Trip Report #3 - Greensboro, NC

On Thursday, June 11, 2009, we left Charlotte, NC around 10 a.m. and traveled north to Winston-Salem, NC to have lunch with friends Reva and Clarence. Reva was my best friend when we lived there 1979-1985. It was fun "catching up" with our children and grand children.

We left them and stopped by to visit our friends Dewey and Jane who live near Baptist Hospital. They have a mentally challenged daughter Debbie who was James friend. Debbie lives in a Methodist group home now and is going fine. Jane brought us up to date on all of James' friends from that area.

We arrived in Greensboro late in the afternoon and it was nice and cool. We sat outside under a big oak tree in my sister Susan's and her husband Bob's pretty front yard, in an older neighborhood called Lindley Park, near Univ. of NC at Greensboro.

On Friday we celebrated Bob's birthday in the afternoon after we went shopping that morning to help Susan get a new flat screen monitor for her computer. Friday night we went to a seafood restaurant for the monthly birthday get-together of the church they attend.

Saturday was a relaxing day. We've been to Greensboro so many times we didn't do any sightseeing. We always had to take James to the Amtrak station when we were there. On our last visit, we took him to see the new Amtrak/bus station that has been restored downtown.

We got up early Sunday morning and packed Susan and Bob's car for a 3 day trip to the Eastern shore of Maryland to visit our sister Christine Knudson and her husband Al. We stopped in Emporia, VA on the way and had lunch with Christine's daughter and her family. Her friend Wes had grilled shish-k-bobs for lunch and we had a luncheon for Jake, Cydi's oldest son who graduated from Suffolk High school on Sat. Jan 13, and it was her son Bobby's 15th birthday that week also.

All 6 of the Wilson girls were present for the luncheon (my 5 sisters and myself) so they took lots of pictures of us. Usually at our gatherings there's always one who can't be there. Our brother Perry who lives in Elba was missing from our gathering. We all see each other throughout the year at various places.

We left Emporia at 2 P.M., so we could be able to get the White Haven Ferry, west of Princess Ann in MD, to get to Chris and Al's home in Nanticoke.

When we got to Nanticoke, it was nice and cool.

Trip Report #2 - Charlotte, NC

On Tuesday we drove to Charlotte from Florence, SC, stopping to visit some Gilmer cousins in the country near Kershaw. 

We arrived in Charlotte late in the afternoon to visit my sister Alice and her husband Jerry for 3 days. They recently moved from Fayetteville, NC to Charlotte to the South Park area to be near their 5 grandchildren. Their sons Alex and Andrew and their families live close by and the grandchildren gets lots of TLC from their grandparents. They stopped by after dinner on Monday and we all had watermelon for dessert. They came for pizza dinner on Tuesday night. They will grow up too soon. Their parents used to visit us when they were young and their kids remind us of them so much.

On Tuesday, Jim and I visited the new Billy Graham Library near the airport. What a tribute to a great man. I'm glad he is still living and got to see the library and other buildings completed. The home was one his father built when Billy was a teenager and was relocated from a dairy farm in  South Charlotte. The barn behind the house is where the exhibits are located. You walk through many, many "rooms" where there are photos, videos, etc. displayed showing Billy Graham's life. Someone did a great job putting all of this together.

Ruth Graham is buried in a quiet garden near the library. A brick pathway leads downhill to her gravesite. Soft religious music is piped into the garden.


While in Charlotte we visited Oaklawn cemetery where Jim's biological mother (Dorothy Carnes Gilmer) and his brother Ronald are buried. Jim's mother died when he was 8 and his brother was 14 when his bicycle was hit by a car as Ronald was returning home from his paper route.

We left that cemetery and went to Harrisburg to see the graves of Jim's father and step mother Mary. Took a picture of the Gilmer home at 311 Plaza Dr, which was sold recently. Jim and Larry never lived there. Their original old homeplace was a small frame house near Harrisburg that was moved in 1954 when a new house was built. That replacement home was torn down about 1980 after they built a new home at 311 Plaza Dr. The original old home place is still there and is a used car lot office. He was able to identify the rooms. It is still on property where they lived when Jim was growing up.

We left Charlotte Wed. morning, heading to Greensboro to visit another ister, Susan and her husband Bob for 3 days. 

Trip report #1 - Florence, SC June 4-8, 2009

We left Alabama on Thursday morning, June 4th and traveled to our son Bill's home in Florence, SC - a 9-hour trip. When we arrived Bill had prepared a delicious meal which we shared with him and our three granddaughters.


Friday was a busy day, getting ready for more guests to arrive and shopping for food for the graduation luncheon on Saturday. My sister Alice and her husband Jerry arrived around noon, and a little later Jim's brother Larry and his wife Suzi arrived. We all stayed at a motel nearby.

