This is a big year, because a few months ago, Grandma Sue turned 90. This is my mom’s mom, who grew up in Virginia.

My mom and her sisters did a short visit to see her right around her birthday, and they had a great visit. Aunt Sherry from Missouri, And Margie from Waco, and my mom, of course from North Carolina.

Instead of getting all the cousins together to celebrate that weekend, she asked that we come visit throughout the year. Of the 8 grandchildren, most have been by to visit her in Waco. This past week, I spent 4 days down there and had a lot of fun just sitting with her, and learning her stories from her childhood in the great depression in Virginia.

The flight to Waco was easy- Greensboro to Dallas, and Dallas to Waco. This time, instead of renting a car in Dallas and driving almost 2 hours down, I flew right into Waco, and took a 20 minute Uber to her house. After all of the waiting on the runway, it would have been quicker to drive to Waco 🙁

It was shockingly hot- here is an image from the car dashboard. Yes, it reads 107 degrees

Grandma Sue shared stories about how her dad helped build some of the buildings on Virginia Tech’s campus. And how her grandfather fought in the civil war. It may be hard to believe, but then she already went and did the legwork, and something like this turns up:

That same man, Bob Miles, courier for Robert E Lee, met the president:

Kinda wild?

And how Grandma and her 4 sisters helped build the house that they lived in by collecting stones out of the river.

“It was kinda fun, daddy turned it into a game really”.

We talked about her husbands, and how she is looking forward to meeting Jesus. We talked about the fun things- like when she and my Grandpa Kelly ran away together to get married. And the sad things- lots of family tragedy over the years. It was a sweet, sweet visit.

It was neat to see all of the tables, chairs, the cuckoo clock, and the grandfather clock from as long as I could remember, all in her beautiful home. Im proud of her for still living on her own. She is a tough lady.

This particular painting has always stood out. My mom painted it when she was pregnant with Matt, and it is one of those things that has the power to stop people in their tracks. Some people don’t feel comfortable being in the same room with it. But to me, it is an image I remember seeing since I was a kid, and it is still special to me for some reason I cant quite put my finger on.

We got to indulge in a Dove Bar as a treat at the end of the day. And visit my aunt Margie, and my cousin Melissa as well. Margie just finished re-doing her kitchen, and it looks great:

Also, one of my goals while visiting Texas was this:

I didn’t get an extra burger for grandma (Sorry about that!) but it was delicious.

Next week

There is a chance I can convince Taylor to be a guest-contrbutor to the blog next week. Stay tuned!