Welcome to the World

I had been anticipating this day for a long time.  Rebecca has been promising me lots of grandchildren ever since she was a little girl, and we both anticipated that I would be there in the room with her when my first grandchild came into the world.  Since Richmond is a 6.5 hour drive from Knoxville, I was a little worried that she might go into labor and deliver quickly, and that I might not make it in time.  Little did I know that would be the least of my worries.  

My little grandson was due on our 30th anniversary (March 24), and I had started packing on about March 10th so that I could be ready to leave town quickly.  On March 13th, Rebecca had an OBGYN visit that led me to believe that things could happen quite soon, so I hit the road.  This turned out to be the day that the president declared a National Emergency due to Covid.  And you knew it was serious when the NCAA tournament was cancelled!  This is the week that 2020 took a turn.  

I arrived and spent the evening playing Pandemic with Joseph and Rebecca.  It's more fun when it's just a game.  

I commented on how cool it would be if her baby was born the next day - Pi day.  And sure enough, in the wee hours of the morning, I heard Rebecca get up.  She was pretty sure that labor had begun.  I was blessed to get to be with her as she labored for several hours at home.  

I still wasn't sure if they might let me in the room during her labor (the rules had just changed the day before, and I was hoping for an exception!).  Instead, they headed to the hospital at mid-morning. I tried to get permission to enter, but I couldn't even come in the lobby.  

Instead, I sat out in the parking lot and prayed and waited for updates on my phone.  Little "J" came into the world mid-afternoon, but I didn't get to see him until he came home from the hospital.  

Then we made up for lost time with lots of cuddles!  Terry, Joseph's parents, and Terry's parents all came to visit when J came home from the hospital.  While the rest of the world seemed to be going crazy, we were enjoying just hanging out with a little baby.

Notice we have a new player!

Books for Baby!

I hosted a literary-themed baby shower for Rebecca.  It was so much fun.  We asked everyone to bring a book for baby along with their gift (new or used), and all of our decor and food had the children's book theme!  This was especially meaningful to me because of all of the memories I made reading books to Rebecca. 

Our centerpiece was made from children's books that I either had on hand our got at McKay's, my favorite used bookstore. 

Our food was all based on children's books as well and was super easy.  We also had "bookworm" party favors!

It was a great time celebrating with friends!  We have some really special friends and family.  Some drove several hours to attend. 

As my "book gift," I gave Rebecca a book I remember loving as a child called "Little Campers."

I told Rebecca that I really didn't really have memories of Mom reading to me, but surely she did.  Then looking through some old slides a few weeks AFTER the shower was over, I found this:

Somehow that made my book selection seem very precious!

Sister Trip to Miami Beach!

Our parents loved to travel, and so my sisters and I decided to budget some of our inheritance money for traveling together.  We hope this is the first of many trips!

However, this trip almost didn't happen for me at all  as you can tell from this text I sent to Terry from the plane . . .

I had everything go wrong this morning. Got to the airport without my purse. At 5 am I drove back home to get it (after begging my way out of long term parking without paying) at speeds up to 110 mph. On the way back I ran out of gas in sight of the airport. Was resigned to my fate when I got a text that my flight was delayed 15 min. Caught an Uber and am now sitting in the plane!

My car needs to be picked up though. It is near the Sonic right by the airport. You can’t miss the Hoosier Slayer (by the way, you need to clean that off the window, it’s been two weeks since the Gator Bowl). It needs gas obviously. Sorry. At least we don’t have to pay for long term parking now.

I just can’t believe I made it! Alternative was probably to go tonight for big bucks or just skip the trip entirely. Thank the Lord my plane had a low tire which caused the delay!

I can tell you that experience was probably the biggest adrenaline rush of my life - and that includes my first solo flight when I was training for my pilot's license.  My sisters were pretty nervous, too.  But almost missing the trip entirely just made me appreciate the trip that much more.

