I am going to be BLOGGING about lots of things for the next few days because I won't be able to blog much in New Orleans. (I probably will try to blog some, but I don't have any pictures on my work computer, so it will be the boring blogs with no pictures, sorry!)
Anyway, if you know me well at all, you know that there are SEVERAL birthdays that fall in the month of April in my family, so I wanted to wish each person a happy birthday early since I won't be able to when I am gone.
First up, HAPPY BIRTHDAY to my uncle, Kenny! His birthday is April 13th!!
Anyway, if you know me well at all, you know that there are SEVERAL birthdays that fall in the month of April in my family, so I wanted to wish each person a happy birthday early since I won't be able to when I am gone.
First up, HAPPY BIRTHDAY to my uncle, Kenny! His birthday is April 13th!!
He is my mom's younger (10 years younger) brother. I have several stories that pop into my head when I think of him, but I will tell you about him first.
He is a professor at a college in his town and the father of two kids that are all grown up. He has a beautiful and talented wife as well that he has been with for many years!
Okay, let me get to the stories....
My earliest memory of Kenny isn't a great one (sorry). I can remember when we were very young that Kenny would come over to our house at Christmas time to play with us and help put our toys together. WELL, there was one Christmas that my sister got this FANCY Barbie house that needed to be assembled. Instead of my FAVORITE uncle playing with me, he spent HOURS (probably not really hours, but it seemed like it) putting this house together for my sister. I cried and cried because I wanted his attention!!!
Next, I can remember when Kenny and Lynn (his wife) lived down in Baton Rouge and they had a dog named Pork Chop! This was a giant dog, but he was nice from what I remember. I don't remember much other than that, but I DO remember that dog.
As I mention previously, my uncle is a professor at a college. He not just a professor though, he is the HARD professor everyone complains about. Let me explain. In school when i would have to do a paper, my mom would take me to the library at the college to use the resources there. I can remember one specific time that I was working on my paper and there were these college students complaining about a professor. After listening to them for a while, my mom couldn't resist anymore, so she asked what professor they were talking about. And sure enough, they were talking about my uncle!! My mom proudly informed them that he was her brother and they were embarrassed and left. It was pretty funny.
Kenny is also the greatest singer ever! I love to hear him sing in church or any other time that I can. I don't know what it is, but I just love to hear him. It is the best when he and my mother sing together though. It makes me think I can sing, so when I get home, I sing in my shower really loud and pretend that I sound like them!
Happy Early Birthday Kenny!
Next up is my brother Clif. His birthday is April 14th.
He is a professor at a college in his town and the father of two kids that are all grown up. He has a beautiful and talented wife as well that he has been with for many years!
Okay, let me get to the stories....
My earliest memory of Kenny isn't a great one (sorry). I can remember when we were very young that Kenny would come over to our house at Christmas time to play with us and help put our toys together. WELL, there was one Christmas that my sister got this FANCY Barbie house that needed to be assembled. Instead of my FAVORITE uncle playing with me, he spent HOURS (probably not really hours, but it seemed like it) putting this house together for my sister. I cried and cried because I wanted his attention!!!
Next, I can remember when Kenny and Lynn (his wife) lived down in Baton Rouge and they had a dog named Pork Chop! This was a giant dog, but he was nice from what I remember. I don't remember much other than that, but I DO remember that dog.
As I mention previously, my uncle is a professor at a college. He not just a professor though, he is the HARD professor everyone complains about. Let me explain. In school when i would have to do a paper, my mom would take me to the library at the college to use the resources there. I can remember one specific time that I was working on my paper and there were these college students complaining about a professor. After listening to them for a while, my mom couldn't resist anymore, so she asked what professor they were talking about. And sure enough, they were talking about my uncle!! My mom proudly informed them that he was her brother and they were embarrassed and left. It was pretty funny.
Kenny is also the greatest singer ever! I love to hear him sing in church or any other time that I can. I don't know what it is, but I just love to hear him. It is the best when he and my mother sing together though. It makes me think I can sing, so when I get home, I sing in my shower really loud and pretend that I sound like them!
Happy Early Birthday Kenny!
Next up is my brother Clif. His birthday is April 14th.
I think the next picture is just the sweetest thing ever!
Look how TINY Tatum was below....
