This Day in History...

92 years ago today, December 29, 1918, my great-grandparents, Ira Emmett Hinshaw and Nannie Helen Jacks, became man and wife in a civil ceremony in Lincoln County, Tennessee. The story goes that Emmett "stole" (as her mother put it) seventeen year old Nannie from her bedroom window and the two eloped across the state line from Paint Rock Valley to Lincoln County, Tennessee, to marry. Their marriage would produce nine children - Etta Epsie (Bird), Mary Jane (Long), John Lawson, Lester Donald, Opal Ernestine (Craig), Bertie Lou (Stapler), Alvin Ray, Shirley Fay (Lohenitz), and Helen Dean (Young). Sadly, Nannie died hours after the birth of her youngest daughter, Dean. She passed away at the age of 43 years old at the family home on Alpine Street in Huntsville, Alabama, and was laid to rest in the Neal's Chapel Cemetery in Big Cove, Alabama, where the family had settled around 1922. Emmett moved to Florida a few years later and finished raising his family with help from the older children, a few of whom had already married. He eventually returned to Madison County in the mid-70's, settling near New Market, Alabama. He passed away January 22, 1982, at the age of eighty-five. He survived Nannie by thirty-seven years; but never remarried. Emmett was laid to rest in Big Cove, Alabama, beside of the wife he loved so dearly, Nannie.

This photo is of Emmett and Nannie Hinshaw and was taken in Big Cove, Alabama, around 1941. The little boy running in the side of the picture is their son, Ray.

Merry Christmas!

Luke 2:11 For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.

I hope you all have a wonderful WHITE Christmas!!

-BYRD

This Day in History...

I'm sure I'll post something about Christmas morning sometime tomorrow; but while we're busy getting ready for Santa Clause, I wanted to take a second to mention that 200 years ago on Christmas Day, my great-great-great-great-grandfather, Dr. George Lee Bird, was born near Crawfordville, Georgia. He was the son of a wealthy plantation owner, and had a fairly affluent lineage and had but one child with his first wife, Salina Chivers. That son was George Marshall Bird, who left Crawfordville shortly after his father's death and just before the Civil War. It was this George Marshall Bird who eventually settled in the Big Cove Community in 1904.

Kellie and Mackenzie and I took a trip to Crawfordville back in 2003, just before completing the book I wrote about our lineage. There, we were able to visit Dr. Bird's house, which still stands on the Taliaferro County square, adjacent the courthouse, as well as Dr. Bird's grave - a story Kellie loves to tell - ha, ha! I blog about that later.

Off to finish our Santa prep's - Merry Christmas everybody!

-BYRD

This Day In HIstory... John Elbert Adams

Seventy-five years ago today, my great-grandfather, John Elbert Adams, passed away at the young age of only forty-two years. He was born August 24, 1892, in Roanoke, Alabama (Randolph County) , and was the third child of James Thomas Adams and the former Miss Martha Eldorada Butler . As a very small child, John relocated to Marshall County, Alabama, with his parents and siblings; and eventually settled in nearby Madison County.
John married Rosie Lee Winkles on February 10, 1910 , in Huntsville, Alabama. Rosie, whose name can also found listed in some media type as Rosa , was born September 19, 1896 , and was only thirteen years old when she married John, who was then seventeen. Rosie was the daughter of James Winkles and the former Miss Ann Brumbalow, and was an orphan at the time of her marriage to John.
Over the next eighteen years, John and Rosie became the parents of thirteen children. Four of these children – one girl and three boys – died shortly after or at birth. Their names are unknown; however, their graves are marked in the Moon Cemetery near Owens Cross Roads. The nine surviving children were Rachel M. (1912), Albert Lonzo (1913), Bertie Lorene (1914), Ruby Nancy (19--), James Walter (1919), John Junior (1920), Sammie Ligie (1922), Rosie Virginia (1926), and William Jasper (1930). All of these children were born near Owens Cross Roads, Alabama.
John Elbert Adams died December 17, 1935 , at his home in Owens Cross Roads, Alabama. According to his death certificate, his death came almost five months after undergoing a nephrectomy (surgical removal of a kidney). The actual cause of death and minor contributory thereof is not clearly legible on the certificate; however, the cause is listed as “(unclear word) of left kidney”. The death certificate also indicates that John was a forty-two year old farmer (he was actually forty-three), lists his parents as J.T. Adams and Martha Butler, and lists his surviving spouse as Rosa Adams. The informant is listed as S.F. Adams, which is John’s youngest brother, Santford Adams.
John was buried in the Moon Cemetery in Owens Cross Roads, on December 18, 1935.

