Girls Trip to Isle of Palms, S.C.-June 25-30, 2009

Girls Trip to Isle of Palms, S.C.-June 25-30, 2009

So for a much needed time of rest and relaxation one of my sister-in-laws started talking about a girl trip back during Hans and Denyse’s 50th wedding anniversary party so here we are. Helene met me at our house in Roanoke at 10 AM this morning then we drove Caitlynn to school at Mrs. Moore’s to join all the students with their families for the last day of class ‘celebration’. Each student did an oral presentation on their final research paper in front of the parents/family attending while the “meat” was being prepared by Mrs. Moore’s son-in-law. Thomas arrived a little after 11 AM and after the students completed their presentations we indulged on the feast before us that each family had a part in the making of the side dishes that covered everything from fruit to alfredo chicken, which happened to be 1 of the 3 dishes Caitlynn prepared from scratch. She had every right to be proud of her baked macaroni & cheese, baked beans (my wife-Tracy’s recipe and loving helping hands to initiate the recipe) and then her pasta dish-my girl loves to cook and she’s good at it!
After my final details were completed for tomorrow’s payroll for the lab, bank and post office stops (of course I wanted everyone at the lab to meet Helene while she was in town) we were on the road by 1:35 PM-in search of the beach with a warm summer breeze! Helene and I took turns driving and with our only pitstop in Blythewood, S.C. I was in total delight to be greeted with a southern draw at the convenient store and to an even heightened delight for my eyes to fall on a freezer stocked with my favorite (well my original favorite) ice cream from Brenham, TX.-Blue Bell! There on the shelf was Banana Split flavor which I could not seem to completely satisfy my craving for while pregnant with Caitlynn (some almost 16 years ago now…)! If I had not had so many calories or been running regularly since our trip to Canada I would have without a doubt rewarded myself with a pint of it, instead I just considered the finding a blessing and a sign that this would be a great trip and walked away (after I picked up the container to verify how many servings/calories/fat IF I “ate the whole thing” I would feel guilty for-32 g fat by the way, just in case any of my Texas family has just sat down to eat some as they read this). Helene and I continued our driving and we had 2 pretty good showers during the last 2 hours as we were 2/3 to our destination. We had many things to talk about as Nick (her only son-my nephew) just graduated from high school and Kayla (her only daughter will be a senior at Radford University this fall) had just been home for the weekend.
We arrived and checked into the hotel. Diana had made reservations about 4 months ago and in the last 2 weeks (after reading some bad reviews on the internet about the resort we’d be staying at) opted to change our reservations to the Wild Dunes Resort and we agreed-sight unseen, trusting her good judgment. The resort was impressive as we first entered the guarded gate and proceed to drive throughout the entrance area and we were still impressed. Its location has many things to offer from villas to homes, ours would be on their property named The Boardwalk Inn at 5757 Palm Blvd., Isle of Palms, S.C., 29451 www.wilddunes.com The Inn had a southern, relaxed elegance about it that reminded us from VA of The Homestead with more activities on location (not to mention the ease of the beach). The front porch area greeted us with rocking chairs on both sides, suggesting cool summer evening’s use. Our room was elegantly decorated with warm colors and our balcony overlooked the Grand Pavilion at the end where the beach started and the Village Plazas at the opposite end. Complete with wireless internet (good thing for my story), 2 big fluffy queen-size beds, a large flat panel screen TV (if we get a wild hair and need to look at the weather), and a cute little refrigerator to chill our wine that I brought (shocker!). We unpacked and got things settled from our end and by that time we needed to head to pick Diana up at the airport in Charleston which was 17 miles but beautiful scenery along the way. She left Oregon at 11 AM to arrive here by 10 PM this evening. Helene waited outside the baggage claim in the car as I went to find Diana and help her with her luggage. I laughed at the thought of our discussions regarding her “Amarula” bottle. Evidently she was given the bottle as a gift and she has “been saving it for a special occasion” so she thought she’d mail it to either of us before her departure date then she realized the cost since she told them it was liquor and decided to leave it in Oregon for another special occasion. I told her that Thomas and I have packed wine bottles in our luggage before but we don’t necessarily tell them that they are packed and to date we’ve never had any break in the suitcase so she opted to do some creative packing and go ahead and bring it. She describes it as a product from South Africa and it is a Marula Fruit Cream Liqueur www.amarula.com When Diana went online to check-in she noticed that even with 3 bags there was no charge so she called the airlines to verify. Since she’d upgraded to first class she is allowed 3 bags and 1 carry on without any charge so at that time she thought her bottle deserved its own little suitcase so she packed it well and checked it as a piece of luggage.
So I spotted her awaiting the carousel to start dispersing luggage and I greeted her and we laughed as she said she needed to be sure her liqueur arrived safely as she was watching concerned. She looks good and she told me about her busy week since Francois had been in Colorado since Sunday (Father’s Day: trivia for this year-1966 was the first year President Lyndon Johnson signed a proclamation declaring the 3rd Sunday of June as Father’s Day, 20% of Father’s Day cards that are purchased by wives for their husbands, 56% of men who say they do nearly the same amount of cooking as their spouse (or even more) but according to the wives, its only 25%, 13%of US companies that offer paternity leave, and 159,000 represents the number of stay-at-home dads in the US) and just got back the day before she left. They currently have 2 Bassett Hounds, 1 cat and Chelsea (their only child which is my 17 year old niece-Thomas and I are her godparents and she will be a senior in high school this fall) which keep her very busy as she continues to work by doing medical transcriptions from home. She agrees the 3 of us are starting a much needed get-away..….
None of us had eaten dinner so Helene chose IHOP since Subway and the local Ice cream shop closed at 10 PM and its already 10:53 PM-okay, I guess we can still have real food but ice cream would have been so good! We decided that we would not make any definite timed plans but would look at all our options and as Helene tells us “we’re just showing up”. Dinner was good and we laughed as we talked and caught up on each other’s lives then we headed back to the resort at 12:20 AM. Diana was a nervous about our room and if it would be comfortable, we didn’t give her much detail though she persisted but we feel she’ll be pleased.
On our drive to the resort I asked Diana how she and Francois met. She told me they met in college and one night Francois had drank TOO much, walked right in her room and told her he loved her. She said she waited until the next day and asked him if he remembered what he had told her the night before and he told her “yes and I meant it”. From that point forward they dated until they married-obviously a man who knew what he wanted I’d say-the rest is history. Diana had never met Thomas until their wedding and she laughed as she remembered when Thomas came to see them in Texas for a Dallas Cowboy game and Chelsea was small at the time. They took him to eat Mexican food and he couldn’t stand the hot sauce (he doesn’t like ‘hot’ things) but Chelsea was perfectly content eating it-he was shocked at watching the baby eat it. They moved to Oregon in 1998 since their New Mexico home sold while they were on the family trip to Europe in 1998, when Chelsea also got Scarlet Fever while they were on the trip and they were in East Germany. Hans had to go with them to take her to the physician (a female physician) so he could translate and obviously she did it all under the table because they typically quarantine them but didn’t with her. Diana laughs as she recalls Chelsea still remembering the tongue depressor because it was like rock candy on the end of it.
We passed several strip malls as we drove from Mount Pleasant to Isle of Palms and I spotted a “Five Guys” burger restaurant and made a comment, Helene said “oh yeah”. I asked Diana if she had ever been to a “Five Guys” and she said “no, is it like a Chippendale’s or like a Hooters or something?” Helene and I cracked up and said “no just good burgers, how did you get that out of the name?” She chuckled with us so I knew then that we would have to bring her at a later time during our stay here. It was hilarious because Diana was so nervous about whether or not it was a decent place and if we were okay with her final selection, we let on like it was “seemed to be okay”. She called Francois as we drove to tell him she had arrived safe and sound and commented to him her anxiousness to see what the inn looked like and if it was something we could be okay with for our next 5 nights. She then handed the phone to me to talk to him and he asked me if the “hotel was any good or not”, I replied “yes” and he said she was really concerned about it since she wasn’t familiar with any in the area as this was Diana’s first time to come to South Carolina, ever. I was able to let him know without so many words that it was definitely a “nice place” and he laughed as he responded to me she was nervous about it-I chuckled to him and said yes we are letting her think its “okay” until we arrive at our room. After the valet took the car we made our way to the room and when we opened the door and she came in she was thrilled! As Helene had replied when we walked in Diana likewise said, “NICE”. We laughed and I said the only bad thing about this trip is if we like it and have a good time then we will have to make it an annual event-oh, hate that….
I thought it would be sacrilegious not to at least walk down and see the beach before morning so the 3 of us headed out to make our rounds to see the property around 1 AM. The moon was out but only a thin slivered appeared as we walked to the ocean and put our hands in, it was very warm and there is nothing that compares to the sound the ocean makes as far as I’m concerned-its so peaceful and relaxing. Whether it’s a token of the ocean washed ashore or a vivid memory of the sun setting quietly over the marsh with the days ahead while we are here, you won’t leave empty handed. Tangible or not, these souvenirs are priceless reminders of our time together-a place where time does stand still it seems.
We then walked around to the Plaza Village area in the front entrance of our resort where they have a pleasant small pond with a very large water fountain and the upper area was lined with rocking chairs so we sat there and talked in the warm summer breeze. Helene reminiscences about the family trips they took and the memories they made when her siblings and her were all younger, she said “it’s a miracle we all survived those years”. Diana talked again about the 1998 trip to Europe that the entire Rothe family made 11 years ago together. She said Homer had a Dr. Pepper and Jessica wanted to drink one so she started to open the can when Francois told her “no” because it would have been shaken up with all the travel and just as she opened it, it spewed all over Francois! Then within 4 hours of that incident Diana had needed an aspirin so she opened one and Francois AGAIN got spewed with yet another one-she was cracking up as she recalled quite a few memories from that trip. When we realized it was almost 2 AM we thought we would go back to our room and get ready for bed- its been a long day for all of us but its good to be here together. We couldn’t have asked for any more of an absolutely gorgeous night to spend here talking.
Today in history: Farrah Fawcett dies at age 62 from anal cancer and Michael Jackson “king of pop” dies at age 50 from cardiac arrest. http://www.michaeljackson.com/us/home

