Baby Boy is 8!!

You're growing up way to fast for Aunt Sissy!!

Happy 8th Birthday, Kaleb Avery!!

Aunt Sissy and Uncle Man love you all the muches!!!!

The Prayer

What precious children and grandchildren I have and how well they know my heart! Just look at my Mother's Day present from all of them . . .

It's like they read my mind and heart and heard my whispered prayer every morning as my eyes slowly begin to open and my own feet hit the floor.

What better prayer can a grandmother pray for her grandchildren and children for that matter?

From the sneaky smiles on these two faces, looks like they need a lot of prayin' for! Thank you, my sweet angels, for the most amazing present ever!!!

My Mama

Amid the love, hugs, and kisses of Mother's Day, there's always a touch of sadness . . . a little part (actually a very big part) of my heart that longs for my mama . . . for her sweet, guiding presence, her love of family, her wonderful homecooked meals, the laughter that was always present at her table, but especially for her faith and trust in God and her gentle reminder that no matter what we were going through, God was in control . . . for her words of wisdom like "what goes round, comes round" and "this too shall pass" . . . for her quick wit and huge heart . . . yes, I could go on and on. Even after 17 years, there's still times that I think, "I'll just call Mama and see what she thinks", I'm always wondering what she would do in certain situations and I never travel down a local back road that I don't remember riding that same road on a Sunday afternoon with Mama, Daddy, and my Granny while receiving valuable history lessons.

Mama in her twenties

Easter 1992

Gran and her girls on Father's Day 1994 admiring her beautiful day lilies~ how I wish I had gotten someone else to take this picture so I could have been a part of the last picture ever taken of my precious Mama. Looking at this picture, one would never guess that in one short week my Mama would be gone forever from this earth ~ oh, how I miss her soft voice, her black eyes, her hugs and her loving advice on everything from raising kids to growing flowers.

Oh, how Gran would have loved seeing the wonderful young men and women her grandchildren have grown into ~ she would have been so very proud of them. And how much fun would she have had with my Fabulous Five and Dan's brood of boys and sweet Josie!

Mande and the A girls

Beth and the C girls

Mama used to say that no one would ever name their children after her . . . after all, who would use Sybil and Aileen? Wouldn't she be so honored to have little Ailee and little Cybil as namesakes? There's certainly no 2 that are more like her straight down to the black eyes!!

On the day she passed away, she told Taylor, who had just turned 3 and loved frogs, that she was going to a place where she could find him the biggest frog ever and would keep it for him until she saw him again. Tay, I bet Gran has that frog on a leash just waiting . . .

Danielle and the gang

Lynn and her babies

Yes, Gran would be so proud of all her babies!

"If the Lord's willing," we'll all celebrate another Mother's Day next year and, who knows . . . before long we might even be adding other baby to the clan!

Happy Mother's Day to all my favorite Mamas who just happen to be the best in the world!!

Derby Day 2011

Horses, big hats, julep cups, and 3 giggly girls ~ ~ what better way to enjoy the great southern tradition of Derby Day!

While the A girls mama and daddy were off to the service league Derby event that mama and Miss Julie planned and decorated . . .

getting dressed

Just look at that southern gent and his lady!

Mimi and girls had our own Derby celebration ~ first we designed out hats, changed clothes to match the hats (sorry mama for all the extra laundry!) and posed for pictures to send to mama and Granddaddy.

Then, at 5:15 we were ready to sit back and take in the 137th running of The Kentucky Derby dressed in style!

Just look at those hats!

AG and I were definitely betting on this little cutie riding Pants on Fire! Ailee's pick was #5, while Adelynn yelled out "16" when asked which number she wanted (remember she's only 2 1/2 so she didn't really understand but has heard her "abc's" and "1,2,3's" enough to know a number . . . and besides she thought the red hat worn by the jockey looked like Mickey Mouse!).

Of course, we had to have our "mint" juleps ~ ours were actually lemonade but ooops . . . Mimi forgot the mint! ~~ as we watched the horses parade into the starting gate.

Then in just 2 short minutes we had a WINNER!! Adelynn was so excited her "Mickey" horse won!!! Then it was time to load up our buggy and head on over to Ronald Macs for chicken and fries which, of course, had to include a little romp on the playground and a chocolate sundae!

Oh, the fun of being a Southern Mimi!!

A Salute . . .

. . . to my son, the Agent!

