A Warm Face

Palanga, Lithuanian Soviet Socialist Republic, about 1956. The man is Joseph, a cousin of my paternal Grandfather Vytautas. He's visiting the seaside resort with his wife and granddaughter.

Thanks to my Toronto Cousin for making this photo available to us.

A Closer Look (Part 67)

Near Kaunas, Lithuania, about 1918. Hey! Cheer up! You're riding a horsey.

We groom our own trails.

Door County, Wisconsin, January 1978. Dad has found the end of the road.

Instructions

Door County, Wisconsin, October 1980. Dad's giving Mom some tips about photo taking.

Visitors to the Door County property will remember the "hill" behind my Dad. The elevation was a result of the septic mound system. Mom later planted spruce trees along the driveway. Still later, Mr. Irene and I brought home a spruce "offspring"—transported in a coffee can—and planted it in our backyard.

It's cool here.

Glacier National Park, Montana, July 1972. It's time for lunch.

Enjoy the snow.

Door County, Wisconsin, March 1980. Dad's heading up South Sand Bay Lane, and Gigi is not far behind him.

Traveling Companion

Door County, Wisconsin, December 1976. Mom and Dad have spent a winter weekend at the cottage, and it's time to head home in Dad's Buick Skylark.

Morning Walk

Door County, Wisconsin, October 1981. Dad steps out with his best friend.

Summer Field

Near Vilnius, Lithuania, late 1920s. Suzanne—the wife of my Dad's older cousin, Henry—joins her sister Valerie and other family members in a sunflower field. Suzanne sits second from the left.

Thanks to Suzanne's Granddaughter—my Kaunas Cousin—for making this photo available to us.

A Spring Ski

Door County, Wisconsin, March 1979. Gigi accompanies Dad as he skis the shoreline.

It was a time when children looked like miniature adults.

Near Kaunas, Lithuania, about 1918. My Dad's older cousins, Vytas and Henry, give horseback riding a try. I don't know who the girls are, but I assume they're sisters—like the brothers, they wear matching ensembles. Their little, booted feet don't even reach the stirrups. If I learn the girls' identity, then I will update this post.

Thanks to my Kaunas Cousin for making this photo available to us.

Windbreaker Duo

Glacier National Park, Montana, July 1972. Dad wears his London Fog windbreaker. Mom's windbreaker likely is newer.

A Shore Walk, in Three Takes

Door County, Wisconsin, March 1976. My Mom, Vytenis, and Donna have walked to the shore. The lake levels were much higher then; the water reached the tree line, and fine pebbles lined the beach.

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Door County, Wisconsin, March 1976. Ah! Gigi accompanied the walkers.

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Door County, Wisconsin, March 1976. My Dad was a true charmer.

Lunch Break

Glacier National Park, Montana, July 1972. We've reached Cracker Lake, so we might as well see what's in the lunch bag.

It's never too late to learn something new.

Door County, Wisconsin, February 1979. My Dad taught Mom how to cross-country ski the same year he taught her how to ride a bicycle. I remember the mid- to late 1970s—when my Parents became "empty nesters"—as truly happy years for them.

Dad wears his beret and one of the many zippered cardigans Mom knitted for him. Mom "frogged" the piece some years after Dad died, and she reknitted the yarn into a lovely sweater for me. I wore it a couple of days ago.

Skiing with Dad

Door County, Wisconsin, December 1978. We're heading toward the frozen lakeshore.

Do you want to go for a ride?

Door County, Wisconsin, April 1977. Gigi looks ready to go for a spin in my Dad's 1972 Buick Skylark. After Dad bought another VW, I got the Skylark. It was my first car. It was a V8, and it got 12 miles to the gallon. I drove it many times between Urbana, Illinois and Chicago. In the early 1980s, I sold the Skylark to a vintage car collector. He paid $400.00 for the car.

Snapshot of the Photographers

Glacier National Park, Montana, July 1972. This is how I remember my Dad: wearing a beret, dangling a camera around his neck, and loving my Mom.

Yardwork

My Dad disliked yardwork. He didn't mind it, however, when we visited Door County. Few things troubled him there.

Here, Dad tries to get the wild raspberries and thimbleberry bushes under control:

Door County, Wisconsin, June 1977. Dad wears his beret and the London Fog windbreaker.

Three on a Tree

Kaunas, Lithuania, 1933. My Mom—on the left, with the braids—joins two friends on the banks of the Nemunas River.