2010 Christmas Card

It was a "Tom and Jerry" good time!

John Brady celebrated his 6th birthday with friends and family

last Saturday. Luckily, it was a pretty day. The kids seemed to enjoy playing outside and the adults enjoyed watching them.

I can't believe my "big" little man is 6 years old.

MeMe and Pops love you John Brady.

Oh, can you believe that cake!

Great job, Elaine!

Not Again!!!!!

I wrote in my first post of 2011 that I had been sick since

December 31st. I went to the doctor that day and got three shots

and three prescriptions.

Well, I got to feeling better....not great but better.

I really just thought that it was how I always seem down in January and

was trying not to seem like a big baby.

So......Saturday night around midnight I woke up with a terrible coughing spell.

I could not quit coughing. Eventually, I took a double dose of my prescription cough

medicine but it didn't faze it. I finally fell asleep and felt better when I woke up. This has been typical of me all month only I usually don't have that bad a coughing spell.

We got ready and went to church. I did okay. Coughed a little but John had gotten me a

glass of ice water from the church kitchen and I sipped that during the service.

After church we went with friends to eat. I still felt like my "normal" for the last month. When I began eating I realized that it was making me feel a little nauseous. In just a few minutes I

I could tell that I had started running a fever.

103*

LONG story short....

I went to the Mitt Lary walk in clinic.

Love that place.

Well......I have pneumonia!

I got a couple of shots and four prescriptions.

I am home taking it easy today.

If you see me you might think.....

she doesn't look like she has pneumonia....

Well, I feel so much better than I have in three weeks.

Guess I should have gone back to the doctor quicker!

Remembering Cathy

January 23, 2006

I lost my friend

"There are times in every life when we feel hurt or alone. But I believe

that these times when we feel lost and all around us seems to be falling apart

are really bridges of growth. We struggle and try to recapture the security of

what was, but almost in spite of ourselves we emerge on the other side with a

new understanding, a new awareness, a new strength. It is almost as though we must go through the pain and the struggles in order to grow and reach new heights........Job said, "But he knowth the way that I take; when he hath

tested me I shall come forth as gold. My foot hath held fast to his steps. His way have I kept and turned not aside' Job 23: 10-11 (copied)

Sweet memories of GOOD TIMES

6 Years.....Already???

Look at that Beautiful Smile

Happy 6th Birthday

John Brady Lawson III

MeMe and Pops love you Abby, Lawson, John Brady, Emma

Our Last Shopping Trip

5 years ago

at this time

I was on my last shopping trip with Cathy

John Brady's 1st Birthday party was the upcoming Saturday

Kim had put a quilt rack on his birthday wish list

She wanted one to hang on the wall

so his baby quilt would be kept safe

Cathy and I loved any reason to go shopping

Cathy was working at the mine early hours and long days

but

She never would let me go by myself

I called her that day and told her I was going to Tuscaloosa to try to

find a hanging quilt rack

She said to wait until she got off work and she would go with me

I am so glad we had that last trip together

It was strictly a trip to hunt a quilt rack

We took turns running into every store we thought might

have a chance of having one

In the end

we did not find a quilt rack

and

I ordered him one off the Internet and gave it to him late

But

we got our last shopping trip

We did our usual

she came to Billy Gibson's and parked

I picked her up

We stopped at Big Al's to get a

cold cold Diet Dr. Pepper and some peanut M&M's

You have to have energy to power shop

We shopped and then ate supper

and

then I took her back to her car and she rode home to Fayette

That was our last shopping trip together

3 1/2 days later she was gone

SONGS and the memories they bring back

I can hear a song and be instantly transported back in time

It always brings a picture to my mind

Sunday night I was watching one of my favorite shows

and a song started playing

Instantly

John and I were pulling out of the Pasquale's parking lot in Birmingham.

That '66 Chevy II engine making the sound that John loved.

The wind blowing my long blonde hair everywhere

and our heads full of all the possibilities of what life had in store for us.

