Welcome to JOYFUL REFLECTIONS. Also welcome to MARCH!!!! My header picture this month is a photo I took of the pretty Crocus blooms in our yard... The Crocuses and Daffodils are the first signs of spring here in Tennessee. I am definitely ready for SPRING...

Tuesday, January 10, 2017

Wonderful Family Visit -- 12/31/16

Jeff-youngest son;  Mom-OLD WOMAN;  Bert-eldest son;  Mark-middle son
On December 31st  (New Year's Eve),  George and I drove to Gatlinburg, Tennessee to a beautiful mountain cabin,  to meet with family for a day of JOY and HAPPINESS and lots of LAUGHTER...As I have told my Facebook friends,  this is the first time in a LONG time that I have been with ALL three of my SONS together.   As you can imagine,  I was a very happy Mama who felt as if I was in 7th Heaven!!!!   Here are some pictures for you to enjoy!





Granddaughter,  Brooke, and her Navy Husband,  Tristan





Bert (who goes by Tre now to all but the family);  The great news for me is that Bert is now a Tennessee Resident residing in Chattanooga... YEAH!





Mark and his fiancee,  Debbie





Jeff and his beautiful wife,  Dawn;   They are holding a gift that Talented Jeff painted for George and me.  That painting is proudly hanging in our living room now.





My son's father,  Mel,  and his wonderful wife,  Sally





My Hero---husband George,  holding a gift (Champion Chicago Cubs glass)





A happy Mama with new Daughter-in-law-to-be  (wedding in June)





Mark, Mom and Debbie:  (The good news is that these two came to our home in Fairfield Glade and spent a couple of days with us from Jan 2-4... Their visit was TREMENDOUS--and I'll share pictures of this visit in another blog.)





A SILLY picture of my three sons  (HA HA ---wonder where they got their craziness?????)





A Fun-Loving Family for sure!!!!!   We played some crazy, silly games-- including this one!!!!  ha ha  (Try to talk with that thing in your mouth!!! ha)





The FAMILY
Finally,   here is a good picture of ALL of us.   From left to right:  Row 1--Debbie, Brooke, Tristan, Betsy;  Back row-- Mel, Sally, Bert,  Mark, Jeff, Dawn,  and George   (We missed grandchildren Bay Lee,  Landon,  Christopher,  and Avery on this day.)

To say that this wonderful day 'made' Christmas for me is definitely TRUE...  Thanks be to God for FAMILY.

Happy 2017 to all of you!

Hugs,

48 comments:

George said...

We definitely had a good time in Gatlinburg, didn't we? But what's with this 'old woman' stuff? I'm too young to be married to an old woman!

David said...

Betsy, Now that was a real family gathering! Good looking group for sure and it looks like a great time was had by all... Take Care, Big Daddy Dave

Betsy said...

It looks as though you all had an absolutely wonderful time. And I was so glad to hear you said you gathered in Gatlinburg. Since the fires are over, those of us on this side of the country really don't know what's happening there. How fun to have all of your family together in one place. I would absolutely love that with our family. Happy new year Betsy!
Blessings,
Betsy

Terra said...

What a lovely family and time you had, and George is right, I do not see an old lady in those pictures. More like a happy lady.

Elizabeth said...

Thank you for sharing this momentous occasion. Praying you will have many more!

linda m said...

Thank you for sharing your family get together with us. It was special.

Ginny Hartzler said...

Your sons are all so cute! And your granddaughter and husband beyond cute, and SO young! Wonderful and fun pictures! So how far away is Bert living, I know you LOVE that, because you have no family close!

Marie said...

such happy photos of happy times!! so glad you all had this time together. :) I know you're thrilled to have one of your sons close by. :)
happy new year to you and yours!!
hugs,
Marie

Deb J. in Utah said...

I can tell you had a joyous family reunion! How wonderful!

Lisa @ Two Bears Farm said...

Your smiles are just glowing! I'm so glad you got to spend time with them.

A Colorful World said...

Such happiness! I am so happy for all of you! What an amazing, sweet time!

Lowcarb team member said...

Wonderful, wonderful ...I'm so happy for you.
To spend time like this with family is just so special and as you said "a day of JOY and HAPPINESS and lots of LAUGHTER"

Thank you so much for sharing your happiness.

All the best Jan

Ann Thompson said...

How wonderful that you had all your sons together. That looks like a fun and happy crowd

Fun60 said...

Your family looks a fun loving group. The best of ways to celebrate a new year.

Wendy said...

When the grand start getting married we know we're getting old! LOL! What a lovely, happy family you have. You are truly blessed, Betsy!
Lots of hugs

Wendy said...

Oops - meant to say "when the grands" - not grand. LOL!

Linda at To Behold The Beauty said...

What a beautiful post! There are some great portraits among these photos that I know you'll treasure in the days ahead. I love all the smiles. That's definitely the way to celebrate Christmas (even if it was a bit belated). And I'm sure Gatlinburg appreciated your visit.

Connie said...

Fantastic family photos, Betsy! I can tell you all had such a wonderful time.

~Lavender Dreamer~ said...

