From Lois' Hands

3:00 AM Vet Visit

2012-01-28T07:00:00.043-05:00

Good morning,

I took this image of daughter Catherine with Erik on her lap about 3:00 AM at the Emergency Vet about a week ago.

We still don't know what happened to him, but Erik was very, very sick. He couldn't keep anything inside (from either end) and was miserable. We took him to the vet in the middle of the night and they couldn't figure out exactly what was wrong with him. He had swallowed no foreign objects and there was no blockage.

By the next morning he couldn't walk. Erik will be three years old in April. He's a canine athlete and competes in Agility Trials so is otherwise very, very healthy.

This all happened within hours of Catherine taking the dogs to visit friends in the country followed by having the whole family here for brunch. The brunch could have nothing to do with it because our other dog, Penny, and all of us ate the food and we are all fine.

The emergency vet and our regular vet the next day were not able diagnose exactly what was wrong, but it appeared Erik had been poisoned. We don't know if it was something he picked up out in the country, on a walk near home, something that someone threw over our fence.... If only he could talk.

After preliminary testing at his office, our regular vet sent out blood and urine samples, but we don't have the results yet at this writing. He prescribed meds that seemed to do the trick.

The good news is that Erik is back to his happy self now.

This was tough....

Lois

William Henry Harrison's Tomb - North Bend, Ohio

2012-01-27T07:00:00.026-05:00

Good morning,

On a cold, clear January day we visited William Henry Harrison's Tomb in North Bend, Ohio, just West of Cincinnati.

W. H. Harrison was the Ninth President of the United States.

I remember visiting this monument with my parents when I was a child.

Today the monument was closed.

But, looking through the gate we could see the guest book and flowers at the tomb.

President Harrison served the shortest amount of time of any US president. He contracted pneumonia in the bitterly cold Washington DC January weather and died 32 days later.

More information about President William Henry Harrison can be found here.

This is the view of Route US 52 and the Ohio River from the plaza in front of the tomb.

All the best,
Lois

Portrait of a Photographer Living on the Edge

2012-01-26T07:00:00.001-05:00

Good morning,

I took these pictures of My Honey through the windshield of our car with my baby camera, my Canon PowerShot. My big camera was at home.

We had stopped in Mt. Adams overlooking Cincinnati so he could take a few pictures. You just never know when you might see something that you want to put into your camera!

Needless to say, his images taken here are much better than my baby camera pictures. His images are here. He does such a good job, doesn't he. :)

All the best,
Lois

Occupy Couch

2012-01-25T07:00:00.002-05:00

Just taking some time out. They do have jobs. ;)

Nectar for the Birds

2012-01-24T07:00:00.011-05:00

Good morning,

Today's image is of a man feeding one of the birds that is part of the display at the Newport Aquarium. It's fun to be able to purchase the nectar, then experience feeding the birds.

Yes, there was hand sanitizer at the end of this area. ;)

All the best,
Lois

Cincinnati Machine Tools

2012-01-23T07:00:00.013-05:00

Good morning,

This machine is a working part of the display at the Cincinnati History Museum. Demonstrations are given explaining the tools that helped to manufacture the things built America.

The tools were shipped all over the world. It is interesting to us, as we travel to different parts of the world, to see "Cincinnati Machine Tool Company" on equipment.

The machine tools were used to manufacture the first items that make our lives so comfortable today.

This is so much fun taking a step back in history.

Enjoy,
Lois

Cincinnati Riverboats and Public Landing - Cincinnati History Museum

2012-01-22T07:00:00.035-05:00

Good morning,

The riverboat model is at the History Museum in Cincinnati.

The Cincinnati Public Landing was the center of commerce for the city in its early days.

The museum has something so very special! It's a life size riverboat inside the museum that visitors can explore.

The riverboat is beside an area of dockside streets and buildings right out of the history of the city. Even the streets are cobblestone replicas.

You can stroll the streets and talk with actors who explain the different companies along the shore line.

