And away we go...Choo, Choo!

We were recently able to go to a local railroad museum that the Bubs had been asking to go to for quite some time. His excitement was a thing to behold. Especially when he was talking to the E-man about it before we left. So cute!

We ate at a place downtown called Fat Tony's. The food was so-so and the bathroom horrible, but it was different and we all were determined to enjoy ourselves anyway.

When we pulled into the parking lot, the Bubs was overcome with
joy. He laughed his way to the train that was parked at the entrance and could barely stand the wait as the rest of us (Dad, the Hubs and my brother, Big A) to get E-man in his stroller.

It wasn't the largest train museum in the world, but you could definitely tell that someone or many someones had taken a lot of time and care with the place.

Hubs and Bubs are both model train enthusiasts and had a blast with the huge train layouts. There were buttons galore to be pushed to make the different trains go.

Hubs kept asking me if I was having fun and I don't know why. I was walking along behind them, camera in hand, with a big smile on my face. I always get the biggest kick out of fueling the Bubs's curiosity and sense of fun. Not to mention, I got out of the house and I didn't have to cook...I'd say it was a win-win all around, wouldn't you?

Nature's splendor inspires a spiff-up...

This past Friday Dad posed the idea of all of us -he, Mom, Aunt D, me, and the Bubs (Hubby is away)- heading to the mountains for an overnight stay. I was all for it and delighted at the prospect of sharing some laughs and seeing some beautiful fall foliage. I wasn't disappointed on either count! We drove up after church, stayed overnight in a small motel, ate at some "mom and pop" joints, and took pictures galore along the Blue Ridge Parkway.....with Dad dilligently trying to ignore his vertigo at almost every overlook.

At almost every turn, fall's splendor abounded. Whether it was on the trees or on the doorsteps of the local homes, I was delighted with the warm colors and overall sense of homey-ness (homey as in a welcoming residence, not as in a dude). There were even pumpkin people on the downtown corners, left over from the weekend's Autumn Leaf Festival. I would have given money to know how those things were constructed, by the way! I don't think the locals would have taken kindly to a strange woman peeking under their pumpkin peoples' skirts...so to speak.

Looking around at all of that, it hit me that other than a couple pretty mums that Dad bought me, I haven't spread the cheer at our house.....or much of a cleaning rag, either, but that's coming, too. The Bubs has been asking about getting pumpkins for a couple weeks now and I kept forgetting about it or putting it off. He helped me pick out a couple today after school along with a couple of small, yellow mums to add to our porch. As soon as we got home, I quickly arranged our fall goodies and got the seal of approval from Bubs - "That looks good, Mom. I like the pumpkins we picked out." Trust me, for him to even notice anything like that near the end of the day is huge. If you're wondering what the pumpkins are sitting on, it's a couple of pots of gerber daisies that are a bit past their prime. I think the greenery underneath kinda makes the pumpkins look like they're still out in the pumpkin patch. Hmmm...now all I need is a little fall flag. I might be able to pick one up cheap at-- Oops, sorry! I went off on a tangent there for a moment.

I also wanted to spread the cheer in the house. I know that the Hubby particularly likes some of the pumpkin scented candles from Target so I grabbed a couple while I was running around today and set them out on some plates that I grabbed on the cheap from Ross's along with the tablecloth and runner on the right. What is it about getting pretties on the cheap that just puts an extra pep in my step? I'm not on a support group level or anything, I just get a little excited, okay?

Holy Moses, What a Vacation! (Thank God It's Over)

"No man needs a vacation so much as the man who just had one. ~Elbert Hubbard"

Well, I think that I will never blog about another vacation......ever. Maybe only the ones that don't involve extended family members. Oy.

We did manage to have some fun in between the more, um, interesting family interactions that occured. The waterpark was a hit with all of us (yes, even me) without a doubt! There were slides for all levels of daring, hot tubs for both adults and those with children, and a lazy river to float around in an innertube. That last thing was my favorite.....wish I had one of those in the backyard!

It was very nice to see friends of Hubby's, I'll call them J&J, that have wlecomed me right into their group. We laughed and gabbed about all of our mutual interests, saw a movie, and generally had a fun and relaxed time together. Y'all, they were such a blessing. Speaking of blessings, they've recently found out that they will be parents in the spring! Yay! I can't wait to put a baby box together to send them.

So now I've got to get back into our routines.....including one of mine which is to read what's goin' on in your lives! I'm off to take a gander at your blogs to find out what I've missed ~ right after I tackle the laundry, put everything away that we lugged out, catch up on yard work and....well, you get the idea!

Summer Vacation....Prep, Packin' and Mem'ries

Alrighty, my lovely readers, I decided I would attempt to blog my way through our family's summer vacation/trip this year. Thus the fun graphic on my left sidebar....and somewhere in this post if things work like they should. The entries may be just a paragraph or two with lots of pics or just pics alone. Who knows? So I'm starting out where every trip does - prep and packing.....and this year, moaning about the ridiculous price of gas that mysteriously seems to go up right when everyone's going to be traveling! Um, sorry. I lost my head there for a second. I'm okay now.........no, really.

