Linda, Tommy & Rita

Linda, Tommy Ries & Rita

Tommy had a crush on Linna Sue

Things to think about....

The best kind of sister is the kind you can sit on a porch and swing with, never say a word, and then walk away feeling like it was the best conversation you've ever had.

It's true that we don't know what we've got until we lose it, but it's also true that we don't know what we've been missing until it arrives.

Giving someone all your love is never an assurance that they'll love you back. Don't expect love in return; just wait for it to grow in their heart, but if it doesn't, be content it grew in yours. It takes only a minute to get a crush on someone, an hour to like someone, and a day to love someone, but it takes a lifetime to forget someone.

Don't go for looks; they can deceive. Don't go for wealth; even that fades away. Go for someone who makes you smile because it takes only a smile to make a dark day seem bright. Find the one that makes your heart smile.

May you have enough happiness to make you sweet, enough trials to make you strong, enough sorrow to keep you human, enough hope to make you happy.

Always put yourself in others' shoes. If you feel that it hurts you, it probably hurts the other person, too

The happiest of people don't necessarily have the best of everything; they just make the most of everything that comes along their way.

Happiness lies for those who cry, those who hurt, those who have searched, and those who have tried, for only they can appreciate the importance of people who have touched their lives.

When you were born, you were crying and everyone around you was smiling. Live your life so that when you die, you're the one who is smiling and everyone around you is crying.

Melissa's Birthday

Happy Birthday Melissa

These photos were taken at Melissa's graduation party

Christmas Cookies

Mom & Louise & Linda & Rita & Kay

Linda is holding Janyse

We all got together at my home and did a Christmas cookie exchange. We had fun if I remember correctly. We should do that again. How about it?

Lukas Riddle Photos

Mom & half-sisters Sheila & Marty

Mom & Linna Sue

Miss Haylee Jent - She looks so much like her Daddy

Crit & Linda's grand-babies:

L-R Haylee holding cousin Zoey; Tanner holding Logan

Haylee & Logan are Jamie & Kristie's children

Tanner & Zoey are Jeremy & Kerri's children

Trip to Kentucky, 2005

In May, 2005, I took Mom & my mother-in-law Oma to Kentucky. While Oma stayed with her brother, Mom & I took daily trips to various parts of Letcher, Hazard & Perry Counties. On one of these daily jaunts, we were on Highway 15, just driving along, when I had a sudden urge to turn off the road and cross a wooden bridge. Mom said "What are you doing?" "I don't know" I replied. "I'm just curious as to what's on the other side of this bridge." She knew where we were but I had no idea we were heading to a house I had kept in my memory since I was a little girl of three. But before we reached that house, we had to stop and let the car in front of us go on ahead. We were on a one lane dirt road and there were two people in the car ahead of us and you had to continue on a few yards in order to turn around and come back out to the main road. "We are really in the country" I thought to myself. There was only one way in and one way out of this place.

We reached the turn-around area and the car ahead of us stopped and a woman got out of the car. Mom said "That's Essie Caudill". Essie & her twin sister Bessie have been life-long friends of our Mom. Bessie lives in the trailer in whose yard we pulled into to turn around. When Essie saw Mom she said "On, you've come! We were hoping you would, but when I couldn't reach you by phone I didn't think you'd make it." Essie lives in Dearborn Hgts., MI by the way. There had been a death in the family and they wanted Mom to know. The picture above is Mom, Essie & Bessie. They had a small reunion in that front yard and I marvelled at how God orchestrated this trip and the detour I took that lead us to these precious ladies.

Mom & me at Janice's grave site.

We ended up going to Cornettsville Cemetery only because another sweet friend of Mom's, Debbie Fugate, met us and lead us up the narrow ... really, really narrow, road up to the graveyard. As most of you know, I don't like heights. I am afraid of them. I am doubly afraid of narrow one lane trails that lead up the side of a mountain (with NO guard rails) to a cemetery. We even had to cross a creek before we started UP this mountain. Talk about praying. I did. Fervently and continuously. As I drove the approximately two miles up that mountain, and as I headed up the hill to park my Explorer, I prayed "God please don't let this vehicle slide backwards. Please don't let me panic. Please don't let me look over to the right and see just how far up this mountain we are."

Mom, Debbie Fugate & Me

Debbie's niece Lisa; Debbie Fugate, Me, Mom & Debbie's Mother

I am thankful God provided all I needed to get up to Jan's grave. It was well worth the effort just so Mom and I could visit Jan's grave. I hadn't been there since I was 17. I wouldn't have known how to find it and I never would have ventured up that far without Debbie's leading the way.



Another day had us visiting Mom's half sister Jean. She works at the Parkside Motel and we took her to lunch at the Pine Mountain Grill. We enjoyed some good food and a great time of sharing as this was the first time I had met this lady. She offered to take us up to Pine Mountain and I quickly, but politely, declined. No more heights for awhile. Thank you.
Mom & half sister Jean at their Father's grave site in Whitesburg, KY

When I was about 4 (or close to it) Mom & Dad left me & George with Granny & Grampa in KY and they came to Michigan to find us a place to live. (At least this is how I remember it).

Granny & Grampa lived close to the railroad in a mining camp and there was a creek that ran in back of the house. While I liked the railroad and the creek, I was not happy when my parents left me there. I was told they were going to get us a new house, a new place to live, and in my mind I saw a white house with a white picket fence around it.

When we were finally brought to our new home I was quite surprised that it wasn't what I had envisioned. It was a two family flat on a busy street in Detroit. The flat wasn't white and there was no white picket fence. There was no grass either. I was disappointed and for years wondered how, as a little girl, I had imagined a white house with a white fence around it. It wasn't until Mom & I made this trip and we ended up meeting Essie & Bessie that I found 'my' white house.



