The memories in this state are overwhelming to me.
After our hot dogs in Altoona we went down the road and stopped at my grandparents' old house. Oh, I miss them so. The last time I was with both of them was 1997. My last two visits to their home were when Pappy died and again after Grammy died. In fact I had a vivid dream about my grammy just the other night.
Anyhow, this is where my dad and his two brothers grew up. It's a great house and holds many memories for me. It looks even more beautiful to me now. The new owner was very kind and even invited me inside. I declined (since I was with my whole clan and I was just bawling anyway) but I asked for a photo.
As the oldest kid in my fam, I got lots of chances to come here alone. Sometimes Grammy and Pappy would come visit in State College and then take me home with them for a night or two. I drew pictures for her and she hung them next to her bed like they were something special. She made me whatever I wanted for breakfast the next morning. We sat on the porch steps or glider and watched bats or lightning bugs. We walked across the street to the creek just to watch the water or the minnows or the crayfish below. I love it here. My kids wanted to jump over the creek wall (I can't believe I didn't get a pic).
2012
Next special house is in Port Matilda, PA. We lived here when I was 2-3 and this is where missionaries from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints knocked on our door and changed us for eternity.
I don't have old pictures of the front, but here is some blast-from-the-past enjoyment at this house:
1978
2012
My favorite thing here was the old fashioned cellar doors, and they're still in tact!
Back to State College...
We stopped at two more apartments where we lived for short times. No photos of those but it was nice to show my family.
Here is the home I remember most
2012
The same shot from my 8th b-day party, 1983 (I am crouching behind Sarah Sherry in the yellow shirt and that's my brother David in his pajamas :)
This is the home where our basement flooded (repeatedly), where we had a bird in our family room (and as I ran up the stairs, my mom grabbed onto my waist-long hair behind me to catch up!), where I got my brand new pink and green bedroom makeover on my 8th birthday (I left in the morning and came home to a whole new bed and room!), and where my dad accidentally mowed over a rabbit nest, injuring the mother but leaving behind a whole litter of bunnies that we tried to hand-raise!
Holy Toledo, it was a tiny house! There's no way it was always that small, was it?...
Well, after reliving all these memories I was a basket case with handfuls of wadded up kleenex. My sweet hubby just drove wherever I told him to, and my kids constantly wondered if mom was alright. In addition to the homes I lived in, we also went to church in my old ward and saw both my elementary schools. It was amazing to me that I was able to go back and see these places!