Oh, what a wonderful time,

young and in love,

assuming all your dreams would somehow come true

because we were in love!

Well, life has taught us that all our dreams do not come true.

Thank you

No one needs all their dreams to come true.

We have made a life that is all our own.

Those dreams when you are young and in love

belong to other people.

It's what you see other people do and have.

Now, many of them are very worthwhile and worthy of wanting.

But, this one and only life has been ours to make.

The dreams we made to remember!

Anyway

I do not have a picture of John and I riding down the road

in that Chevy II

so

I found these pictures of us

Yes, we were that young when we got married

One more thought

There is a peace that comes with realizing

that even though we have had many dreams come true,

many wonderful things happened that we never dreamed of,

some of our dreams will never be realized

and

we are perfectly happy anyway!

SO

here is the song

ME and YOU and a DOG named Boo

I remember to this day

The bright red Georgia clay

and how it stuck to the tires, after the Georgia rain

Will power made that old car go

A woman's mind told me that's so

Oh, how I'd wished we were back on the road again

Me and you and a dog named Boo

Traveling and a living off the land

Me and you and a dog named Boo

How I loved being a free man

Now, I can still recall

The wheat field of St. Paul

And the morning we got caught

Robbing from an old hand

Old McDonald he made us work

But then he paid us for what it was worth

Another tank of gas, back on the road again

Me and you and a dog named Boo

Traveling and a living off the land

Me and you and a dog named Boo

How I loved being a free man

Now, I'll never forget the day

We motored stately into big LA

The lights of the city put settling down in my brain

Thought it's only been a month or so

That old car's bugging us to go

We got to get away and get back on the road again

Me and you and a dog named Boo

Traveling and a living off the land

Me and you and a dog named Boo

How I loved being a free man

Look What I Found

MINOR HIGH SCHOOL BAND

FLAG BEARERS

1970-71 Standing - Vickie Ellenburg, Janice Cook, Joy Wood (Lawson)
Front row - Karen Waldrop (Rawlins) Kaye Roberts, Carlynn Kennedy

We Watched it in the Emergency Room

Congratulations!

Auburn Tigers

2010 National Champions

I f you saw this earlier I had 2011

always seems to cause me a problem

It was sort of a let down for me. We had made plans to watch the game. Planned our food and where we would watch it. Instead, I watched the 1st half in the emergency room in Birmingham. Totally different town and definitely a different venue than was planned. My son in law was at the game in Arizona. I came to Birmingham Saturday to stay with Courtney until Monday. After Lawson got out of Mom's Day Out we were heading to Berry. We were then going to Brady's to watch the game and eat some Dreamland ribs. Well, old man weather took care of that. Courtney did not get to fly out to work, I didn't get to go home and then the Law Man got sick.

Our emergency room trip couldn't have worked out any better. The people were so nice and treated Lawson quickly so we could get off the road. There were TVs everywhere in the hospital but at that time I was just worrying about getting us back home.

We made it home for the second half but we were kind of mentally and emotionally

cooked by that time.

I wanted to enjoy the game. Scream and holler for the last time until August.

That didn't happen because I was just too tired at that point. It was a good game. Guess I am glad. I really expected Auburn to beat them by 50 points. I truly think Cam Newton is the best player I have ever seen. But, having a close Championship Game just makes it that much sweeter.

So now

everybody can hate the whole State of Alabama

GO SEC

Oh, you know they all hate us!

It dawned on me as I was about to post this that somebody just visiting might not realize that I am a big Alabama fan. I didn't want to take anything away from Auburn in my congratulation post so I didn't say anything about it. so just in case....Roll Tide Roll!

