Remembering my Dad...

Remembering My Dad with Gratitude

Yesterday was my dad's birthday. He was born in 2017, the first of five children born to Raymond Michael Schneider and Marie Zurlinden Schneider in Cleveland, Ohio. His dad, my grandfather, was an organist who played in vaudeville for the silent movies and later was organist at St. James Catholic Church in Lakewood where his men and boys' choirs became well known. He taught his own children to play and Daddy played the organ later for the Catholic community at the Naval Academy when he was student there and for St. Augustine's in Elkridge, MD after he retired.

In 2009 my brother, Ray Jr. (now deceased), posted this on his blog:

Raymond John Schneider — Dad

Ray's first ship was USS DETROIT, which was at Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941. DETROIT subsequently transported the Philippine Government's gold and silver monetary reserve, which had been removed from Corregidor by submarine, from Honolulu to San Francisco. 

Thoughts on Turning 75!

celebrating with six of my granddaughters and my daughter, the photographer

Today is my birthday. My parents named me Mary after Our Lady's feast day yesterday for which I'm deeply thankful. And now, here I am, celebrating my birthday for the 76th time as I journey on toward the final goal. What comes to mind as I reflect on the past, the present, and the future?

Two Pictures I Love because of all the Love Bundles Shown!

These two pictures include the grandchildren from from three of our children. I only need photos from the other two to bring an even bigger smile to my face! A big hug to the photographers, daughter Alice and daughter-in-law Martina. Hugs to you both!

The Texans Are Coming! The Texans Are Coming!

Our Houston beau and belles are coming this weekend to stay for awhile. They are right on time to enjoy the Winchester 4th of July Fun Run and all the patriotic activities including the Woodstock fireworks, a display that rivals any we ever saw in Fairfax County. 

So the past few days have been a flurry of activity as we make beds, clean the bathrooms, put out towels in a variety of colors so everybody can keep track of whose is whose, and, of course, filling up the granola jar and the alligator's belly with cookies. (Yes, I have an alligator cookie holder that says, "Mm-mmm, them are tasty cookies!" when you open his mouth.) I have instructions to have s'more fixins on hand for the campfires in the field and little cereals for breakfast. No doubt there will also be animal pancakes, popsicles by the pool, and lots of kid friendly meals.

This is an exciting time of year for us because we only see our Texas families about twice a year -- once when we visit there and once when they come to see us.

Our Austin family will arrive in August and I trust that there will be some overlap with Houston so we can get that one family picture of all of us together, which will be promptly out of date when Baby Bianca is born in September.

Family is what gives Larry and me so much hope for the future. I'm not sure who said it, but it is certainly true that babies are God's opinion that the world should go on. And we rejoice at each new precious little life. It means one more set of hands to raise up in praise of God and to throw rocks in the river. If you are passing Camp Kreitzer drop in and say hi. Maybe a mommy deer with a tiny fawn will be passing through or you can help us catch a groundhog or chase butterflies. There's never a dull moment here at Camp Kreitzer at the foot of the mountain in the Shenandoah Valley.  

#1 on the "You Can Never Have Too Many" List

Here are ten items from my "You Can Never Have Too Many" list:

flowers
birds (except grackles and starlings)
fresh peaches
days at the beach
real friends (as compared to thousands of so-called "friends" on Facebook)
nights watching fireworks
good books
waterfall hikes
peanut butter taffy

But the top item on the list has to be grandbabies. And here's our number 20 -- every bit as special as the first, and second, and third, and fourth.....

Who or what's on your list?

All My Daughters (Except Alice)

Sounds like a soap opera, doesn't it? But the only soap is the well-scrubbed, squeaky clean, all-American-girl goodness of these beauties!



Our 40th anniversary celebration got all of us together for the first time in about six years. All our children and grandkids were together for one big happy family celebration. But the overlap portion of the visit (with both Texas families here) was only a few days and they were filled with commitments, so I never had a chance to take all the girls out together. We finally had a girls' day out last Friday shortly before Neil and Martina left for their return trip to Austin on Sunday. I wish we had called Alice from the restaurant to say join the party in spirit, but I didn't think about it until just this minute. Sorry you couldn't be there with us, Alice. I love all you darling girls and hope you know it! Thanks for filling my mother's heart with joy. And keep loving those handsome husbands and those absolutely perfect grandchildren!

Status update on John -- Keep Praying!

From my niece Heather, John's daughter, sent yesterday:

Dad is doing much better today. He extubated himself again this morning (the 6th). They were already planning on weaning him today too, just like yesterday. He expedited the process. Then, he did so well that they removed the ventilation system from his room. Therefore, he is also off of the sedatives. We are all hoping he will be back on the 6th floor, which is where the stroke ward is, by tomorrow sometime. It has been a good day so far.

So keep those prayers coming. We're looking forward to a full recovery for John and many more years serving the Lord and enjoying his family, like he and his youngest son were at this family wedding last October.

Love you, John!

Ben and Sara's wedding - The Best is yet to Come!

If you missed Ben and Sara's wedding poor you. The Mass was beautiful and the reception was lots of fun! Don't miss the bagpiper video after the photos of family. (Take note of all those cousins? And that was just a few of them from the Schneider side of the family!) Don't mind the shaky video. I was trying to manage an umbrella that blew inside out while I was shooting.