Goodbye 2009

The ending of a year brings a persons desire to reflect on the past and contemplate the future. It also brings the age old tradition of setting goals or "resolutions" as it is commonly referred to as. For this blog, a reflection of 2009.........
2009 has Brittney graduating from UNC- chapel Hill. She spent time in Chicago this summer preparing for her new career as a teacher with Teach for America. She has a home in Bethel, NC and a job teaching 4th grade in Princeville, NC. She seems to enjoy her school kids, but has not quite been sold on a career in teaching. She continues to see a nice young man - Josh Mayes.

Danielle has spent this past year in Texas - some in Uvalde, some in Corpus Christi, Houston and now she is settled in Bastrop. My cousin, Amanda King and her family, have been kind enough to open their home to allow Danielle to reside there. She is working at Wal-Mart and seems to have found some peace and has settled down. As a parent, I am ever so thankful for that. A trip home to NC is a goal I have for her in 2010.

Hunter completed 5th grade and has found himself enjoying Middle school as of August this year. Soccer continues to be an important part of his activities and we even enjoyed a season of Baseball. Remarkably this year, Hunter began to recite all kinds of Baseball stats and historical info and a huge love of the game. So, baseball parents and fans we have become.

Walker has enjoyed part-time pre-school this past spring and this fall/winter season. He loves hanging out with dad working on the farm during the week when Tim is home. His vocabulary has grown and he can be counted on to "clean up" after himself. He has mastered the art of playing on Hunter's old DS game boy. He also enjoys computer bike/four-wheeler games.

Tim has had a good year, enjoying working on the weekends in CVT and pursuing his many hobbies. The mean Turkeys, (the reason for Walker's belly button. he he ) all of the chickens and their eggs (many have enjoyed the treasures of these laying hens!), his enormous garden, his rejuvenated interest in pottery and the Long leaf pines and fruit trees that he has planted - to name a few of his projects. He has been a wonderful support for me all year and my love continues to grow deeper and deeper each year.

His family has had the birth of Maeve and Elijah. His dad has been challenged with a kidney removal and chemotherapy, but his spirit is still active and strong. Mike, his brother, has been plagued with a frustrating bout of Chron's Disease. Fortunately, a strong family support system helps everyone feel loved and secure.

For me, my year started with 17 of my employees having their position eliminated. The economy has been in quite a state all year and our hospital has felt the pains. (Obama is our new President and the first African American to hold this post). This was an awful time for me and I struggled for a while trying to reestablish faith in my professional values and my desire to be a nurse leader and the realities of healthcare. Fortunately, throughout the year I enjoyed an AONE fellowship that sent me several places (San Diego, San Antonio, San Fransisco, and Washington D.C.) and I grew in my knowledge about healthcare leadership. I have also continued to pursue my MSN. I obtained another area of responsibility with my job - the NeuroDiagnostic area. A small department with two wonderful techs. A challenge to continue to balance work, school, family and life is ongoing for me. I love them all and never seem to figure out how to find enough hours in the day. I took up playing some tennis, hoping that some physical challenge would be stress relieving as well. I also became a fan of FaceBook. I have been in contact with friends from the past that otherwise would just be memories.
My dad's health has been relatively good this year - with his elimination of smoking from his daily routine.

So, Tim turned 49, I turned 43, Brittney 23, Danielle 21, Hunter 11 and Walker was 3 during 2009.
I hope that as my family reads this that thier comments about memorable moments in 2009 are added. We each have so much to be thankful for.

Brittney turns 23!

With every year that Brittney gets older, it is yet another anniversary year that I have been blessed to be a mother. As she enjoys the benefits of age and wisdom, I reflect on the many joys my kids bring. Each birthday always brings a sense of pride and an immense feeling of happiness.


