"Anne of Green Gables"

After leaving Maine in July, we traveled to Prince Edward Island (PEI) in Canada and spent two nights in Charlottetown.  The purpose of the visit was to see the setting for the series of books by Lucy Maud Montgomery with "Anne of Green Gables" as the first book.  Lucy's mother died when she was 21 months old, and she was raised by her maternal grandparents.  All of the sites we visited were located on the northwest part of the island.  We visited the museum, the home of the maternal grandparents, and the green gable house that was the location of Anne's adventures.  We got some great pictures that are shown below:

The Piano in Lucy's Grandparent's House that was Played at Her Wedding

 Georgia on the "Lover's Lane" Path

 Georgia in a Carriage with an Anne of Green Gables Hat on her Head

 Georgia in a Carriage that Represents the Transportation of the Times

The House of "Green Gables

July Visits in Maine

On July 1st, we flew to Boston and took the express bus to Portland to visit Hugh's brother and sister-in-law in Brunswick, Maine.  While there we visited the Central Maine Botanical Gardens, did some shopping and saw the fireworks in Freeport (Home to LL Bean), and enjoyed seafood and lobster dinners.

At Dave and Debbie's home also visiting was Lucy Chuying Luo, the Bowdoin College student that they sponsored for her four years in college in Brunswick and her friend Yffie.  Both Lucy and Yffie, a Cornell graduate, were mathematics majors and now work in the financial industry in NYC.  They both wanted a July Maine vacation away from NYC before returning to work after the 4th.

After leaving Brunswick on the 6th, we visited with some friends, who have a summer home in Stockton Springs on the Maine coast.

Here are some pictures of our visits:

 Georgia and I at the Portland Light House

 Central Maine Botanical Gardens

  Lucy Chuying Luo, Debbie, Yffie, and Dave at the Botanical Gardens

 Georgia and I with our Friends, de Chantal Riley and Michael Kozak at the Cellardoor Winery in Lincoln, Maine

Sunset from the Porch at Stockton Springs, Maine

Dedication of USNA Crew Shell

April 21, 2018,  I went back to the Naval Academy in Annapolis for the dedication of a shell for one of my former rowing buddies.  Mike Pero and I , along with seven other classmates, were members of the 1960 "Plebe" crew that went undefeated in freshmen races and then was good enough to go to the 1960 Olympic trials.  We made it to the finals race and lost by only 4 seconds.  Something that had never been done before.  As freshmen we had beaten all but three heavyweight crews in the United States.

Mike passed away a little over a year ago and was a great supporter of Navy crew.  We raised enough money to purchase a 4 without a coxswain shell in his name.  It was a great tribute to a good friend, classmate, and oarsman.

Here are some pictures of the dedication:

Craig Thrasher, No 4 Seat on the Freshman Eight

 Hugh Schall, No 5 on the Freshman Eight

 Jim Fontana, No 6 on the Freshman Eight

The Three of us from the Freshman Eight with the Mike Pero Shell

Banner Made Up for the Dedication

Rancho Cucamonga Visit

After we left Palm Desert in March, we visited with our daughter's family in Rancho Cucamonga.  While there we had lunch with Georgia's cousin Nada and her husband, Galen, and watched Melissa go on one of her weekly horse riding trips. Here are pictures of the visit:

 Lunch with Nada and Galen at Bardot in Claremont

 Melissa Brushing Down the Horse Before Riding

 Coming Out of the Stall

Melissa Heading Out

Cairn's 10th Birthday in Palm Desert

We spent two weeks in Palm Desert in March and during our stay, grandsons, Cairn and Lain joined us for a birthday celebration for Cairn's 10th birthday.  Time was spent shopping for something Cairn would like, stuffing animals, and of course, pool time.  Attached are pictures of the pool time:

 Cairn and Stuffed Tiger

 Lain After Extensive Pool Time

Cairn on the Water Slide

California Desert & Road to California Quilt Show

With the holidays over, we decided to spend some time in Palm Desert and while there visit our daughter's family in Rancho Cucamonga.  While in Rancho Cucamonga, we saw two of our grandsons play in ice hockey games, and we visited the "Road to California" quilt show, since Georgia is a avid quilter.  While is the desert, besides sunshine, we went to the Living Desert and took in  the lorikeet bird exhibit and a cheetah training session.

Attached are pictures of our trip:

 Georgia with Lorikeets

 Hugh with Lorikeets

 Cheetahs on Display

 Georgia at the "Road to California" quilt show

 Beautiful Quilt of the Surf

 Quilt of an Old Truck in Colorado

Grand Prize Winning Quilt

Christmas in Maine

My brother, Dave, and his wife, Debbie, are selling their Brunswick, Maine farm of 38 years and are moving into a condo.  Since this was their last Christmas at the farm, we, along with Hugh's other

brother, Jim, decided to join them this past year and enjoy a "White Christmas".

We got the "White Christmas" and temperatures just above 0 degrees.  The festivities, food, and scenery at the Maine Botanical Gardens with the lights on for the holidays were remarkable.  We also made the required visit to LL Bean in Freeport.

Here are some pictures of our visit:

Christmas Lights at LL Bean, Freeport, Maine

 Hugh and his brothers, Dave and Jim

 The Farm's Barn in the Snow

 The farm house at 251 Woodside Road, Brunswick, Maine

 Light House along the Maine Coast

 Georgia t the Maine Botanical Park

 "Lights Aglow" at the Botanical Park at Sunset

"Lights Aglow" at the Botanical Park at Sunset