On The Road Again

We like to be on the road, and today we definitely got our fill.
An 11 hour drive between my Mom's in Northwest Indiana, to
our stop for the night in North Little Rock, Arkansas. We made this
trip a few years ago, and it's a nice diversion from our usual trip
home via Nebraska or Kansas. Remember how we were freezing
at the Cubs game a few days ago? Well, today we more than made
up for it with temperatures in the 90's and the humidity about the
same. Driving along the Mississippi River in Missouri and Arkansas,
we could smell the river and the aftermath of the flooding that
happened a few weeks ago in that area. We also heard a huge
buzzing coming from the trees along the road. It turns out that
they were cicadas. They only breed every 13 years and apparently,
this is the year. Overall, it was a long, but leisurely drive. Tomorrow,
we head toward Dallas.

The End of a Nice Visit

Today is our last day visiting my Mom. We've had a really nice visit
and of course, the time went by way too quickly. We'll be stopping
on the way home to see my sister, Nancy in Oklahoma and we'll
be home soon. We're looking forward to having an enjoyable
summer back in Colorado!

Memorial Day

Over the past few days, we went with my Mom to a couple of the
local cemeteries to place Memorial Day displays at my Grandma
and Grandpa Smith's and Grandma and Grandpa Hamann's grave
sites as well as my Mom's baby sister and my Dad's site. Today,
we went to my sister Terri's house for a cookout and a visit with
family. It was a nice holiday and we enjoyed the company.

Wet

I think Lynn and I are responsible for all of the rain and bad
weather they've been having in Northwest Indiana. We've had
just a couple of days of nice weather in the two weeks we've
been here. In fact, they announced the other day that this is
one of the wettest months of May they've had since they
started recording these things. They've had anywhere from
200-300% of the average rainfall that they usually have.
During the most recent rainfall, there was water standing in
the soybean field behind my Mom's house. That hardly ever
happens. Hopefully it will start drying up soon.

Caution...Geese Crossing

We were in Merrillville, running some errands when we came upon these
four families of Canada Geese trying to cross the very busy U.S. 30.
Most people were very patient and eventually the police came and
helped escort them off the road. I felt bad for the geese though as
they were just trying to get from one grassy area to another and these
dumb humans and their machines were in the way!

Not So Great Weather

We haven't had very nice weather during our entire vacation.
Today a pretty bad storm came through the area.


Luckily, my Mom has a really nice generator that powers the
entire house. When the power went out today, the generator
kicks on almost immediately. While most of the vicinity
spent the afternoon without power, we operated as normal.
It's a nice legacy of my Dad's, who made sure this was installed
before he passed away a couple of years ago. He wanted to make
sure that my Mom wouldn't have to worry if the power went out
for an extended period.

Mrs. Boezeman

I found out today, that my Third Grade teacher, Mrs. Boezeman
passed away earlier this Spring. I remember her as being a really
good teacher and above all, a very nice lady. I remember her most
for reading Laura Ingalls Wilder's "Little House" books to us. We have
copies of the books in our home today and every time I look at them,
I think of Mrs. Boezeman. She will be missed.

Tresa Mae Boezeman, age 94, of DeMotte, passed away on Saturday,
March 12, 2011 at Oak Grove Christian Retirement Village, DeMotte.
She was born on October 26, 1916 in DeMotte to the late Andrew and
Kathryn (Ploegsma) DeHaan. On August 29, 1941 in DeMotte, Tresa
married John Henry Boezeman, who passed away August of 2005.
She graduated from DeMotte High School in 1934 and received her
bachelors degree in education from Indiana State University. Tresa
was a school teacher for the DeMotte and Hebron public schools for
30 years, as well as, Virgie school for two years. Tresa was a member
of First Reformed Church, DeMotte, IN, where she participated in the
willing workers of First Reformed Church and was a Sunday school
teacher and family night teacher. She was also a member of Epsilon
Delta Sorority and the Terre Haute, IN Retired Teachers Association.
Tresa is survived by her daughter, Kathy Payton of DeMotte; a son,
Larry Jon (Terri) Boezeman of DeMotte; three grandchildren: Brett
(Brittany) Boezeman of Columbus, IN, and Ryan and Angela Boezeman
both of DeMotte; two great grandchildren: Rylie and Trenton Boezeman
both of Columbus, IN. Preceded in death by her husband; her parents;
and two sisters. Friends may call on Friday, March 18, 2011 from 2:00
to 8:00 PM at Jackson Funeral Service, DeMotte, IN. Funeral services will
be held on Saturday March 19, 2011 at 10:30 AM at First Reformed
Church, DeMotte, IN with Pastor Roger Huitink officiating. Interment to
be held at Holland Cemetery. Memorials may be made to the First
Reformed Church. Also see: www.jacksonfuneral.com

Back Home Again...

