August 9 - “From sea to … yep, that one - Atlantic”

After a late-night, rousing round of putt-putt golf (no idea if there was a winner. Ezra thinks it was Jachin. My best guess was Kel), I think all of us crashed for a much-needed night of sleep. 

For breakfast, Christina went over to Walmart. Eggs and biscuits. Oh! And sausage and cheese. Better’n McDonald’s. 

Our next destination was Virginia Beach. You know, as the song says, “From sea to … “  Yep, that one - Atlantic. 

But we had to make one quick stop first. Walmart. Chuckle. Hey. We were headed to the beach, but Nana and DadDad’s house was a few thousand miles away, so we HAD to get a beach umbrella and some beach toys and some sunscreen. And the big boys (read here, “Kel, too”) HAD to get another package of Magic cards for their most recent game craze. 

So Walmart in Suffolk it was. All went well, except for the umbrella. We walked all over the store, and we were just about to give up and leave, when Christina’s keen eyes spotted three of them - all open and all strapped securely to the display cases for the beach stuff on clearance. Imagine that. Beach paraphernalia on the clearance rack in early August. Kel finally convinced them to sell us one of those display models. Half price. Going to the beach in Virginia is weird.

Speaking of weird, when we finally found a place to park (that took a decade or so), the sand was deep-frying some feet. Then you came to a two-foot abrupt drop-off. Then the sand cooled a bit until you reached the wet line, when it became surprisingly tolerable. And at the water line, the water was actually cool … cold even. Very nice. 

Of course the kids went berserk. They loved the massive waves that broke barely away from the shore. Especially Ezra. He was pummeled time and time again, coming up laughing every time. 

Nana and I set up shop on our chairs under our umbrellas. It was weird. The prevailing wind was from behind us rather than coming off the water. Something gets mixed up in the rules between the Atlantic and the Gulf. That wind helped a lot though. It was mega-hot again. Kel brought us a bucket of water so we could dip our toes in the Atlantic. Nice. The cool water and the sweet gesture. Thanks, Kel. And now we can all say we have been to the actual Virginia Beach. 

We raced the hour and a half back to the condo so we could all take a shower. Last night we were graciously invited to dinner with the Link family. Nice folks. Today we are going to church with them. They also invited us for lunch. Did I mention they are nice folks?

‭‭Mark‬ ‭11‬:‭24‬ says, Therefore I tell you, all the things you pray and ask for — believe that you have received them, and you will have them.

Father, thanks for the hospitality of the Link Family. Bless them. Amen. 

August 8 - “Traveling Colonial”

All packed up and loaded up, we left the cave of the budding stalactite and floating Munchkin toilet. Next stop … Walmart. Our Eastern Wilderness guide determined that it would be best to gather supplies for lunch while near civilization. Our ultimate destination? Long ago Colonial Williamsburg. 

To achieve our destination we first had to procure safe travel passes for use upon our arrival. That necessitated connection with the proper Link. That garnered enough passes for half of us. The rest of us would have to fend for ourselves. 

It took a while, but we managed to break through the barriers before us and arrive in Williamsburg. 

It was a quaint village. It took us a bit to get used to the period costumes. I was impressed with how they were sporting them in the incredible heat. Among the highlights: 

1. A reenactment shooting of one of the cannons the early settlers had access to. 
2. Ezra being selected to go on trial in the old courthouse for price gouging. He played his role with lots of emotion. One would think he has been witness to anger and outrage in his life. Great job, Ezra. 
3. Meeting an actual Pinocchio wannabe. Looked just like him - overly long arms and legs. Come to find out, it was an educational tool designed to form every letter of the alphabet with its body. Name of Hotch Potch. Yes. I managed to locate his tiny younger sibling and rescue him. Wanna learn your letters? Hit me up and I’ll get you an introduction. 
4. We only walked 8,500 steps. A veritable day off. 

We did make our way back to the present. No human left behind. At our next hotel stop, while Kel and Christina were checking us in, a guy walked by filming the fronts of each car he passed. Me and Micah and Josiah tracked him to the activities center and asked what he was doing. He started fast talking, claiming he was doing content on social media. He turned his phone back on and began filming. I told him it was not OK for him to film the cars and the people in them, especially when he is filming minors without parent’s permission. He introduced himself, so I did the same. He then turned the camera on Micah and Josiah. Nope. Not OK. As we persisted, he started screaming that he was being harassed. 

Ultimately, we walked off. Well, not “off” exactly. The boys went back to the van. I went in to the registration desk and filed an official complaint. 

