Posted by Michelle on Oct 4, 2023 in Jeff, Michelle
Jeff and I went to London for eight days for our 25th anniversary! It was a magical trip – Stonehenge, Westminster Abbey coronation chair since 1200 and the Graves of Elizabeth I and Mary Queen of Scots, Shakespeare, Dickens, Darwin, Kipling, Churchill, Isaac Newton, Stephen Hawking, etc. MacBeth at the Globe for open theatre in the round, Wicked at the Victoria Apollo. Beatles private taxi tour with walking across Abbey Road. Lillywhites – 5 story, 160 year old sporting goods store. British Museum private tour with Rosetta Stone, Parthenon Sculptures, mummies and the Bust of Rameses the Great. Soho, Carnaby Street, Chinatown, Beefmaster Guards…
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.
I still have a pile of photos from cross country, basketball and soccer seasons to post but I figured I’d at least post the official team photos from basketball and soccer from Hayley’s freshman year at RTHS.
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.”
I’m catching up on photos slowly but surely! As some of you know, I don’t like being in photos but the fabulous photographer Graham Morrison came up from Charlotte so I couldn’t resist.