The photo below is of John Elbert Adams "Poppa", and Rosie Lee Winkles Adams "Granny".

Give the Gift of MUSIC!

Still looking for some great (or maybe just "good") stocking stuffers?!? Give the gift of MUSIC! We have the following CD's still available for sell:

• The Alvie McKenzie Family: Not Another Tear ($15)


• The McKenzie's: Volume II ($15)
  
• Chosen: Power in Believing ($10)


• Christmas With... (an all NEW Christmas CD featuring several of your favorite groups... and us!) ($15)


• New Harmony: The Journey (some of our friends from Huntsville) ($15)

If you're interested in any of these projectss, give us a shout and we'll hook you up We'll even do FREE shipping for the rest of the month!

-BYRD

This Day in History...

On this day in history, December 8, 1964, my great-great-grandmother, Mattie L. Black Stapler, passed away at the age of 85 years. My mom, who was raised out of state, remembers seeing her great-grandmother a time or two growing up; but of course, she passed away before my time. Grandma Stapler was laid to rest in the Green Valley Cemetery in Big Cove, next to her husband, Willias Silas Stapler. Here's a couple of pics of her. One of her as a young woman, and the other is of Grandma with her sister, Leona Hodges.

-BYRD

Weekend...

I don't know why, but for some reason, it seems like we can fit more activities into a two day weekend than we do the other five days of the week. Saturday, we photographed my niece, A.J., for pretty much all day. We were going to do pics of my girls that evening for our Christmas card, but it was rainy all day, so we didn't get around to it. We went to church Saturday night, and rescheduled our pics for Sunday. I try not to ever miss church on the account of pictures; but I knew if I didn't get something done yesterday, we weren't going to have cards this year. So Sunday morning, we get the kids all dolled up and took them to Chattanooga for pics. First, we had to run to the mall to finish-up their outfits; but we finally got over to the downtown area; and what do you know - it starts SNOWING! Not much, but it was spitting snow. That's how cold it was! We were freezing - especially the girls; and so we barely got enough pics for me to build a card with. We came home; and I built the cards and got them ordered. Kellie and the girls went to church at Higdon; and as soon as I got finished with the cards, I took off to the funeral home at Huntsville. When I finished there, I went to church at Big Cove, and then went to visit my parents for a few minutes afterwards, and got home at midnight. So there's my quick weekend update; and here's one of the pics we got Saturday. We hope to do a full session with them if we can catch a warmer day in the coming weeks!

-BYRD

2nd post for the day...

Okay, a little more detail from last week. Saturday, I photographed some bridal photos in Big Cove, then rushed home and picked up the wife and kids and we set-out to the Smokies! Sunday, we re-visited the Gatlinburg aquarium. We've been before, but I'm not sure if Makayla has ever been and Mackenzie couldn't remember going. The girls had a blast! If you've never been, they really have a great aquarium! Ashley and Brooke came up that evening, so we met up with them at Texas Roadhouse for supper.
Monday was Makayla's actual birthday, so Kellie cooked pancakes in our condo and we gave her a present. I can't even remember what we did for the rest of the day; but I think we shopped and hung out in Gatlinburg some more. I still can't believe Makayla is five! I think I mentioned in Mackenzie's birthday post about the kids each having four names. Makayla's is Makayla Kellie Lorene Byrd. Her name was "supposed" to be Madeline, called Mattie; but Kellie and I couldn't agree on the spelling so we just went a different direction. Makayla actually came from Dr. Quinn Medicine woman; but it went good with Mackenzie so all was cool there - ha, ha. I pretty much begged Kellie to let me use Lorene as the third name, as that was my late grandmother's name. We were unsure of the second name and Kellie just decided last minute (after Makayla was born) to use "Kellie". No, it doesn't flow too good; but hey, it works! :)
Back to our vacation, Tuesday was when we were headed out, and we gave the girls one more treat. For some reason, Mackenzie has become fascinated with the Titanic. I think she must have watched part of the movie at my mom's or something. She has asked me countless questions about it! So we took them to the new Titanic exhibit in Pigeon Forge. It was awesome; and the girls loved it - it was the highlight of the trip for both of them! Of course, anything that has to do with history is right up my alley, so I had a blast myself. I even transcribed part of an old letter that the currators of the museum had previously been unable to read. I've read so many old wills and census records and letters that it was very easy for me to understand. I looked at it for like a minute and was able to tell what it said, so I went and got an official and let them know. It was cool.
Wednesday, I worked on Christmas pictures all day - ALL DAY! We went to church that night; but I spent an exhausting day at the computer!

