Hey everyone,
I hope everyone had a nice Christmas. We sure did. We took a last
minute trip to Blue Ridge, Georgia and stayed in a cabin for a few days.
The cabin was gorgeous and so was the view. I would recommend it to
anyone wanting to take a vacation. We also saw Amicalola Falls (a huge
waterfall) and we went horseback riding in the mountains. We stayed at the
cabin on Christmas Day and opened our presents by the fireplace. We also
drove through Newnan, Georgia on the way home and stopped by Mama Ruth's
house. We took a few pictures outside and the next thing we knew we saw
Genie (her dog) come out barking and a few seconds later here came Mama Ruth
walking down her driveway! We couldn't believe it! I mean, I knew that
others had been able to visit with her but it didn't look like anyone was
home and I thought with the holidays and all she might not want visitors.
But she invited us in like we were old friends. She is so sweet. Buddy and
Heather were just as excited as I was. They couldn't believe that they were
getting to talk to Alan's mother! Her grandson (Carol's son Doug) and wife
(Diane) were there visiting with her so we didn't stay too long. She said
that Diane was expecting their first child and that would be the first
great-grandchild so Mama Ruth was very excited about that. She gave us a
tour of the house and showed us the "tool shed" area and her kitchen and den
area. She seemed so proud to tell us all about her grandchildren and the
things Alan has done. Alan gave her a life-sized standup of Daddy Gene for
Christmas. She has it in her den area between the fireplace and the
Christmas tree. There is a chair right beside him and she said that
sometimes she sits in there and has coffee with Gene. You can tell that she
really loved him and misses him. She didn't show us down the hallway to the
other bedrooms so they must have been messy or she just didn't feel like
showing them to us. But she did show us to the first bedroom (I'm guessing
that was hers). She pulled out boxes and boxes of Alan "stuff" and said to
help myself. I told her that if I wanted to be honest I would love one of
everything! She said "sure take whatever you want". So I took one of
everything that I didn't already have. I kind of felt guilty taking so much
but she had a lot of stuff and you could tell that she enjoyed giving it
away. I got a t-shirt, some keychains, magnets, pins, mousepads, pencil, a
deck of cards and an 8X10 signed photo. I think I already have it but she
had tons of them. Heather even wanted one of the photos. Mama Ruth also
handed me a framed photo of Alan sitting on a bench. The one from his album
I think. She also gave me one of those square notepads with his picture on
all sides. I don't want to use any of them though because then his pictures
go away. She also gave me some AJ Christmas ornaments. She said they were
new but I could tell that she wanted me to have them. She even went and got
me a grocery bag to put everything in. She offered us some chocolates and
nuts that she received from fans that she had on the dining room table. She
also offered us some "cheese cookies" that she makes for Alan every year
because he loves them. We were stuffed from eating at the "Dairy Queen" but
we tried one anyway just so we could say that we ate something that Mama
Ruth made! They were kind of spicy but we ate them anyway. She also showed
us all the birds that come in her yard. She said that she loves seeing the
birds come to the feeder every morning. She also showed us a quilt that one
of the daughters had made for her from Daddy Gene's old clothes. It was
really cute and had pockets from pants he had worn in the corners with his
name on it. She said that all the children had one just like it. She also
showed us another Christmas present that one of her daughters gave her. It
was a clock with all the pictures of the grandchildren (from oldest to
youngest) in place of the numbers. And when it is 3 o'clock, his nephew Adam
says "Hello Mama Ruth, it is now 3 o'clock". They are fixing it with all the
grandchildrens voices on it to say what time it is when it is on their
picture. Such a nice present. Well, I have talked enough I guess. Just had
to share my excitement with everyone.
Debbie
P.S. I am attaching a few pics of our stay with Mama Ruth. :)

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