Happy Birthday, Robert

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It’s hard to believe that this cute little boy is 44 years old today.  He looks like a little angel in this photo, but the photographer really had to work to get this photo.  Bobby didn’t want to have anything to do with picture-taking.  But the photographer made a loop of scotch tape and put it between Bobby’s hands.  When Bobby got distracted trying to get his hands apart, the photographer squeezed a squeaky toy causing Bob to look up.  The result was this, one of my favorite pictures of my little boy.

Speaking of hard to believe, it’s hard to believe I’m old enough to have a son that old.

Family Time

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It’s always a special time for Betsy when her middle son from Texas visits east Tennessee with his wife and two daughters.  They have many people to see in a short time, but we were able to spend the afternoon of Friday following Thanksgiving with them at Fall Creek Falls State Park.  We had a delicious lunch and  visit in the park lodge and then went to the Fall Creek Falls overlook to see the waterfall and take some pictures.

Judging from the smiles, it’s safe to say that everyone enjoyed themselves.

 

Happy Birthday, Dad

John Emery Adams, Jr. Christmas, 1938.

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Today is a very special day — my Dad is celebrating his 100th birthday.  The picture above, which he had taken for my mother when they were dating, is the earliest picture I could find.

It’s hard to imagine the changes he’s seen over the past century.  Dad was born in Texas, but his family moved to Arkansas when he was still a boy.  He remembers going to church in a horse-drawn wagon.  He was still a young teenager when he first encountered electricity.  His mother fussed at him because he kept turning a light off and on trying to figure out where the light came from.

Mom, Dad and me in 1942.

Dad met Mom in 1937 when he was in the CCC, but they had to wait until Mom was 20 in 1940 before they could get married.  They had their first child in 1942 (it’s been a long time since I had that much hair!).

Dad at Marty and Floyd’s house, Crown Point, Indiana. Approximately 1960.

Dad was always interested in gadgets.  This snapshot, taken about 1960, shows him with his 8mm movie camera at my aunt and uncle’s house.

Dad and Betsy at Amy and Matt’s wedding. June 16, 2001.

This picture shows Dad dancing with Betsy at my cousin’s wedding in 2001.  They were obviously a big hit on the dance floor.

Mom and Dad at Barren River State Park, Kentucky. August 29, 2004.

I took this picture of Mom and Dad in 2004 as we celebrated Dad’s 92nd birthday.  Mom died in June, 2011, shortly after their 71st wedding anniversary.

Dad and his new tractor in 2006.

Dad’s love of gadgets and learning things remained strong through the years.  He taught himself to use a computer when he was 90.  By the time he was 94 he decided he was too old to mow the lawn with his walking mower, so he got this riding tractor so he could continue mowing his own lawn.

Dad and Janet, Tullahoma, Tennessee. July 4, 2012.

This picture of Dad with my sister Janet is the most recent picture I have.  Dad now lives with Janet in Tullahoma, Tennessee.

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Dad conversing with a guest at his birthday celebration, Hendersonville, Tennessee. August 25, 2012.

We celebrated Dad’s birthday a few days early with a reception at his church in Hendersonville, Tennessee.  Quite a few friends from the church — as well as family members — came to see Dad and wish him a happy birthday.  In the picture above Dad is talking with a church member he hadn’t seen in over a year.  The woman on the right is his niece, who came down from Indiana with her family to see Dad.

Hunting Waterfalls with Dad

Dad in our car visiting waterfalls, Tullahoma, Tennessee. February 9, 2012.

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This past Thursday Betsy and I went down to Tullahoma to see Dad.  After helping him with some things around the house, we went out to lunch and then went for a ride.  Dad is legally blind, but he enjoys drives out into the countryside, so we took him along to visit a couple of waterfalls in the area.  He stayed in the car while Betsy and I were getting pictures of the waterfalls.  But since he was with us, I convinced him that I needed to get his picture as well.

Dad was more feeble when we saw him this time than he has been at other times, but since he’s going to be 100 in August that is to be expected.  He enjoyed being with us, just as we enjoyed being with him.

About the hat — one of Dad’s grandsons (my nephew) graduated from the Naval Academy in 2001 and gave Dad the hat, which he wears just about every time we go out.

The Women In My Life

Betsy and Kelly at Dale Hollow State Park, Kentucky. August 25, 2007.

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I was going through some old pictures recently and came upon this picture of Betsy and my daughter Kelly.  It was taken back in August, 2007, at Dale Hollow State Park in Kentucky.  Kelly and her husband, Chuck, were getting ready to move to Buffalo, so we met them at the Dale Hollow Lodge for a dinner and some time together.

All I wanted was a picture of these two women together.  I thought it was a simple request and could be easily done.  Obviously, I was wrong.

I just can’t take these two any where!

99 Years Young

Dad, my sister-in-law Bonnie and brother Ken. August 31, 2011.

