One thing I remember Mom (Diane) did that made Violet live on and more real to me is that she used to sit and play the piano and sing songs from the 30s and 40s. Now whenever I hear one of those songs, I’ll think of Violet and my mom.

If any of you have stories or just quirky things to share about Violet and Dick, I would love to read them.

By the way, I unearthed the Magnuson family reunion papers that my mom (Diane) sent me after the reunion and found something a little eerie. There is a picture of Emma and Seth Magnuson with their baby daughter, Ruth. Maybe it’s just the bald head at that age, I don’t know, but I swear this could be a picture of my daughter Naomi as a baby.  Do you recall the picture in the packet? Does anyone have a picture of Ruth as a child or an adult? Below is a picture of me with Naomi when she was about 7 months old. She is now 5 and does have hair .

Does Naomi look like Ruth Magnuson?

Resemblance, Ruth and Naomi

The Round Robin just came to me so I’ll do my part; send it email as well as snail mail.

We enjoyed our Thanksgiving dinner with friends in Lincoln, Terry & Donna Trueblood. We’ve been friends since 1967 when they moved to Central City – then after 13 years here they moved to Lexington , and now have retired in Lincoln . It was not a bad travel day, fewer trucks on the interstate, but lots of cars. Donna sent home turkey, potatoes and veggie casserole so we’re set for dinner tomorrow!

Tomorrow Nebr. Plays Colorado in Lincoln and we’ll be watching on T-V. Our football program is looking up so maybe some day we’ll again have the winning tradition we had come to expect.

Monday I entertain 16 for lunch (my book group) so I’ll be preparing for that this weekend. Plan to make Arizona Casserole (Mexican), broccoli salad and cranberry cake with butter cream sauce for dessert? The book we’re discussing is one by Barbara Kingsolver “Animal, Vegetable, & Miracle”. All about how her family for a year lived off what they could raise on their farm in Vermont plus some organic items they could buy. Not a favorite book but does make you stop and think a little about the food we eat. I see the organic food in grocery stores and it is always more expensive but you can see why it would be more expensive to grow. My daughter in law, Paulette, swears by the organic eggs.

December is always a busy month with everything I belong to having lunch, or dinner, or open houses. C.C. has a “Parade of Lights” to kick off the holiday season and that is tomorrow.

We have a new assisted living facility here now. Don and I toured it recently and were impressed at how beautiful it is. The residents all have suites and they seem small but would probably be okay for one person, though a couple could have one. The public places are numerous, for instance a library, large activity room, small dining room for families to come in and have a more private dinner with a resident, chapel, exercise room etc. A nice addition to the town but would compete with Merrick Manor, the three story facility that Don’s Dad was instrumental in having built 40 years ago.

I have enjoyed everyone’s Round Robin letters – and hope this continues. Even if someone thinks they have no news, it is always surprising what one learns, and of course it can always just be sent on until the next round if someone is too busy to write. Sorry, Natalie, that you are plagued with health issues. Thanks Craig for your newsy letter. I’m sorry you’ve had some upheaval in your personal life – know how you love those grandchildren. And that you enjoy Shanna’s husband, Shawn so much.

A last comment on the new President elect. Whatever your politics, we need to support the voter’s choice and hope and pray the country will be in better shape in the months and years to come.

I’m thankful today for our family, immediate and extended.

Love you all. Jackie

Dear Family,
I just received the written Round Robin today and discovered I was next
on the list.  I am a little confused as to whom is to get the email
version though.  I may have included people that shouldn’t get it, or
left someone off that it should have gone to.  I think this needs to be
clarified.

Rick and I have spent a very boring Fall, waiting and hoping that my new
artificial knee would straighten out and allow us to do some traveling.
After surgery on August 8th and then manual manipulation under anesthesia
on Oct 9th and lots of physical therapy in between and following, we are
resigning ourselves to the fact that we need to get on with our lives and
hope things get better down the road.  The problem has been extreme
swelling in the knee joint which will not allow the knee to bend as it
should.  No one seems to know what is causing the swelling to continue so
long.  Regardless, it is hampering the physical therapy and preventing
normal progress.  At times it is so bad, I feel I am going backward.
Then today I visited the heart doctor and found out I am building plaque
in my arteries again.  The doctor believes it is genetic and has doubled
my medication.  I do NOT want another open heart surgery!!

We did make a short trip with our church group the end of October.  This
is an annual event that we take the last weekend before Halloween.  We
camp out, socialize, play games and carve pumpkins.  This year it was
over my birthday and Jason, Terri and Madison surprised me by showing up
and taking us to lunch in the nearest town of Homedale.  Afterwards they
came back to the RV park and carved pumpkins with us and then presented
me with a giant birthday cake to feed the masses.  It was fun and
surprising!

