Going Back In Time--56 Years Ago

Today is my birthday and I am so thankful for the lovely present my dad gave me by taking so many movies.

I feel like I'm in a time machine when I watch these old movies.  My dad took pictures of my first 11 birthdays, skipped my 12th and got my 13th.  That was a pretty fancy cake spinner that played "Happy Birthday" as it turned the cake around.  My mom used to come up with some cut cakes even though she wasn't big on cooking or baking. 

My mom never liked her picture taken so this video is pretty funny of her holding me telling my dad to stop taking her picture. I'm glad he didn't listen to her though because I think it's funny and love watching her.

I finally decided to go ahead and get them transferred to DVD's. Some I did through CVS but now I found that I can get them transferred and stored online at iMemories. The CVS ones cost $30-$55 each.  I had 13 movies converted to digital at iMemories for $391 and ordered two DVD's at $9.99 each.  The cost depends on the length of the movies.


Unlimited storage at iMemories is just $5/month but I can upload pictures, edit film clips and order DVD's or just download them to my computer.  Now I can store all the videos I make with movie maker on iMemories and free up space on my computer.  I can set up galleries with just certain things and share them with others by giving out the URL.  For example, here is the link to my pet video gallery there.  In the upper left corner you can click on the all gallery tab and see I have some password protected that you cannot view unless I give you the password.  The "How To Video" gallery is available for you to watch if you wish.  I can cancel at any time.

Just thought you may like to make a DVD for someone.  It's probably too late to do it for this Christmas, but it's something you may want to look into.  You can also have them convert slides and photographs to digital.

To find out more about my book and why I wrote it, read the Foreword here. Tweet This

What To Get Dad For His Birthday Is No Longer A Problem

My dad's birthday would be Thursday if he were still alive. I think about how hard it was to know what to get him and wish I still had that problem.

Growing up, I thought it would be so much easier if he liked sports because then I could by him sport equipment or team apparel. I did manage to come up with a few really good things for him that he wore even though he always said he didn't need any new clothes. A lumberjack jacket was one of the best gifts I gave him. He liked the fleece pullover I got him too.

In his later years, I used to buy him things for his cats.  This is a picture of Sylvester in the bed we got him which he loved!  He liked that even though it wasn't actually something he used himself. I sure wish he was still alive! I haven't a clue what I would get him this year if he were, but I'd find something. 

In cleaning out his house after he died, I came across a pile of birthday cards I had given to him over the years. I was surprised he saved them because I didn't think men cared about cards, but they must have meant something to him.

If you still have parents to shop for, you may find it hard to know what to get them, but that's one problem you should be glad you have!

To find out more about my book and why I wrote it, read the Foreword here. Tweet This

My Last Birthday Present From Dad

Today is my birthday so I thought this post would be appropriate. After we bought the computer back from dad since he couldn't really use it well, he then paid for a printer for me and gave me a beautiful cabinet he had made a long time ago for the church. He had told the church board that if they could have it for as long as they wanted to use it, but if they didn't use it, he would like it back. For years it was used in his back room but he gave it to me to use as my printer cabinet when I got a printer.

My cat that I got from dad's as a kitten, Spunky Doodle, likes to crawl inside it whenever I open the door. I'm so glad I took her in. I'm sure my dad would be very pleased that his former kitten enjoys the cabinet too!



(See my earlier related post about teaching dad how to use the computer at Seniors and Computer)

Dear Dad, Happy Birthday!

Dear Dad,

Happy birthday! I love thinking about you still and knowing you are with our Lord Jesus and no longer having to take any pills or worry about what to eat. I wonder exactly what you do up there in heaven and if there are any cats around.

This has been quite a year for us. I wish you could see how much getting our house insulated has helped. I think you would have been proud of me for doing that. Something you probably would think was silly of us that we did last summer was to play softball again. We didn’t play very well, but we certainly had fun. It felt good to play again.

We got a dog in June! She gets along fine with our cats—they even do noses sometimes. When she barks loud, the cats just disappear for awhile but at least she doesn’t chase them. She’s a wonderful dog and Gerard really likes walking with her. She’ll go with him no matter what the weather, unlike me. Wish you could meet her, she’s a great dog!

In July I was diagnosed with Breast Cancer. That was the worst part of our year, but fortunately it was discovered early and hadn’t spread. In fact, in a way it proved to be a good thing. I got to take off work with full pay after the lumpectomy and then just go back part-time from Oct. 24 through Dec. 19. It came at a good time because work was so slow I got very bored and so really enjoyed being off. I sure look forward to retirement! The other good news was that I did not need Chemo, just radiation treatments for 33 days which didn’t hurt at all, didn’t take much time because they were at Parma Hospital, so close by. It was sort of a hassle having to go to all the doctor appointments and then paying the big bills but at least everything went well and I’m still alive!

I’m sorry to say the book I wrote in your memory has not become the best-seller I had hoped for, but I’m still glad I wrote it. I tried not to make it too embarrassing for you, focusing on your love for us and just some of the things you did that I thought were funny. I wanted to keep it a short, easy read so people wouldn’t get bored. I can say that people who read it liked it and I didn’t get any bad reviews on Amazon for it.

I still miss your cats and feel really bad I couldn’t take them, but I have kept up with the $100 donation every month to the Caroline’s Kid’s Pet Rescue cat sanctuary in their memory.

