A Glance Back At Year End Memories From 2009

I'm not sure why I have allowed myself to get so far behind in my blogging, but my daughter, Mary, has motivated to me to get caught up. Her Christmas gift to me is to print out my blogs so I felt inspired to finish up 2009 so I can get started on 2010.

Every year I look back with amazement at the blessings that I have enjoyed during the past 12 month and my heart fills with gratitude. My mother was always going to take me to New Orleans, as it was one of her favorite places to visit. Unfortunately, we never made the trip before she passed away. Once she was gone, I added a trip to New Orleans to my "bucket list". I was curious as to what she enjoyed there.

With Mary living in Lake Charles, Keri Beth and I flew down to Louisiana to celebrate Mary's birthday with her and then we took the opportunity to head to New Orleans as it was only 3 hours away. I can't speak for the anyone other than myself, but I had a blast. Below are just a few of the memories.

Hudson, Mary and Keri Beth in front of the pond at Mary's condo in Lake Charles just prior to us leaving for New Orleans. Mary was pregnant and we had all just come from the doctors office where Mary had had her ultra sound that showed that she was having a girl!

A friend of Mary's and Cam had told us of a place that we needed to stop and eat so that we could experience authentic southern cooking. Here I am sampling my first ever bite of frog legs. To me it tasted much like chicken.

Keri Beth and I were enjoying the atmosphere, but I felt bad for Mary. Being 5 months pregnant the smell and food were more than she could handle. We actually had to make a stop at McDonalds on our way back to the freeway to pick her up a hamburger so she wouldn't starve to death.

I'm not sure how much time I would want to spend in New Orleans, but I could understand what my mom found fascinating about the city. We took off for a stroll not knowing that in a few minutes the heavens were going to open up and send down one of the worst rain storms I have ever been in. By the time we got back to the hotel we were quite wet. Mary and Cam stopped and bought an umbrella while Keri Beth and I used bags to cover our heads. After arriving back we got our car and headed out for dinner. We found ourselves driving in what looked like rivers. When Cam stopped to let us all out before parking the car, we literally stepped out in knee deep water. Fortunately, while we were enjoying our dinner, the rain past and the roads cleared up by the time we headed back to our hotel.

We couldn't help but enjoy the opportunity to purchase Mardi Gras masks as a memory of our time in New Orleans.

If you look closely you can see the many Mardi Gras beads hanging from the trees and wires along the celebrated parade route. Apparently they are just left there from year to year.

I am always fascinated by cemeteries and this one was definitely unique to me, but not to the people of New Orleans. Obviously, due to the high water level they are not able to bury bodies in the ground so as you can see their cemeteries are much different than what most of us are accustom to.

Once again we come to the Mississippi River. I have crossed the Mississippi in Missouri, Illinois, and now in Louisiana. While we were enjoying the sunshine in this picture, the rain started again and by the time Mary and Cam dropped Keri Beth and I off at the airport it was a down pour again. Before we left town we made our way down to the neighborhood where hurricane Katrina caused so much devastation. While many homes have been rebuilt, many are left in shambles.

Once back home we turned our focus on Thanksgiving and Christmas. As our family grows it becomes more and more difficult to get everyone together. Keri Beth was so sad when Mary told her that she would not be coming home for the holidays. What she didn't know was that we were flying Mary home between Christmas and New Years. I'm not sure how we managed to keep it a secret for so long, but Keri Beth walked into her room after church the Sunday after Christmas to get the biggest surprise of her life. There stood her baby sister Mary with Hudson in her arms. The first thing she saw was Kerry holding the video camera and she was trying to figure out what was going on. As she glanced around the room and laid eyes on her sister, she burst into tears!

The joyous reunion!

What a wonderful life! Seven beautiful grandchild and number 8 on the way. Kerry and I love being grandparents.

Grandma taking time out from cooking to enjoy my two youngest grandchildren, Drew and Hudson.

I think this was the first time that we have all spend New Year's Eve together. As you can see, we took the time to celebrate the end of a wonderful year and to usher in 2010.

With each passing day I thank my Heavenly Father for the gift of life, for the blessing of family, for my good health, for the comforts that I enjoy, and for the privilege of living in the United States of America.

As we face troubling and unsettling times, I pray for all mankind that we can join our faith and prayers and together weather the storms that come.