Coastal Trip Day 2

 So Saturday morning we got a very early start on our journey up to Savannah. I woke up at 5 and showered and we got the kids up by about 5:45. Mobile was in the midst of the worst weather though. The tropical storm had arrived there. We wondered how our day would go and really even if we should leave. We knew though it was best to just plow through and the weather would clear up the further we went East. So we bit the bullet and left. It was really bad for probably the first 2 hours of our trip. We stopped at a Bucees for the potty and breakfast treats. We quickly ate our breakfast in the car. We went on to Pensacola and thought we were ahead of the storm when we got stopped on the bridge and ended up being stuck there for an hour. During this time the storm caught up and we just had to sit and wait it out. We finally moved past the storm but it was off/on rain for the entire state of Florida. We stopped at a couple rest stops/gas stations for potty breaks. We also just went through a McDonald's drive thru for a light lunch in the car. Most places still didn't have their lobbies open. Anyway on we went...we even stopped at an Orange Place in Florida but it ended up being a tourist trap so we went on. We arrived in Savannah around 4 or 5 I think. By the time we got the car parked and our stuff up to the room and settled it was definitely after 5. We liked our hotel there in Savannah. It was a bit bigger then the one in Mobile and it had the bathroom split into 2 parts which is nice when traveling with a family of 4. We got cleaned up and decided to go to dinner at Lady and Sons. It was near our hotel and we figured we had to hit the Paula Dean restaurant. Well we arrived and first had to wait about an hour to be seated. The staff was less then desirable. We just weren't that impressed. The food was ok...fried chicken was excellent but everything else was just mediocre. We were really questioning what our Savannah experience would be like. Also not to mention the streets were really crowded and loud and dirty. Where we were felt like the French Quarter. After dinner we decided we should just walk and see some sights though. We walked down to the river. We quickly figured out this was the party scene. We snapped a few pics then headed back to our hotel. We were all pretty tired from the traveling anyway. 

Coastal Trip Day 1

So we just returned from a 10 day trip across the southern coastal states. We left mid-afternoon on Friday. There was a tropical storm headed for our area. This seems to be a pattern when we take a summer trip. We first had to drop Ruby off at our friends the Brubakers. We drove until we got to the MS Gulf Coast then stopped at Cracker Barrel for our first dinner on the road. It was yummy and a good experience. It was nice to get out and stretch our legs a bit. The weather was the worst getting out of NOLA then slacked up for the rest of our drive. After we drove straight to Mobile to our hotel. It was raining when we arrived there as well. We stayed at a Marriott hotel in the downtown area. We pretty much just brought our things up to the room and got settled with showers/baths and ready for bed. We knew the next day would be a long and early one. The hotel was nice and we got a good nights sleep! 

CoronaCation

 So we have finally been hit with the corona virus. Thankful we are all past it now and it honestly wasn't that bad. So Lindsay got sick over Thanksgiving. It was just a minor cold or so we thought..and honestly we aren't sure now. She had a stuffy nose and sore throat on Thanksgiving. She never ran fever or really seemed to feel terrible so we went on with our usual festivities. When we got back to school after Thanksgiving break many kids in my class had the snots and sniffles. By that Thursday/Friday I developed a sore throat. I was a little worn down, but it was Lindsay's birthday weekend so I went on. I felt a little bad, but never terrible. I tried to distance from people as well I as I possibly could, but we went on with our usual activities. By that Sunday I sounded stuffy and congested. My mom even commented. Anyway by that Monday, my friend Wendy commented about my stuffiness and I even joked that it was just a cold and not corona. By that Wednesday I felt completely fine. Well in the mean time...on Lindsay's birthday Austin found out that a co-worker had tested positive for the virus. This obviously put us in a tailspin, but again at this point we had no idea we might have already had it. 

A New Normal

So I am currently so over that phrase, but that is what it has become. This summer has truly been different. We haven't been able to have nearly as many playdates. We haven't had VBS or camp. We haven't even had normal church activities. All in all it hasn't been THAT bad though. We have learned to live life slow. Since school ended in mid May we have slowed down a lot. We have seen a few friends and for that I am thankful. The kids started swim team after our trip to Tennessee and again I am truly thankful for that bit of normalcy. Even though it hasn't looked all that normal. Practices are only twice a week and several have been rained out. We have also only had one "virtual" swim meet. Anyway that's getting out though and seeing people so that has been nice. We also started back to church when we got back from Tennessee. Lindsay was baptized on June 22nd. It was such a sweet moment to be back in church after months. That was also Father's Day. It has been great being back at church even though that's a lot different too. No children's activities or Lifegroup...we have to wear masks. But its nice just to have normalcy. 
Anyway our summer has been very low key. We have had a lot of fun...but its been a slower paced fun. We haven't been to the Zoo or any big things. I am thankful for our trip to Tennessee and what we got to do there. We've pretty much just stayed home, run errands, or gone swimming. My kids have seen friends a handful of times. 
Starting back to school I think will be nice....I mean I will miss the laziness, but I feel like we need some start to a routine again. 

