Let's celebrate

 2022 is almost over. Let's celebrate!

The darndest thing

 It's the darndest thing -- I was looking at photos on my iPad last night and found a few that I don't remember ever seeing before. No memory of where they came from.  Here's one:

This is the Arnold family -- John Henry and Adaline in the center. Children from left to right are Marlie, John, Annie, and Etta. (George might have been the one who took the picture.)

A few more new Burford photos

 

These were apparently all taken on the same day.

This set of photos brings to mind the old phrase - "Dinner on the ground" (which normally follows "All day singing and...")

That's Willie Mae (George's wife) on the right. Don't know who is on the left.

I'm not sure who these women are. I wonder if it's Juanita with Jerry and Jim at the end of the table. I don't recognize the woman on the right. 

I'm pretty sure the woman on the right is Florence (Deb's wife). Not sure about the others.

Playing with one of my new picture frame apps

More new Burford pics

 

These are some more of the pictures I got from Donnie. I haven't confirmed with her yet exactly who some of these people are.

This is George, for sure -- and I'm assuming his wife Willie Mae.

This is Aunt Helen on the right, and I'm assuming her daughter Frances on the left.

Grandma (Lora) Burford, left, and one of her sons (which one?) on the right.

Don't know who this little girl is. I wonder if it's Suellen... but there are several other possibilities.

I'm going to check back with Donnie to get some more information.

New Burford pics!

 

Got a new batch of Burford pictures from Donnie Burford Weatherford!

L-R: Donnie Burford Weatherford, Bob Burford, Becky Burford, Craig Frazier, Morris Burford

(Craig is a cousin - the grandson of Helen and Sherman Walters - son of Frances Frazier)

Neil Wallace Burford (Donnie's father)

George Alexander Burford

Sherman Walters (husband of Helen Burford) with Grant Weatherford (Donnie's son)

*   *   *

For my non-Burford readers --

Children of Alexander Oscar Burford and Lora Gibson Burford:

Adelbert Smith "Deb" Burford (married Florence Tisdale)

Helen Alice Burford (married Sherman Walters)

Ishmael Gaylon Burford (died age 13)

George Alexander Burford (married Willie Mae Goad)

Killough Marvin Burford (married Louise Lyon)

Bernice Pope Burford (married Dorothy Moore)

Lester Morris Burford (married Cleffie Hicks)

Neil Wallace Burford (married Mildred Cooper)

Juanita Virginia Burford (married Melvin Hombs)

Jewell Alma "Judy" Burford (married A. D. White)

Children of Deb and Florence Burford: LaNorma and "Bud" (Adelbert, Jr.)

Child of Helen and Sherman: Frances (married Louis Frazier)

Children of George and Willie Mae: Mildred and Erlene

Child of Killough and Louise: Ted

Children of Bernice and Dorothy: Jerry, George, David, Sue, Mike, Jeannie

Children of Lester and Cleffie: Wathada, Morris, Bob, Ron

Child of Neil and Mildred: Donnie (married Hugh Dean Weatherford)

Children of Juanita and Mel: Jim and Jerry

Children of Judy and A. D.: Suellen and Aaron

Christmas is over. What now?

 

Ghosts of Xmas Past - 20+ years ago

 

MERRY CHRISTMAS, EVERYONE!

Ghosts of Xmas Past - Thompson Hall Road 1987

 

This was the year that Santa's big brown truck brought the boys a bunch of camping equipment. We never actually went camping, but they did 'camp out' in a tent in the yard a time or two.

Ah, the glorious Christmas Day mess!!

Ghosts of Xmas Past - Thompson Hall Road 1986

 

Ghosts of Xmas Past - Thompson Hall Road 1985

 

Our kids' first Christmas in Alabama. 

Most of our presents during those years came from my parents who lived in California.

We got home from church late one Wednesday night to find a pile of boxes on our front steps.  

For several years, my kids believed Santa drove a big brown truck.

We had a party at our house that year. In the top picture above, the girl on the left in the red sweater is now Keith's wife. The man committing PDA was our preacher. (And that's not his wife.)

 All the folks in these pictures were our friends from church. Sadly, my kids didn't grow up surrounded by aunts and uncles and cousins like I did. So church was our substitute for extended family.

*   *   *

Here are some pictures from other church-friends parties through the years.

Left, Gary Corum (with guitar). He was a high school history teacher at the time (1980), but is now a high-powered lawyer. Sitting on the floor are our friends from Alabama (this party was at our house on McRae street in Searcy, Arkansas -- they were visiting) Joe and Ruth Ann Gill, with their son Ryan.

This party was at our house on Lape Avenue in Searcy, Arkansas, at Christmastime 1982, shortly after Casey was born. Gary Corum on guitar (again). Next to him is his wife Diane and one of their sons. The guitar in the foreground is being played by another church friend, Jim Hardin. The cute blonde girl is his daughter Kim. The little guitarist in the middle is Christopher, of course. (Isn't he just the cutest thing?) Not sure who the guy sitting by the door is -- might be one of the Carrigan cousins. (They didn't go to our church. They lived about an hour or so away from us in Arkansas, and we didn't see them very often.)

Here's another party we had at our house on McRae street -- this one was for Easter, not Xmas, and not church friends but bona fide relatives. That's Keith in the red shirt, playing guitar. In front of him are Barbara and Jeannie Hicks, and in the background are Chuck (playing guitar) and Olan Hicks (playing steel guitar). They all lived in Searcy, Arkansas, at the time we lived there. Olan and Barbara have since passed on (just last year). Chuck and Jeannie both still live in Searcy.  

Ghosts of Xmas Past - Thompson Hall Road

 In 1985 we moved from Arkansas back to Alabama. We bought an old trailer in a small trailer park with a big hay field behind it. We lived there for 5 years, and I have lots of fond memories of those Christmases.

Xmas is lots of fun when there are little children around. Christopher was five and Casey was two when we moved to Alabama.

Xmas trees I have known...

I crocheted a bunch of snowflakes one year and decorated the tree with them.

Ghosts of Xmas Past - Lape Avenue house, Searcy, Arkansas

 

Casey was born 26 November 1982

Keith's mother came to visit for Xmas

(Christmas Day was also her birthday)

We lived in this little raggedy house for 4 years - from 1981 to 1985 - and then decided to move back to Fairhope, Alabama (Keith's hometown)

Ghosts of Xmas Past - 1981 Bald Knob, more