It has been almost a full month since my last post!! Our vacation in Florida could not have gone any better, and we came home about four days ago. We did so much over the 3 weeks we were there and this post would be way to long if I wrote about everything, so i will just go over some highlights.
One highlight: Spending time with my sister and her family. This year we got to spend more time together than usual and i actually got used to going, going, going every day ;). My sister does not like to waste her day by sitting around, and going out and doing something every day was a refreshing treat for me. I am more likely to waste my summer days by lounging around the house and getting not much accomplished. I like Kathy's way better. Always something to do and somewhere to go. That way, by the time the sun would go down each day, it felt really good to just sit, relax after a hot, busy day, and talk. Being able to talk with my sister in this way was one of my favorite parts of my vacation. I love her so much and am so grateful that the Lord has given me such a wonderful sister and best friend. We went to the beach twice, and i am now a beach lover!! The beaches down in Destin are just beautiful. Very much like to beaches in the Virgin Islands, with white sand that looks like sugar and clear water in which you can go up to your waist and still see your toes. Beautiful!!! It also helped that Kathy and her husband Don are experienced beach goers and know how to pack for a fun-filled day. Thank you, Don, for lugging that heavy cooler full of yummy food and drink (and of course thank you Kathy for making that food). Another thing we did was go to Big Kahuna, a water park in Destin. The kids look foward to that all year and we almost did not get to go, but once again, Kathy and Don came to the rescue--we were very spoiled by them both and i am so thankful and appreciative for all the things they did for us. We also spent a couple of days shopping at various malls and outlets, which was a load of fun and very tiring. But, my sister can always smell a good deal, so we were able to save much money (don't ask how much we SPENT, but we did SAVE alot ;))
Another highlight: spending time with my parents. This year i think we spent less time with my parents than usual (at least it seemed that way), but the time we were together was wonderful. Being able to relax in their screened in porch, watching the kids play in the pool for hours, sitting together at the dinner table eating mom's yummy cooking, sitting outside at night having a wonderful talk with Dad, staying up late to hang out and talk and laugh with Mom, knowing that i could see them whenever i wanted, watching my children laugh with pop-pop and talk with grammy. Well, these are all highlights that i will miss. Makes me want to just pick up and move right now. I have been blessed with a mother who knows me so well (mostly because I am JUST like her) that i don't have to explain myself to her. She just knows. I have been blessed with a dad who I can always count on to lovingly tell me exactly what i need to hear and is such a great example of how i want to live my life. My goal is to be like them when i get to be their age. I miss them already.
Another highlight: I got to spend time with both my cousins--which is a rare treat. Shannon lives in GA and came down for a few days. I got to spend time with her and her adorable son. I got to see what a wonderful mom she is and was able to spend some quality time talking, laughing, shopping, eating, and relaxing with her. After all these years she is still like my little sister (aka-cister) and i love her and miss her so much.
I also got to spend quality time with my cousin Beth. Beth and I have also been like sisters and i love talking with her, laughing with her, driving through deadly storms with her (which we did last week. It was like a hurricane and i could barely see a thing--i was so scared, but Beth talked and laughed and cheerleaded me through it, all while she was "strapping things in" just in case we rolled the car-she made a scary situation into something i will always laugh about when i think about it), sitting outside in her backyard hanging out with her while all her animals roam about and all the kids coming in and out of the house is one of my favorite things to do with her. She is just fun. She has alot of things on her plate, but she doesn't complain. She just does what has to be done and tries to laugh about it. She is the ultimate cheerleader and i love her very much.
Well, this post is getting really long and there is more i want to say, but it's time for bed. Tomorrow is another day. All in all, we had a GREAT vacation, but it is time to come back to the daily grind and deal with all that life has to offer here in DE. I'll post about the various things we have been getting hit over the head with next time, but for now, it's time to sleep.
Today i am thankful for:
1. My family
2. My hearing (which i lost for a couple days, but is now back)
3. Summer
Showing posts with label Florida. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Florida. Show all posts
Wednesday, July 8, 2009
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
Of Florida, Family, Flights, and Faith
So, i have not seen my family in Florida for 7 months. That's about 220 days without seeing my mother, father, sister, uncle, aunts, cousins, nieces and nephews. I miss them terribly. So, when i found out we would be getting more than a sufficient amount of money back from our taxes this year, I decided that i would take a few days off from my busy, tired lifestyle and go fly to Florida. How exciting. So, i called my sister to tell her and we got so excited, we decided right there and then to book a flight on the internet while we were on the phone together. My sister said she would put it on her credit card because i had not yet gotten our taxes, and i would pay her back when i got there. It took almost an hour to find the perfect flight that matched up with the times that Steve could take me to and from the airport, but my type A sissy got it done :). I was so excited when i hung up the phone! I was going to see everybody in two weeks! Then i looked over at my precious youngest child. Tears were welling up in her big brown eyes.....in my excitement i had overlooked how hard it would be for my newly homeschooled daughter to go for 5 days without me with her. Steve works so much that right now he is not available to the children. What would Rachel do for the 3 weekdays that i would be gone? I had jumped without thinking. Now my sweet girl was crying so hard her face was all wet and her body was shaking. Oh my, what had i done?