Brittney has always, thus far, enjoyed a celebration specifically for her birthday. Its so close to Christmas, but we have tried to ensure birthday gifts were Birthday and Christmas was Christmas. Her and her dad tried to create a July birthday, but instead it meant two birthdays rather than just one. Tim decided this was defeating the purpose of saving money.


Her party was filled with a cake baked by her dad and family gathering for spaghetti dinner and conversation.


These exciting looking pajama bottoms were compliments of her uncle Jerry and Aunt Leesa! Quite fun and attractive. Although the model does not show all they have to offer - hip huggers and bell bottom seem to be part of thier appeal, not just the color and velour fabric.


Best of all was a Birthday song and kiss from her little brother.

Christmas program at ES Baptist church

What would a Christmas holiday season be without the enjoyment of a Christmas program at church? This year at Eagle Springs Baptist church, our new preacher and his lovely wife put together a spectacular presentation. The choir sang and the Christmas story was shared. One of the most memorable elements of this program was a song that played that told the story of the three kings and what they brought at the time of Jesus's birth, but more importantly than these three kings was the birth of a King. This song and story was depicted with the youth wearing all black and using sticks to portray the story. They were strategically placed in diferent formation to add images as the song played along. A very moving song and message.
Treat bags followed as well as fun conversations with all the different members of the congregation gathered in the Fellowship Hall. My brother and his family (Leesa and her kids - Braden, Bailey and Blake) were with us which made the night even better!

There is a new handyman in town

Walker got a little toolkit from his grandaddy this week.  As you can see, he is enjoying it greatly.  He particularly likes the hat and vest.  Seems he likes to dress up a bit.  Anyhow, he is really putting the pressure on me as a handyman.  The jobs that I have been putting of, he is trying to take over!  Looks as if I may have to get busy if I am going to not be put out of business.  And BTW, where can I get a cool vest like that?

Happy 49th Birthday, Tim!

Tim does not like surprises. I do. Tim does not like any recognition or big "to do" about his increasing age. I do. Tim does not like to spend a lot of money on non-practical things. I do.
So, recognizing these differences, yet also knowing my husband does enjoy things such as museums, pottery shopping and trying
new things - all of which I don't - I decided to think of something fun for his birthday. Quite a challenge I can assure you. One thing lead to another and another and another on my search on the internet. I have been quite pleased with the end results and my surprises for his special day.

