Wednesday, October 22, 2008

Autumn Vacation 2008, Part I

Thank you so much for your concern about my back pain that I mentioned in the last post. I came to the conclusion that it was probably caused by a combination of sleeping in 4 different beds in 8 nights, being in the car for hours on end, and VERY little exercise. It is much better after a couple sessions at the gym (I love the back stretching machine!), and back to picking up the girlies a hundred times a day.

Our trip to Atlanta was flawless for a nice change of pace - flying is not the fun it used to be. The fact that you now have to pay to take a suitcase big enough for a week just boggles the imagination. AND - if you happen to overpack that one bag, you will be charged an overweight charge! Oh, yah, and our travel agent didn't get the part of me being claustrophobic and needing an aisle seat. I thought she did and discovered too late that I was in the middle. HELP!! It was amazing that I made it through okay. And - oh, yah, the part about me buying a box lunch in the air for $6.00. My purse was crowded at my feet and I couldn't reach it, so I hung onto the $14 change in my left hand. When I woke up from a short snooze, I realized that hand was empty. I must have thrown it away with the napkin. ARGHHHH!!! That was one pricey box lunch! I guess it wasn't totally flawless - -

We spent Friday evening visiting with DC's brother, his wife (whom I shall refer to as R&C from now on), and 4 of their 6 children, two spouses, and 4 grandkids. This is the second time we've taken a road trip with R&C, spending just a bit of time in Athens. Their oldest daughter thinks that next time we should take day trips and spend more time in Athens so we can see her and the rest of the gang more often. I thought that was sweet that she wanted to spend more time with us.


R&C put a pool in their back yard last spring - they told us that the water was in the neighborhood of 95 degrees some days this summer, so it was a welcome part of the summer - the grandkids really had a good time all summer long.



They have this wonderful device that keeps the pool clean - and is working hard these days vacuuming up the oak leaves that will be falling in abundance - they have wonderful woods in their back yard. The hose in the back will come up out of the water and randomly squirt water - and give you a shower if you happen to be in its path.




The next morning was the women's meeting, including brunch, at the church where I was the "featured speaker." I felt no qualms or nervousness at all - I was able to present it mostly without depending on my notes. When you bare your soul to people, it is amazing how many come and tell you their stories - there are many hurting people who are serving the Lord.

Sunday after morning service, we hit the road. We got to Columbia, SC by about 5:00 p.m., just in time to celebrate our great nephew's (grand nephew?) 4th birthday party. They had invited another family over, so there were 6 lively little kids having a great time, and 8 tired adults watching.












We got a real kick out of his dad enjoying one of his gifts --









We had a good night's sleep there and left about 9:00 Monday morning for Myrtle Beach. We were so blessed - the couple who came over for the party let us use their condo for an unbelievably low cost. My niece's home is lovely and their back yard is as large as some parks -





Part II - On to Myrtle Beach




22 comments:

nannykim said...

Hi--it made me give the password this time. So I am not sure what happend the last time!

Linds said...

It all looks wonderful, Dawn - how sweet that the younger ones want to spend more time with you next time you visit!I love the view of the lake or river in the last photo - you are right - that is one big garden!

SentimentsbyDenise said...

Sounds wonderful!
It's so nice to catch up with family in person when you're not use to being with them all the time! I love that.

Nancy said...

It sounds like you were probably very tired by the time we met for lunch. I was too but you would never know it, by the way we talked and talked and talked. Such, great memories...

You had such a jam packed schedule. I'm delighted to hear all about it.

I love the photos and look forward to Myrtle Beach. It's a beach that I've gone to almost annually since I was a small child.

Diane@Diane's Place said...

I've never been to any of the places you visited so I'm enjoying this series of posts.

Flying is definitely not my thing. I much prefer the slower pace of driving. I'd have been sick over losing that money. Not much to some people, but it would bother me.

Thank you for the birthday wishes, Dawn. I appreciate it so much, and our friendship. :o)

Happy Thursday!

Love and hugs,

Diane

Sam said...

Oh, Flying has become the worst! Last time I flew (a few weeks ago) I was outraged that I had to spend 25 dollars to check my bag AND they charged us for water on the plane! I really do remember when it used to be so different.

But, it sounds like you survived and had a really nice trip. I liked your pictures a lot and can't wait to hear more about your trip. I'm glad you had such a nice time.

I'm also glad your back is feeling better. It's amazing how exercise can help a sore back so much.

Mary said...

Dawn,

Well, my first comment disappeared into cyberspace. Seems blogger has a glitch yet again.

It sounds like you had a wonderful time. The condo was certainly a blessings. What a lovely back yard.

Take care, my friend. I'm glad you enjoyed your trip.