Saturday morning arrived and we had to be dressed and at the Civic Center by 9:30 a.m. The graduation was at 10. We had a hard time finding seats since the place was nearly filled when we arrived. Wonder what time they all got there!! We saw Katie when she came marching in. She was so excited to get to sit on the 3rd row with the honor students with 4.0 and above grade averages and wear two cords! We're so proud of her. She gave us a "thumbs up" when she walked off the stage with her diploma.   

After graduation everybody walked outside for photos.

Then we headed home for a delicious picnic lunch. Katie planned the menu and wanted it simple.

She wanted barbecue for the meat. I made potato salad, baked beans, and lots of other veggies, fruit salad, and a large graduation cake from Freeman's bakery. We had 23 people for lunch.

After lunch Katie opened her cards and presents and was surprised to get a beach bike to take to college, to get around on campus. No cars allowed at College of Charleston for freshmen. No place to park.


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Alice and Jerry headed back to Charlotte after lunch and the rest of us just sat around and relaxed. Larry and Suzi headed back to Virginia Beach, VA after we all had breakfast at Shoney's Sun. morning. We left for Charlotte on Monday morning after everybody but Caroline left to go to work.

All the weeks of getting ready for graduation paid off and Katie had a great party and loved her photo album I put together for her.

It's Good to be Back Home Again!

When we left Greensboro, NC this morning it was raining and 69 degrees and when we got home (Elba) it was 102 degrees and the heat index was 105!!

We left home on June 4th and traveled over 2200 miles in 2 weeks. Starting tomorrow I will post some of the events that took place and places we visited.

June 4-8 was spent in Florence, SC at our son Bill's home.

June 8-10 we visited my sister Alice and her husband Jerry in their new home in Charlotte, NC.

Then on Thurs, June 11 we traveled to Greensboro, NC to spend a few days with my sister Susan and her husband Bob.

Sunday, June 14, all 6 of us sisters were in Emporia, VA to celebrate our great nephew Jake Estienne's high school graduation by having a luncheon for him.

June 14-16 five of us sisters were together in Nanticoke, MD on the Eastern shore of Maryland at our sister Christine's house.

June 16 - on our way back to NC we stopped in Virginia Beach to help Larry and Suzi Gilmer celebrate their 25th anniversary.

June 17 - drove for 11 hours to get back home from Greensboro, NC.

Had a great time and I can't wait to post some pictures and tell about our trip.

Getting ready for a trip is hard work!

We've been planning a trip to SC for a long time to see our granddaughter Katie graduate from high school on June 6th at 10 am.

Today was the day to start packing and putting suitcases, etc. etc. in the car. We plan to be gone for several days (how about 2 weeks) and moving about in SC, NC, VA and eastern shore of MD.
So we need a variety of clothing for casual, formal, hot weather, cool weather, and swim wear.

Just learned that it will be raining all day tomorrow so we packed the car tonight to avoid getting wet in the morning.

Our car not only has suitcases, but a big framed mirror for Nerissa's dresser, a box of helium for filling balloons at Katie's party Sat., presents for Katie, party decorations, lots of books to share with my sisters (and receive some in return), a bag of shoes for all occasions, and I don't know what else. Jim did the packing of the car.

Our road trips are fun. I usually pack a lot of sandwiches, fruit, cheese and crackers, etc. and we ice down some canned drinks. Usually we find a shady picnic area along the way and eat and people watch. You see a variety of people at rest areas on the interstate.

We should arrive at our destination early in the evening and unpack our suitcases before going to see Bill and the girls - except they won't all be at home tomorrow night when we get there. Graduation brings on lots of parties and dinners and Katie has one tomorrow night.

We spent the day watering all my pot plants, flowers in the potting shed, as well as plants indoors. Stopping the newspaper, holding the mail at the post office, going to the bank, getting someone to mow the lawn while we're gone (almost 2 acres), and all the other things you have to do when you go away.

Is it really worth all this work? Definitely YES!

Graduation Class of 1952

My graduation class from Elba High School (AL), May 1952. I am on the front row, 7th from right.


There were 61 seniors in our graduation class, and now there are 40 left.


There were 2 surviving teachers until yesterday, when Mr. R. S. Jones, the Ag Teacher, died. He was 92. The teacher on the front row wearing the striped dress on the right, Carolyn English Brunson, is still living and in a rehab center. She was just out of college and this was her 2nd year to teach (business subjects). She let me take typing during my study hall since I didn't have a class period left. I never fail to thank her for teaching me to type!


