My first formal portrait

I don't know the story behind this picture.  I just know that my great aunt Ethyl, whom we called Auntie, was a photographer and she probably took this picture and they liked it so much that they sent it to a studio in Minnesota and had it blown up and colored. I brought up some pictures from the basement (or rather Jon did) and found a treasure trove of pictures which I will be scanning and sharing in the coming weeks. In addition I found an entire album of my cousin Bud and his family which I will give to Randy the next time I see him.  I think he will like having it. In the meantime here are some more pictures from this era....

We lived on East Sixth Street in Ames and there was a short sidewalk that I played on.  The house was small but the neighborhood was great.  It was a cul de sac and there wasn't much traffic.

As I got older and after my parents divorced we moved out to my grandparents home on East 13th Street.  But I went to Beardshear School and that was just a few blocks from this neighborhood.  My great uncle and aunt Cole lived in the house at the corner of 6th and Crawford and as there was no school lunch program I would walk down there for noon lunch every day.  My great aunt (Kate Mike) made the greatest corn bread.

And of course I learned to walk there.

This may have been taken in Adel at my mother's sister Fran and her husband Harold's farm.  We liked to go there and I may have been on Cousin John's hobby horse.  Or it could have been someone else's.  I don't really remember that it was mine.  Anyway I have always liked this photo.

 I am glad I finally have a scanner that works.  Another photo I scanned today was of my cousin George Underwood who passed this last August.  It was in his football uniform.  I thought you might like to see it.

Thanks for taking the trip down memory lane with me.  j