Where do I start, part deux?

We drove three days from Virginia to Florida and got settled into our camp in Wickham Park. This is a very nice county park which has upgraded to full hookup sites. We stayed here years ago but it was quite a ways from Brandon's house and then there were those itinerant gypsies who took over one loop of the campground. They have since moved on and since Brandon and Megan moved, they are less than two miles away from the park! Whoo hoo!

The kids had just closed on their house on the Wednesday before our Sunday arrival and had not stayed at their new place till Thursday night. I was amazed when we got there, however, at how much they had accomplished. Brandon had actually emptied the two storage units he had as well as the pod sitting in the driveway. A lot of the stuff was in the garage and there were a lot of boxes in the house to be emptied, but furniture was set up and the first night we were there, Brandon got the entertainment center up and the TV working. By the time we left, almost all the boxes in the house were emptied and put away and the garage was emptied enough to put Megan's car inside. They worked every day and we helped out while we were there. I watched Brynlee and Terry had several projects that required his expertise. Brandon wanted new fans in the a couple of the rooms, so Terry helped with that. This time around, however, he supervised and Brandon did all the work!

They have a lovely lanai in the back, with access from several rooms. It is all screened in and there is a pool. It's lovely and we sat out there in the evenings and enjoyed the bug free environment.

The first night there, I went with Megan and Brynlee to "Boo at the Zoo." The zoo was decorated for Halloween and the employees were passing out candy to the kids. It was a fun time and I think Brynlee enjoyed it. When it got dark, however, you couldn't see any animals.


Yesterday Megan took us out to where the manatees hang out in the winter, but there weren't any there. It's been pretty warm there, so imagine it would take cooler water for them to head for the canals. We went to a boardwalk and walked out on the steps to take pictures of the ocean. It was really beautiful and Brynlee was mesmerized by the sand. I think she liked it on her feet, but after we got back in the car, she wanted the sand off her feet. Hah. That's a toddler for you!

Yesterday little Brynlee had surgery for a "lip tie." This occurs when the upper lip is tethered to the upper gum. Brynlee's actually passed through her front two teeth causing a gap there. The doctor said it definitely needed to be "released" so that it wouldn't interfere with talking, etc. So yesterday was the day. The kids had to take her in early, but the procedure only lasted a couple minutes. Brandon said they were very surprised it was so quick. They just cauterize it and release it from the upper gum. She was fine after the procedure but her lip did swell up a little. Understandable. We just joked that she had had a "botox" treatment. LOL

We enjoyed our time in Wickham Park, although we weren't there much. The girls stayed in the motorhome while we were gone, but we were there most mornings, came back for lunch, then out again, then back for supper. So they really weren't alone that much, got lots of walks in, chased squirrels and "observed" the armadillos. I don't think I would want the girls to try tearing into one of those, but I'm sure they would give it a shot. They were certainly curious about them and mostly just stood very still and watched them.

We saw hawks, blue jays, scrub jays, and ibis. And also in the park we see tortoises once in a while. We saw two large ones (could have been the same one) and one small. They are very timid and it you try to get close to take a picture, they will head for the brush. Luckily, I had my good camera when we saw one out and I was able to get a few shots of him.

We really enjoyed our time with the kids. They let us come and spend time when we could and we tried to help out as much as we could as well. I especially liked taking care of Bryn. After the first night, when she saw me come in the door, she would toddle up to me with her arms up. That melt my heart! Hated to leave the kids, but we will be back in the spring.

We are headed west, spending tonight in Lake City, Florida.

Till next time. . .

Dale

Where do I start?

We drove a couple long days after we left Tab and Deanna's, but we wanted to get to Williamsburg to see the kids. Even though we would love to play tourist here, we were here mainly to see the kids. We did visit the Jamestowne Settlement, which is pretty neat. It is a re-creation of the original settlement. It is located just adjacent to the actual location of the settlement. There were costumed interpreters in the buildings and the kids had a good time. There were three sailing ships, replicas of the ones the early settlers used to immigrate here. It's so hard to believe they sailed in those little ships! I'm sure many ships were lost at sea, but I read about people like Ben Franklin who made numerous trips back and forth across the ocean. He had more guts than I!

When we left Williamsburg, we headed back to Charlottesville. We ended up staying about 10 days altogether. The kids had planned to go to Tom's folks on the weekend, but they acquired a new member of the family! They got a dog, a Poodle rescue. Her name is Pepper and she is really cute. The first couple days she was very lethargic because she had just had her spay surgery and they also did a gastroplexy. That is tacking the stomach to the abdomen to prevent it from flipping and causing bloat, which is common in larger dogs and fatal very quickly when it happens. So she was very quiet for about 3 days, then she started interacting with everyone. She seems to be really sweet. She is curious about everyone and everything and she is young enough to still have "puppy" in her. She is getting into things she shouldn't, so they will have some training to do, but they are already doing that. I think she will be a wonderful addition to the family and will enjoy their outdoorsy life of hiking in the mountains.

Terry caught a bug in Williamsburg and got pretty sick with a cold that followed him to Charlottesville. It didn't help that the weather was colder and rainy most of the time we were there either. In fact, most days, he stayed behind at the motorhome while I went in to see the kids. Each of the kids got sick as well, but their's only lasted a day or so. I sat and held Aenea as she slept with it. She slept almost 36 hours straight, but when she woke up, she was fine.

We really enjoyed our time there. I got quite a bit of grandkid time in and have the pictures to prove it! They are both sweet and loved the attention. I learned how to play some video games of Ronan's. . . well truth be told, I didn't learn much, but did try to play. In fact, Terry even took a turn at that. It was an enjoyable time to visit with them all and I hated to leave.

We did leave, though, because we are headed to Florida to see Brandon, Megan and Brynlee. They just closed on their new house and started moving into it on Wednesday. We are anxious to see it and to help take care of the baby so they can get stuff put away. We left Charlottesville on Friday, spent last night in Charlotte, tonight in Darien, Georgia, and should be in to Melbourne tomorrow.

Till next time. . .

Dale