A Haven for Vee

Wednesday, July 8, 2020

Independence Day 2020

Before more time slips away, I wanted to share my Independence Day. I had thought that, since my daughter would be working and my son and his family would be up Bangor way, I would spend my day alone. Nope! I spent the day with my sister and part of her family.


A 4th of July Welcome

 One niece spent her time hiking. Hiking? Who hikes on the 4th of July?

The rest of us were far more sensible and stayed home eating and holding the baby.




This little girl was the center of attention. She's two months old now and staying awake longer and longer.

First Cousins Once Removed


Laurel was on her way to work an overnight shift and had just enough time to hold the baby.


I really like the photo above and below. The one above shows my sister looking on all smiles and the photo below shows where her lips usually are when she's holding her grandgirlie. ☺



I did not snag a picture of my brother-in-law Steve (who did all the grilling) nor of Anneke's big brother. That I will remedy by popping in a video of him meeting and greeting a turtle, shared by his mom. I have never seen a turtle run so fast!


It was a wonderful, enjoyable day. God is good. 

Twelve years ago today, John and I eloped. He was one of the best decisions I ever made. After he passed away, after only such a short time, I questioned myself. Today, I can smile and thank God for allowing John to be a part of my life. He was a love and so very good to me.


Thank you for your visit.






37 comments:

  1. Wishing you a Happy Anniversary...my heart breaks for your loss, Vee. John sure was special. Sending big hugs and lots of love.

    You sister looks like my mom, but probably a lot nicer, smiles. Thank you for sharing your July 4th with us, my friend.

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  2. I know you miss John terribly. He was a wonderful man and inspired us. I love the celebration for the 4th and fun photos. What a little bundle of joy...the center of attention. Sweet hugs, Diane PS...did someone say hiking? Of course I couldn't keep up with someone young! lol

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  3. Sweet baby girl. What breed of huge dog is that?

    Yes, I recall how great John was and I'm so glad you did have happy years together. Where did you elope to? That was very romantic!
    Glad you could spend time with family on the Fourth - we were here alone but did get to see a few family members on the the 5th for Bob's birthday.

    Take care - enjoy your week dear Vee.

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    1. The dog is named Maeby (pronounced maybe, but spelled as written). She is a mixture of Siberian Husky and German Shepherd (and maybe other things as well).

      We eloped to Stowe, Vermont and then took a slow meandering drive of four days from Vermont to western Massachusetts, up into New Hampshire, and home to Maine.

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  4. I can't think of a nicer way to spend the day. She is precious. Big brother is adorable too chasing that turtle.
    I think I discovered your blog around the time of your elopement. It was a pleasure to come to know John through your posts. His kindness shined through.

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  5. God bless you as you remember John today. It was a delight to know him thru your blog. So glad you enjoyed the 4th with family. Love the turtle video and such a sweet baby girl.

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  6. What a sweet post. That baby girl is darling, and so well loved. May you have joy in remembering the days with John. He was such a gift to you. I'm glad you were able to be with family on the 4th of July.

    hugs,
    Lorrie

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  7. May the Lord continue to bless your memories of that dear man, and especially on this anniversary.

    Love the turtle video! We nearly ran over a turtle (bigger than yours) just the other day as he traversed across the street in front of us. Thankfully, he is fine. (as are we)

    I always enjoy the game of "Pass the Baby"!!

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  8. Happy Anniversary dear Vee. I know that you miss your beloved so much. God bless you. Adore these cute pictures! Made me smile. Nothing like loving on and being loved by your family. I hope that you have a wonderful week. Hugs and blessings, Cindy

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  9. Such a sweet day you enjoyed on the Fourth! I love seeing all the happy faces holding the darling baby. That is the fastest turtle I've ever seen! Hugs and love to you as you remember your beloved John. Hugs to you on this day, my friend.

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  10. Sure glad you got to enjoy with holiday with family. :)
    You have many happy memories of John and I know you miss so very much!
    I am happy to have had the pleasure of meeting him in person and thankful for the prayers he prayed for my family.
    God bless you Vee.

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  11. What a wonderful 4th. I love the welcome ribbons. Lovely. Oh that babe is so darling. Grandmas give kisses and cookies...haha.
    I don't know much about your life Vee, but I love you and your visits to my blog. I can't image losing someone after such a short time. I'm so blessed to have my dearest for 59 years. We just watched the life of C.S. Lewis and he and Joy had such a short but powerful love story. Love and Hugs dear friend.

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  12. The turtle is trying to get away. Look how fast he can be! 😊 He has no idea how adorable his pursuer is!

    The part about your husband at the end touched my heart. Love is a good thing in our lives and how wonderful you found eachother. My condolences.

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  13. That was such a beautiful post new life starting and sweet memories of your loss. God is indeed good.

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  14. What a nice day you had! I'd be staying with the baby instead of hiking too Although in my younger years I hiked a lot! Sending love on your anniversary. It definitely was not a mistake.

