Cottonton

On Friday morning, we headed to Russell County, Alabama ~ Birthplace of Fannie Bradley's namesake.

Short story:

The first time John came to my parents house, he and my Dad sat down to have a little get to know you chat. I think my Dad played 20 questions.

It went something like this:

Joe: Where is your father from? John: Augusta

Joe: Where is your mother from? John: Columbus/Cottonton, Alabama

Joe: You and Kyle might be Kissing Cousins!

John: (insert choking sound)

Turns out that we are both decesendents of Russell County. Oswichee for my family, Cottonton for his, which are about 10 miles apart along the Chattahoochee River.

But the funny thing about this is that in all of my 23 years at the time, I had never heard of Russell County or Oswichee, I only knew that my ancesetors on my Dad's side of the family were from Columbus. Not Alabama!! But John likes to call it Metropolitan Columbus.

Our destination: Cottonton

From Atlanta we had 9 adults, 3 teenagers, 2 kids, 1 baby, 2 dogs, 2 bikes & 2 cakes in 3 cars!

We arrived just in time for lunch. Since there were 34 of us, we ate lunch at the Cottonton Baptist Church, which is the church where Uncle Chuck is a Deacon, right around the corner from his house and the Schoolhouse.

First up ~ Feeding Miss Fannie Bradley. So happy!

Since we were at a church, we had a fenced in playground to play in.

There was whiffle ball...

Kite, age 5, Mindy's baby

There was family and best friends...

John, Mindy (John's 1st cousin) and Rusty (John's 1st babysitter/basically older brother)

These 3 grew up together

There were swingsets...

Rusty giving Courtney quite the push





Preston (age 10, Mindy's oldest), Katherine (age 18 this week, Chuck's baby), Courtney and Kyle



There was football...


Christopher, age 6, Rusty's baby, John & Courtney's Godson




There were dogs...

Sundance, age 2 1/2, Our first lab




More whiffle ball...

Hunt, age 7, Mindy's middle child with such a special heart


There were new friends...

Butch, age 2 1/2, with his new girlfriend Bella, age 2 1/2 (cousin Kimberly's baby)

There was a big game of whiffle ball...

Patrick, age 9, Rusty's middle child, at bat

There were babies...

and adoring grandmothers

There were baby swings...

and the most precious baby in the swing!

Mommy and Daddy, can we put one of these on my Santa list?

There were fresh grown peanuts...

Uncle Chuck, Angie's youngest brother

still on the vine

There were all 4 Kite Siblings...

Bo, Angie, Coty (short for Courtney!) and Chuck

Our next stop: The Schoolhouse

A brief history: This was John's Grandparent's house when he was growing up. It was a real school equipped with a library, water fountains in the hallways, a full gymnasium and bathrooms with stalls! Can you even imagine all of the fun it was to go visit as a kid with 10,000 square feet to explore? John's Grandfather, Daddy Hugh, graduated from there and Angie went to elementary school there before her mother, Mama Dot, moved the children to the city (Columbus!!) to attend school there. After that, Angie's parents bought the school and converted it into their house.

Kite Family and Friends gathered at The Schoolhouse

In the beautiful gymnasium...

John and FB



3 Generations of Kites

Getting kisses from Mammie

With our two favorite young men



There was basketball...

Uncle Saj taking a shot

Aunt Courtney and Uncle Saj

Our family on the front steps of The Schoolhouse

Next stop: Kite's Store

A brief history: This store has been in John's family for multiple generations and in multiple locations. Daddy Hugh and his Daddy ran it, now Uncle Chuck runs it.

Fannie B really enjoying her tour of the store

There were minnows...

for bait

We had a special day in Cottonton and loved showing Fannie Bradley all of John's favorite childhood places. The memories are boundless and we hope FB will spend quality time there as well.

Then Grandfather Joe picked Daddy up and they headed to Camilla to quail hunt. Little did Daddy know, but Mommy had to take Sundance to the after hours emergency vet when we got back to Atlanta because he had worn 3 out of 4 of his paws, RAW!