Once again, like clockwork, we made our annual 3-week trip to Atlanta to spend time with my children in the 3 usual places as listed below:
1. At Amy's in Roswell, October 15-22 (Thursday-Thursday):
First of all, both coming and going, we once again flew Delta One,
enjoying the extravagance of good food, lying-down rest and pampering.
At our age, we've decided to choose nothing less for such a long haul!
But back to Amy: she and Nacho are the "reason for the season."
We love seeing them together.
Wasting no time, the day after arriving, Friday, I voted early in our Midterm Elections.
And, YES, this time my vote counted for the Blue Tsunami that followed after we left for home.
Each year we arrive just before Halloween and enjoy the decorations
while walking Amy's neighborhood.
And, as per usual, we partake of Amy's weekend tradition of visiting her favorite Kona restaurant...
plus a Saturday afternoon MICHIGAN football game, which, yes, we won!
These things are important, you realize!
The BIG SURPRISE this year, however, was when my sister, Ruth, and hubby Don visited us
on their way to Florida from Michigan, giving us all a chance to catch up.
Even my son Mark joined us one of the evenings.
Don and Ruth joined us for our annual tradition of eating at the Six Feet Under restaurant...
before crossing the street to walk part of the Oakland Cemetery, Atlanta's oldest park from 1850.
Don and Ruth stayed until we left for the cabin on Thursday, in order to see g'son Nicholas
that Wednesday, arriving from Houston, TX. Mark and Melissa invited us all for dinner that evening.
[left column at Amy's; right column at M&M's]
2. At the Cabin in the North Georgia Mountains near Blue Ridge, October 22-26 (Thursday-Monday):
It's our favorite "neutral place" of the trip and our 3rd time at this favorite cabin!
The place where those of us up early enough see the morning break every day!
The place where Amy still wants to cook our breakfast and dinner every day! Lucky us!
And THIS TIME g'son Nicholas (age 26) showed his own chops a couple of times.
He's now the head chef at the J Alexander's in Houston, TX, and we're all proud of him!
It's the place where we play lots of games together (mostly Swoop this time),
inside or out, if the weather is warm enough...
and evening movies, of course!
to catch up with what's going on in his life these days.
The last morning, Monday, following tradition, we ate breakfast at the Waffle House.
It still remains one of Astrid's favorite memories of the entire trip!
3. At Mark and Melissa's in Marietta, October 26- November 3 (Monday-Tuesday):
Straight from coming down the North Georgia Mountains, we drove to M&M's lovely home,
so cozy at this time of the year, especially in the evening hours.
Mark and Melissa are a good team, with Melissa cooking and Mark cleaning up.
Melissa happens to be vegetarian, but lives peacefully with those of us who aren't,
including Mark, who once again cooked a brisket on his pellet grill for their D&D group
(who ended up not coming because of "emergency" situations--long story).
Actually, we're all learning to love Melissa's vegetarian dishes!
Speaking of Melissa, she's a cat "savior," especially for the elderly ones who can't care for themselves
--in this case Lulu, who has arthritis and can't always clean herself.
This was a tender, educational experience for me to watch.
And, yes, speaking of watching, we "experienced" Mark's new home theater,
which would blow your mind if you saw it in person. OMG. What a thrill!
Once again, like last year, Astrid and I enjoyed 2 walks with Mark
along the Chattahoochee River at the Cochran Shoals Park.
How therapeutic at this time of the year!
[You can probably see from Astrid's face that she's not doing well....**]
An added highlight this year was a trip on Saturday, Halloween, to the Renaissance Festival
in Fairburn, GA, 44 miles away, a first for Astrid and me and a delight to experience...
especially as it started getting dark by early evening. A great memory!
In between everything, we played lots of 5 Crowns (Mark, Astrid and I)
and lots of Swoop (our new favorite game), even with Amy, when there were 4-5 of us.
In fact, for those who know Swoop, this was my proud moment of only 24 pts. after 7 rounds,
which is the equivalent of 0-3 pts. in a 5 Crowns game. Some of you will get it!
Too quickly it was time to fly back to the Netherlands, after almost 3 full weeks, leaving on Tuesday, November 3, Midterm Election Day, and arriving in Amsterdam on Wednesday, November 4. Just before midnight Georgia time, while on the plane, I saw the news that the Democrats had already won back the House and the Senate. And since then, all of us in Europe are breathing again!
But there you have it. Another year under our belts celebrating my family back in America, my second home! Astrid and I don't know how many more years we can make this annual trip but we will look forward to it as long as possible, thankful for the ways and means to make it happen.
[** After several months of not feeling well, and several tests later, Astrid will have a sleep test tomorrow for non-snoring sleep apnea, for which she has all the symptoms. Stay tuned.]
