Happy Independence Day!

Have you missed me? I've been spending all of my time working on my photography business and hope to have a good workflow and plan in place soon. I hope you'll stick around!

Today as we celebrate as a country our family is also joyfully counting down the weeks until our son returns from his second deployment to Afghanistan.

Life happens

I'm still here! 

My Daddy's care has needed my attention. All of it. I'm hoping things will settle down now that I've moved him closer to me. 

Riverview Cemetery - Montgomery Co., TN

During all of this my son got married, a few weeks ago. Yay! 

I plan to be back on a regular blogging schedule soon. Hope you'll hang around until then!

Where should it go?

While I am working on the information and photos that I want to share about my Mama via the Memory Medallion I won, I also have to decide where it will be placed on her headstone.

Where would you place it? Here is my Mama's headstone:

He Understands!

Last night I realized my son does understand my love of cemeteries when I received this short email:

"Look what I found not too far from post"

 I giggled as I replied "Ha ha. Been there. Keep looking."

What he didn't know was that during our visit in May, when he returned from Afghanistan, I had to find something to fill those hours he was busy and I too found [and quickly visited] this cemetery just a few miles outside of Ft. Campbell.

Now, this realization probably won't prevent future "eye rolls" but you never know, because hey, I recently discovered that my husband subscribes to this blog and reads my posts! There may be hope for my guys yet.

Confirmed: Nuts!

Most of you that read my cemetery blog are also genealogists. Well, I've done it. What you ask? Put my own genealogy research back at the top of the list. I have been involved in other things for too many years and I haven't done much research.

I have found many ancestors through the census, wills and dusty old marriage books. I know that many others are waiting to be discovered.

I'm starting with moving my data, the hard way, to RootsMagic, which I've had sitting quietly on my computer for too long.

I plan to share this on a new blog: Piney Woods & Prairie Winds

Piney Woods & Prairie Winds: Southern Girl Marries Midwestern Boy

There isn't much there, yet. I do have a list of the direct ancestors that will make an appearance. Since it's been a while that my files have been opened and used it will be like rediscovering the treasures I've filed away in the past.

I hope you'll stop by and visit me as I continue my journey.

This is the face of genealogy.

Posting at the request of Geneabloggers.

Jessie Nell Howard Snell - My Grandma
Sara Estelle Snell Stafford - My Mama
Both are loved and missed.

You can read about the purpose of this post HERE.

Flowers for Mama

Last week we took our son to see his grandparents. He hadn't seen them since the year before he deployed, so it was important to make this trip during his first leave.

While there I took flowers to my Mama. It saddens me that I can't do it as often as I'd like. I'm about 1,050 miles from my hometown of Columbus, GA. I wanted to share something with her and added a bird to the flowers. Those that know me know my yard and gardens are designed with the birds in mind. A simple joy in life.

I love you and miss you dearly, Mama. Till we meet again.


Riverdale Cemetery



On the road

I have been busy lately. We traveled to Kentucky to see our son return home from Afghanistan after a year-long deployment. What a great day it was yesterday despite the cold and rain. I shared a short blog post over on the blog I've kept since our son deployed. Please stop by.

I had hoped to visit a new cemetery or two during my wait time but it has rained the entire time. Oh well, even that wasn't enough to dampen my spirits.

I'll be back soon!

We Interrupt This Blog

Today I've:

• screamed for joy
• felt like fainting
• prayed I wasn't dreaming

And lifted a prayer of thanks...for Clay's continued protection and safe return home...soon.

A date. I finally have a date! Subject to change, but a date! He is scheduled to leave Afghanistan April 25th, arriving back in the states about 5 days later. This has been a long journey. I have managed to endure because of my faith, family and friends.

I was so excited I just had to share...with everyone!


PFC Rodney Clayton Wall
101st Airborne



Change

I don't make new year's resolutions. I did, however, make myself a promise and that was too simplify my life in the coming year. Life and health demand change. To do that required many hard decisions and letting go. Not all were genealogy or cemetery related, but a few were.

I have resigned as the editor for the Graveyard Rabbit Association Online Journal. I enjoyed interacting with others that share an interest in cemeteries. I do plan to continue to author the column "Photo Monument" as well as this blog.

Are you the next GYR online editor? If you have an interest drop footnoteMaven a note.

I'm looking forward to what this year holds for me. Most importantly, my son returning home from Afghanistan, safely.

PFC Rodney Clayton Wall
101st Airborne - Afghanistan

As a creature of habit...change can be hard. But I think I'm up to it.

Most Important

This will be the most important post I will ever share with you.

The week before Christmas I had to take an unplanned trip back home to Columbus, Georgia. Although unplanned it did offer some quality time with family.