Clif is currently an offier and pilot in the Navy and lives with his wife, Jennifer, in Virginia.
Stories about Clif....
When it comes to siblings, I could go on and on and on about stories, but I will just try to tell a few. Clif is 6' 5" and 220 lbs (???) and he is muscle. In high school, he played football and basketball. I can remember one basketball game. He obviouly played center on the team. This guy on the other team was driving towards the goal going in to shoot the ball to score. Clif is standing there under the goal, feet flat on the floor and hands up in the air. This kid drives in and runs into Clif and LITERALLY bounces off of him and falls back on the floor. Clif, however, is still just standing there with his feet flat on the floor and hands still in the air. It was like this poor kid hit a brick wall, and I am sure he have said it FELT like he did!
Clif attended the University of Memphis, which is where I also went. Clif is a few years older than me, so when it came time for me to go off to college, Clif told me that if I would meet him on campus the Sunday before classes started, he would show me the buildings where all of my classes would be. Great, right??? Well, not exactly. Clif took me to the wrong buildings, and I don't think he did it on purpose either, but when I showed up to my English class the first day and pretty much headed for a storage closet, this lady stopped me and told me where to go which happened to be across campus. Thanks big Bro!
I think all the siblings would agree that we are all smart, but Clif is probably the smartest! While we are all successful in our own way, I will brag on Clif right now because this is about him. While attending college at the U of M, Clif was also in the Navy ROTC program too. After graduating, Jennifer and Clif moved to Florida for Navy schooling. (I am not sure if I am using the right terms and things, but you guys get the idea.) He graduated from down there and was #1 in his class which meant that he got to pick first which plane or jet or whatnot that he wanted to fly. Being the smart AND responsible one, he didn't choose the jet, he chose the E-2 which meant that he wouldn't have to be stationed in Japan or anything, but here in the states and probably on the East coast.(They are in Virginia) While they are still 15 hours away, they are closer than California at least!
Finally, we only get to see Clif and Jennifer once or twice a year, but maybe we can go up and see them this summer. Anyway, one of the questions that always comes up from family is "When are you guys going to have kids???" Well, I am proud to announce that Jennifer and Clif do have two additions coming to the family. NO NOT KIDS. Jennifer got a new black and white cat, Sophie(?) and Clif has a puppy on the way. They are happy about their new additions and I can't wait to see pictures of them.
Happy Birthday Clif!!!
And finally, Happy Birthday Mckayla!! She shares her birthday on April 14th with her uncle(my brother) Clif.
I think this picture below is the best picture EVER of Mckayla and it was just a snapshot taken while she was playing Hide and Go Seek and she was hiding in a closet peaking out.Stories about Clif....
When it comes to siblings, I could go on and on and on about stories, but I will just try to tell a few. Clif is 6' 5" and 220 lbs (???) and he is muscle. In high school, he played football and basketball. I can remember one basketball game. He obviouly played center on the team. This guy on the other team was driving towards the goal going in to shoot the ball to score. Clif is standing there under the goal, feet flat on the floor and hands up in the air. This kid drives in and runs into Clif and LITERALLY bounces off of him and falls back on the floor. Clif, however, is still just standing there with his feet flat on the floor and hands still in the air. It was like this poor kid hit a brick wall, and I am sure he have said it FELT like he did!
Clif attended the University of Memphis, which is where I also went. Clif is a few years older than me, so when it came time for me to go off to college, Clif told me that if I would meet him on campus the Sunday before classes started, he would show me the buildings where all of my classes would be. Great, right??? Well, not exactly. Clif took me to the wrong buildings, and I don't think he did it on purpose either, but when I showed up to my English class the first day and pretty much headed for a storage closet, this lady stopped me and told me where to go which happened to be across campus. Thanks big Bro!
I think all the siblings would agree that we are all smart, but Clif is probably the smartest! While we are all successful in our own way, I will brag on Clif right now because this is about him. While attending college at the U of M, Clif was also in the Navy ROTC program too. After graduating, Jennifer and Clif moved to Florida for Navy schooling. (I am not sure if I am using the right terms and things, but you guys get the idea.) He graduated from down there and was #1 in his class which meant that he got to pick first which plane or jet or whatnot that he wanted to fly. Being the smart AND responsible one, he didn't choose the jet, he chose the E-2 which meant that he wouldn't have to be stationed in Japan or anything, but here in the states and probably on the East coast.(They are in Virginia) While they are still 15 hours away, they are closer than California at least!
