In honor of Grandpa's birthday....

With his mother, Nellie, only a couple months old.

Handing the baby off to Daddy....

Pretty cool bike, huh?

Probably about 3-ish?

Oops, should have been higher.  He can't be more than 18 mo or 2 here.

I'm guessing about 4, again, with his mom.  (Does anyone else see Joseph in this picture?)

(How about Joseph here?)  Maybe 6-ish.

School work!

Such a smile!

I couldn't even guess how old he is in this picture.  He could be married for all I know, but I'd guess late teens.

Date night! (Mary said, I can't believe that's Oma and Opa!)

Strumming something.

Music again, with friends.  But the instrument is neither guitar nor mandolin.  Don't know what it is.

The wedding was moved up b/c G'pa was called to active duty.  I think this picture is in CA.

B/c of G'ma standing by the same car in the same dress in another picture shows her considerably pregnant, I guess this picture is early spring 1951.

 And the proud new (incredibly young looking!!) dad and his cute baby girl.

Story time.  Any bets on the book?  Train timetable or Louis L'Amour?

Pool party!  I guess they had to take turns.

Always he was around boats and water.  Here he is with young "Bobby," my dad.

Snowman building with a very cold little boy.

Ahh, the house in Lincoln Park as it should be remembered.  (Note the dog in the door window.  Sadie, their "stupid" beagle.)

See?  More water.  Another family fishing trip.

 At High Point, NJ.  I have a picture of G'ma and G'pa at the same place when they were dating.  They  used to drag us up there, too.

He was a volunteer firefighter for more than 20 years.  Do you remember the time he responded to a call on his radio and as he was flying out of the house to get to the station, the fire truck came zooming up the hill to his house?  He had a chimney fire and didn't know it.  It was called in by the neighbor.

Also on the property in Lincoln Park.  He said he went back a few years after they sold.  "Don't ever go back," he told me.  They'd taken down several of his trees.

Maybe Chrissy's wedding?

 

This is the picture Mom had framed in the house for a long time.  I don't know when it was taken.

Bessie and Walter's 50th anniversary (G'ma's parents) and G'ma and G'pa's 25th anniversary.  Mom and Dad had been married only a few days and were there, too.

Amish beard dude!  We have another picture of him shaving this one off.  Same shirt, too, I think.

Four generations:  G'pa is holding me, in the red is his father, Gus, and in the brown is my dad.  1978

Totally looks like he's writing someone a ticket.  Telephone linemen didn't do that, though, did they?  No, they just used their trucks to pick up cool stuff people left for the trash.  (And the occasional cord of wood they didn't realize really wasn't up for grabs.)

I'm thinking this is in the crown at the Statue of Liberty.  Judging by the NKOTB shirt Jenny is wearing, must be early 90's.

I believe this is the only time Jeff went on the exclusive "GUYS ONLY!!" fishing trip he took every year.

Shooting clay pigeons at the hunting club.  (Mary thinks Roberta is overcome by the heat.  We know she's just getting a good back scratch.)

Yes, another fish picture.  Fish pictures and train pictures made up a good portion of the photo albums.  There were definitely more train pictures, though.  Why none here?  Easy.  The train pictures were just that.  Trains.  Turning. Stopping. Steaming. Gleaming. Just trains.  At least he got in his fish pictures. Though I guess he had no choice since they won't stand up by themselves.

Grandma and Grandpa--one of my favorite pictures.

With Lil'Nathan.  I think we have a picture of him in this pose with every (brand new) great-grandchild, except Joseph and Charlie.

Another favorite picture, this one taken at Stacy's wedding.  (It looks great in sepia, too.)

Five of the 6 great-grandchildren at the time.  (Katie was in NC.)  Later came Hailey, Hannah, and Charlie.

On the cruise ship when Sara got married in April 2009.  G'ma was pretty sick at this point.

Not sure when this was taken, but it is funny.

He is not sick here, he just wanted his money's worth from each haircut.  "Can't believe I have to pay $5 for a haircut," was a common complaint when he got home from the barber.  He also would answer, "did you get a haircut?" with, "No, I got them all cut."  I remember once teasing him, after a very close cut, that he needed to be careful or they might not grow back.

Again, no idea, but funny.  He was never afraid to be silly.

Poor G'pa.  So tired!  (Sorry, don't know why I can't rotate it.)

Happy Birthday--we love you!