Visiting with My Parents

My parents, Iris and Al, in the early 1950's. I love my parents to pieces and think I'm one of the most blessed people on earth, because of them. They are the salt of the earth. Good people who raised me and my sister right. I've told you before that I'm a preacher's kid. Dad has been retired for over 15 years now, but he was a pastor my whole life. My dad is 80 and my mom is turning 80 in May and they are in remarkably good health. This is what good living will do for you. They are children of the depression and it's still etched in their memories. I wonder how we would be if we had lived through that period of time in our country.
We spent about 2 and 1/2 days with my parents last week and I so enjoyed having them here. They usually make it over to Birmingham about once a year and we go over there many other times during the year. It was my turn to host and cook for them for a change, since my mom has cooked and cleaned up after me my entire life. They are truly the best parents ever! Mom looks great for 80 (in May) doesn't she? I hope those genes are passed down to me, cause I can hardly believe they are getting on up there that fast. That means that I am too and I'm sorta in denial about that. But the hot flashes that have recently started tell me a different story. We'll talk about that another day.

Daddy has always enjoyed working with his hands and last year I told him about a little project I'd like to get done under our deck, so he promised he would do it for me when they came over again. He's a good carpenter and has built many things for me. I try not to ask him to do anything that will be too hard for him now, but Mom will usually tell me if he's not up for something. I really wanted to put in a lattice wall on one end of the deck to hide the ugly A/C unit and create more of a room feeling under there.

That way, I can copy my friend's backyard and do this...a pretty patio under our deck and it will get rid of that mud problem I mentioned earlier. So, my dad (with hubby as helper) got it all done almost in one day and the weather cooperated. Finished it up with a little trim on the other side. Doesn't it look great?
Now, we will get busy and build that patio.
Very soon, I hope...no more mud! And we can enjoy this space and the swing. You can bet I'll show y'all when it's all done. While they were here, we took a drive out in the country, about 20 miles out past where we live to Wilsonville, AL. It's a pretty drive, so mom and dad really enjoyed it. My dad thought all the hills reminded him of NC. I ran out of stone-ground grits, so we went to the source in Wilsonville and I stocked up on grits, stone-ground white corn meal, as well as stone-ground wheat flour. We should be eating healthy now. This is a neat place to visit. They carry all sorts of feed for horses and cows, as well as being a hardware store. You AL girls need to visit here, it's a throw back to the old days.

Baby turkeys for sale, aren't they the cutest??
And Baby ducks, don't you just want to take one home?
As well as baby chicks...
Awwwww. They wouldn't let me touch them though. One of the guys in the store told my hubby that some mornings they come in and there are baby chicks running all over the store and they have to gather them up again.
You can start your own chicken farm with one of these. My niece, who is the only grandchild and 25, has been trying to talk my dad into getting some chickens for his backyard in GA. I don't think she'll win that one though. Mom called her and told her about the baby chicks. She wanted to know if we bought any. Dad's a gardener, not a chicken farmer. We were talking about how we used to have chickens back when we lived in the country when I was about 4 or 5. We would gather the eggs.

Good memories with the folks! They are dear to me. I'm realizing just how blessed I am when I talk to friends who have lost both parents. I'm so grateful for mine.