Happy Birthday, Gord!

The 50s? That's not so long ago! (Just ask our kids!)

Well, tomorrow we'll be celebrating the birthday of someone born not just in the 50s, but in the EARLY 50s! Which is so much worse than being born in the mid-50s like me! My brother, Gord, has always been in my life. He was here when I arrived, and I've never had to do without him, although he did live far away for many years. I don't think he liked me too well to begin with. I was too little to hear him, of course, but I have it from a reliable source (our mother) that it went something like this:

When my mother brought me home from the hospital, three-year-old Gord was all excited about his new baby sister. After a few days, however, the newness wore off. The crying was probably getting to his nerves, and not only that, it seemed that there was now a new apple of his parents' eyes. Their attention wasn't something he had planned on sharing, so he said to our mother, "Mummy, you can take her back to the hospital now!" Mother, without the benefit of the child psychologists, answered, "Okay. I can take her back, but I'll have to go with her." Gord, always the brainy one, knew THAT wouldn't work, so he conceded that I could stay after all!!

Here are a few pictures, mostly from long ago, to help us celebrate his birthday and to remind us of the wonderful family we have and how much better our lives have been because Gord has been living his life with us!

Gord--the early years!

I love this picture!

Crossing the ocean on a freighter ship at any age can be pretty exciting,

but especially when you are four years old!

Here we are--Gord, Jeanette, and Carol-Ann. Oldest to youngest, here we stand in the blazing African sun, dressed in our very finest clothes! We are king, queen, and princess, and we have the TinkerToy crowns to prove it!

Brainiest one, even in the 6th grade!

No TV, movies, or malls for us growing up! No siree! In fact, we didn't really know those things existed. Our home in the middle of the African rain forest was quite secluded from all that. Here's how we spent our evenings as teenagers.

Being a rather opinionated bunch, we acknowledged Gord as the boss, but we girls sure made him earn his title! Our dad jokingly once called us "The Hodgson Quarreltette!"

About 1976 -- Jeanette, Gord, and Carol-Ann singing for friends in our church basement. And there's Mummy in the background. Might she be nervously waiting for us to get through without messing up? Or maybe she just knew the song inside-out from all our practicing!

Here's Gord enjoying Coral's enthusiasm at her 25th birthday! And now we are celebrating his. Happy birthday, Big Brother!

You truly are the best brother, and I'm so glad we live so close together.

I'm Back!

Christmas has come and gone in the blink of an eye, and the snow that also came has gone, too. It is bright and sunny outside today, and Laptop (Trent's beautiful longhaired cat) is roaming the back yard, pretending he is a wild feline with prey to catch! The squirrel that runs up and down in the leafless trees is keeping one eye on the ground today, just in case Laptop gets extra brave...but he probably doesn't have to worry. So far, it's all been pretending!

Well, today I'm posting about Andrea because I miss her, and maybe she needs to hear it! Andrea went to California last fall to attend Vanguard University. I am so proud of her! But...

Monday-night gettogethers at your house aren't as much fun without you, Andrea! And guess what! There's a new Super Wal-Mart opening this week up on Grant and 99th! We would surely have to go check it out if you were here. I miss you saying, "Aunt Jeanette, I have to ask you something," and then we'd go in your room and close the door for one of our girl-talk chats. We miss you saying, "Do you want to play Skip-Bo?" So now we are saying it instead, and your mom, Trent, and I are playing games together often. It would be so fun for you to help me cook Sunday dinner again or make apple crumble for dessert. Coral would be in I'm-as-stiff-as-I-can-get-with- excitement heaven if you were here today to sing along with her CDs. You are so special, girlfriend, and don't you forget it!

This is Andrea, my niece, in one of her graduation pictures. She is the youngest child of my brother, Gord, who is married to Barry's sister, Paula. Our families are very close and spend lots of time at each other's homes. I don't think there is anything that can take the place of a close-knit family, and I'm so thankful we have one! This includes my sister, Carol-Ann, and her family, too. If only they lived closer!

Andrea and Coral, arm in arm, reading in bed! During high school (and now when she is home from college), Andrea often cared for Coral while Barry and I got a little time off. Usually, this was when we took short trips with our prison-ministry group. Here they were, making a memory, when we caught them at it!

Here is Andrea with her friend, Will. They went to highschool together and, along with their friend Jamie, formed a group of three that hung out together all the time. Now Andrea and Will are attending different schools in California but still find time to get together once in awhile.