My Seven Week Vacation

One of the perks of being in the teaching profession is having some extended time off during the summer. Usually by the end of May I am eager for school to be out and ready to head home. This year I was home for seven weeks.

So what did I do during those seven weeks? I relaxed. For me that meant working in the flower bed deadheading, transplanting, and trying to create a beautiful work of art through flowers. I can't draw or paint, but I can plant and organize a decent flower bed. The work is hot, sweaty, and dirty, but I love the feel of dirt in my hands and the joy of seeing a blank canvas take shape and form with color and textures. The bad part for me is I have to leave in mid July before I get a chance to see the flower garden at its peak. Pictures are okay and help me see what is developing, but nothing compares to a walk in the midst of it. I love cutting flowers and making simple bouquets to set on the table.

Besides nurturing flowers, I also nurtured my two nieces, Hannah and Olivia. While I was home my sister asked if I would "keep and eye on them". The three of us had the best of times. We glided down the water slide at Burdette Park at least a couple dozen times in a big inner tube, had a "Sister Sister" weekend, read books, attempted DDR (Hannah is good, but I suck at it), celebrated birthdays together, and snuggled. That's my favorite part.

The seven weeks went by fast, but I feel I was able to do all the things I wanted to do and see everyone I wanted to see, and shop at all the places I wanted to shop.

I needed this time to get away from Saipan for a while and be with family and friends from home. I needed to not think about school for a while too. It was nice not having to set the alarm clock and being able to sleep until I was ready to get up...which was usually around 8:00 a.m. It was nice hearing voices in the home. Even if they weren't talking to me, just knowing they were close by was comforting. Living so far away and alone, I miss those sounds.

What I will miss most is the evening times when my sister and I would sit around the kitchen table watching The Next Food Network Star on the cooking channel or reruns of Reba. This is the time when she and I could talk about important things or just have a hearty laugh. If I miss this special time together, I know she must too. I am the one who left. The chair next to her is now empty. I am back on Saipan. No more TV, no more hugs greeting me in the morning, and worse...an apartment void of voices I love to hear.

In a few weeks school will start up again and my life will get very busy. Until then, however I am still on vacation and have every intention of relaxing my body, mind, and soul.

Sister Sister Weekend

Last weekend Becky, Hannah, Olivia, and I had our first ever Sister Sister Weekend. Becky planned the whole weekend, I just went along. At first I wasn't too keen on heading down to Lake Barkley to "get away" as my sister put it. After all, coming home from Saipan was getting away for me. But I had to keep things in perspective and realize how important this weekend was for my sister.

We took a trip to Lake Barkley (about a two hour trip from home), making our first stop at Aunt Jearlen and Uncle Bill's place in Cadiz, Kentucky. Uncle Bill got his pontoon boat out just for this occasion and took us on a pleasant ride on the lake. We went as far as Barkley Lodge and then turned around and headed back to his place. At one point we stopped along a sandy bank to take a dip. Aunt Jearlen had a delicious meal of ham, potato salad, baked beans, and green bean salad waiting for us when we returned. She knew we would be hungry after our boat ride.

After saying our goodbyes to family we continued our Sister Sister weekend in Grand Rivers, Kentucky. Grand Rivers is a very sleepy little town located between Lake Barkley and Kentucky Lake. It is a great place to get away from the hustle and bustle of city life, but you wouldn't want to live there. Way too quiet for me. Most activities that go on there are connected to the lake....fishing, water skiing, boating, sailing. We found a quaint little boutique called So Kool, and it really was cool. Very charming. Many interesting and unique items are sold there that you wouldn't find anywhere else. I love Life Is Good products and I bought three Life Is Good items from there, a cool coffee thermos, a neat little book of upbeat quotes, and a cute tank. There are no fast food restaurants in this town and I think that is pretty cool too. On our first evening there we stopped by Greg's Dairy Shack for some ice-cream. Olivia couldn't eat the chocolate cone fast enough in the heat and she had it dripping all over her. The next day our parents came down to meet us at Patty's Restaurant. Patty's has the best food! Our family has been going to Patty's in Grand Rivers every year for Christmas since 1989. We love the food, the atmosphere, and most of all just being together as a family. The last few years, though we have changed the tradition from Christmas to going during the summer when I am home. I am grateful for their compromise.

After lunch at Patty's we headed back home to Indiana, satisfied with wonderful memories of our first Sister Sister weekend. Already we are planning for our 2nd Sister Sister weekend for next summer.