RichC | January 4, 2020
Our family’s 2019 Christmas celebration this year was over New Year’s eve and day, as is our rotation (currently we rotate every other year, but who knows what the future holds?) We were all able to schedule the time off together and enjoyed getting together to exchange presents. Brenda and I had a special treat […]
RichC | December 23, 2019
Pre-posting this Music Monday post a bit early since Brenda’s sister and her family will be visiting on their way to Cleveland from Atlanta. We always look forward to seeing Ann and Gary with their two girls Jessica and Sarah; it give us a chance to catch up on their life (Brenda grills the girls […]
RichC | December 17, 2019
As has become tradition, our annual Christmas letter briefly summarizes our year and includes a quote, verse, lyric or statement. Usually, it is something that resonated with Brenda and triggered her to jot it down at some point during the year. This year it happened to be something from Winston Churchill (we watched Darkest Hour […]
RichC | December 12, 2019
Although Drew’s birthday isn’t today, I’ll post this on Thursday so as to get double-duty out of a birthday greeting and make it a Throwback Thursday #TBT post (a 2007 photo). Back then, Brenda secretly plotted, along with Drew and a friend (Sam), to kidnap Katelyn for her 21st birthday … and then take her […]
RichC | December 12, 2019
My nephew Aaron and long time blog reader/commenter and his wife Lauren had a baby on December 8th and all are healthy (shower in September). Brenda and I are so happy for them, and although he nameless at birth, we were excited in finally hearing his name and couple family “names” too … both last […]
RichC | December 2, 2019
Thanksgiving dinner with the Corbett, Oostra and Ankrom familes (click for high res) It is nice to have a few holiday rituals and for us, it is a Thanksgiving family feast with my brother and his family. Brenda, in particular, has now fully taken over the setting of a nice decorative table with all the […]
RichC | November 30, 2019
With another outstanding year for Ohio State University football fans (currently undefeated for 2019), the #2 national ranking has brought out the Buckeye spirit in our family of fans. Megan is from an all Ohio State family and a graduate herself. Taylor (Miami University, OH) has always enjoyed OSU Football and is happy to cheer […]
RichC | November 28, 2019
If African American poet Paul Laurence Dunbar in the late 1800’s could express his “thankfulness” so eloquently on Thanksgiving, those of us living in the United States today should have little problem appreciating the freedom and abundance that we all too often take for granted. It is great to have our family coming to our […]
RichC | November 19, 2019
I spent the weekend wasting time reorganizing, sorting and cleaning up my woodworking workshop this past weekend and realizing I have a few older “semi-collectable” tools that I really should comment on … or as Brenda says, write my notes down in a book while I can still remember things. Now as I mentioned to […]
RichC | November 14, 2019
I probably shouldn’t make a joke about my brother Ron going in for a surgical repair to his shoulder on Friday, but since he was the one joking with me about how he has felt like a “one and a half armed man” since summer, I continue the joke. Hopefully, he will “slice” (ouch!) right […]
RichC | November 10, 2019
We had so much fun at Katelyn and Drew‘s on Saturday for the “gender reveal” of an addition to our family – A BABY GIRL and sister for Annalyn. They hosted a brunch in their newly remodeled kitchen and great room (first time for brothers and sister-in-laws to see it). Katelyn has become quite the […]
RichC | November 3, 2019
It is starting to feel like autumn now that Halloween has passed and the temperatures have dipped below freezing in the evenings. The weekend had me thinking about future projects and my current “to-do” list … which includes raking the leaves and closing up the pool. On the project list for next year is working […]
RichC | October 27, 2019
There were a few extra photos and some video of Brenda swimming on my iPhone from our Delray Beach, Florida vacation last week, so I’ll archive them and make a Vacation Part 3 post (Part 1 and Part 2). Nothing spectacular … but viewing the video and listening to the water and wave below is […]
RichC | October 26, 2019
One of the more enjoyable aspects of maintaining a personal blog of desultory nature is that I’ve been able to include some of our trips, traveling and vacations over the years. It would have been nice to have had a searchable “highlight-reel” record from all of our traveling prior to 2005, but then the digital […]
RichC | October 23, 2019
