AT THE BEACH

I love being at the beach. Life is different here. If I had my way, I would live here. The breezes blowing make me more relaxed than I could ever be anywhere else. The waves are calm but I can still hear them hitting the beach. It's the best sound.
Olivia is in the pool, Elizabeth on the beach, Kristin in the exercise room, and Leah is sleeping. Not for long though, she will be awake all night. And she wants to hunt for sand crabs so she will have to wake up.

LEAVING SOON

We are leaving in less than 2 hours. I keep packing more stuff. The house is sleeping except for me. I'll sleep later. I hope the girls will sleep until breakfast. I wish it was time for breakfast right now.
Tomorrow I'll be posting from the beach. This makes me very happy.

FLORIDA

We're going to Florida. We are leaving around 2 am Saturday. At least, that is the plan. I doubt I go to bed at all. The girls are all excited. The rest of us are tired. Our Florida spot is Perdido Key. It's been two years since we have been there since the hurricane turned it upside down. Last year we took the girls to the mountains. This year they wanted to go back to the beach.
I must decide what books I'm taking. That is the most important part of packing. I can do without food and clothes, but not books. I like beach trash but only read it at the beach. I don't have anything that falls in that category, except THE OTHER SIDE OF MIDNIGHT, which I have read many times. I might read something long and involved. I wish James Michener was still alive and writing.
Elizabeth is on a quest to catch a feral kitten that has found it's way to our porch. She has been watching it for days. Now it will stay on the porch when she goes out but will run if she gets too close. It will soon let her pick it up and she will probalby take it home with her. It is a cute kitty, big ears. It can run like the wind. It lays beside the bunny cage and puts it's paw through and tries to play with Herbie Miller. Herbie is less than thrilled. The bunny is spending the week with Doris. She is also coming to feed the cats. I'm sure the little kitty will eat and be quite at home by the time we get back.
We will get home on the 28th and I go to Hindman on the 29th. Not much time to pack but I can do it, I hope. www.hindmansettlement.org The writer's workshop is my favorite week of the whole year. I'm anxious to be in the mountains.
Leah is sleeping beside me, Elizabeth is in the next room, Kristin is upstairs. Susan is reading in her room, in the bed where she slept when she was a little girl. Olivia will be here in the morning. John Michael is working tonight and may take a nap in the bed where he slept when he was a little boy. Not much has changed in our house. I like it that way.

BLOOM

It's a good thing I made pictures of the moonflower last night. Today I found it, all closed up, on the ground, and not attached to the rest of the vine. Leah says she didn't do it, but....

SIGN

Yesterday we stopped for ice cream and found this sign on the window of the drive through.

MOONFLOWER

When I went outside last night to put the bunnies to bed the moonflower was in bloom. It is the first time it has bloomed. This morning it has folded into itself, waiting for night.