I love surprises!
Well, the good ones, at least. And last weekend was one of the best surprises I have ever been given. My sweet husband, knowing how much I wanted to attend the annual Fritchen Family Reunion (of which I am a 'card carrying member' ha ha), surprised me with tickets to attend! So we spent 4 days in the land of 'Cheese, Kringle and Green Bay Packers' and soaked up as much family time as we possibly could!
If you are my friend on Facebook you've no doubt already seen the following photo's, and more, because I already posted them in an album. But these few that I am posting here deserve a bit of explanation, so without further adieu, here we go...
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He was born in 1935 in Whitewater, Wisconsin.
He was the best father in the world to me. Once he drove from Denver to Pueblo, Colorado, just to bring me a little black kitten for my birthday. Although it may not seem like much, it meant the world to me!
Daddy loved fishing and camping, working on cars (he was a mechanic), and spoiling us kids (my siblings and I) with love and ice cream.
We lost him in 1991, and he's been sorely missed. I was blessed to be able to visit his final resting place in the Waldo Cemetery.
I don't have many pictures of him, and in fact, I have none of him and I together, so I asked my husband to take a picture of me and Daddy together. This is it. Love you Daddy!
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I'd like to introduce you to 'Scary Doll'!
No, I'm not kidding. This is the name the doll was given by my cousins, I was informed, due to the fact that her little wooden eyes move and often roll back in her head. In fact, when I mentioned that I saw Scary Doll to them at the Reunion they all shuddered and couldn't believe I even wanted a picture of her! ha ha. In fact, I had to convince my Aunt Mary to hold the doll close in the picture, she wanted me to take a picture of it at arm's length!
At any rate, 'Scary Doll' is now, officially, 117 years old! She's in amazing condition, with a wooden body and a bisque head. I was so happy to actually get to see her!
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We were so blessed to have spent time with some family members besides the Fritchens. Here's just a few pictures I wanted to highlight...
These lovely people are my husband's sister and her family! They live in the area and we were able to spend an evening with them catching up!
This is my Uncle Marshall, Aunt Joan, and cousin Pauline. He's my Daddy's brother. I was incredibly blessed to have been able to visit with them!
This is my Uncle Gil & Aunt Mary, and Aunt Ellen. Like me, Aunt Ellen traveled in for the Reunion. I also managed to see my cousins, Cindy and Tony, and his better half, Elsa.
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Finally, I'd like to introduce you to a few people who are no longer with us, but are still very much loved and missed!
My Grandparents...Clarence and Marjorie. Unfortunately, I didn't know my Grandpa, he passed when I was just a baby, in 1971, but my Grandmother was a permanent, much loved fixture in my life! In fact, my Daddy's parents both died before I was born, so my sweet Olama was my only grandparent, and she spoiled me!



Here's my favorite picture of him...it was at a Fritchen Family Reunion, one of the few I remember from my childhood. Love you Uncle!
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In closing, I'd like to leave you with one more highlight. My hubby not only surprised me with tickets to Wisconsin, but for the first time we flew 1st Class! What a treat! For breakfast we were given Greek Yogurt with Granola and a Blueberry Muffin, other meals included a Cheese and Cracker Plate, and warm, gooey, chocolate chip cookies! They gave us non-stop drinks and warm towels to wash our hands, and along with the leg room it was awesome! If you've never flown 1st Class you should at least once in your life, it's a great way to fly!
So in closing, I'm going to leave you with one last picture. My hubby and I on the plane getting ready to come home. Be blessed my friends!