballs – some beer and Vodka & Tonics.
First one was themed
HATS & SUNGLASSES
Not sure what this one will be
But it turned into a THREE HOUR HAPPY HOUR!
It has been peaceful at home we walk – ride our bikes and take long country back roads rides.
We are trying to keep it as normal as we can.
Once a week we select a different vendor or eatery
and order for pickup or curbside
to help support them in this time of need
to keep them going – a little bit of ourselves to them
Since I am not allowed to do laundry seems I do not know what to put where I fold ( sometimes) and put my own clothes away I do the outside mowing – trimming in the SUNSHINE!
Family – this is the hardest for us – we are near the three youngest
The three oldest are a hour and half away
and they are in the age group now where they mostly do their own thing
19 – 16 & 13 – soon all three will have birthdays
Then the younger three – twins – 9 years old
and the youngest and only boy 5 years old
Bode – MorMor – Taylor & Cassidy Each night like clock work Cassidy calls her MorMor and Bode – whom hangs on every movement she does – Taylor – who is old before her day and talks to her MorMor
It is the hardest with these three –
but we have done FAMILY ZOOMS
and have seen them from a distance
laughing – ZOOMING the three oldest in their yard
and of course all the family at the same time
This has been the hard part for us
See – we are a family unit – constantly staying in touch
So the sign read & I had no idea who laid it on the porch!
Then Sherry got the text from a friend of hers
whom she networks with!
Just as I brought it inside –
She had left it and wanted to make sure we knew
before the high winds took it away!
Sherry and Papa
In all this Sheltering in place –
DAY# 31 to be exact for us –
The unexpected seems to become the norm.
Sherry class of ’67 Smethport H.S. NWPA
We have been saving newspapers for who I call
“THE CAT LADY” simply because she recuses stray cats!
Every two weeks during this time
we load the car with the paper bags
and drive the 8 miles to her house.
Where we take them and sit on her front porch
and then text her that they are there.
We also have been delivering to friends the face masks that Sherry has been sewing along with other personal items all the while never coming in contact with people staying yards and yards away.
This past Saturday – we drove 45 minutes to meet our oldest daughter
and one of the grand daughters
to give them our extra Tower Garden!
We have THREE producing and they had one.
Now – they will have two with one outside!
Tom (Papa) class of ’67 Otto – Eldred H.S. NWPA
I have found that in these times
The abnormal has now become the normal.
When we met up – Ella stayed in the car waving.
I transferred everything and we stayed a car length apart.
That was hard – but on the upside-
We had been in a quandary over how to buy our outdoor flowers
as we did not want to mix with people.
The abnormal has become the normal
The place we met – has flowers and only two shoppers were there.
Plus it was set up where you could not go inside to pay
We were able to select our flats of flowers
pay without getting close to anyone
and load them into the car!
EVERYONE LOVES YOU #inthistogether
As one gives – one receives – humanity practicing social distancing
We were invited to spend the day in Sarasota Florida.
And – we were scheduled to see the Botanical Gardens
I did not know what to expect
and was quite surprised at what unfolded
as we spent over two hours walking
a paradise of green lush gardens!
A tunnel of mangroves! Every corner we rounded brought something unexpected!A eye ball with a waterfall represented a exhibit by SALVADORE DALI along with EGGS and BUTTERFLIES!Huge trees with roots expanded outward to better balance the tree as there is nothing but sandAnther SALVADORE DALI tribute LIPS!A quiet water fall just the sound calming and lush with vegetationA piano in the pondA piano in the tree!
As we walked – I was amazed at just how everything just blended
into nature – how calming it was – and so shaded!
SALVADORE DALI HATCHING FROM A EGG!A building full of originals some not seen in 15 years!Ginger our friend Sherry and her sister Debbie
You would never know you were in the middle of Sarasota!
And you would find yourself gazing out over the water!
Sarasota BayBenches at the end of a path sit and lookout over the bay
I found myself in a calm state of mind
Hug a tree with the one you admireSeek shelterSpread your wings as a butterfly!
It was a thing I had never considered to do
and now thankful I did!
Peace – love and happiness!
Glass ” WATER”Sherry Debbie Ginger
Thank you for reading Papa’s World
Elephant or Butterfly!
Thank you for following me on livinglifedoingitmyway.blog
PAPA!
WHERE FRIENDS MEET THE FAMILY!
Marie Selby BOTANICAL GARDENS SARASOTA FLORIDA !!!!
This is so true I remember my mother buying me what was then called “Blue Jeans” They were so baggy and the “IN” style then was skin tight black or red socks and high top black and white tennis sneakers!
So – I signed up for my site
and began writing short daily happenings
I called them ” JUST ANOTHER DAY IN MY LIFE”
And numbered them from the day I started in sequence!
This is true in our oldest daughters house open a cupboard and there are all these containers with no lids!
I started to accumulate “Friends” outside my old friends.
And they were from all over the Country
and some from the World!
Most I did not know personally
But through our “Home Business”
I was too much for some people but I wrote about my life and the lives of my loved ones and the lives of my closest and dearest friends.
I determined that from reading the daily paper
and watching the news
That I would bring POSITIVE – FUNNY
and GOOD thoughts to my site.
There fore I very seldom do anything Political.
I keep it pretty much as I stated
Which is getting hard to do with
everything going on.
I so believe this and hope one day that we all can be nice to each other
Then – my wife found a site that will publish
your face book writings for certain time periods
and publish them in a book form.
My one desire is to write a book on memories I have.
She choose a six month period and had it printed
It is so cool – with my picture on the front –
However – I had written so much –
That if I had them all printed –
there would be TEN full books!
I most likely in my younger years could of truthfully stated this! LOL
And she said this would be too expensive
You need to write and put it down
where we can all read it!
So , I did , eight years ago –
I started a blog – I wrote a lot but then for some reason
I quit and believe it or not – I LOST IT somewhere
IN THE CLOUD!
I could not find it again and had never written down the site!
All those things were gone but she told me she had met a friend through networking named Belinda who could get me started again on a new site and a new blog! A BIG HUG TO BELINDA
So – we met – and she was talking me through the startup!
When lo and behold – we found one of the two old sites!
Yes – I had two sites and we stumbled over one of them.
It had 4 blogs and I was on my way!
That was last April – and today –
I have written over 200 blogs
and have accumulated 180 FOLLOWERS!
From all over the WORLD!
I have finally found my passion writing – family – friends and sharing my life
The main thing is –
When I am gone – my memories will linger on.
I have no one left that I grew up with as family
except two niece’s – three great niece – and great – great niece and nephews.
My two sons – but the rest are gone.
No one remembers that life of or came before!
Today I am the eldest the one whom they call when they want to know about family Today I am all that is left to remember to put it all down
So – I write – everyday – I put down thoughts
I put down memories
I put down current events and family
THIS IS MY BOOK !
Sherry and Tom 2019 70 years old
I have lived a good life – ups and downs –
Almost gone
but still here.
I record trying to stay true to my beliefs
FAMILY- CHURCH- GOD – FRIENDS – COUNTRY
” DO THE RIGHT THING”
” DO ALL THE LITTLE THINGS RIGHT – AND THE BIG THINGS –
WILL TAKE CARE OF THEMSELVES”
That is how I have lived my life.
Yep – this would be me!
I leave you with a quote –
“It’s not for me to question why? But for me to do or die”
When you get married – I think you both need to think about this!
I 