Mama, Brittany, packing for five plus two, Maggie

Mama and Jake were at his house last night watching television the last time we talked. Since I did not get a late night message from Mama I am assuming her time was pretty well taken up for the remainder of the evening. The plan still is to go to church tonight in Somerset and leave from there in the morning. Mama has confirmed her flight time and I trust everything will work out well for her, Jake and Chase to come home. I am ready for her to be back.


Brittany called last night and told me she would be here this evening. Maybe Mama told me but I do not remember. Andrew left for New Jersey a few days ago and she is packing up for the trip to Florida for the wedding. I cannot imagine how full her car is going to be. Mama was playing with the idea of sending some of our things with her and we still may, but I am not looking for that to play out well.

Lucy will be coming with her and will stay with us until we go down to join the confusion in Cori’s house in Florida. That trip is tentatively planned for the 18th. Mama and Jake will go to the farm early while I work and Chase looks for a job in Amarillo. We will follow mid next week so I can work out of the Decatur office for a couple days before we head south. So far the plan is coming together. Still no word on getting Josh there.

I still have no idea if I will be able to get five persons, two dogs and all the paraphernalia Mama wants to take with us in the little van. Me, Mama, Jake, Chase, Victoria, Rosie and Lucy will all need to share the space. With the way the little car looked as we traveled to and from Colorado – a six hour trip – for the two days we spent there, I am not looking forward to the exercise. This will be packing for a wedding, a two week stay with Cori and Nate and the kids and several day excursions to the beach.

We will have to take two vehicles to the beach but that will happen only after we get there. I have to get everyone and everything there in order to have it to split between the two vehicles after our arrival. Added to the confusion, we are planning on Grandpa doing a good bit of work to the little van before we leave. It is always “fun” doing these things but this could be “extra fun.” I am always amazed how it does work out – at least until the hang up clothing and the pillows start to accumulate. Jake will not be with us coming home. He will fly out of Pensacola to meet his family somewhere in south Florida where they will be on vacation. That does not necessarily equate to me being able to see things in the rear view mirror on the drive home.

Maggie called yesterday and she and Aaron have just returned from a visit to his family in Tennessee. Aaron’s mom and dad, Beth and Stacy Ledford, are on their way to a new assignment in California so they all met up at the folks place in the Tennessee hills. Maggie talked about driving off road in the Toyota Land Cruiser Aaron’s dad has restored – maybe she only drove it on the hard roads, I get mixed up. But she did talk about how beautiful the views were from the more remote locations near the grandparents; waterfalls, quiet streams and mountain vistas that went on forever.

She jumped from there to Aaron’s deployment. He will be going out about the same time we are leaving for Florida and will not be back for several weeks. That time at sea could be extended if they have to render aid to anyone affected by a hurricane. Then she talked about her plans should a hurricane head her direction. Sounds like she has everything worked out – at least a skeleton outline in the event she is in the path of danger. She has to take her cats with her if she were to make such an escape and I told her if things get really desperate I have a couple very good recipes for cat so packing them along would be a really great idea.

It never hurts to be prepared.