Friday, June 26, 2009-I woke up bright and early after not going to bed until 4:30 AM and it’s 7:10 AM so I feel like I’ve done all the sleeping my body needs so I begin typing this story. Helene woke a little before 9 so she and I decided to go to the fitness center while Diana slept. Everyone here at the resort must have woken up at 9 and thought the exact thing so we decided to walk on the beach-better view anyway for the next hour. It’s a beautiful site, the ocean before us as we made our way around and back up a different direction to see all the sights. The Wild Dunes Resort has a tennis facility that is among the best in the nation-ranked in the Top 10 by Tennis magazine so if you are a fan of tennis you could definitely enjoy it here, if you’re not a fan of swinging the racket then there is a Links golf course that surrounds most of this resort. The golf course is Tom Fazio’s first solo design and is ranked among the world’s best, year in and year out. With its rolling fairways framed by moss-bearded live oaks and rustling palms, the Links Course is as much a visual bounty as it is a golfing challenge. Noteworthy of massive, humpbacked sand dunes and finishing holes along the Atlantic Ocean, the Links recalls golf’s ancient Scottish heritage. Course: Par 72, yards 6,722, rating 73.1 and slope 132. There are several little pond areas that have posted signs to “Avoid due to alligators” but the area is pretty so Helene and I stayed on the designated path (we did not want to be an aliigators breakfast today) and admired the turtle family on a log and several swimming close to the shore area we had redirected to after leaving the beachside part of our walk to make our way past the tennis courts then back up to the resort.
The Palm magazine from the Wild Dunes Resort claims they inspire to turn every visitor to the resort into something of a game warden-a guardian of the “green line” that keeps man and nature in check. So they encourage everyone here to become acquainted with the wide side here: Alligators-no longer endangered, these fascinating dinosaurs have repopulated in a big way. Area naturalists caution against tampering in any way with a gator-no matter the size. Little ones signal a big ol’ mom nearby, and large ones move a lot faster than you’d imagine. Spot them submerged in ponds when it’s hottest; sunning themselves when it’s temperate or cool on the Harbor and Links golf course here on the Isle. Crabs-despite the “most polite” ranking in national surveys, the Charleston area’s pretty “crabby”. Various genuses of these big-fisted crustaceans keep this area entertained and fed. Blue crabs are abundant in the salty marshes-just sink a trap and wait (they say it takes 4 blue crabs to make one meaty crab cake, so I’m told by those that cook). Crabs on the beach include fiddlers, hermits and “ghosts”, a nocturnal species named for its ability to disappear in a wink. Dolphins-I believe you could live here 70 years and never tire of a dolphin-sitting, wow…what a thrill! You can watch off-shore (from about 10-50 yards from the waterline) and you’ll often see dorsal fins erupt through the waves. The area’s Bottlenose dolphins feed in the creeks and marshes too, especially in the spring when babies are born. So watch for dorsal fins and listen for snorts! A rare site they tell us is strand feedings when groups of dolphins push mullet and shad onto mud flats and dig in-they say nothing like it. Egrets-all-white herons that make a stunning statement all over the Lowcountry, poised serenely above shallow waters full of bugs, fish and frogs. The two varieties that are common here are the Great White and the Snowy egret. Once endangered in the late 1800’s the egrets have been named one of the “most intelligent” species of bird based on recent work by Canadian researchers. Osprey-called “Fish Eagles” and “Sea Hawks” are amazing to watch as they dive bomb inshore waters for fish. Highly adapted, their needle sharp talons scoop up silvery fish with precision as they hold them in place until the large bird returns to its nest. Osprey are abundant in the Lowcountry, with several mated pairs returning annually to this area around Wild Dune Resort. Sea Turtles-2008 saw a bumper crop of Sea Turtles nests along the beaches here on the Isle of Palms and Sullivans Island. The 200-pound mother turtles arrived (as they always do) in late spring, dug shallow holes and laid about 115 eggs per nest. Only 1 in 1,000 hatchlings will achieve adulthood, and it takes 20-30 years for an adult female to return to the beach where she was born to lay her eggs; therein lies much of the fascination with these creatures. Be sure to watch for volunteer “turtle teams” protecting nests by spring (orange tape marks the spot) until hatching occurs sometime in the late summer.
We continued our walk as we talked about many things as the 2 of us seem to be able to do this so easily, Helene has a very pleasant laid-back personality that is always courteous and very aware of the people around her feelings. She shared with me how she chose to attend Longwood College in VA when she finished high school. She had a high school teacher that took her and another girl to see the college since the 2 of them did gymnastics, the teacher used that as an opportunity to familiarize them with Longwood’s gymnastics program. Helene chuckled as she said she and the other girl didn’t realize at that time that they would never be good enough to actually do gymnastics at the college level. I think the teacher probably believed in them and thought that would be a good way to expose them to bigger dreams-I love those kind of people that believe in others until they actually believe in themselves. If you can dream it, you can achieve it. There were 3 of her college friends and her that have remained close since completing Longwood College together and they gave each other nicknames, hers was “Hell”-now that made me laugh since her personality is nothing like that! She also shared a story with me as I talked about plants as we walked that she remembers coming home from college one time and thought she’d help in the yard but she dug up all of Denyse’s bulb plants. To this day she says she’s unsure how Denyse ever found out, moms with eyes in the back of their heads I guess.
We returned to the room and Diana was sleeping peacefully so we crept around as we gathered our bathing suits/snacks/reading literature and we were off to the pool, leaving Diana a note so she’d know where we ran off to. We lavished every minute of the great all mighty vitamin D. Helene giggled as we waited on evidence that Diana had completed her rest and was awake-Helene couldn’t remember if she wrote the note with the word “closet” or “closest” for which pool we would be at…she found us so it must not of read: “we are at the closet pool”. Diana joined us for a couple of hours around mid afternoon but we made sure she was covered (from head to toe) with sunscreen as she is the fair-complexion sister-in-law but she’s so fun you can’t help but love her…..”.
After Diana left for the room a bit later, Helene and I looked up and there came 9 bridesmaids in coral dresses and a lovely bride in ivory. They stood on the bridge over the pool we were in for the photographer to capture these precious moments as they prepared for a 6 PM wedding. It’s 92 degrees with the typical ocean humidity so I’m sure they are really warm about now. The resort here is a Destination wedding site so we are told. Nice day for a white wedding…
Helene and I returned to the room around 4 PM and we began our showers to get ready for a nice dinner. I thought I’d sample the Aveda products that the resort provided in our room….oohh lala the Rosemary Mint shampoo and conditioner is nice. It creates a mild tingling sensation on my scalp-now that is nice.
As we made our drive from the Isle of Palm (7 miles of pristine beaches on Isle of Palms which is a natural barrier island on the coast of South Carolina), the beautiful bright beaches here stretch along the Atlantic Ocean. It is a paradise as nature intended and man has carefully adapted to the environment to the Charleston area. (Charleston trivia-the first shot of the Civil War was fired by Citadel cadets stationed on Morris Island), we went over the Arthur Ravenel, Jr. Bridge which is over the Cooper River and it gave us breathtaking, vaulted views of the Charleston Harbor from above. The bridge was completed in 2005 at a cost of more than $700 million. The beautiful structure is a cable-stayed bridge with 2 diamond-shaped towers, each soaring to a height of 575 feet. They designed the main span unit which, since completed, is the longest cable-stayed main span in North America. www.cooperriverbridge.org
We had chosen to have dinner at Charleston Crab House at 41 S. Market St. www.charlestoncrabhouse.com
Our agenda was to meet Camille Hermsen whom Diana met online when they attended their online medical transcribing class and they both work for the same company but have never physically met each other, until today. I thought it was so funny as Diana told me last night that she had given Camille my Sleep EZ Diagnostics, Inc. website ( www.sleepezcenter.com ) for her to see me because Diana uses a picture of her dog on her Facebook page and at least Camille would know what 1 out of the 3 of us actually looked like!
We parked in public parking and it cost $7 so we made our way to the “pay box”, we were fascinated by the Citadel cadets that were walking in full uniform down the side of the road with flags and even one was playing the bagpipes as they passed by. We got to the “pay box” and I cracked up as Helene said, “now, how does this work?” I knew how to get the dollars shoved into the small hole allotted for each specific slot for parking since we have this payboxes in Roanoke-careful folding! I demonstrated to her how to fold each dollar individually (we have 7 to do…) then stuff it in the slot and use the metal key provided to finish pushing each dollar in until we had completed the required 7 we needed. The 3 of us laughed and Diana pitched in to help finish the process. It’s always better to pay so you do not return to find your car been towed. We walked past the market which is an open area of historic buildings that are open for street sales 7 days a week. The story is that the man who donated the land here in this area specified that it could never used for anything but the Charleston Market for this type of vendors and it had to be open 7 days a week. There are people shopping and wondering around looking at all the historic sites.
This weekend is the Tall Ship Festival http://www.charlestonharborfest.org/index2.html so there quite a few tourist walking around. As we took in all the sights and made our way to our destination for dinner plans (Diana is on the cell with Camille as we are in search of her to meet). As we got to the corner of the crab house Diana laughed as she looked up (as they talked on their cells to each other) and there she was crossing the street corner to join us. We introduced each other and put our name on the waiting list to be seated on the top of the restaurant since it was open to see all the sights. Meanwhile I had talked to Caitlynn and she said Thomas was really sick (I had gotten sick the day after our return from British Columbia last week and started to recover the day before this trip) and was going to the Urgent Care Center so I called him and he will call me after he sees a physician. He did and they gave him several prescriptions including a Z-pak, he sounds really bad and I feel bad because I’m not there to take care of him. He is always so good to take care of me when I need it. He’s headed home to go to bed, I have no doubt Caitlynn will have a watchful eye on him and let me know anything I need to be aware of….
We talked and got to know Camille, of course I asked a lot of questions. How do you ever get to know people if you don’t ask questions anyway? She is originally from Minnesota but has lived in many different states, she relocated here about 3 years ago and relocated her mom and step-dad Bill here also, they currently live on Daniel Island in the floor level of her house and she lives in the top level. She’s never been married and proclaims she is the original runaway bride, as she states “been engaged and had a lot of rings but gave them all back”. As you know she is a CMT (certified medical transcriptionist) as of yesterday when she passed her certification exam. Previously she has had several jobs including working for Disney for a couple of years. She is very outgoing with a charismatic personality as we talked and enjoyed spending time with her. She is the proud owner of a rescue dog that is a Doberman named “Herschel” who is 4 ½ years old and definitely loved by her. She takes him to “Yappy Hour” which is offered in various places in this area where you take your dog on a leash to happy hour with you. She tells us he had many different names and the last boy-friend she had told her that he looked like a “Herschel” so it stuck and she got rid of the boy-friend. Camille also works with the Labrador rescue locally so this is something that she and Diana have in common since Diana and her family work with the Bassett Hound rescue in Eugene, OR. As we talked and made our minds up as to what our selection for the evening would be, the local chimes of the many churches located in this area started in-what a pleasant sound! I love the chime of clocks or church bells, no matter where I am. This happened several times during our dinner and each time was as pleasant as the first. Camille tells us that Charleston is called the “holy city” because of the many churches with bell chimes.
Our waitress was a very cute, peppy young lady named Hannah, she is 18 and she can serve alcohol in S.C. but the legal drinking age is 21 so when we asked her about their specialty drinks and she commented, we laughed and I corrected her by saying “well the people say it is a good drink” instead of “yes, that’s a good drink. She was born and raised here in Charleston and loves the atmosphere. She gave us tips on where to go and said if we were having dessert then we would have to go to Kaminsky’s www.kaminskys.com for dessert while we are downtown. Also with Hannah’s suggestion we did not order the traditional fried green tomatoes here at the crab house even though they are tradition from this area. She tells us that they are not the best here but we should look for a restaurant that describes their fried green tomatoes as “lightly breaded, thick cut and served with goat cheese-the best!” I ordered us an appetizer of crab stuffed mushrooms (with shrimp inside the shrooms) as this is Heleine’s favorite (as is my husband’s favorite). For beverages; Helene ordered water since she’s the DD, Diana ordered Bloody Marys, Camille ordered margaritas (without salt) and I had Wappoo punch which is their local specialty here. By the time it was over I believe I had 2 glasses of punch, Diana had 3 Bloody Mary’s and Camille had 3 margaritas while Helene still drank water. Diana decided she needed to call Francois and check in with him, he was aware by us laughing that we were enjoying beverages and he talked to me after Diana and Camille. He just laughed and told us to have a good time and be careful-we were doing both. Hannah brought us their complimentary hush puppies that are slightly sweet and have small pieces of crab meat, they were awesome! Helene’s entrée was the broiled seafood trio, Diana had the bacon wrapped stuffed shrimp, Camille ordered the Carolina platter and so traditionally I never like 2 people to get the same thing (that way we can all sample the goods and it will all be different-love options) so I ordered the Mediterranean seafood pasta. Everything was very good and we had a good evening getting to spend time together and learning about our new friend Camille. After we left the crab house we walked through the market and watched the locals make sweetgrass baskets which is one of the oldest African crafts in America, appearing in South Carolina during the late 17th century. Sweetgrass basket sewing is viewed as a gift from God. The craft, handed down from generation to generation is usually learned from childhood. The baskets require a great deal of patience and creativity as there are no set problems. Each piece is unique, and each artist develops his or her own style. Basketmakers pledge to continue their traditional craft as long as there are raw materials available. The baskets are very durable and their uses range from practical daily use to show pieces. They are a major tourist attraction in the Lowcountry here since Mount Pleasant area basketmakers began a long-standing tradition when one lady of vision, Lottie “Winee” Moultrie Swinton, soon followed by Lydia Spann Graddick, placed her chair along the highway to display baskets for sale. Thus, roadside basket stands were born in 1929. The State of South Carolina named Sweetgrass Baskets the official handcraft of the Lowcountry in 2006.
I bought Caitlynn and Nicole (my niece) each a set of magnetic page holders that are to be placed on recipe books when they are following a recipe, Helene bought Kayla (my niece) a pair of boxers while Camille was checking out toe rings and Diana was taking in all the sights here in the market. Next we made a bee line down the road to find Kaminsky’s which we did and placed our name on the list which was at least a 30 minute wait but as we drooled on the glass case where they displayed their famous desserts I felt sure the wait would be worth it-the cakes were 6 inches tall!
Located in downtown Charleston, Kaminsky's "most excellent" desserts are prepared fresh each day by our talented pastry chefs with selections changing daily. We encourage you to explore our selection of signature desserts housed in the case at the front door. Relax and enjoy your most excellent selection of dessert with a beverage. In addition to our vast array of specialty coffees, we also offer a full beer, wine and liquor selection
I ordered a kid’s ice cream sundae, Diana and Helene shared a piece of pecan pie (with 2 scoops of ice cream on the side of the nice and warm pie) and Camille ordered the chocolate, chocolate cake-everyone sampled each others (I love that) and we were all pleased. (Thomas’s favorite is pecan pie, he would be proud) As we departed (and pleased with our choices for the evening foods) we said our goodbye’s to Camille and invited her to join us at the resort tomorrow and made our way to the vehicle. As we walked we passed a carriage horse barn which is located here in the downtown area and we stopped to admire the horses (Diana loves horses and well as I, they are the most splendid yet graceful animals to watch I think) and take pictures. Our drive back across the bridge was quite impressive and the temperature had cooled to 77 degrees. We had been using “Carmen” the GPS and we keep in mind, SHE is just a machine. She is named Carmen Helene tells us since her first one was a Garmin brand and she drove a Camry so this one is named “Carmen”. We arrived back at the resort and began preparing for bed since it was after midnight. Diana was getting her things ready and it seems Diana is the queen of misplaced items-she can’t remember where she puts things. She did reassure us that she has “forgotten many things before but never once forgotten Chelsea”! I’m feeling better about that…Chelsea is my godchild after all.
Helene was fast asleep after we got ready for bed, Diana talked to Francois on her cell and then she went to bed, I was behind them a bit as I read. Good night all…