Within minutes the security truck pulled up. The two guys approached Mr. Christian Pinot and let him know he could only record himself. They talked to me next and said to call them right away if we saw him filming anything but himself.   

Whew! It was like we were trapped on an episode of somebody’s YouTube. Hope that’s over. 

Today’s plan is to go to the beach. That’s right. Galvestonians to the beach. Imagine that. But this is the Atlantic Ocean, big brother to the Gulf of America. Surely it will be different. 

‭‭1 John‬ ‭4‬:‭16‬ says, And we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and the one who remains in love remains in God, and God remains in him.

Father, thank you that Christina got to hang out with their friend, Sarah. And thanks for the history lesson. Amen. 

August 7 - “acrobatically, sillily”

We had some “hotel issues” with our room. Josiah was assigned to our sofa bed for the night. And the first issue came to light. There was a leak in the ceiling right above the bed when it was opened. But the scarier issue was happening in one of the bathrooms. 

The bathroom connected to the master bedroom had a toilet in it. I know. What’s so special about that? Well … Chris sat down and down and down. That thing had to have been cast for Munchkins. But that wasn’t the issue. See, as she sat down, the entire toilet shifted.  Not just the seat, now. The bolts were not holding anything  steady at all. The whole fixture shifted. Yikes!  

We reported the issue to the front desk. To our surprise, they comped one entire night. And meanwhile … we were careful. 

We pulled out of the hotel parking lot right at 10:30. On to Six Flags over Texas … in Virginia. 

In a word, it was hot out there. I think the kids rode every roller coaster in the park twice. Even Ezra. He was amazing. 

Chris and I made our way to the show. It was indoors, of course. A bunch of goofy acrobats, one girl who twirled hula hoops with her hands and feet as well as her hips and knees, two guys roller blading, and one guy who did tricks on his bicycle. There might have been more, but we had to leave early. I got a FaceTime call from none other than Cailyn. We hurried to the foyer, as did one of the ushers. She pretty much kicked us to the curb. Not that we argued. We’d much rather chat with Cailyn than watch people do things acrobatically, sillily. 

All was OK with her, by the way. She just wanted to show us her senior shirt that she is personally sewing. Wanted to check in with Nana to make sure she was doing it right. She’s also sewing one for a few of her friends. Proud of that girl. 

I did stumble upon a totally amazing creature as we were leaving the park. I noticed the bright yellow color from afar. I thought first that it must be Snoopy’s friend Woodstock, but as we go closer it became apparent. There before us was an actual giant yellow slug. Sadly, the poor thing was locked in a huge cage of glass, watched over by four rotating guards. We tried the door to no avail. Visiting hours were over. 

But suddenly, Kel got the attention of one of the young guards. He approached us and cautiously opened the cage, just a crack. Kel indicated that we were willing to pay the ransom/“fine” on the Yellow One. “Where can we do that?”  Glancing over his shoulder to avoid detection, he slid the cage door open just far enough to allow me in. I made my way to the Yellow One and took him into my arms. 

The ransom was paid - accepted in full by that young guard who just happened to be named Josiah. Hey. It was destiny. I just hope young Josiah doesn’t receive repercussions for his act of kindness. 

On the way home I got to know our new charge a little better. His name was Sasha. Sasha Slug. Most recently transferred from exile in Siberia. He complained a little about the extreme heat he had been experiencing of late, though it was better than the opposite extreme cold in Siberia. Just wait until you get to Galveston, Sasha …

‭‭Isaiah‬ ‭60‬:‭3‬ says, Nations will come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your radiance.

Father, thank you for all the fun these guys had at that park. And thanks for protecting us from that heat. Amen. 

August 6 - “Shark eats cat”

I have been pondering the tiny little critter I found on the floor of the baseball stadium last night. Best I can tell is, a shark swallowed a cat which the used its evil claws to pierce the shark’s body which left it in quite the predicament as it peers out through the shark’s mouth. Either that or it’s a philosophical rendering of the supposedly cute kitty’s real shark-like nature. You have to see it to believe it. Frightening, either way. 

We loaded up the van at or near the appointed time (some nearer than others). Then it was time for the amazing hotel breakfast. Except … those little waffle makers that virtually every hotel has? Well both of these were not working properly. Even with a hefty dose of the anti-stick spray, they stuck. Bad. Top and bottom. Then they shredded when we tried to scrape them out. Fortunately, they also had greasy, skinny bacon, sausage patties, and those pre-packaged cheese omelettes. Enough to get by. 

