Happy Birthday Mary

Happy Birthday to one of our "other granddaughters", Mary Campbell, who turned 17 today.  Another first for her this year as this is her first birthday without her dad who we lost in March.  So proud of you Mary!

Cindy, Lauren, and Lindsay White Water Rafting

This is a picture of Cindy and her girls white water rafting on their recent road trip.  As most of you know I hate the water.  After all I am the one who spent 10 days in Hawaii and refused to even dip my toe in the ocean so you can just imagine my feelings about white water rafting!  However, they had a great time and I love this picture (just glad I wasn't there to see this in person)!  I am so glad I made a wise decision when Cindy was a little girl and made her take swim lessons.  I drug her to the pool kicking and screaming, literally.  Then I sat in the car and cried because I was making my baby do something I would never do myself.  She is a water dog and had her Red Cross Life Saver License while she was still in high school.  So yes, there is one thing I did right as a mother!

Happy Birthday Cindy!

Now that the big day has arrived, my fun for the month must come to an end.  I have enjoyed digging out and sharing all those old pictures of Cindy from birth to present but she is probably glad her birthday is here and mom will lay off her for awhile!  I have always told her she is very special because she was the one who gave me the title of Mommy which has changed through the years to Mom.  She also gave me my first granddaughter (I already had a grandson).  Cindy, you make your parents proud!  Love and Happy Birthday!

Cindy and Family in Spain, Summer of 2012.

Cindy at 8 Months

I quickly learned one thing about my 8-month-old baby when I took her from Las Vegas, Nevada to visit relatives in Indiana for the first time.  She didn't like to have her picture taken in a strange place with strange people!  This was the only picture where she looked scared.  It took her a few days to warm up to everyone except my dad.  After the flight from Las Vegas to Indianapolis Steve and I were both ready to head to the restroom.  Dad met us at the plane.  Cindy was sound asleep.  Without giving it a thought I just handed her to him and Steve and I headed to the restrooms.  Once in the restroom, it hit me that I had just handed my sleeping baby to a total stranger (to her)!  I hurried as quickly as I could to get out of there just knowing she would be crying in a panic.  Imagine my surprise when I walked out and saw her wide awake with her head laying on Dad's shoulder and she was patting his face.  From that moment until the day he died he was her best friend.

Does anyone remember Grants Department Store?  My mom had this picture taken there.

Cindy Horseback Riding

This picture was taken back in the late 1980s when I took my mom, the girls, and Christy's friend Rachel to Hot Springs, Arkansas.  The girls went horseback riding while Mom and I checked out the mall!  Just had to put this picture on here to show that hair!  Just a couple more days Cindy and your birthday will be here.  Then I can harass someone else with old pictures.  August?  Let's see....Mecca maybe?

5 and 5

I call this the 5 and 5 picture because Cindy was 5-years-old and Christy was 5-months-old.  Cindy it looks like you always wanted to be a Texan!  Or was the hat a salute to your New Mexican birth?  It probably had something to do with you and Ernie Cobb playing cowboys and Indians!

Easter Sunday 1968

Cindy's first Easter happened to coincide with her first visit to Indiana.  Here she is on Easter Sunday 1968 sitting on her Uncle Ronnie Ritter's lap.  She was 8 months old.

Anyone think she will be glad when her birthday gets here Sunday and I quit posting all these old pictures of her?

Steffinee At A Friend's Party

Steffinee at a friend's party in Shawnee, Oklahoma.

Ed, Becky & Eli Hargis

I never see my sister Becky and her family so it was nice today when a friend who lives in Florida sent me this picture she had just taken of them in Florida.  Becky doesn't come to Texas and I hope I will not to be going back to Indiana so thank you Shirley Childers for the picture.

Birthdays, Oh My!

For some reason Cindy and siblings decided they needed to celebrate my 44th birthday with hats and noisemakers.  Here is this month's birthday girl helping me celebrate mine in 1991.

Christmas Morning 1973

Here is our birthday girl at age 6 helping her 1-year-old sister with her Christmas present.

Cindy's 1st Grade School Picture

Going way back in this month's birthday girl's history, here is her first grade school picture.  She was pretty cute if I do say so myself!

Dustin and Tucker

Tucker soaking up some Dustin lovin' while his family is on vacation.

Baby Cindy

This month's birthday girl with her Aunt Becky and Uncle Donald.  This picture was taken in the living room of the Clovis, New Mexico house that Lauren called "that ugly house" several years later!

July 4, 2000

Okay I admit it. I have been slacking off but I am back at it.  Dug out some more old pictures of Cindy to finish out celebrating her birthday month.  Here she is 13 years ago helping a young Lindsay get comfortable with the water.  Must have worked.  Lindsay has been scuba diving and swimming all over the world in the past several years.  This picture was taken in her backyard pool however!

Welcome Home Hannah and Sarah!

It is good to have Hannah and Sarah back home after their mission trip to the Czech Republic!  Welcome back to Grapevine, girls!

