November and December of 2010 in Atlanta was filled with many different emotions. In November, the weekends were filled with me jet setting about the country. The 2nd weekend was filled with a spiritual high going to PWOCI Conference. This is a conference that brings together PWOCers from all over the US every 2 years. It is a time of spiritual renewal and a mix of emotions ending with a spiritual high. Upon returning from the mountain top, the next weekend was filled with a trip to Orlando with the family for a Reintegration conference (soldiers returning to family life after time overseas!) The family enjoyed some much needed bonding time at Disney and then in a wonderful 4 star hotel! It was definitely a fun time. I turned around 3 days later to get into the car for a trip to FL for Thanksgiving. Bekah flew in from Charleston and we drove to Venice with the rest of the family. We had a quick few days together and then Greg and I turned around and got on another plane to Aruba.
Aruba was the trip designed to celebrate 20 years of marriage. I don't think we should have ever come home! It was really a great trip. We enjoyed the company of good friends (Mark & Laura McCatty) who endured the coastal waterways and beautiful southern breezes with us. Scuba diving, snorkeling, swimming, hot tubs, and bocci ball were the highlights of the trip! Oh yeah and barracuda. Man that was the tastiest treat ever!
After returning back to reality on the 6th of December, an 8 hour trip back home was waiting for us! The kids enjoyed their time with grandma and grandpa but were definitely ready to get into that car and get home. I guess Gma and Gpa didn't take them out of the house except for two trips to WalMart. They were a bit stir crazy!
After our arrival back to Atlanta, Bekah came home from school a few days later, and Grandpa George arrived for a 3 week stay. It was just crazy here. Grandpa needed some entertainment so we set him up with a computer at the table. He would play "Sparkle" (his way of addressing the game Farkle on Facebook!) and check his bank balance each day (sometimes multiple times a day). He appeared to have deteriorated or maybe just given up on life being anything but eating and sleeping. Kind of reminded me of babyhood. That is pretty much what my kiddos did in their first months of life...seems like grandpa is just waiting for him time to "check out." It's actually kind of sad. I definitely don't want to be unproductive through my later years. I want to stay active and alert - being involved in my grandchildren's lives.
Christmas came and it actually snowed here in Atlanta. Apparently that hasn't happened in over 100 years! So we had a very pretty White Christmas in Atlanta 2010. Since our Thanksgiving dinner was held at the American Legion in FL, we didn't have a real dinner. So, I made the whole kit and kaboodle for Christmas. What a nice night.
December 29th Grandpa left for home but within days (the 31st) the house had another addition - Rob. Bekah's boyfriend came for the Passion 2011 conference held in Atlanta at the Phillips Arena. What an amazing time of spiritual renewal - AGAIN! I was blessed with not only one conference in two months but TWO! YAY ME!
Not completely certain how the conference affected the 2 of them, but I believe we will see if it has done anything by watching the actions of the two of them over the next few months! Much of the conference talked about the balance between what we believe and what we do. Is there consistency? So, we'll see!
The dissertation is coming along. In October 2010 I passed comprehensive exams and became a doctoral candidate. I have been working on my proposal/prospectus since then and am getting closer to completion! UGH. If only....
We are also believing we will be moving to Germany. Just waiting for those orders. As usual...we will know when they tell us. So be quiet, hurry up, and wait!
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