Blessings,
Mary

Mary said...

Dawn,

Well, my first comment disappeared into cyberspace. Seems blogger has a glitch yet again.

It sounds like you had a wonderful time. The condo was certainly a blessings. What a lovely back yard.

Take care, my friend. I'm glad you enjoyed your trip.

Blessings,
Mary

nancygrayce said...

So glad your back is better and I had no doubts your speaking engagement would go well. You have a natural talent! Words just flow from your heart.

Linda said...

I'm a bit behind (as usual) and didn't know your back was bothering you. I'm glad to hear it's getting better.
I think I never want to fly again. It all sounds so tedious these days. Of course, it does beat being in the car for endless hours....
The only time I was in Columbi,SC was when Steve was in Basic Training. I went there to visit him.
The pictures are great - as always. It's fun to be able to get a real look at what your vacation was like.
I'm so glad your talk went well. I'm sure you were an encouragement to those who were there.
I'll be back for the next part.

Carole Burant said...

Hi Dawn:-)

I'm so glad that your trip went so well...except for mistakenly throwing away that money, I've done the same thing so I'm glad it's not just a blonde thing! lol

I found that pool cleaning machine quite fascinating, I've never seen anything like it before. It certainly would come in handy to clean up the leaves!!

Your little great nephew is so darling and he sure looked like a happy birthday boy! His cake was gorgeous!!

Such beautiful scenery you had while staying at that condo. Looking forward to hearing about the rest of your vacation:-) xoxo

Needled Mom said...

It sounds like you had such a good time. I am so glad that your speech went so well, but we all knew you would sail through it.

Flying is definitely not much fun anymore. We've learned to bring our own food as the food they serve is so expensive and not that good. Yours was REALLY expensive.

Oh....that view!!! That is gorgeous. It just all sounds like it was wonderful family fun.

Hootin Anni said...

Ummmmmmmm, I think I could live in their back yard!!! Camp out. Gorgeous, simply gorgeous.

Ya, I'm sure your back pain WAS from all the things listed above.

Dawn said...

Hi Dawn!

Thank you so much for the invitation to read your blog. I've just spent the last hour+ reading and reading.

What an amazing work God has done in your family! What awesome plans He must have for all of your lives to have brought you through all of that.

I've bookmarked you and will be back often.

Blessings!
Dawn (the "other" one!)
;-)

Sharon Lynne said...

I'm so glad your speaking engagement went well. God is faithful.

Wow! I love the backyard. I didn't know it was so beautiful in those parts. (Georgia)

Living in these western lands, I'm sheltered and uninformed.

I can't wait to hear about the rest of the trip!

Tammy said...

Looks like such a fun trip, Dawn! That is a beautiful back yard with a view!
Yes, I'd say that all the reasons you mentioned certainly added up to your backache! I'm glad it's feeling much better now!
Looking forward to hearing about the next leg of your journey! :)

Susie said...

Loved seeing your photos of this part of the world. I've never seen it in real life.
That pool looks sparkly and clean.
We lived near a man who invented the pool sweep (or one of them) many years ago. He's a multi millionaire these days!
xo

Kathi~Lavender, Lace and Thyme said...

Good Morning Dawn,

What an amazing vacation you had and a birthday party to boot! Enjoyed Dad playing with the game :)

A wonderful weekend to you!
Blessings,
Kathi :)

someone else said...

The back yard and river/lake are soooo pretty. It looks like the perfect place to relax.

Flying has definitely changed, but I'd still stay it's my favorite mode of travel.

Mary said...

Dawn,

I just sent you an email but am not sure I have the correct address. If you don't receive it, please email me through my blog profile.

Thanks,
Mary

Midlife Mom said...

I'm so glad that your talk for the ladies group went so well! I knew it would, as you say when you speak from the heart things just flow. I'm sure all the ladies in attendance were blessed.

What a wonderful trip you had! I too can't wait to hear about the rest of it. No wonder your back was bothering you, sleeping in all those different beds. I must say that I was surprised how compfy our bed was and I didn't have any problems on this trip. Not always the case though.

I agree with you and Needled Mom, flying just isn't what it used to be. We had to pay to pick our seating arrangements and then didn't get the right ones on the way down. Did on the way back though so that was good. We packed our suitcases rather tight as we didn't want to pay for extra ones. Didn't it used to be that each person could have TWO suitcases plus carry on???? I'm so glad we flew in yesterday as today has been wild out with strong winds and rain! It would have been a rough ride today!

Take care and get rested from your trip. I will be looking forward to the next installment!

Great pictures of the girls BTW!

Jess said...

Glad your back is better...and that you had a good time despite the flying crap! lol

Can't wait for part II!