On November 20th, 2009, my husband awoke to begining his 49th year. I took off from work - something to note I'd like to say. We started the day dropping Walker off with the grandparents and then meeting with the Principal at West Pine regarding a concern related to one of Hunter's teachers. Then, we were off. My husband very graciously accepted my challenge to allow me to surprise him during the day. A difficult task for him to agree to, but he did.
Our first stop was a coffee shop in Star, NC. We always enjoying finding new spots to enjoy a hot cup of Coffee and the paper or the news via the internet. Unfortunately, this one did not open until 0900. So, in an effort to kill time, we went to visit the Star Museum. (Hard to believe this tiny little town would have a museum, but there it was.) Martin-Charm prevailed, not open.
Back to the coffee shop we go, at 0920, the owner had still not arrived,
so my special planned day was not off to the greatest start. Next stop, Floyd's General Store in Ether, NC. Tim enjoyed a cold, spiced GingerAle. I was able to purchase some Diet Coke- 8 ounce- longneck short bottles. Quite a novelty and very hard to come by. My day is going great!
Next stop was Piney Ridge Pottery. Tim enjoyed looking around. We got a few Christmas gifts out of the way and he learned a few tricks of the trade from these potters. Next, was a brief stop at Sid Luck's Pottery. This is one of Tim's favorite potters. Although Martin-Charm kept us from visiting with this nice gentleman, we still were able to look through his shop and enjoy his talented works of art.
I'm closely watching my watch and trying to time things just right and Roberts-Charm (my good luck vs Martin-Charm seemingly being bad luck) brought us to a new found favorite eating establishment - Jugtown Cafe! Great food. Great prices! Great service! Tim is having a good day!
One of the highlights and big surprises of his day was ZipLining! Tim had never been and we were the only ones there. The guides were nice and the owners were very kind. We got to travel a couple of the the lines twice and the weather, although cool, was just right. Tim seemed to have enjoyed his time swinging from tree to tree!
I now have more time to kill before our next adventure, so an excuse to enjoy one of my favorite pasttimes - thrift store shopping - was done. We then, were almost late to our next appointment because Tim enjoyed looking at every shoe and boot in the store. He loves a good pair of boots and the warehouse, discount store in Asheboro was just his cup of tea.
So, to recap, by 3pm on his birthday, we have attempted a coffee shop and a museum in Star, NC. We have enjoyed a Ginger Ale and Diet Coke in Ether, NC. We have conversed with the owners of Piney Ridge Pottery and toured the barn where Sid Luck has his pottery displayed. We have found a new place to eat and enjoyed Jugtown Cafe. We have ziplined in the trees of Randolph county, shopped at a couple of thrift stores and tried on 30 different pairs of boots and shoes.
Now.......down a small, narrow street in downtown Asheboro, we drive and park. Based on an idea from the movie Couples Retreat, our next stop is Couples Yoga! I'm smiling, quite proud of myself for coming up with such an activity. My husband, on the other hand, is struggling with "Oh my! I cannot believe she is having me do this" vs "I need to keep my mouth shut and body language intact and just go with the flow. I don't want to hurt her feelings, but what in the world was she thinking?" Although I could sense some hesitation, it was exactly 3pm and no time to pamper his worries. So, I drag out a bag I had packed and ask him to go change. Our yoga instructor is one I had communicated with online. Her name is Jacqui and she was ever so kind! My husband appears from the changing area wearing...are you ready?....some Hawaian style swimming trunks and a t-shirt. These were selected for the elastic waist for ease of movement. So our session begins. We stretch and pull and balance on one another. I try desperately hard not to laugh on several occassions. Tim was quite serious when we got started. Me? I'm just looking for ways to have fun. An hour and a half later, after relaxing on the floor to chimes and bells and lavendar smelling stuff, we are off to our next destination.
The next stage in his day was not exactly planned because I wasn't sure how we would do on time, but it did work out. 30 minutes of driving brought us to Pittsboro, NC to an artsy-fartsy cafe called The General Cafe. The food here was good too. Spinach lasagna for me and a Vegetarian burrito for Tim. A quick picture of him with a life-size Mermaid made the moment memorable as well.
Next on our itenarary was the place to lay our heads and sleep...a Bed and Breakfast in Siler City. Although we both share a certain uncomfortableness with sleeping in someone else's home with other strangers, this B&B had a separate cottage. We arrived to be greeted by a very nice gentleman who had similar taste and interest in pottery like Tim. After a quick tour, the final surprise arrived - a couples massage. After a big day of swinging in the air, shopping, yoga and traveling, I had thought a good massage would be a great way to end the day. So, at 9:30PM, Mr. Tim Martin concluded his very busy 49th birthday with a glass of "sparkling wine" (my version of Champagne!) I had fun planning and participating in the event. I hope he had fun surviving it!

I love you and Happy Birthday!