As I looked in wonder at the old white house behind Bessie Caudill's trailer, Mom said "We used to live here, when you & George were little, we lived here. This was our home." It was then I knew for certain where 'my' white house was and it wasn't a figment of my imagination. I had lived in that white house. George & I had played in that yard. And for years, until 2005, that is, I had no idea of where 'my' white house was.

Mom explained that the homestead had belonged to Grampa & Gramma Riddle and they had left it to Dad. For reasons I won't go into here, he sold it and moved us to Michigan. I found myself wondering just how different our lives might have been had we stayed in this white house in this part of Kentucky?


Even though Michigan was not where Mom & Dad really wanted to be, it is the place they found work and raised a family . Though Louise, George & Pat were born in Ky., we grew up here. It's where Janice, Linda, Rita, Kay & Bobby were born. Where we all went to school and met the people we would marry. It is where our children and grandchildren have been born and now live. Kentucky is a beautiful state and I'm thankful for the roots we have there. I'm also very thankful for my home and my family here on Vivian Street. For the jobs Michigan has provided for all of us.

It's good to look back but it's also a blessing to live in the here and now!

The Ward Family

Michelle Riddle Ward - First Grandchild of Aileen & Winford
* Aunt Louise calls her Cheddy Beddy *

Cecil Ward, Michelle's husband

Michelle & Cecil


Cecil & their son Eric

Riddle Family History

Our paternal grandparents:


Lourenza Riddle b. 4/4/1873 d. 9/8/49 - He was an Old Regular Baptist Preacher
Martha Jane Pratt Riddle b. 4/20/1879 d. 10/9/1949
Lourenza was the son of Isom & Susannah Wilson Riddle of North Carolina
Susannah was said to be a Cherokee Indian


Martha Jane or Mattie, was the daughter of Henry Pratt & Jane Logan Pratt
(They are buried in the Cornettsville Cemetery in Cornettsville, KY)


Their children: (not in order)

Reuben m. Nerva
Mary
John
Jim
Ola m. George Corder
Oma

George B. born 1/10/1912 in Perry Co., KY., m. Lula Sizemore 8/13/1938; one daughter Geneva Riddle Huziak;
Lula died 6/13/1967
George m. Sophia Dixon Drullinger 1/6/1968, her daughter is Brenda Drullinger Maynard
George B. Riddle d. 8/22/1971 in Westland, MI


Subrina m. Delzie Caudill
Their children: Lorene, Vernon, Catherine, Imogene, Brenda, Glenda, Terry Lynn


Winford b. 4/17/21 - d. 5/11-2000
(Buried in Spring Grove Cemetery, Carey, Ohio)

Collins Family History

Our maternal grandparents:

Charlie Collins b. 2/12/1907 & Christina Cornett Collins Ison b. 12/25/1908

Charlie's parents were:
John Collins (Long John) & Sally Stacy Collins


Christine's parents were:

Jesse Cornett b. 4/23/1875 at Dry Fork, KY d. 3/10/1963
& Lourainey Whitaker b. 1/3/1882 d. 3/14/1946


Jesse was a Minister of the Old Regular Baptist Church, Indian Bottom Assoc. He made his living as a farmer and a lumberman. Jesse & Lourainey had 4 sons and 4 daughters.
Jesse is buried in the Cornett Cemetery at UZ, Kentucky
Lourainey is buried on Dry Fork, Kentucky

Charlie & Christine's children are:
Aileen b. 4/17/29 & Emery Austin b. 1/1/31

Christina divorced Charlie & on July 5, 1936 married James Ison

Their children:
Sheila Faye b. 4/16/37
Martha June b. 2/17/39
Garrett Dean b. 1/28/42 d. May, 1992

Grampa Jim's children by his first marriage were Jimmy & Mildred

Charlie Collins remarried a lady named Edna Jane Neice b. 9/4/16 d. 1/23/86
Their children are:
Ella Jean Collins Brunty
Mildred Dean Collins Fields
James Stephen Collins
Iva Dale Collins Evans
John L. Collins
William Ballard Collins
Henrietta Collins Fields
Emily Collins Evans
Teddy Collins
Their last child, a daughter, died a few months after being born.


Aileen married Winford Riddle, May 17, 1946

Their children:
Hazel Louise 6/9/47
Maurice (George) 3/4/49
Patsy Carol 2/12/51
Janice Faye 7/4/53 - 9/10/57
Linda Sue 5/24/55
Rita June 8/25/57
Sharon Kay 3/29/59
Robert Wayne 11/24/62

Pictures of Mom & Others

L-R Myndi, Mom, Wendy
Wendy & Mom

Perri, Mom & Sydney

Miss Aileen

Lukas Riddle Photo, Jan. 2008

Lukas - Caught the first fish of 2008 while ice fishing

The young man has a way with fish ... takes it after his Dad

& his Grandfather

Collins Family Reunion Photos

Pictures from the Collins' Reunion

Lorna & George; Grampa Charlie & Mom

Grampa Charlie & Mom

There are Collins' in this photo I've never met

Hello

Hi Family,

Although I put this together way back in July ... (remember Summer?) I am just now getting back to it. Better late than never, right?

It's my hope that through this blog we can get together via the internet and do some remembering and some looking ahead.

If you have thoughts, comments, poems or songs you'd like included on this blog, please either leave them in a comment at the end of this post, or email me at
cmoore2659@wowway.com and I'll add them. Pictures are welcome also! Send them to my email address and I'll put them on the blog.

I sincerely hope you enjoy this as much as I think I will.
Love to you all,
Louise

P.S. Happy Brithday this month to Melissa ... Oct. 13

Happy Anniversary to Weeda & Warren ... Oct. 25