I think everyone knows that our granddaughter, Madison is attending Boise
State University.  It is fun to have her close…we see her a lot more
often.  In fact, Madison, Jason and Terri joined us for lunch today and
will join us for Thanksgiving next week.  It really means a lot to me
because for years after Jason’s divorce,  he became scarce and Madison
moved away with her mom.  It took a lot of wrangling to get everyone
together.

We have decided that we will try to head south to warmer weather after
Christmas.  Several of our friends have been calling and asking where we
are and Rick is chopping at the bit.  I said I wouldn’t travel again
until I was feeling 100%, but I don’t think that is going to happen.
With fuel prices lower than last year, this may be our last chance, so we
will give it a go.  At least I got him to stay until after Christmas!

I really don’t have anything more to report…no good books or such.  We
have really stayed close to home.  My therapy sessions take up a lot of
my time.

Love to all, Natalie (and Rick)

Hi everybody, it’s Craig.

You know, when it first came up I had a brief moment of reluctance about getting into this Round Robin. While I like knowing what and how everyone in the family is doing, I lead what I think of as an uninteresting life and not one that might be thought of as letter worthy. That and not all of my news is good, or easy to relate. Still, if you want to be in the loop you have to be a part of the loop, so here goes.

As most of you know from the family blog post my daughter Shanna got married in September 2007 out in San Jose , CA . It was quite an affair at a really nice hotel and heavily attended by family and friends of both the bride and the groom. Gayla and I were joined by Susan, Claudia and Stephanie and a good time was had by all. It was great to see so many of Shanna’s aunts and uncles again and to meet so many of Shawn’s family members. Shawn is a pretty successful guy, is well thought of at his company, and is former U.S. Navy (a trait that is pretty prevalent in his family, father, grandfather, uncles, etc. & his sister graduated from the Naval Academy in 2007). I know Dad would have liked that Navy part. Anyway, the time wasn’t right to get to know Shawn well but I look forward to that opportunity in the near future as you will read here later.

At the end of October 2007 I was financially lured back to The Highland Group after having been gone for about a year. Now, I understand the basis of the opinions that say it isn’t right that one should be lured from company to company by the next, more attractive, competing offer…but that’s what happened. It is actually pretty common in a marketing position and especially in front-end marketing in the consulting business. And frankly, I wanted to make more money. The Highland Group had treated me well for 10 years before I left and though being away for a year was some relief from the pressure cooker, I couldn’t resist the offer to return and don’t much miss working from home.

I have, for years, taken time off the week of Thanksgiving in order to return to NE Nebraska and join brother Clark in raiding Susan and Dennis’ farm in our annual hunt for pheasant. For the most part I don’t care whether we get any birds, but very much enjoy getting away from the concrete and into the dirt of that part of Nebraska . Since Clark and Ronda moved from Norfolk to Plainview I have begun staying at their home and enjoying their hospitality. It is a trip that, as I’ve said many times, is good for my soul. Clark is always good company and Susan’s youngest, Alex, has become a good hunting buddy. I do so enjoy the two complimenting senses of humor from those guys. Throw in Dennis when he can get away from his many responsibilities and one can’t help having a good time. Last year, for the third time, my stepson Nick came along and since he had observed for two years we finally let him carry a gun. Getting his first bird was a thrill for Nick but a nerve-wracking experience for the rest of us. Picture if you will, four guys taking aim at the same flushing bird, three of them waiting for the short guy to pull the trigger before the bird got out of range! Well, Nick finally fired and Clark and Alex made sure the bird didn’t get away. I was on the other side of the road, beaming. It was a good looking pheasant and one well-earned as Nick had walked along, learning hunter’s safety and the ethics of the sport for two long years. It was his time and we’ll both remember it for many years to come.

The end of 2007 brought the holidays and they always seem so busy here in Dallas . We drive back from Nebraska on Wednesday and then spend Thanksgiving Thursday with Gayla’s family all day and enjoy it each time. Then comes Friday and the weekend. There are hunting clothes to wash and stow away until next year. Guns and ammo and gear to clean and secure. And of course, the car is always a terrible mess too. But the Christmas decorations need to be put up and the shrubbery in the front yard has to be trimmed before the lights can be strung upon them and all this must be done with one eye on the clock because the Cornhuskers are on TV pretty soon to do battle with Colorado. Going back to work on that following Monday is almost a relief! After that week each year I feel as though Christmas shopping is a piece of cake. Christmas at our house was good. Jaimi, Daniel, little Daniel and Riley were all there as planned. Christmas is always better with toddlers included, but then, I think that’s true of most any event or occasion.

