Whew! Part 1

What a month!! Birthday season has struck here at the homeplace! Starting July 12th through yesterday we have had 4...count them 4! TG was 7/12 (in Iowa!), mine 7/23, Skippy 7/30 and Red's 8/11! Now we get a break until December!

Yes that's me...I turned the big 5-0...don't tell anyone!! I had a nice little party with family and then one in Savannah the Saturday afterwards. It was great! And yes I did get my hair cut! But more about that later!!

Skippy turned the big 1-6! Driver's license coming in the next week when we get home!

We celebrated both mine and his birthday with a trip to Helen, Ga. That was fun! Helen is a little town in Northeast Georgia that was reinvented in the 60's to look like a Germany alpine village. All the buildings look like chalets...even Wendy's! We played tourist...Skippy and his parents went on a Zip Line adventure while mom and I discovered the town one morning. On Friday we took the Blue Ridge Scenic Railroad train trip to the Georgia/Tennessee border. There we had lunch and did a little shopping!

We rented a cabin right outside of Helen for 5 days on the side of a mountain...with a hot tub (that Skippy LOVED). We all had a great time and can't wait to get back up there and breathe the cool mountain air!
Stay tuned for Part 2!

Spring Break Part Four

After a fun-filled day at the Biltmore House and a rested evening at the hotel, we awoke on Monday for our next adventure!

We left Asheville on the back roads for Brevard, NC.
I went to college in Brevard and had not been back in years! It was fun to reminisce and look around at all the things that had changed! After the trip down memory lane, we headed for the hills! Actually it was the Pisgah National Forrest!

First stop Looking Glass Falls!

It is such a pretty place! Not too many people were there...it was a little breezy and chilly! After enjoying the view we hopped in the car and drove up a little further to...

Sliding Rock

This was a favorite place place for me and Red during our high school days! We would drive the 2 hour from Charlotte to the mountains for a Saturday adventure! Sliding Rock is so much fun! Ice Cold Water...even in the summer! You had to sit down at the top and slide down the rock to the bottom icy pool of water! Not in a bathing suit...in your Levis' !! Back then there were no lifeguard, bathroom or parking lot! Now there is room for 99 cars to park in the lot (paid of course), nice bathrooms, and a lifeguard during the season!! Things have changed a lot!

Back in the day we parked on the edge of the road and rode back home in our wet jeans!!

It brought back a lot of memories!! Mainly of how cold and bumpy it was!!

We headed back down the mountain towards Brevard, when Skippy said he wanted to dip he toe in a babbling brook! So we stopped at Sycamore Flats, a picnic area just inside the Pisgah National Forrest! After a short break and toe dip we had lunch in Brevard and decided to head back to Asheville! But not up the back roads, down The Blue Ridge Parkway!

It was so pretty as the snow clouds were forming just beyond the mountains! Lots of tunnels and overlooks to be enjoyed! As we drove back we kept passing gates that on the opposite side of the street had been closed. We, being the flatlanders that we are, thought I wonder why the gates blew shut? Well, about that time a police car drove by and we passed another closed gate! They were shutting down the parkway because of the up coming storm...it was predicted 2 to 4 inches. Now keep in mind that this is a two lane road with no guardrails! By the time we got back to the hotel it was lightly snowing...Skippy was beside himself!! We had to frolic!

Part Five next!!

Spring Break Part One

Welcome to Spring Break! After a fun-filled spring break last year (at Mall of America!), this year we decided to stay closer to home. This time it was me, Red, Skippy and Sweet Mama who made the journey. (Precious is on Senior honor's trip and Kojak is working). After finishing at the City Market on the Green, me and Sweet Mama packed up, counted our moo-la and headed home. We then ditched the car and joined our merry band and headed for the hills!

Three states later we arrived in beautiful Asheville, NC! We marveled how few leaves there were on the trees compared to home. It seemed like spring was just beginning here. The dogwood trees were just beginning to flower... After a relaxing meal in the bar of the hotel (Sweet Mama had to see the game) we went to bed.

So is it me or are people just rude? You have never heard so much noise, in the middle of the night, as there was Saturday night....door slamming, kids crying, folks talking at the top of their voices...sheesh. Do they think they are at home?! Please...

After a 4 hour night of sleep (yawn) we arose and prepared for our journey to the Biltmore House... To Be Continued