NC State Fair 2009

Our annual trip to the NC State Fair was spectacular! We visited our usual spots - the Village of Yesteryear being one of our favorites. A 73 year old painter who does a phenomenal job with painting wild life was in his regular spot. Many of his pieces were gone, so we settled on a wooden Christmas ornament with a chic-a-dee bird and then took a picture of him and Tim together.
There was the 50 cent pickle, the free hush puppies, the tiny bowl of peanuts and of course, the best ice cream in the world - the NC State brand! There was the hot deep fried onion and then the funnel cake. Hunter was wearing more of the white powdered sugar than what he consumed. Walker seemed to enjoy his hot dog the best. We enjoyed a slice of pizza as well as a chicken pita. We were tempted by the new "Pig Lick", but decided that chocolate covered bacon would just be too gross to consume.
Tim tried his aim at a shooting out the star, but missed two itsy bitsy red points. Its a shame I'm sure!
We eventually visited the dairy barn. My sweet husband even bought me a souvenir! (That's probably why it rained. :) It was a bright red NC State t-shirts stating I had been to the cow milking booth and it was "udderly" great. I proudly displayed my udders......shirt. We then took our family picture, in my big udders shirt, in front of the humongous pumpkin! Brittney may have been embarassed that her mother had no shame, but we did laugh and continue on our adventure.
A trip to see the goats found Walker feeling the 'little" goats were sad because they must miss their momma. And then he picked out a new friend....a black and white rabbitt. I liked the huge, big, fat, fluffy, brown one, but Walker and Hunter said NOT!
Tim was engrossed in the chammie wipes demonstration and then the bees and then the pottery making. He loves that stuff and absorbs ( no pun intended) all that they say. :)
Walker seemed to find EVERY wooden stand-up painting that required a face to be placed in the hole to complete the picture. So....15 pictures later.....we succeeded in finding them all.
Each year we also participate in a scavenger hunt to get our NC State Fair t-shirts. They are free this way. (Imagine us wanting a good cheap deal? )This year it was about saving energy and going "green". Hunter was much more interested and had some fun. He even got to play "wheel of farm questions" and got a prize.
We missed Kay Hagan by a few minutes this year, although it would have been good timing for me as I was preparing for a trip to D.C. Nonetheless, I did visit Senator Richard Burr's booth, without my husband of course. He was busy getting a free eye test.
And the moment the boys had been waiting for....Brittney arrived.....just in time for the rides!
Whew! Thank goodness. We each shared a ride with Walker - the big slide, the fun obstacle course, the catepillar roller coaster and then the round and round and round really really fast ride! Hunter enjoyed several round and round and up and down and make you dizzy and want to puke rides! Brittney was the escort for those!
The light rain began, so a cup of Hot Apple Cider, another tradition, was a perfect way to end the day. It was enjoyed as we watched a wild display of fireworks from the dry safe area of the old, antique tobbacco barn.
We left the fair in the late night hours. Thank goodness it was Friday - no work or school tomorrow. Another year of fun! Everyone was asleep 30 minutes into the ride home. Me in the van and Tim and Brittney traveling close behind.

The tradition of the pillow!

And the third pillow belongs to......Hunter!
I guess I have never felt it was such a milestone until my 11 year old son proudly brings home the pillow he made in Life Skills class at West Pine Middle School. You see, this is not our first made pillow. If I remember correctly, Brittney made hers - same school, same class - but it was bigger. Way bigger! The fabric on hers was more of a fleece/terry cloth. I remember at one point, she had to stuff it with newspaper because we didn't have enough stuffing.
And then there was Danielle's pillow. Hers was a similar size to Hunter's but plain blue. The fabric was just plain cotton. I can't tell you how many times I washed that pillow. She really did use hers! Plain blue matched everything and it was just the right size for sleeping or traveling!

And now, we have my son's beautiful, plaid pillow. His fabric has a corduroy feel. His is a good size. Hunter even wanted to put a pillow case over it to protect it from drool and such! I'm not sure who is more proud of it - him or me!

We took it for granted when the girls made the pillows. Its part of being a girl - knowing a little bit about sewing. After all, its the women who are supposed to attach buttons and darn socks and hem things. But my son! Wow! no - Cool! I'm excited that he will be independent with these task. I now have evidence that he can do these things! I now have proof that we don't live in the archaic times of only women can sew! Not sure he will like my new found respect for his sewing talent.

I wonder what Walkers will be like?? Hmm. we have about 8 years to wait. :) maybe someday we can have a reunion of the pillows. :)

Ocracoke Scenic Pictures

Just a few snapshots.

