Slideshow - Charles Timothy

1st slideshow of our newest grandson (by one day) from photos taken last weekend in Florida. We were able to make a short weekend trip to Jacksonville (Oct. 17-18). I included some special photos taken by a photographer friend Saturday afternoon. Rachel has about 100 photos posted on her FB site.

family photo Sunday

I could not decide on one photo of the week, so I decided to post pics of our three grandsons born in 2009. Ethan is a little over 3 months old, and Layton and Charlie are 2 weeks now. The blessings of the Lord...

Slideshow - Layton Andrew

After traveling the last two weekends, I am finally getting around to posting some pics of the grandsons. The first slideshow is from our trip to PA to visit Layton and family!

makes you think twice before taking the flu shot

The winner of this weeks "CAPTION THIS" by Gary Varvel -

For some more good laughs,

Check out the runners up at Varvelblog

my birthday tax has been paid

When I renewed the car tag on Tuesday, just in time for my birthday today, I was able to request the HOBBY ANTIQUE VEHICLE tag. After I put the tag on the car, I told Cindy that the value of the car just went up:) Our 1983 Chrysler LeBaron convertible has just over 60,000 original miles. It only had 49,000 miles when we bought it from my co-worker 9 years ago. Not bad for a 26 year old auto. And Cindy said recently that she will keep driving it to work as long as God keeps it running!

Video - Charles Timothy and the Trumpet

We enjoyed our short weekend trip to Florida meet Charlie T, and I took this video clip during the photo shoot on Saturday.

family photo Sunday

Our Wisconsin girls are growing up! Stephen and Leah posted this recent photo on FB.

(L-R) Sophie, Natalie and Meredith

Video - Layton Andrew

A short video of Layton sitting out in the sunshine with Mam-ma and great-grandma last weekend.

Welcome to the world, Charles Timothy

Our third grandson was born Thursday in Jacksonville, Florida. Welcome to the world, Charles Timothy Franklin! Charlie decided to come early, almost beating his cousin Layton's entrance into the world the day before. Congrats to Rachel and Brandon! Baby and Mom (and dad) are doing great!

We are in PA this weekend to visit Layton Andrew. Layton came home at 3 pm Friday and we were here by 2 am Saturday. Babies are so cute and precious!

family photo Sunday

I like this cute picture of Meredith that Leah posted on facebook recently! She is one happy girl!

Welcome to the world, Layton Andrew

Our oldest son emailed these pictures of his newborn son, Layton Andrew. Congrats to Josh and Janelle on the birth of their son yesterday, October 7th, just after 3 pm. He weighed 8 lbs 11 ounces, 21 1/4 " long and has dark hair like his sister Brielle did when she was born.

Grandpa Harris holding Layton on day two.

Photo gallery from the Duluth Fall Festival

Happy Fall, Y'all!
Check out my photos from the Duluth Fall Parade and Festival at this link.

a marine comes home

Our local paper published the story of Marine Cpl. Charlie Leak who was shot in Afghanistan on July 28. The article recounts the events leading up to the injury and his return home to Georgia recently.

To read and view the slideshow, click on this link to Portrait of a Marine

The history of the Purple Heart award dates back to the American Revolution, circa 1782, known then as the Badge of Military Merit. Bedrossian estimates the number of overall Purple Heart recipients at 1.7 million, including a handful of Civil War soldiers. Estimating the number of recipients in more recent conflicts such as Afghanistan is next to impossible, in the wake of paperwork snafus and a general lack of tracking, Bedrossian says. A November 2008 study by "National Geographic" estimated the number for Afghanistan vets at 2,743.

In the hierarchy of military decorations, the Purple Heart falls roughly nine slots from the zenith, the Medal of Honor. Nonetheless, Bedrossian calls it the most recognizable decoration, the most identified.

"(The medal) was for the common man - not for the officer, the rich fellow," he says. "There is a sense of honor there. You perceive it differently because there was a sacrifice."

family photo Sunday

"Smile for the camera"

Our grandson, Ethan, will be 3 months old October 9th.

