I got tired of my cases and screen protectors. I figured I'd try rolling with my iPhone "naked" and see how it holds up. They have done of lot of work to beef them up (both the case and the glass), so we shall see…
2026-03-31
We enjoyed a yummy Brazilian meal on the way home from prison.
I was satisfied to take a picture of these pretty desserts. We abstained, but still enjoyed a great meal!
Taking pictures a half mile away
The iPhone has come a long way in being able to replace a "real" camera. Check out the detail in the top of the state building from almost a half mile away. I can even make out a bird circling the antenna. The left pic is what I took. The middle shows there I was standing when I snapped it, and the right shows using Google Maps to measure the distance.
Julie gives scale to this massive structure!
You can see her off in the distance on the ground floor. :)
2026-03-30
The nicer cell block
The second cell block was a little newer and considered the Hilton by comparison. Inmates with good behavior could eventually move there.
I really enjoyed the pretty architecture
Imagine being a guard and having to climb the tight spiral staircase for six floors in an emergency!?
A thousand or so inmates per side…
Two sides per cell bock, two cell bocks…. That's a lot of cells! At times they were overload by almost 2x too!
2026-03-29
Tallest free-standing iron cell blocks in the world…
Not sure those are great bragging rights, but it sure made for a cool view six floor down!!
From the chapel, we headed out to the cell blocks
Thick iron doors, heavy iron bars. Quite the cheery place…
The chapel!
Wow, this was cool looking. In just good enough shape to imagine what it once looked like, yet enough dilapidation to add to the eeriness of the scene…
2026-03-28
This might have been one of the coolest features…
The building was designed so the light from the windows in these rooms would shine through the doors and intersect at the exact center of the entire building! They had it laser measured and found it to be accurate down to a fraction of an inch! Pretty spectacular work for the late 1800's!
A pretty nice place to have lunch!
This was the warden's dining room! It also served as a place you could eat your snack or have a coffee from the cafe in the next room. Beautiful!
So beautiful and well done for a prison❣️
We liked seeing how they'd designed the stained glass windows, heavy wood trim, and multi-arched ceilings. It was especially pretty with the sun pouring in the windows on such a nice day.
Late 1800’s architecture and decoration!
We really enjoyed browsing through the property at the former Ohio State Reformatory! Well worth the trip to see the stone, pillars, stair cases, and even the door knobs (notice the great seal of Ohio?). Highly recommend you take a guided tour and leave time to explore after.
A cool place to visit in Ohio!
You're gonna have a few days of highlights from the trip Julie and I recently took to Mansfield! Enjoy!
A lot of things happening for John & Savannah!
In other news, John's been looking for a new job to better use his design skills and progress his career. He finally found a good match and is excited to have had his first day on the job this past Monday. Pictured is the test project he created for his interview project to showcase his capabilities. They were quite happy to find someone that met their needs so well.
He's working at Heidelberg Distributers. You can see it just off 75 to the right as your going North (East side of the highway). It used to be the Cooper Tire plant. They do the advertising materials and distribution for all manner of drinks to just about every eating, gas, and grocery establishment all throughout Ohio and Kentucky.
Stay tuned here for even further developments in their lives over the next week or two.
2026-03-27
All the wedding pics!
A perfect day winds to close. Welcome to the family official our dear daughter in-law. Looking forward to all life brings the two of you❤️🥰
If you'd like to browse all the pics from the day, you should be able to see them here: https://share.icloud.com/photos/011g0_TcpYP3zftWKzaYdsjyQ
It's only ~200…! 🥰
We had a great time hanging out!
It was really fun to spend all day with the bride and groom enjoying seeing the new Mr. & Mrs. Barton. We had some good laughs relating memories from both sides of the family. We even finished off the day by roasting hotdogs. Good times❣️
I found this on the refrigerator. :)
Savannah and Maddie as little girls. Adorable! I was grabbing a drink at John and Savannah's house and was looking at the family pics they had on the fridge. I thought this one was too cute!
Johnny crackin’ the whip. He’s a good teacher too…? ;)
You can only believe half of what you see on the Internet…
2026-03-26
Barton randomness…
If you know us at all, you know there is always a random skill toy or exhibition at our gatherings. John & Savannah's reception was no exception. John impressed us with the cracking of his bull whip!
Casual mode
We all enjoyed hanging out in the back yard talking over the fire. It was casual so most of us changed into casual mode. Savannah had to keep a little designation going so she used the bow for that purpose haha. I liked the way this contemplative look turned out in the pic.
The aunt, uncle and bridesmaids
They all look cute posing with their niece Hadley in their back yard.
We retired the party to the fire pit :)
Nash, Hadley, and their mom Jenna had some fun with the chalk too.
2026-03-25
Just testing
If you want to see all 200 or so of the wedding pics, you can follow this link to my iCloud album:
https://share.icloud.com/photos/011g0_TcpYP3zftWKzaYdsjyQ
A lot has changed since Christmas 2020…
I have a very similar pic I took during some of Janice's last days. It was over the timeframe of Christmas and Julie's birthday in 2020. We were gathering around the table to celebrate however we could. It was a nice time with a few fond memories while Janice rallied before her passing. She even made me breakfast in that same timeframe.
Fast forward five years or so, and we have an entirely group of peeps with us celebrating our new daughter, plus ones, and other related in-laws. What hasn't changed is the appreciation for the places we have, the fun of getting together, and the relationships we've developed along the way.
And oh yeah, the cake was delicious!
Fun with chocolate milk…!
Savannah just happened to have a gallon of chocolate milk and decided we needed it for refreshments to go along with the cake. I guess Andy planned for such an occasion since he "supermanned" to show us all that he'd cleverly worn the chocolate milk food label t-shirt John and Savannah gave him for Christmas a couple years back. We all got a good laugh out of them doing shots of chocolate milk together. Even if one of them was doing it from a champagne flute! Hahaha.
We had a great, fun, relaxing afternoon together❤️
2026-03-24
Savannah’s mom made a beautiful and delicious cake!
I like the family photos background. Savannah's Indian map is a nice touch. It even shows her small home town! The only item like that anyone's ever found that did, hahaha.
Then to John and Savannah’s house for cake and fun
Of course, we got to see the bridesmaids and groomsman too…
2026-03-23
Mr. & Mrs. Barton heading to lunch❤️
It was fun that they sent us this cute selfie as we were all leaving :)
Julie changed our family chat.
It's not the +1's anymore, just a +1 hahahaha. We love them all the same, but Savannah's officially a Barton now, so…!
Sophie got a cute pic of the bride and groom leaving for lunch
It's cute to see John putting his arm around Mrs. Barton, his wife❣️
ANDY!!
He enjoyed capturing my rumpus while I was trying to get a cool pic of the rings and marriage license. Hahahaha. Always something fun going on around him.
2026-03-22
John and Savannah’s wedding ceremony❣️
Thanks to Andy and Sophie who captured some of the video footage while we were standing up there with the bride and groom. :)
Sophie also snapped some really great pics of the day
I love this shot of the happy bride just after the ceremony.
Sophie helped me with some of the photography :)
It meant that I got to have some pictures of me capturing the pictures. That's fun since it's a perspective I don't usually get to see.
2026-03-21
Wow! We got the whole group in ❤️
Thankfully, the deputy sheriff at the court enjoys capturing their customer's big days. She ran over and offered to get a shot of all of us. From left to Right. Savannah's brother (with his wife and two kids). Her parents and her dad's parents. Her sister (with her boyfriend). Then Savannah and John. His parents, his dad's mom. Then his brother (with his girlfriend). Bartons, part of 17 🤪
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