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  15. Happy Elopement Day! I think you and John were very good for each other. Your time together was a gift.

    Glad you were with family! Sweet little ones, too!

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  16. Vee, That kissy spot cracked me up. It would be fun to hold babies. My great grandson is 8 months now and I have only held him 3 times before the shut down. Blessings to you sweet girl, take care, xoxo, Susie

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  17. Happy 20th Anniversary to you and your heavenly John. It is nice to smile about him and to hold onto the memories.
    It looked like a fun 4th, and being with a baby and family is good for the soul. The video of the little one chasing the turtle was so cute! Life is indeed good!

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  18. Looks like you had a wonderful day with family. It must have been fireworks if you and John eloped on Independence Day. Sweet memories!

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  19. It sounds like a wonderful way to spend Independence day! So glad you had the time with John that you did...xo

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  20. What a truly wonderful day. God is so good. And the bit about eloping with John -- you went to Stowe, am I remembering right? I'm so thankful that you can look back now and thank God for allowing John to be a part of your life, even though in our human thinking your time together was much too brief.

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  21. Hi Vee.. hope you are doing well. I don’t see much of you since I am no longer blogging.
    Stay healthy.. and safe❤️

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    1. This is pitiful. You are not blogging and I am no longer instagramming. Whatever are we going to do? Thank you for stopping by!

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  22. Thanks, Vee for sharing family happiness and memories. I wasn't a regular blog reader, but do recall some posts about you and John and sad that your time together was short, but it was filled with love and happiness and good memories. We spent the holiday together and watched fireworks with neighbors, all social distanced of course.

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  23. You're right - I've never seen a turtle move that fast, either. Enjoyed seeing your 4th. Our 4th was much more like you imagined yours would be.

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  24. My first thought when seeing the picture and caption for your niece was, "What's odd about hiking on the 4th of July?" And then I saw the baby! And realized, "Oh yes... I like your choice much better." :)

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  25. A short but rich time of being loved. Happy Anniversary. Babies are so special and dear. Love to kiss their little heads, too. Glad you had a good day with loved ones on the 4th!
    I'm enjoying time with loved ones and boy am I tired.

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  26. I wish you a beautiful memory filled with your love for John today and always. Your words were so beautifully said here. Your holiday sounded wonderful. Our daughter and her hubby live with us so they cooked and we feasted like kings and queens. It was wonderful. I hope you have a beautiful weekend. Take care HUGS

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  27. I have been noticing you commenting on our other friends' blogs,and I thought I needed to come over and visit with you. I enjoyed being here and seeing how you enjoyed the 4th with your family. That baby is precious! I see you live in Maine. We used to live in Fryeburg years ago, and still have some family in southern Maine. It is a beautiful place to live! I look forward to getting better acquainted. (((hugs))) to you regarding your special anniversary day. I know you have priceless memories that you will always treasure. Blessings to you today.

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  28. I so enjoyed this post Vee....I love seeing family photos and all the smiles...so glad you enjoyed the 4TH with those you love!

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  29. Aww - such a sweet post about so much love. Love for that sweet baby, for a dear sister, for a beloved and honoured husband! God bless you Vee!

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  30. I loved the July 4th decoration on that deck. So pretty. And I enjoyed all the pics of loved ones as you celebrated your big day. Glad you didn't have to spend it alone. So glad for you that you had those lovely years with John. He seemed such a dear man.

    Wishing you a beautiful weekend, Vee.
    Brenda xox

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  31. I must comment first of John and you, I could tell what a wonderful relationship you had with one another, I enjoyed reading of all the escapades you had together, and of the respect, love and kindness you had for each other! I am so thankful for for the promise of great reunions one day, soon!BTW we eloped too! ~Smile~
    Enjoyed all the photos, that is some sweetness there!
    Think of you so often.
    Blessings/love
    Sue

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  32. Your sister has a beautiful home, and I love her pretty 4th decorations. This turtle IS fast!!

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  33. It looks like you had a wonderful holiday weekend, Vee! We spent ours alone, watching the neighbors set off ground fireworks. iT was really hot here in the high 90's--not my kind of weather. THat turtle moved fast--I didn't know they could move like that. Very sweet memories of John. He was a gem and even though your time together was short I'm sure that your marriage was exactly what you both needed and was cherished by you both.

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  34. Couldn't comment on your new post so I got to enjoy both your beautiful family and your egg salad. I love egg salad sandwich as well and make mine with mayonnaise, mustard, scallions, red onions and a pinch of salt. I have not secrets from you, Vee.
    Amalia
    xo

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    1. Amalia, I am surprised that you could comment here, but glad. I have my settings set to 5 days on comment moderation. Obviously, it isn't working. Have had a deluge of filth over the past while so am chatting with blogger about why it is even allowed to happen in the first place. I am closing comments on this post momentarily.

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