We walked aboard the riverboat. At the left front of this image is a bale of cotton. I remember seeing such bales in Mississippi when I traveled there with my parents when I was a child.

The "working" mechanics of the riverboat were wonderful to see. There was plenty of information about how it all made the riverboat move up and down the rivers.

Important cargo. ;)

What beautiful riverboat china.

This beautiful wood inlay table was also a part of the riverboat display. So may gorgeous hand made items!

We love museums. Can you tell? I hope you enjoyed your visit with us.

All the best,
Lois

The Crosley Company - Cincinnati History

2012-01-21T07:00:00.021-05:00

Good morning,

There was an automobile company in Cincinnati, but you won't see their cars on the streets today. The Crosley company made more than cars, too.

The cars were before my time, but I remember my parents pointing one out here and there when I was a child. What I do remember from the Crosley company was the TV we had in our living room. Ours was bigger than the one shown in the picture so was surely a newer model. We also had Crosley radios.

This small car was built for efficiency during WWII.

I love our Cincinnati History museum. It's fun for us to go back and remember and it's a wonderful way to explain our lives back then to our children and grand children.

All the best,
Lois

Life at Home in Cincinnati During WWII

2012-01-20T07:00:00.016-05:00

Good morning,

These images are from the Cincinnati History section at Cincinnati's Museum Center.

I certainly identified items in these rooms. That phone is identical to the one that was on the cherry desk in our living room when I was a child.

I don't remember a refrigerator that old!

I heard plenty about rationing from my parents. Like so many others, their experiences during the Great Depression and WWII influenced them throughout their lives. They always had a good supply of canned goods on hand.

Remembering....

All the best,
Lois

Bed Warmers

2012-01-19T07:00:00.006-05:00

These are the best bed warmers!

Going Home - Louisville to Cincinnati

2012-01-18T07:00:00.042-05:00

Good morning,

We reluctantly headed home from our trip to Kentucky when we left Louisville last August. Not that we don't like to be home, but this trip was fantastic. Our pictures are the best souvenirs we could have.

What lovely homes in this "horse country" of Kentucky.

There are also old barns that surely could tell some interesting stories.

This is the new version of barn painting in Kentucky. We saw several of these. :) Mail Pouch barns are no longer so easy to find!

Tobacco in the field.

We stopped at the Point Park boat ramp in Carrollton, Kentucky, to take some pictures of the Ohio River.

There's that handsome man with a camera again. He appears in quite a few of my images, doesn't he. ;)

What a beautiful day on the Ohio River!

It was late August, but there were few people in the park, probably because it was in the middle of the week. I can picture this place alive with activity on the weekends.

That's Ohio on the other side of the river.

We drove through the quaint town of Carrollton...

...with its neat rows of well-kept buildings.

As much as we were enjoying the trip through the farm land of Kentucky...

...we decided to go back to the highway and head home to see the family, including two Labrador Retrievers who would be very happy to have us home.

It wasn't long before we saw Cincinnati beyond the Ohio River. Here we come!

What a fun trip this has been. I hope you've enjoyed it with us.

All the best,
Lois

On the Road Bardstown to Louisville, Kentucky

2012-01-17T07:00:00.035-05:00

Good morning,

Our road trip from Bardstown to Louisville, Kentucky, last August was on the back roads by choice. Above you see another "quilt barn" that are becoming more and more common in Kentucky. I love them!

What beautiful green farm land....

As we neared Louisville, we passed this building. I don't remember seeing a sign, but the building was impressive.

We stopped in Louisville to visit and have lunch with our Best Man and his wife. He, too, works at sea and is home on vacation so the timing was perfect.

After lunch while his wife and I were on cell phones (our husbands were driving) and we drove behind them they took us on a tour of the new neighborhood that was the Homearama recently.

Fascinating, huge homes are build very close together to provide a neighborhood where you can walk or ride your bike wherever you need to go. The Chinese restaurant where we ate lunch was within walking distance of these homes.

The concept is interesting, but I would need more space between me and my next door neighbor.

Beautiful home!

