Savannah, Georgia Part II

There are so many beautiful things to see in Savannah.  Here's the famous Magnolia flower.  

 I didn't realize magnolia's were a tree and that the flowers are huge- Here's Mr. Rights hand to show you just how big this amazing flower is...

 There are also some amazing parks- or "Squares" here in Savannah. One of the most famous is Chippewa square where the movie Forrest Gump was filmed.  This sign sits where the bench was located where Forrest Gump tells his life story.  The bench is now in a local museum.

 Here's a picture further away so you can see the statue that's in the background of those scenes

And here's a shot from the film

 This is the church that the feather floats by at the beginning of the movie- located directly across the street from the bench

 Another little piece of history is that Savannah is the birth place of Juliette Low who is the founder of The Girl Scouts.  You can tour her birth place and see the Girl Scout headquarters.

 Now, onto the scarry side of Savannah.  This sign is posted right outside our hotel entrance...

 We haven't seen an alligators, yet- but we do love staying on the river.  To really get into the "Spirit" of haunted Savannah, Mr. Right and I decided to take a hearse ghost tour.  Here's a picture of our transportation...

 A hearse that's been modified to seat 8 passengers with a fantastic view.

 The moss draped trees add to the mood

 One of our stops was the Kehoe house.

 Originally a family home, then a mortuary, now a...

 Bed and Breakfast!  The only 4 star hotel in Savannah and one of the only known 4 star haunted hotels in the United States.  So, guess where Mr. Right and I will be staying for our last night in Savannah?  You guessed it...The Kehoe house.  Who can pass up the opportunity to stay in the only 4 star hotel in Savannah that serves a southern style breakfast.

 Here's another haunted house,  the Sorrel-Weed mansion.  Lots of pictures and documentation if you look this up online.  Now they offer tours so you can experience it for yourself.   Some might say (I might say) the city of Savannah is a little weird about their dead.  Maybe it's because they turn past mortuaries into hotels, or maybe it because this centuries old cemetery

 has been turned into a city park- complete with tombs and headstones.  The best part is that you can take your kids there...

 Right outside the gate is a playground for children- can't think of a better setting. And here's another project underway...

This old building used to be a hospital for children with fatal diseases- It's now being renovated into... you guessed it!  A hotel.  Despite all the rumors, we haven't seen a single ghost and this has been one of my favorite vacations.  Hope you're all enjoying your summer.  Love, Kelly.

Can't Help But Fall In Love - Part V

I had agreed to go on another date with tall shy guy and I wasn’t sure what to think.  I was still wrapped up in the idea that I usually dated a much different type of guy.  Was this really going to work?  I sat on the bathroom counter in my apartment and applied my make-up.  I was calm, not nervous like I was before dates I’d been on with other guys.  I felt grown up and in control of my life for the first time in a long time.  There was a knock at the door, which I had left open and I quickly put my earrings on.  When I walked into the family room, he was there, standing in the middle of the room with a smile on his face and flowers in his hand.  I stopped, taken back by the handsome man standing in front of me.  How tall was he?  He looked so tall.  How was it that I hadn’t notice he was much, much taller then most men?  He turned to me when I caught a glimpse of his shoulders.  Were they really that large, that defined?  Wow!  Those were some impressive shoulders, strong and capable of holding up the world.  He walked toward me and I was taken back by his eyes.  They were so bright and the color of the ocean; in some places blue, in others green.  His eyes were gorgeous.  It took a bit out of me just to say “Hello”.

I'm just throwing random photos of our courtship into this writing exercise and since I do n't have any photos of the counselor at this point in our relationship, this one will have to do.