Thursday, we did Thanksgiving at Kellie's grandparents and took Mackenzie that night to Scottsboro to meet my parents, who were going to keep her a couple of nights.

Friday, we shopped. We got up like at 3 a.m. and went shopping. We were in and out at Wal-Mart; but Target was a different story! I stood in line for almost three hours there to get an iPod for Mackenzie. And now stinkin' Santa Claus will get all the credit for it! Grrrr! :) Anyhow, we shopped all day long and got home that night and went to bed.

Saturday, we went to Big Cove to get Mackenzie and hung out with my parents all day, and then spent all day yesterday at church.

This Day in History...

Thirty-five years ago today, November 29, 1975, my grandmother, Bertie Lorene Adams Bird, passed away at a Huntsville hospital, after a long and tiring bout with diabetes. Unfortunately, this was about three years before I was born, so I never got to know her; however, I have missed her for my entire life. I wonder sometimes how different life would have been for me had she lived as long as Granddaddy did (he passed away in 2003). I've heard so many wonderful things about her from my family and others in the community - I know that I really missed out now knowing her.

Also, I learned today that Mr. Mark Tucker passed away this weekend. Mark played Santa for a few Christmas shoots that Marty and I did at New Hope and Owens Cross Roads Schools over the past few years. He was always a pleasure to work with and genuinely enjoyed his role as Santa! Our prayers go out to his family during this Holiday season. Here's one of my favorite Santa photos of my girls with Santa Mark - I think from 2007!

Happy Thanksgiving...

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone! We all have so much to be thankful for - I know I do. I've got everything I've ever truly wanted! No, not a new car, new house, plenty of money in the bank. But everything I ever truly wanted - a great wife, healthy beautiful children, and most of all, a loving Savior. And on top of those things, I'm thankful for our 2002 Ford Escape with 230k+ miles on it - until now, we've never really had a minutes trouble out of it and never had to spend a bunch of money on it (besides gas and tires) to keep it running good. A nice home that keeps me warm and dry - one that I can afford. And this coming February will mark ten years that I've been at my present employer - they are really good to me and I while I don't make a bunch of money, what I make gets us by week to week. And there is so much more besides this that I could name.

This past Saturday, Kellie, the girls and I went to the Smokies for a few days. It was the first time just the four of us had gone somewhere in a long time. We did the aquarium in Gatlinburg, shopped some, and the highlight of the trip was probably our last day. We went to the new Titanic museum - Mackenzie had BEGGED us to go. She loved it. Makayla did too! It was really neat. And, while we were gone, Makayla turned FIVE! I can't believe it. I still plan to post more about her soon; but right now, we're fixin' to head out to Kellie's grandparents' for Thanksgiving, so I'll have to do that later. They're calling me to "come on!!!"

Happy Fifth Birthday Makayla! Will blog more later - in Smokies! :-)

New Harmony in concert with THE ISAAC's...

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I got my tickets today to see my friends, New Harmony, on stage in April 2011 with THE Isaac's! Tickets went on sale today and are selling out fast. If you're interested, better hurry! I'm in the middle of the third row; and can't wait!

Go to http://www.perfectharmonypromotions.com/

Thanks!

