58 Trips Around the Sun

Family, Reflections

That’s right, I completed my 58th trip around the sun this week. It seems my husband and I have been celebrating this since just after Christmas when he instructed me go online to Sayklly’s Chocolates website (they make the best chocolates I have ever had) and order some chocolates as a birthday gift from him. They arrived two days later and I’ve been enjoying a couple pieces each day since. (This is another reason I didn’t need the cheesecake but these chocolates have a longer shelf life so I can savor them well into the year. :)) If you are ever in Escanaba, MI, I recommend you pick some up.

Then on Monday we had our day out – shopping, then lunch at a local restaurant. It was a fun day.

I thought today would be a good day to share some of the old photos I discovered while using my dad’s old Dell computer. A little look into my past so to speak. I’ve selected just a few of the photos and most of them have me in them so you can meet a younger me. 🙂

MOM

The first photo however is of my mom.

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If the date on the photo is when it was taken, she would have been 13 years old. Back then the date on the photo indicated when it was printed so I can’t be sure when it was taken. It looks more like summertime than November in Michigan. Perhaps it was her birthday in August. People have always told me I look like my mom, but I think she was much cuter at that age than I was.

50 Years Ago

The next two photos appear to be just random photos. Not taken at any special event. I think I was around 7 or 8 years old when these were taken.

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This is me with my youngest sister, Erin.

032 From left to right: my oldest sister, Kathy, my youngest sister Erin, Me. I’m a bit embarrassed to admit I don’t remember either the cat or dog in this picture.

 40 Years Ago – Family Vacation

The rest of the photos were taken on our family vacation in 1982. It was the only time that I ever vacationed with both my parents. Mom, Dad, me and my two younger sisters Jamie and Erin drove cross country to visit friends in Page, Arizona. I think it was a 10-day trip. We also visited friends in Columbus, Nebraska along the way but the only photos I have were taken in Arizona. My older sister Kathy was married at this point, so she didn’t go on vacation with us.

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The above picture was taken when we visited the Grand Cayon. Jamie, Erin and me sitting on the rim of the Grand Cayon.

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My Mom and Dad standing in Lake Powell.

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This picture was taken when we visited what our hosts described as a rock cut. This particular cut formed a path, like a tunnel, through a huge rock formation. I think the cut/tunnel went all the way through and came out on the other side. (Correct me if I’m wrong, Erin.) Pictured from left to right: Tiffany, Me, Dad, Jamie – Front: Erin, Justin. Tiffany and Justin are the children of the family we visited. Erin and Tiffany are still good friends today. 

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We visited a second rock cut. This one went down into the ground. This picture shows my dad climbing down into the cut while we kids are already down inside.

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Inside we climbed the walls. Jamie and me inside the cut. 

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Erin and me inside the cut.

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Me inside the cut.

As I was writing this post I became curious about these areas we visited on this trip so did a quick internet search. I’m fairly certain that these cuts that we visited are what is called Antelope Canyon and opened for tours in 1983 – the year following our trip. It has since become a popular location for photographers and sightseers and a source of tourism business for the Navajo Nation according to this website. (There are some great pictures on that website.)

Thank you for joining me for this trip back in time. I hope you will stick around this year to see what trip number 59 has in store.

47 thoughts on “58 Trips Around the Sun”

  3. Wow, what a fun adventure. I love seeing photos from the past. You do look similar to your mom, you are all pretty. I have lived in Arizona my whole life except for a short time in Texas and North Dakota when my dad was working in those states when I was little. In all the years I have been here in Arizona I have not gone to the upper area where the Navajo nation and all the beauty up there is. I need to do that. I have been to the Grand Canyon around 7 times I believe as everyone that comes to visits us always wants to go there, so we take them.

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    1. Oh yes. Make the trip north if you have a chance. I understand it has changed much since we were there. I saw pictures of Lake Powell last year at its lowest levels ever. So much of it has dried up. Nowhere near as beautiful as it was in the early 80’s. A bit scary too since so many depend on that water. Thanks for visiting.

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  4. The chocolates sound amazing, I’m glad you allowed yourself the birthday indulgence. have never had them. Your pictures are a fun walk down memory lane. I remember how much you all enjoyed Arizona and how happy I was for all of you. Don’t be embarrassed about not remembering the cat and dog in the other photo. I don’t know where we were at but it was not our house and those were not our pets. 😉

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  6. I love all the old pictures. As you know Pete and I went AZ last April for my birthday present sadly we didn’t make it to Antelope Canyon.

    BTW you were right naming the people in the picture above.
    Love you 🙂

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  7. Isn’t it fun to go through the old photos and think about things that you had almost forgotten about.
    If you ever come out here to visit you can show me these places. (We are not too old)
    I have always wanted to see Monument Valley, which is near there, and no climbing is involved. 😉

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    1. That phot was taken in the yard of what I knew as my Grandma’s house – where mom lived in her teen years. That house in the photo is across the street. I haven’t driven through the neighborhood lately but am fairly certain it is still there.

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  11. You’ve had a great birthday Ruth and I enjoyed looking at the photos of the younger you. You were lucky to discover old photos and memories on your dad’s old computer. It’s fun looking at old pictures and nice for us to see photos of your family and “meet” your parents and sisters. One of the best things I ever did was to scan in all the albums and scrapbooks and be able to look at those mementos and also to use them in blog posts. We’ll all be here to cheer you on your 59th trip around the sun Ruth.

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    1. I’m glad you enjoyed this, Linda. It was fun to share it. Boy what a lot of work and time to scan and organize all those photos. I am looking forward to another blogging year and I appreciate your friendship, Linda.

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      1. I did enjoy it Ruth. It is a lot of work – took me four solid days to scan in everything over Thanksgiving weekend 2017. I still have a shoebox full of pictures that were not in the album. I cannot reach the box way under the bed in the middle (carpeting under the bed, bed is too heavy to move and I have things stored under the bed). I tried poking the box but can’t reach it. I need a new mattress, so likely that will be when I get them. I appreciate our friendship too Ruth. Tomorrow will be my Birdie Bucket List post and other nature photos and my first calendar page – I included a link to your post about your calendar.

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      1. Yes! We loved it! We went with a few other people on a Groupon. A Navajo Guide has to take you in. So that is what we did. There is an Upper and a Lower Canyon. We went to the Upper. They will not take you in if there is a threat of rain. We went in early May.

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      2. When we were there we thought it funny and fun when our host just left the road and began driving across the desert. Then we ended up there. That’s not something that’s done in our part of the country. LOL! I’ve read that even rain upstream can cause flash flooding in the canyons and can be very dangerous.

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      3. Oh yes! It happens very quickly. At the end of our tour… We also got a Navajo Hoop Dance. It’s where one or more will dance with several hoops. It was amazing to watch.

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