Family Rocker Gets Restored After 30 Years In Storage!

When I had exited my 1st marriage and had set up housekeeping in my Townhouse apt. I went shopping for some inexpensive furniture and other household objects. One of those was a pine rocker. Just your basic porch rocker. Then I met my 2nd husband, had our daughter, and when she turned about 4 mos. old, my maternal grandmother was coming up for a visit and so my mother and I and her got together for a "generational picture" with Grandmama Karr sitting in the rocker holding our baby daughter! Then, she passed, we moved into our home, the kids grew, things went into storage, and fast forward, now our daughter is in her early 30's with 2 young children and the last grandchild is 2 1/2 now. So I thought it would be awesome to refinish the rocker, bring it back into the house, gather everybody for another generational picture. Only problem is we are kinda scattered and still trying to get everybody together for it to take place but I'm posting pictures of the first picture, and before and after to get your opinions. So 32 years later, I pulled it out of the barn, completely reglued and steadied it, brackets were fine so a bit of wood glue on the bottom rungs were all that was needed and at the top knob. I completely sanded it down to the bare wood, now mind you I went to HD and found a golden Pecan stain, put that all over it, NOOOOOOOOO!!!!! Back to square one! Take it all the way back down to the raw wood AGAIN! Go back and this time just get a Natural stain, I simply applied it with a foam brush to be sure to work it into all the crevices, allowed it to dry for 2 full days, lightly steel wool it with the 0000 texture, restain it, buff it again, then I got the Helmsman Clear Gloss Exterior wood spray and 3 coats later it is glorious once again. Now some of you may scoff and say "Why didn't she get all the water stains out?! Yuk!" Well, I got as much as I could out and I showed it to my son and he goes "uh, I'd leave a bit of it in here and there and it'll look like you refinished a 100 year old chair!" Awesome! Thanks son! he was right! I love it! It's got sooooo much character now! The key with any piece of furniture is: "just do it and don't be afraid to try!" I grew up watching and working with my Dad who was a woodworker and Professional photographer and he taught me everything from wood to automotive to moving pipes and adding on from the concrete block up. I was the only child and when Daddy needed a helper, I was it. Of course lifting 2 10 x 18 concrete blocks at a time and lugging them around the basement, yard, etc. to add onto the house, plus propping up those old cast iron pipes for plumbing when I was from the age of 14 to 18 - we worked and we worked hard! Love you and miss you Daddy! Trying to carry on the legacy.