We're not heading anywhere exotic or jaw-dropping but we're going to see the Hubs's family and some of his friends (a few of which have become mine, too) that we haven't seen for a year or so. Hubby's lookin' forward to getting away from the base, havin' fun with the Bubs at a zoo we're going to, and chillin' with his loved ones. I'm excited for us to get away and have some fun......hopefully without any unforeseen "oopsies" popping up. You know what I'm talking about, right? Taking a wrong turn, running out of gas in the middle of a wicked traffic jam with no gas station in sight, someone getting sick or hurt, losing money..........and the list goes on, unfortunately 'cause the possibilities are endless! Murphy's Law and all that jazz. Thankfully, I'm great at making plans while the Hubs is great at following through with them and keeping a level head when something (or someone, ahem) spazzes out of control.

Anyway....where was I? Oh, yeah. Packing and trip prep. I'm already beginning to tackle laundry and, to my Hubby's amusement, have already written out several different lists so I won't forget anything. As I'm doing all this I start to think back to family trips when I was a kid. Those trips were such a luxury for us. Not only for the money I knew it took to go on them, but to find time in our family schedule to get away. Back then we were all heavily involved with our church in addition to Mom working full time at our middle school's library and Dad working three jobs- teacher, accompiniast at the local Methodist church, and being the Music Director/Praise and Worship Leader at our, then, home church. Needless to say, we really needed those times away to chill out with one another. Later on, we started heading up to my Uncle R and Aunt C's house. Uncle R and Aunt C are Boondock Ramblings and Unfinished Person's parents. Yes, they really do live up in the boondocks but, oh, how peaceful and lovely they were to our family! It became an oasis of sorts for us. Especially, I think, for my parents. Yes, the prep for the trip and the trip itself were a lot of work but it was worth every second of it to just get up to that house in the valley and smell the air that was sweet with recently cut hay and grass. If I never thanked you then for letting us invade your home for a couple weeks every summer, I'm thanking you now Aunt C and Uncle R (and you, too, Cousins).

So, my lovely readers, do you have any fond family trip memories? And while I'm thinkin' about it, do y'all have any good travel tips to share with me? I'm listenin'! I love hearing what you all have to say........

Fun at the Circus...Our Trip was a Trip

This past Friday, the Bubs and I were able to tag along on a field trip to the Barnum and Bailey Circus. My Dad's first grade team chartered buses for their classes to ride to the event and we were to follow along behind them in my vehicle. I was cool with this, but the Bubs was understandably freaked at the prospect of not riding on the "big bus with my Poppi" even after I had gone to some length to make sure he was suitably entertained on the way...*sigh*

So we get there and after some back and forth between my Dad and me on the cell phones, we find one another and get settled in for the show. And what a show it was! From the clowns and their antics to all of the aerial displays, it was a lot of fun. David covered his eyes during the tiger act and laughed at the clowns. Dad and I even managed to share a few laughs in between his never-ending teacher duties.

Our biggest laugh was over the fact that the one thing most of the kids would probably remember would be when an elephant, ummmm......"did its business" ..... and the elephant behind stepped in it as they were leaving the arena. Oi. Groans and yells of "eww!" erupted and echoed off of the walls for a few seconds before the lights were lowered and the clean up crew came out.

The show had no more ended than the Bubs started begging to ride back on the bus with Poppi. He was going so hard that he didn't hear me remind him that Poppi said he would ride back with us in our car. The fit continued as I tried to maneuver us up the stairs to the lobby area, into the bathroom, out of the bathroom, in the lobby, the parking lot where he almost walked out in front of a truck, and as I was getting him into the carseat. To say I was a little frazzled would be laughable. The Bubs had just had too much and needed some chill out time. Okay, I can do that. He can chill out on the way home with Poppi.

I was thinking this as I was getting myself settled in the car, arranging things so that they were within easy reach while I was driving..........Oh. My. Goodness. WHERE IS MY WALLET???!!!!!!!

I am in full freak out mode as I dump things out in the car and then rush back into the arena with a confused and oddly quiet Bubs in tow. I check where we were sitting with no luck. My Bubs was even helping me look as he trailed behind me down the aisles. We rush back outside and head back to the car to wait for Dad. I see him waving at me from the next parking lot over and I pull the car as close as possible, all the while trying not to hyperventilate and shoving my big sunglasses on to hide my distress. I should have known better, because as soon as he got to the car, I broke down. He searched the car again and then suggested I check out the women's bathroom, which I forgot to search out the first time. Nothing doing. The doors to the arena are now locked. I don't need to tell you that the ride home was interesting...I even took a wrong turn and managed to get us lost- twice. Whether out of self-preservation or pity, Dad took over and drove us home. Thank God.

So I went through the task of shutting off service to various cards and my cell phone as soon as I got to Mom and Dad's house. Hallelujah for understanding customer service reps!! I felt like such an idiot.

The circus was a lot of fun and I'd recommend it to anyone...just without the not-so-fun experience of losing one's wallet and cell phone!!