We had just moved to Turlock at Christmas and had two kids. Mike 2 and Kathy 6 months, I didn't know anyone and Vern was gone alot on his job working for a dairy supply on 24 hour call. Close to summer people from differant churches would come by and knock on the door and ask if I was a Christian. Well I didn't know what a christian was exactly and I figured they were good people and I was a good person so I'd tell them yes. and they'd say great and leave and never come back. One older man," Mr Fred," came by several times and invited me to his church. I always said I'd go but didn't. One day I decided to try it and felt great about having people to talk to so I started to go. Even though I went for the wrong reasons I learned about GOD and Jesus and their love for me and found out that a Christian is someone who knows they are a sinner and needs to ask for forgiveness and except Jesus into their heart as their Saviour. So yes I was a good person but not yet a child of GOD.

We moved to Mae street in Turlock and was there for 6 years. By the time Kathy was 6 and Mike was 8 Vern's daughter Dee Dee came to live with us for a year and right after she came I found out we were going to have another baby. So we would have a full house.
We always had some kid living with us so that was nothing new. I was always trying to save the world and my house was open to any kid who needed a temporary safe-haven.

Dee was a good kid but at 14 had way too much responsiblities for her age. She took care of her 3 brothers at her mom's and helped with most of the house and horse chores.
When she came to our house we treated her like one of the kids and that was hard on her. She kind of enjoyed being a kid but felt like she had no purpose. After a year, she wanted to marry someone she met at church and we told her to wait till she was 18. She decided to go home to Oregon and her mom let her get married. They had two boys and eventually were divorced.
Meanwhile Vern's son Chris came to live with us for a year. He was a jokster and was always joking at school . we told him to watch how he said things but he said something to a kid one day that didn't think it was funny and he got busted in the mouth. He ate out of a straw for a while.
We were too strick on him and he eventually went home to his mom. He doesn't have anything to do with us but we have a good relationship with Dee.

When the kids were growing up I took everything personal. I thought if they did something wrong it was my fault, maybe I was a bad parent. Since I didn't work and parenting was the only job I had, then I had to be perfect at it. It took me years to find out that kids make mistakes and that's how they learn. Don't get me wrong, we had great kids, but kids will be kids.
When Sharon was 4 we moved to Gabbs Nev. and was there for 1 1/2. From there to Redding.
Next stop is Rosa-Lou ranch.