I called my mom to tell her that i was coming and i told her how Rachel was taking it. She agreed with me that i should have thought about what to do with her before i jumped into buying my ticket. By now i felt so guilty and sad for my child, all i wanted to do was buy another ticket for her and have her come along. But that was not as simple as it sounds. First of all, my eldest had already told me that she would be very unhappy if i took Rachel to Florida and not her. Second, my ticket was bought with my sisters Card and i didn't know how to add Rachel even if it was on my Card. So, back and forth it went. I talked at length with Erin and she finally said she understood why Rachel should go this time and not her. I feel so bad for Erin because Rachel is getting the mom that Erin wanted when she was Rachel's age. But, i can not change the past. And Erin and I both agree that Rachel should not suffer just because Erin did at that age. Oh man, i have so much to make up for concerning my older two and especially my oldest. But i digress.
My mom tried to add Rachel on to my flight but the airline wouldn't let her because Rachel is a minor. I could not cancel my flight and book it over again with Rachel added because it would cost 150 dollars to cancel the ticket. I was devastated. Rachel was devastated. My mother was sad for Rachel, my sister was sad for Rachel. What could we do? I went into my room and knelt in prayer while Rachel was in her room crying. I asked the Lord to intervene if He thought it best for Rachel to come. There was nothing i could do but place it in the hands of the Lord. So i did.......and then the phone rang. It was my mom in tears telling me that SOMEHOW my sister had gotten the airline to add Rachel on to my flight for no extra fee. Oh, joy. Thank you Lord. I could not wait to tell Rachel. I went in her room and asked her "Did you ask God to help?" and she said "I did, i asked him a long time ago when you first told me you were going to Florida" So i said "well, He said yes" she looked at me for a minute and than burst out crying again, this time in overwhelming joy. I told her it was a gift from God, because it was not supposed to happen that way, and that God knew her heart and desires and He loves her so much, He knows what she needs. It was a great answer to a prayer and a great way to show my daughter how much her Father loves her. And me!
I called my mom to tell her that i was coming and i told her how Rachel was taking it. She agreed with me that i should have thought about what to do with her before i jumped into buying my ticket. By now i felt so guilty and sad for my child, all i wanted to do was buy another ticket for her and have her come along. But that was not as simple as it sounds. First of all, my eldest had already told me that she would be very unhappy if i took Rachel to Florida and not her. Second, my ticket was bought with my sisters Card and i didn't know how to add Rachel even if it was on my Card. So, back and forth it went. I talked at length with Erin and she finally said she understood why Rachel should go this time and not her. I feel so bad for Erin because Rachel is getting the mom that Erin wanted when she was Rachel's age. But, i can not change the past. And Erin and I both agree that Rachel should not suffer just because Erin did at that age. Oh man, i have so much to make up for concerning my older two and especially my oldest. But i digress.
My mom tried to add Rachel on to my flight but the airline wouldn't let her because Rachel is a minor. I could not cancel my flight and book it over again with Rachel added because it would cost 150 dollars to cancel the ticket. I was devastated. Rachel was devastated. My mother was sad for Rachel, my sister was sad for Rachel. What could we do? I went into my room and knelt in prayer while Rachel was in her room crying. I asked the Lord to intervene if He thought it best for Rachel to come. There was nothing i could do but place it in the hands of the Lord. So i did.......and then the phone rang. It was my mom in tears telling me that SOMEHOW my sister had gotten the airline to add Rachel on to my flight for no extra fee. Oh, joy. Thank you Lord. I could not wait to tell Rachel. I went in her room and asked her "Did you ask God to help?" and she said "I did, i asked him a long time ago when you first told me you were going to Florida" So i said "well, He said yes" she looked at me for a minute and than burst out crying again, this time in overwhelming joy. I told her it was a gift from God, because it was not supposed to happen that way, and that God knew her heart and desires and He loves her so much, He knows what she needs. It was a great answer to a prayer and a great way to show my daughter how much her Father loves her. And me!
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