It's been a long, tiring 2 weeks since the tornadoes tore through Alabama, Georgia, Tennessee, and other southern states, leaving a path of great destruction ~ leaving lives forever changed ~ leaving families without homes and belongings ~ and, more importantly, leaving some families with hearts torn wide open from the loss of loved ones. Our prayers have gone out to these families . . . no one can imagine how they are feeling, how they are coping, how they are going on with day to day life.

On the acre we only received rain . . .

lots and lots of rain!

The tornado tore through the home town of the "A" girls but, thankfully, no one was killed and their home didn't receive any damage . . . although the tornado bounced around and skipped right over their old neighborhood before completely demolishing another neighborhood close by.

That same tornado crossed the mountains into Big Unc's hometown but, again, thankfully, he received no damage.

The Tennessee area where my baby is a State Farm agent didn't see a tornado but did receive severe hail and wind damage ~ even breaking a window in his office. Compared to the rest of the towns touched by the tornadoes, his hometown was lucky . . . and, even though his customers know they are lucky, they still have windows broken out of their homes and cars, roofs blown off or holes through them from trees, and many other problems . . . but there were no deaths, no families with gaping holes in their hearts.

Still there were voice mails to be answered, claims to be filed and long hours spent at the office with the broken window. As of yesterday, the agent and his 2 employees had handled 830 + claims ~ to his mama, that's alot of heartache to deal with, tempers to sooth, paper work, phone calls and days without lunch or dinner . . . and the work isn't over!

How you have survived so far I'm sure is by the grace of our God and the prayers of your mama on your behalf. I just want you to know how very proud I am of you and the work you do ~ how you handle such despair is beyond me . . . especially with no sleep and trying to coach softball, chauffeur basketball players to practice, and play on your church league softball team.

Knowing you, your patience grew a little thin; but, also knowing you, your heart feels what these people are going through and your need to put things straight and make things right kicked in and you've handled yourself as the professional young man you are.

Congratulations on a good well done under such trying circumstances.

I love you all the muches,

Mama

Happy Cinco de Mayo!

Yesterday while Mimi was babysitting, Mande and I were trying to explain to the A girls just what Cinco de Mayo is . . . yes, we thought it was the celebration of Mexican independence . . . and why did we celebrate it here in the United States? It was all a little confusing to them . . . so,when Mimi got home she had to do a little research and here's what I found . . .

These websites are only 2 of many that hold information on Cinco de Mayo. Mamas, you might want to let your girls read them for correct information.

http://www.vivacincodemayo.org/history.htm and http://abcnews.go.com/US/cinco-de-mayo-history-american-celebration-battle-puebla/story?id=10561976

Basically, Cinco de Mayo is the holiday that commenorates the Mexican army's unlikely victory over French forces at the Battle of Puebla on May 5, 1862. Mexican Independence Day occurred September 15, 1810. Both articles emphasized that Cinco de Mayo is not really celebrated in Mexico as it is in the United States; Mexicans celebrate their independence day the same way we celebrate July 4. According to the abcnews.go.com article, originally beer companies began making a big deal over Cinco de Mayo because they saw it as a way to sell more beer . . . hummm . . . now, many Americans just use it as a way to eat traditional Mexican dishes and drink margaritas and P.A.R.T.Y. Well, maybe that's why our country club is having a big Cinco de Mayo party tonight ~ complete with all kinds of Mexican dishes and 2 for one margaritas.

Yes, Mimi and Granddaddy will be joining the Lances tonight for the big celebration (minus the margaritas). Heartburn tomorrow most likely.

But, the A girls are just glad their country club is going for plain FAMILY night and serving their favorite food ~ CATFISH!!

However, you're celebrating ~ just think about the ending of the article from the vivacincodemayo.org site . . .

It might be a historical stretch to credit the survival of the United States to those brave 4,000 Mexicans who faced an army twice as large in 1862. But who knows.

In gratitude, thousands of Mexicans crossed the border after Pearl Harbor to join the U.S. Armed Forces. As recently as the Persian Gulf War, Mexicans flooded American consulates with phone calls, trying to join up and fight another war for America.

Mexicans, you see, never forget who their friends are, and neither do Americans. That's why Cinco de Mayo is such a party -- a party that celebrates freedom and liberty. There are two ideals which Mexicans and Americans have fought shoulder to shoulder to protect ever since the 5th of May, 1862.

VIVA! el CINCO DE MAYO!!

HopPop's Day!

May and the first ~ a very special birthday!!

Happy Birthday, Danielle!!

We love you all the muches, HopPop!!

Aunt Sissy and the Girls!