Today we lost another hour. First we lost an hour going from the Central time zone to the Eastern time zone, and then the second hour was lost thanks to Daylight Savings Time. So the children and I were hard pressed to be awake and ready for breakfast by 10 am local time. We popped out of bed with ten minutes to spare, and we hurried down to the breakfast area to grab what we could before it closed.

After breakfast we hurried to get dressed so we could get to Uncle Denny & Aunt Jan’s house for lunch. We had several stops to make on the way, so we wanted to get an early start. We picked up Grandpa and then headed to the grocery store where I found the salad items and ice cream I wanted to take to contribute to the lunch. I also bought some art supplies for Laura, since the things she brought were frustrating her. We enjoyed looking around a new grocery store and finding some fun things to buy.

Our visit at Denny & Jan’s house was so pleasant. Jan’s parents were there too, and we all had a relaxing time. Laura and Isaac were tickled with the dogs, Sawyer and Macy. Grandpa seemed very comfortable there at Denny’s, which was nice to see. Lunch was delicious; conversation was pleasant; and time flew by. Denny told hunting stories, which made Grandpa smile and made the rest of us laugh with delight.

After lunch Grandpa was quite sleepy, so he laid down while the rest of us continued to visit and drink coffee. The children did an excellent job of staying entertained. Uncle Denny and Isaac worked on cleaning up a knife that Laura had found outside, and Laura played with the dogs and visited with Aunt Jan. Uncle Denny told me more about coffee than I ever knew before, and Aunt Jan and I washed up the dishes while we visited. When Grandpa woke up, he joined us for some coffee.

Finally, when it was about suppertime, we collected ourselves and headed back home. As we were coming down the road to the nursing home, we suddenly saw a flock of wild turkeys right there by the side of the road in someone’s yard. There was not much traffic, so I did a u-turn and went back to see the turkeys again. I thought it would really tickle Grandpa to see them, since he used to point them out to us when I was younger. I also thought my children would enjoy seeing them. After we sat and watched them for a bit, a boy came out of the house and started throwing snowballs at the turkeys. I guess he wasn’t nearly as impressed with them as we were. The turkeys were funny as they hurried away from the snowballs. Finally we said goodbye to the turkeys and continued on our way to the nursing home. Mom walked Grandpa in and made sure he was all situated there before she left. But since Grandpa is the ever-gracious host, he couldn’t just stay in his room while Mom left, so he accompanied her to the door and saw her off. He reminded her to drive safely on the way home tomorrow, and he waved again as she reached the outside door. When Mom got into the van, she was unsuccessfully trying to hold back her tears. We just don’t know if this might be the last time we see Grandpa on this earth, so it’s hard to say goodbye.

Once back at our motel the kids were eager to see a show on Animal Planet that was a recap of the most interesting moments in the last 25 years of Mutual of Omaha’s Wild Kingdom. They had seen commercials advertising this special all weekend, so it was something they wanted to see. We all sat together and watched the show, and as soon as it was over the kids jumped into their swim suits and headed to the pool.

It is by the pool that I sit now, with Mom’s computer in my lap, writing about our day. Laura didn’t stay in the water long. She banged her head twice and lost interest in the pool, so she headed back to the room to keep Grandma company. Isaac felt suddenly lonely here all by himself, so when another group invited him to join their “marco polo” game, he eagerly agreed. They’ve had a nice time, and I’m glad for Isaac to get such good exercise. He had to be so quiet all day while visiting relatives, and this boy really needs exercise!

Tomorrow we head home. We’re wanting to stop at a few shops here before we start the drive home, so I’m guessing we won’t be on the road until noon or after.

This has been a wonderful visit. I’m really glad I came.

P.S. Evening update: After Isaac was done in the pool, he and I headed to the restaurant next door for a little snack. We convinced the folks there to just sell us a few frog legs without having to purchase the whole dinner entree. We got four pairs of legs (yes, they come in pairs!), and we saved a pair to bring back to Laura. Then we shared the “lava cake” dessert that they brag about. I also got a piece of caramel-apple cheesecake to bring back to the motel room for Laura and my mother.

Tonight after our snack the four of us sat and figured out our agenda for tomorrow. We set a time to be packed, a time for breakfast, and a time to be driving away from the motel. We made a list of the places to go before we leave town, and we set a goal for arriving home. By that point we were all so enthused about leaving that most of us packed our suitcases and got as much ready to go as we could. Now I’m getting tired and I’m ready to settle down and go to sleep. I’m looking forward to getting home.