Sharing Last Year’s Bounty
We received wonderful news yesterday. Daughter #1 and the kids got home safe and sound from their 33 day, 5700 mile adventure! I told Mr. FixIt…he had no idea what a weight that lifted off my shoulders when I saw their beautiful smiles, sitting in their driveway! She said the car fairly exploded with stuff as they opened it all up and started unloading. God is good and He kept my babies safe!
Another Day Done
I’m not ashamed to say, I didn’t do diddly squat yesterday! Well, i went to town to get my blood drawn, met up with Mr. FixIt, grabbed some lunch in the rain, took some squash from the garden over to the former Mrs. FixIt’s house and sat on her front porch for awhile to watch the rain some more. We went home. I took a nap. Then I surfed the internet. Do I buy a smaller camper this truck can easily tow? Do I buy a stronger truck with less miles and keep the camper I have? Do we fly to Colorado in September? Or do we drive? My older truck with over 100K miles on it? Or rent a car? If we drive, do I take a camper? If so…see earlier musings on camper and truck.
Forty-seven years ago, I gave birth to a little wisp of a child with hair like a golden halo and lungs like a Harrier jet. She may have been tiny at a skip over five pounds, but she could let her presence be known in five counties. Headstrong from the get go, she was affectionately called “The Cruise Director” at our house. Always ready to put on a show, she grew up and became a theater major. She and her new husband gave it their all and moved to New York but when it was time to make babies, they moved back home to Colorado.
Unless my daughter decides to spend the night and head out in the morning, the current plan is to come pick Little up and hit the road. They really want to get back to Colorado to get Big back on her training schedule. And I know they want to sleep in their own beds. They’ve been on the road for a month. We called Daughter #1 to wish her a happy birthday yesterday. Little told her she’d had an awful lot of fun here, but she was ready for her own bed. I totally get that.
Little Has Taken Archery Lessons Before
We took our time leaving the park yesterday. We said our long goodbyes to all the girlfriends who were camping with us. They all complimented Little saying how sweet, fun, and polite this little powerhouse of mine is. Makes a Nana proud of her 14-year-old Little Bear. We drove down to the Pioneer Village which was open from Noon to 3:00. I was excited to show Bear how they grind flour by water power. We picked up some things in the General Store. Little collects ladies fans and found a yellow one to match a new dress. We got a couple boxes of Cracker Jacks as a novel snack for later. I bought some grits, yellow and blue cornmeal, and two bags of buckwheat flour. We’ll have some tasty treats today.
Well, it wasn’t roughing it, by any means. But we sure had fun at Beaver Creek State Park. It’s one of my favorite places to camp…mainly because one of my besties is the Camp Host. We gathered a few of our girlfriends and had a low key get-together. Little and I went to a couple antique shops. We found a cute vintage dress and purse and an Ohio State letter jacket. Also, I’ve been looking all over for a cast iron griddle to add to Little’s biscuit baking gear. We found one at Rogers Sale for $5.00 just before they closed.
Chilling after a five hour drive…listening to a podcast.
From the time my uncle told me it was time to sell the farm, I started having a major uptick in my anxiety. I had never known a time in my life when the farm was not “home” to me. My heart was breaking. Where would I go to recharge? Where would I feel my family again? On top of that, my daughter and grandchildren were coming to see us and Little was going to stay a couple of weeks. We hadn’t seen each other in two years. Would the newly grown up teenagers like their “old Nana”? What if Little couldn’t relate to me? What if something happened to her, or me, or Mr. FixIt while her mom was so far away? It got so bad, I actually saw the doctor a couple of times because I thought I was having a heart attack.
Standing at the Foot of the Temporary Back Steps
I can’t remember the last time I actually took the whole day off. When we prepared for bed on Tuesday night, I told Little we were taking the day off and to feel free to sleep in. That we did. Poor kid keeps saying anytime we go someplace here, it’s a mini road trip. She isn’t far off. I didn’t cook breakfast…we fended for ourselves. Little packed for the camping trip, read and played with makeup all day. I pulled out my laptop and external hard drive and looked for old pictures of the farm. I want to make a memory book for the family. And I want to share some of the old photos with the new owners.
When Daughter #1 was growing up, she was the spitting image of me. From looks to mannerisms to basic interests, we were two peas in a pod. This went on till she grew up, married, and moved as far away from me as possible. Not that moving so far away was the whole point. It just so happened that an amazing job opportunity opened up and they moved to Long Island, leaving me at home with a foundering marriage and a precocious five year old. I was bereft. She learned there was a whole great big world beyond the borders of “Mom”. Which is good. She’s worldly, diverse, self-confident and can talk about anything with anyone.
What a fun day! Little learned how to make French Toast and agrees with me…the very BEST bread to use is day old homemade sourdough! It was a taste sensation. Then, without any prompting, she went and walked her two miles. I worked on a project on the computer all afternoon while Little chilled out in her room. When it was time for supper, we thought we would go into town and get Pete’s Pizza…a special treat. Unfortunately, they were closed. So, we went to Popeye’s Chicken instead, went to our granddaughter’s to see the horses and feed them peppermints, and took a ride out to the farm. I wanted to see if my cousin was having a bonfire, but I’m sure they did that Sunday night.