Category Archives: Mother’s Day

because-of-sandy-jo

Because of Sandy Jo

because-of-sandy-joIf you bungle raising your children, I don’t think whatever else you do well matters very much.” ~ Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis

You would find them in the soda shops and movie houses any time of the day or night. Sitting on the bar stool or stuffed into a booth. Sipping on a milkshake or devouring a greasy cheeseburger with all the trimmings. They all looked the same; they wanted to fit in just like kids today.  Decked out in saddle shoes and penny loafers, cuffed blue jeans, Shetland sweaters, poodle skirts, and I.D. bracelets. Elvis and Patsy Cline swooned on the juke box and the Korean War and McCarthyism were all but forgotten for the 1950’s teenager.

Sandy Jo McCammon might be considered your typical teenager except that she was an only child. And she was probably spoiled. Her mother had lost her first child when she was just three weeks old and never really recovered from the loss so both parents especially doted on Sandy. With hard-working, middle class parents, she never really wanted for anything.

But what she dreamed of was to be a dancer! Her cousin Jennifer had the same aspirations. They surely went to the movies every Saturday matinee and dreamed of being the next Ann Miller or Ginger Rogers. They took lessons together and learned to tap dance.  They never made it to Broadway but they sure looked great in their costumes.

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Sandy met Buddy in high school and set up housekeeping at the close of the 50’s and welcomed the 60’s, not realizing the impact those next ten years would forever have on their lives. For from 1959 to 1970 they would not only have four adorable children (yep, one of them was me!), but would even see the youngest off to kindergarten by the time the seventies rolled around. You better believe they were busy!because-of-sandy-jo

Sandy had several occupations besides Mother, and I have no idea how she had time for any of them. She cleaned houses and even worked in a factory for a very short time, but I don’t think she was fond of that one; she never liked to sit still for very long.

One of her favorite jobs though, I believe, was her beloved school bus. Her father-in-law had driven for many years and encouraged her to get her license. It was just perfect for her and the hours were great.

In between all of these occupations, Sandy had time to be called Grandma, or Mamaw Sandy. She became a grandmother at a very young age with my very own Kyle Douglas more than 40 years ago and eight more have joined him since then. Now she is welcoming great grands and added three to the crew this summer bringing that total to ten.

grandkids

One of the greatest privileges of my life was being with my mother when she gave her heart to the Lord. I was twelve years old and I have no idea why I decided to tag along with Mom and her friend Jackie. My Dad was brought up in the church, but my mother was not, and they had not served God since they had been married. Mom was a fairly heavy smoker of unfiltered Winstons.

It was a cold January night when we arrived at the revival meeting. Although it has been 50 years ago now, I can still remember my mother standing there with tears streaming down her face gripping the back of the pew at the close of the preacher’s sermon. She didn’t wait for an invitation; she was already heading down that aisle to give her heart to God.

My Dad was surely surprised when she came home with the news but the next week we were all in church as a family and they have served God together the last 50+ years.

The most wonderful miracle was when Mom came home that night from that revival meeting. She went straight to the drawer in the kitchen where she kept those Winston cigarettes and threw them all in the wastebasket. She never had another cigarette again and she never had withdrawal symptoms! She was instantly delivered when she was filled with the Holy Spirit; God still performs miracles today!

It is fun to reminisce about your mother’s life but I honor her today for taking that step of faith so long ago for ALL of our family. I often wonder how different our lives would have been had she not answered that call that night. Would any of us be serving God? Would our marriages be in shambles? How about our children? What direction would their lives have taken? None of them have ever been in trouble with the law. Neither have my brothers or sisters children. It could have been so different.

But because of my mother, all of her children and all of her grandchildren are serving God today; what a testimony and what a blessing! No, she is not a celebrity, but she will leave a legacy that far surpasses what the rich and famous will ever experience.

Thank you, Mom. We have much to be thankful for today because of you.

And Happy 80th birthday today! You deserve all the happiness in the world and good health to go with it.

momanddad

15 Fun Facts for Father’s Day!

When you’re young, you think your dad is Superman. Then you grow up and you realize he’s just a regular guy who wears a cape. ~ Dave Attell

15 Fun Facts for Father’s Day!

Father’s Day is celebrated around the world, although not always on the third Sunday in June as we do here in the USA. Enjoy some fun trivia about the day itself and Father’s in general! Happy Father’s Day to all of our Dads!

Kyle and NorahA special Happy Father’s Day to my son, Kyle, who is celebrating his very first Father’s Day because of our miracle, Norah Jayne.