Saturday, June 27, 2009-beautiful sunny morning with an expected high of 97 degrees, now you’re talking! In January, the average temperature in Charleston is 55 degrees, in July the average temperature is 82 degrees. Humidity averages 86%, while rainfall is 52 inches per year. The first frost typically occurs around December 10; the last usually occurs in mid-February according to the statistics.
I woke to find a note pad that Diana had written for me of memories that Francois recalled from their European family trip in the late 1998 as they spoke on the cell phone last night (for me to add to this story). He remembers dragging the suitcases from train to train, Hans waking up on the train with his “crazy looking” hair, bra purse-sorry no other details on the notepad for this one (anyone know them???) and Thomas and Homer exiting the Eiffel Tower to see someone peeing-right there! Evidently Madeleine thought most of their sightings “looks like Italy”….anyone else recall that trip with the whole Hans Rothe family?
I read literature that was in the room about this resort as it reports: Alligators-Wild Dunes is home to a variety of wildlife including raccoons, squirrels, deer, shore birds and alligators. Although alligators do not usually attack people, they may do so if threatened or annoyed. Please make certain that your children are aware of the animal’s existence in and around our lagoons and that they do not approach, feed or antagonize these reptiles. They may look slow and awkward but can move very quickly in the water and on land. Jellyfish, and their big brothers, the Portuguese man-of-war, are rare on the Isle of Palms as they only appear when weather, water temperature and water currents combine to provide the proper environment. However, when they do appear, it’s best to keep a wide berth. The Man-of-War is always severe and requires medical emergency hospital treatment. A jellyfish sting can be treated with vinegar, meat tenderizer or baking soda just as you would treat a bee sting. Sand Dunes and Sea Oats are important elements of local beauty and interest which must be left alone. Stunning natural treasures contouring miles of sandy beach, sand dunes provide a habitat for local wildlife, while producing our island and its residents from the power of the sea. The sea oats strengthen and help stabilize the dunes by protecting small plant life and the property beyond the ocean winds and waves. Maintaining an ecological balance is so difficult yet so important that the state of South Carolina has enacted several laws to protect this fragile environment. It is unlawful to pick sea oats or destroy primary sand dunes. Please use boardwalks, and please do not disturb the sand fencing; it is there to help nature rebuild the dunes. With your cooperation in these matters we will all be able to enjoy the island’s beaches for many years to come.
Helene woke and so we opted to check out the other fitness center here on site in hopes of less people, and it was a good choice so we got busy exercising. Helene had decided she’d like to get her hair cut this morning so we allowed Diana to sleep in and we headed out to find Fantastic Sam’s. We saw it the evening we drove in and I told Helene then that those were fast places to get a hair cut without an appointment (we have them in Texas-first come first serve basis) so she decided to give it a shot. There were several older ladies waiting in line and one young guy who was about to get his long, curly locks shaved for a bald look because of the hot summer. We had many topics of conversation, including the Michael Jackson songs on the stereo system playing as all the controversy following his death being discussed. The ladies thought that it was neat the 3 sister-in-laws came here for a getaway and questioned why we chose Isle of Palms and what we had planned for the days ahead. Helene and I laughed as we looked at each other and replied “No agenda, we just showed up” and the lady next to me just laughed.
We all needed time away from work and a little R&R-much needed with the unemployment likely at a 26 year high-9.6%.
I typed this story as Helene waited and then the deed was done, she like the lady and they did a good job. She said Kayla will not believe she actually came on vacation and cut her hair off. We met Diana back at the room and she was preparing to head downstairs. Camille met us at the resort and we hung out at the beach for the afternoon and the clouds started rolling in around 4:40 PM so we came back to the room and all took showers. Camille recommended our dinner meal be at Red’s Ice House since it is a local place with good food ( www.redsicehouse.com ). It is one of the places that hold Yappy Hour and it’s perfect for you and your pooch! My 3 pooches are not vacationing with me now so I will check it out for future reference, they LOVE to travel though.
We made our way down a different route following Camille as we went through Mount Pleasant to Shem Creek area. Mount Pleasant is where Darius Rucker (lead singer for Hootie and the Blowfish www.dariusrucker.com ) just bought a $600,000 beach home and we passed it as we drove to the restaurant. He is known for his efforts for fund raising in this area to give to local schools with the proceeds from his concerts.
We parked in a lot outside and made our way to the back of the restaurant which was not terribly crowded and offered a lot of outside seating since it has access to the water from the front. This is an area that the locals bring their boats to dock while they have a meal or beverages. It sits on Shem Creek and there are several restaurants across the stream opening with 1 being an Inn to stay overnight, Camille states that it is usually booked a year in advance. This is a very pleasant area as the water runs between several restaurants and we can see a catamaran leaving. I am unsure how many islands there actually are in S.C. because there are so many, from what I understand each has a little different feel from the descriptions. To name a few are; Sullivans Island (Jimmy Buffet style-very casual), Wadmalaw Island (Charleston Tea Plantation is located here, home of American Classic Tea), Johns Island (resides The Angel Oak Tree that is estimated to be over 1,500 years old), Edisto Island, Kiawah Island (they have alligators also because Helene has been there she says), Morris Island, Daniel Island (Camille lives here), James Island, Seabrook Island and Isle of Palms.
As we entered there were several people with their dogs and the bar staff/wait staff brings them metal beer buckets with ice water for each of them and places them at their owner’s feet for the dogs. Red's is just an awesome spot on Shem Creek in Mt. Pleasant with an awesome view from the creek, shrimp boats and local boats pulling in for and evening sunset view. The seafood is great they must buy right there locally. The outside seating is first come first serve and they have a sign posted that reads: “No Swimming, No Unattended children, No Drunks” on the dock going up to the front door. It was built in 1947 and remains rustic looking with 2 floors. We had storms building in the west and we asked the waiter as we found a table outside if he thought it’d rain much (today there were no predictions for rain supposedly). He said it’s hard to tell because storms usually circle and come back around because of the Island so you never know, we opted to wait it out as the sprinkles were few but had began, made up our minds on an appetizer and beverages since we were starving. Diana was the DD tonight so Helene and I ordered a pitcher of Red Deck Punch; it was cheaper by the pitcher than the glass. I ordered us some seafood queso as an appetizer, it was spicy and good! As the dip arrived the rain started much more frequent with the clouds still building and getting darker so we moved to the bar area so we would not get soaked and thought we’d wait it out since we had our name on the list to be seated inside.
They were able to seat us inside in about 20 minutes and we examined the menu (again) and we ordered. Diana-shrimp basket, Helene-scallops (her & Thomas’s favorite), Camille-grouper sandwich and I had an all American burger so none of us would have the same thing and we could sample each others, again. Meanwhile the storm intensified and there were severe weather watchs all around us as every big screen TV was broadcasting all around us as everyone was getting concerned as the storm was not passing and intensified. I jokingly say I’m not scared of anything but thunder and lightening and we were experiencing plenty of that right now! As we were trying to wait out the storm, there were 2 different bachelorette parties that came through. You can always tell as there are a bunch of girls together celebrating with the “chosen one” wearing a plastic crown or a different colored boa around her neck for all to gawk at as they hooped and hollered with excitement for the evening ahead of them as they prepare to embrace marriage. Suddenly the roof started leaking above Diana’s side of the ceiling just to the right of her, then the tiles began to bulge and the waiter placed a Corona bucket under several places as they began to leak with an increased flow-oh my we all thought. People were crowding in and as they came off their boats to avoid the storm they joined us here at Red’s-we were like sardines for a bit. The electricity flickered twice with a delay returning the 2nd time; I tried to distract myself with all the storms upset by watching a Portuguese Waterdog that one of the guests had with them. We were obviously done since we had paid and our table had been cleared for a while so we moved to a table in the back, away from the bar and waited it out….
Off to our vehicles we traipsed in the water covered parking lot, said our goodbyes to Camille and made our way to the resort for the night. I prefer NOT to be out in all this weather!
Helene, “I hate this place” as we entered into our room again after dinner and our beds were turned down with mints and 2 new bottled waters, new bathroom linen and the trash had been taken out-again….Diana said she didn’t know if she’d be able to get enough points so she can come back by next year but she’d do her best. Since the storm continued and we had our curtains closed we sat around talking/laughing together. Diana said she started going gray after 23 hours of labor or the blow out in the One-sy and she recalls calling Helene who told her to cut the One-sy off “since it was such a mess”, they chuckled as she said Francois was having a cow when she walked over and started cutting. Chelsea was constipated and then the ‘blow out’ happened. Diana said all those books and classes when she was pregnant never prepared them for that! “I had a full blown panic attack with that one, ‘who does that’ as Raquel says with their own kid!”
Diana made her nightly cell phone call to Francois and thought she’d go see if the restaurant downstairs was still open so she could get a piece of chocolate cake but she returned to the room (without a piece of chocolate cake that she had been drooling over the picture in the resort booklet for 2 days) then she began preparing for bed but said “we need chocolate tomorrow to keep here in the room!” Helene was out 2 minutes after her head hit the pillow. Diana commented to me as she came out of the bathroom as I’m typing that it always takes her twice as long as Francois to get ready for bed. I said “the same thing happens at my house”, Thomas usually waits until he sees me start my reading at night to head off to bed since it takes him 3 minutes short of 5 to get ready. We laid there (in separate beds) talking about our Ipods until 1:50 AM and different features that we each utilized on ours. She dozed off with hers in her hand and I reviewed my songs on mine as I prepared to settle in for the night. The storm outside has calmed some but occasionally there will be a clap of thunder that the air conditioning unit is not able to mask….maybe I’ll use my earbuds tonight also?