Friend And Work Time

This has been an unusual summer due to Covid-19. Since there hasn't been VBS or camps it really has just not felt like summer. I mean I guess in some ways it just feels like the never-ending quarantine. Thankfully we took the Tennessee trip...I think that felt the most like summer. 

My best friend Wendy has been gone a lot of the summer...usually she does travel a majority of the summer so time together is usually precious and we try to enjoy it to the fullest. So since our "last day" of school she left town and then I left town and then we were both finally in town for a bit. The Monday after we got back from Tennessee I asked her if I could bring coffee and hang out at her house. I really figured I would stay an hour or 2 maybe. Well 4 hours later...we were both sweaty and gross (We had coffee out by her pool thanks to corona). We had the best time though. It felt like we had a million stories and stuff to catch up on. We laughed and almost cried a few times. It was just so great to once again be together. 

The next week we had a meeting at my house for school to plan a graduation celebration for kindergarten and 8th grade. About halfway through the meeting though we scrapped the idea. Anyway it was Wendy, myself, Rebecca, and Marsha. Even though it was a "work thing" it was fun just to visit. Wendy got here a little early then she was the last to leave. She's truly like a sister. 

The next week on that Tuesday we did a ride around for the 7th graders. Once again it was Rebecca, Wendy, and I who rode together. I picked Wendy up though so we had a little extra time to visit. Between all the out of town trips and corona we really haven't been around each other a ton so each time we are together there is a TON to say. I also brought her home and went inside her house for a bit. I wished her well and goodbye as they were off the next day to bring her son to the Coast Guard Academy. 

So even though its been a different summer ---there have been some fun times thrown in as well. Oh and I also had lunch with Marsha one day last week. Its been nice to have some adult time during my summer. 

Tennessee Day 6

So our final day in Tennessee was a Saturday. After seeing the crowds coming into Gatlinburg the day before we decided we wanted to "get out of town" on Saturday. We opted to have a more "nature" day. We had researched some things to do outside of Cherokee, North Carolina. I had never been there before. It was about an hour and a half drive. We got into Cherokee and first found a place to potty. Bathrooms during Corona on a road trip are hard to find. Anyway after that we went to our destination which was actually outside of Cherokee and in Bryson City. We went into the National Park to hike a trail to see a water fall. There are so many hiking opportunities and now that the kids are finally big enough to hang we thought we would try one. Anyway the hike was about a mile round trip. It was mostly uphill though which made it slightly challenging. We got up there and just enjoyed the view and sights for about 30 minutes. After we went back down and found a quiet place by the creek to have our lunch. That was a sweet family memory. After we drove around a bit and went back into Cherokee. There the kids wanted to find water to play in. We found a lovely shallow river area. They played for about 30-45 minutes. I think our next trip we will be more prepared with swimsuits and such. Anyway after on the drive back we got ice-cream. The drive back was enjoyable. We got back to the cabin and rested a bit before cooking a big steak dinner. It was our final night in the cabin and we just enjoyed relaxing and being together. We turned in early and packed up our things. 

The day we headed back on Sunday...we got an early start. I woke up at 3am central time. I wanted to take a shower and get dressed. We left by 4am. The drive back went well and the kids were great. We stopped at about 6 or 7 for McDonald's breakfast. Another thing in the corona world we had to eat in the car. We made it to Hattiesburg by lunchtime. We picked up chicken and brought it to Austin's mom's to eat lunch with her. We visited and hung out for about an hour. It was nice just to break up the trip this way. 

We were back home by about 3. Our friends the Schifflin's took care of our pets and house while we were away. They left a beautiful snowball thing for our door. Such a sweet surprise! 

It was a wonderful vacation and so nice to get away! 

Tennessee Day 5

Our fifth day in Tennessee we decided we would spend the majority of the day in Gatlinburg. We have never stayed in Gatlinburg before. Therefore, we have never spent much time there. Well we were told about this park called Anakeesta that was on top of a mountain. You even had to ride a ski lift to get to it. We decided to do that. Well we waited in line just to get in the park for about 45 minutes. Once we finally got on the ski lift we were excited. The ride up was probably the most exciting thing! Anyway we arrived and we went first to the Mining Area. The kids loved doing that! Afterwards we went to check out the Tree bridges. We spent about 30 minutes climbing those. Well after that we were all getting hot and hungry so we went to find some lunch. The park wasn't very big so there weren't many options. Since it took us so long to get up we debated staying and having lunch there. We checked in with the restaurant though and they told us it would be a 45 min wait. We decided to skip out and just head back down the mountain. The ride down was fun. We went back to the cabin for lunch. We had leftovers and such to eat there. I was kinda glad we made this choice. We spent a couple hours just relaxing and hanging out. That afternoon we went back out and promised the kids we would play Putt-putt. We had a great time doing that! Afterwards we went and had dinner at a Mexican restaurant. It was really yummy. Afterwards we weren't ready to go back to the cabin though so we just did some driving around. Once we got in though it was Friday night so we let the kids stay up and watch a movie. We also enjoyed playing pool! Anyway it was another great day!