A PERFECT GIFT; For A Most Perfect Son

My oldest son, Mark, celebrated his birthday with most of his family and friends back on May 18th.  We just could not match our schedules until today.  It was an event worth the wait, I thought.

MARK HUDSON PIERCE

 Just how old is Mark?  Old enuff to know better but too young to care!  Something like that.  I know I was 27 when he was born and now I am 80.  If that works out to be 49, works for me.  He is a handsome guy, just like his Dad.  Ask him, he'll tell you.  I taught him to always say Thank You when the comment was frequently made, "You're just like your Dad".

MARK AND TODD, 8 AND 10 IN THE CUB SCOUTS
Mark became a Life Scout and was a member of The Order of the Arrow

I know this, when he was about four he won the Master Barberton title.  Like Leroy Brown, he was the baddest guy in the whole dern town!  Ain't changed all that much!

I was eager to give Mark his birthday gift.  When he was a young and an emensely successful stock broker, he celebrated the fact with both a new sports car AND a new air plane.  It appears I have the only snapshot of  he and the new toys.  He has observed several times that he wished that he had such a picture.  It has hung in my bedroom, with other family pictures for decades.  Now it resides on his desk.

I found a perfect frame for the picture.  Scripted across the bottom of the frame were words that commented that it was the journey that made life worthwhile, or something like that.  Julie and I searched for over a month for a perfect frame and I think this one came close.

A LARGE CHINESE FAMILY DINED NEXT TO US USING CHOP STICKS

Julie and I met Mark, and his lovely wife, Mary Kay, at the Hunan Gardens Restaurant in Mt. Vernon, Ohio, about a twenty minute drive from our lake retreat.  This is mine and Julie's favorite source of Chinese food in this area.  We knew it was good when there was a large Chinese family gathering in the table next to us
eating with chop sticks.

JULIE "DOGGY BAGGED" HER GENERAL TSO'S  CHICKEN
All I Can Say Is ARF! ARF!

 Tomorrow is my son Todd's birthday.  He is, or soon will be, in Virginia Beach with his family.  I know they will celebrate in a big way.  On June 24th it will be my wife's birthday and on August 1st my beautiful daughter, Kimberlies, 39th birthday, again!  I may be late with their birthdays also but I usually come through eventually.

I almost always bake a cherry pie for Mark on his birthday.  One year I did it a month early.  He didn't seem to mind.  Oh, well!


 OH, I ALMOST FORGOT!  Mary Kay didn't like the picture I took of her.  She looked lovely, as she always does  and I couldn't leave her out.  Julie complimented her on a beautiful, unusual necklace.   Mary told me that I was not to put the picture in my blog.  PLEASE DON'T LOOK!

MARY KAY: One of my two favorite daughters-in-law

God Bless!