Martin Boutwell, front row and in a wheelchair, died young. I never knew what was wrong with him. He had a great sense of humor. His friends pushed him about the campus to classes. There was no handcapped ramp at school and I remember his friends lifting him (he was a big fellow) and his chair, and sitting him down on the porch so he could get inside. Same thing when it was time to go home. I don't remember anyone else attending school in a wheel chair.


I remember the graduation gowns were made of heavy cotton and weighted you down. I bought a new pair of white shoes with high heels to march down the aisle. I was short and didn't want my gown to come to the floor. We rented our caps and gowns and had to pack them up the night of graduation so they could be returned to the rental company. Unlike today when you get a think polyester gown that you can keep. I still have mine from college.


My class will be having a 57th class reunion on Friday, Aug. 7th. I am mailing out postcards with the 1952 photo on one side. For the reunion, I will have this photo made into a large poster and people will be given an opportunity to find their picture. I wonder how many of my classmates still have a copy of this photo. I have kept this copy in an old scrapbook for 57 years and I treasure it. I have all the classmates names on the back of the photo so I will have an advantage over them at the reunion when I can point out their pictures to them!!


I'm excited about getting our classmates together. Our last gathering was in June 2007 for our 55th reunion. I'm on the 2nd row from the top, on the right.

Sewing is expensive these days

Gone are the days when you would buy a pattern and some cloth and make an outfit to wear and save a lot of money. But not any more....


Let's begin with patterns. I was shocked last summer when I took Caroline to buy a pattern to make a blouse; $7.95 for a pattern to make a blouse!! No way I said. We came home and looked through my big collection of patterns and by using parts of two patterns we achieved the design she wanted to make. She likes to wear her top and is pictured here wearing it in a pre-Easter photo before the family left to go on a cruise over spring break at Easter.


I went online recently and googled McCall Pattern Company to look at patterns, thinking I might make a dress for myself. I was so surprised that patterns cost even more than last year. And you only get one design where you used to get about 6 or 8 different designs in one pattern envelope. Not anymore!


I thought about all of this yesterday when I was cleaning some shelves in our storage building and putting things in boxes to take to a yard sale next week that our local AARP group is having June 5-6. Money raised will be for our nursing home project of providing personal care items for elderly patients who have no family to take care of them. I donated 3 boxes of patterns that I have collected over several years. Maybe somebody still sews and can use theses. I don't sew much anymore. Maybe sell them for five cents each - or give them away.



I have made several bridal gowns in my lifetime for family and friends and I looked at the cost of bridal gown patterns and this one was $110. I guess that could still be a savings but the cost of the fabric would be over $200. It's much simpler these days to buy a gown off the rack and forget the hassle and trouble to make one. 


I made my cousin's wedding dress several years ago. She and her mother came to Atlanta and we went to a cotton mill outlet nearby and bought beautiful lace fabric and lining. I made a "muslin" to fit the pattern to her size and after she left to go back home, I cut out the dress and sewed on it at night using my old sewing machine that had been converted to electric. I worked during the day (plus had 3 little boys to take care of in the evenings) so I didn't get around to working on the dress until they had all gone to bed. When it was finished, I mailed it to her. She looked lovely in it. Others have worn the same dress, including one of her sisters.


I made a wedding dress for our neighbor in Paris, TX. She couldn't afford to buy one already made and wanted a pretty church wedding. She had 8 bridesmaids and I made a couple of their dresses also. The bridesmaids had 2" wide pink ribbon sashes around their waists. I was at the church helping them get dressed when one girl discovered she had misplaced her ribbon and began to panic. I simply cut off some ribbon from each of the other 7 and stapled them together and she wore that around her waist and nobody knew what happened! She called it a miracle.


My sister Carolyn was teaching school in FL when she got married. She wanted me to make her wedding dress. I found a small piece of some beautiful French lace for the bodice at an outlet where I also purchased the other bridal fabric. I matched her measurements to a pattern and sewed up a sample of the top, including the balloon type sleeves and sent it to her to try on. She returned it to me with the adjustments to be made. Then I got busy and made her dress and mailed it to her from "Paris" (Texas, that is), where we were living at the time. I wanted to get a label to sew in her dress "A Paris Original" but didn't have time to order one.


I also made our daughter-in-law Cindy's wedding dress when she and Ronnie got married in 1978 in LaMarque, TX. Her dress was made of cotton eyelet fabric and she wore a big brim hat. I lined the dress and all that fabric made the long dress so heavy. Again, I used her measurements and chose a pattern that size. I made a sample out of some scrap fabric and sent it to her to try on. She looked so pretty with her summer bridal dress at their afternoon ceremony.


Maybe I'll be asked to make a bridal gown for one of my 5 granddaughters someday (if I'm still able to sew). I'll keep my sewing machine oiled, just in case!  Or maybe I'll just give them money to buy one!!