Tall shy guy had everything planned for our date, right down to the red handkerchief he tied around my eyes.  “Trust me,” he said as he held my hand and walked me to his car.  We drove for a while, him keeping secret about where we were going.  We arrived and he took me into a building, a farmer’s market I later found out.  Blindfolded, he had me smell fruit, touch the textures of different vegetables, leafy and spiky, and use my senses to guess what he was holding.  When I lost patience and finally ripped the handkerchief off, we both agreed we should buy every type of fruit and vegetable in the entire market.  Artichoke, squash, raspberries, exotic bananas, mango, okra; you name it, it came home with us. We cooked it and ate it, but the best part of the evening was how much I enjoyed talking to him.  He was funny, reserved, sincere and really, really smart.  So what if I didn’t cook the artichoke long enough and it was a bit raw when I bit into the yellow heart; it was still the perfect evening.

We were together every night for the entire week, eating out, taking long walks, and meeting at the library at ASU while I finished up my research on environmental sociology or rhetorical studies.  Tall shy guy was turning into someone I really liked having around.  Still, I kept my feelings deep inside, knowing all to well the feeling of going home with a broken heart.

The next Sunday, tall shy guy spoke in church, bearing his testimony about his love for Jesus and the blessings in his life.  I sat in the front row with my hands folded in my lap playing with my purse strap.  Isn’t it funny how love catches us by surprise?  At the time, I wondered if he would hold my hand again or if any other girls in the congregation liked him.  I felt a bit insecure.  What was he?  A friend?  Something more?  Surely, real love couldn’t be happening to me.  I mean really, he was just this guy who I met in the back of a car.  After his talk, he came and sat by me.  He took my hand in his and held it sweetly while my heart swooned. After church, the congregation gathered for ‘meet and greet’ pot luck.  Tall shy guy had made a pecan chocolate pie.  Yes, he cooked too.

After church, he offered to drive me home.  It was a beautiful Sunday evening in April with the weather still comfortable.  We walked into my apartment and I offered to make us a vegetable tray.  I took some celery and carrots out of the refrigerator and started chopping.  Tall shy guy walked into the kitchen to help when some thing came over me, like a magnetic pull I couldn’t control.  This man; so sweet, so gentle was also so gorgeous and standing right next to me!  He was so tall and had these long legs that went on and on and his shoulders kept screaming at me to look at his muscles and don’t get me started on his eyes.  He had once asked to kiss me and I had said "No" because I didn't want to kiss him until I knew I could love him.  It was time to say "Yes."  I turned and just about tackled him into the kitchen pantry.  I literally ran into him, on purpose mind you, because I couldn’t stay away from him any longer.  It took about one second for my lips to find his and I didn’t let go for a long time.  I distinctly remember a poem going through my mind the first moment we kissed, something like “his kiss is sweeter then wine.”  Yes, tall shy guy’s kiss was like the purest, loveliest tasting wine (funny thing is I’d never had a drink of wine) I’d never had.  The carrots and celery went untouched and we kissed.

And we kissed.

We sat on the couch and kissed.

We went in my bedroom and sat on the bed and kissed.

We went on a walk around the neighborhood and kissed, me standing on the curb to get a bit more height so I could meet his sweet lips way, way up there.

I walked him to his car to say goodbye.  He never even unlocked the car door because we were kissing.

He walked me back to my apartment door, which I never opened because we kept kissing.

At around midnight, we decided to stand in the middle of the walkway, convincing ourselves we could be rational as we said goodnight and parted ways. Face to face, on last kiss and we would walk backwards, staring at each other mind you, taking steps away from one another, small baby steps, him to his car and me to my apartment door as to not miss a single moment of seeing each other while we said goodbye.  Me reaching out to him, one last touch of his hand, he letting his fingers run through my hair, another step away from each other and it was torture that we couldn't touch each other.  He was a vision, he was my perfect match and I had to live the night without him. We just about said goodbye, when he ran back to me and took me in his arms again.  I placed my hands on his shoulders and finally got a feel of those strong muscles.  Yep, just as I suspected, they were pretty impressive.  We kissed in the middle of that walkway while the full moon shone above us.  I’m not sure how we ever pulled our lips apart that night.

No doubt there was some physical attraction going on. 