So on to … a gas station. We had to drive three or four twists and turns and even disrupted a sun-worshipper with arms uplifted at prayer on the sidewalk. But we found the perfect one. Right off the freeway that we needed to enter. Filled up and on to Virginia. Richmond, here we come. 

Well, after a stop for lunch in Gaffney, South Carolina we went to a place called CookOut. Not bad. Chris had a burger. I had a BLT with fried okra and cole slaw. I would go back. 

North Carolina snuck up on me. I didn’t get a picture of the “Welcome to“ sign, but we’ve been to Kings Mountain, so we knew it was North Carolina. That and the mountains started showing up. 

Burlington, North Carolina. Target. The older guys got some of the Magic cards they collect. No idea what those are about. None of the creatures on them can hit a curve ball. 

Oxford, North Carolina. Pizza. Nuff said. 

Sometime after 9:30, we finally arrived in Richmond, Virginia, our home for the next two nights. Today we are going to Six Flags. Not over Texas, of course. But an amusement park, nonetheless. It’s been a while for us, but these kids we are with have never been to one before. Adventure. 

‭‭Luke‬ ‭16‬:‭10‬ says, Whoever is faithful in very little is also faithful in much, and whoever is unrighteous in very little is also unrighteous in much.

Father, that was an awfully long van ride yesterday. Thank you that the kids did so well. Bless them.  Amen. 

August 5 - “Identity theft?”

Well, here’s a wake-up call for ya. Or rather a “good night, sleep tight” call. Just before going to bed I checked my email. I have to stay on top of it since that email account was hacked and everything gets sent to my trash folder. In those late-night emails I received were two from our bank. One indicated my name had been added as a payee in our online banking app. Why I would add myself to be paid by myself is beyond me. The other indicated that my online banking had been frozen because of too many attempts to withdraw amounts above the limit. I checked the accounts themselves, and sure enough, they indicated that some large amounts had been marked “approved.”  Like amounts greater than I have in the bank. I waited for them to open so I could call and make sure the accounts stay frozen at least until I can change whatever I need to change. Ain’t identity theft grand?

So back to our latest journey. We slept somewhere in Mobile, Alabama last night. Very nice hotel. Well, except that “the breakfast lady is running late and we don’t know when she’ll be here.” At least someone made coffee. 

Once we had breakfast, I called the bank. The plot thickened. Yes, money had been transferred between my accounts. But none had actually left the bank. And here’s the really crazy thing. After this apparent hack, we now somehow have more total money than we did before all this started. The bank has put a stop on everything related to our accounts until we get back into town. I told you it was crazy. Crazy weird. 

We finally got back on the road before 9. The goal was to reach the Atlanta hotel by 4 so we could unload the van before heading to the baseball stadium. Atlanta Braves baseball. 

But first … we made a quick stop for lunch somewhere in Alabama. Well, I knew where we were - Wendy’s. I just didn’t know where we were. It sure is fun to think and exist like a kid. 

We hit Georgia about 1:30. At least our clocks mysteriously changed to 2:30 about then. New state unlocked, Ezra. We stopped briefly in Peachtree City. Just a Walmart run for bathrooms. Oh, and bottles of water for the baseball game. And a Lego set for Jachin. And a hot wheels car for Ezra. And some M&M’s for Nana. Whew! “Just a bathroom stop.” Walmart strikes again. 

Atlanta was a nightmare of traffic. Totally warranted all of our years of avoiding it like the plague. But we had to wade through it get to our hotel. 

At the game we started off with about a mile hike after parking. All uphill (it was easier on the walk back). Our seats were a real surprise. We were in the Atlanta version of the Astros Crawford Boxes. Right behind the bullpen. 

That’s where Ezra spent the vast majority of his night. He stood at the edge of the seats gazing down at the relief pitchers. And lo and behold, after the game one of the pitchers tossed a ball up. Ezra had to struggle a little with the lady next to him, but he came away with the ultimate souvenir. 

Speaking of souvenirs, Jachin did his best to find one specific cap he really wanted. Sadly, they were all sold out. He settled for the newer version. Micah got a hat, too, except he didn’t have to pay nearly what Jachin did. He just got one of those orders of nachos in a plastic batting helmet. He was just as proud. I’m not sure if Josiah got a souvenir, but I did see him with a tasty looking slice of pizza. I think Noa settled for the experience. 

Oh! I forgot to add that the good guys won. Astros 7-2. The Braves won, too. 

‭‭James‬ ‭3‬:‭13‬ says, Who is wise and has understanding among you? He should show his works by good conduct with wisdom’s gentleness.

