Well after Mom, Dad and Cathie all died and all the Covid isolation, I didn’t feel like updating anything much. But it’s time to get back to normal.
As tough as things were, a lot of good things happened too. Trips to Boston, DC, Charlotte, Annapolis, West Jefferson and more. Visits with extended family, old and new friends. New babies, adoptions and graduations. Swearing ins, Galas, all sorts of great events. We even painted the house and I got a new Mercedes Benz (Hayley has my Jeep, lol). I’m healthy and loved – so much to be grateful for in my life.
Everyone lost a ton in 2020 with Covid, mine sucked because both my folks were diagnosed with stage four cancer – I’m an only child to divorced parent who live 30 and 90 minutes from me. 2021 started with losing my Mom in February, then my Aunt Cathie a few weeks ago. Cancer is insidious, it takes everything from you then most of the time it kills you anyway. My Aunt Cathie took her own way out before cancer could take her. I’m still struggling with that.
I feel like I’m untethered and I’m learning way too much about estate procedures. And that Bank of America is the worst place ever to have an account when someone dies.
Intertwined with that, is our our pride and joy over Hayley graduating college (Criminal Justice major, Psychology minor). We are thrilled that Hayley was hired for the first job she applied for and she works for the State of NC in Public Safety.
Graduation was the last time we saw my Aunt Cathie too. I’m so glad she came with us. Bittersweet though.
Mom found a great old video of mostly me but some other family too from 1973. Mom and Dad both young, Uncle Mike playing with me. I wish it had more than just a glimpse of Grandma as well as wishing the original converter from old tape hadn’t removed the audio. It’s still a lovely look back!
Had to go to the UNC-SDSU game to see the stripe out! Night games at Kenan are just so gorgeous – there is no place more beautiful for college football. My dad showed up and hung out for most of the game which was a nice gift too.
I have about 200 photos to post, mostly from Hayley’s high school basketball and soccer seasons… or July 4th… or whatever, I’m just way behind in general. But in the past 12 hours, I’ve got two old photos of ladies I love (my mom and my mother in law) and I had to post them because I’m so charmed by them both (you should begin humming The Way We Were by Streisand now and don’t make any jokes because everyone should know I’m obsessed with that movie).
My mom is on the right side, in the light pink top with the darker pink floral skirt before a friend’s wedding in 1973. Thanks to Facebook for this one, the poster was the bride and added, “your mom was always such a wonderful part of EVERYONE’S life. So funny. Actually, her whole family was hilarious and I think all her many friends would agree to that.”
My mother-in-law passed this one on to me last night with this story, “this picture that was sent by the daughter (baby on the left) of lifelong friends of mom and dad. The picture is of the Douthitts and mom and dad with mom holding me and Karen as a toddler. The two on the right are “Pops and Frances”, my dad’s parents. Karen or I had never seen this picture before. Cliff and Inez Douthett met my parents while they both were dating, then married, then had children about the same age. When we were young we used to drive to Texas (where they moved to) for visits. Then Mom and dad and they used to travel together when we kids grew up and moved away. Just interesting history. Cliff and Inez are still living. They had a very long friendship.”
It was a fun day, had lots of fun with flowers and balloons. She had a lot of instructions for food this year which was sort of funny. She wanted me to make her hash browns for breakfast, then get Starbucks on the way to school and then her very favorite slow cooked bbq chicken before cake. (She even talked us into Chili’s the night before so she could get dessert there too). The Renfroes came over with lovely gifts as well.
Of course the highlight was the big gift which was a new black and screen miniature dachshund puppy. I made up a birth announcement for the puppy, rolled it up and attached it to a toy weiner dog. Then we had Annabelle drag the toy with her to Hayley – as crazy as that sounds, it worked perfectly! The pup was a few hours away so we picked up the darling the following Sunday. She’s been begging for another forever so it was a huge hit. Hayley named the pup Lilly.
