FLORIDA

I still can't believe I was able to have such an amazing vacation!

After leaving Brunswick, Georgia
and spending 26 hours in the Atlanta airport....

I made it to Florida.

Three days of beaches!

And ocean.

Beautiful sunsets.

And amazing friends!

Diane, me and Rebecca

Enjoying the pier on Navarre Beach

These were our hosts.

Gary and Cortney.

Cortney is due any day with their first baby.

Cortney is Diane's daughter.

They were so kind and patient.

Imagine having your home invaded by 3 middle-aged women.

Yikes.

The sand was so warm and beautiful.

I'll need to remember this day in January.

Diane feeding the gulls.

It was a blast!

GEORGIA Home of the Southern Belles

I'm home now.

Stuff hanging from these enormous trees.

Gigi says it's all over.

Kind of amazing.

Pretty sure all scary movies have this hanging from the trees. 

Very wicked looking.

While there we toured a plantation.

I loved learning about its history.

The trees just fascinated me.

All of the furnishings and everything is exactly like it was.

The China is beautiful.

Hi Gigi!

We went to St. Simon's Island.

I can't remember what Gigi said this building used to be but

I loved the colors and textures.

A row of trees.

It would be scary to walk through here on Halloween. 

Snapped Gigi in front of this viney stuff and grows on trees.

Then we climbed up the lighthouse.

I had never seen a lighthouse before.

Isn't she just the cutest!?!

The view of the ocean from the top of the lighthouse.

The view to the bottom of the lighthouse.

Gigi the tour guide!

We also had lunch with this lady.

Miss Ella.

I work with Miss Ella's niece.

It was an interesting coincidence Gigi and I discovered several years ago.

I blogged about the discovery four years ago.

Wow. We've known each other for a longer time than that.

Blogging is amazing.

Really bad blurry cell phone picture of the three of us.

Miss Ella is the sassiest 80 year old I've ever met.

Apparently you can't visit the south without having true Southern food.

Harry and Travis and Harrison and Gigi's dad fixed a true Southern delicacy.

Low Country Boil.

Potatoes, corn on the cob, Sausage and shrimp boiled in a pot with 

special cajun seasoning.

Uhm. Yum!

I didn't get a picture of that.

Apparently I was too busy eating.

Shrimp.

Best food ever.

We fed the missionaries.

They really enjoyed it.

They had been doing a service project just before they came over.

There was massive amounts of food.

But we all managed to make a large dent in it.

This was my room at Gigi's.

She and Harry made me feel so welcome. 

It was the best time ever!

I'll never be able to say thanks enough for such an amazing time.

26 HOURS!!!!!

After my little Southern Belle Gigi dropped me off at the airport I went to my gate and waited to get to Phase 2 of this getaway.

And then it started to rain. 

Not like cats and dogs rain. 

More like elephants. 

After 3 or 4 delays they finally cancelled the flight. 

This was the stampede to reschedule. 

Yikes. 

I got rescheduled to fly out the next day. 

At 1:30 in the afternoon. 

Yikes. 

I called Howie panicked. 

He is also traveling for work.  

He said to catch a shuttle and go to a hotel. 

My daughter told me to rent a car and drive to Pensacola. 

I couldn't. 

The thought of doing the whole get back to the airport thing was more than I could  cope with. 

And no way was I going to drive.

I live I Idaho. 

Nothing more than two lanes on the interstate. 

Besides there were no cars to rent. 

So I stayed. 

And wandered. 

Thank goodness for my blanket. 

"Travis Griffis you saved me"

Thank goodness for my pillow. 

And my floor covering. 

In the morning I attempted to get on 2 different  flights on standby. 

No go. 

So after 26 hours in Atlanta's airport 

And an hour on the Tarmac I finally got in the air. 

If I ever see that airport again it will be too soon. 

And then finally.....

Ocean!!!!!

I have never swam in the ocean until this moment. 

I have found bliss. 

BRUNSWICK GEORGIA

The trip started with these two. 

Rebecca and Diane.

Co-workers. 

Crazy women. 

My favorite kind of people. 

I saw my very first lighthouse.

At Simons Island 

Each lighthouse had a different pattern and color of paint.

And the flashing light has a different blink. 

I didn't know that. 

Gigi my shouldabeenasister was delightful. 

I had met her a few years ago and knew she was a gem. 

I got to meet Bentley. 

Her baby.

We climbed to the top of the lighthouse.

Behind is is Jekyll Island. 

The next day we went to Jekyll Island.

We went to the Sea Turtle Center.

And watched a turtle surgery.

Only 1 in 1000 turtles that hatch will make it to adulthood. 

I ate catfish.

Yum. 

And shrimp.

They don't have yummy shrimp like that in Idaho. 

It was such a great time!!!!!

Thank you Gigi. 

It was a trip of a lifetime. 

I BLAME IT ON BLOGGING

It's been a summer of blog sisters!

It's all blogging's fault.....

That I get a photo bomb while I'm at work and Cherie stops by to see me.

But takes a Lexi/Cherie selfie instead.

It's all blogging's fault...

That Keely came to stay for a few days.

That meant we absolutely had to have Kimmie come over too!

It's partly blogging's fault that I'm going to Florida with Becca and Diane.

Because on the way to Florida I'm gonna detour and hang out with

GIGI!

And if I was tech savvy at all I would be able to figure out how to take a picture of her from another post years ago and stick it here.

But I'm not.

And I can't.

But there will be pictures.

Cuz Gigi and I are hanging out for a few days.

And Georgia will not be the same.

I'm blaming all this fun sisterhood on blogging.

(I didn't have sisters in real life.

I blame my parents for that.)