Thank You Uncle Chris!

We have just returned from our annual trip to visit Uncle Chris in Florida.  He just happens to live 5 minutes from the ocean. :)  As always, he gives up his bed, his privacy and his quiet home to us for a week and shows us all the great places to eat.  We always say we aren't going to eat out as much, but we should probably just start saving our breath!  With a Thai resturant on practically every corner and shrimp and catfish on every other corner, what's a person to do?

We didn't leave Indy until Sunday evening, so we stopped in Franklin, TN to spend the night.  Our next destination was Granny and Poppy's in Mississippi.  We spent the night there and visited for a while and then headed on to Florida.

My next few posts may be compared to watching slides of the neighbors family vacation in the 70's.  Here goes!

Have dolls, will travel.

The traditional front porch picture with Granny and Poppy

Callie asked me why I love the beach so much.  It's certainly not the swimming part.  I am not a good swimmer and am a pretty big chicken!  It's more about the sound of the waves, the smell of the salt and the view of endless waves and water.  I could sit there all day.  My family will tell you, I am never ready to leave.  I think it's also about the memories.  I don't know if this was my first trip to a beach, but my first memory of going to the beach was with my grandparents when I was in grade school, I think.  I was staying with them in TN and one day Granddaddy came in and told my Grandmother and I "Get packed, we're going to the beach."  And we did.  We drove to Myrtle Beach in their camper.  I remember more about riding and sleeping in the camper than I actually do the beach itself, but we had a ball.  Of all the different times I have visited "the beach" over the years, I have not one bad memory.  Even the times when the weather was colder than expected or there was too much seaweed or whatever, I can't think of the beach without smiling.