  1. In the country of Thailand, National Father’s Day is also the King’s birthday. They celebrate by setting off fireworks and committing acts of charity, such as donating blood and setting free animals who were captive.
  2. Did you know that the male seahorse is the partner that carries the eggs and births the babies? Say what?!
  3. The song by Stevie Wonder, Isn’t She Lovely, is all about his newborn daughter, Aisha. If your hearing is good and you listen closely, you can even hear her crying on the recording.
  4. Things are a bit different now with cellphones but Father’s Day used to be the busiest day of the year for COLLECT phone calls.
  5. The birthplace of the official Father’s Day is Spokane, Washington. Sonora Dodd wanted to honor her father who raised her when her mother died during childbirth. June was his birth month.
  6. There are more than 70 million dads in the U.S.
  7. In 2014, consumers spent $19 billion on Mother’s Day and $12.5 billion on Father’s Day.Happy Father's Day
  8. There are more than 214,000 stay-at-home dads in the United States.
  9. Females spend 50% more on gifts for their dads and husbands than men do.
  10. Kids who lived in a home without a father make up 63% of youth suicides in the U.S
  11. The word “dad” was first recorded in 1500 but is likely much older than that. It probably comes from the first sounds that a child makes and is similar around the world. In Welsh it is tad, Irish it is daid, tata in Greek, and tete in Lithuania.
  12. The official flower for Father’s Day is a rose. You wear a red one if your father is still living and a white one if your father is deceased.
  13. Number One gift for Father’s Day is still the necktie!
  14. And finally, it is noted that one of the oldest “Father’s Day Cards” was made by a boy named Elmesu more than 4,000 years ago. A clay tablet, found by archaeologists in Babylonian ruins, had a message on it from the son telling his father he wished for him good health and a long life.

Poppy and NorahNot to leave out The Sweetheart…you knew I wouldn’t. He is celebrating his first Father’s Day as Poppy. God is good! Now, fire up the grill, dust off the lawn chair, and make sure you tell your Father how much you appreciate him!

 

Phone calls, flowers and ropes on Mother’s Day

Happy Mother’s Day to all of our wonderful mothers! If your mother is not living, may you be blessed with wonderful memories of her today. If you have not been able to be a mother, may God surround you with His love and comfort and may you be able to trust Him that He is sovereign and faithful. If your mother wasn’t what you considered ideal and you don’t see reason to honor her today, if Mother’s Day is just plain difficult for you, I pray you may be able to be thankful that your Mother chose life and that you now have a chance to make a difference in the life of another. Blessings to you all on this wonderful day. You can read some of my other more humorous Mother’s Day posts here, here and here!

Phone calls, flowers and ropes on Mother’s Day

Mother’s Day has always been a favorite here in the United States. They say over 122 million will take the time to call their mother today. I will wait for you if you haven’t called your mother yet. Go ahead, it will make her day!

The average spent on Mom today is $168. That seemed extremely high to me and very extravagant for a holiday that was meant to just say, “Thank you.”

Yesterday, I received the most wonderful gift I may have ever gotten for Mother’s Day. Letters from My Three Sons, my sweet DIL, Rachel, and The Sweetheart. Post dated to open one a month for an entire year. Tears!! I will open thefamily first one today. Genius. Thank you to the best kids on the planet!

Around the world, Mother’s Day is celebrated much the same way we do here in the States; flowers, candy, a day off from chores, maybe dinner in a restaurant.

In Ethiopia, Mother’s Day is celebrated for three days! The three-day feast, Antrosht, is celebrated by making hash. The girls bring spices, vegetables, cheese and butter and the boys bring a lamb or a bull. The mother then serves the hash and a celebration takes place afterward where the mothers and daughters anoint themselves using butter on their faces and chests. The men sing songs to honor the family. Hmmm…

Men in Australia typically wear a chrysanthemum in their lapels to honor their mothers. This flower is chosen because it ends in “mum” which is their chosen name for the one who brought them into the world!

If you think your Mother’s Day is dull, you could celebrate as they do supposedly, in Serbia. They also need three days to honor their mother in the month of December. They celebrate Children’s Day and Father’s Day all back to back on consecutive Sundays. But here is where it truly differs from other celebrations! On Children’s Day, the children are tied up with rope and have to say they will behave before they can be untied!

Then on Mother’s Day, it is the mother’s turn to be wound around and around with the rope and she must stay all tied up until she gives treats and gifts to the children. How she is supposed to do this while tied up is a mystery to me but hey, she is a mom! Finally, on Father’s Day, you guessed it, Dad gets to take a turn. He must stay bound with the ropes until he gives the family their Christmas gifts and then everyone can celebrate.

As a daughter I have seen 50+ Mother’s Days come and go. As a Mother, this is my 35th year of celebrating. As a grandmother, it is my very first. My son and DIL experienced infertility for over ten years before we received this little miracle, who is just five weeks old, Norah Jayne. You can read their story here.

While it has taken a few years for me to join the grandparents club, trust me, I feel as if I belong here. Watching Norah at times is like going back 25+ years and watching my own all over again. It seems as if I can see each one of My Three Sons in her tiny face. And yet, she is her own little person, she will have her own ideas, her own desires and her own dreams. This isn’t the same world that her daddy grew up in and it will take a love for God and a relationship with Him to weather the storms that life will send her way.

If I could tell Norah one thing it would be to always honor your parents. They will make mistakes but will forever want what is best for you and strive to make sure you are loved, safe and cared for.

Today, if your mother is living, you are blessed to still have her and be able to let her know you appreciate her. To my own mother, Sandy, I thank you for everything you have done for me and my family over the years. We could count on you then and we can count on you now. Thank you for being a great mother.

To my daughter-in-law, Rachel, on her first Mother’s Day, a day that has typically been so difficult is now wonderfully anticipated. It’s taken a long time to get here but God’s timing is always perfect. May you enjoy every moment and give thanks to the One who has blessed us all with such a miracle.

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Did I mention the country of India? Most of the citizens of this country aren’t really aware of a formal Mother’s Day for one interesting reason: They strongly feel that ONE DAY isn’t sufficient to celebrate the love of a mother.

I would agree.

Happy Mother’s Day!

nana