Slideshow - October family birthdays

Video-this bug needs some shocks

Another video from the Duluth Fall Festival Parade last Saturday.

wonder what went wrong?

As you can clearly see, I am no farmer. We have this one tomato plant that my friend gave us in July. It bloomed several times, and finally about two weeks ago, one tomato started to grow. I wonder what went wrong?

video - Duluth HS Marching Band in parade

We enjoyed hearing the Duluth High School Marching band in the Fall Festival Parade Saturday morning. Glad they braved the rain to perform for us.

family photo Sunday

Just a few more weeks until Brandon and Rachel's baby boy is born! Rachel is hoping the baby comes a week earlier than the due date of October 16th. Josh and Janelle are also expecting a baby boy due in the next week.

I love a parade

It is that time of year, the last weekend in September when the Fall Festival takes place at the Duluth Town Green. (see link above for the festival website and the link below to the photos I took the last time we went, which was in 2007) I am hoping for good weather, at least in the morning, because "I love a parade." Oh, I know I will be taking pictures of the same things again, but the people will be different. And who knows, we might even find some American made arts and crafts for baby presents, birthdays, and Christmas. I think that these arts and crafts shows are so popular because it is one of the few places you can buy American made items.
Link to kodak gallery

I thought we moved out of the swamp

(Photo of flooding at Six Flags Over Georgia)

What a week this has been! I woke up to thunder and lightning during the storm Monday morning around 3 AM. As I prepared to leave work, I discovered some minor flooding in the basement. The radio informed me we had 5-8 inches of rain during the night, so I cleaned up the water with the shop vac and headed for work. After being stuck in traffic for 50 minutes, I called my boss who then told me to turn around and go work from home. I was only about 5 minutes from home but it took 30 mins to get back home.



By 9 am, the radio announced that all the schools would be closed, but Cindy had left before 7 am. She came home before noon and has now been out of school for two days - for rain, and with no hurricane in sight! We're not in Florida any more but it sure seemed like it with all the rain. (Jacksonville is known for those 5 inch down pours in September.) God has blessed us with only minor weather issues. So many people have serious flooding problems. Praise Him for supplying rain so the drought is officially over.



Tuesday afternoon we had the most beautiful blue skies and breeze! When I arrived home from work I cut the grass in our front yard and used the blower for the first time in two weeks. I didn't want to get another warning from the lawn police :)

Honesty is the best policy

Has this ever happened to you?

The other day I stopped at Target during lunch to pick up some OTC medicines and other supplies. As I was walking out the door, I glanced at the receipt again and wondered how I could spend $43.00 for so few items. As I loaded the items in the trunk of the car, I checked the receipt again and noticed the store brand Clariton item was missing on the printout. The shelf price was $13.95 and I could not in good conscience drive away without paying for this item. I recall when my boys were young that we found a $20 bill on the ground as we were leaving the grocery store. We took it back inside and gave it to the manager. I was sure someone would be coming back to the store looking for their money. It was the right thing to do then and is still the right thing to do today.

I took the medicine and receipt back to the checkout and she was so thankful that I brought it to her attention. When she scanned the box at $19.95 I decided I would not purchase the item at this time. Now if I had not checked my receipt, I realize I would have a free bottle of medicine. I guess this was my good deed for the week :)

This seems to happen often at Target and the last time I lost money. We were on vacation in Wisconsin and I purchased a 12 pack of Cokes on sale. When I got back to Georgia a few days later I discovered the lady had scanned the Cokes twice. Oh well, it's only money!

family photo Sunday

Gotta love this cute photo of cousin Amy York's "Three Boys" - baby Easton, Josh and her dog! (posted on her FB site this week)

encouragement from the Word of God

God uses many ways to reach us with the Word of God. Other than the written word, the Bible, one of the most successful methods in the last century has been the radio airwaves. Recently, I was able to find "Love Worth Finding" on the radio at 8:30 AM as I travel to work. Even though, Dr. Adrian Rogers has been in Heaven since 2005, his messages have continued in radio and television formats and are very timely.

