Week Full of Ups and Downs

I know that it's been a while since I've blogged. For a while we thought that something was wrong with our camera so during that time, I didn't take pictures. Wouldn't you know that as soon as Matt took the camera to be repaired, it suddenly worked again? The flash had stopped working but now it works. We wanted to make sure that it worked due to upcoming events.

This past weekend, the rain finally ended but on Saturday it was very rainy so we headed to the Discovery Center. It was the first time that all 4 of us had been as a family and we had a blast!! It was a very fun morning.

A few of my friends know that over the last couple of months my great-aunt Mary Tom, who is 102 years old, had a great decline in her health. In the spring, they found out that she had a rare type of lymphoma. For the most part, she has always been in really good health and has remained sharp as a tack. Anyway, having this disease at her age, there's not a whole lot that they are going to do. Mary Tom lost her appetite and just gradually went downhill but she still always appreciated visits, etc. Though she was in really good health physically until these last few months, she lost most of her vision several years ago so this was a challenge for her. Mary Tom was a devout Christian lady who remained active in many organizations and her church for as long as she could. She was interested in everyone-where they were from, what they did, where they went to church, their interests, etc. Mary Tom passed away on Tuesday morning but we were all expecting it.

Mary Tom was almost like another grandmother to me because she was always there for holidays, family birthdays, etc. She never had children of her own so all of her nieces and nephews were her family. Also, she remained single until she was 60 years old and then her husband only lived a relatively short time. We will miss Aunt Mary Tom but at the same time I am so glad that she is in heaven now where there is no pain, sickness, or dying. I have prayed for this for her over the last couple of months daily-that she would not suffer and would go quickly. I am glad that she went peacefully and had very little pain until the last couple of days.

As a result of Mary Tom's passing, I have been able to see cousins and family members that I do not get to see that often so that is a blessing. I felt like I already had a lot on my plate this week so I don't know how it will all get done, but I'm sure that somehow it will get done. The weather has been beautiful all week but it is not helping my allergies. Today, the girls and I had a nice time at the park enjoying the sunshine!

Easter weekend

Paula's dad's siblings-Uncle Mike with Sophie, Paw-paw, Uncle Bobby,
Aunt Patti (front), Aunt Mary Tom, Uncle JoWie at Mary Tom's party

Sophie with her Easter goodies

Paula & Sophie-Easter Sunday

Sophie with Uncle Phil and Aunt Martha

There was a lot going on over Easter weekend this year. My great aunt, Mary Tom, turned 100 on April 7. Almost all of my 1st cousins (Paula's) and their families were able to come and celebrate her birthday and we had a big party for Mary Tom. Many of her old friends, relatives, neighbors, etc were able to come and celebrate with Mary Tom. She was well remembered because her church also held a large party in her honor and the assisted living facility where she lives honored her. We were glad that we could be with her to celebrate! I wish that one of us had taken more pictures of us cousins together but maybe someone got some pictures.

Sophie enjoyed spending time with her cousins. On Sunday, many of them had to head for home but we stayed in Nashville and went to church with Paula's family. On Saturday, even though it was very cold we had an Easter egg hunt for all of the kids. We had lunch together, we all went to the party for Mary Tom that afternoon and then that night we got together. Needless to say, by Sunday after church, Sophie was exhausted and took a 3 hour nap.

Memorial Day weekend in Nashville

We went to Nashville to visit family over Memorial Day weekend. Sophie got to become reacquainted with a couple of her second cousins from VA and some other family. She also spent time with her great great aunt Mary Tom. She is nearly a century older than Sophie, and she is still clipping along at a pretty fast pace. Later, Sophie pulled out her maracas and hat for a little fiesta with the family. On her last morning with the grandparents, Sophie made everyone laugh by trying to stuff a biscuit in her mouth at breakfast. When we went through airport security on our way back to Nashville, the whole family was selected for thorough screening. Sophie received her first "pat down" by law enforcement agents. We always thought she looked suspicious. We made it back safely.