It's A Whole New Year

2011

I am going to ramble a little bit

I am sick

I have been sick since Friday, December 31st

Great way to spend a New Year's Eve

I lay in bed and thought about the year before

I was in NYC watching the ball drop

sigh

We had such a wonderful Christmas

I absolutely love Christmas

Every single thing about Christmas

except

I do not like to wrap gifts

thinking about hiring it done next year

it's a thought

I have all my decorations down

the inside decorations are all in the toy room

I put them there before I left for Gatlinburg

have been too sick to do anything with them

As much as I love December and Christmas

I really dislike January

I usually always get sick in January

My house always looks so dull after all the decorations are down

It is rainy and dreary

Everybody is broke

John does his serious hunting in January

so he gone a lot

I can't complain though

he hangs in there with me at Christmas

and

I lost my buddy in January

Shifting gears

Elaine Renfroe retired

If you are from Berry

and your child had Mrs. Renfroe for English

and

they went on to college

you owe her a big thank you

so here goes

Congratulations Elaine

and

Thank You

ENJOY

When I moved to Berry

many years ago

it seemed there were some characters in Berry

that were held up on pedestals

Having lived in Birmingham all my life

and trying to learn the ways of a small town

I quickly came to recognize the name

Joe Patillo

RIP

We bought John Brady a big boy 20 inch

bicycle for Christmas

Brady couldn't get it in the van that night

so it had been at our house since Christmas

John Brady had never rode a bike without training wheels

I took JB3's bike to him Monday

Brady took all the kids to the park Monday afternoon

to ride bikes

John Brady was scared to try his new bike

Brady got him on, gave him a push

and that big boy took off riding like he had been doing

it for years

Woo Hoo JB3

Josh went back home last weekend

I get used to him being gone

but

when I am around him for a few days

I really miss him after he leaves

Love you, Joshie

Josh and I had a really good football talk

About Alabama and Auburn

About the way you see things when you get away from them

About fans and what they think they know

about the mind of a coach

like I said

a good talk

opened my eyes a little

Did I tell you that my kids got me a

Kindle

for Christmas

I have been too sick to fool with it

but since I am finally feeling better

look out

can't wait to read from my Kindle

Back to Christmas

I love picture Christmas cards.

I love getting any Christmas cards

love the sentiment and that the person

cared enough to send it to me

I keep my picture cards and put them out every Christmas

Our family Christmas card this year

was one of the easiest we have ever done

We really didn't do a theme like I usually do

We didn't do a beach family picture this year

so I knew I wanted the Christmas picture to

be a good family picture

Sue Moon came and clicked the camera for us

thank you, Sue

you're a good friend

We made the pics with Kim's camera

I bet in just the space of a few minutes we had 200 pics snapped

Here's the funny

If you flip through them it is

like a old time movie of

Lawson picking his nose!

you know how everybody looks at the camera

Well, Law man was looking at the camera but he cleaned out both sides

of his nose

we had maybe 10 that he wasn't picking his nose

oh well

I think our card turned out fine

If you don't get one from my family and would

like to get one I would love to put you on our list

okay

Sarah Palin

sorry

can't help it

I love her

watching Sarah Palin's Alaska as I write this

I will be glad when the TV programming is

back to normal

my son in law is going to Arizona

for Auburn's championship game

Stub Hub offered him today

a full refund for the price of his ticket

plus $2000.00 if he would sell it back to them

He turned them down

I don't blame him

I was standing in the stands at The Rose Bowl last year

when Alabama became the

National Champions

UNBELIEVABLE feeling!

Okay

now, about blogger

Blogger drives me crazy

I can spend hours getting the spacing just right

I preview my work

everything is just as I want it

and then

I hit

Publish Post

and

Blogger

just does whatever it wants

So

if you notice

some single space

and some double space

It is not me trying

to be creative

It is the mind of BLOGGER

and I finally quit caring!

Well, they are saying that is is going to snow

I don't think I will ever get too old for snow

my favorite thing about snow

How quiet everything gets

when you walk outside in snow everything is muffled

and finally

we have two dogs

one is coming to the end of her days

I am trying to accept and come to grips with this

sigh