Sunday, June 28, 2009-today will be a hot, sunny day, my kind of day. The forecast says high temperature today will be 95 degrees with 91% humidity, so it feels much hotter than the 90’s. Helene and I made our way to the fitness center and let Diana sleep but upon our return she was awake and getting ready since she wanted us to all go to the breakfast buffet here at the resort at the Lettered Olive restaurant. Diana called down to see if we needed reservations for the breakfast buffet and they were already shutting it down after she got dressed and ready so we laughed and decided to just go get wet! Breakfast/fiber bars with fruit it is for Helene and I, Diana chose an Adkins bar…
As Helene and I got our beach bags ready and dressed for the water Diana read to us the weather forecast from her Ipod and it states today is a heat advisory as heat index expected to be 105 and temperatures in the high 90’s, “everyone should drink plenty of water” so we packed it up. Diana stayed in the room and studied for her exam and admitted to watching “only 30 minutes of Fox News”. I never realized how opinionated she is with regards to politics until this trip, she cracks me up. She and Thomas would have a lot in common I feel as they seem to have the same views. She even refuses to watch CNN because of their political views and she is very aware of bills being passed (or not and why) in the senate/house, I was impressed. From what she says her dad was probably a big influence about her passion for political views. She loves to watch Glenn Beck and Francois likes Bill O’Riley, she reports. We chuckled as we talked (a little bit) about politics and Diana says Francois will not even buy a lottery ticket-now that’s funny. He believes in solar energy as a project in college allowed him to use solar panels, Thomas has always told me he’d like the option of solar power in our home. Funny how their beliefs are still so similar even with all the miles and years that separates them since childhood.
Helene and I came back to the room a little before 6 PM but as we lay by the pool (the “closet pool”-haha) there came another wedding party parading past us a little after 5 PM. Their colors were black and dark purple with yellow flowers that matched the bride’s yellow shoes. Helene laughed as the cabana boy retrieved us cups of ice for our beverages and she said, “Gosh, I hate this place”. Her idea is that we could just stay here and become wedding crashers and survive by eating the wedding cakes and I could make my own mimosas with the champagne from the weddings-we’d be just fine.
When we returned to the room it had been cleaned/replenished again with all the Aveda products/coffee, etc. and we turned to each other and said, “We hate this place”, Diana laughed and we got showered and ready to head to dinner. I suggested to Helene that we take Diana to “Five Guys” so that she could see that it was a burger joint not a boy joint….
Our dinner was great and Diana responded by saying, “now that was a good burger” and she said “I’m even going to eat the bread!” She enjoyed all the trimmings and even ordered bell peppers while we ordered 1 small regular fry and 1 small Cajun fry (I love spicy so if Thomas is not with me I like to indulge in the spice) to share among the 3 of us and that is plenty here!
I had shared with the girls that Thomas and I had found local Walmarts when we traveled to have souvenirs that were “more cost effective” than actual souvenir shops so we used “Carmen” the GPS to locate one, the nearest being on Folly Beach so we are off in pursuit of bargains for the families at home. As we drove back to the resort we passed a Piggly Wiggly grocery store, I haven’t seen one of those since Brandon was a baby in Plainview, Texas and that’s where I’d shop. Then there was a billboard advertising the store and it’s tag line was “Get your pig on” with the website of www.thepig.net I laughed to myself as it brought back great memories for me to relish in on the drive back to the resort. We admired the beautiful evening as the sun had set and the view of the harbor as we crossed the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway which was awesome to take in….Diana thought we should call the resort restaurant and tell them to “hold us a piece of that chocolate cake” in case they close early due to it being Sunday. This was the chocolate cake she had dreamed about for 2 days now. Sure enough as we got back we asked the front desk staff if the restaurant with the chocolate cake (picture in the magazine) was still open. Elizabeth said they closed earlier tonight because of it being Sunday but when she saw the disappointment in Diana’s face and Helene and I growned with the disappointing news she just presented to us, she picked up the phone and made a call to Hudson’s Market which is located across the street but is part of the resort. She reported to us that typically no one answers the phone when they call and they should already be closed so maybe we’d be in luck-Diana was. Elizabeth spoke with someone and they were holding chocolate cake for us so we made our way to the Market, knocked on the door and a young lady met us with an entire small chocolate cake. I do not mean small in terms of a slice, I mean small entire cake-almost 6 inches in width but 4 inches tall! She would not allow us to pay for it so we ran across the street back to our room to satisfy Diana’s chocolate cake craving for 2 days and we cracked up as we realized we had nothing to eat it with except coffee stirrers! Shocker-we made it work….The 3 of us shared some of the cake, talked about things in life as they change and how fast it happens, then we look up and wonder where the time went. I talked about how I feel about Date nights which are important, on any reoccurrence whether its weekly, monthly or whatever works best or you lose touch with each other as a couple. I shared with them that I have always hoped that Thomas and I would both live to celebrate at least our 20th anniversary so we use our anniversary to evaluate each year that has passed. Where we are at, where are we headed, are we on the same track, are we needing to improve in any specific area and what we are excelling at. It helps us evaluate on a regular basis without looking up and saying, “how did we get here”, it works well for the 2 of us. God willing, we will be together (alive) for many more years so we thank him daily and keep looking above for direction.
Thomas had called my cell earlier before we returned to our room so I called him back and left a message then he called me back at 11:10 PM and we chatted. Us girls were laughing so hard as we were talking about men, kids, bowels (for all) and life when my cell rang that I couldn’t grab it fast enough so Diana grabbed it and answered it and she could hardly talk either because of her laughing so she handed me the phone. Thomas said “sounds like you all are having a good time” and he’s right. It’s been relaxing and fun getting to know each other better. Jason and Lauren had dinner with Thomas at the house tonight he said and Caitlynn is at Sam’s house since he and Tracy just got home today from being out of town. Sam had gone to the beach with his dad and had been gone for a week and Tracy just got home from camping since Thursday so they were proclaiming “our daughter” rights as Tracy likes to call it and Caitlynn was spending the night with them. Thomas has been taking his antibiotics since Friday evening so he told me he was feeling 100% better but he still sounds like his voice is not back to normal yet. I’m glad he’s been able to spend time with his son, that’s always good for him. I talked to Caitlynn and she’s well as her and Sam are making cookies and Sam was using Tracy’s gardening gloves to remove the pan from the oven-his mother will not be happy with that choice…
11:29 PM Diana is sectioning out the remains of “the chocolate cake”, she utilized the coffee stirrers to divide it out because we didn’t dare to call the front desk and ask about plastic utensils. Helene said, “I still hate this place!” Diana commented, “this is Chelsea’s kind of dessert, mostly frosting and a little bit of cake.”
Helene realized she missed watching Army Wives tonight (whatever that is…) and obviously Diana also watches it and told her they will show it again so she turned on the TV and sure enough it was on and they both watched it with intent-I am not a TV watcher as most of you know so I read and typed as they watched the show with great intent.
Diana told me if I would show her how to text then she would text Camille since she hadn’t answered the email she sent her earlier and so the learning process began and we used a picture of Helene to test and send to Francois. As we finished, Camille called (we had sent her a text for Diana to learn from-saying ‘call me’). We made plans for her to meet with us here for the breakfast buffet and this time we would be there by 9 AM and after Army Wives went off Diana began to settle in and Helene was settled in bed as she watched the rest of their show. Diana shared her Ipod earphones with Helene to hear Bill Engvall (part of the Blue Collar Comedy Tour with Jeff Foxworthy) talk about Vicodinland, they cracked up! I typed this story in between texting Dustin at the lab as he had a “split” patient…..all is good. It’s been another good day! Today in history: Joey Logano, 19, became the youngest NASCAR driver to win a Sprint Cup race, one of NASCAR's top races.