Finally, we only get to see Clif and Jennifer once or twice a year, but maybe we can go up and see them this summer. Anyway, one of the questions that always comes up from family is "When are you guys going to have kids???" Well, I am proud to announce that Jennifer and Clif do have two additions coming to the family. NO NOT KIDS. Jennifer got a new black and white cat, Sophie(?) and Clif has a puppy on the way. They are happy about their new additions and I can't wait to see pictures of them.
Happy Birthday Clif!!!
And finally, Happy Birthday Mckayla!! She shares her birthday on April 14th with her uncle(my brother) Clif.
Mckayla will be FOUR years old this year! I can't believe it. It was just yesterday that Laurie was pregnant with her and now FOUR????!?!? My, how time flies.I can remember the day that Laurie told me she was pregnant. I was so excited and couldn't wait to find out if it was going to be a boy or girl. THEN, I can remember she found out it was going to be a girl and I just couldn't wait any longer. I went out and started shopping and shopping and shopping. I overloaded Laurie and Cyp with clothes, toys, etc for Mckalya before she even got here!
I told Laurie time and time again to call me as soon as they headed to the hospital to have Mckayla. I got the call about 7:00am and at 7:15am I was in the waiting room. I was the FIRST one there and I didn't care that I was there all alone. I skipped all of my classes and work because I didn't want to miss a thing. I had no idea back then that having a baby wasn't a quick process where the mom just went in and popped the baby out. I wouldn't leave the hospital to get food or anything. My parents got there and other family members. We waited and around 5pm Mckayla arrived. When they let all the family go back, there she was, my niece in her mommy's arms. I was so proud to be an aunt. We stood around the bed for about 5 minutes and I couldn't wait anymore. I finally asked Laurie if I could hold her and she let me!! I was the first person to hold her after her mommy and daddy! She was perfect in every way and still is.
When she was little, I can remember one time that I had to(you know they twisted my arm)either take her to my parent's house or bring her back to Memphis from my parent's house. Either way, I was SO NERVOUS! She was just a few months old and her car seat was facing backwards of course. She was asleep and fine, but I was nervous that she was going to quit breathing or something, so I can remember I stopped about 10 times in an hour and a half to make sure she was still breathing!
Okay, we will fast forward a few years. Mckayla gets to spend the night with us sometimes when her mom and dad are out of town or something. I have been lucky enough to be able to pick her up from daycare back in the day and now school. I have also taken her to swimming lessons and other things. Everytime I get to do anything like this I get so excited because of a few reasons....1.) I get to spend time with my niece, 2.) I feel special because Cyp and Laurie trust me to take care of Mckayla, and 3.) I feel proud to get to be associated with Mckayla. She is just the sweetest, smartest, and cutest 4 year old I know!!!
Mckayla is now playing soccer, so Laurie got her some really cool pink and black Nike soccer shoes. Mckayla is so funny because even before game day, she would put on her shoes. I was fortunate enough to get to go to her first soccer game last week and she put her shoes on before the game and told me they help her run faster! She also likes to take my camera and take pictures of things around the house, so last week she was taking pictures and I looked back thru them and there was a picture of her new shoes!! She put them on to show me how fast she could run. Notice the dress socks with her soccer shoes? How cute is that?!!? Here is the picture below.
FINALLY, I was a little worried how Mckayla would react when she found out Laurie was pregnant. She said she wanted a sister not a brother, so good thing Mya came. I was still worried that she would be jealous of Mya, but I was sure wrong. She is so sweet to her and is VERY protective. I can remember when Mya was very little and we were somewhere and Mckayla told another child that the baby was Mya and she was her sister. She also said you can LOOK at her, but don't TOUCH her! Even at the Easter Egg Hunt we went to this weekend, Mckayla realized Mya was too young to hunt eggs herself, so Mckayla took both of their baskets around to hunt eggs so that they would both have some. (Notice in the picture below, she has a white basket {Mya's} and a yellow one which was hers.) She is so thoughtful and I just love her so much.
Happy Birthday Mckayla!!!
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