The subject line is probably misleading since “vacation” and “finishing the upholstery and cleaning” probably are contradictory … but the few days at a time updates on the condo this past year needed to get finished up before our winter renters arrive. Thankfully Brenda and I scheduled a couple weeks in October to be in […]
RichC | October 14, 2019
Is it already time for pumpkins and autumn? I guess it is … especially after seeing Taylor and Megan picking out pumpkins. They sent a great photo of them on Saturday enjoying the crisper weather and beautiful weather. Supposedly Taylor’s pumpkin is heavier … but I’m not seeing it in this photo (also, Happy Birthday […]
RichC | October 8, 2019
What kind of grandparent would I be if I didn’t share a cute photo or two of my granddaughter Annalyn once in a while? It is hard to remember was life was like without this little cutie around. Katelyn and Drew sent a couple recent fall festival photos to us … one of face painting […]
RichC | October 5, 2019
Most people recognize how polarized our country has become … thanks in part to politicians and the media fanning the divisive flames. I’m not sure why we fall prey to their tactics, but generating hate and dislike for each other does seem to work when it comes to building campaign war-chests and rabid supporters. I […]
RichC | October 1, 2019
My son Taylor was in hot water most of Saturday afternoon trying to delay Megan from arriving early to the TV sitcom ‘Friends’ 25th anniversary birthday surprise hosted by her parents. He used the “watching college football” excuse and did everything he could to keep Megan from arriving early. Denni and Dave did a fantastic […]
RichC | September 28, 2019
Brenda and I had a good time babysitting Annalyn in Perrysburg Ohio this past week and we enjoyed the nice weather by taking her to a park by the Maumee River. Playing on the swings, slides and “go to park” is probably her favorite thing to do. We went to a relatively close playground/park in […]
RichC | September 24, 2019
It has been long enough … and I can’t keep quiet any longer. BabyOostra #2 is "in the oven" and definitely looks like a baby from the August ultrasound (Katelyn‘s baby app says the baby is the size of a chipmunk … or Drew‘s favorite, an XBox Controller). Annalyn will soon be a bit sister […]
RichC | September 23, 2019
Carolyn (Aaron’s forever babysitter and family friend), Brenda, Delores (DadH‘s office manager) and my sister-in-law Chris. Hm … the word "finally" is a sensitive one for those wanting a baby verses those delaying having a family? Thankfully for my nephew Aaron (loyal Music Monday blog commenter) and his wife Lauren, the wait is over, […]
RichC | September 16, 2019
A quick post to the blog archive with a few photos from this past weekend. Katelyn, Drew and Annalyn came down to go to the Cincinnati Zoo with Taylor and Megan on Saturday. They had a great time. Of course Brenda and I enjoyed having Annalyn around for a couple days too! She is growing […]
RichC | September 4, 2019
It was a long weekend and I have a few photos to archive so here’s a final Labor Day 2019 update beside the early weekend post from yesterday. First up is of course a photo of Annalyn having a daddy morning on Monday since Katelyn had hospital rounds. She is growing up so fast and […]
RichC | August 20, 2019
Last week was a grandparent’s dream as we had our wonderful 2-1/2 year old granddaughter Annalyn for the week. Of course we initially wondered if she would be a little homesick and miss mom and dad, but from the first moment when I drove halfway to make the pickup from Katelyn, I knew it was […]
RichC | August 18, 2019
Taylor‘s new 2019 Volkswagen Alltrack – 8/15/2019 After a fantastic week with Annalyn here in Cincinnati, Brenda and I are in recovery mode. I’ll need to spend a little time getting back to my emails and piled up work but I plan on archiving a few photos from the week (in a day or so). […]
RichC | August 12, 2019
As hinted at last week, today is the day I want to wish my wonderful wife Brenda a Happy Birthday. We are looking forward to our slowly closing the chapter of “career” (no hurry yet) … and are starting to plan the new chapter called “retirement. Anxious? Who me? Although we may have changed a […]
RichC | August 8, 2019
While digging through a few older photos in contemplation for Brenda’s upcoming August birthday post, I stumbled across a few of our “dating years” photos (saving those for later) and one from my mom and dad’s house when we were celebrating her birthday 11 years ago (above). Wow … compared to our Put In Bay […]
RichC | July 9, 2019
The holiday weekend at our house in Cincinnati was fun for all as I enjoyed my kids stretching out my birthday celebration with a Saturday Indians – Reds baseball game (posted on Saturday). We all had a great time together and enjoyed the hot weather, pool, having ice cream at The Cone and plenty of […]
