First Game, First Win

At the season opener last night, in the hot and humid and packed out Bison stadium, our team pulled out an amazing victory over the locals from Hendersonville High.

In the last 10 seconds of the game, the Bison scored a crucial field goal to bring the score to 19 to 17! What excitment and celebration broke out.

Now Hendersonville High is a powerhouse and long established school that has been around since the dark ages and our Station Camp High is only 5 years old. When the Bison have played them before we have never put any points on the score board, so this was a huge victory to start the season.

The Thundering Herd, our high school band did a great job. They are so well trained and professional in all they do. The Herd only played one of their competition pieces at Half Time, because of the 100 plus weather they have not been outside much to go over the marching routines but they were near perfect as far as any of us could tell. Of course Ya-Ya tells us the mistakes made. I still stand amazed when I see her out there playing in the Star Spangled banner at Friday Night Lights in America!

Afterwards Grandpa and I stayed behind and helped clean out the spectator stands of garbage. The school pays the band $150 each night we do this. The Thundering Herd will be playing in Disney World next Spring so we need to help with these kind of events, much better than the fundraising events where we have to ask people to buy or order things they really don't need or want.

Have a great weekend.
Grandma

Wilson is 13 !

We can hardly believe that our eldest grandchild turns 13 today.

Wasn't it just yesterday that we all gathered in Scarborough, throughout the night, waiting for him to 'show up'.

Jim and Bonnie played cards and board games with Jen all night to keep her amused. Becky and I kept going in to see how Jake and Heather were doing. After some exciting moments, not exactly the word Heather would use, our little Wilson was here. All pink and beautiful and strong!

We remember the next day when we went back into the hospital to visit them all. Heather was still in the 4 bed ward at that time, Jake rolled the bassinette out into the visitors room for us and Rich and Christine to see baby Wilson. As he approached us he shouted, really, "Don't touch the baby!!!!!" We all jumped in alarm. I forget what the reason was for that.

Anyway by the third day everyone was calmer. We all sat around a visitors room and passed Wilson around from Grandparent to Great Grandparent. Lots of unbridled pride in the room that day.

Happy Birthday Wilson, you continue to be a joy to all of us.
Grandpa and Grandma

Mercy's First Birthday

Here is our sweet little Mercy on her One Year Birthday!

She has turned out to be a lovely companion. That is why we called her Mercy. We were doing our daily Bible devotions and it was about Mercy and Grace are God's companions for each of us. I told grandpa if we ever had another dog, I wanted to name her Mercy.

Our Blossom died 3 days before we moved to Tennessee. Two months later we began to look for a new puppy. We called about some Cock-A-Poo puppies "just east of Nashville".

We phoned Heidi, the breeder, got directions to her farm. Her place turned out to be just outside of Chattanooga! We saw Mercy when she was only 10 DAYS old. We claimed her as our own and went back 7 weeks later and picked her up.

When we were driving home from Chattanooga, a car passed us on the Interstate with this licence plate, MERCY B !!!!! How shocking and confirming that was for us.

So Mercy's mom is a 20 pound cocker spaniel and her dad is a 15 pound white miniature poodle. She looks like her mom but has the hair of a poodle.

She has been a very fun, happy, playful puppy. Recently she has turned into a lap dog. She enjoys sitting up for afternoon naps with grandma and loves having her ears and belly rubbed.

Happy Birthday Mercy.
Grandma

Music City Superspeedway

Not to be confused with Music City Speedway at the Fairgrounds.

This venue is south of the city. It is a 1.3 mile track. We saw two races, we were mainly there for the Toyota Truck race in the late afternoon. We had seats in the Family Section, no alcohol nor smoking. The only bad thing we were in the first row of that section, so we were pretty close to the smoke and the drunken racecar fans. I won't mention here the gross things we saw and heard. Nothing like a drunken redneck.

But it was a good afternoon. Grandpa loved it. It was his anniversary gift from Ya-Ya and I.

I am sure we will go again, we will make sure our seats are a little further away. I had nightmares about all of those people getting in their cars and driving home on the same roads we were travelling on.

Love to all,
Grandma

Cruisin' On The Cumberland

Last night Grandpa and I celebrated our 37th anniversary on the General Jackson river boat out of Nashville. We had an amazing steak dinner followed by a wonderful show entitled "Sing". Five extremely talented musicians and their back up band led us through all genre of music: jazz, blues, rock and roll, gospel, inspirational and even two country songs. They have powerful voices. All full of energy and fun. Absolutely a family show, not one hint of inappropriate content. They all, even the 3 men, must have changed costumes 10 times!

We had such a good time. Before dessert our waiter told us to go on the deck and see the lights of downtown Nashville. It was all very romantic - yes Grandpa even kissed me a couple times during the dinner!

For me this was the best event we have been to since moving here, for grandpa it was second only to the night we saw Vince Gill and the Oakridge Boys at the Opry.

We both say, this is something to take visitors to, no question about that.

On toward the second 37!
Grandma

Black and White Painters

We have found that here in the South they have interesting cost cutting ideas. Like today we were downtown Gallatin and a group of 5 local prisoners were painting the light poles. Yes there they were in bright daylight in their black and white stripped coveralls (I am NOT kidding). The man from the utilities company was sitting on the back of his truck with his arms folded watching them. We didn't see any guards around but I am sure they were near.

They also use the prisoners to pick up the trash along the interstate and side roads! Last night at Ya-Ya's band practice they were told to only use the bathrooms in one particular part of the school as the prisoners were in the school scrubbing floors, etc., getting ready for school opening tomorrow.

Free and enthusiastic (to get outside) help! What do you think?

Love
BAB

What Must I Do?

What must I do to get YOU, yes you, to leave even a little bitty comment on my blog. You can do it anonymously, so no one knows even your name. Just click on Anonymous.

I would love to have you respond, pick out my spelling and grammatical errors!

I really want to hear from you.

Why do I write this blog - well it started out as a travelogue for our kids of my adventure here settling in to Tennessee but it has turned out for a place for me to save memories; to express my hopes and dreams and frustrations.

So write something, I really want to hear from you. Your advice, your wise counsel, your reaction, whatever.

Love you,
BAB