January brought us the news that Jaimi was pregnant again. Good news of course, though we always worry about how they will make ends meet in their household. With Riley still in diapers and Daniel’s potty training only just completed we naturally thought about how much they are truly able to take on. Now looking back it was indeed true that God doesn’t give us more than we can handle.

In April I was given the opportunity (read: challenge) to jump over to the company’s fledgling banking division and made that move in the spirit of providing a boost in sales to team and to indoctrinate a new field sales guy. It’s been fun and interesting with respect to the learning experience, though current conditions aren’t the most conducive to generating new business. I’ve decided that bankers of late are much like rose bushes in dormancy…inert and thorny. We were beginning to think the remainder of the year would be uncomfortably quiet but a couple of recent deals have changed that picture for the better.

Now to that bad news I mentioned earlier. The month of May this year brought an end to our marriage. I won’t go into all the details here but to say that even though the problems seemed then to be so great that coping with them was unimaginable, we were and have remained civilized about the relationship and amicable in dealing with each other. Gayla moved in with some family friends near to her parent’s home in Denton . Nick decided he was not able to live with his mother either and moved to his dad’s home Northwest of Fort Worth after the school year had ended. He is doing well there having gotten a part-time job cleaning boats at a local marina, keeping his grades up, getting a provisional (age restricted) driver’s license and is even starting for the high school’s J.V. football team. Each time we talk he requires reassurance that the hunting trip to Nebraska is still “a go” for this year, and he gets it, as long as he keeps his grades above an 85. Not a huge challenge for Nick, but just enough. He doesn’t realize that my siblings in Nebraska would be very upset with me if Nick were to miss a trip!

Things got a bit worse for Gayla after the divorce but have now started to turn around. She is back to work now, going to her meetings regularly and trying her best to be the person she once was. We are all relieved by this, but especially so her parents who were upset to the point of seeming wounded by Gayla’s situation. I met with her this past Sunday at her storage facility (still not completely moved out of the house, I was transporting furniture and stuff) for about 45 minutes and she looked and acted better than I had seen in over a year. It feels good to be able to tell you that.

Now comes August of this year. I got a call one evening in early August from Jaimi. She was pretty upset as they were in a bind financially, late with rent and at wits end as to what to do. This was when Gayla was unemployed and unable to help. She was really looking for someplace to “nest” her family with a baby girl due in early September. I have a really big and pretty empty house. So the kids moved in with me. It didn’t last nearly as long as I’d have liked. It is hard to put into words the great uplift I got for that short time having two grandkids come running downstairs to greet me each evening after work. Daniel happy to see his granddad, Riley wanting to be held by her “dad-dad.” It was great.

Then later on little Avree was born. A girl with a sense of symmetry, she was born on 8-28-2008 at 8:18am, was 18” tall and weighed in at 6lbs 3oz. (multiply it). Unlike her brother and sister she has Jaimi’s dark wavy hair and at this point it seems likely she will take after Riley and Gayla and be forever a “shorty.” A quiet baby, she is probably just what the doctor ordered for that household.

The kids found a place up in Little Elm, TX not far from Daniel’s parents and moved there in September. I miss ‘em.

So here we are, back in November again. No hunting trip this Thanksgiving. Alex is away at the University of Nebraska and wouldn’t be in Coleridge at the usual time. What’s more, Texas schools changed their schedules (much to Nick’s disgust) and he is in school until noon on 11-26. Clark and I have rescheduled, perhaps permanently, to the gap week between Christmas and New Year’s Day. The thought of hunting without “the guys” just didn’t have the same appeal. More accurately, there is too much ground to cover efficiently with just two guys with old knees and we can’t always count on the availability of Dennis’ youthful presence.

Instead, this Thanksgiving brings a visit from Shanna and her new husband Shawn to Texas . This is actually the payoff of a bet that Shanna made with Shawn, a Cowboys fan, and lost from last year when she was certain that the Seattle Seahawks would have a better year. Works out well too as Shanna has sworn off the Texas summertime heat and late November in Dallas will seem like a San Jose summer to her. Seattle plays Dallas in Irving on Thanksgiving Day. I have no false illusions about being the attraction that brings them here and am simply happy they’re coming. Shawn’s grandfather Sam, and brother Richard are likely to be here too. At the time of their wedding I was recovering from surgery and dealing with the rush of emotions that accompanied my only child getting married. Shawn didn’t get much of my attention though he had sought it out. I should do better by him and will later this month. I’m really looking forward to the visit though I’m still at a loss as to what one feeds a couple of vegetarians for Thanksgiving!

