babybloomr

Hello there, lovelies. Remember me?

Well, my ‘short break’ has stretched out over a couple of months, and for no good reason other than… I guess I must have needed a ‘short break’! I don’t exactly know why it took me this long to start writing again, but I sincerely apologize for my neglect, and I should totally drop and give you 20. At any rate, everything is great, we are all well and happy, life is full and busy, blah di blah blah, rinse and repeat– but how are YOU?

*bats eyelashes fetchingly*

If I tried to recap everything that has gone on since our last visit, this would turn into a manuscript of epic proportions and you’d get bored and wander off to get a snack and I’d get my feelings hurt, so for all of our sakes I’ll just condense it into this Catch-Up Haiku:

Life in Bell Buckle…

Like end-of-the-rainbow gold

Covered in cat hair.

Hey, I know what– let’s say it in pictures! We’ll call this segment

“AND THEN THIS HAPPENED”

(And yes, this little exercise in narcissism will be chock-full of photos of ALL TAFFS/ALL THE TIME. There’ll be other stuff/people too, but come on, who else am I gonna feature?)

Let’s see. We went on the Homecoming Canadian cruise and Russ got randomly stopped and wanded as we entered the check-in area, and because I am such a supportive wife I stopped laughing long enough to capture the moment. (Also, you can’t really blame the security guys because if you check out those enormous kicks at the end of his skinny little ankles, it TOTALLY look like he could be smuggling drugs in there. Or ponies.) :

**Looking at art in Quebec City while lugging around a giant shopping bag full of gifts because I am generous like that:

**The Bell Buckle Arts Council had our 2nd Annual Plein Air event– that’s Billy Phillips watching his store being captured on canvas:

**Had a wonderful couple of days at Mark Lowry’s house in Houston with dear friends Bubba, Cynthia, Chip and Reba. Either Reba just said something that cracked both of us up or I am grabbing her butt. I forget which.

**We taped six months worth of Homecoming Radio shows in October, and my sweet Bonnie joined us for one of the days, which was way too much fun. We have been friends for 30 years, which I can barely even type with a straight face– how can that possibly be?!

**RT presented at the Dove Awards and hung out all day with these guys. This kinda looks like a LensCrafters commercial.

**And then he hung out all night with these guys. Whatever is around Russ’ neck makes it look he is trying to pass himself off as a Nobel Peace Prize winner. Or possibly a diplomat.

**Madi Rose and I went with Russ to Myrtle Beach Gaitherfest– apparently we DID get the memo about the dress code:

**Best of all, we got to see our beloved Momma Lloyd:

**Meanwhile, Charlotte got ready for a Halloween party–funny,  I don’t remember Mario being quite so, um, statuesque:

**Family brunch at the River Cafe in Normandy, TN (slightly out of focus, but hey, so are we):

**Russ and William Golden shot a video together (RT is a circuit-riding preacher and William Lee is his scout. Both of those scenarios should give you pause.):

**Let’s see, what else… Oh, yeah! “Hick hop” country rapper Big Smo opened a store in Bell Buckle. You can’t make this stuff up, people. Madi Rose is posing in front of what she refers to as the Smural.

**Had a wonderful Thanksgiving with the Smedleys. As always, June and Bud welcomed us with open arms and hearts– since Mom and Dad are gone, this is most definitely our ‘home for the holidays.’ We are rich in family. Here’s how Madi captioned this photo:

“I’m thankful that nearly 40 years ago, an English teacher and her husband took in a gawky little boy who, with their selfless compassion, would grow up and be my daddy. Words can’t describe the love and gratitude I feel for each person in this room. Especially Bruce Willis on the left.”

**OK, that’s not really Bruce Willis, it’s her Uncle Stuart. (Although he is pretty much as bad-ass as Willis.) Ladies and gentleman– Stuart Smedley, County Coroner:

**Oh, and for those of you that have asked about Catsy Cline– she’s still here:

**And she’s still…

**Well, that pretty much brings us up to date. Ish. It’s now Christmas time in the Buckle, which makes my town even more adorable than usual. I’ll leave you with a few holiday shots, and then I’d really love to hear from you guys– so how ARE you, anyway?!

(Courtesy Bell Buckle Chamber of Commerce)

(Courtesy Butterfly Kisses Photography)