Monday, June 29, 2009-hazy morning but a long night as I was helping Dustin titrate a patient at the lab so I slept in until 8:40 AM. Helene actually got up and was ready to go with me to the fitness center but I had to get some more shut eye when she was ready at 7 AM so she climbed back in her bed also and we all slept and got up to meet Camille for breakfast. She arrived bright eyed and bushy tail and we went to the Lettered Olive for their fabulous breakfast buffet ($17/each but worth it!). We all had the buffet, I had to have another mimosa with mine. Talked about dogs, politics, healthcare and enjoyed each others company as the copper ceiling fans cooled the inside while we sat and we all raved about the Carolina cheese grits that we ate. We admired the palm trees and magnolia trees outside the windows and the local artwork displayed on the inside walls, this is a very serene setting.
After we ate and chatted, Camille was leaving as she needed to begin working by noon so we took this opportunity (our last for this visit) to take another picture with all of us outside the restaurant and hugged as we departed again.
We had valet retrieve the car and made our way to the Isle of Palms City Hall to collect our free t-shirts. Diana had printed off an offer she found while researching our stay that offered a free t-shirts to anyone who printed something off their website so she was kind enough to print pages for each of us so we could write our name, address and emails on the pages in order to turn it in at City Hall and get the t-shirts. Of course we took a picture with all of us holding our new shirts in City Hall before we left. As we drove back down Sweetgrass Basket Highway we pondered our sweetgrass backet purchases that we’d all like to make to take back with us in recognition of this great trip.
I thought to myself (and later repeated it to Helene) how much genuine thought/planning/preparation/studying the area Diana had done for our trip and I thought how considerate that was for her to commit to this trip and she could NOT have done better in any of the selections!
Of course Helene had bought her baskets from Henrietta Smalls (1607 Hamlin Rd., Mt Pleasant, SC, 29466, home 843-881-0753 or cell 843-860-0922) who has a booth actually on Sweetgrass Basket Hwy which is in Mount Pleasant. There are several along the way but we returned here because of Ms. Smalls hospitality and sweet nature when Helene bought hers earlier in the week when she was just as pleasant-Diana bought 2 baskets and she threw in one (that she had made as she was trying to teach her granddaughter how to make these baskets) and I bought 1 to take with me. She wanted our names and said when we return, she will remember us and give us a discount as she did today. Diana said as we got into the car “I love her, she is absolutely precious” and she is a very pleasant lady with southern manners-that’s a pleasure to experience. Charleston has been named “Most Polite City in America” from people who have visited historic downtown Charleston and so the overflow of the hospitality is among its small islands I do believe.
Returning to our room after our outing, I asked the girls what they’d like to do and Diana said, “we’re going to the beach today, its our last day” (without any hesitation) and we did just that. Besides I needed to try out my new beach chair that I got when we went to Walmart-in the beach! Water temperature is 83 degrees in the ocean today and the resort is out of umbrellas (all rented already) the sign reads as we made our way to the beach. We saw dolphins and brown pelicans as we lay on the beach; they are just so graceful and full of beauty to watch. I tried to take pictures but not sure how well they will be after cropping but I will see….The temperature today is supposed to be 94 but it didn’t feel as hot as yesterday, humidity is 83%. Diana stayed with us for an hour or so, loaded down with sun block (we did not want her to go back home sunburned) as she did lie in the sun after we returned from playing in the beach. She then went back up to the pool area while Helene and I stayed at the beach until 3:30-4 PM, we then went back to the pool area closest to the resort until 5:45 PM and returned to the room to find Diana resting but she had packed most of her things and decided we would be taking the African liquor home with us. She said she was not taking it home but she expected us to drink it for the 4th of July since I had talked Helene into coming for the night to our house. She said since I had taught her how to text then she would text us to see if we were drinking it or not, she’s very funny. She called Chelsea and I got to talk to her. Afterwards I asked Diana if Chelsea had a cell phone and questioned if she could text. They are on Verizon as we are and so is Helene but Chelsea doesn’t have a text plan on the phone plan. I got her number so I could call as Verizon is free cell to cell on its plan.
And no Diana did not return right back to the room in “5 minutes” like I told Helene earlier. Helene agreed that she had probably given up on us and returned to the room but she didn’t specify a time that she thought Diana had stayed outside but she surprised us when she said she sat under the cabana for about an hour before returning to the room. She talked to a lady that had a purple cast with crutches “smoking on that thing as she sat by the pool and the only one that offered me a shady space and made room for me” Diana declared until the sun started coming thru and she thought we had passed out on the beach or floated out with the tides so she came on back to the room. She was just lying down resting when we came in around 5 PM and got showered and ready to join the “welcome party on the plaza”. It was really nice as we were able to experiencing a taste of Wild Dunes, enjoyed music, games with a DJ (limbo for the younger, limber ones here), sampling from Wild Dunes restaurants, and wine tasting. We sampled everything from fried shrimp to purple mashed potatoes (yes, the mashed potatoes were actually purple!) and smoothies. As we went into the Hudson Market to look around, suddenly there was a clap of thunder and an intense rain shower for about 10-15 minutes so we decided since we didn’t want to be swimming back to our room, we’d just stay put eat ice cream-that always fixes things! When the rain subsided we came back to our room, took care of the resort bill, relaxed and just had a little down time. Helene made herself and I a nice cup of hot tea and we talked about our return next year-if we just didn’t “hate this place so much” we could book it now-haha!!
Our evening consisted of Diana on her Ipod, Helene reading a book she’s trying to finish and I was getting caught up on my story journal then called my handsome husband at 10:40 PM and he’s feeling better every day, even actually sounding better. He talked to both of the girls (they thanked him for allowing them to have me for this trip, he laughed as he said “ok but she had made up her mind she was going..”) Then I declared my love and devotion to him, told him good night and I’m excited about seeing him and my girl tomorrow. We had an early morning since Diana’s flight is due to depart at 6 AM so I (as the sleep expert) advised her NOT to take her Ambien since she really needed 8 hours of sleep (not to be a zombie) when taking it. Helene said “well she doesn’t have to drive” and I said “no but she’s got to be able to drag her body up if they change gates so she can get there!” We all chuckled and Helene offered her some Tylenol PM that she had with her, we all agreed that would be safer since its 11:05 PM and we need to leave Isle of Palms to go to the Charleston airport by 4:30 AM. Diana made her nightly call to Francois and Helene was out like a light after I quit talking to her….
Diana came in to tell me that as she talked to Francois he was trimming the ivy, a neighbor’s dog was barking, he’s moving recycle bins and talking to her on his cell phone as he reports to her a story in USA Today that he read titled “ERs see more homeowners with do-it-yourself injuries” as cash-strapped homeowners are trying to cut costs by doing things themselves instead of hiring it to be done because of the recession-quoted: Saving money on repairs can backfire. Diana encouraged him to go ahead and do his chores and she’d talk to him later as not to encourage any distractions to allow for errors since Chelsea wouldn’t be able to drive him to the ER if he needed it-now that is funny….
Diana climbed in the bed with Helene and said, “This is our last night we get to sleep together” and we giggled…Lights out.

Tuesday, June 30, 2009-Started the day early as my alarm went off at 4:15 AM for Diana to get up and take a shower, Helene and I just needed to put shorts on and take her to the airport. Diana says she can’t keep up with stuff as she misplaces things frequently and she claims to take a bit to get ready so I believe she had set her cell alarm but I didn’t hear it and she got up when mine went off. Her Delta flight departs at 6 AM so we were off as soon as she got ready. We all agreed it’s been a good trip with rest and relaxation-no special agendas (“we just showed up”) and just time to reconnect and recoup, if we just liked The Wild Dunes resort-haha but “we just hate this place”.
Helene and I returned to our room at 6:45 AM and decided to take a little siesta since check out wasn’t until 11 AM, we had pretty much consolidated things and just needed a few minor packing details. We had already decided yesterday that we would load the car and be at the pool (the closet pool) by 11 AM to enjoy our last hoorah of sun before driving back today. The temperature will be a high of 94 degrees today with humidity only at 32% so it was a good farewell day-weather wise. We ate fruit and snack bars and apples for breakfast and lunch so we could stop late afternoon and have our dinner on our drive home. So we packed a bag with clean clothes to change into after we showered there at the pool area and we did so right around 2 PM, we were on the road by 2:30. Nick called Helene and I returned Caitlynn’s call-all is good but I do believe the families are ready for us to come home; we are rested and ready for the upcoming week.
We stopped in Charleston, SC to fill up with gas and paid $2.39/gallon and we are driving north to finish our trip as we return home. We stopped in Charlotte, NC to eat at P.F. Chang’s-now that is a great closing to a great trip! We made it to my house at 10 PM and Helene drove back to Clifton Forge-home….
Today’s date in history: 30th June 1936 : The book Gone with the Wind is Published. In 1939 Gone With The Wind was made into the Oscar Winning Film
30th June 1953. The first all-fiberglass-bodied American sports car, the Corvette was produced on this day and with it's sleek lines is among the best car design ever produced by the American Car Industry.