Carol, who chose our destination of Miami Beach, planned our days pretty well.  We arrived on a Friday and toured a beautiful lighthouse at Key Biscayne.  It was quite windy!

On Saturday, we headed to the Everglades and took a guided tram tour through the park.  We saw gators and lots of birds, and of course had plenty of time for more conversation.  

If you think that tower looks like the one at Clingman's Dome, you are right!  I asked our tour guide, and he said this one was modeled after the one in the Smokies.

On our last day in Miami, we got up early to see the sunrise on the beach and then headed to Vizcaya Mansion.

Vizcaya was beautiful, and we enjoyed exploring the mansion and the grounds.   

We had not had much luck with restaurants on the trip in spite of our best efforts, but our lunch near Vizcaya was AWESOME!  We ate at a place called Monty's, and it had a great atmosphere and delicious food!

We ended our trip with a stroll around Miami Beach that evening.  I have a feeling we probably won't be back as Miami Beach is sort of a budget breaker.  But it won't be our last Sister Trip!

  

Happy Epiphany 2020 (aka 2019 "Christmas Letter")

Hello Friends!

We hope you had a wonderful holiday and are looking forward to the New Year.  I wanted to wait until after Christmas to send our letter this year as we have some news that I couldn’t report earlier!  I’ve also decided that it’s just going to be easier for me to do a New Year’s letter each year, anyway.  😊

After so many years of just reporting that all of us were one year older and doing most of the same things, the last few years have brought lots of changes. 

Rebecca and Joseph have a big change to report as they are expectant parents!  That means we are expectant grandparents!  Our first grandson is due in March, and we can’t wait to meet him!

Nathan graduated with a degree in Nursing in May.  We are so proud of him!  He is working at the UT Medical Center in the trauma ICU.  He really enjoys it.   

And Caleb has some news that we are now able to share.  He got engaged the day after Christmas to Meredith Hudson!  

Meredith is a UT nursing graduate who works as an ER nurse in Chattanooga.  They have set the date for July 18^th.  We love Meredith and think they are a great match!   They plan to live in Chattanooga after they    marry.  We’re glad it’s not too far away.   Right now Caleb is still working at Best Buy in Knoxville.

Noah is still a double major (theater and psychology) at Lee University.  He has enjoyed acting and stage managing in the theater department and is looking forward to doing a little directing soon.

He was in the musical “She Loves Me” with the Colonnade Players at Christmas time and is playing the part of Edward Ferrars (aka Hugh Grant’s part) in Lee’s upcoming play “Sense and Sensibility.”

When not studying, Noah has three different jobs at Lee.  He is a peer mentor at the Center for Student Success, a box office worker in the theater department, and a teacher’s assistant in Personality Theory.

He will be going on a study abroad theater experience in the UK in May.

Terry is still enjoying flipping houses and is now at the point where he has several properties in progress at once.  It’s exciting times!  

We are happy to report that his MS is under control and that he has had no new brain or spine lesions in several years. 

He has enjoyed waterskiing a lot more this year as he and his brother bought a new boat together. The lake is still Terry’s happy place. 

I am enjoying a new career as a dyslexia therapist.  With my engineering background, people think that I love math and science, but the truth is, I love reading and playing with words best!  I have really enjoyed my training and my practicum work in this field.  Right now I am doing part time contract work at Berean Christian School, which is the only school in Knoxville with a special program for dyslexic students. 

We had one family trip this year with all the kids – a simple camping trip at South Holston Lake (well, not so simple with all the schedules we had to juggle!).  Terry and I also spent two weeks in Greece working in Moria (the largest refugee camp in Greece) and then made a stopover trip to Italy on our way back.  The time in Moria was very intense and impactful and is hard to describe in a few lines of a Christmas letter.  If you’re interested, ask us about it – or maybe even consider coming with us this year.  It will change you!

Terry and I will celebrate our 30^th anniversary this March.  We rejoice in the life God has given us together and the family and friends he has blessed us with. 

May 2020 be your best year yet!

Susan & Terry Seaman