And since they are staying until the Sunday after Thanksgiving I think those Christmas lights might just have to wait this year. Not everything needs to be done according to schedule after all. Sometimes being with loved ones doing nothing brings greater rewards than getting that “important job” done on time.

Now for a few pictures…

This is Avree at about 7 weeks. Just starting get some pudgy in her cheeks.

This is Riley at about 2 ½ years. I do so love that little smile. She is the apple of her Granddad’s eye.

Here’s Daniel helping his Granddad out on the back patio. You can barely see the cuffs of his “work gloves.” He’s already a “plugger” and only 4 ½ years old.

That’s Clark, Nick, me and Angel outside Dennis’ office. Look close enough and you’ll see the birds. I’ll save some of the “Angel stories” for Clark to tell.

Some of you know what’s going on in my life from emails, or from the Magnuson blog, or from snail mail, or from actually visiting with me, so I don’t really know where to start. So many ways to communicate!

I started the year by announcing to Mike and Eric that I didn’t want to work in the golf course clubhouse this summer, but would be happy to continue to do the books at home. They’ve adapted well, though they spend an inordinate amount of time working the clubhouse. Fortunately, they can access the internet from there and have installed an HDTV, so boredom is minimal. Business at the golf course has been affected by the economy, just as everywhere else, as people try to minimize their spending. In the meantime, I am delighted with my freedom to do what I want when I want, and don’t feel the pressure of trying to get everything done in the house and in the yard and garden in addition to the golf course work. Playing in three golf leagues gave me enough of the golf course this summer. Yea for freedom!

Throughout the year I have been putting together a reunion of some of the women I went to school with, and we are meeting in Bryson City, NC, (southeast side of the Smoky Mountains) the end of September. We hope to have some peace & quiet, rest & relaxation, and walk, talk, eat and laugh a lot. We’re staying in a relatively primitive lodge in the mountains, avoiding the casinos and tourist-type entertainments. Unfortunately, our numbers have dwindled from an original 16 who wanted to come down to 6. Seems there are old parents to take care of, grandchildren to babysit, children getting divorces or being married, grandchildren graduating or getting married, and illness of all kinds in our age group. Those of us who were able to put those responsibilities aside for a week are going to be there.

Most of you know I love to travel. In June I visited Vicki at her home in Aptos, CA. We celebrated our birthdays and played a lot of golf. Vicki had the week nicely planned and it was a good visit. In July, I drove up to South Bend, IN, to help one of Mike’s sisters celebrate her 60^th birthday. It ended up being a huge Bird family reunion with four generations represented (and a good time was had by all)!

Here at home, Mike and I keep up with our friends, often with impromptu breakfasts at the local “Cabin” where they serve plate-sized “cabin cakes” and huge servings of biscuits and gravy. Other times we just visit and talk, and sometimes take walks through town. I try to go to as many of Eric’s boys’ sports events as I can: baseball in the summer and football right now. Occasionally I take them out for a meal or “babysit” them at their house or ours. Lucas is 13 and Ian is 8. They’re fabulous!! Naturally!

Danielle sends us pictures of her two girls on a regular basis (Naomi is 4 and Leah’s 3). They are growing up so fast. Both are in pre-school this year (Naomi tells me all about it on the phone), so Danielle finally has a little time to herself. Heaven.  She and Phil are having their kitchen completely re-done and hope to be done by Christmas.  What a chore!

Marty works hard for a company that sets up online ordering for restaurants, loves his cars and works on his “TT” endlessly, goes on trips with his Audi club, and keeps us up to date fairly regularly. Now and then he motors down for the weekend, and we try really hard not to have computer problems for him to solve. He’s our guru.

Miki and Kevin met us for brunch recently in Bloomington. They are happy together and good for one another, I think. Both work stressful jobs, Miki as managing editor of Indiana University Press and Kevin as a teacher in the IU Law School, so they plan trips away on a regular basis, where they manage to relax and recuperate.

What can I say about Eric? When he’s not doing a perfect job on the golf course he is with his boys, coaching their ball teams or being a volunteer assistant for something in which they are involved. He gets rave reviews on how he takes care of the greens and fairways, and makes us proud.

I’ll think of more stuff to say as soon as I sign this, but one must stop somewhere!! Maybe next time I’ll have pictures to send around.