This was a hard trip to make. You see, this was the first time I have been to Mama's grave since she died in 2009. Mama died in February and I had planned to go home that summer after her headstone had been placed. My son joined the Army and I postponed the trip to spend all the time I could with him. I rescheduled the trip for November 2009. My son graduated boot camp and attended AIT so we traveled for that and postponed the other trip. I rescheduled the trip for May of 2010. My son deployed to Afghanistan and once again I postponed the trip. The stress of his deployment left me wanting to stay close to home and so I thought it would be spring 2011 before I finally made it home to visit Mama's grave and see her headstone in person. The need to take that unplanned trip changed that. Perhaps all the delays were for the best. Even with as much time that has passed it was very hard for me to stand there and accept that Mama is no longer with me. I tell her every day how much I miss and love her. I do hope she is pleased with the stone I picked out.

While home I also visited the graves of my 4 sisters. My little sister, Teresa, died in 2007 at the age of 39 of natural causes. My older sister, Denise, died in 2008 at the age of 49 of cancer. Three months later in 2009 Mama was gone. It's hard imagining growing old without them.

I also have 2 sisters that died at birth. Mama had twins Judine and Joycine in 1960 before I was born. [from her first marriage]

At Mama's funeral this is what I shared:
"I will cherish every day I was blessed to have Mama. Her hands tenderly cared for me, her kisses healed my pain. Her hugs calmed my fears and her voice was a melody in my ear. Nothing compares to a mother’s love. It guided me through life in my early years and waited in the wings in my adult years. Mama has left us for a little while but her love will always be with us. Close your eyes and open your heart and there you will find her."


Riverdale Cemetery



The back of Mama's headstone



Riverdale Cemetery



East Porterdale Cemetery

Close-up of Denise's headstone



Riverdale Cemetery

  
It is my plan to have a new headstone placed on the twins grave. One that will last longer. The one above is common and seen a lot in this cemetery.

We interrupt this blog...

...to tell you that I am SO excited! My son, Clayton, is on his way home from Afghanistan for a 15 day visit. He should arrive in the states tomorrow. We don't get many details in advance, and I won't get on that soapbox today.

Just had to share!

Penguin in his pocket?
Read the story on our blog: dearclayton.blogspot.com
Click on the label "penguin"

My hero

No cemetery related post here. Just a note to my cemetery friends...

My son, Clayton, has deployed to Afghanistan. If you want to follow us on this journey you can on our other blog. I recently had an opportunity to represent the military family at a public event. I shared that having our son enlist to serve our country makes us proud but having him enlist during two wars makes HIM a hero to us.

Please say an extra prayer for him and all that serve our country.

Happy Easter!

No cemetery data or photo here. Just me sharing a photo taken today. My son arrived yesterday for his pre-deployment leave. He'll soon deploy to Afghanistan for a year. Tomorrow is his 26th birthday and we're having an open house and surprise birthday party for him. On Sunday we'll celebrate Easter with church service and a family dinner.

Happy Easter, everyone!

Clayton, Gale & Barry Wall 4/2/2010

Tabernacle Cemetery Walk

My GG Grandmother, Mollie Smith Snell, and her father, James F. Smith, are buried here.

Take a walk - see more photos online.

Smith Cemetery Walk

I've blogged about this cemetery before. It's my Smith Family Cemetery where my Great, Great-Grandfather, Henry Dennis Smith and his parents, Benjamin F. Smith and Mary Emmer Goodman Smith are buried. BF remarried after Mary died and children from both marriages are buried there too. Among the other burials are 5 graves marked with a concrete slab only. My great grandfathers had his name scratched into his concrete slab. In 2004 I organized a group of family members to purchase a headstone for Henry Dennis Smith [and other Smith ancestors].

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Left: Henry Dennis Smith

Right: Benjamin F. and Mary E. Goodman Smith

Take a walk - see more photos online.

Mt. Ida Cemetery Walk

For a brief time Laura Ingalls Wilder and family lived in Holmes County, Florida, along with her cousin, Peter Ingalls. Laura and her family moved back North but Peter stayed and married a local girl. He is buried at Mt. Ida not too far from my Great Grandfather, George Washington Stafford [pictured above].


Take a walk - see more photos online.

Campground Cemetery Walk

Located in rural Holmes County, Florida. My great-grandmother, Catherine R. Benton Stafford, is buried here along with two of her children that died young. A lot of the graves are no longer legible making it a sad cemetery walk.

Take a walk - see more photos online.

Park Hill Cemetery

These type of cemeteries don't give us rabbits much to look at. This is where my Grandpa and a few other family members are buried in Columbus, GA

Rural Alabama Cemetery

Before I came to enjoy spending time in cemeteries I was engrossed in climbing my family tree. In order to climb those branches I had to visit many resting places. A lot of them are in the rural areas of Alabama, Georgia and Florida. This is the New Hope PBC Cemetery located in SW Houston County, Alabama. My great grandfather, William Benjamin Howard, is buried here.

Clara Estelle Smith & William Benjamin Howard.

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I have the original photos that were used to make this photo. Ben was not wearing any shoes in the picture used to copy him. And Clara had a child standing on each side. We called Clara "Momet" and she lived a good long life. I was blessed to know her for 15 years.

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