Back home again in Indiana
And it seems that I can see
The gleaming candlelight, still shining bright
Thru the sycamores for me
The new mown hay sends all its fragrance
From the fields I used to roam
When I dream about the moonlight on the Wabash
Then I long for my Indiana home

We're at my Mom's house in Indiana, where we'll
be for the next two weeks. We're looking forward to
a nice visit.

George Rogers Clark

While growing up in Indiana, we took "Indiana History" in
elementary school. One of my heroes was George Rogers
Clark. Besides being the older brother of the more famous
William Clark (of Lewis and Clark fame), he led Colonial
Militiamen to capture Vincennes (Fort Sackville) and secure
the west for the Americans during the Revolutionary War.
This eventually led to the land that would later become
Indiana, Ohio, Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin and part of
Minnesota to be ceded to the newly formed United States
(The Northwest Territory) at the end of the war. In later

years, he founded the City of Louisville, Kentucky.


What I didn't know until today, (and am ashamed as a
native Hoosier and Vexillologist) is that his expedition had
a flag. His troops carried it on their campaign to capture
Vincennes. Why I didn't know this, I have no idea!

According to Wikipedia: "... the 13-striped, red and green
banner is the only banner historically documented, and
was one of the first “American Flags” flown in the modern
State of Indiana. The pattern has been flown by Indiana
National Guard units deployed in both Iraq and Afghanistan.
A red and green flag is still flown at the George Rogers
Clark National Historic Park".

I know...unless you're from Indiana, a Vexillologist, or a
student of the Revolutionary War, none of this really matters
to you, but I think that more less-known historic figures like
George Rogers Clark should get more attention.

Vintage Larry

While we were in Las Vegas, we stopped at a vintage clothing
store called The Attic. Lots of 70's clothes, wigs, boas, stuff
like that. Lynn tried on a couple of wigs and boas and looked
all glamorous for the camera. However, in the very balmy
upstairs (their air conditioner wasn't working), I found this
AWESOME Larry Bird basketball jersey. I SAW LARRY BIRD
PLAY IN A JERSEY JUST LIKE THIS during the 1976-77 season
when Indiana State visited Valparaiso. We were regular
Valpo U attendees at old Hilltop Gym so it was a pretty big
deal when someone of his caliber came to town. Later, he
would become one of my Dad's favorite players when Bird
played for the Boston Celtics. (Happy Birthday tomorrow
Dad...I know you're still reading my blog!)
Anyway, on a total impulse purchase, I bought it (it was
fairly reasonable), and it actually fits me! However, I doubt
it will ever make me play basketball as well as Larry Bird!

Butler Bulldogs

Tonight, the men's basketball team from Butler University literally
missed winning the Division One basketball championship by
inches, when a last second shot that would have one the game
bounced off the rim as time expired. I'm not a huge sports fan
but I was cheering for Butler not only because they are a small
school from Indiana, but because they were one of the first college
teams I ever saw play basketball. Growing up, my parents were
long time backers of Valparaiso University's basketball team. We
saw lots of games at the old Hilltop Gym. I saw the DePaul Blue
Demons play there in the 80's when they were the number 1 team
in the nation and I saw Larry Bird play there when Indiana State was
an up and coming power. Most of the early games when I was young
though were against other tiny schools, before Valparaiso was a
Division 1 team. They played in the Indiana Collegiate Conference,
which included Valparaiso, Evansville, St. Joseph's, Indiana Central,
Wabash, DePauw and Butler. Over the years, Valpo and Butler have
always played each other and now they are back in the same
conference. Butler has been very good the past few seasons and
Valpo made it to the Sweet 16 a few years ago. As Butler progressed
through this year's tournament, I'm sure they made all of the the
other small schools, especially in the Midwest proud. I know my
Dad would have been glued to the TV, watching them. I'm sure he's
proud of them and the great effort they made tonight.

Driving to Oklahoma

We left my Mom's pretty early in the morning and set off for
my sister Nancy's house in Altus, Oklahoma. You can make it
in one day, but it's a pretty long drive, so we split it up into two.
We decided to go a bit of a different route from the Chicago area
to southwest Oklahoma via the boot heel of Missouri and through
Arkansas. Instead of crossing the Mississippi River near St. Louis,
we crossed it near Cairo Illinois. We stopped briefly in New Madrid
Missouri and I was very disappointed. New Madrid was the site of
one of the largest earthquakes ever recorded. In the early 1800's
it made the Mississippi River run backwards and rang church bells
in Boston. A pretty big deal. However, no mention of it...not even a
sign near the courthouse could be found!


I was very impressed by the rest stops in Arkansas. The buildings
themselves were nothing to write home about but the grounds were
very nicely landscaped, with tons of flowers everywhere. It was very
pretty.


We spent the night in Little Rock and made it there just in time to
see this really pretty sunset as we rounded a bend in the highway.


