From the Mountains of N. Georgia

Just sharing some of the beautiful of Northcroft with the readers of Family Chatter Box. I'm getting more and more excited about seeing you all together at Grayton.

-Mimi/Mom/Merry

Water Blast!!

Two boys, a waterfall and a creek, equals

a fun filled day at Northcroft!

Today, Joe and Aunt Judy's grandson,

Gaege, enjoyed each other and all the other

activities that the mountains have to offer.

See the joy for yourself....Quote from Joe, "It was an awesome day!" Quote from Gaege, "It was good. It was fun. It was filled with very good Sugar plums!"

A big thanks to Joe for driving up with me, very late, Thursday night so we could greet company on Friday morning and so Gaege could have a buddy to play with. He gave up his last day of sports camp to join me, but he agreed it was well worth it.

I had a great day with sister, Judy, Louis and my sweet Mother. Thanks for coming!

I can only hope that Ford had as good a day on this special day...Happy Birthday #1 Grandson!

-Mimi

Happy Birthday to Ford and Molly!

On July 27th (Ford) and July 28th (Molly), Ford and Molly will be celebrating their birthdays! Now I won't tell the lady's age (although she got passed the difficult one last year and Kimberly will catch up with her in Sept.) but Ford is going to be 12 years old and growing way too fast!

You both are adored by Grandad and Mimi and we wish you happiness and the best year ever.

HAPPY, HAPPY, BIRTHDAY!

Colorado Memory

The sun has set on our trip to Colorado and our time together there is left only to the memory.

We leave behind our Native American forebears, shown here: Chief Yamaha and his faithful companion, Princess Summer Fall Winter Spring, (the squaw for all seasons), to join the tan faces of Grayton Beach.

We leave you with these wise words of our Fathers, " The Great Spirit is in all things."

"Out of the Indian approach to life there comes a great freedom - an intense and absorbing love for nature; a respect for life; enriching faith in a Supreme Power; and principles of truth, honesty, generosity, equity, and brotherhood as a guide to mundane relations."

"Beauty is before me,

And beauty is behind me.

Above and below me hovers the beautiful.

I am surrounded by it.

I am immersed in it.

In my youth I am aware of it,

And in old age I shall walk quietly The beautiful trail."

Navajo Prayer

(Oh, come on now...this is a good blog! :)

From The Garden of the Gods...

This is the last message from Colorado. It's been a great trip,
but we're coming home today and we all know, "there's no
place like home." See you soon!

Cheyenne Mountain ZOO

I went to the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo today...

I thought about Gene and wondered how he was doing alone at home.

I thought about my sister Judy. Keegan and Aidan too...

I even had nostalgic thoughts of Costa Rica...

Once Joey and Isabelle came to mind...

and my Daddy

Oh, I thought about the whole family!

Then I got so excited when thoughts of Kate came to mind while watching this sleepy solth meander his way to his hammock...

Terr? He just thought....
It was such a good day.

-Mom/Mimi

The Summit

Sometimes a picture can say a thousand words. Talk about a Rocky Mountain high, today we were on the top of the world, looking down. It was fantastic!

I wanted you all to be here to share with me and see what God has created. It never hurts to be reminded what a wonderful world we live in. I feel so privileged to go, do, and see so much....

and tomorrow is another day!

What will happen at Grayton this year?

Could there be cooking and singing in the kitchen at Grayton this year? Could there be more theme dinners? Could the infamous drink give way to a more current fashionable libation? Will there be a Mimi's project with the grandchildren this year or are the children too old??

So many things to decide, so little time.

One thing I know, it will be so good to all be together...I'm ready, "Let the Games Begin!"

-Mimi/Mom/Merry

News Flash from Shannon...

" Ford Croft and his all star team, the DHYS Thunder, finished their summer season with an outstanding performance in the HYSA world series in North Carolina. While they lost in the semi-finals, they enjoyed competing with teams from Florida, Virginia, the Carolinas,Brooklyn, and even the Bahamas. Ford has become one of the team's top pitchers. Now that baseball is finally over, Ford will prepare for the start of football camp with a preseason football boot-camp run by Mike and Joey Regas this August at Grayton Beach." -SSC





From Mimi...
Ford takes his ball playing seriously and Morgan is one his biggest fan! (Thank goodness for the rest of his tireless support team, Mom and Dad!)

Great Job Guys!!



(Teaser-if I can get pictures, my next blog will be about Mike and Joe winning the Druid Hills Father Son Golf tournament last week end!)

Will you marry me again, today?

July 9, 1977

July 9, 2007

Will you marry me again, today? For 30 years we have asked each other that question on the date of our anniversary. Today, Terrence and I agreed that yes, indeed we would. Our life together has brought us comfort, love, a wonderful family and the knowledge that, where ever either of us may be, and what ever happens, as long as we have each other, we are never alone. These are gifts that can't be purchased, only given and honored over time. Our wish for our marriage is to stay the course, with dignity, love, compassion and all the joy we can cram into it. Here's to us, Mr. and Mrs. Terrence Lee Croft. Happy 30th!

I'm still celebrating!

The 4th of July at Northcroft...

I wish you all could have been at NorthCroft with us on this 4th of July! We had a wonderful day with perfect weather. Grandad and Tom did a great job with the fireworks; Mimi was pleased that all safety measures were taken and none of the forest was in danger of catching on fire!

A first! Grandad took Emily and Andrew to put rafts in at first-ford and they ran the creek all the way down to the cabin. The water was rather low and they got stuck on the rocks a few times but, none-the-less, they made the trip all by themselves!

We had a great lunch under the picnic shelter and topped it off with a strawberry flag cake and blackberry cobbler (berries hand picked by Mimi and Andrew!).

Hope you all had a great day too! ...Oh, how was the Peachtree Road Race? I would love to hear about your Fourth and see some of your pictures. I will share them on Chatterbox too.

-Mimi

Progress on Granger Court!

It's almost pay-off time for Mike, Mary, Joe and Issy! With the driveway poured, it's only a matter of days (maybe weeks?) before they will be ready to move into their new home. I'm sure after months of living in a small condo and with only a fraction of their usual stuff, this will indeed be a wonderful day. Congratulation! I love your beautiful new home. Mom/Mimi