All the best,
Lois

The Old Stable Restaurant - Bardstown, Kentucky

2012-01-16T07:00:00.024-05:00

Good morning,

While in Bardstown last August we found plenty of time for good food. We had driven and walked past this restaurant a couple of times and decided to have dinner here the last evening we were in town.

One of the highly advertised activities in Bardstown is their Ghost Walks. We passed on that this time.

This is the Bar area of the Old Stable Restaurant. Great atmosphere!

Plenty of TVs supply local and sports channels. You have to know about horses to know where to find the appropriate restroom. ;)

Good stuff!

The food had no frills, but the taste was good.

The dessert was fabulous! The peach cobbler a la mode had to be served in separate dishes. *sigh* This was worth the visit to the restaurant. I should have just gone straight to the dessert!

All the best,
Lois

Finally, The Battle - Civil War Battle Reenactment - Bardstown, Kentucky

2012-01-15T07:00:00.049-05:00

Good morning,

We spent three days in Bardstown, Kentucky, and made good use of our time to visit museums, enjoy the food, and even relax a little.

Today's pictures are of the Civil War Battle Reenactment at the Pioneer Village, a part of the Civil War Museum.

This gentleman announced the beginning of the battle so the tourists (us included!) could all move up to a safe spot to watch the action. There were at least 100 people sitting in the grass on the side of a hill to watch the battle.

Is this little actor darling or what!

And, the battle began!

The guns were LOUD and the actors made plenty of noise, too.

This ragtag group of Southern soldiers marched across land they had just "taken."

And, then, they took the bridge!

More canon shots!

The North fought hard...

...but the South had them out manned and out gunned.

The South cut the North off by coming around the side of the knoll.

Of course, since we are in Bardstown, Kentucky, the South won. ;)

This is the man who owns the museum. He certainly looks good in character!

And, the gentleman to the right is one of the actors thanking us all for being there.

This was a wonderful demonstration. We had waited all day for this and weren't disappointed.

I hope you've enjoyed it with us.

All the best,
Lois

Walk into Town - Bardstown, Kentucky

2012-01-14T07:00:00.039-05:00

Good morning,

We walked from the Civil War Museum area into Bardstown to have some lunch before the battle reenactment. Everywhere you turn in Bardstown you find more historical markers.

Fighters from Bardstown even participated in the War of Texas Independence.

This is a part of the museum complex that we didn't visit. We were on our way into town and wanted to have lunch and get back in time for the battle that we had heard so much about earlier.

Beautiful old homes are so well cared for.

We at lunch at Mammy's where we had eaten dinner the night before. Images of our dinner at Mammy's are here.

We could have hailed a taxi, but walking was good for us. ;)

Antiques and crafts are for sale everywhere in Bardstown.

And, there are churches on almost every corner.

What a beautiful day in Bardstown.

A half block from the Methodist Church is the Presbyterian Church.

We enjoyed our walk "off the main drag" of Bardstown as we headed back to the Civil War encampment for the afternoon.

More to come! I hope you continue to enjoy these images as much as we enjoyed being in Bardstown.

All the best,
Lois

Wildlife Museum - Bardstown, Kentucky

2012-01-13T07:00:00.030-05:00

Good morning,

While we were waiting for the Civil War battle reenactment, we walked through the Wildlife Museum that is a part of the Civil War Museum in Bardstown, Kentucky.

There is so much to see here that it would take at least a week to see most of it.

Other than these critters, we were the only ones here. ;)

The door was unlocked and all the display lighting was on.

Not only are the animals beautifully preserved, the displays are wonderful.

I would not have wanted to run into this guy while he was alive.

Just beautiful.

We also had time to walk into Bardstown for lunch before the battle. More images to come.

Best,
Lois

Civil War Reenactment Shooting Demo

2012-01-12T07:00:00.017-05:00

Good morning,

These are more images of our wonderful trip to Bardstown, Kentucky, last August.

