Christmas 1982?

This is another old picture that I came across. It is my family (dad's side) all together for Christmas in Coeur d'A lene, Idaho. My cousin Laura and her husband and Daughter Amy lived there for a few years and we went to their house for the holidays. I am sure that there was another "better" picture, but this is the one that I found. My Aunt Dee and Uncle Frank, and my cousin Russ were visiting from Kansas (I am not sure about Russ, he may have flown in from somewhere else.. maybe he was in the Army at this point), My Grammie and Grandad were there, along with Mom, Dad, Nat, Drex and myself. We all look pretty serious in the photo, but then Grammie didn't like photos of people smiling (not sure why, just the way it was then I guess), so this is a GREAT photo by those standards! I really don't remember much of that trip. I think that we all stayed at the house, but that is ALOT of people, so maybe some of us stayed in a hotel. I am not even sure what year this is. Maybe 1981 or 1982. I don't think that everyone was together again until I was married and living in Portland. We had some family portraits taken then. We won't all be together again until heaven, since Grammie, Grandad, and Uncle Frank have all gone on ahead of us. So, that is it, some vague memories of this particular trip, but lots of memories of the people in the photo.

Things like-

Uncle Frank trying to get my mom to see a Cardinal when we were in Arkansas. (He was teasing her, and kept saying he heard one, and she would run outside to look for it!)

Grandad- holding my hand and walking through the campground at Wallowa Lake (he had HUGE hands! The size gloves he bought were GIANT.. no lie.. they said Giant!)

Grammie- getting dinner on the table and showing me how to rice potatoes (she was a phenomenal cook... I didn't inherit that at all!)

Aunt Dee- giving me a hair cut when I was 12.. I don't know if Dad ever forgave her for that.. I had REALLY long hair and she cut it SHORT.

Laura- I remember visiting her in a tiny apartment in Boise I think (and I think it was a basement apartment, but I am not sure about that)- Laura was the glamorous cousin that I wanted to grow up to be.

I am so glad that my family saw the value in getting together. Spending time with each other. I am a better person for spending moments with all of these people.

I know that I miss big family holiday gatherings! Maybe I can talk everyone into coming down here some year.

February 20, 2007 | Permalink


Comments
I don't remember much of that Christmas either. The only thing I have to say is that this picture shows the only time in my adult life when my hair was it's NATURAL COLOR (I'm behind Janette apparently holding a cat).

I actually flew to that Christmas. I felt so grown up.

I remember it was very snowy and very beautiful. I also remember shopping and buying an outrageous white rabbit fur coat on that trip! Oh, I thought I was the pincale of high fashion!! I only wore that coat a few times - it shed so bad that I could barely breath when I had it on. White hair was EVERYWHERE.

I hope Drexell looks at this - he's so young! And look at Dad's beard!

Yes, I certainly miss family Sundays at Grammie and Grandad's. Wish we had something like that going on these days, but we're too far apart!

Thanks for sharing - Nat

Posted by: Nat - Cour d'Alene Christmas | February 26, 2007 at 01:12 PM

This was the Christmas of 1982 and we all stayed at the house, we had a basement with a full family room and all of the Drexell Barnes stayed down there and Russ slept on a couch and I think Drexell David slept on the floor the rest of us where upstairs. Amy had a water bed and Mom and Frank slept there, I can't imagine that now and Grammie and Granddad had the spare bedroom - Amy slept in our room - one big happy family. I remember how picture perfect that Christmas was with the setting and the snow. Natalie is holding Mom and Frank's dog I think her name was Tinkerbell we had a big black cat named Coalie but he was three times the size of that dog. There were also 3 other dogs in the house our two and Mom sitll had Taffy. It's fun to look at how much we changed - Leroye still has the beard but it is snow white now....It was basement apartment in Boise by the way - fun to look back hopefully we will make more memories and laughs in the future. Laura

Posted by: LAURA OLSON | March 01, 2007 at 07:54 AM