I was very encouraged to listen to the Word as he taught this week on "Living in the Last Days".
His messages are archived at this link to oneplace.com

You can read the outline at this link. I posted the last section of the message that reminds us that since Jesus is coming back someday, maybe soon, we should "be abiding."

IV. THE TRIUMPH IS THAT JESUS IS COMING–BE ABIDING (1 John 2:24-29)
A. We need to abide in the Word of God.
1 John 2:24

B. We need to abide in the Spirit of God.
1 John 2:20
1 John 2:27
Ephesians 4:11-12
2 Timothy 2:15
John 14:26

C. We need to abide in the Son of God.
1 John 2:28-29

Video - For all the teachers in the family

Flood watch continues; rain to extend into next week | ajc.com

Flood watch continues; rain to extend into next week  | ajc.com

Posted using ShareThis

Glenn Beck on the cover of Time magazine

TIME Magazine is one of the most liberal leaning news magazines, right up there with Newsweek, and they really go after Glenn Beck this week. They feature him on the cover, but the picture is just to "make fun" of Beck and all of those who would dare listen to him.

Check out this link to the article:

Mad Man: Is Glenn Beck Bad for America?

spending time with family

We enjoyed a short trip to Cowpens to spend time with my mom and dad over Labor Day weekend. I grilled hamburgers and ribeye steaks while Cindy and Mom enjoyed a shopping spree at Hamrick's in Gaffney. We also bought a cake and sang "Happy Birthday" to my mom - her birthday was Aug. 26th, but it's never too late to celebrate a birthday! Dad had bought a DVD recorder, so I spent some time dubbing some videos of our sons onto DVD's, including the video of their Ireland Mission Trip in 2001 (with Victory Baptist Church).

I also enjoyed the chance to minister in song with my mom and dad at their church on Sunday night. We sang a trio - an old gospel song, and one I had never sung before, called "The Sun's Coming Up in the Morning." Cindy took a photo of us practicing.

family photo Sunday

Brielle Michala turns three on Monday, Sept 14th. It is hard to believe, but they grow up so fast!

a day of remembrance

I may be a day late posting this, but this day of remembrance - 9/11 - is a day that is constantly on my mind. We are fighting a war against terrorism in Iraq and Afghanistan because of the events of that day. Of all the columns written this week for 9/11, "A Day of Remembrance" written by our US Representative John Linder (R-Duluth) was one of the best:

If you are reading this column, you probably don't need to be reminded about what happened on this day eight years ago. You do not need to be told to rekindle your inner patriot - that fire was lit inside you long ago. But look around you. An entire generation getting on the school bus this morning does not remember the pain of this day. (click to read more at GwinnettDailyPost.com)

"mixed brain dominance"

This is too funny! This is about the way I feel after a long day at work on Friday. I gave up after trying to enter the same purchase order three times and it locked up my system! (click on photo to enlarge)

about 5 more weeks to go!

Rachel received a good report from the doctor today. Her baby weighs 5lbs -everything looks fine according to the doctor and the ultrasound tech, and he has about 5 more weeks in the womb. This photo of the happy couple was taken a couple of weeks ago on Rachel's birthday, August 30th.

slideshow-my favorite pics of Sophie

Enjoy this slideshow of some of my favorite photos of our granddaughter, Sophie, taken in the last few months. Stephen and Leah's youngest girl, Sophie turned one in April. These photos were taken in May, June and July.

family photo Sunday

We found this photo of our grandson, Ethan, on facebook recently. Looks like he is getting plenty of rest!

Gator Gameday

Charleston Southern plays Florida at the Swamp

Saturday night at 7:00 PM(click to read more at Go Gators)

Click this link to listen live online

Slideshow - September 2009 birthdays

keeping an eye on the tropics

Just in time for Labor Day weekend, Tropical Storm Erika is heading towards Florida. It's too early to tell what will happen with this one, but there always seems to be a tropical storm or hurricance this time of the year! Makes sense, as September is the middle of the season and also the busiest month for tropical storms, etc.

See the five day forecast track below