Then and Now....

The first picture was taking when we had been married all of two days. The second one was taken this year, with 34 yrs. under our belts. I can honestly say I love him more now than I did then!

Family Pictures...take two

It took two settings to get a conflict free photo of our family, but this time everyone was on their best behavior! We got a lot of great pictures.

 The big 6!

 This is the one I chose for the wall.

When we got done we headed to eat and I got a call from Mom and Dad's neighbor. He told me my dad had fallen and then had a seizure. Mom had called the ambulance and they were heading to the ER. John, the kids, John, Jr and I quickly headed back to Raleigh. I then left them at home and took off for Tarboro. When I got there, my dad was doing very well. He had been putting away his Christmas wood displays and was on a ladder, fell back and hit the concert floor. He came inside and as he was telling my mom, he had a seizure. Thank God, the CAT scan showed no damage. He was sore and fuzzy headed for about a week, but other than that, he was fine! God was definitely watching over him, for that, I'm so very grateful!

Two games in one year.... crazy!

For Christmas, Daniel and John gave us tickets to UNC vs. VT. It's amazing to be able to go to one UNC basketball game, but two is definitely a luxury.

We enjoyed being together and one of the few things we both like....UNC basketball!

The Heels also got a win for us to watch, which was icing on the cake!!

Championship banners....

Love this guy! We both love our boys and how they know us so well!

She knows us well!

Daniel's girlfriend, Sara, only met us for the first time this past June, but already she knows us pretty well. For Daniel's Christmas, she gave us all tickets to see UNC play basketball against Louisville.

We had such a good time walking around Chapel Hill and going into Wilson Library. We enjoyed each other's company greatly....then the Heels laid an egg on the basketball floor!

They lost very badly to a team that was ranked below them.

But, nevertheless we still had day with good memories of being together.

Indoctrinating Sara.

Old Salem, January 12, 2019

I've always wanted to visit Old Salem. Many years ago, John the older kids and I walked through, but we didn't have the time to take in order to get our money's worth.

We decided to plan a trip during our school break. Anna, Jamie and the girls met us there.
We had a really nice time. We all learned a lot.

Our first stop at the kitchen of the inn.

Then the quilter's house.

Then the potter's shop. The girl used her foot to keep the wheel turning.

At the Brothers' house we heard the lady plan the original pipe organ

In the Brothers' house the girls checked out the "sick room" bed.

The oven was cooking at the bakery. We bought some wonderfully good (and equally expensive) cookies.

Then the weaver's house

Next the apothecary and doctor's house. Here they are looking at leeches.

Working the water pump

At the end of the day, as we were coming out of the Dr.'s house an older woman approached us and asked if we'd like her to take our picture. We said, "Sure!" What followed was very bizarre....

She took several pictures, directing us to assume several poses.

She even followed us to the "God's little Acres", which is where the brother's and sister's are buried.

While there, she talked to me about Abbey and Elijah's adoptions, and was she very sweet. Eventually she walked off and disappeared.... so strange!

It was a great day!!

Polar Bear Plunge-Jan. 1st, 2019

For several years, Abbey has wanted to participate in Holden Beach's "New Year's Day Polar Bear Plunge". This year was her year!! The weather wasn't that cold, so John volunteered to do it with her.

They did it!! Check one thing off of Abbey's bucket list and add another reason for John's bid for Dad of the Year!!