Santa Rosa Beach

We spent Saturday before school started back for teachers at the beach.   We had a great time.

New Tudy Phone Phrase

The new phrase when we are getting off the phone with Tudy is.... "I love ya tha most-est". I don't know when it started but since I have started calling Tudy every other day it is the new phrase that is said prior to bye. Today when Sydney was getting off the phone, she belted, "I love ya tha most-est". I guess the days of saying, "I will kiss my end if you kiss yours" is out. So, bring in the new!

How cool is Grandma Tudy? The Coolest! This picture was taken August 2010 at her 91st birthday party. She is sporting these rocking sunglasses from grandson, Bobby Rush.

Orange Groves Bring Memories

Today, I drove the back roads home from Orlando, FL. Driving those highways enabled me to see grove and groves of Orange Trees. More than I have seen in YEARS. They were beautifully filled with Oranges weighing down their branches. Which was great to see and I hope that they will produce outstanding Oranges and Orange Juice.

**When the family would go on vacations to visit my dad's parents (Ella and Stanley Stroud) in DeBary, FL, one of the stops we would make had to be the Florida Visitor's Center. We would get free orange juice samples. Being from a family of six (6) free is always a good thing to the parents.**

**When most people say half and half they think of creamer, but in my family that means something different. It means 1/2 OJ and 1/2 water. We would go through milk and OJ so quickly that Dad would often split the OJ gallon in half and replace with water. So still to this day, it is hard for me to have a straight glass of OJ. Spoke to Aaron about this and he is the same way. We both actually water down our OJ. Mom was able to convince Dad to NOT water down the milk. But, he was frugal and did sometimes which he would then be the only one to drink it. Then when times were REALLY bad, he would make milk from the dry milk and that was YUCKY! I would skip my milk at those times. **

**One other story that came to mind was that MomMom and PopPop (Ella & Stanley Stroud) had an Valencia Orange Tree in the back of there house in DeBary, FL and I would climb in the tree. This tree never produced fruit to my memory or we never visited when it had fruit on it.**

**Another memory is going to Blue Springs State Park to see the Manatees however we visited too early in the seasons all my life to NEVER see them at the Florida State Park. As I got older, I eventually have seen living Manatees at another Florida State Park.**

**Last Orange memory is Santa Claus would always leave us kids a Naval Orange, Red Delicious Apple and Brazilian Nuts in our stockings along with other candies and gifts.**

I'm glad to have experienced all the lessons I did in my early years. It has made me a stronger, caring, understanding and a more determined person. Wow! Who would have thought that Oranges could teach someone lessons in life.

(Original post from The Magnolia Cafe on 1.6.11)

Over Time & GC 2010

Wow. We don't look like the picture on our blog. We need to get an updated one. Maybe at Christmas we can get one of those FAMILY Pictures. It’s been almost a year since I posted a story to this blog, so I thought it was about time for a new post.

This past weekend was General Conference and here is what I remember from years past....

• We would go to church on Saturday and Sunday in church dress. Even though we had satellite at our house most of our lives, we would go to the church. It was interesting because we would hear of stories of people living in Utah who would be at home watching and lying on the floor when we were young like eight (8) years of age. But, mom and dad made us go to church because they said we would listen better. This is true. Now, I do the same with Sydney but not this year. We have Dish Network and can record and watch later or watch and pause. This year, mom and Tudy were down to watch with us. We watched every session but were not in church clothes.

Photo from Erica's blog.

• The Saturday before was the General R.S. Broadcast and all the women would get together and listen to the Prophet speaking. One of my favorite memories and the broadcast that I remember the most is my Sept 23, 1995 where President Gordon B. Hinckley announced- "The Family: A Proclamation to the World" document. I heard it read with mom, Annette Stroud, while sitting in the chapel of the Shenandoah Ward off Reese Road in Columbus, GA.
• I have memories of us taking down wallpaper at the McNeese House and stopping for two hours for GC then back up again when it was over. One memory in particular was Martha Jackson, from across the street, was helping and had to stop also. She didn't stay for GC but she was supportive in our choice.
• Then there is a time that Carrie Stroud was at the house after Dad passed away watching GC and she had some very strong emotions/feelings about dad during a conference talk. Very special moment for all of us. Ask Carrie about those feelings for more information. (Not going to post publicly.)
• I also have a talk from GC that President James E. Faust gave about not asking why is this happening to me but what can I learn from the situation I am going through. This is one the best lessons I have had in my time listen to G.C. I know there are many others like getting food storage together, going to the temple, genealogy work, marrying in the temple and being single in church. But the lesson I learned that day from President Faust is applied consistently through my life.
• There are also memories of copying off worksheets to do during conference to help concentrate.
• Also there was a contest that the Young Women and Young Men did where we got points for going to GC as part of a program to help us become spiritual and we would win a trip to some place. None of us Stroud's went but we were close in the points. That activity had an important impact on my life.
• This year, Sydney listened and we have been doing better with reading from the scriptures but making me explain to her what it means. Now, it was only last Sunday but she has implemented something that she heard from GC and this is GREAT!

I wonder what my brothers experienced and if they will post a comment to tell what GC means to them currently or in the past. :D)

Additions from Carrie Stroud
I am pretty positive that Aaron will say it was a good time to fold laundry. ha ha!

Seriously though...that man can't sit still! I keep remembering watching it at mom's house years ago and getting so frustrated that Aaron was up and around etc while he was listening (I just can't concentrate in that way). She told me that your dad was the same way...and that he would just sit on the ground and sort out his tools etc and it drove her crazy;)

Rated R movies, WHAT!

We had a rule about Rated R movies when growing up. They were a no no! When we broke them something happened. Below is Robby describing what would happen from his blog.

"Saturday I decided to call my mom. Eventually, I told her I saw a rated R movie.
She begins to give me a hard time about it. The following day I went to my in laws for Sunday dinner. My mother-in-law informs me that she spoke with my mother. Then she tells me that I'm not allowed to watch a movie for a month. Laughing I asked, "Why?" She then reminded me of a rule we had in my house as a child. If I went to go see a rated R movie I wasn't allowed to see a movie for a month. My PS3/ Blu-Ray player broke that day. I also saw the movie with my father-in-law."

The joys of growing up and the different rules. By the way, this was the one rule that I, Carmella, remember my parents following through to the end. I saw one movie, Cadillac Man, in 1989 and was on restriction for a month.

happy birthday grandson

now go HERE

or start at the beginning...

I saw it first!

I was driving out of the parking lot today after work and saw a Palm Tree. It brought this memory back.

As a family we traveled to Florida to visit our grandparents (MomMom & PopPop) in De Bary, Florida. We had a few games that we played or rewards we got while we sat in the car for hours, about seven (7) hours.

I remembered two of them.

1) We would see who would see the first palm tree and the palm tree had to be in Florida.

2) If we were good, we would get to stop at Dairy Queen for a treat. An ice cream, usually a Buster Bar. Now, as we got older we pushed the limit and Aaron went beyond the Ice Cream and got Onion Rings or Cheeseburger.

This was a great memory to remember as I drove out of the parking lot in Thomasville, GA today where I glanced through my side window and saw a Georgia Palm Tree.