Siblings

I am so glad that I have Tom, Ann, and Louise for siblings! I love them (and go crazy with them sometimes). I'm glad we've shared so much of our lives and stories with one another.

We went to the lawyer's office on Thursday, April 13 to take care of some of the last (I hope) paperwork in regard to my parents' estate. Then we went out to dinner at the Timberlodge Steak House. After dinner, we went for a walk in Old Town (at Southtown). Louise, Tom, and I had pretty specific memories about hanging out there as teenagers. Ann, not so much. There was an area for the Easter bunny and we took some photos. Fun!

 

Canadian Relatives - Gertrude

Rather than start an entirely new blog, I'll just make entries periodically in this one about my dad and his family. He's already been dead for more than a year . . . and I don't want to lose stories and details too much.

His sister Gertrude passed away on 28 January 2017. She had been in poor health and I'm super glad he got to go see her the summer of 2015 or 2014. Tom took him to Canada and that was my dad's last time seeing his two remaining siblings - Therese and Gertrude. His little sister Therese died, then my dad, and now Gertrude. They were the last of that generation in our immediate Somers family.

My cousin Monique called to tell me about it. (I have more than one cousin named Monique! It was Therese's daughter.) The funeral was on February 25 in Quebec City. Gertrude was cremated. Ann sent flowers on behalf of the four of us kids.

Monique (in addition to losing her own mom recently) said that her husband Denis had hip surgery in July. He had some cardiac issues during the surgery and ended up spending fifty days in the hospital! Then in early February, he went in for a right shoulder replacement.

My goodness, this aging stuff isn't fun. As Louie and I adjust to some of the challenges and aches of getting older, I realize that I really need to take better care of myself! Life is far too short.

LaMoore Christmas 2014

I love our family time together! Here were some of this year's gems (that I caught):

"The pun density is off the charts!"
- Nick, referring to the Guillotine card game, which has a subtitle of "The revolutionary card game where you win by getting a head."

"Viv cooked. There's no salmonella and no smoke detector."
- Nick

"He's a useful thing to have around."
- Ally, referring to Nick (before Lindsay's brakes were actually fixed . . . )

"I want the brown one. No, not Nick's. The cute brown one."
- Stacie, choosing a LaMoore exchange gift from the pile

"It's hard because I have a coat on."
- Viv

"I have a coat AND a penis."
- Mike
They were using the weighted hula hoop out on the patio, and may have been imbibing a bit, too . . .

I'm sure there were many other funny moments that I didn't write down. And I went to bed before the dance-off, but Jeff G won (of course!). Merry Christmas, all.