Samantha’s Childhood

Hey hey! Welcome to our slice of the internet. We are so glad you’re here. Wes and I hope to share real life, hope, joy, fun and practical tips with you. We are each using a few first posts to share about our backgrounds. I will start with a little about my family. I grew up spending most of my time with three people.  

My Mom, Linda

Protective  •  Thoughtful  •  Hard-Working  •  best sense of humor

I was raised by a single mom for most of my childhood. She always said that I was God’s gift to her but I believe she was the Lord’s gift to me. She did everything she could to set me up for success and to work her life around mine. She wanted me to be able to attend private school through third grade. She wanted to pick me up and take me to school and join in on field trips as the chaperon so she started her own beauty salon, Sheer Elegance. (I can still remember seeing the business card for the first time – I loved the paper and ink finish even as a 6 year old!) She booked perms and colors and haircuts around my school schedule. She let me wash the perm rollers for a few dollars to add to my fun money whenever I wanted. Her salon had a room in the back just for me to play so that after school I could stay with her. She would save her change and anytime I had a trip or something special upcoming, she would roll her change and it would cover it. 

When I first started driving myself to school, she would follow me every morning. I thought this was absolutely nuts. Once in college, I didn’t call her around the time I normally would. I had gone to a friend’s dorm room for Bible study that turned into late night chatting about everything and left my phone in the car. When I got to my car at 2:30, I had 13 missed calls. I called afraid I was going to wake her but when she answered, she was very alert. She was getting dressed to come and find me. She already had campus police looking everywhere she could remember me mentioning that I had been. I did not leave my phone ever again.

My mom passed in 2013. I wish she were here now so I could tell her how much I appreciate her and how she makes sense to me in so many ways now that I am a mom. I’ve been trying to recreate some photos of she and I with Lindsay. I read an article about a shadow box wall Darcy Miller created and I loved it. She had photos recreated family photos with her children and encapsulated their memories in the sweetest way. I just looked at the wall again and I am still in awe. I love how she 

Recently, I hung a photo of her holding her poodle in our powder room and it makes me laugh every time I see it. She shared a story of how her first husband cancelled their phone service when they lived in California. She had created quite a large bill after lots of long distance phone calls to her mom in South Carolina. On day one of the phone being off, he asked her to call the poodle parlor so that Michette could get a trim. My mom went to the yard and began yelling as loudly as she could, “Poodle Parlor.” He asked what she was doing and she explained that he had asked her to call the poodle parlor and this was the only way she could. She definitely got phone service back that day. 

My Granny, Lois

Excellent housekeeper  •  best biscuit maker — Ever  •  loving

Before she opened her salon, I stayed with my granny while my mom worked and I loved spending time with her. She would let me help her with chores like folding towels and making up the bed. Granny made the bed every day and did a load of laundry every day during the week. She hung her clothes out to dry, only using the dryer on rainy days. If you opened her dryer, you would find Styrofoam cups and paper plates. Granny defined “smart” as taking care of your home and keeping everything clean. Everything had a place in her home. She had one note pad she used for budgets, phone numbers, notes — everything. Granny always returned it to the same spot. As I think about the time I spend looking for notepads, I realize the wisdom in that effort. 

She learned how to drive just a few years before I was born. When we would go for a car ride, we would pray and ask the Lord for safety and protection at the end of the driveway before heading out. She was petite so she would sit on a pillow to see above the steering wheel. She would put a pillow in my seat too. 

While we folded clothes and made the bed, Granny would sing hymns. Other times, she would play records of her favorite Gospel singers while rocking me in her mom’s rocking chair. She gave me this rocking chair when I moved to my first house. I love seeing Lindsay play in the rocking chair just like I would. Granny could play piano by ear — she was always working to learn another hymn. One that she learned for me was Silent Night. We sang it year round. She also gifted me with her piano. Lindsay loves to press the keys and it makes me think of Granny every time she does.

My Pa, Ed

Hard-Working  •  generous  •  fun-loving

My grandpa was a plumber and he took care of a trailer park that he and my granny had. He was beloved by the children who lived there. He would always have candy in his pockets and bring cold canned sodas for them. 

At home, he was a master gardener. He grew beautiful tomatoes, apples, pears, pecans, cucumbers and roses. I spent a lot of time following him around outside while he cut apple slices for us to eat. 

He had a white German Shepherd named Polar Bear. Polar Bear loved to ride in Pa’s work truck. He would sit in the front seat and Pa would put a work cap on his head.