-BYRD

Weddings are BACK on the menu...

I should probably change the name of my studio to Wishy-Washy Photography! :) In the past year, I cut out weddings altogether and intended to focus more on family photography; however, due to a variety of circumstances (if you want the boring details, feel free to ask) including my latest health set-back, my plans have changed. I'm swapping horses (again) and planning to ditch a large portion of family photography and invest most of my time in 2011 in weddings. I started out in the business shooting weddings; and after some not-so-gentle urging from some of my friends and peers, I've decided to return to my roots and add weddings back to the line-up. Although it's hard work and time-consuming, it does have it's perks and it is always an honor to be included in such a special part of people's lives. SO - more details to come on that as the year rolls around. If you are planning a wedding for 2011 and would like more information about our wedding services, please drop us a line!

This Day in History...

Eighty years ago on November 16, 1930, my paternal grandparents – Walter Lee Bird & Bertie Lorene Adams – were joined in holy matrimony in a double civil ceremony in Owens Cross Roads, Alabama, with Granddaddy’s first cousin, Winfred Bird, and his bride, Lorene Rhoden. Granddaddy was eighteen and Grandmother was sixteen. Over the next thirty years, their marriage brought forth ten children; and in fact, Granddaddy and Grandmother were still having children after they had already become grandparents!
They were together for forty-five years when the death angel called Grandmother away in 1975; and even though Granddaddy married again to a lovely woman several years later, his love for Grandmother never diminished. I still remember well, sitting in the back-yard swing with Granddaddy in the 1990’s, asking him about the day he married Grandmother. And as he began to tell me about it, his dim eyes lit up and he smiled as he spoke. I could tell in his voice that although she had been gone for many years, he still held her very close in his heart.
I never knew Grandmother; and Granddaddy left us in 2003 – but the love they had for one another is still reflected in the lives of their children, and fortunately, passed down still another generation – to my generation – in their grandchildren; and I hope to instill that same love in my own children as the years go by.

The photo is of Granddaddy and Grandmother holding my dad, Ronald, in 1954.
-BYRD

Happy Birthday Makayla...

I don't have a lot of posting time this morning; but I did want to throw a few pics up from Makayla's 5th Bday party, which we had this past Saturday. Her actual birthday is not until November 22; but with that being so close to Thanksgiving, we bumped up the party a couple of weeks. She had a great turnout and got lots of great presents! All the little girls dressed-up in their princess costumes, and some of the little boys even dressed up like princes and kings! :) They play "crown the princess" (kind of like pin the tail on the donkey) and a few other games. My mom made an AWESOME castle cake, from which we took the top layer off and froze it until Makayla's "real" birthday. All the kids, especially Makayla, seemed to have a great time!

I'll blog more about my precious little five year old closer to her real birthday!

See ya!

-BYRD

This Day in History...

Ninety-nine years ago today, November 11, 1911 (yes, 11/11/11), my great-grandparents - Wiley Virgil Bird and Willie Ann Josephine Hunter - became man and wife in a civil ceremony in Huntsville, Alabama. Wiley was eighteen and Josie was seventeen (the couple had the same birthday, May 21, with only one year difference in their ages). Wiley was a native of Walker County, Georgia, and had settled in Madison County in 1902 after his father was shot and killed in a well dispute near Monrovia. Afterwards, he lived with his grandparents, who settled in the Big Cove Community in 1904. Josie was born in Grundy County, Tennessee, and settled in the Big Cove Community with her parents sometime just prior to 1900.

Their marriage would produce ten children and last thirty-five years, until Wiley's death in 1947, at the age of fifty-four years old. Josie survived her husband for thirty years, but never remarried. She passed away in 1977, at the age of eight-three, and was laid to rest beside of her late husband in the Neal's Chapel Cemetery in Big Cove, Alabama.

Mackenzie...