Pockets of Paradise-being thankful for simple discoveries. For many of us, our days seem to be filled with e-mails, meetings, and planning, but do you ever stop to think of the daily joys that we might take for granted? I like to think of them as pocket gifts. Haven’t we all felt the delightful “Aha!” of reaching into our pockets and unexpectedly discovering money, a lost piece of jewelry, a feather, or a long misplaced note? With each new surprise comes reminiscence. I think of all these surprises that in our rush through life we often overlook, and I collect them in my thoughts under the label Paradise, which the dictionary defines as “exhilarated joy, a state of bliss or delight.” Pocket experiences are special deliveries waiting to be revealed. On an early morning walk or drive as the sun is beginning to rise, you can feel the exhilaration of life as you hear the singing birds. You may smell freshly cut grass or stop to look deep inside an open flower to discover the multitude of colors and textures that make up a single flower petal. You may witness a beautiful dragonfly, with its transparent wings, gracefully flitting from one perch to another. Also, the sky is most fantastic show on Earth and is given freely to each of us. What bits of paradise have you collected in your remembrance pocket to carry with you today? As you empty its contents at day’s end, realize all the special treasures that you have discovered and are yours to keep. Transfer those discoveries with love and put into the pocket of your heart. Appreciate all the good things that have happened, and take the time to let your imagination and wonder soar with the joy of each discovery. And please take tie to look around at all the beauty and peace nature can offer-I love life!

Texas Trip-January 20-25, 2009 (Business and Pleasure)

So on an invitation to come join Charlotte Nolen for a “Girls Night Out” sponsored by Proverbs 31 Ministry www.proverbs31.org (and a local Christian contemporary radio station in Houston) that she and I both enjoy so I thought I’d research the cost of flights as I enjoy being with her, for any reason. Besides I owe her one as she came all the way to Virginia to visit my family here in the recent past.
While Thomas and I were in CA last month we got an email notifying us that flight costs were dropping and compared them to the flights we have booked in the past. I was able to get a round trip with taxes & all (except the newly implemented $15 charge per checked bag by most airlines) for $188.00. I would even fly from Roanoke instead of Greensboro, NC or Richmond, VA that we typically fly out/in from to save money. So my flight was supposed to leave Tuesday from Roanoke at 8:05 PM and land in Houston Bush International (IAH) at 12:10 AM. Charlotte’s flight wasn’t coming until Wednesday the 21st and she would be flying into Hobby Airport in Houston. Since Houston is so large (everything is bigger in Texas) they actually have 2 big airports but they are about a 45 minute taxi drive from each other-notice I said “taxi drive” as they drive the fastest and can fit a square in a round hole with their driving skills and that’s exactly what it would take to make it happen in 45 minutes in Houston traffic….anytime of the day WITH luck on your side! So as the story goes I booked the flights to join Charlotte and emailed the itinerary to her and said “Yes, I’d love to join you” and she was pleasantly shocked when she checked her email to find it. She was getting it all planned out for us as she travels for the State of Texas as an employee so she used her points to book our hotel and rental car for our expedition together. It’s funny because she is actually part of my ex-husband’s family but as she responds to that description she says, “She divorced him and we kept her” and we’ve always been good friends with common interests. Charlotte is very creative, talented and amazingly intelligent and we have a good time when we are together-she keeps me grounded when I need that, there are very few people who do that for me besides my wonderful husband. Speaking of my husband, he inquired why I did not have a hotel reservation for my arrival date since I would not be joining Char until the next day. I reminded him how frugal I can be and decided against paying the cost of a hotel for a few hours and I opted to just rest in the Houston Airport until Charlotte had time to fly in, get the rental car and retrieve me. He was not crazy about the idea but knows how I am when I make my mind up so he settled for that then asked me again about “my plans for staying in a hotel the night I arrived” and I again assured him that I would be fine watching the people and hanging out in the airport until noon the day after I arrived.

My flight departed Tuesday, January 20th at 8:50 PM (slight delay) from Roanoke and I changed planes in Charlotte and was joined by mostly people who were returning from the United States Inaugural Ceremony for the 44th President this country chose on November 4th. As USA Today reports: Barack Hussein Obama became the 44th president of the United States on Tuesday before a massive crowd reveling in a moment of historical significance, and called on Americans to confront together an economic crisis that he said was caused by “our collective failure to make hard choices.” Mr. Obama spoke just after noon to a sea of cheering people, appearing to number well over a million, who packed the National Mall from the Capitol to the Washington Monument and beyond. Four hours later, at the end of the parade route, he left his car and strolled with his wife along Pennsylvania Avenue on the final steps of a long march to the White House, holding hands and waving to cheering crowds. In his inaugural address, Mr. Obama acknowledged the change his presidency represented, describing himself in his inaugural address as a “man whose father less than sixty years ago might not have been served at a local restaurant.” But although the crowd and the podium around him were full of elated African Americans, Mr. Obama, the first black to become president, did not dwell on that in his speech. He spoke for about 20 minutes, after taking the oath of office on the same Bible used by Abraham Lincoln at his first inaugural in 1861, emphasizing his determination to unite Americans in confronting both the economic challenges facing him and the continuing fight against terrorism. The problems, he warned, “are serious and they are many. They will not be met easily or in a short span of time. But know this, America — they will be met.” With his wife, Michelle, holding the Bible, Mr. Obama, the 47-year-old son of a white mother from Kansas and a black father from Africa, was sworn in by Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr.
I arrived in Houston at 11:40 PM and after retrieving my luggage I found a massage chair set that sat outside a Mexican café located in the airport. The chairs are for a fee to enjoy the massage feature but by midnight I felt like most people had given up on hopes of getting a chair massage for the day so I planted myself for the night. I got caught up on emails with my laptop and checked in with my family and got settled. The thing about an airport of this size is there is ALWAYS someone coming or going and Lord to see all the funny people that we share this great big world with is ALWAYS entertainment enough for me. By 3:10 AM I had decided that I could lay my big suitcase down flat and my backpack with my laptop on top of it and it’d be perfect height for me to lay my legs across to sleep, then placed my purse directly behind my back in the massage chair-off to get some shut eye from here……..

