More about banana pudding or: Every pictures tells a story, don't it?

About 8 years ago, Sister S brought Baby P to the Snider family reunion in Northport, Ala. (Tuscaloosa.)
I guess Baby P was about 6 months old and Sister S was still nursing her.

Sister S was sitting between our grandmother, Dorothy Maddox Matthews and Dorothy's sister,  great aunt Ima Maddox Niemeyer. They were discussing the fact that Baby P had never been given table food (yet), and Sister S was telling them about what the experts say about food allergies and why babies shouldn't be given table food. About that time Dorothy reached over and stuck her finger in Ima's banana pudding and got a big glob on her finger and stuck it right in Baby P's mouth!

Baby P obviously loved the taste of that pudding and she latched her little toothless gum's down on Grandma Dorthy's long, bony finger like it was the last bite she's was ever going to get. Then she lunged at Dorthy's plate as if to say "give me more!"

I have a few pictures of that event, I was sitting right across from them and as usually had my camera at the ready. (I only found this one.But there is one with Dorthy's finger in Baby P's mouth! It's so cute, I wish I could find it.)




Dorthy looks so pleased with herself, like the cat who swallowed the canary. Baby P looks happy. Sister S looks shell shocked and Aunt Ima is sitting there with this look on her face that says "I had nothing to do with that baby getting that banana pudding!"

It was almost as funny as the time young Beth (around 9 years old) forgot that she was taking a photo of Dad (Frank Baucom)  and great granddad (Big Papaw, Estell "Doc" Baucom).  They were at Forest Hill Cemetery in Birmingham, Ala. at the grave site of Big Papaw's late wife, Bennie Eliza Hall Baucom.

My dad wanted Beth to just snap a photo of them together,  looking down at the grave. But Beth noticed they weren't looking at her, so she called out, "Ok, y'all look this way and smile!!!"

Oh the look on their faces!!!!!!

I have that photo somewhere also.

Every pictures tells a story, don't it?

Another disease for you to be checked for (If you are kin to me)

Aunt Ima called today and I immediately felt guilty. Carson and I had been near her home in Riverchase just a few days ago, but I didn't stop by because we'd been at the park for several hours already, and Carson was tired and sleepy.

"Not to worry," she said, relieving my guilt. "I wasn't home on Tuesday."

Aunt Ima is my grandmother Dorthy's youngest sister. Sort of the Beth of her family if you will. She was calling to tell me that I should be checked for a type of rare disease that it seems our family carries: alpha 1 antitrypsin deficiency.

Her niece (a cousin of my mom's that we never knew due to divorce) had contacted her a few months back looking for health information about her father, my late uncle, Lester Earl Maddox. The niece, Lisa Wollenburg has since passed away due to liver complications of the alpha 1 disorder, but through this contact, Aunt Ima realized that she needed to check into what line 2 on Uncle Earl's death certificate said.

Alpha 1 antitrypsin deficiency.

She had the test and she is a carrier. She recommends that anyone related to us through Foster Maddox (yeah, the Marfan's Great grandfather that I LOVED and still miss) should have a simple blood test to see if they have the disease or are a carrier.

So, if you are kin to me through my mom, get that test!

POST SCRIPT:

Alpha-1 Coded Testing (ACT) Study

You may choose to be in a private testing program called the Alpha-1 Coded Testing (ACT) Study. You may obtain an Alpha-1 Test Kit (finger stick) by calling the Medical University of South Carolina toll free at 1-877-886-2383.
You perform the test and the results are returned to you in 4-6 weeks. This study also screens for the most common genotypes. A counselor is available to discuss the results with you. There is no cost to you or your insurance for this testing service.


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