It’s Leap Day! Or as we always called it in my family: Grandma’s birthday. This would have been her 24th birthday and her 96th year of life; she died two years ago.

I loved Grandma but I was also a bit scared of her–I think we all were. She was a commanding woman who had opinions.  Oh, did she ever. She loved gardening, bowling, and there were always cookies in the dishwasher.

Okay, the dishwasher thing: the water is super hard at my grandparents’ house: well water, no softener, northern Michigan. At some point they had a dishwasher installed but I never saw it used because, apparently, it didn’t wash the dishes to Grandma’s very exacting specifications. So that’s where the cookies were kept.

But really, I just wanted an excuse to post this picture:

Carl and Lucille Luhrs, Late 1940s

Isn’t it great? They look like they have a secret.

In the notes that came with the picture it was revealed that my grandfather was a professional roller skater at some point in his life. I find this to be completely amazing and wish I knew more.