Sadly, CeCe lost her mom, Ruth (Happy) Cole, 84, on August 7th. You may have met Happy in some of our past stories, as she was quite the personality. Her nickname, Happy, is one that was well-earned and deserved. Happy lived her life, her dash (our time in this life — our legacy and how […]
“Just a second,” says our ten-year-old granddaughter, Dabs. I’m shuffling the Uno cards as we are keeping three of our grandkids for three nights before the start of the school year. On my left is Shealy Kate, eight years old, who lives in Natchez, MS; on my right is Dabs’ brother Sully, 6. We are […]
Placing the Hyatt Regency room card on the card reader in the elevator, my good friend and mentor, Sam Allred, steps on the elevator on the 32nd floor and selects the fifth floor for the gym. Sam is getting a quick workout in before he helps kick off Upstream Academy’s HeadWaters Conference in Denver, CO. […]
I grab a quick restroom break before my last presentation and am at the sink washing my hands. Turning the water on, I notice a toilet paper strip lying under the sink. As I step away to dry my hands, the toilet paper is stuck to the bottom of my shoe. Kicking my foot and […]
Dinner is almost ready, and here comes CeCe for what I know will be her junk food snack binge right before I have dinner ready. She will go nearly all day with very little nourishment, and just when dinner is close to ready, CeCe will come in and open five or six things and start […]
It’s my son Brandon’s 40th birthday, and CeCe and I are heading to Las Vegas with him and his wife Margie to celebrate. We have tickets to see Garth Brooks and James Taylor and some excellent dining experiences lined up. Shortly after takeoff, the pilot announces that we should remain in our seats, seat belts […]
My younger sister Mitzi (Mom and Pop Joe’s favorite child) has provided us lots of joy, love, and LAUGHS over the years (you may remember her new mixer last year). Now I will be the first to admit that after raising me and Mike, I completely understand why a sweet, caring daughter might be the […]
My brother Mike and I host the Havens Beach Retreat in Perdido/Orange Beach, AL, every year. We bring our wives, Mom and Pop Joe, my sister Mitzi and her husband, the kids and their spouses, and the grandkids, all of who number around 43. It’s a great time to celebrate family, connect and enjoy so many blessings […]
Recently, I saw a very interesting pie crust in the refrigerator. It appeared to be chocolate with nuts in it. As I was leaving for a trip to Chicago, I opened the refrigerator to discover it had developed into a beautiful pie. On my flight home, I couldn’t wait to have a piece of that […]
We have just taken the redeye back home from Vegas so we can be home a day sooner than we had planned. Unfortunately, CeCe’s mom, Happy, had a stroke while we were gone and is in the hospital. We drive straight from the airport to the hospital so we can be there when the neurologist […]