I woke at 5:15 AM and the rush had already begun on this Wednesday, January 21st day of 2009 as I sit in IAH (Intercontinental Airport of Houston). I looked beside me at the Mexican café and the sign read that it opened at 5:30 AM so I was quite anxious to put a lip-lock on a good ‘ol Texas breakfast burrito so I people watched until that time. That time came and went without any sign of the café’s employees reporting to work yet so I waited….then this gentleman walked past me to the café and read the sign. He turned to me and said, “It says they open at 5:30 AM” and I responded “Yes but it is 5:45 AM and no ones arrived to start the coffee or bacon” he just laughed and walked towards me and the set of massage chairs where I still occupied 1 of them. He asked me if I lived here in Houston or was I traveling through, business or pleasure? I responded by telling him I used to live in Texas but not Houston, traveling here to Houston on business and pleasure AND looking forward to a TexMex breakfast burrito since 5:30 AM. When he noticed that the empty chair within the set I was sitting in took money (for a massage) I told him he could have a seat and unless he wanted a massage it wouldn’t cost him anything and hopefully the employees of the café would realize they were running late to open and get in a hurry to cook us some breakfast-he laughed. He was probably Thomas’s age as we talked and he told me he was meeting a friend that was flying in around 10:00 AM and I told him that my ex-husband’s cousin was picking me up around 11:00 AM for our stay in Houston. He told me he was then driving with his friend to Dallas for a few days and he lived in Philadephia. The 1st couple of employees arrived a few minutes before 6:00 AM and after we smelled the coffee brewing we made our way inside and found a menu. For any of you who have ever eaten at any airport you are full aware of the cost so when I saw the price of a breakfast burrito ($7.50) I asked the new acquaintance if he’d like to split one and he agreed so we placed our order and he asked me if I’d like to watch a DVD while we ate and waited for our rides. Since I still had a good 2 hours (if Charlotte made her way in traffic in a timely fashion) that would be fine with me to pass the time. He pulled out a small laptop and I suggested we use mine since it has a 17” screen and placed it in the middle of the table facing out so we could sit opposite each other and still see the screen. He had the movie “The Star Chamber” with Michael Douglas in it. The movie was released in August of 1983 (my son would have been 2 years old at the time) but anything with Michael Douglas in it is worth watching a couple of times. We ate and watched the movie and as it ended I made my way to the bathroom to brush my teeth and wash my face while he watched my suitcase. I thought that way if he was a thief he’d just get my clothes and he would not do them justice when he wore them so it wasn’t a big risk. I returned and he began to tell me a little bit about his life/family. Evidentially he has 1 child-a daughter that is 26 years old which is the same age as Brandon would be if he were alive today. He was divorced from her mom for many years and has dated off and on but found his true soulmate he believes; but instead of marrying her he chose to move-in with her and after a 3 year relationship she got cancer and passed away in less than a year. As he told me the story I can tell the way he handled the relationship was a huge regret in his life and he feels as if he failed her in some strange way by not fulfilling the commitment to her before she lost her life. He was obviously there every step of the way with her until her last moment of life. He’s currently a recovering alcoholic for several years (not sure how long exactly but he was recovering before they had moved in together) and is an ever-creating relationship with his daughter who is engaged to be married soon. I talked very little as I mostly let him talk as it seemed he just needed to, for you all that know me that is a sacrifice in itself for me. I did tell him I was born and raised in Texas, married 4 years ago and moved to VA to join my husband who has lived in VA since the 3rd grade. He has never been to VA but had heard it is pretty. I boasted and told him I felt as if we live in the prettiest part of VA-southwest with the Blue Ridge Parkway and all its beauty outside our windows at home! I talked with him as I felt he needs to be continuing the growth of his relationship with his daughter and know that the best he can be is when he stays on the track with recovering from his alcohol addiction, for their sake. I believe our children are our legacy as God gives them to us to be a gift and it’s our responsibility to grow them in a healthy way.
The time passed quickly as I listened to someone else talk for a change and before I knew it Charlotte called my cell phone and I directed her to a common area for us to meet and off we went to start on day together!
I was so excited getting to spend time with Charlotte and we talked, talked, and talked. So much to catch up on where do you start, didn’t matter we just started. We went and checked into the hotel and thanks to modern technology she had bought herself a GPS and we made our way around the 14 lanes of traffic in Houston as if we drove it everyday. Now Charlotte had rented a Pontiac G6 and I was so excited to see it because the new models are automatic transmission with the capability of manual standard-when I saw that I asked her if she had tried it and so responded, “NO, I don’t know how to do that!” I assured her she could and I’d be glad to assist her in the experience, she cracked up and I think she quickly remembered why we have such a good time together-that’s because I help her step outside of her comfort box!
We got settled in our room and it was very nice and she, like myself is used to traveling so we had our little routines when we settled in, standing back to watch was entertaining to see the end results. We then checked out all the amenities that were offered for the guests and then for the love of both of us we found a Sam Moon’s location-Kati bar the door…we both LOVE Sam Moon’s !!
10.19.2006
SAM MOON CENTER WOODLANDS OPENS
Sam Moon Group is pleased to announce the successful opening of Sam Moon Center Woodlands. The 156,533 square foot center opened on October 19, 2006. The Center includes Sam Moon Trading Co., Sam Moon Luggage & Gifts, and the Sam Moon Home Décor Store.
We both have only been to the Dallas locations so our adventure would begin in locating this one in Houston for a little shopping. We put the address in the GPS and off we go again…and then reality set in as we came upon the traffic. We progressed 6 miles in 1 hour and 10 minutes so by the time we arrived at our haven we had exactly 29 minutes to shop before their closing time. Now any of you woman reading this knows how it feels to be on a mission and if any of you have ever been to a Sam Moon’s you know it will be done! We made our selections and proceeded to pay for our treasures as they announced they “will be closing now” and we were happy with it all.
We had passed a Pappadeaux’s restaurant as we drove to Sam Moon’s and Charlotte and I had both decided then that is what we would have for our dinner as there were none in Lubbock, Tx where she lived nor Roanoke, VA where I live but we had both had eaten at one before and this definitely would be a good choice for our evening meal. After the traffic driving to Sam Moon’s, Charlotte decided to let me drive to our dinner destination. Off we go and I love driving in big cities! Charlotte just laughed and said, “ok sister”.
Pappadeaux’s is a seafood kitchen and their bread served before the meal is wonderful. The desserts are absolutely wonderful as well and needless to say we both had plenty leftovers to take back and place in our hotel refrigerator. They were worth sampling later! We arrived back at our room and with our full bellies, bedded down for the night. As usual I travel with my reading light so I could do my devotions and nightly reading without disturbing my friend who’s in the bed next to mine and I thank the Lord for our friendship as we lay our heads down. In our journeys we often encounter individuals who are going through various challenges and have experienced countless heartaches. Like tiny spring bulbs, they too are trying desperately to climb toward that warm bright light. Maybe we should reach out to those people with a smile and a warm embrace and offer them the hope and encouragement they long for. Maybe our compassion gives them the inspiration to start a new day-to open their wings and fly. Our ability to heal and to help others is unlimited, and by lifting each other up, opening our hearts to strangers, and offering hope and encouragement to everyone you meet, it helps them on their journey of growth and understanding.

It’s morning in Houston-Thursday, January 22nd. The weather in Texas usually always (is that proper English?) feels hot but the mornings in Houston start comfortable, even in January. Charlotte and I ate breakfast at the hotel where it was a nice hot meal buffet with a great selection of fruits, yogurt and cereal. Charlotte let me drive again-so lucky me; I decided to sample the manual shifting and it was worth it, it was fun and I explained it to Char as I drove-she just laughed at me and said, “Ok”. Our first destination for the morning was Target Super Center for some essential women products. Charlotte and I are around the same age but she’s in better ‘shape’ than me as she’s not ever married nor had children, though she has helped raise several nephews and had close friends with kids that became teenagers, not to mention she helped me with Caitlynn for about 6 weeks and that was a learning experience I’m sure she’ll never forget. Caitlynn was in the 4th grade and as I traveled still as a respiratory therapist, my mom had been my nanny and decided she was ready to move back to the Austin area before school was out for the summer so Charlotte graciously offered to help me with Caitlynn when I was out of town for my job Mon-Thursday until school was out. I loved to hear her tell me the stories as Caitlynn never loved going to bed so she’d come up with every excuse to stay up later ; Charlotte never budged as she knew my bedtime rituals for my little elementary princess. I think this was a good time for both of them and they both learned a lot from each other.
So as I feel I am approaching menopause at this time in my life, I have decided to embrace it. Sure menopause can bring with it some unpleasant side effects, but I’ve learned to envision it not as a disease but as a rite to passage that opens the space for deep reflection. It allows me to listen to my body and heart and evaluate things more effectively I feel so I insist-LET ME CONTROL THE THERMOSTAT, Charlotte agrees-haha!

Friday, January 23, 2009-Charlotte and I looked at digital scrapbook websites and a few websites that she uses on a regular basis and wanted to share them with me. For those of you who like photography, cooking or just entertaining blogs these are them: www.shabbyshoppe.com and www.thepioneerwoman.com these are 2 of Char’s favorite so I will pass them on….
I went online and booked a rental car for me to drive to my brother Marcus’s and Nicole’s to see them and their kids. Even though it’s a 3 hour drive one-way, I am NOT going to be in the same state and not see my nieces (and great nieces) and great nephew and with all 5 of them now, I do mean G-R-E-A-T! Besides I know Texas is a big state, I’ve been driving it all my life so I’m excited to be here and able to drive. When people not from Texas come to Texas to visit and drive in it they are amazed at its size-hence our state motto ”everything’s bigger in Texas”. As they say about us Texans: Now people from wide open spaces tend to think a mere hundred miles is a skip and a jump! So, what’s a 3 hour drive………………
The frugal person I am, I got a great deal on Travelocity www.travelocity.com . Charlotte and I had breakfast downstairs here at the hotel, Charlotte was gracious enough to use her ‘points’ so her room was comp’d for us and I believe she was even able to use her ‘points’ for the rental car she used while here. She will actually fly home (Lubbock, Tx.) tomorrow morning so I thought I’d spend the rest of my time checking out the NERD office (Thomas and I made a new investment venture in VA, they have the main distributing office here in Houston and also supply to San Antonio area currently www.NERDenergy.com ) and then head toward the Austin, Tx. area. I have talked to Nicole and the kids on the cell phone several times and the kids keep saying, “when are you going to be HERE?” Days are a hard concept for kids, Justin understands a little more as Nicole can tell him ‘in how many school days until I come” and he definitely holds you to that-he doesn’t forget anything! Nicole and I laugh when we talk about the difference in the 2 older kids-Justin and Allison as Justin is structured like Nicole (Caitlynn tells me that I went ‘way over board with teaching Nicole systems’) and he likes everything done by a schedule that he’s aware of beforehand. Allison just goes when you tell her to and she’s probably not going to be on time because she has to load her babies and get her music/headphones for the vehicle.
Charlotte drove me to IAH (Bush International Airport) to pickup my rental car. As I went to get my rental car the gentlemen I spoke with told me to take my pick from the lot-so I went for the new Charger, I like to drive with speed! Charlotte and I said our good-byes, we always have so much fun together-even if we just chat, it’s always good. As I drive off and deal with the Houston traffic onto I-35 North I ponder about life and the impact different people make on each of us as they come into our lives for a reason-sometimes we don’t see those reasons until much later. It is always surprising how such a small part of life is taken up by meaningful moments. Most of them are over before they start-although they cast a light on the future and make the person who originated them unforgettable.
I called Marcus (my youngest brother) to tell him my ETA and wanted to meet them for early dinner with his family. Michelle his wife, Mahailey the oldest daughter who’s 5 years old now and Mallorey the youngest daughter who’s 3 years old. Since Mahailey had school today and I had traffic coming out of Houston we thought we’d meet in Gruene, Tx. www.gruenetexas.com (“gently resisting change since 1872” 1845 - 1974
Arriving in Texas in the mid 1840s, German farmers became the first settlers of what is now known as Gruene, Texas. Ernst Gruene, a German immigrant, and his bride Antoinette, had reached the newly established city of New Braunfels in 1845, but acreage was scarce. Thus, Ernst and his two sons purchased land just down river, and Ernst built the first home in Gruene in early fachwerk style. His second son, Henry D. Gruene, built his home (now Gruene Mansion Inn) and planted his surrounding land with cotton. Having become the number one cash crop, the cotton business soon brought 20 to 30 families to Henry D.'s lands. Henry D. built houses in various styles -- a Victorian cottage (now Lone Star), a large brick home, and a frame house (now Gruene Haus) for the foreman of his farm. The first mercantile store (now Gruene General Store) was built in 1878 and a cotton gin (now Gristmill River Restaurant and Bar) powered by the Guadalupe River was added soon after) for dinner, we ate at the Gristmill River Restaurant. Gruene Hall www.gruenehall.com which is located in this small town is the oldest dance hall in Texas, it still has the wooden dance floor that it originated with.
Gruene Hall
Gruene Hall, a bar and dance hall, was built in the 1880’s and soon became the social center for the community. It still stands at the end of Hunter Road and the intersection of Gruene Road. It is oldest dance hall in Texas and many country-singing stars and legends have performed there over the years. Willie Nelson, George Strait, Jerry Jeff Walker, Lyle Lovett are some of the well-known singers. A complete list of the singers is displayed inside the hall.
Mostly this town is a tourist town as people walk around to shop for antiques, have a selection of Texas cooking and even a winery for wine tasting. The first time I came to this town, it was raining and Marcus and Michelle brought Thomas and I here to eat some good ‘ol TexMex food and then dropped us off to sample the wines. We of course found a few we liked so we headed home with a new case to add to our cellar in VA.
We met at 6:30 PM at the restaurant of choice for dinner and I was pleasantly surprised as they told me we were also waiting on Ashlie (Michelle’s only sibling who’s younger and recently had a baby boy) and her family. I was excited about seeing the new cousin to my nieces and his parents. Mahailey and Mallorey entertained me on our wait. Mahailey told me all about her kindergarten class and he would be going on her 1st field trip without her mom to Sea World with her Brownie Troop-she was excited about it. Mallorey was much more talkative than she had been in the past, I can’t believe how much they’ve grown from Sept. when I spent time with them last. We had a wonderful meal and visited with each other as we sat inside but the floor to ceiling windows were opened for a little breeze. The new baby boy is gorgeous and both he and Ashlie are doing very well. I sat with Mihailey next to me on one side and Marcus on the other side of me. Michelle sat across from Marcus and Mallorey sat across from me. Mahailey (in typical girl fashion) was fascinated with my phone and looked thru all the pictures and I took some of us and let her take some also. I ordered the chicken fried steak, which was to die for and enjoyed as much of it as I possibly could but it was rather large so I took the leftovers with me. As we exited the restaurant Gruene Hall there was loud music coming from it and they keep the screened windows open almost year-round since the weather is usually warm here and we could hear music coming out, of course. It sounded familiar to me and as we listened closer, we realized it was Los Lonely Boys playing. I had actually used a few of their songs for mine and Thomas’s wedding reception since they are a true Texas band! We stood outside and watched/listened as the girls danced around, it was a perfect evening. I shot a video on my camera so I could share it with Thomas upon my return. It was time to depart so we took pictures, said our good-byes and went our separate ways as I head to Nicole’s in Pflugerville to spend the night. It’s always sad saying good-bye since I’m not really sure when I’ll be back to Texas to visit. Hopefully as the kids get older their families will travel to VA to visit us-there is so much history and many things to do on the east coast where we live, I’d love them to be able to spend time with us there also.
I got in the rental car and made my phone call to Nicole so they’d know I was about an hour out from their house as I leave here and it’s 7:50 PM. Allison was getting out of the bathtub but she needed to ask me one more time, “what time are you getting here?” I assured her I was coming as fast as the long arm of the law will allow me-so here I come, ready or not!
I arrived at Nicole and Juan’s by 9 PM which was later than I had anticipated when I left Houston early afternoon but I am here and that’s what counts. I knocked on the door and Allison and Justin saw me and Allison ran off to tell her mom, Justin let me in. Of course I grabbed each of them and squeezed them as tight as I could before they squealed! Naturally Allison had so many things she wanted to show me and Justin was playing on his new PS2 (handheld video game) so he wanted to show me that. Nicole looks great and Juan looks just as good as he was watching something he had on the DVR (digital recording from your TV as you choose the shows/times to watch whenever you want-then you can erase or fast forward as you choose). We visited a little then the kids helped me unload my things and we decided that I’d just keep my luggage in the entrance hallways since I wasn’t sure where I would sleep. I usually sleep in Justin’s bed after we get Allison to sleep but we have also used the air mattress to sleep in the living room floor-we can decide later. We talked and Nicole had let the kids stay up later than usual since I was coming-bedtime for them is usually 8:30 PM. Since they had already had baths, we talked and Allison told me “we are all going to sleep in Justin’s bed” and I looked at Nicole, she said “if ya’ll can all fit, whatever Aunt Raquel wants to do.” I did just that so I got ready for bed and joined the 2 kids and Justin read to Allison and I. He is an amazing reader-his skills are definitely above his 2nd grade level that he is currently in. I’m glad because I love to read (and write) and hopefully he will too! It’s good to be with them all again-Good night!

