Fish Fry at Aunt Mary and Uncle Eugene's

Fried speckled perch, hushpuppies and delicious guava cobbler.

Being from the South, we have always had fish frys and many in my family including myself love to fish. Todd loves to go speckled perch fishing. His grandfather, Pappy Sr., as I am told was the best speckled perch fisherman in his days. I guess because of that, there a few things Todd would rather do than go spec fishing. My uncle Eugene, (my dad's brother) and Aunt Mary are avid spec fishers and very seldom leave the lake without catching their limit. And because of this, they always have fish frys for special occasions and fund raisers for their church.

Grits, cole slaw, and baked beans were the sides for the fish and hushpuppies.

My Daddy too, likes to go spec fishing, but more than that, he loves to eat speckled perch. He even eats leftover fish for breakfast. Thursday night was my and Nathan's last night at home and since Daddy's birthday was Saturday, we were going to take him to Carraba's to celebrate. When Aunt Mary called Thursday morning asking if we wanted to come over for a fish fry my daddy was more than happy to change our plans.

When we arrived, besides my family, Aunt Mary had invited my Aunt Bertha (who is eighty four years old), and Uncle Guy and Aunt Andrea. Uncle Eugene, Uncle Guy, Aunt Bertha and my daddy are siblings. So, it turned into a mini-family reunion. The best part of the evening besides the wonderful food, which by the way my Aunt Mary makes the best hushpuppies I have ever put in my mouth, was when all of the siblings started telling stories about their childhood and my wonderful Granddaddy. I will spare you the details but they told stories that I had never heard. It appears that my Granddaddy wasn't always as gentle with animals and others as he was with me. He was the most precious Granddaddy a kid could ever have and I have been told often that I was his favorite grandchild. Some say that it is because I look so much like my Grandmother, who I never had the privilege of knowing. Her name was Kitty. I am the proud owner of her wedding ring that my Granddaddy gave her. My Aunt Andrea knew how special my Granddaddy was to me and she saw to it that I got it.

From L to R: Aunt Bertha, Daddy, Mama, Aunt Andrea and Uncle Eugene.

Hailey and Nathan sat at the bar.

Nathan was thrilled that his cousin Hailey was there so he would have someone to play with. Her sister, Layna, came also but now that she is sixteen she doesn't have much time for the kids. She sat with the adults and loved listening to the old stories too. Only four or five times did she get up and go in the den to text one of her friends. Somehow Nathan convinced Hailey to play Power Rangers. I guess he wanted to show her some of his moves.

"Dino-thunder, ninja storm accelerate, hi-yah!"

I think Hailey had a move for Nathan...

Looks more like WWF than Power Rangers.

Thank you, Aunt Mary and Uncle Eugene, for a wonderful evening with great food and family!