Day Five

Decided to post this early as I won’t have another chance to post until we get to the hotel on Tuesday Night. Today has been really laid back. YAY. Cleaned up from the party early, did some laundry and had worship time with the kids. Chris and Cheri left to catch a plane home and mom and dad are spending the day with my dad’s cousin in St. Louis. Tonight’s plans include GAMES. That makes me excited.

Tomorrow we head to St. Louis for the day for a mixture of fun and an educational field trip. I want the kids to see the Old Courthouse as we will be studying American History next year. We will also hang at the zoo for a little while and maybe go to a museum. Then we have to get back to pack up for home.

I won’t post again for awhile but will hopefully have some fun stories about tonight or tomorrow when I do. What follows is my thoughts on what we studied today during worship time.

We were in Hosea. I don’t remember the verses but it is the last few chapters where it talks about God’s love of Israel, Israel’s sin, God’s anger with Israel and, finally, repentance and blessing. I was so interested to see the parallels of Israel and our own country today. Let me take a moment to discuss. I don’t have my Bible with me at the library so this might be a little disjointed.

God loved Israel so much. He brought them out of Egypt, cared for them and did not want them to suffer under oppressive rule. Each time God was needed the people turned back to God and each time the chaos subsided, they turned away again.

Doesn’t that sound familiar? Think about the tyranny suffered by this country that incited the people to revolt against England. Against insurmountable odds, that revolt was successful. Why? Because the people really had NOTHING to lose.

Over 200 years have passed. We are comfortable. Once again we are beginning to see our rights slowly slip away. My dad told that they are trying to pass a law, or maybe they already passed it, that says our soldiers can’t have a cross on their gravestone at federal cemeteries. Interesting since some of them are dying to protect that freedom. That incites me. In Texas, they are not allowed to use the words prayer, amen, or say bow your head during a graduation ceremony. That incites me.

Why aren’t more people upset? They are. But they have EVERYTHING to lose. Our ancestors were not thinking about their generation when they fought the revolution, they were thinking about the future. What about us? What are we thinking about?

I’m not talking “revolution” but we can not be silent and let these things happen. We have to speak out. We have to keep our eyes open and see what is happening all around us. We have to read the Constitution and learn what it really means.

I believe that God loves us. I believe that Jesus Christ is the Risen Savior and that he sits at the right hand of the Father. I believe that we have the right to proclaim that and we should not be ashamed. Turn back to God and don’t turn away once the chaos subsides. God has allowed us to come this far as a nation but I believe that he will allow us to fall if we don’t stay focused on him. Repentance will yield blessing. It was promised to Israel and it is still true today. God Bless.

Love to all.

Day Four

Today was the reception day. It was well planned which meant that there wasn’t a whole lot to do. Time flew of course until it was time to start the party. Here are the highlights of today.

- We went to the library. Usually that would not be a cause for excitement but here, Library = Internet. Going back tomorrow to look more things up.

- Got to love on my grand niece, Elin, a little more today. I got some super cute shots of her.

- Autumn drove a cherry red Camaro. I think she enjoyed it.

- Lots of dancing tonight. My feet actually hurt a lot.

- Watched my mom and dad dance to “God Blessed the Broken Road.” Yep, I cried.

Truthfully, I enjoyed hanging out with everyone last night. The reception is fun and really beautiful. I just liked being with our family. I am staying up hoping that as it quiets down, we will be able to rejoin the party. It is just too crazy for my laid back kids.

I forgot to mention on of the most special things from yesterday. I got to hang out with Addy and she really enjoyed looking at pictures of my cats on the computer. She kept licking her hand and washing her face like a cat. She was so excited. I love these girls. I really wish we were closer.

Tomorrow is a day to clean up, rest and worship. Even if we don’t get to church, we will take the time to worship our amazing God. Enjoy your sabbath.

Illinois Vacation Day Three

I thought this was going to be a boring blog today. It was errand and prep day for the reception tomorrow. The most exciting part was making dinner for the family and having extra large flames in the oven.

However, when the sun went down, the freaks came out. OK, not really freaks but my freaky family. We had an absolute blast. The best part of the evening, was the locusts.

