Last minute company

Whew, as much as I enjoy having company over, it is always nice for them to go home.

Se got home from vacation on Saturday the 9th, and Sunday, one of the friends that was feeding the critters for us stopped by for a couple of hours. He was on his way home from Springdale and decided to stop by for a visit. He was here for about 5 hours and it was enjoyable, and then he went on home. Then later that night, we got another email from our friends at the lake. They had decided to take their vacation in Little Rock this year, but unfortunately, their son had a bicycle accident the previous Friday that required surgery on his leg and wouldn't be able to get around with them. They asked if he could say with us while they did all of their running around. Of course, that was a no brainer, and I told them that there was absolutely no reason for them to stay in a motel when we were only about 30 minutes from everything they wanted to see and do, so I told them they could stay here. (They really don't have much money, he is on disability and she is a waitress) So they arrived about 8:30 Tuesday evening. Their injured son is about the same age as my son and they get along great. I think they spent most of the time playing on the game consoles and the computer.

The rest of the time, our friends spent running around Little Rock, seeing the sights and doing things they do not get to do in the very small town they live in, you know, the Zoo, an Art museum, a baseball game, the Mall, and they spent one afternoon at the $1 movie theater. I would feed them before they left and when they got home. They felt really guilty (for no reason) about eating our food, so on Friday night, our other friends (that fed the critters) joined us and we all went out to eat. We left the kids at the house and ordered Pizza for them. Their ages are 17, 16, 16, 14, 13, 13, 11, and 10. So 5 pizzas. Us 6 grownups actually got a night out. And our vacationing friends insisted on paying for the meal. So we insisted on paying for our bar tab. A good natured argument ensued and we graciously paid for our own drinks.

They had to leave fairly early on Saturday since a she had to be back at work at 3PM. The girls were hugging and claiming that they would miss each other. The boys were like "Dude, later man". We agreed that the Labor day weekend would be at the lake (their house) and that we would see them in a couple of weeks. Our other friends left around 7:30pm. And the house is quiet again.

But school starts tomorrow. So today will be busy getting everything ready for that.

So, a s a short recap, a week in Florida, a really long drive home, visitor, a single day to ourselves, then 5 extra people, then, 10 extra people, then quiet again. But there are still dishes to be done, laundry to be done, floors to be done, bedding to wash and put away, school clothes to pick out, back packs to clean out and restock, and hopefully, somewhere in there, we can take a breath.

But you know what, I still would do it again.

Vacation / Back to school

We are back from vacation and I must say that a good time was had by all. No sunburn, no one got sick or injured, and we managed to actually relax and have fun. The only bad thing that happened was the condo didn't have an internet connection, but I can't really say that was a bad thing. Being unplugged for a week probably did all of us some good.

Since we have been back, we have only had 1 day that we haven't had visitors. But here again, that isn't really a bad thing. My husband going back to work hasn't been just loads of fun, but hey, when is it ever?

Now I really have to think about back to school. Classes start back on the 18th and the kids are far from ready for that. My daughter has only been home for about 19 days all summer so she is really wanting some relax time, but I just can't see that happening. Most of the school supplies from last year are still usable, and I bought them paper and pencils last spring so there is still plenty to start school. Both kids have Army Surplus backpacks that are darn near indestructible so we are good there too. I have been picking up clothes for them on and off all summer so no school clothes to buy either. The only thing we will really need are shoes. My son's are very well air conditioned and would almost qualify as sandals at this point. All in all, this will probably be the most pain free "back to school" we have ever had.

Since my daughter is a senior this year, there will be a lot of expense for her. Senior pictures, cap and gown, invitations, prom, not to mention the college application fees ($40 at her favored school) , ACT fees, SAT fees, and the fees for sending her transcripts to the colleges she will be applying for, expenses to visit with the recruiters, and tour the campuses.

And yesterday, I received a notice of Jury Pool selection. I can't tell you how thrilled I am about that.

I will almost be a relief for school to start back. I might actually be able to get something done around the house.

Vacation Time!

I have been somewhat lax in my postings lately and I apologize. It has just been incredibly hectic around here.

My daughter has been at Arkansas Governor's School all summer and we finally got to retrieve her on Saturday, my mother had a heart attack last Thursday, the kitchen sink backed up on Sunday and we had to call a plumber, and we are trying to get everything ready to go on vacation. Just the laundry is a daunting task. But hopefully, when we get back from Florida things will have calmed down enough to get back in the grove before school starts.

We wouldn't be able to afford a vacation like this, but we had a bit of luck. We got suckered into buying a timeshare a few years and we have never used it. We kept rolling over the points hoping to find a good deal on somewhere we actually wanted to go but it never happened. It is just really hard for us to decide in October where we want to go the next summer. But the resort company we are with just opened a new resort in Panama City Beach FL last fall and they didn't have time to get the ad for it in the catalog for this summer so they were calling folks to see if they were interested. We didn't have enough points to book it outright( we had lost some due to expiration dates) but we could buy the extra points we needed for $350.00. That is a week in a brand new condo directly on the beach for $350. That is less than what 3 nights in a moderate hotel would cost. That is 6 nights for $350. And because it will have a kitchen, we will not have to eat every meal out like we would in a hotel.

Granted, i am sure we will eat out some, but every night for 4 people in a vacation area can get stinking expensive. But now we can go to the grocery store when we get there and buy a week's worth of food for less than what 1 day would cost us eating out. I am sure we will still eat out a few times but we won't "have to" if we don't want to.

I am sure we will be spending most of our time on the beach. We might try a deep sea fishing trip or a trip to the Gulfarium, but I figure most of our time will be in the water. Maybe a round or two of mini golf and a trip on the go-carts. But we are taking a couple of games like Trivial Pursuit and Pirates, and maybe some videos, but the biggest part of our time will just be chillin'.

We can vacation on the cheap a lot more than a lot of folks. We don't like having a tight schedule to abide by and having to be going and doing all the time. It isn't really relaxing if you spend all of your time running around. I am fine just floating in the surf on a boogie board or soaking up the rays. The kids have already started singing "Barracuda" in preparation.

It should be a good trip. And I am sooo ready for it.