Linking up to:

Savannah, Georgia

We made it to Savannah so I wanted to share a few photos from our first days.  Let me start with the food or should I say FOOD!  Everything we've tasted has been unbelievably good. Our first meal was a low country boil from Tubby's  

Here's Mr. Right enjoying the crab legs, shrimp and sausage that are part of the boil.  We also have made it a tradition to stop and have a praline at the candy shop after each meal.

Fresh salt water taffy is also a new favorite treat 

We've spent some time down on river street- love the cobblestone walkways!

And the tree lined streets with hanging moss

Here's an old building that's been turned into a restaurant- best bisquits I've ever tasted!

Here's another Mr. Right photo- he's in front of the fountain at Forsythe park- such an amazing setting

And here's the view from our hotel room balcony. We're staying at the Marriott River Front and love sitting out on our balcony at night.

Last night the river boat drifted by and we could hear the sound of jazz music playing in the air. I'm loving this city.  Tonight we'll be attending a ghost tour- so I'll post an update in a few days. Hope you're all having fun wherever you are.  Love, Kelly.

  

To California and Back

 I tend to work best under pressure, so before heading to California for a little vacation with my family, I packed in plenty of work to finish before I left.

Come into play a couple of dressers.

They’ve been in my garage for weeks and I wanted them done before I left.

I started with the normal process; sanding, priming and painting when a friend of mine stopped by.

He was at my home to fix an air conditioner on the fritz, when he noticed what I was working on.

“What you need is a sprayer,” he said as I dipped my sponge roller into the bucket of paint.

But I don’t have an air compressor.  Instead, I have a mini sponge roller that attaches to a red handle.  Quite snazzy if I say so myself.

“I have an air compressor at home,” my friend said. “I’ll be right back.”

And before I could say anything, he pulled out of the driveway.

He was back in just a few minutes.  The dressers were ready to paint, so together we worked quite fast in getting them sprayed.

I couldn’t believe the process.  It was so fast.  It was so easy.  It was so clean, well, maybe not as clean as I hoped.

Keep in mind I had many little helpers with me; ages 7,4 and 2.

Come into play the knocked-over can of paint in my driveway.

And this.  

Eden found a pen and before I could stop her she signed a few drawers with her signature.

But in the end (and with a little more painting to clean these up) it was an amazing experience.  I’m now in the market for an air compressor.

The dressers were done and the next day my family and I headed to California. 

The cool ocean air combined with blowing bubbles of our third-story balcony was a great way to start our trip.  

Later, we explored the tide pools

 and played in the waves.

Some of us just wanted to play in the sand,

With a little convincing she finally went with me into the water, but wasn't too sure about it.

The counselor and I concluded years ago the best part about being on vacation is watching our kids.  

We love when their faces light up, 

and watching them experience something for the first time, like being chased by a wave

or catching a wave.

 

Of course the uninterrupted playtime is a perk too.  

The counselor and I pushed the double stroller up the cliff at the end of our playtime and concluded that was the best workout of our life.

Next, off to Disneyland where about a million other people had the same idea.

Remember my post about The Opposite of Thrifting, yeah, that's Disneyland in a nut shell, but you can't put a price tag on dancing with Princess Aurora.

,

or meeting Eeyore.

Eden would've been happy to stay on this carousel all day.  

She screamed like a girl when I took her off, so we went back in line again and again.

Reef and Mayer were good sports about it, riding the carousel multiple times too.

The boys and I were soaked after white-water rafting.

And where was the counselor?  He took Eden to meet Tinkerbell.

Later we met with Mickey and Minnie,

and where was Eden?  She finally crashed.

Eden saw many of the princesses, 

and was able to meet some too,

but at the end of the day, she just wanted to get back on the carousel.  

She is the sweetest princess of all.

Finally a family picture with all of us.  

With a family this size, it's almost a miracle when this happens.

We had a great time and are happy to be home.  Summer is officially here!