Saturday Snapshots

Today’s Saturday Snapshots are from our visit last week to Polkommet Country Park, West Lothian in Scotland. The Park has some lovely woodland walks alongside the River Almond:

River Almond P1080925Our granddaughter couldn’t resist getting her feet wet:

E & River Almond P1080937 For more Saturday Snapshots see Melinda’s blog West Metro Mommy Reads.

Saturday Snapshot

Another photo from the family snapshots. I actually quite like this one of me, taken years ago.  I’m not sure of the date but it must have been a hot day, or I wouldn’t have been wearing a little strappy top. And it must have been a long time ago because our son is all grown up now, with three children of his own! I think he must have been about 12 years old (is that right P?).Click on the photo to enlarge.

I like it too because it’s not a posed photo – I’m smiling naturally – and you can see our son casually walking into the picture. I’m holding our next-door neighbour’s new puppy, introducing it to our two dogs. Ben, our black, tan and white border collie/cross is interested and wants to play, but Zoe, our golden retriever isn’t bothered about it and instead wants to go to the photographer – my husband – so you can only see the top of her head. And I do like my Scholls. I used to wear them all the time, so comfortable. That reminds me I need to get another pair.

For more Saturday Snapshots see Alyce’s blog At Home With Books.

Saturday Snapshot

I’ve been going through family photos again:

When I was a child of five (living in Cheshire) my grandparents came from Wales to live with us. They had the front room in our house and on the mantelpiece were two miniature framed photos of my Taid’s (grandfather’s) parents. He was immensely proud of them and it’s a great shame that those photos have gone missing, so I was delighted to find this one of my great grandparents. It shows my great grandfather, Isaac Owens and my great grandmother, Elizabeth Owens, the lady wearing glasses. I have no idea who the other lady was (the one wearing the white blouse). Nor do I know when or where it was taken.

I know very little about them.

Isaac was born on 7 August 1848 (August 7 is also my birthday) in Bryn-y-Baal, a small hamlet near Mold in Flintshire, Wales. His father, George was a coal miner. Isaac’s occupation is described in the census returns as a Brickworks Labourer, an Agricultural Labourer and a Tin Plate Worker.  He married Elizabeth Hughes in 1877 and they had five children, my Taid was their second child. Two of their children died, aged 17 months and 11 months, with a third, John dying when he was 19.

I have the family Bible in which he recorded the family births, marriages and deaths.

Family Bible (click to enlarge)

From the census returns I’ve discovered that he moved around the local area, presumably to get work and on some of the censuses he is not living with the rest of the family. He and Elizabeth spoke both Welsh and English. Isaac died aged 79 in 1928 at my grandparents’ home.

I’ve posted photos previously of my great grandmother, Elizabeth and also of the sampler that she stitched in 1867, when she was twelve.

For more Saturday Snapshots see Alyce’s blog At Home With Books.

Saturday Snapshot: Marlow

D took this photo of Marlow Bridge in Buckinghamshire several years ago. Marlow Bridge crosses the River Thames between Marlow and Bisham in Berkshire. There has been a bridge here since the 14th century, but this suspension bridge was erected in 1829 -1832.

We used to live in Buckinghamshire and often visited Marlow. I took the photo shown below when the grandchildren were younger, playing in Higginson Park.

Marlow is also the home of Sir Steve Redgrave, the Olympic Rowing Champion who won gold medals at five consecutive Olympic Games from 1984 to 2000. His statue stands in Higginson Park – in the background of my photo. For a better photo of his statue see Wikipedia – I was taking a photo of the grandchildren, not Sir Steve’s statue. 🙂

For more Saturday Snapshots see Alyce’s blog At Home With Books.

Saturday Snapshot

I didn’t do a Saturday Snapshots post last weekend because I was away from home for most of it, celebrating D’s birthday. We had a lovely time with the family. I made a cake and the grandchildren all had a hand in decorating it – E did the writing and the hearts! M & G added the smiley faces and other decorations.

We put a few candles on it – no room for all of them!!!

M gave him a big hug and G gave him the required number (66!) of thumps – pats – on his back.

For more Saturday Snapshots see Alyce’s blog At Home With Books.