1208 Walnut St, Clovis, NM

Since Cindy is celebrating her birthday this month and she posted a picture of New Mexico as she drove through there today with her girls on their road trip, I thought I would pull out this old picture of her first home.  This is where we lived when she was born.  It was a nice little house across from a large field and a nice city park.  I loved it there.  We left there when she was 8 weeks old so she always wanted me to go back to Clovis with her and show her around.  In 1998 Cindy, Lauren, and I went.  Lauren cried when she saw this house, especially when we drove down the alley in back.  She begged us to "get out of here and away from this ugly house."  It broke my heart that she was right.  It seemed the area had become very run down and this nice little house was ugly.  Cindy said Lauren was telling Lindsay all about it today when they hit the New Mexico state line!

Lauren at GHS Top 20 Banquet

Grandma is running a little behind here.  This is Lauren with a group of her friends at the GHS Top 20 Banquet last month.

Steffinee and Chad June 2000

While digging out pictures of Cindy, I came across this one of Steffinee and Chad when we visited him at Ft Knox in 2000.  I love this picture and the memories it brings to mind.

TUPPERWARE Christmas in July Event

Hurry before these items are sold out.  Go to http://my.tupperware.com/lindacwilson to purchase these specials on line.  They are not available at parties.  Available only while supplies last.

Lauren and Hannah

Giving Cindy a break today and picturing her daughter Lauren.  This is Lauren and Hannah Terrell with the Baylor flag at Lauren's graduation open house.  Hannah and Lauren will be roommates at Baylor this Fall. Hannah's parents were Baylor students at the same time Cindy was so the girls are very familiar with Baylor. Here they are practicing the "Sic 'em Bears" sign.  They have been at a Baylor camp all week and will be returning home today.  Anxious to hear how they liked it!

Cindy's 1st Indiana Thanksgiving

Little Miss Cindy was so excited to be spending her first Thanksgiving in Indiana with the family she so enjoyed being around after living away most of her life while we were in the Air Force.  She was 3 in this picture.

Cindy at 18 Months

Poor Cindy.  Since she is lucky (or unlucky) enough to have a birthday month all to herself, I have no one to harass this month but her!  This is one of my favorite pictures of her when she was little.  Even at 18 months her stubborn, I am in charge attitude was fully operational!  We lived in Las Vegas, Nevada and what little bit of blond hair she had was completely bleached white by the sun.  She took her little brush and brushed her hair for this picture.  It is hard to see but it is sticking out all over.  This was one of my "choose your battles" mother moments.  I knew I could use it on her later!!  So here you go, Cindy!

Grandkids are Scattered

Lauren and her friend and roommate in the Fall, Hannah are at Baylor this week for a camp.  Hope they have a great time.  Lauren will be entering her first year of college as a Sophomore.  She already has 29 credit hours.  Way to go Lauren!  She worked hard all through high school and it has paid off for her.  Steffinee has gone back to Oklahoma, Isabell and Samantha are at their other grandma's house in Oklahoma City, Carlos is at Youth Camp, my grandkids are scattered everywhere!  It is good to have Dustin here with us and to know that Lindsay is just down the street.  In fact, we just enjoyed some yummy yeast rolls Lindsay made.  Seems like only yesterday they were little kids and "Camp Grandma's" was the place to be!

Lindsay, Steffinee, Lauren, and Dustin at Grandma's

Cindy as Baylor Student

Since her daughter is now a Baylor University Student, I thought I would post a picture of Cindy when she was a BU student.  Oh my, where did the time go?

Cindy is Our Birthday Girl This Month

Lucky Cindy!  I have all month to harass her with old pictures since her birthday is at the end of the month.  Here she is at 11 months sitting in a box in our North Las Vegas house.  She had just gotten this box full of things from Grandma and Papaw Sowders.  I sat her in the box and told her I was going to ship her to them in Indiana.  As long as she could take her bottle, that was fine with her!

10 Years of Missing My Mom

 We lost mom 10 years ago today.  I miss her so much and sometimes it seems like only yesterday she was here with us and sometimes it seems like it has been forever since I spent time with her.  I especially miss our Scrabble games.  We used to stay up until the early morning hours, just the two of us, playing scrabble and munching on popcorn.  I haven't played a good scrabble game since she died.  Here she is with a couple of her great-grandchildren, Dustin and Lauren.  She doted on her great-grandchildren and they doted on her.  Just this week I overheard Steffinee telling Samantha, "I wish you had known mam-mam.  You would have loved her."  That is a tribute that would have made "Mam-Mam" proud!

Best Buds

Even though Dustin and Steffinee only see each other once or twice a year they are best buddies.  Here I caught them in conversation at the Olive Garden this week.

Doggie Heaven

Tucker thinks he is in Doggie Heaven.  His family may be in Florida but he is surrounded by "cousin love'!

Steffinee is Swimming Competitively Now

Our granddaughter Steffinee Jo Wilson is now swimming competitively at the Y in Shawnee, Oklahoma.  Go Steff!

The Campers In Their Camp Shirts

Samantha and Isabell with their group of campers wearing their camp shirts last week before leaving camp.