The past four days have been full when our friend Alison was in town. Part of me is hesitant to write about it, because I'm afraid of leaving anything out. I know these words won't do it justice. But I'm gonna try :)
Alison flew into Memphis, which is a 2 hour drive from here. Memphis is a cool city and we were excited to explore it. I wish the flight times would have worked out better so she could have seen it, too!
We left our house on Saturday in the mid-afternoon. I kept the kids occupied by reading aloud to them. We read Stone Fox, a book from our homeschool curriculum. It was super exciting and engaging and wonderful but the ending was shocking and a little sad (maybe a lot sad...) It led to some angry kids but also good conversations about how things never work out absolutely perfectly in real-life and good, brave authors will reflect that in their storytelling.
When we got to Memphis, Ross, Caleb and Titus got some very necessary haircuts, while the girls and I window-shopped. It was weird to see stores and traffic again. Some stores had closed in mid-March and still hadn't reopened. Have you ever seen an Easter display in Mid-May? It was eerie.
Then we picked up some dinner at Chickfila (which we have missed!!) and ate at a small, but super cool, neighborhood park. After a bit of playing, we picked up Alison at the airport at 9pm and headed home.
Everyone was so excited, it was hard to get to sleep, but we finally did, after midnight.
Sunday morning we showed her the creek and we enjoyed chatting and splashing near it. We then watched our home church's live stream service together. In the late afternoon, we took her to JP Coleman State Park, where she agreed to gut any fish that Caleb caught. Sad for him but lucky for her, he didn't catch anything. I love how sitting by that lake feels like a trip to the beach. It's always windy and the waves crash on the rocks. It feels surreal.
Monday, Ross went to work and Alison saw what a typical day looks like for us- playing board games, reading books, building with Legos, eating lunch with Ross, corralling the kids for rest time. She blessed us Monday night by watching the older four kids for us so that Ross, Ezra and I could go out for a dessert date.
(Funny side note. Once things start opening up again, this will be a fun place to go on a date, but for now, things are pretty limited. So we just got milkshakes at Sonic and sat in the backseat of the car, taking turns holding Ezra and sharing our thoughts on what life is like for us right now. Simple and sweet and so us... :) )
Tuesday, Ross took off work and we took Alison to Tishomingo State Park. You may remember that we have been there before, and it was hot and humid. But this time, it was nearly perfect- cool and overcast. We hiked the Outcroppings Trail. Which was amazing! Several waterfalls, stone steps to climb, fallen trees to crawl over or under, a river to hike next to. Absoutely amazing and way longer than we expected! But we made it.
We picked up a pizza in Iuka on the way home and ate around the counter together. Not sure exactly what meal it what since it was almost 4 pm...
As it was her last evening with us, we asked Alison what she wanted to do and she said, enjoy the backyard with the creek, but it was getting cold... so we built a campfire and enjoyed it in some light drizzling rain. The kids had fun roasting marshmallows.
Wednesday was sad as we had to saw goodbye.
We began reading Caleb's Story on the car ride but haven't finished it yet. I think the ending will be happier though :)
We decided to sightsee some more before coming back to the house. We walked over the Mississippi River on a pedestrian bridge. So cool! Played at a park along the river. Tried some genuine Memphis BBQ and visited the largest Bass Pro shops in the WORLD!! (It's in a pyramid!) Then it was time for the two hour drive back home.
Whew! That was a lot. Now it's back to reality. Ross is back at work. I'm back to laundry and sweeping the floor. Looking forward to our next visitors- my parents!!
Alison flew into Memphis, which is a 2 hour drive from here. Memphis is a cool city and we were excited to explore it. I wish the flight times would have worked out better so she could have seen it, too!
We left our house on Saturday in the mid-afternoon. I kept the kids occupied by reading aloud to them. We read Stone Fox, a book from our homeschool curriculum. It was super exciting and engaging and wonderful but the ending was shocking and a little sad (maybe a lot sad...) It led to some angry kids but also good conversations about how things never work out absolutely perfectly in real-life and good, brave authors will reflect that in their storytelling.
When we got to Memphis, Ross, Caleb and Titus got some very necessary haircuts, while the girls and I window-shopped. It was weird to see stores and traffic again. Some stores had closed in mid-March and still hadn't reopened. Have you ever seen an Easter display in Mid-May? It was eerie.
Then we picked up some dinner at Chickfila (which we have missed!!) and ate at a small, but super cool, neighborhood park. After a bit of playing, we picked up Alison at the airport at 9pm and headed home.
Everyone was so excited, it was hard to get to sleep, but we finally did, after midnight.
Sunday morning we showed her the creek and we enjoyed chatting and splashing near it. We then watched our home church's live stream service together. In the late afternoon, we took her to JP Coleman State Park, where she agreed to gut any fish that Caleb caught. Sad for him but lucky for her, he didn't catch anything. I love how sitting by that lake feels like a trip to the beach. It's always windy and the waves crash on the rocks. It feels surreal.
Monday, Ross went to work and Alison saw what a typical day looks like for us- playing board games, reading books, building with Legos, eating lunch with Ross, corralling the kids for rest time. She blessed us Monday night by watching the older four kids for us so that Ross, Ezra and I could go out for a dessert date.
(Funny side note. Once things start opening up again, this will be a fun place to go on a date, but for now, things are pretty limited. So we just got milkshakes at Sonic and sat in the backseat of the car, taking turns holding Ezra and sharing our thoughts on what life is like for us right now. Simple and sweet and so us... :) )
Tuesday, Ross took off work and we took Alison to Tishomingo State Park. You may remember that we have been there before, and it was hot and humid. But this time, it was nearly perfect- cool and overcast. We hiked the Outcroppings Trail. Which was amazing! Several waterfalls, stone steps to climb, fallen trees to crawl over or under, a river to hike next to. Absoutely amazing and way longer than we expected! But we made it.
We picked up a pizza in Iuka on the way home and ate around the counter together. Not sure exactly what meal it what since it was almost 4 pm...
As it was her last evening with us, we asked Alison what she wanted to do and she said, enjoy the backyard with the creek, but it was getting cold... so we built a campfire and enjoyed it in some light drizzling rain. The kids had fun roasting marshmallows.
Wednesday was sad as we had to saw goodbye.
We began reading Caleb's Story on the car ride but haven't finished it yet. I think the ending will be happier though :)
We decided to sightsee some more before coming back to the house. We walked over the Mississippi River on a pedestrian bridge. So cool! Played at a park along the river. Tried some genuine Memphis BBQ and visited the largest Bass Pro shops in the WORLD!! (It's in a pyramid!) Then it was time for the two hour drive back home.
Whew! That was a lot. Now it's back to reality. Ross is back at work. I'm back to laundry and sweeping the floor. Looking forward to our next visitors- my parents!!
Yay! My turn next! We won't be coming through Memphis, but if we did I'd have to see Beale St, the Lorraine Motel, and the National Civil Rights Museum. Also BBQ!
ReplyDeleteRoss didn't want to go to Graceland?
We didn't see Beale Street, but the restaurant where we picked up our food was right next to the Lorraine Motel and the Civil Rights Museum.
DeleteRoss isn't a big Elvis fan... and anyways, all that cool indoor stuff is closed right now.
just joking about Graceland!
DeleteAnd GREAT pictures too!
ReplyDeleteLOVED reading these highlights from your last four days of outings/adventures w/Alison.....and such great pictures! Thanks for taking the time to write it and share it w/us, Dru-Lynn! (The kids are looking so grown up to me....can’t imagine how much they will have changed by the next time we see them in person!❤️)
ReplyDelete