July Fourth Party at Louie and Cece's

When we were gadding about in Cleveland County over the Fourth of July weekend, we attended a party hosted by my niece and her husband, Cece and Louie at their lovely home on Chatfield Rd.  It was a great opportunity to visit with family and friends.

Louie welcoming guests. 

Dan and Andy (my grand nephew).

Cece and Louie's daughter Laura.

Sisters: Kelly and Cece.

 And to have some delicious barbecue prepared by my brother-in-law, Hal.

Barbecue and other delicious food.

The children especially enjoyed the pool, and even the smallest ones were able to float around safely and some of the small ones were already jumping off the diving board.

Brayton enjoying the water.

Cason ready to jump. 

Kristen and Brayton (my great grand nephew).

Cason (my great grand nephew) out of the pool.

What's a party without a game of cornhole?

Thank you Cece and Louie.  We had a marvelous time!

Zach and the Aussies (Part Two): The Aussies in Raleigh

Claire's relatives in Australia were such wonderful hosts to Zach that it was a pleasure to be able to host them recently during their visit to Raleigh.  Michael and Meredith (Zach's Mom and Dad)  hosted a dinner for them---Southern fare: BBQ and hushpuppies with all the trimmings, Jeanette (Claire's Mom) made Smithfield ham rolls, and I baked pies: pumpkin and pecan.

BBQ, hushpuppies and trimmings, real Southern fare.

Jeanette's sister Diane and husband Bob, Diane and Bob's daughter Claire and husband Daniel and their seven-month-old son Lachlan made up the Aussie contingent,  Zach's Claire was named after her cousin Claire.

Back row left to right: Daniel and Uncle Bob  Front row left to right.: Jeanette, Claire, Lachlan, Cousin Claire, Aunt Diane. 

Everyone enjoyed Lachlan who was a good little traveler on this trip.  Grace even brought Briggs, their cat, down from upstairs to meet Lachlan who was fascinated with the feline.  I must say Briggs was pretty patient too.Check out this video of Lachlan meeting Briggs :    Briggs and Lachlan

Zach and Claire with Lachlan.

Michael seemed to be enjoying the evening.

Michael enjoying the party.

Jeanette chatting with Dan

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Uncle Bob and Claire ready for dessert.

Pound cake, pumpkin pie, pecan pie.

Brooks and Aunt Di; Dan and Jeanette in background.

Brooks got home late because of basketball practice, but he got there in time to visit with Aunt Di and to have some dinner---there were plenty of leftovers.

 It was a great party and fun for everyone. And it was especially nice to meet Claire's Aussie relatives.

I Have A New Chauffeur in the Family

Happy Birthday to my second grandson, Brooks, who turns sixteen today.  That means I have someone else in the family who can be our "chauffeur" should we need it.  It's hard to believe Brooks is sixteen---time passes so quickly.  Enjoy those little grands while you can.

Here are some pics of Brooks during the years. 

Brooks was proud of his brother, Zach, who was the State Champion in Free Throws in 2003.

Brooks is ever the athlete.  Over the years he has played almost every sport and enjoyed as a spectator all sports.

Brooks (right)  skiing with his brother Zach and his Uncle Patrick in 2007.

Brooks at second base, 2009.

Brooks a spectator at his sister's soccer game in 2012. (I liked his hair long.)

Now however he is a spectator of many sports, but he's concentrating on basketball as a participant.  He made the JV team at Broughton High this year and he hopes to make the Varsity team (I think he will) next year.  He will be playing AAU basketball this summer. 

Brooks on the Broughton JV team, 2012-13.

He enjoys dressing up for the dances too.

Getting ready for the Queen of Hearts Dance 2012.

Brooks and Grandpat Christmas 2011.

Hope your day is great Brooks!  I'm ready to go for a ride!!!!

Grace's Early Birthday Celebration

Grace with her brother, Tyler.

Granddaughter Grace turns eleven this summer, but we will be out of town on her birthday, so we celebrated early on Thursday evening at Kanki, Grace's favorite restaurant.  Some in the family tried to convince her to choose Angus Barn, but there was no chance she would choose some place other than Kanki.

Dan, Claire, Zach and Grace waiting on the rest of the family to arrive.

The four grands plus Claire having soup. L to R  Brooks, Tyler, Grace, Claire, Zach

The volcano.

Food.

Michael looking rather pensive---his daughter is growing up too fast.

Claire and Grace with her pretty bow.

Happy Early Birthday Grace!

In Memory of All Who Served

Memorial Day 2012. 

My mother had three brothers all of whom served in World War II.  This blog is dedicated to  their memory.  Uncle Jay was the oldest of the three.  He served in North Africa.

Uncle Jay Dickens on right.

R.L. Dickens (Photo from my sister's FB post).

Uncle R.L. served in Germany and was in the Battle of the Bulge and in the Normandy invasion.  He had a number of medals including the Bronze Star. 

Uncle Charles Dickens.

Uncle Charles was the youngest and was only seventeen when he joined the army.  His older brothers were already serving.  He was captured in Germany and at first was listed as MIA.  I can barely remember my mother getting the news of this.  Later she learned he was a P.O.W..  He was a P.O.W. until the end of the war when the camp was liberated  by the Allied Forces.

It must have been very difficult for my grandmother having all three of her sons serving in the army during the war.  Fortunately, all three returned home safely.

Dana and Wayne's Wedding

The bride with her father, Steve.

When my cousin Dana Daniels was a teenager she would sometimes stay with us when she was down this way playing in a state tennis tournament.  She was a terrific little tennis player, and now she's all grown up.  Yesterday she married Wayne Hearn, who coincidentally is a tennis coach.   The wedding at the Ranson House in Huntersville was beautiful, and we visited with a lot of family members we don't see very often.  Great fun!!

The groom arrives.

 

 

 

Wedding guests included the bride's aunts and uncle.

Aunt Debby.

Aunt Robin.

Uncle Johnny & Aunt Linda.

Dana and Wayne exchange vows.

 

 

 

Getting ready for a family photo.

 

 

 

Tent all ready for the reception.

Father (Steve) and Mother (Joan) arriving at reception.

 

 

 

Lara, the bride's sister and maid of honor, arriving at reception.

 

 

 

Linda with grandson, Jack, at reception.

Dan and Pat at reception.

Weddings are always fun, and this one was especially so. It was also kind of a family reunion.  Best wishes to Dana and Wayne.