We still have our snow, but the thermometer is in the mid 30's so it doesn't feel much like winter.  

We had dinner last night with our granddaughters and their mom and dad in Waterford.  We had a really nice meal and had a chance to see their Christmas tree - and they got to open some early presents.  Tangeni, four, is full of energy and great fun to watch as she changes every time we see her.  She is in pre-school and loving it, takes gymnastics and dance classes, so she is a busy little girl.  Big sister Jo-Ann, is rapidly turning into a lovely young lady.  She will be 17 in July, and we are constantly amazed by her.  The girls and Monika are in the above photo.

We are looking forward to our family gathering on Christmas Eve, this year at Jamie and Marie's, just up the road from us.  The forecast is for temperatures in the 50's or higher (!) on that day.  It won't matter, we'll have a fun time and perhaps by New Year's we'll have some snow to prove it's actually winter here at Joe's Pond and not springtime.  

I've been working on old photos - some that were used in the 1999 oral history of Cabot and a whole lot more that weren't included.  I am sorting through, putting titles on, and will eventually print them so I can include them in our album collection.  Here is one I was particularly interested in of Mrs. McCormick.  She and her husband, John, lived were Helfands do now, at the end of Deeper Ruts Road, just off of West Shore Road before it splits into Cabot Plains Road and Bricketts Crossing Road.  Mrs. McCormick was a very pleasant French lady who was a midwife, nurse and general care-giver for anyone in the neighborhood who needed her.  She was called upon to assist Dr. Burbank, and probably other doctors of the time, regularly.  In addition, she kept a meticulously clean house and was a superb cook.  She had a heavy French accent and my mother, then a young teacher at the Plains School, was invited to dinner at the McCormick's.  When my mother arrived, Mrs. McCormick announced they were having "meat pie."  What my mother heard was "mink pie," and she said she was barely able to eat a mouthful.  Hopefully, once she tasted it, her fears were forgotten, but perhaps not.  My mother was forever embarrassed that she had so misunderstood Mrs. McCormick.  The picture above was at their home - daughter Gladys later married a Rowell and lived in Walden.  The Rowell farm is still operating there.  Pliny, the McCormick's son, was a close friend of my father's, having grown up and gone to school together on the Plain.  The picture is dated about 1902, but I believe it was more like 1916, judging by the age/size of the two children.  Even though I've been through hundreds of old photos from Cabot, I still find wonderful surprises as I sort through these.