Well, things didn't turn out quite the way I thought they would when I wrote that last post. My sister Mary Jane called to say she wouldn't be coming up after all. She had had eleven baby goats born the night before, and some of them were in bad shape and needed to be bottle-fed. She was also expecting more to be born. Cindy called and said she planned to come up by herself, and Kevin and the boys would join us the next day after they finished work. Then the densest fog rolled in I've ever seen. We couldn't see our house from the deck of Mama's house, even though it's right in the front yard! We called Cindy and told her not to come; it would be dangerous driving over the mountains. So Mama, Daddy, Doug, and I spent a quiet, rainy day at home just sleeping and reading. That evening the fog had lifted, and we went to the Huddle House and ate a big breakfast for supper. It really hit the spot. When we got home, Daddy and Doug watched football while Mama and I lay on the bed and watched "The Sound of Music," which was as good as I remembered it being. While we were lying there, Mama said, "I feel happy. It must be because I have such great children."
"That must be it," I intoned.
"Or maybe it's just having my daughter here with me watching a good movie," she replied.
I loved hearing Mama say that. I don't think her life is very happy anymore, at least not most of the time. She doesn't get to go out much, she can barely walk, it depresses her that she can't do the things she used to do, and she misses all of us. She had a really good weekend, though.
The next day, New Year's Eve, was bright and beautiful, the complete opposite of the day before. Mary Jane called to say she and Mike were on their way up and bringing four baby goats with them. Do I have a crazy family, or what? The goats arrived in a plastic storage box padded with shavings. We celebrated the holiday feeding them with baby bottles. Before that, however, we met Cindy and Kevin and the boys at Crossroads and enjoyed prime rib and celebrated Doug's and Brent's birthdays. We laughed so loudly it's a wonder they didn't throw us out. When we got home and finished feeding the goats, we watched football and waited for the ball to drop, which we toasted with sparkling grape juice from the Biltmore House. It was a lovely way to bring in 2008.
The next morning, Doug and I drove to South Carolina to watch the Sugar Bowl (Go Dawgs!) with our old college buddies, Jim and Elizabeth. Jim had to show off his new 65" TV! Elizabeth had cooked a wonderful supper, and of course, we ate too much just as we did throughout the holidays - and I've got the pounds to prove it! We always love being with the Belchers, and this visit was no exception.
After a big breakfast the next morning, cooked by Jim, we left for home. We had been gone for a week and were ready to get back, though we did stop in Commerce at the outlet malls to spend some of our Christmas money.
I haven't even written about our trip to Asheville, Grove Park Inn, and the Biltmore. The holidays wore us out! But what great fun!
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