Saturday, January 24, 2009-We got up early and the kids did as well since Justin was going to have his 1st ever Pine Derby Race with his boy scouts troop, right here in Pflugerville, Tx. We laughed as Juan had told Nicole when we started preparing the pine and was looking at options he could not believe the extreme people go to for their pine derbys, I think he was overwhelmed at that point and wished he’d started earlier with Justin to prepare his. We woke up to a cold, rain morning but I had promised the kids we’d go to the Donut Shop this morning so we did. We got all our favorites-including kalaches (a little sausage in a yeast roll with cheese---mmmmm mmmm good!) The first time I came here and brought the kids, they had never had anything but donuts here so I bought me a kalache and shared a bite with each of them and since then they like to get at least one with their visits. We took some back to Nicole’s as she was nursing Lauren and trying to get everything ready for our morning event. So we got everyone loaded in carseats in Nicole’s SUV and I followed them since we did not have too far to go. It was actually held at a local community park here in Pflugerville. Nicole had brought Caitlynn here during her December stay to take photographs of her, it’s a nice setting. The morning as I said was not the typical and quite chilly but the wind had picked up (typical Texas fashion) and seemed much colder than it was. We entered a cute little red barn/building that they held functions in; surrounded by Boy Scouts and their proud dad’s (and family members)-at this point I am unsure which of these is more excited and anxious to race their pine derbys. Lauren was in the stroller, Allison was hanging with Nicole and I, Justin and Juan proceeded to get registered as Justin stopped a couple of times to say hello to little friends that knew him. I was drinking a NERD but it was too cold to hold so I had placed it in the stroller carrier. Now I am not a pine derby expert by any size of the imagination but this looked much more sophisticated than back in my childhood times-they were using lasers to verify starting placement and photo finish completions. I think they mean business this morning. Yes, my nephew-in-law was correct as some of these people had gone to great technical extremes in the creation of their derby cars-WOW. They were all colors and shapes with precise detail that even I was impressed. They raced 3 cars at a time and it was a triple elimination to go further in the contest. Justin’s car made it twice but not the third time. We were all proud of him as he represented well and he’s always a good sport. I was thankful to be present for this event with my family to support him. All of us traveled back to their house to pack. I had made hotel reservations for the night in Brenham, Tx (home of Blue Bell Creamery-lip-smacking good ice cream, only in Texas) www.bluebell.com and they would be following me there. This would allow me to spend more time with them before my flight at 6:30 AM from Houston and let them have a little overnight getaway also-nothing like a little adventure, leave that up to Aunt Raquel since I never like to be too predictable! How boring would that be? This would also make me driving 45 minutes to the Houston airport instead of a 3 hour drive-besides who wouldn’t want to go to Brenham, Tx.?
We arrived and registered at the front office, made our way to our room to unpack and Nicole needed to nurse the little woman so we had a short stay before we were off in search of dinner and ICE CREAM! We found a steakhouse that reminded Nicole of the local one we used to eat at when she was growing up in Dumas, Tx. and I’d come visit. As we sat down she laughed as she recalled a visit we made to eat at the local one when Caitlynn was small. She reminded me that Caitlynn hid under one of the tables and then would run out with her white linen napkin on her head saying, “wooooooo, I’mmmmmm a ghooooooost!” and run around-Oh my gosh, I had totally forgotten about that. I used to joke and tell people to be careful what they say about other people’s kid in restaurants because God does how a sense of humor. Before we decided to be blessed with Credit Card Caity (as the Dr. referred to her when we had our sonogram to see if it was a boy or girl), we used to go to restaurants and I’d ask Lynn why people allowed their kids to act the way some did and then I’d say, “I’d be taking that child to the bathroom and getting them straightened out right quick and in a hurry”. Until my 2nd child started out to be ‘one of those children’……..
We ordered, blessed the food and enjoyed our meal together then relaxed a bit. Afterwards we were in search of Blue Bell and we conquered. Justin was excited because his mom let him ride in my rental vehicle instead of making him ride in his booster in her SUV, so he sat in the back seat buckled in like the big boy he has become. He’s always so calm and quite the conversationalist, I love spending time with the kids. They say the funniest things! Our caravan made its way back to settle in for an early evening at the hotel. Nicole nursed Lauren and told me of a funny that Justin came up with another day and time. Lauren has a ton of hair on the top of her head and we laugh and say she has a Mohawk. Well Justin informed her that when he was born and came out of his mom, he left a little hair, then Allison came and left a little so when Lauren came she took it all-how funny is that and who would of thought that up? We laughed and laughed! I often wonder why did God would make flies, and why, oh why, did he put hair on women’s toes? Why does God allow two eyebrows to merge, thus resulting in a unibrow? And how does a unibrow contribute to God’s plan for living creatures in the garden of life? I’ve searched the whole world and even Googled it. There is simply no answer to these questions….
Nicole and Juan have tried a couple of wines but never really found one they agree on, typically men like drier wines than some women so I brought them a bottle of Llano Winery’s Texas Sweet Red. They both tried it and both liked it, I guaranteed them it’s a good diverse wine for many tastes. Juan and Justin played PS2 together while Allison entertained us and we played together as Nicole fed Lauren then got her ready for bed. I showed her the Pioneer Woman website that Charlotte had shown me because the lady who it belongs to cooks, homeschools her kids and does digital photography (2 of the 3 things Nicole is interested in) and I thought she’d like to look at it later. She started looking at it and loved it, she said “oh I’m going to have to read more of that when I get home”!
You should of seen us-we had 2 double beds so the boys decided they’d sleep together (there’s 2 of them-they’re not crazy) and the girls-all 4 of us, even though one is small and one is short, it was still 4 but we got in a lot of quality ‘togetherness’. It’s hard to believe Allison will be in Pre-K in the fall-where does the time go!
All settled in we were asleep shortly and I had already had my clothes laid out so I wouldn’t wake them when I got up and out of there by 4 AM to get to the airport. I loaded my luggage and left them a napkin that I have written “thank you for joining me” on and to remind them again that I love them all and will do whatever to spend time with them frequently. Nicole woke just after I left out the door and walked out to the my vehicle with me and we said our goodbyes and hugged.
I will tell you as I have said to others that are close to my in my life; when I go visit Nicole and her family I feel like I have arrived. I did not birth her but I’m her aunt that was always very involved in her life as she grew up and she came to live with me (by her choice) when she was in high school. She gave up her high school in Dumas, Tx that she was active playing volleyball, friends, jobs and her immediate family to come to a town that I lived in (Anton, Tx.) with less than 2,000 people. I by no means thought I could handle a teenager since we’d just lost Brandon a little over 2 years prior to her coming. Her becoming a part of my immediate family was probably one of the greatest blessings in life that I’ve had the privilege of participating in. She is so well rounded and I see on a daily basis what a grounded and faith based wife, mother, niece, daughter and friend she has become as an adult-that is what life is all about. I am truly blessed…..