Finally Home!

It seems like I've been gone much longer than just 12 days.  I guess that's a good thing.  Our vacation/road trip was just wonderful. We were blessed with safety, friends, and family all along the 2,400+ miles. 

Our fur-babies welcomed us, and our neighbors took good care of them, our mail and our home while we were gone.  All is well.

I put some photos together as slide shows, and will attempt to put them here for you to see, if you are interested.

Our trip began with a stop in St. Augustine, FL, where we met with my blogging friend, Sheila (http://thequintessentialmagpie.blogspot.com).  It is always good to meet blogging friends in person.  I've never been disappointed. We are a special group of friends, here.  Sheila is genuine and gracious.  Loved our time together!  We continued on to Savannah, GA, for two nights.  While there, we met our niece, Gina, who attends SCAD (Savannah College of Art & Design). She had two more nieces visiting with her that week, so we were blessed to spend time with three of our lovely nieces while there!!  Here are some of the Savannah photos:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FLKqF8vNsiY

We left Savannah, and headed for Ohio.  Our niece, Kelly, graduated from high school! It was great, and the party was the next day.  Lots of Kelly's friends came by, as well as a couple of teachers and lots of family friends. The weather was beautiful.  My brother-in-law is recovering from thyroid cancer surgery. He is doing well.  Here are some photos from graduation:

http://www.youtube.com/edit?video_id=PC_0zhraXGc&video_referrer=watch&ns=1

Next stop was my grandmother's house for two nights.  She is my step-grandma, but has been in my life since I was born.  I was blessed to grow up with three sets of grandparents!  Her brother takes such good care of her, and it allows her to stay in her home.  On Memorial Day, some of my cousins came to visit. You might remember that we saw them last when they were down here between Christmas and New Years.  Love them so much!  We left Ohio, and headed for Chattanooga.  Along the way, we met another blogging friend, Lynda!  We met her at a Cracker Barrel restaurant and enjoyed root beer and iced tea. Lynda is as wonderful in person as she is on her blog! Again, always awesome when we can meet blogging friends in person!  http://misslynda-librarylynn.blogspot.com/  Here are some photos:

http://www.youtube.com/edit?ns=1&feature=vm-privacy&video_id=qjNVpg9Bil8

Once in Chattanooga, we got up the next day and had breakfast with blogging friends, Tony & Laura. We met them first in person, two years ago. Wonderful to see them again!  We met my former boss and his wife for lunch.  Dan is now the Executive Director at The Hunter Museum of  Art.  Great seeing them again!  We also visited the Chattanooga Choo Choo museum/shops/hotel, and then the Tennessee Aquarium.  It was so good to see everyone, and to enjoy being tourists in Chattanooga! We were only sorry we couldn't connect with our dear friend, Linda, during this trip. We met her in person two years ago, but were sorry doctor appointments made getting together this time impossible. (Next time, Linda!!)  Here are the Chattnooga photos:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=US595ZznL_A

From Chattanooga, we headed to my sister's house in Ray City, GA.  We planned two nights with her, and were able to celebrate her husband, Bruce's birthday (May 31) and hers (June 5).  We also planned for a stop along the way, to meet another blogging friend, Sandie (http://chattycrone.blogspot.com/). We stopped at another Cracker Barrel, and she met us there with her grandson, Andy, and husband, Rick. Another terrific meeting, with a great friend!!

It was great to see my sister and her husband, again.  We had a wonderful time while there.  We also brought home with us another cat.  Vinny.  No photos yet, as he is hiding most of the time.  He has never been inside a house before.  It will take him some time to figure it all out. We have an appointment for him on Tuesday, to be neutered and get his shots and a check-over.  When he heals from that, we will start to introduce the other cats.  They know another cat is in the guest room, however.  I'm sure it will all work out, given time.  We've done it before.  Crazy for getting another cat, but we can give him a better home and better care than my sister can, right now. They still have three or four, plus all the strays that come by.  This little guy is 8 months old, and is a blonde tabby.  Here are some photos:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d8qxFiX3VgU

So, that's our 12 -day road trip.  Thanks for checking in!!  I'll be back on track with everyone, now that we are home.  Peace, love & hugs.