We had arrived early at the Civil War Museum and the encampment beside it where the actors for the battle scheduled later in the day were living. We were not only invited in to meet them and see how they lived, they gave us a private shooting demonstration.

Of course, there are blanks in these great old rifles.

We were shown how the rifles were gun and shot.

It was so realistic that sometimes they didn't fire, sometimes they did.

The children were also proficient at shooting as children were back in the days of the Civil War.

These are the most generous, kind people. We so enjoyed our visit here.

Even more images to come. I hope you are enjoying our visit to Bardstown.

All the best,
Lois

The Actors - Civil War Reenactment in Bardstown, Kentucky

2012-01-11T07:00:00.038-05:00

Good morning,

We arrived very early in the day at the Civil War Museum and the Pioneer Village next door where the Battle Reenactment would occur last August. The people were wonderful and invited us to come in to see their encampment.

Many of these people are family and are involved in historical reenactments throughout the year. Their costumes are quite realistic hot and scratchy wool.

I like this man's t-shirt: "Original Freedom Fighters" with an image of an American Indian.

For those who do this and take it quite seriously, the ranks are meaningful and play into the pecking order of the group and the performance. It works out very well!

That's wool, it's August, it's hot! They say they get used to it and they don't mind at all.

What a wonderful portrait! These generous people answered all of our questions and were very willing to pose for us. We were the only "tourists" there.

There are more images to come of a shooting demonstration they gave for us. It was great fun!

And, for the last picture for today. This young man posed with his gun, but the background is what makes the image even more interesting. The rocking horses belonging to the small children and the "We don't rent pigs" sign put the finishing touches on this one!

More images to come. This was such a fun visit with these terrific people.

All the best,
Lois

Civil War Encampment - Reenactment at Bardstown, Kentucky

2012-01-10T07:00:00.001-05:00

Good morning,

While we were at the Civil War Battle Reenactment site last August in Bardstown, Kentucky, we met some of the participants who invited us to walk through their encampment to see how they were living. There were very few modern conveniences here.

Children and pets were here helping to prepare for the day and for the battle that would occur later in the afternoon.

The row of tents is along a small stream exactly where there was an encampment during the Civil War in the 1860's.

Modern things truly "stuck out" in the scene, such as the large blue plastic box in the foreground. Some of the participants were arriving for the day and unloading their vehicles. Others had been living here in the tents.

Food was prepared the old fashioned way.

We enjoyed meeting this couple. The lady was born in France, married an American, and is now participating in this living history.

You'll note uniforms of both the North and the South here. Everyone gets along here until it's time for the reenactment, then they become "enemies" for the performance.

This trip was rich in images that jumped into my camera. I'll have more coming of the people and the battle.

All the best,
Lois

Pioneer Village Cabin Interiors - Bardstown, Kentucky

2012-01-09T07:00:00.037-05:00

Good morning,

Today we are still at the Pioneer Village at Bardstown, Kentucky. It is part of the Civil War Museum.

This is one of the best villages we have visited. There are so many artifacts in the village and there is easy access to see and photograph them.

This fireplace heated the home and was where the meals were cooked. Just keeping the fireplace fed with fuel would have been nearly a full time job.

The history of the people made the homes even more personal.

These brave people made everything they needed to survive. And, they made the machinery to make those things.

One of the homes in the village contains items used by the Indians who originally inhabited this area.

And, finally, in the last home we visited there was a display of early irons. They're not exactly the modern steam irons we have today.

This is so much fun! We truly enjoy visiting these museums. I hope you've enjoyed these images, too.

All the best,
Lois

Ducks and Children - Bardstown, Kentucky

2012-01-08T07:00:00.033-05:00

Good morning,

These are more of the images I took on our trip to Bardstown, Kentucky, last August.

The ducks were enjoying a morning splash in the stream that flows through the Pioneer Village.

And, some were clearly uninvited!

There was quite a loud discussion going on.

Then, things settled down quickly...

...when humans with food...

...arrived.

The young ladies from the Pioneer Village were tossing pieces of bread from the bridge.