Love to all of you, Diane

P.S. Let’s put our email addresses on the Round Robin 2008 list. That will make it easier to send this out to everyone over the internet, and if anyone changes their email address in the meantime, they can change it on the list as it comes around.

P.P.S. Hope to see you all in Omaha, summer of 2010… Magnuson reunion!

P.P.P.S. Anyone need hints for getting onto the Magnuson blog? Email me at dbird62741@yahoo.com

Well, I wish you all the happiest of Autumn’s. Til next time, Nancy

My project of the year was to paint our kitchen. I knew I needed to wash down the walls first, but wasn’t sure what to use. Mother used ammonia and water, and being the dedicated housekeeper she was, she “did” the walls every year. One of the reasons she used ammonia was probably because of the residue from cigarette smoke, and she needed to cut through the accumulated brown ick. I use ammonia for some of my routine cleaning around the house, like the oven and the grill racks, but it’s very hard on my hands and I never got the knack of wearing rubber gloves. So, utilizing the great resources on the internet, I found the following tips, and I can attest to the fact that they work wonderfully. For the kitchen walls, I used the GENERAL CLEANING “recipe”:

1 gallon water

One-half of 1/3 cup borax

One teaspoon liquid dish soap

1-1/2 teaspoon ammonia

My delight had no bounds, though, when I tried the WINDOW WASHING SOLUTION. After years of trying ammonia mixtures, vinegar mixtures, Windex and other store bought wonders (all supposedly “streak-free”) I will now use nothing except the following recipe:

One quarter cup corn starch dissolved in two quarts warm water

Now, I know it’s hard to believe, but it works equally well inside and out, leaving no streaks and no residue on the windows. It easily removes dirt, grease, bug juice, even bird-do. Fast, efficient, and cheap! That’s another great side benefit of these tips, that they will save money and we all surely need that with the economy continuing on its slide down the slippery slope. Large boxes of both soda and borax are available in your local supermarket (or WalMart, if you want to spend the money on gas to get there).

SINK CLEANER (replaces Comet, etc.): Mix one-half cup borax and one cup baking soda.

TOILET STAIN CLEANER: Drain the bowl to the lowest level; make a paste of vinegar and borax; apply to stains and scrub with very light sandpaper.

VERY GREASY POTS & PANS: Add two tablespoons vinegar to soapy wash water.

Try this FACIAL, and wonder why you spent $16 on your last jar of “stuff”! Mix 1 part olive oil with 3 parts baking soda. … or this simple, easy MAKEUP REMOVER: Baby oil!

And the kitchen got painted semi-gloss “Country White” and looks great, if I do say so myself.

Now if you all would be so kind as to update everyone on what the last year has been in your lives, it would make interesting reading.

Our email address changed to donsamp@q.com in case some of you need to change your address books. I’ve been in touch with some of you.

We will be going to Wisconsin in a week or two to visit Dave, Paulette, Cormac and Josie.  Just ordered big fish pillows to take the little ones.  If you want to see, go to www.cabelas.com and they are 4 feet long, pillow replicas of sunfish, walleye, marlin, and shark.  Cormac has talked his Dad into fishing and they have been camping, fishing, etc. and I think will love these plush pillows to lounge around with while watching TV.

Rick and Katie just spent several days with us and we toured to Kearney college campus where Rick went to school and played basketball.  It was fun for him to see all renovations, improvements, etc. from so many years ago.

Sarah, as we speak, is in Europe and touring for a couple weeks before she checks in for her UNL sponsored classes at Oxford University.  She gets 6 credit hours and has loved sightseeing and now needs to settle down for what she has made the trip.  Jack is working at Habitat for Humanity, driving materials, working in the warehouse etc.

Joe is enjoying the summer in New Hampshire.  Just sadly lost his pet cat (19 years) which he is mourning, but visited the Humane Society and took home two 6 year olds that are settling in nicely.  He thought he would just get one but couldn’t separate the two of them as they were litter mates and had been given up by a couple that couldn’t keep them any more.

Don and I are “maintaining” and pretty much enjoying life.  Reading lots, using the computer lots, some golf (‘tho that is another story), involved with our church.  I’m doing my weekly volunteer job at our hospital thrift shop – sorting, pricing, etc.

Bob, Dave, Rick and Don plan to get together in Lincoln for the Virginia Tech/Nebr. game later in September.  First time for them all to sit together in the same 4 seats for many years.

Don and I plan to attend a Law School reunion in Lincoln in October. Not an exciting account of our doings, but lets hear from the rest of you!

I think about you all so much and send love to you.

Jackie