I got the fever :) Deer season begins!

5:26 PM - doing the laundry, cleaning house.
5:27 PM - Four doe in the pasture seen out the sun room window.
5:30 PM wake up the hubby for work and get me a gun :)
5:35 PM Gun found, bullets found, loaded, safety on!
5:37 PM Open front door, three steps, sit on porch, look to the left, safety off.
5:38PM Boom! Down she goes! :)
5:38 1/2 PM Yippee! Adrenalin rush! Woo ha!
5:39 PM Husband smiles, says "Are you sure?"
5:43 PM Photo op!
The hubby must shower and get ready for work. Deer tagged, registered online.
6:15pm Hubby loads deer in back of truck.
7:15 PM deer to processing plant! All done.

Not a bad day of house cleaning!

The Braves begin! BB Season Fall 2009 Aberdeen Rec

A busy Tuesday! Work as usual for me. Walker to pre-school until 12. Hunter out of school early today. Then......mini-kickers from 4-5. watching these 3 year olds run around chasing the ball, many not knowing what to do, some crying, some just sitting. One can't help but smile! Hunter's soccer practise from 5-6. He was quite unique in his attire. I think his excitement over his first baseball game at 7pm, he decided to wear his new baseball pants to soccer practise.....three grass stains later, we are off to the baseball field. We were going to "tail-gate" with pizza before the game, but again, the enthusiasm was greater than hunger! Baseball is so much more fun when its your kid playing! 2nd base! Wow! He played well. He had a hit, a walk and strike out. He almost caught a fly ball! He stopped a couple of grounders! He encouraged his team! And he had a great cheerleading section - mom, dad, Walker- who cheered with his snoring in my lap, Grandmother and Granddaddy, Kevin and Andrew with Steve and Nancy! We even got a wave of acknowledgement from the field! Again, baseball is so much better live than watching it sleepily from the couch. We are the BRAVES, too. How cool is that? Busy day, but good day overall! (by the way, we lost 8:9 :(

Hunter Scores!!!!

Today has been a busy day. Up early. Baseball practise at 0900. Hunter played great. His coach has him currently playing 2nd base. He hustled and stopped several ground balls, caught several throws on 2nd, whizzed it to the 1st baseman and hit three hits! Off the soccer we flew. 10:30am, breeze if perfect. Overcast sky! Temperature 78 degrees. Perfect day for watching soccer! Fire, the name of Hunter's team, is undefeated this season. Sure as I say that, it will jinx them! For whatever reason, the coach was switching out players quite frequently. At half time - the score is 1:1. Walker keeps up the tradition and runs across the field to carry his big brother a Gatorade, the color of his choice of course, to ensure adequate hydration is achieved. :)
the 2nd half - Hunter gets placed as a forward and Wa laa! He makes a goal! The winning goal, I might add! yippee! I was jumping up and down and hooping and hollering as all proud mothers do, I'm sure! The lady next to us, a mother from the other team, smiled and seemed to appreciate my enthusiasm. Next week will bring another challenging team! Let's hope the weather is good and the team plays well.

Our Ocracoke Week

Our week at Ocracoke this year was very good.?? I heard more than once, and maybe even said myself, that this was our best year ever.?? Not sure exactly why this was, except that I believe it was a little more relaxed than normal.?? Apparently, we were all in a positive place in our biorhythm cycle!?? We enjoyed long bike rides, exhausting aerobics exercise classes, fabulous meals and wonderful stretches on the beach.??

Joy and Sallie even got in a full day of shopping at all the thrift stores along Hwy 12.The boys (and yes, that includes Pell) were great during the whole week.?? They played hard and had lots of fun on the beach and around town.?? Hunter did some solo rides around town on his bike.?? I think he enjoyed the independence of that.?? Walker never wanted to be more than a few feet from his mom, and even went shopping all day with here and Sallie on Wednesday.?? She said he was great!?? Hunter caught quite a few fish and showed us up at times.