RichC | July 7, 2019
As a grandparent, I so enjoyed how technology has been able to keep our family connected. Perhaps it is not unlike remembering my mother talking with her parents daily on the “wired” telephone after we moved “so far away” for back in the day when families often remained in the same neighborhoods and cities where […]
RichC | July 6, 2019
Thanks Taylor for planning and my family for spending an extended birthday weekend over the 4th of July. We all enjoyed the great time together as a family at Great American Ballpark watching my two favorite MLB team battle it out on a beautiful Saturday afternoon – Cleveland 7 – Reds 2 final score. We […]
RichC | June 29, 2019
A week ago Brenda and I headed up to our “old stomping grounds” (idiom) to celebrate Taylor’s 30th and my 60th birthday at Put In Bay, Ohio. Katelyn planned a family gathering for us since her partner owns a house and a few rentals on the island and graciously let us stay in the place […]
RichC | June 26, 2019
The plan was to post an update on the terrific 30th (Taylor) 60th (Rich) birthday weekend celebration with the whole family planned by Katelyn on Put-In-Bay last weekend … but I’ve been too busy to get my photos and thoughts together. So this will just be a smallish update highlighting the Fitbit Versa that Katelyn, […]
RichC | June 20, 2019
Although the Throwback Thursday #TBT memory of celebrating my late parent’s 50th wedding anniversary in 2007 leaves me bittersweet, I’m so thankful we had our time together (photo above and below the break is with them on Kelley’s Island in 2007). I’m not sure where the time disappeared … but I honestly thought that both […]
RichC | June 11, 2019
We had a great 30th birthday party for Taylor and his friends on Saturday in the backyard … just as we have many times before. As a parent it is nice to know he has always enjoyed bringing friends to our house rather than going someplace else … and seemingly his friends are okay with […]
RichC | June 1, 2019
For Christians, who pray for wisdom, for the health and safety of our families and the stressful issues we face daily, prayer is something most of us have been taught to do from an early age. I’d like to think that this daily “practice” of prayer prepares us to be great “prayer warriors” for others […]
RichC | May 28, 2019
Thankfully the tornado(es) and severe storms that blasted through Indiana and Ohio last night were all to our north. I checked in with my brother Ron in Tipp City and he was fine, although his home and my nephew Jaben’s (Huber Heights) were in the path of this nighttime storm. The photo of a massive […]
RichC | May 18, 2019
A bit late on the blog, but I’m archiving a few photos from last weekend with the kids in Perrysburg celebrating Mother’s Day and Katelyn’s birthday (which I mistakenly did not post about on my blog last week). I am reminded in looking at these photos to count my blessings. We enjoyed a dinner out […]
RichC | May 8, 2019
While watching NBC pre-Kentucky Derby coverage last weekend, Rutledge Wood appeared a few times to cover the event and according to Drew and Katelyn, Annalyn continued to point and say, "Uncle Taylor is on TV." I’m not sure if Taylor should see this as a complement or insult … but it sure was funny. As […]
RichC | April 28, 2019
It was the long awaited delivery day for Drew (and Katelyn) as came down from Perrysburg/Toledo to pick up Annalyn AND his new Tesla Model 3 in Cincinnati. I was pretty excited for him and couldn’t wait to actually sit in one. I love the technology and it was so impressive that it almost has […]
RichC | April 27, 2019
This week’s babysitting worked out well as Brenda met Katelyn halfway between Toledo and Cincinnati on I-75 (Sidney, OH) so we could have Annalyn stay with us a few days. I suspect the separation was harder for Katelyn than it was for Annalyn — she does just great with us. Friday was my day to […]
RichC | April 20, 2019
It is great to see our kids squeezing in vacations and enjoying all the natural beauty our country has to offer. This past week, Katelyn, Drew and Annalyn visited “another” US National Park, this time Yosemite National Park in California. It looked like a great time! Click for a larger map and definitely click for […]
RichC | April 18, 2019
It is Thursday before Easter and besides thinking about a Throwback Thursday post, it is also Maundy Thursday – the day in which Christian’s commemorate the Last Supper. It also reminds me of the times we would get together with our families on or around Easter. Sometimes it was with my parents and other times […]
RichC | April 9, 2019
There aren’t many things that makes a mom and dad prouder than realizing their parenting efforts have paid off. We are now regularly seeing our children as productive professional adults and realizing that our being positive examples, and prioritizing school and providing a college education, has paid off. Besides Katelyn and husband Drew being accomplished […]