Eight years ago today – we thought this was it! Kellie’s doctor recommended that we go ahead and be admitted to the hospital so that our little Mackenzie could make her way into the world. And what a perfect day! It was my late grandmother’s birthday; and being the sentimentalist that I am, I couldn’t have planned it any better! Mackenzie was due on Halloween, so we had already waiting longer than we expected and then here we were – about to become parents for the first time. Only problem… there was no room in the inn! Erlanger hospital was jam packed, so they sent us home to wait. Then we got the call that they were going to admit us to East Ridge Hospital at midnight! So we got everything ready, and Vicky, Kellie, and I took off to East Ridge, and settled in thinking we’d have a baby sometime early the next day. Wrong again! After thirty hours of relentless labor, Kellie was finally wheeled into the O.R. for a C-section; and moments later, the most beautiful child I had ever seen was wrapped in a blanket and laying in my arms! And she was HUGE – she was nearly 9 pounds (I don’t remember all of the details – that’s what momma’s are for)!
You want to talk about love at first sight?! Kellie had been able to bond with the baby for the past several months; but a brand new spot in my heart that I never knew existed had been awakened – the spot that’s reserved for the love of a father! I was a daddy! I was crying and just overly emotional (typical for me – I squalled watching the Walton’s last night); and I took her over to the head of the bead and bent down and showed her to Kellie. I said, “Look at her she’s beautiful!” Well, Kellie, who was exhausted and heavily sedated just glanced over at her and was like, “yeah”. But I was in love – and have been ever since!
It’s hard to believe that she’ll be EIGHT years old on Sunday. She's growing up so fast. She wanted to go to the Top of the River (a restaurant in Guntersville), to celebrate - so that's what we're doing tonight. Time flies. I already have regrets; and I know I’ll have many, many more before it’s over. But I’ve tried my best to be a good dad, though at times I know I’ve failed miserably! I really meant to be a whole lot better than I have been; but like Uncle Roy Guffey was quoted as saying, “It’s easy to TALK a good life!”
Overall, I thank God for Mackenzie Leigh Anne Byrd. She is beautiful, smart, healthy, and one of the most morally conscious children who has probably ever graced God’s green Earth. She’s just a good, good child; and I couldn’t ask for anything more.
Okay, you’re probably wondering about the name. #1 – I said that each of my children were to have four names, so that when they grew up and people asked them why they had four names, their answer could be, “Because my daddy loved me so much and thought I was such a special child, I needed a special name!” Makayla’s full name is Makayla Kellie Lorene Byrd – yeah, that’s a mouthful. Mackenzie’s first name is obviously for Kellie’s maiden name, McKenzie. Leigh is for Granddaddy Bird (Walter Lee). Anne is because it’s a third name that goes well with Leigh and my Great-grandmother Bird’s name was Willie Anne Josephine Hunter Bird – and besides all that, my sister’s name is Shawna LeAnn.
And, as mentioned earlier in the post, this day in history was also the birth of my paternal grandmother, Bertie Lorene Adams Bird, who was born on November 5, 1914. This picture is of Grandmother holding my dad, probably around this time of year in 1954. Ironically, it was taken on Sand Mountain, near where I live today, at the home of Monroe and Olgia Knight, my dad's sister, Peggy's, parents-in-law.

Trick-or-Treat...

Here's my little witch and Halloween fairy thingy. Mackenzie will be eight on the 7th, and Makayla will be five on the 22nd.

The Walk...

