Blessings from Blunders: Part 1

We just got back from what we have tried to make our annual trip to Alabama to see extended family. This year my cousin Michael was getting married near Birmingham. As soon as we found out in the winter the kids all began begging to go. They know how much fun it is to travel to see Granny (my Grandmama and their great-grandmother), all of my aunts and uncles, and my cousins and their children. My parents are both from south Alabama, so their roots are there. Having grown up going to Alabama at least twice a year, I consider it like home. Mom has 6 siblings, and Dad has 2 sisters. When you start adding everyone up, we are abundantly blessed with a big family. They are all “salt of the earth”, as Mark’s Aunt Retta and Uncle Wade used to say.










We had lunch at Cracker Barrel with Mom and Dad before arriving in Atlanta. It was their 44th Wedding Anniversary!







All was well for the first leg of our trip. We spent Friday night in Newnan, Georgia with Mark’s brother Jeff, and his wife Darlene. What a great visit! It was so good to see Darlene doing so well, since she had struggled through completing radiation treatments for cancer. We were thankful to give her hugs. We also enjoyed Hope’s sister Emma, her daughter Hope, and Hope’s baby girl Kyndal. After taking the photo below in Jeff and Darlene’s Georgia Bulldogs room, we said our goodbyes and headed for Birmingham to the wedding.

Alex, Melinda, Samuel, Madeline, Kyndal, Victoria, Mary Liz, Jeff, Jacob, Darlene, Hope, and Mark

Samuel, Jacob, Mary Liz, Madeline, Hope, Kyndal, and Victoria

This is where the blunder comes in- When we were about 2 miles from our destination, we heard strange sounds coming from the Suburban. We tried to figure them out, but they just went away, so we thought all was well.

Meanwhile, back to the wedding- Michael and Chasity’s wedding was elegant and beautiful, just like the bride. The children enjoyed the ceremony, but they had a blast at the reception. Samuel danced the night away, and Victoria played and danced with Belle (my cousin Mandy’s daughter, who was the flower girl). It was special getting to spend such a memorable evening with the Campbells, Mom’s family.

Melinda Madeline Tate Comer, Madeline Campbell Alford( Grandmama), and Madeline Ashley Comer- The Three Madelines

Kaitlyn, Cari, Samuel, Mallory, Madeline, and Alex

Senor Alex

Madeline, Cari, Kaitlyn, and Mallory
Okay, so I know these don’t look like a wedding photos. The bride and groom wanted all of us to pose for silly Polaroid photos with props and sign them. This was a cute idea!

Here Belle and Victoria are looking at all of the silly photos. They were so sweet together!

Mr. and Mrs. Michael Curtis’s First Dance

Samuel and Victoria enjoyed sleeping on a palette on the floor together throughout the week. This was the night after the wedding.

Sunday morning began with hotel breakfast with Una Mae from Hunstville (Mom’s cousin), Ben and Doris from Tullahoma, TN (Mom’s aunt and uncle), and Mom and Dad (aka “Gran and Papa”). We packed up, said our goodbyes, and began what was to be a full day of “visiting” with Dad’s sisters and their families.

We were greeted with big smiles and hugs in Montgomery by Aunt Annette and “Unc” Jeter, and all of their precious, dear children and grandchildren. Aunt Annette and Uncle Ira prepared a delicious “Sunday dinner”, as Grandmama Tate would have wanted us to call it. She was all that was missing, since she’s gone on to be with Jesus, whom she loved with all of her heart, soul and strength. We even got to see my sweet cousin Sheila, who took a break from her heavy law school studies.

Here’s where the blunder comes in again- After our goodbyes to the Jeter family we pulled out of their driveway only to hear a much worse sound from the Suburban. Mark drove around the block, but it could barely go, and we suspected the trouble was the transmission. We decided to put it in the shop in Montgomery Monday morning, not willing to risk breaking down in the extreme heat on I 85 in route to Raleigh. My cousin Kim and her husband Brandt generously loaned us their 8 passenger minivan.

We decided to go ahead with our original plan to drive to Goshen to see Dad’s other sister, Corine, and her husband, my Uncle Elmo, who had recently celebrated their 50th Wedding Anniversary. The kids just had to visit Aunt Corine and Uncle Elmo! They are such dear family, and they live on the world’s greatest farm! Here’s the sign that Uncle Mo’s children gave him for his 80th birthday this year. As soon as we got there the kids started driving the golf cart and the mule, with Uncle Elmo helping.

Here Biz and Jacob are hugging our sweet Aunt Corine.

All were sad that we had lost so much time figuring out our car repair situation, and we didn’t have time for the much anticipated fishing at the farm. It was time to move on to spend the night outside of Luverne at Grandmama Campbell’s farmhouse, the home where Mom, her 5 sisters & 1 brother were raised. A delicious spaghetti supper was waiting for us, lovingly prepared by my Aunt Liz (from Panama City) and Aunt Kathryn (from there in Luverne) These pictures show the kids eating supper, and then breakfast at Granny’s. Sweet memories…