Abounding Joy

There are weeks that happen with so many joys it is almost impossible to recount them all. This past week was one of those weeks. I laughed more than I have in a long long time, and it felt great.

A beautiful view, perfect weather with fun new friends is a true blessing. 

Saturday: We started our girls trip to the beach and made it to the tank farm on 65 until traffic virtually stopped . We finally inched over and managed to get off the interstate in Alabaster stayed on the back roads until we were almost in Clanton. Once back on we managed to stay in traffic snarls until we hit Montgomery where it was just slow traffic the rest of the way to the gulf, making the trip to the beach the longest I have ever driven.  We kept wondering where all the traffic was coming from only to find out the schools in Georgia were out for fall break, and every person in the state was headed for an early October vacation. (Once home I realized half of Tennessee was out for fall break and many districts in Alabama were out for the same. No wonder the traffic was so bad.)

We grabbed dinner at Harpoon Harry's (less than stellar) then hit the grocery store for a few essentials like Diet Coke and Hershey's toffee chunks. If you have not tried them yet,  do yourself a favor and buy some as soon as possible.

Sunday: We woke, the the weather was just drop dead gorgeous, and the gulf was calm and clear. Sissie and Kim stayed at the condo while Sluggy and I went to the grocery store to pick up some things either we had forgotten of were not available at Walmart's grocery.  (Who does not have cucumbers or tomatoes? Walmart) Afterward we stopped at the fish market to pick up some shrimp and smoked tuna dip. (I think I was the only one who loved it, but that was fine with me) The rest of the day was spent either on the beach,  resting, or sunning.

Kim cooked a delicious shrimp and pasta dish.  Thank you Kim!

We rode up the beach to grab some ice cream, but the place we were going was closed, so we went to Publix and Kim and Sluggy grabbed a variety of delicious ice creams.

Monday: We drove over to Destin for some outlet shopping. I am not much of a shopper so I sat in the parking lot while waiting for the phone call to pick Sluggy up. Then she and I explored Destin while the professional shoppers continued doing their damage.

We drove around stopping at  McDonald's to get Sluggy a half cut tea. Naturally she got out of the car at the drive through window and found a handful of change on the ground.

When it was time to pick up Kim and Sissie (both serious shoppers) we went to a little oyster bar and grill with Kim's SIL who lives in Destin.

After lunch it was time to head back to Panama City Beach. There was a ton of conversation and laughs before eating the leftover shrimp and pasta. 

Kim's SIL and BIL drove over to see Kim, while Sissie, Sluggy and I sat on the balcony talking. 

Kim joined us after her in laws left and though I will not relay the topics we discussed, I will only say there was some riotous laughter. "Bless Her Heart"

Tuesday: Unless you call going out for doughnuts doing something major, the day was filled with sunning and/or beach time and eating.

Sluggy bought some steaks and we grilled, had more laughs and hit the sack.

Wednesday: First off kudos to the young men who helped us manage our overloaded hotel cart up the ramp to the parking deck.

Home again, home again! We stopped in Enterprise Alabama to admire the statue of the boll weevil and look through some shops. ( At least the shoppers looked. ) It is a quaint, very neat, and tidy downtown area. If you get a chance to visit Enterprise, enjoy the downtown area, but know in advance the boll weevil statue in underwhelming. Now the Mcweevil  at McDonald's  ( a mashup of Ronald McD and a boll weevil) was a sight to behold. Not necessarily a good sight, but a sight nonetheless.

After we left Enterprise we got caught in torrential rains that lasted for about 30 miles of white knuckle driving. I was very thankful that the car ahead of us had on it's hazard lights on and was driving slow enough that I could follow it., I could not see the road at all, but I could see the taillights. I was overjoyed when we ran out of the rain. Whew!

Thursday: Everyone left and I was a little lonely. I got the sheets washed and packed away for the next guests, then TheHub and I got Greek chicken plates from the annual greek Food Festival. Next year I am ordering the pastichio, because I thought the chicken was not as flavorful as it has been in years past. The spanakopita and tiropita  were as delicious as always, but we forgot to get baklava. I could run back down before the festival ends Saturday night to buy some, but I probably won't.

Friday: This was TheHub's birthday. I could pretend like I had done all this work around the house to make his birthday festive, but I didn't.  Instead we walked across the street to our neighbor's patio and had a class of wine (or 2)  and some great conversation before going out to eat. It was not his birthday celebration though. We are doing that on Saturday, with Son2, DIL2, and TGS..

Look for your joys: they are always out there, even on weeks that are not overflowing with them like this week was.

May all your weeds be wildflowers.

Anne

p.s.  If you are ever around Sluggy and Kim and want to amuse yourself, salt the area with a few coins.