Our Trip

We recently returned from Florida after visiting with Martha for a few days.  We left last Friday night after Jack's championship soccer win.  It was quite chilly watching the game wrapped in a blanket.  We made it to South Carolina before stopping for the night.  By the time we reached our destination, it was over 80 degrees and sunny.  Aahh.  I'm happy to say that Martha seems to be doing fine.  She was much frailer and smaller from the last time we saw her 2 years ago.  Martha is currently in rehab and has PT twice a day.  She cannot return to her apartment until she can move around on her own.  She is so weak that I don't see that happening anytime soon.  She's anxious to leave.   She loved seeing everyone.  She was amazed at how much the children had changed, Seth especially.  He always seemed to be her favorite.  She also remarked at how beautiful Eva was, how handsome Jack had become, and how stubborn Joy was.  "Mike had seen better days" according to Martha.  She always had a knack for speaking her mind.  By our third visit, I think she was tired.  The children were a bit rowdy for her.  Between Jack and Seth whipping around her room in her wheelchair and the girls wanting to play in her handicapped potty chair, Martha had had enough.  We probably should have broken up our visits with just half of our family at a time.  We all had a great time, and we're praying about visiting in the springtime.


We had a full day at the beach before the waters got choppy from tropical storm Ida.  The girls enjoyed their first beach experience and did much better than I expected.  Seth, Jack, and Mike made it to the beach the following day without us girls.  The winds were high and the sand blew pretty hard, so we decided to stay by the pool.


Eva and her special sea urchin


My handsome boys


I love the delight on the girls' faces




Every child needs to be buried in the sand.


Doing his favorite thing.






Yes, Joy's napping.


Eating alligator