My Dad turned 99 on Monday.  He’s still in relatively good health, although he has gone down since my Mother died in June.  He suffered a small stroke about three weeks ago, but is much better than when we last saw him a couple of weeks ago.

My brother and sister-in-law came down from Indiana this week, so we all got together last night to celebrate Dad’s birthday.  Cracker Barrel is one of Dad’s favorite places so we got together to celebrate.  All three of his children (do I qualify as a child when I’m pushing 70?) and our spouses were there.

Betsy, my sister Janet, brother-in-law Charlie, George, Dad, sister-in-law Bonnie and brother Ken. August 31, 2011.

The Cracker Barrel staff came to the table and sang Happy Birthday to Dad and presented him with some apple cobbler and ice cream.  I think that was Dad’s favorite part of the meal.

In Honor and Memory

Kay Adams. May 2, 1920 - June 6, 2011.

My mother died this morning at my sister’s home.  She  had been in declining health, but apparently had a massive heart attack and died quickly.  Betsy and I had seen her (and Dad) on Thursday and I talked with her on the phone Saturday.  She sounded very chipper and in good spirits.  She had just had some ice cream before I called, which was her favorite snack.

The feature of Mom that most people commented on was her smile.  When my parents moved to Tennessee, the children in their new neighborhood called her the “Smile Lady”.

Now she’s smiling in heaven — it must be a brighter place today.

Family Day

My daughter and her husband, Hendersonville, Tennessee. November 11, 2010.

This past Thursday Betsy and I went to Hendersonville to see and help out  my parents.  Mom and Dad are doing about as well as can be expected.  We were able to help them with some odd jobs around the house and with their grocery shopping.  They were in pretty good spirits, which is always encouraging.

An added bonus for the day was that we were able to have lunch with my daughter and her husband.  They were in Nashville on business and made time to have lunch with us in Hendersonville.  We had a delicious lunch of seafood and lots of nice conversation.  So in spite of the long drive to Hendersonville and back it was a wonderful day.

 

Happy Birthday, Dad

The handsome young man in the picture above is my Dad.  Dad is celebrating his 98th birthday today.  The picture was made in 1938 as a Christmas present for my mother.

Dad was born in Texas, but while he was still a young boy the family moved to Arkansas.  They took the train to Arkansas, which Dad still remembers.  They then rode to their new home in the Ozarks in a covered wagon.  So he has experienced life from the covered wagon to space travel.  Dad met Mom when he was in the CCC working at a state park near her hometown in southern Indiana.

What I remember most about Dad is that he could do just about everything.  He built our house in Indiana mostly by himself.  In 1963 he was one of four people that his company took with them in a move from Indiana to Tennessee.  When he got close to retirement age he felt he wouldn’t have anything to do, so he taught himself to repair small appliances.  He once got a call on Thanksgiving Day from June Carter Cash asking him to fix a stove that had quit working and was threatening to ruin the Cash family’s Thanksgiving.  Dad made a house call and saved the day.  Mom made him give up his repair business when he turned 80, but even today people will stop him to tell him how much they appreciate the work he did for them.

Dad learned to use a computer when he was 90 and used it every day until he became legally blind about a year ago.  Until that time he was still fixing the roof of his house and doing other chores that we tried to tell him he shouldn’t be doing.  He just went ahead and did things anyway.

He has had to slow down since losing most of his eyesight.  Mom is also legally blind, and although my sister Janet and I would like them to live with Janet — she’s asked them to — they want to remain in their own home.  We have to admire their independence even though we do worry about them.  We check on them by phone every day and one of us goes every week to help them out.  Young adults at their church also help them out.  I guess they are doing about as good as can be expected under the circumstances.

Mom and Dad have been married for 71 years, and although it’s not her birthday I’m including this picture of Mom since the two of them are rarely if ever seen apart.  This picture was taken in February, 1940, about three months before Mom and Dad got married.

Last night Dad said that today was ‘just another day’.  I don’t agree — I think it’s a very special day.

Happy Birthday, Dad!

Happy Easter

Bob and Kelly on Easter Sunday, 1977. Black Mountain, North Carolina.

The picture above is not very good — it’s a copy of an old photograph that I came across recently.  It shows my son and daughter showing off their Easter eggs behind our home on Easter Sunday in 1977.  Bob was eight years old and Kelly was five.  We had come home from church and they were looking for the eggs the Easter bunny had hidden in the yard.

We were living in Black Mountain, North Carolina, at the time.  I was teaching mathematics at what was then Montreat-Anderson College in Montreat, North Carolina, only a couple of miles up the road.  Our house was small, but it had a big back  yard for the kids to play in.

Betsy and I are taking off a couple of days off to enjoy Easter with family.  I expect us to be out of pocket until Monday evening, so my next post will probably be Tuesday morning.  But I hope all of you have a blessed and joyous Easter.  I hope the weekend will bring all of you many happy memories.