You’d also be glad to know that I still have a considerable amount of money left in our bank account from selling your house. That really gave us a nice emergency fund so we are in good shape. Both Gerard and I still have jobs even though many people are out of work now. The economy is really bad, not like the depression that you lived through, but some people are really hurting a lot financially.

Gerard and I are still going to the Parma Heights Baptist Church and like it. I am still teaching 5th grade boys which is fun for me. We both helped in Vacation Bible School again and I helped with Sports Camp last summer too. We have the Christmas puppet presentation coming up on my birthday.

I am so glad you are not suffering any more but still miss you. I keep your picture on my desk at work still and also on my computer desk at home. I’ll always love you and mom very much and thank you for being such wonderful parents. It’s time to start working on my Christmas cards which always reminds me of our last Christmas together when you sent yours out after Christmas! That motivates me to get going on them.

Love always,
Karen

To find out more about my book and why I wrote it, read the Foreword here.
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Happy Birthday Dad Contest!

Harry's birthday was December 9 and mine is this Saturday, Dec. 13. Harry lived to be 89. We always used to celebrate together since they were so close. My dad wasn't big on cake, but he loved pie so my mom always used to make him pie and me the lemon cake with cherries and whipped cream on top which was my favorite.

Gifts Growing up, us kids got him mostly ties or flannel shirts which were always his favorite kind. I always thought it would be so much easier if he liked sports because then I could get him sporting equipment or team apparel, but he had absolutely zero interest in sports. As I got older, I got more creative. Here are some of the gifts I got for him:

(1) a mail holder that said "With love . . . a Father is a Special Friend, thanks."
(2) a bird bath.
(3) Lumberjack jacket.
(4) a gift card to Home Depot.
(5) Tim Conway and Harvey Korman video.
(6) a sign for his desk which said, "Please Don't Straighten the Mess on My Desk, You'll Goof Up My System!"
(7) an L.L. Bean bomber hat.
(8) a cap that said "I have one speed, slow."
(9) Fleece shirts with a zipper instead of buttons when his fingers didn't work so well anymore.

He Bought Himself A Present:
The best though was when he called me on his 86th birthday to say he just bought a van for his birthday and wanted me to go with him to the dealership so I could sign to have my name on the title as well. He was always looking to make things as easy as possible for me when he died. The main reason he even bought the van was to fit the kitchen door in it that he made for me and Gerard, but it was also much easier for him to get in and out of than his station wagon. Click here to read about the "See Through Door For Cats".

Here's the Contest Part:
My dad always said not to go spending a lot of money on him. He was always thinking of others, even on his birthday. That's why I know he would not be pleased about this ad. In an effort to advertise my book, I jumped at the opportunity to get this ad in the NEW YORK TIMES which has a huge circulation. It was in there for one day, Sunday, December 7, but I had a hard time finding it even though I knew it should be in there. It was buried inside a special book section that was filled with other colorful and larger ads. I knew it would be black and white, only 2" x 2" and on a page with other similar ads when I purchased it; however, I did not realize there would also be so many other bigger colorful ads at the same time. (This offer does not apply to authors published through Outskirts Press because I'm sure we all received the same email about this "great" opportunity.)

To make matters worse, in chatting with some other authors at Author and Book Event Center. I learned that newspaper ads are pretty much a waste of money when it comes to marketing a book. All I can do at this point is hope they are wrong. I am embarrassed to admit how much I paid for this little ad but if one of my readers guess the price before Christmas day, I will send you an autographed copy of "My Funny Dad, Harry" in honor of his birthday. (hint: It's a nice round number.) I know he would say I was very foolish to pay what I did, although he would be nice about it. Live and learn!

Leave your guess in the comments and the first one to guess the correct amount, wins. If you have a blog, I can let you know on there if you are the winner. If not, you can leave me an email address so I can contact you if you win.

I miss you, dad. It's hard to believe it'll be two years without you in February. I still think about you and mom every day!

A Birthday Present For Himself--A Van

I love that my dad was such an optimistic and practical person. Even into his 80s, he remained active in making things for me. I wrote about the door he made for us in a previous post but it was too big for him to fit it into his car so he traded it in on his birthday and bought a van! He called to tell me he bought himself a van for his birthday and needed me to come with him so I could sign too because he wanted my name included on the title as well. He said the van was much easier for him to get in and out of.

I immediately had flashbacks to when my favorite aunt bought herself a new car when she was old and only had it a month or so before she died. I was really hoping this wasn't going to be history repeating itself. Fortunately, it wasn't. Dad enjoyed driving his van for about 7 months before the doctor told him he shouldn't drive anymore. He was very good about listening to his doctor and gave us the van on the condition that we would drive him places such as doctor appointments and stores if he needed to go which I was happy to do. Giving up driving is a very difficult thing for many elderly people because it takes away their independence so I was very thankful that dad had enough sense to stop driving when the doctor told him to. (The doctor didn't realize he was still driving--he should have stopped long before!)

At first we were going to try selling it but then we both liked it so much and it was newer than both the cars we already owned, so we decided to put "For Sale" signs in both our cars and sell whichever one that we could sell first. It happened to be mine. Our neighbor across the street bought it from us for his daughter.

I would never have thought to purchase a van since it's just my husband and I, but it has come in very handy when I had to clear out my dad's house after he died. It held three big loads of junk that I took to the annual garage sale our church school has every May, and it's nice to have when I take my Sunday School class on outings now and then. It also came in handy when we bought furniture because we could easily fit it in the van. Thanks, dad!

Previous "See-Through Door Is Nice For Cats" post:
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