One day when Mackenzie, our oldest daughter, was probably about two or three years old, we were playing in the backyard at our house, when I noticed a huge commotion down at the pond. There’s a large – I’d say probably two or three acre – pond that stretches between our house and Kellie’s grandparents’ house. After taking a closer look, I saw that the commotion was two huge turtles in the edge of the water and figured Mackenzie would get a kick out of seeing them, so I grabbed her and we crossed the fence, and went down to check it out. We watched the turtles for a few minutes and I asked her if she wanted to just walk around the pond since we were already down there; and that sounded like a good idea to her. So off we went.
Not long after we started, Mackenzie (whose attention span is shorter than her pinkie finger) started noticing everything around her in the pasture. She got behind me because she was stopping to look at a flower, or follow a butterfly, or see what was over here and what was over there. During all that time, I kept saying, “Come on, Mackenzie, keep up!” And she’d come running a little closer; but then it wouldn’t be a minute later, something else would have her distracted; and I’d have to call for her again, “Come on, Mackenzie, keep up!”
This went on until we were probably about halfway around the pond. Then she started realizing how far we had walked and got to complaining about how tired she was. Then from the complaining, she set in to whining. But I kept cheering her on, “It’s not that much further, come on – you can make it!” And the further we walked, the worse she got until she was just crying, “I can’t make it, Daddy, it’s too far!” And I just kept telling her, “Yes you can, Mackenzie! You can make it! It’s not that much further!” She’d lag way behind me, and nearly stop, and just cry because she was so tired and didn’t think she could take another step; but I would just stop, turn around, and call her a little closer again, “Come on Mackenzie, you can make it – it’s not that much further!”
I could have probably picked her up and carried her; but by that time, I wanted to prove a point to her that she COULD do it because she wasn’t a “baby” any more. I waited on her, and was patient with her – firm at times; but I tell you what I wouldn’t have done for anything in the world… I would have never just walked off and left her there.
The last little ways of the walk, the Lord took my mind; and I could see myself as Mackenzie. When I started in my walk with Him, I was eager and willing and just glad to be with Him. And then as we walked along, cares of this life began to distract me; but all along, He would call me up a little closer. And a few years further into it, I got tired and didn’t know if I could make it, but He, so patiently and lovingly, kept reminding me that I could. And even now, when I feel so tired and the end still seems so far away, I know that He’s not going to leave me in this wilderness, but instead, if I just keep following in my Father’s footsteps, I know I’ll make it home - it can't be that much further.

Just felt like sharing…

-BYRD

Busy, busy, busy...

Well, it's been a busy few weeks - births, deaths, and lots of traveling! Last week, we said good-bye to a dear, sweet man - Bro. Jerry Sadler. Bro. Jerry had fought ALS for the past few years and finally was released from his fight last week. Bro. Jerry's daughter, Bree, was in my grade at school and was my homework reminder for years (I could never remember what my homework was, so I always called Bree to find out). Bro. Jerry also was a help to me in school. He was a math wiz and I was a math flunkee, so helped me study a few times. And then his son, Jarod, who was in my sister's grade, has been one of my best pals since pals since about 1995. It was sad to see Bro. Jerry go; but his suffering is over and I have great hope of his reward!

Then early this week, I got word that Bro. Windell Gamble had passed away suddenly from a heart-attack. Bro. Windell was such an encourager to me when I was young! He was always happy and smiling and always cuttin' up! His greeting was usually, "Hello, uglier than I am!" or "Why there's my little Byrd-brained buddy!" And then he would just laugh and laugh. I sure will miss him!

Tuesday, Mackenzie started back to school! Second grade! I went into work late so that I could go with her - I figure it won't be many more years that she'll WANT me to go with her, so I'd better enjoy it while I can. Makayala doesn't start kindergarten until next year, so I'll get to enjoy "first day" with her for several years, even if Mackenzie gets tired of me coming up there hugging and kissing her in front of her friends! :)

Wednesday evening, I went to Huntsville to Bro. Windell's visitation, where there was a line that circled inside the large funeral home. I waited for two hours to see his family. You spend your life being good to people, like he was, and that's what happens! After that, I went to the hospital to see A.J., my niece; and I got to hold her for the first time! AND, Shawna told me that I was the first one to hold her besides her and Derrick and the two grandmothers - so I felt priveledged! :) She is SO pretty!!!! While I was there, Shawna told me what all Mom had cooked for supper; and I just couldn't resist! I hadn't had supper and mom's house was only 15 minutes away, so I went over and had a huge plate full (at about 10:00 p.m.)! My mom is an awesome cook and that supper was no exception! I probably got there, ate, and was out of there in 15 mintues, and got home at midnight.

Tonight, Jarod and Lisa are meeting me and Kellie here in Chattanooga to supper and to hang-out for a little while. It is HOT outside; and I hope it cools off a little this afternoon so we can walk around downtown without the blistering heat!

I've got a session in the morning - nine month old little girl; and so watch for pictures soon! It's been a while since I've photographed a baby - I hope it goes good!