Mom and Dad Woods Wedding (Norb's recollections)

My parents had a true wartime wedding.  They met, two weeks later got engaged , two and a half months later married , and 2 weeks later Dad got orders and shipped out for two and a half years.  Mom , Mary Margaret Bracewell from Burlington Iowa, was a lieutenant in the Navy Reserves , Dad , Norbert Vincent Woods, a lieutenant in the Marines, was from Schenectady, New York.  Given the oddities of the Navy despite that they were both lieutenants, she outranked him.  They had a formal military wedding with honor guard.  Mom resigned her commission and lived with her mother in law .  Dad was sent to...

Remembering visits from Father Patrick Peyton

Father Peyton in Canton, New York     Father Peyton flew from Spain to baptise our youngest brother James Matthew Joseph Woods, born on April 29, 1964. Jim was born just a short time after our Uncle Father Francis Woods, our Dad's older brother, had died while on a religious retreat at the Auriesville Shrine. Father Woods had made the effort to baptise every one of the twelve previously born children to Norb and Mary Woods. All thirteen of us were baptised in our Father's ornate and delicate baptismal gown. This baptismal gown is still in the family and worn by nieces and nephews of the family in honor of our...

Our brother Joe

Mark's updating of the Davidson Woods website and Patty's Memories of Canton blog have inspired me to write about our brother Joe. The timing seems good too, just after his shared November birthday with Cathy and before Christmas and his late December 2022 passing. I'm hoping this blog could serve as a place to help us remember Joe. I'll share some memories here and, if so inclined, you could share some memories or stories about Joe as well. This could be a happy memories book like we had prepared once for Joe with letters and photographs to remind him of Dad and Mom and all of us when we weren't...

September 20, 2025 Party for Leehou, Gali and Romi

We had a great time hosting the family for a party to welcome Leehou, Gali and Romi to the States.  It was good to see Leehou and Gali again and to see Romi for the first time. We all marvelled at the red, silky hair.  Romi was the star of the party.  Before coming to the party, they had spent a couple of days in NYC and at Rob's place, adjusting to the new timezone and surroundings.  Romi was amazingly open to all of the new people who were suddenly thrust upon her.  Frank brought his famous charcuterie board which was delicious.  We bought eggplant and chicken parmesan.  Kate and Ellie brought...

July 23, 2025 Whale Watching Trip

On Wednesday morning, Anne, Chuck, Roman, Vincent, Mike, Paige, Taylor, Hazel and I  took the 10 am Dolphin Fleet boat to go whale watching.  The weather was sunny and we had relatively calm waters.  After clearing the tip of Cape Cod, we soon came upon several fin back whales.   They are the second largest whales and were cruising along the surface.  We watched them for a while and then headed out to sea where we found a couple of humpback whales.   These whales surprised us by quickly breaching and putting on a bit of a show diving and swinging their fins out of the water.     After...

November 3 - Red Beach tonight - Aukland on Tuesday

Amazing, our 2 and 1/2 month expedition is drawing to a close. Sunday afternoon here and we are relaxing after two days on an even smaller island, Tiritiri Matangi, north of Aukland. We spent one night in the bunkhouse there with researchers, volunteers, and other tourists like us. Tiritiri is lovely and “predator free” and so hosts kiwi, takahe, and various other strange and lovely birds. In 1980 it was a desolate pasture with rats and other vermin. Today it is 80% forested and is the place most rich in native wildlife.

30 October, 2019 - Ohakune NZ

If it is Wednesday, we must be on the volcano. This past week has truly been a tour with mostly two night stands across the North Island of New Zealand. All good, we landed in Auckland with the brand new downtown convention center burning down. It took days. We had arrived late and missed our visit at high tide to the world class shorebird roost at Miranda on Thames. We stopped there the next morning at low tide to find the sandpipers scattered far out in the shallows before continuing on to Rotorua with its mud pots, thermal pools, and fragrance of sulfur.

19 October - Te Anau, New Zealand - Visit to the Southern Alps

Australia was great but too dry. Now in the green green land of South Island, New Zealand. Pastures full of sheep and beef. Snow covered mountains to the west, glacial lakes all about. Gives one a burst of energy toward the end of a long pilgrimage. Yesterday we made the long and harrowing drive over and through the mountains to the dock on the fiord. The boat took us to the sea past mile high rocks sticking up out of the water. Wow and more wow! Saw penguins too, Fiordland Crested Penguins to be precise.

11 October - Windang Beach, New South Wales

We have left the tablelands of the Canberra region. Saw the national museum and the amazing botanical gardens. Found the New Holland Honeyeater too. Our camping has gone well even if we woke up to frost on two mornings. Not having a “dingy” I have had to drive us about in the caravan. Exciting.

Photo credit: Pexels by Patrick Kua

7 October - Sutton, Australia - Escape from Botany Bay

We finished our whirlwind visit to Sydney and caught an Uber ride to the RV rental shop where I was briefed and given the keys. Keep left they say, but my problem is keeping right in the lane. Is tough but I’m getting better. Enjoyed a last day in Sydney, Miranda actually, on the shore of Botany Bay. Lovely water, today urban on the inside, but the shore is parkland.

Photo credit: Unsplash by Walter Coppola