Bradley you are my first grandson and the light of my life    I think out of all the grandchildren you might appreciate this the most - followed closely by your cousin JC. I sent the links to your site to him right before Christmas (200 , but haven't heard anything to date.

The worst part of trying to put together a blog "for posterity" is that you often wonder if ANYONE will ever read or care.  Have been told that Thomas, Amy, Holly and Riley will have nothing to do with me.  So that leaves me sitting and scratching my head  wondering where I might have gone wrong. They were all so young when I last saw them , (except for Riley who wasn't even born), and can't imagine anything so traumatic happening at that time to make them not want to have contact. That's why I started this blog in the first place. You all might not want to BE with your grandmother.........  but you should have a piece of her to take with you in the future.  Maya Angelou says it so well and I think it also applies to grandparents:  "No matter what kind of a relationship you had with your parents - you'll miss them when they're gone."

We finally moved to the farmhouse. There was a spring-fed pond and 60 acres of pasture and woodland. In a later pic you'll see the outside stone fireplace. The house was SO large that we only lived in half of it - and my parents never managed to restore the other half. The rest of the "family" consisted of two dogs, Lady 'n Freckles, MANY cats, a sheep by the name of Snoopy, some pigs and best of all HORSES !  I'll be attaching another pic of the house either tonight or tomorrow. My dad built the pasture fence with the help of his friends and how I  wish I had those wagon wheels for my home!

Your great-grandfather, enlisted in the Army right after I was born and was stationed at Fort Riley, KS with the U.S. Cavalry. Thus began HIS love of horses which he obviously passed on to me.

You're all going to have to backtrack in order to follow along.... but if you read the titles it should help!

I was born in Shaker Heights, Ohio and when I was somewhere between the ages of one and two we moved to York, PA.
I am an only child - which may or may not explain the following sequence of events.

For reference: Your Great Grandmother's name was Louise. Great Grandfather- Ronald

Thomas, Amy, Holly and Riley (these are your maternal great grandparents). You also have a Great Uncle Geoffrey - an extremely talented painter - who died before I was born.

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I'll go back to the first thing I can remember as a child. I was in my upstairs bedroom looking out on friends and family.  They were having a cookout and I was being punished. I remember standing with my nose pressed against the wooden screen and just crying my eyes out.  I don't know if the two incidents were connected - but years and years later my mother told me I was a real hellion...... lol..... I was upset with my parents because they both worked (**) and I had to either stay home with the housekeeper or go to nursery school.  I can remember nursery school and HATING it.... but nothing about the housekeeper - altho' I guess I went into the closet one day and with scissors in hand I cut her fur coat right up the middle of the back.

** My father had his own advertising agency and mom would go in a few days a week to help.**

We didn't stay in York very long - and I don't know what possessed them to do it...... but my parents bought a 60 acre farm in Hellam, PA.  We moved to the actual town and stayed with a lady by the name of Gertrude Mergantholler - don't ask me how I remember that name!!....... but I do remember that she worked in the cigar factory across the street from her home - and smoked cigars in the evening...........  **ewwww  HOUSE reeked of cigar smoke!**  But "beggars can't be choosers" and we had no choice but to accept and enjoy her hospitality until the new home could be renovated and was habitable.

And here's the farmhouse.