You may have noticed, I’ve been MIA for the past week. My life was enriched by a wonderful vacation with family. I overcame my fear of getting on an airplane again and spent some amazing quality time with those I love. The man I continue to love, in spite of the fact that he now enjoys life in Paradise, was along for the ride in my heart. The above painting by him is reminiscent of past visits.

It was ten years ago that I boarded an airplane. I was bound for Greenville, S.C. for a holiday celebration of Thanksgiving, while my husband went to Wisconsin for his annual deer hunt. Relying on my phone to wake me wasn’t the best idea. My hearing was beginning to decline so I missed it. My daughter saved the day by arriving at my house on time and woke me. She drove me to the airport and I was saved again. A wonderful time followed.

My trepidation towards flying again, has been hindered ever since. This past week changed all that. Another journey to Greenville, this time with daughter, her daughter and her son as my traveling companions. Being 84 has it setbacks and its benefits. On the way to our plane, I clocked about 3000 steps on my pedometer. Of course, I was aided by my family and my walker. We cheated a little by using the escalating walkway. At one point on that conveyance, the smallest of us decided to run to the opposite escalator and I went into mother-panic-mode trying to retrieve him. Of course it wasn’t necessary, because his mom was right there. Once on the plane and buckled into our seats, we were ready for another adventure. It’s funny how those parenting reflexes kick in even when you’re a great grandmother.

Spending an entire week with family is always an adventure. We began our week with sightseeing at the Zoo, the Children’s Museum and a Civil War museum downtown. The tour guide was an interesting fellow. His love of history reminded me of my own high school history teacher. He provided a clear look at the Civil War. Of course it was tainted slightly with a bit of Redneck philosophy. We politely listened to him for quite a while and learned some things I didn’t know.

Greenville has a beautiful park right in the middle of its downtown. Falls Park is filled with beautiful winding trails, lovely landscaping and flowers everywhere. The falls and other water features attract many visitors as well as wildlife. The trip up the hill, even with a walker, became almost impossible, so my granddaughter offered to push me. It was much appreciated. We drove to Tabletop Mountain in the Blue Ridge Mountains. A lovely view for the passengers, but the driver had to keep her eyes peeled and missed much of the beautiful scenery. A small, restored settlement was in the middle of our drive that day. When we weren’t out and about, we stretched out and watched “Shrek” and “Toy Story. A pool was also available for swimming.

On one of our downtown shopping episodes, I was pushed on my walker, but it turned into a slight disaster with me falling off and getting pretty banged up, but thankfully I survived. Earlier in the week, the daughter we were visiting took a fall too. Since she celebrated her birthday during this same week, she was teased about getting old.

We were treated to pedicures one afternoon. We ate too much. Enjoyed each other’s company. We spent quality time that will create new memories for everyone to look back on. It was a wonderful adventure for Gigi and her tribe. I love my family more than you can imagine. They mean the world to me.

Spending time together with those you love is one of God’s greatest blessings. I am so grateful to be part of a group of people who love each other, but more importantly, they love God.

THANK YOU, JESUS, FOR THIS PAST WEEK AND NEWLY CREATED MEMORIES!