This is the year of the locusts. According to my brother Mike, they only come out every 13 years to mate. They crawl out of a hole in the ground, shed their exoskeleton and fly around making this really loud screechy sound. They mate, and then crawl back into the hole and go dormant for 13 years. When we were driving we heard them but didn’t know what we were hearing at the time.

Apparently, my three sisters are afraid of them. That was just funny to me. So I got up and flicked one away from Angi. It screeched as it flew away. Seriously. It was great. Suddenly they were everywhere. The girls threatened me because I wanted to pick them up. They aren’t scary. They are kind of neat. Cheri ended up going inside because they were inescapable. A few seconds later she ran back outside with one on her arm screaming my name. My brother Chris was there so she was saved by her husband. It was so comical.

So I spent the evening laughing and talking, and getting accused of breaking wind by someone who shall remain nameless but it sounds like Debbie Fontaine! It was a great evening and we went to bed with sore abs from all the laughing. Reception is tomorrow! More to come.

Quote of the Day

Cheri and Angi talking about age. Cheri gave her age and we were surprised. She meant to say, “I may act young.” Instead she said, “I may act stupid, but I don’t look it.”

The Tale of the Garbage Can Monster

Autumn and I were sleeping on the air mattress in the room with my parents. We like to listen to audio books to go to sleep and since my dad uses a sleep apnea machine, we knew my parents wouldn’t be disturbed by it. Well hilarity ensued. Here is the story of the Garbage Can Monster!!

Autumn and I were giggly because every time one of us moved, the other one would roll to the middle of the bed. We thought it was funny that we had no control over our bodies. Dad was in the bathroom and mom was playing a computer game on her laptop in the kitchen. Anyway, suddenly there was this awful sound. It kind of sounded like a bear. As an aside let me say that my brother’s property is surrounded by trees. Again, see the pictures when they are posted to facebook.

So the sound was like a bear growl or like a metal planter scraping across stone or cement. Autumn got off the bed SO FAST and ran down the hallway. As she was going she said, “I am outta here!” She was really headed to the other bathroom but it made me laugh even harder. Since we were already giggling, we got in trouble by my mom who was in the kitchen. She said we were being too loud. That just made me laugh more

After I calmed a bit, I went into the bathroom and realized there was no toilet paper. As I was looking for it in the closet, my foot hit the metal garbage can and it moved across the bathroom floor which is stone tile. Eureka .... that was the sound. I came out of the bathroom and Autumn had figured it out too. Then my dad looked over from the bed. He had his Apnea machine on which hooks to his face. No lie, it looks like the device they put on Hannibal Lector (my sister said it makes him look like snuffaluffagus but that doesn't fit the scary story theme.) Now I was laughing so hard I couldn’t breathe. Scary sounds and a cannibal in the room with us in a house in the woods. We were officially in a bad horror film. It took me a long time to calm down. Every time I saw my dad’s face in my head, I started rolling again.

Illinois Vacation Day Two

So yesterday was eventful. We only had a little ways to go, about 6 hours, before we arrived in Central City / Centralia, IL. However, the day included a new chapter in the Rest Area Saga.

At noon, we began looking for a rest area for our lunch stop. The first one came up as we neared the Kentucky / Illinois border. As we were looking for it, we realized that the area was actually up on the exit.... that we were passing. Strike one. Since we were nearing the border, we figured there would be a Welcome Center in a few miles and we were now wise to the “Rest Area at the Exit” trick.

The next one was the last rest area for 47 miles. As we veered onto the exit, we saw a small sign under the Rest Area sign. It said, “Rest Area Closed.” Too late. We were already off the exit. Strike two.

Fortunately, we were in Metropolis. No seriously, we were in Metropolis Illinois. So Mom turned right because now I was in need of a stop for more than just lunch. The first gas station... closed. Strike three.

We turned around and saw a BP over the bridge. Relief at last. This was the Superman BP. Of course we took pics which will be up when I figure out how to get them off the camera. There was Superman souvenirs and Superhero themed restrooms. I headed into the Wonder Woman’s room. (LOL) The VERY nice lady at the check out counter told me there was a park a little ways up so we got lunch before 3:00.

