Grab Your Passport....

We're goin' to Arkansas!!! We moved the beginning of July and Sterling starts med school on the 26th, so we took some time to go to Arkansas to meet some of his family that I had never met before. We decided to make it somewhat of a family history trip as we would be passing through many of the states that our families are from. We headed up and went through Pensacola so we could stop and see Gammie (my grandmother). We stayed the night in Hattiesburg, Mississippi, and then went on to Louisiana. Now, Sterling has heard about the infamous family bible since he was little, and has, of course (with his love for old books and genealogy), wanted to hold it in his hot little hands. We only knew Esther Fuller had it, and had since passed it on and passed away. Well, that doesn't stop my hubby. He looked up E. Fuller in Louisiana, and we found one in Monroe and just stopped on by. They happily invited us in, gave us 45 minutes of stories, and a stack of family group sheets they just happened to have copies of! Then mentioned there were more Fullers in Eros (a tiny town in Louisiana) that they were not related to. Well, Eros just happened to be on our way! We stopped at a 10x10 building labeled City Hall, and asked if there were any Fullers in town. They called them up and sent us over. They too, kindly invited us in and we met some new cousins! They told us all about Sterling's grandfather (whom he'd never met) and let us get copies of old pictures they had. Then they sent us "all the way across town" (two blocks away) to speak with another relative! We got more pictures and were sent back to the first home to..... look at the family bible! It was quite the trip. Then we headed up to Arkansas to meet and stay with Nana (Sterling's grandmother). It was very nice, and Christa drove over from Texas to hang out as well! On the way back, we not quite so successfully searched for some of my ancestors (for 3 hours in 100 degree weather in Alabama), but it was a great trip nonetheless!

Us with Gammie

Time to stamp that passport!

I have to say, it was good barbeque

Sterling's great grandparents

Sterling's grandfather, front left, with his father and brothers

There it is!

We were guided "past the chicken houses," to the "second hawg trail on the right" to a hidden cemetery where a lot of Sterling's family was buried.

His grandfather

Sterling's other grandparents

We went Diamond Mining!!!! Arkansas has the only public diamond mine in the world!

Hard at work....it was stinkin' hot out too

See that? We're gonna be rich!

Us with Christa and Nana and Sterling's grandfather's grave

Uncle Bill's grave

Where Nana taught school...we think it was haunted

Christa surprised us for our birthdays!

Pretty sweet cakes huh!? Yeah, we know you're jealous!

Graceland

Beautiful old cemetery in Alabama, where we searched for my family.