How wonderful to spend time with your family! Those boys sure look a lot like Mom! What FUN! Happy New year sweet friend. Hugs, Diane

~Lavender Dreamer~ said...

I was wondering about the 'old' woman too. Didn't see her in any of the pics!

Ruth Hiebert said...

I'm guessing that having your children together like this was worth more than any gift you could have received.Everyone looks happy,but Mama is probably the happiest of all.

Devilish Angel said...

Lovely photos Betsy. I agree with George. You are not old. Your cheerful mind shows how young you are...

Linda G. said...

What a wonderful end of year 2016 you had, with all three sons together! Wonderful pictures of your fun-loving family.

Jeevan said...

Haha… this is quite fun! Glad for you, having enjoyed a cheerful eve with your dear family and staying along with your sons... wish you continue having the spirit and family support.

Cheers!

Big Dude said...

Great that you can be together with all of your kids, especially at a mountain cabin. Hard for me to remember back that far but seems as though the boys resemble their dad especially the older two.

Rambling Solo said...

Love getting to see your family.

Cheqna said...

Hi Betsy,

Happy New Year..wishing you and family wonderful months ahead.

:-)

Busy Bee Suz said...

What a beautiful way to start your 2017; with ALL of your people in one place at ONE time! Love all the family photo's, the silly and the Not so silly. Congrats on the upcoming wedding too....ALL good stuff Betsy!
XO

Karen (Back Road Journal) said...

You couldn't have had a nicer way to bring in the New Year than being surrounded by your family.

Arkansas Patti said...

How delightful your handsome family got together in one place. They are definitely your sons. It is so neat that you are on good terms with their dad. Sure makes for relaxing get togethers. What a wonderful gift to all.

Susie Swanson said...

What a beautiful family and I know it was so enjoyable for you and George. It doesn't matter how old our children are we still enjoy the get together's even more because of jobs, distance, etc. it's so hard to come by. I'm so happy for you and I wish your son and his future wife all the happiness in the world. Hugs and Blessings, xo

Beatriz said...

Happy and beautiful family, for sure!!!
Glad to see you here Betsy, I miss your posts...

many, many hugs <º(((<

Bia
www.biaviagemambiental.blogspot.com

Lux G. said...

Beautiful smiles. Happy 2017!

BeachGypsy said...

happy happy happy time! SO WORTH IT to plan for that special time, set a date, have everybody meet up somewhere amazing, and then just ENJOY......the travel is worth it, the time put into planning it is worth it and the outcome is a fun special family time and those great memories!

diane b said...

These are the happiest times. So glad that you could spend time with all your sons. I hope the new year continues so for you.

diane b said...

I am having trouble getting my comment to publish.. this is third time lucky.
It is the best time when you can have a family get together.

Anonymous said...

Hi Betsy, Nice get-together. It usually is a lot of fun to see one's kiddos after a long time apart. I know I enjoy seeing my son who is living in California (probably once a year if I am lucky). Have a great day tomorrow and enjoy that fabulous 'Glade scenery on the golf course.

Heidrun Khokhar, KleinsteMotte said...

Wow you have a grand daughter already married and mine is just 6 months. Your guys and gals all look like fun types and you are right to have felt so great . What a fantastic bunch!

Lady Fi said...

Oh Betsy - I 'm so happy that you got so much family under one roof and had a great time!

eileeninmd said...

Hello Betsy, sounds like you had a wonderful family reunion. Love the family photos. Happy Friday, enjoy your weekend!

Judy said...

What a wonderful family time.

Judy

Gardener on Sherlock Street said...

So good to get everyone together!

Nancy Chan said...

There was an error message when I post the comment.
Such a beautiful family get together! So good to see your group photo with all the smiling faces. Looking forward to your posting on your sons's visit. Have a good day!

BeachGypsy said...

Howdy there Betsy, so glad to see that you had stopped by today! You know, I didn't know there was such a thing as dyeing the poodles bright blue like that but a few said that is what they think it might be........so perhaps that solves the 'mystery' of the blue pouf poodle, right? LOL Hope y'all have had a real nice weekend. Ours was low key and with alot of walking, our favorite past-time here in Charleston. We're having lovely weather and so thankful for the nice warm days.
So glad you enjoyed the Christmas posts and all the Christmas decorations in Charleston, there surely are some beautiful ones to gaze upon for sure!

Linda said...

Great family photos! Warms my heart to see all those smiles.

Rose said...

Oh, Betsy, it still makes me happy to see these photos of you and your three sons. I saw that you had got to be with all three on facebook and got a big smile, then. I bet you are still smiling.

Chris H said...

I read your comment on Catsngrams blog... so popped over. My goodness you have heaps of followers and comments! I agree though, you must blog for yourself and not for others. I have only a few followers compared to you, and very few comments most days, but it simply does not bother me. Your family looks lovely.
I have three grown sons too... and three daughters. And my husband and I are also raising 3 grandchildren. So life is busy!

Twilight Man said...

The happy family bonding moments are really priceless! Your photos are so fun and beautiful to see the whole family coming together.