Make sure you read my next entry so you can see my traveling awards. If you are traveling this summer, it might help you!

We arrived at my brother’s house in one piece. It was great to see everyone. They have a crazy dog named Jersey (see my pics later). Jersey is a lab puppy. You’ll have to look at the picture to see the size of this dog. I was actually afraid to open my door when we arrived. Rightly so. When I did, the monster climbed up into my lap in the driver’s seat of the van and tried to drool me to death. Jersey is an ankle biter who tries to eat the shoes off your feet. She is so stinkin’ cute but so stinkin’ annoying all at the same time. Last night we were sitting on the porch when Jersey came up and snatched a plant right out of the pot. I thought my sister-in-law Debbie would kill her. They also have an older rat terrier named Spike. Spike does not like the menace of a puppy who is 4-5 times his size. The puppy can fit Spike’s back in her mouth. I literally saw her do it this morning.

I met my grand niece (yes I said grand niece or is it great niece?). Anyway, she is 11 months old and adorable. I stole her from her daddy and refused to give her back for a while. I also saw my other adorable grand niece, Addison. Addison is amazing. If you want the whole story about Addy you will have to call me. It’s too much to explain in a blog and I don’t think I can do her justice. Let’s just say she is a very special little girl.

Ok so after driving and fending off a puppy drool attack and meeting the nieces and their guys along with the kiddos, we went shopping with Debbie. KFC for dinner. Maurices for clothes. Walmart for supplies. Then we came home and showered and time for bed.

Quotes of the Day:

Alex: “There are a BUNCH of people outside. There is a pair of guys outside waxing their car.”

Alex: “Autumn, I get the seat with more leg room because I have more legs.”

Autumn: (In the hotel) “Why would I call them for a wake up call. It’s so stupid. If I’m calling then I’m obviously already awake!”

Note from the Author

So since I don't have internet access at my brother's house, I am writing them and then posting them when I can get to the library. So today there are several. Read them all.

Illinois Vacation Day One

We left at 7:00 am which was on time. We thought we were doing good and trucked along for several hours. Then we stopped at a rest area outside of Macon, GA to walk the dogs and to have lunch.

Two problems with the rest area. First it was unbelievably hot. Hotter than Florida!! Second, the dogs were not allowed in the picnic area and I was afraid to leave them in the car, even with the windows down. So, me in all my brightness decided to drive on for awhile. This was at 12:30.

So we drove. Then we drove. After that, we drove some more. Do you know that there are NO rest areas between Mile Marker 108 and Mile Marker 308 in Georgia? It was one of those situations where you knew if you stopped at the exit, you would get back on to 75 only to discover a rest area around the next bend. But that never happened. 200 miles, no rest area.

Finally at 3:00 we stopped at gas station. Lo and behold, we forgot the jelly at home. So I went into the station and not surprisingly, no jelly. Alex will not eat any other kind of sandwich except PBJ and toasted cheese. Thankfully, we thought, there was a Chik Fil A at the same exit. Would you believe that JUST before we walked in a bus pulled up and filled the dining room and the drive thru line was around the building? Yep it really happened. So I told Alex we would stop at another CFA.

Afterwards, we hit Atlanta. It wasn't too bad although we hit a little traffic. In the heat of getting through the city, Alex points out a CFA. There was no way to stop there. On the north side of Atlanta, Dad and I were nervous that our luck would continue. After all, it had been a while since we saw a CFA sign. Luckily, we found one pretty quick, or rather, a sign for one.

We made a bee line for the exit. 1.9 miles to the left. Well there was no Chic Fil A that we could find anywhere in that 1.9 miles. NONE! Then there was the issue of turning around and getting back on the highway. The good news is we found a Subway and we got Alex a sandwich. Now before you think that Alex did not eat all day, we did have snack food that he happily munched on.

We stopped a little after 8:00. That would be 9:00 for you all on the east coast. Now it is time to sleep and start again tomorrow. Pray that it will be better and if not, that we won't run into any problems bigger than the little inconveniences we faced today. Love to all.