The ducks were perfectly willing to behave and eat breakfast together.

Just up stream these darling little girls were playing in the water.

When I looked across the stream at the church, I realized two ladies, one packing serious heat, and a child had arrived. ;)

More images to come of the Pioneer Village, cabin interiors, and Civil War Battle Reenactment.

Best,

Lois

What we did on New Year's Eve

2012-01-07T07:00:00.002-05:00

Good morning,

Here are images of what we did on New Year's Eve. Yes, we ate and we ate very well. :)

This meal was a joint venture. I made the bread. My Honey Egg Bread recipe is here.

Catherine's friend, Bill, brought the T-bone steaks. Catherine rubbed them with garlic. Mmmmm, the kitchen started to smell great....

Of course, with steak a fresh salad is perfect.

The fresh mushrooms served double duty.

Some were sliced to put in the salad; some were sauteed with onions to serve with the steak. :)

Red potatoes were boiled, then mashed with skins on. Gotta have potatoes with steak, you know!

The steaks were ready to take a trip out to the grill.

Erik (our Black Lab) went outside with Bill to help him grill the steaks while Penny waited patiently inside.

Yum! These were fantastic!

The four of us had a fantastic New Year's Eve at home. Erik and Penny got their share, too.

Happy 2012 one more time!

Lois :)

Newport Aquarium with the Girls

2012-01-06T07:00:00.048-05:00

Good morning,

My Honey and I are the proud grandparents of eight terrific children, six of whom live near us in Cincinnati. Last summer we had an outing with the three boys for swimming, boat racing, and playing with the dogs. Recently, we took the three girls to the Newport Aquarium, then out to lunch. We had a fabulous time!

I really like turtles and was happy to find this guy at the aquarium. It appears he is posing for me to take his picture.

We were here just after Christmas so the Christmas show and decorations were still here. The children were given a map and encouraged to find Santa's reindeer that were hiding around the building.

Of course, Grandpa took plenty of wonderful pictures of the fish. He has published some of them on his blog and I am sure there are more to come.

There was a special show at the Aquarium! Scuba Santa in the shark tank interacted with the children in the theater. I got a kick out of Santa's helper, the (huge) elf in the center of the tank was there with a long pole to keep the sharks from taking a bite out of Santa.

In addition to fish, there are also birds...

...and toads. These toads would surely disappear from view on the muddy bottom of a river.

At the end of this section was a place where the kids could climb on the frogs. What a photo op!

Then it was off to lunch at the Irish Pub at Newport on the Levee. It was such a pleasure to spend the day with such great, well-behaved children. We have good reason to be proud of them!

All the best,
Lois

Cincinnati Trolley Car

2012-01-05T07:00:00.000-05:00

Good morning,

This image is another one to take us back in time here in Cincinnati. There are cities that still have these, but ours have been gone for a long time now.

I don't remember riding in them, but I do seeing them on the streets when I was downtown with my parents. I remember seeing them lose the connection to the power on the wires above and the driver having to get out and get them reconnected.

This actual trolley car is in the Cincinnati History Museum at the Museum Center. You can go inside and sit down for a ride to nowhere as you take a trip down memory lane.

All the best,
Lois

Pioneer Village - Bardstown, Kentucky - Part 2 of 2

2012-01-04T07:00:00.020-05:00

Good morning,

As we spent some time walking around the pioneer village in Bardstown, Kentucky, we began to see some of the people staying nearby in tents who would be part of the civil war reenactment later in the day.

These folks are in full uniform of the times. Those are wool pants - surely pretty itchy.

It's all pretty realistic. When "shot" (blanks, of course), the victims dropped and waited for their "bodies" to be removed by other fighters.

The young ladies had plenty to say to the young men. ;) It was fun watching the children relive what their ancestors had experienced.

This little guy was part of the act, too. The children were "practicing" while the parents were still getting ready for the day.

There will be other images of this place coming, too, of the people we met as well as the battle later in the day.

I hope you're enjoying our tour back into history.

All the best,
Lois