1966 - Ruth, Diane and Lottie with the Fourth Generation, Lynn Meredith

Ruth Kellogg's diary entry and the picture of her with daughter Diane Pellettiere and mother Lottie Meredith are not in Pieces of a Life. This picture was taken in Mount Prospect IL in Aug., 1966 after Diane and Dan, both 30, moved back from New York City.  One of Dan's clown paintings is on the wall above Lottie.

The scab on Diane's leg came from a fall she took running into Randhurst to buy more paint for the walls she was painting.  Though Diane was carrying Lynn in her arms at the time, the baby was unharmed.

Thursday, May 12, 1966
   "No word yet (3 PM) from N.Y.  Am taking pills to ward off a cold and not doing much -- just pot-roasting beef for supper and knitting & watching TV.  
    Dan phoned at about 10:20 PM.  Diane had a little girl, about 6 lbs. -- name Lynn Meredith.  All O.K.  She went in at 9 AM.  Up at 2 AM and birth about 9:45 PM.  I phoned Beth & Ken the news."

Ruth uses Central time rather than Eastern for each event.  For instance, Lynn (6 lbs. 7 oz.) was born at 10:38 PM at Beth Israel Hospital in New York...The Kelloggs had two other grandchildren by then, Philip Alan (5) and Roger Winslow (2), but this was the first girl.  There would be two more, Cynthia Jo and Katherine Diane.

Ruth (60) flew to NYC to help out from May 16-25.  During that time, Dan flew to Chicago and looked at houses over a weekend, driven round by Diane's brother, Ken.  Dan and Diane had discussed what they wanted in a house before he left, so Dan worked off of that list - and bought a house on May 22 at 1101 Greenfield Rd., Mount Prospect.  They occupied it in August and were happy there until they outgrew it and moved in 1971.

Ruth and John were packing to leave for Florida on any day when they weren't babysitting for us (or Ken). They were now able to occupy their condo with the renter having moved to NYC.  They left on Monday, August 29, started unpacking boxes in FL, but then flew back to Chicago on Sept. 4 to do more packing and also see the Ken's and Diane's families as well as Lottie and Jim, Ruth's brother.  The Greyhound Moving Van came on Sept. 9 and Ruth and John left on Sept. 12, spending the next few weeks unpacking, making small changes in their condo.

It was an enormous change for both Ruth and John.  They both cried on Sunday, Aug. 28 when their Gamma Nu Sunday School class gave them a parting Revere Bowl.  They had been at First Baptist since 1941 when they moved to Oak Park.  One blessing that made it easier was the many church friends who either moved to Clearwater or vacationed there.