Joy managed to hook a big fish or two.?? She also managed to do her usual of keeping all our clothes washed and our things organized.?? Me and the boys do not possess the gift of organization, so we depend on Joy for our our structure.?? I am not sure she appreciates that need all the time.?? Joy loves the beach though, and she usually gets the most from it.??

And me??? I like to have slow, relaxing mornings, event filled afternoons and great dinners in the evenings.?? So I wasn't disappointed.?? Throw in the great friends we had at the beach (Katherine and Steven Green with Emma, Jerry Green and Ray Green) and it all comes up roses.?? Joy and I are already trying to plan another trip.?? Maybe at my birthday (November).?? Or our anniversary (April).?? Or Christmas (Joy says "no way").?? Whenever it is, we know it will be very nice!

Tim

Saturday Tears

Today is our last day on the island. Wow! the week has flown. Although I am not totally caught up on sleep, it has been a great week. Today, the breeze is nice and the sun is shining bright in the sky. My daughter and husband tell me I look like a tourist with my plaid crop pants and matching shirt. I have a white cardigan draped over my shoulder and a white visor on. My camera is over my shoulder, so in truth, I guess I do. Puddles fill the sides of the roads due to the rain the night before and the island is a buzz of cars and other bike riders as well as families strolling through the streets. I enjoy the island for the peace and quiet. The busy streets make is seem too much like our busy world at home. We were off for our morning bike ride around the village. One of the bikes has a seat that feels like a petrified banana when you sit on it, so we elected to rent a bike for Brittney to replace this one. At least then, for a couple of hours, we could fully enjoy the morning and the ride. Tim has the big bike with Walker in the child's seat behind. I am on the ancient "girl" blue bike. (At least it has fenders to guard me from the water splashes from the tires.) Sallie has Hunter's old bike - it is just her size. Blue Heron is a relatively new realty place on the island and Tim has elected to go to their office to check them out and rent the bike there. Tim leads the way, crosses the road, through the puddle to park beside the porch. Brittney is next in line to park the petrified, made for a feelingless butt, seat on the side of the building. I follow suit, maneuvering the cars and the puddles to come to a sudden hault in front of the building. Bringing up the rear is Sallie. And then, there was a clatter, a scream and oh no!!! Sallie falls off her bike into the mud puddle! She's laughing, but soaked. Two passerby's came rushing to her side. They assist her to an upright position, gather her bike and help her to the front of the building where the rest of us are standing. One of the fellows that assisted her commented, "some friend?". Sallie's response was "No, that's my daughter!" At the sound of the scream, I did look back. When I saw her tumble, I hurriedly searched for my camera. Snap! Snap! a priceless moment. She was laughing, so thus not unconscious. Her legs were in motion high in the sky, thus no broken bones. Me? I was adding to puddles with my tears that were rolling from laughter. I'm heartless, I know! It gives me a whole new perspective on mud wrestling. As expected, she gracefully recovered, wet butt and all. She was laughing herself.
5 minutes later, I was on the phone calling her best friend in Texas and sharing the experience. Tears of joy! What a day.

Nana Wee and Poppa at Ocracoke

Great day of fishing!

Friday- today is my kind of day! We didn't make the "free" power ball excercise class, but we hurriedly attempted to make the yoga class. To our dismay, the class was canceled. So, it was a family bike ride around the village. Brittney played hookey from school to spend some time with Nana Wee and Poppa, so she was able to get some fresh air and excercise too. After leftovers for lunch, we all loaded up for what we hoped would be a fruitful day of fishing! And that it was!
We caught Flounder, Pompano and Blue Fish. Tim caught several and turned over is rod to Brittney and me. He could barely keep up. He would bait x's 2, cast x's 2 and by then it would be time to take Brittney's fish off and then mine. He could barely keep up! The cooler was full and then.........we ran out of bait. :( We had more fish than we could eat, but we had lots of fun. Poppa even jumped up a couple of times when he saw a fish biting! He seemed to enjoy the excitement as well.