Today, when entering Oklahoma, we stopped at a visitor center and
they had this painting on the wall. It's a copy of a famous painting of
the Trail of Tears. The Trail of Tears is a infamous journey made by
the Cherokee as they were forced from their homelands in the east
and sent to Oklahoma. Many died along the way. Descendants of
these same Cherokee live in this area of Oklahoma today.


I am always please that Oklahoma recognizes that it was once
"Indian Territory". This is reflected on it's license plates, state flag,
and even it's rest stops as we enjoyed these picnic areas where we
ate our lunch.

Our Last Day at Mom's

Today is our last day at Mom's house and we've had a
wonderful time! Mom makes us feel so welcome and
wants us to make ourselves at home. It's been a great
visit, seeing family, visiting close friends and enjoying
great weather. I can't wait until our next visit!

Outstanding in Her Field

When we first got here three weeks ago, Lynn thought the
corn surrounding my Mom's house would be about the same
height is she is. We didn't take a photo then, but it was much
taller than she was much to her surprise. We took another
photo today and it was even taller...about another 6 inches!
I think Lynn has a new appreciation for Corn!

Visiting the Hospice

I have been wanting to visit the hospice where my Dad
stayed last year and also to go with my Mom to see the
bricks that we had placed there to remember my Dad.
They did a really good job placing the bricks and they
are right outside his window. There is even a small bench
there that I can picture him sitting in, admiring the
beautiful garden and pretty flowers.


Lynn and several other women on the Ice last winter were
working on another "Warm Up America" afghan and Mom
was contributing with her own squares on this end. Lynn's
spent the last few days putting them all together into a really
pretty afghan. The "Warm Up America" project is aimed at
contributing these projects to hospitals, shelters, etc and
Lynn felt that the VNA Horton Hospice Center. Two of the
women that were there when Dad stayed there greeted us
and were thrilled to see us and to receive the afghan. Both
very nice women, it was great to see them again.

Wax Beans!

My Mom and I snapped Wax Beans this morning. I LOVE Wax Beans!
Especially how my Mom makes them. First you boil the beans.
Then, you fry cracker crumbs in a frying pan with butter. When
the cracker crumb mixture is crispy, add the beans and continue
to fry together. This recipe is AWESOME!!!!!!

A Future Knitter?

Lynn and I drove to Mishawaka today to visit our friend
Belinda and her little boy, Joshua. Although not quite three,
Josh is leaps and bounds above most three year olds.
Very articulate, he's also very generous, going to the fridge
and getting each of us a bottle of water without anybody
even asking him to do so! I was amazed. He also "thanked"
Lynn for bringing him a "gift" of yarn that he pulled out of
her bag. He carried several skeins of yarn around for a good
15 minutes, just like they were toys. A future knitter perhaps?
Of course, Belinda was as charming and fun as always and
she showed us her new (to us) apartment and is busy busy
busy, being a mom, working in a busy office and going to
IU-South Bend. She has all kinds of energy to do all three
well!

Old Heritage Inn

Lynn and I went to dinner with my Mom and my sister Terri and
her husband Mark at the Old Heritage Inn in Hebron. The Old
Heritage Inn was built in 1852 and is one of the oldest buildings
in Hebron. it was built as a hotel and has served many purposes
over the years, including a restaurant, brothel and speakeasy.
They have a delicious all you can eat pizza and salad bar on
Friday nights and at a reasonable price.

Shipshewana

A family favorite place to visit over the years has been the
Amish community of Shipshewana, located just a short drive
from my Mom's house. My Mom, Lynn and I piled into the car
today and made the trip, seeing lots of farmland along the way
and enjoyed the beautiful weather. Of course we stopped at
several of our favorite places including E&S Sales to look at
all of the bulk food and Yoder's Meat & Cheese Company. Both
places have small containers of cheese available for sampling
and we contributed to the local economy by making a few
purchases including several kinds of cheese curds! Yum!
We ended our day in the area by having a late lunch at
Das Dutchman Essenhaus in nearby Middlebury. Another
place my family has been going for years, it's famous for it's
Amish-style food. Especially it's pies, including my favorite,
Old Fasioned Cream! Yum Again! Although our waistlines
may have expanded after today, our wallets didn't shrink too
much as we controlled our shopping urges. A great day
overall!

Carrie's Here

We picked up our friend Carrie at the train station north
of Chesterton and have had a nice visit. She's been living
in Chicago and is helping her sister and her family get
ready to move to a new house, but who couldn't pass up
a chance to visit with the Hamann's!!! Today we made the
drive across northern Indiana to go to a craft show at
Amish Acres in Nappanee. It was interesting and we bought
a few things but found the food to be very expensive so we
actually shared a $5 Lemonade! The evening before we
barbecued chicken on the grill and had veggie kabobs with
corn on the cob.