Manwills in May

Grandma Manwill invited us down to the family home for a reunion with my mother-in-law's siblings. With shade canopies, delicious potluck food, water balloons, and an open afternoon we were free to talk and play. Mom and Miss V were dressed twinner-style. Afterward, we even went to the nearby cemetery to see Mom's Dad's new headstone.

Grandpa Niles Manwill's headstone, with his son's (Randall's) headstone in the background

Spring Playtime

Oh Miss V. As a baby, she was so fun to hold and cuddle, but now she's fun to watch. Yesterday, Zak was holding her, and she repeated the word "delicious" when he said it! She is climbing, doing puzzles, waving at random cars as they drive, giving hugs to other little kids, getting into anything she can reach, and patting the seat where she wants us to sit. For a long time, she has pointed where she wants us to take her, and the last few days, she's tried pulling us where she wants to go.

She wanted to work on a project just like Daddy, so while he tried wooden flower boxes, she hammered away at wooden blocks with her purple hammer.

On the other side of our kitchen wall is the staircase, and Sweetheart likes to climb up a few steps so she can reach the light switch.

During the warm months, our playgroup has started meeting at various parks in the area. She'll go down a slide on occasion, but mostly Miss V just likes to climb up the steps, and climb back down. The playgrounds designed for 5-12-year-olds make me a little more nervous because of the high openings, but she hasn't fallen out yet.

She's enjoyed the air hockey table and Silly 6 Pins games at Grandma's and Grandpa's house. She's pretty good at hitting the pucks, but when it comes to bowling, she prefers to kick the pins. It amazes me, though, because whenever she sets up the pins, she matches the colors. I didn't realize she had reached that phase.

Miss V can't resist a good puddle. It's rained quite a bit here, so I've had to make sure we roll up her pants and put on sandals when we go out to play in the cul-de-sac.

Dale Isaac Walters

My Grandma Margaret O'Neil Johnson's half-brother, Dale Isaac Walters passed away last week of natural causes. He was the only son of Raymond Walters and Auretta Empey [O'Neil] before they divorced. (She remarried and had my Grandma Margaret and Uncle Bob.) Dale's maternal grandparents helped raise him after the divorce. At the age of 19, the military became a large part of his life. He "beat the draft by one day," he used to say, enlisting in the United States Army for three years, and then serving in the U.S. Air Force for 17 years. I learned at his viewing that he was a driver, carrying many military personnel and officers.

A few Thanksgivings ago, I did a mini family history interview with him to find out more about his life. He surprised me by saying he had been married three times. (I hadn't known about the first, who apparently returned to her ex-husband after divorcing Uncle Dale).

He married Paula Turnbull in 1962. She later passed away on July 13, 1996. They lived much of their lives in Wenatchee, Washington. He was a member of the Veterans of Foreign Wars and loved to talk about his experiences in Japan and other places.

Dale briefly remarried in 2007, and after that he stayed with his half-brother Uncle Bob for a while and then his half-sister Grandma Margaret Johnson.

Uncle Bob holding the family photo (Uncle Dale is on the left in the photo).

They were both teases.

Uncle Dale and his sister, Grandma Margaret Johnson

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