Treasure hunting on the mainland!

In staying with the island theme, we became she-pirates today! We did our annual search for treasures up and down the seashore. A quick stop at the post office, a fax, and the bank teller we began our day. A hot cup of fresh coffee with a fatttening fat homemade warm cinnamon roll was our treat on the ferry ride to the mainland. We searched for treasures in many of our routine stores of which three are thrift stores. We truly search for treasures. Not to mention the money spent goes toward crisis prevention in the community! A brand new camo shirt with tags was the find of the day. Lots of t-shirt and souvenir shops as well. We enjoyed lunch at Lisa's pizzeria! A delightful day for Girls day out!
And then there was the trip back.....first to load on the ferry, we had a great view for the obstacle course that we endured. At least 8 different boats, some traveling quite fast, two kayakers and a jon boat with three men all seemed to want to play chicken. Of course, our big boat always won, but nonetheless, lots of boating traffic! We pulled into one lane to dock only to have to back up and re-dock at another. After deboarding, we then had to wait for the one lane traffic patrol to let us pass. Aahh! home at last. Hot Chicken Bogg was waiting for us!

Staying healthy?

With respect to my hubby, we decided to partake in the local area "free" community center activity.
Off on our bikes at 0715 (some vacation when we have to get up early) to be greeted with good mornings and lets get warmed up. Yes, we did morning aerobics! First time for Tim. First time in a long time for me. Nonetheless we walked, we jumped, we stepped, we shimmied, we grape-vined, we cha-cha'd, we momboded, we stretched and we sweated! We lost time, we lost our steps, we stumbled, we mostly got confused! We had fun! I wonder if I can talk him into the power ball on free Friday?

Day One - Ocracoke 2009

Is it considered a vacation when your up at 0700? Well, I guess technically I got to sleep in. A few wonderfully blissful cups of coffee on the upper deck. The breeze is nice. The temperature about 73 degrees. The house is quiet. Aaahhh! Vacation has begun!
Walking the dog down the road, Walker on his bike with training wheels, the sun shining bright - working hard prior to this all seems worth it.
A trip to the coffee shop and then a bike ride around the village - very relaxing! off to the beach we go! Although the wind was heavy, positioning the truck to block it worked well. We had a picnic lunch, Tim caught some bait fish and then, the only catch of the day - a 3 lb blue fish! Back to the house by 5pm ish. Tim grilled some chicken and created a nice feast. We ate, got full, sat on the coach and visited with friends, then off to bed for me! Vacation means going to bed early for me!
The boys were up much later, but I was asleep as soon as my head hit the pillow! Aahhhh! Life is good.

Off to the beach we go!

We were up much too early to consider this the start of the vacation. not to mention all the manual labor, so vacation hasn't started yet!! Up at zero dark thirty...thank goodness for coffee! My daughter and I had a discussion about the benefits of a good cup of coffee and all the necessities to make it a good cup. For those that have read my previous blogs, I'm picky about my morning cup of Java. The coffee was good, but the fake, fat free Coffee Mate just isn't my cup of "coffee". Nonetheless, it was hot and the caffeine did its job. Hot cinnamom rolls fresh out of the oven and we were off to the ferry! We made an emergency pit stop on the side of the road. our 3 year old doesn't quite understand, "you'll have to wait" or " can you try to go potty?". nevertheless, an empty warehouse lot and some bushes was just fine for him. Weeds needed to be watered too!
A nice cat nap in the van as the ferry traveled 28 miles to Ocracoke in 2 and 1/2 hours. We were greeted with rain and puddles of standing water. The rain ceased when it was time to unload. Be mindful that all Ocracoke houses are ALL up stairs. Whew! got my excercise for the week! Stuff unpacked and sheets on the bed, supper made and then to bed! We're here!