There is still no grave stone there. I wish I had the money to put one in place. My sister had said she'd buy one a year ago, but her circumstances have changed as well. I am glad that I made this when I made my stepping stones. We used the rest of the left over vinyl cement patch to make this marker.
I had to wait for a couple of hours for the vinyl cement patch to stiffen a bit. If you try to write in it too soon the cement oozes back into place. It was hard to write nicely on it, especially in the deep bucket that I had to use as a mold. That's okay though, I'm sure something will come up soon so I can afford a proper head stone for him!
I got these flowers for 90% off. I sure was happy with the find! I had also made the wire family tree to place there. I wanted to leave a remembrance from all of his family members even if they haven't been able to visit either. It was very easy to make. I took the pictures I had and places clear contact paper on it. To make the pictures sturdier, I glued cardboard to the back of the picture and contact papered the back as well. I had planned on using fishing line as I thought it would hold up better than yarn, but I couldn't find it. I thought the yarn would be a nice touch anyway since my (step) grandma liked to knit and crochet.
On the way back from the cemetary, we stopped at the Laura Ingalls Wilder museum in Walnut Grove. There were lots of neat things there. In all I took 97 pictures today. Here are a few on the highlights.
I thought that this map was a neat way to show us the places she lived. I've also been to the Lake Pepin site, but I was quite young when that took place. I think it would be neat to be able to visit all of the sights, but I'm not so sure that will ever happen.
This china set is beautiful, isn't it? I just love the florals. Some of the items were behind glass or bars while others were open for use and examination. They had rules for teachers and student displayed in the one room school house. I was very interested in the biased rules that were posted, but I think that's a post for a different day!
This quilt was stitched by Laura and was given to her daughter Rose. There were many of her artifacts there as well as some to show similar items from the day. The children were interested in the pianos and organs they could play, the toys they could play with, they had books they could read, slates they could write on, and the clothes they could try on.
What a busy day. I'm ready to fall into bed. I sure hope that light outside our hotel window doesn't keep me awake all night tonight like it did last night.
Thank you for stopping by. Please leave me a message and a backlink. I'd love to hear your thoughts!
Cindy
10 comments:
what a wonderful day you had!!!! The memorial at the cemetary is really nice. You did a great job with that(-:
I love what you did with the photos--what a great memorial! And I think making your own headstone is ingenious. Laura's china really is beautiful--wonder what the pattern is!
Cindee- It was really great. The kids hardly complained at all either. I'm sure today will go just as well since we are going to places of their choosing today.
Thanks.
Ben- I "stole" the idea from FIL's cemetary. They had a family tree on someone's grave there with name cards. The picture idea was all mine though, as was tying the cards so they wouldn't turn in the wind.
I'm not too sure of how long that stone will last, but as long as it's long enough to fulfill it's purpose, that's all I need. God gives me such wonderful inspirations sometimes!
Funny you should ask about the name of the pattern. I'm pretty sure it was listed on the tag that I cut almost completely out of the picture. For some reason I didn't get the picture along with the tag like I did on most of my other pictures. I had to include it though since it had the teacups in it that I was sure Kathi from LLT would appreciate!
Oh my goodness, when I saw the china set I almost jumped through the computer screen! Thank you so much for sharing it! How beautiful...all the information makes me want to jump in my car and head over there for a trip now. Thank you for sharing your day Cinj! :)
Oh goodness, Cinj you did an amazing job on your Dad's grave site. With no family around, you are the one who needs to know where he is. The only thing to remember is he is with our Lord, it's beautiful and he would be so proud of you! Hugs! Kathi :)
I have throughly enjoyed reading about your trip and all the places you visited. I didn't know you were posting while there!
Sounds like you did everyone proud with your memorial stone and then getting all the cousins together for your mom. You are so thoughtful.
I liked the Laura Ingalls post the best. And I'm with Kathi--love the dishes.
Glad you are back.
Kathi- I thought you'd enjoy that. It was a wonderful day and I was happy to share it with you. Thanks for the lovely compliment. I know this is where he would have wanted to be buried, but sometimes I find it hard to not be able to get there. I mean, I know they aren't really still there or anything. I suppose it's more of a comfort thing.
Anna- You know it. It got too late after the Twins game, we didn't get back til 11:30 after loosing the van and sitting in traffic. I made sure the hotel we stayed in had internet service and tried to post every night. I didn't have the time to make the rounds and visit or anything, but at least I got to share my days with you.
I also covet those dishes.
I've been wanting to stop there for years. DH has family over in Albert Lea and so we're always passing by that way. We've also driven past DeSmet (dh has relatives out that way) but never stopped.
What's wrong with us! We need to stop and see things.
I hope you're getting the rest you deserve. What a fun trip!
Tam- Me too. I finally did it. Interestingly, my son was more interested than my daughter. My family lived about 20 miles from there for my whole life. I don't know why I took so long to go. For some reason De Smet seems to strike a note in me. I'll have to try and figure out why.
Next time you go just add an extra couple of hours into your schedule and make a stop. I thought it was well worth it. Cheesehead even enjoyed it!
Oh, I loved reading and seeing the pics from the Laura Ingalls Wilder museum. I was a huge fan as a child, I remember reading every single book about three times over. Thanks for sharing all the pics of your great trip.
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