Father, thanks for the Braves adventure. Ride with us on the next leg. Amen. 

August 4 - “FIL H2O”

We got up early (4:30 for me. 6 for Chris ) so we could hit the ground running, loosely in the direction of Virginia. However …

I tried to make some coffee. All seemed OK for about five seconds. Then I was introduced to a brand new error code: “FIL H2O”. Hmm. All my grandkids were still asleep, so my go-to number one was unavailable. 

So then … I did what every tech savvy grandparent would do. I watched a you tube tutorial. Didn’t really help. Well, until the “last resort” page. That’s when they said, if all else fails, unplug the machine and shake it. Yep. Shake it. Believe me, I did that. Haven’t you always wanted permission to shake an errant mechanical beast? Didn’t help. That’s when I noticed the fine print. “If shaking is unsuccessful, parts for this model are no longer available. We recommend upgrading to another of our fine Hamilton Beach products.” Great. 

Meanwhile, up in LaMarque …

 

The van Kel and Christina rented had so many issues that they had to have it towed back to the dealer. There were no other identical vans available, so they gave us a full size 15 passenger one and told us to take out the back seat. Problem number two. Kel couldn’t get the bolts off. Guess that was a good thing for safety. Not so much for luggage. Back to the Hobby Airport  location for a third try. Oh well. I guess the kids enjoyed the extra sleep. 

We made our way up north and got as far as Buc-ees in Texas City. I know. Not very far, right? Well, after the coffee machine debacle, I figured I deserved a sip or two, even if it was industrial strength. So coffee at Buc-ees. Oh, and one of those biscuits. Bacon, egg and cheese. Chris had a breakfast taco. We were all set.

We finally hit the road at 10:45. We’re off! Aaand first stop? Rest stop. Potty break. Somewhere in some bushes. Had to switch buildings to wash hands. Odd. 

New state unlocked, Ezra. Louisiana. And first stop there? Walmart. Why not? It was lunchtime. We strolled around a bit, then gathered back at the van to have our sub sandwiches. And while we were eating, a huge alien, bug-looking creature appeared next to my coffee cup. It was quite grotesque. The kids told me a life-sized version of the critter had served as the mascot for the U.S. men’s soccer team in the World Cup. I’m surprised that thing didn’t scare the other teams into submission. Being the kind soul that am, I adopted it into our family of ramshackle critters. Welcome … Bug. I think it had a different name at the World Cup, but no. Bug. It’s gotta be just … Bug. 

Next stop - Loves in Baton Rouge. It was under construction, so the bathrooms, and the cashier and snack area for that matter, were temporarily housed in three temporary buildings. Didn’t take us long. It became a real “temporary” stop. 

But we did make a “real” stop up the road a ways outside of Covington, Louisiana. We lit in the parking lot of Target at a Chik-fil-A. 

A few unlocked states later we arrived at our hotel in Mobile, Alabama. Had to get some sleep. It was on to Atlanta, today. 

‭‭Psalms‬ ‭34‬:‭19‬ says, Many 

adversities come to the one who is righteous, but the Lord delivers him from them all.

Father, thank for a safe and effective first leg of our journey. Join us again today. Amen. 

August 3 - “Mysterious Midnight Movements”

Zak and Lindsay came to Seaside for church. The pastor greeted them with one of his longest sermons ever. Not just because of them (At least, I don’t think it was directed at them, was it Lindsay?).

After church we took them out to eat. Literally. Outside. We walked across the street to the Shrimp n Stuff food truck. Fried shrimp for three of us. Chris had grilled shrimp tacos, her favorite. 

After getting our final hugs and last “I love you’s,” they drove off into the wild northlands. Glad you two stuck around for an extra day. And Lindsay, thanks for sweeping!

Finally, we turned our attention to trip preparation. Virginia looms in our headlights. That meant a trip to Walmart, of course. We needed some snacks and Chris was looking for some shorts. We also picked up a new box fan for our bedroom. 

The other one just quit on us the night before. Sigh. I’ll miss its mysterious midnight movements. It had a way of slowly creeping away from its starting point and making its way all the way to the bed. Never actually saw it move, though. Hmm. I think I saw this episode. Any “Doctor Who” fans out there?

‭‭Luke‬ ‭12‬:‭15‬ days, He then told them, “Watch out and be on guard against all greed because one’s life is not in the abundance of his possessions.”

Father, thanks for our extra time with Zak and Lindsay. Take care of those kids. Amen.