RichC | April 3, 2019
Just marking time with our family’s goings-on. Taylor and Megan were invited down to vacation for a week with a friend who’s family owns a home in the Bahamas. I’m not sure many of us would turn that down? It looks like they are having a great time. In the meantime, Katelyn and Drew stretch […]
RichC | March 14, 2019
Throwback Thursday posts can be interesting, especially when archiving a couple of my old photos from the early 1990s and tidbit of information that is likely not saved any place else (the horse was named Gus). Here’s a little Howard family history (my wife’s side of the family): Brenda’s grandfather, Allen George Howard died young; […]
RichC | March 12, 2019
We celebrated our granddaughter Annalyn’s second birthday with the family at Katelyn and Drew’s house in Perrysburg this past weekend. Like last year, her birthday made a great opportunity to get both the Corbett and Oostra families together at the same time … Katelyn could not have married into a better family as they are […]
RichC | March 11, 2019
Surprised even myself that I’ve not made a Music Monday post highlighting music from John Cougar Mellencamp since my parents square danced in the 1990s with his mother and father, Marilyn and Richard.
RichC | March 5, 2019
Where has this year, and the past TWO YEARS, gone? It seems like my granddaughter Annalyn just turned ONE, and now she is TWO already! We will be celebrating with the family in a few days, but sang her Happy Birthday with Alexa’s help on their Amazon Echo Monday morning (March 4th). She is indeed […]
RichC | February 24, 2019
Brenda and I have been eating at The Spinning Fork Restaurant in Fairfield, Ohio since even before we moved to the Cincinnati area – was our favorite restaurant. Our family grew up enjoying their delicious food and personal warmth, something that I think only exists at locally owned establishments. We are hoping new owners will […]
RichC | February 16, 2019
Another wonder day spent with the ones I love, and a little one who definitely returns the love; now that’s the way to enjoy a Valentine’s Day! Brenda and I headed to Katelyn and Drew’s in Perrysburg this past week and spent Valentine’s Day with Annalyn. I of course played the entire day, while Brenda, […]
RichC | February 12, 2019
Having worked on my family tree with Ancestry.com back in 2010 and then ignored returning 9 years later, it has been interesting to look into it again now that DNA testing has grown in popularity. My results came back a few days ago and they were “as expected” (although the map a bit deceiving). From […]
RichC | February 11, 2019
There is probably a name for them, although I’m not sure what it is … but my nephew Aaron always seemed to me to be that guy who missed his era, particularly in music taste? Last week he commented that my “taxing wireless plans” blog post deserved Taxman by the Beatles to be included on Music […]
RichC | February 4, 2019
While chatting with my son Taylor over the weekend about the terrible news regarding the killing of a law enforcement officer in the county where he works (depressing), we discussed his career options again. His job is currently to his liking, but the challenge and opportunity for advancement and salary improvement is dependent on seniority […]
RichC | February 1, 2019
Ugh … still waiting for my results! One of my gifts for Christmas 2018 was an Ancestry.com DNA kit, so I quickly sent my sample in for genotyping … and from noting the delay, so did about a million others! I’m anxious to compare my results with Katelyn and Taylor (and my brother), but at […]
RichC | January 30, 2019
In an old spinnaker (sail) from our Thistle, I finally hauled out our larger than usual Christmas tree this past week. It was then that I realized I had neglected to archive the “Great Christmas Tree Disaster of 2018” story from December. Hm, how could I have forgotten … likely for the same embarrassing reason […]
RichC | January 26, 2019
Oh do I miss seeing my little Annalyn, although we did have a FaceTime this week when Oma (Brenda) was up in Perrysburg babysitting before heading to the 2019 Geico U.S. Figure Skating Championships with Katelyn. They have enjoyed this before and know it is a great mother-daughter bonding time. For me, it is time […]
RichC | January 15, 2019
With a “heavy snowfall” that amounted to about 10 inches before melting a bit, I was thankful to have put the snow blower on the tractor last week. It was about the wettest snow I’ve ever tried to blow and that’s saying something since I’ve been removing snow with the John Deere 330 since the […]
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