In March Barbara and Morris’s third child was born who they named David Fred Mixson with his middle name after Barbara’s father.  David came unexpectedly early after Barbara decided to clean house and while moving the couch to clean behind it, she started bleeding.  Barbara went next door where Irene called Morris who came home to take Barbara to the hospital.   Upon arriving, Irene said she would take care of Brenda and Larry and Morris got Barbara into the car where she immediately fainted which Morris didn’t notice at first as he closed the door, walked around to the driver’s side of the car, got in and discovered Barbara had passed out.  Morris started the engine and drove as fast as he could to the Alachua General hospital which fortunately was not far away where he pulled into the emergency entrance and called out for help.  The nurse came out and the put Barbara on a gurney and took her inside and to the deliver ward while Morris had to fill out some paperwork in the emergency room.  After Morris finished the paperwork he hurried upstairs to the delivery area, knowing the way from having two previous children born there.  After a couple of hours, the doctor came out and said that his son David had been born and was doing fine.  Barbara also was also fine but had lost quite a bit of blood and they had to give her several pints and he could go see her now.  When Morris saw Barbara there weak and looking pale, he was worried, but the doctor said she would recover and then Morris got to hold baby David for a short time before they took him to the nursery.  Barbara said that she hardly remembered anything about the birth the next couple of days and was weak for a couple of weeks afterwards.

Brenda giving Larry a Bath

The reason why Barbara was cleaning the house so well was that her mother, Waive, was planning to come down and help after the baby was born so Barbara wanted the house really clean.  Fortunately Waive was able to come early and helped take care of Barbara and the kids for the next few weeks while Barbara recovered.  Morris was a good father who was there to help Barbara with the three kids. He'd come home on his lunch hour and help feed them, give them a bath in the washtub out in the yard in the summertime and put them down for their naps which Barbara always took with the kids.

The following month after David arrived, Betty and Billy’s second daughter was born who they named Karen Yawn and then in May, Billy got a job selling insurance and the company moved Betty and Billy to Alabama.  Barbara and Morris missed Betty and Billy, but in their absence Barbara and Morris became closer to their next-door neighbors Donald and Irene. Donald and Irene were good Baptist and soon the two families were going together to Eastside Baptist Church.  It was there that Barbara and Morris met Dot and John Smith and their four children who they became lifelong friends with.  

Later that summer Morris, Barbara and the kids drove up to Atlanta to see Fred and Waive and Barbara’s aunts and uncles.  Three of her mother’s sisters, Hazel, Betty and Helen and their husbands were there.

Standing: Fred, uncle, Waive, aunt, aunt, uncle, aunt Front: Brenda, Corky, Barbara holding David, Morris holding Larry

For my second birthday Mom had a party which friends and family came.  Grandma and Grandpa Mixson, Dad’s brother Arnold and his wife Eunice and son Mike, Irene with her sons Wayne and Sammy, next door neighbor Dot, John and their daughter Sharon were all came.  Mom wrote that I got “nice presents and I had a birthday cake.”

Updated: 02-085-2023

1955