Fall break begins

Friday at 3:15 marked the beginning of Fall Break. As the bell rang to release all the students and staff it was as if the flood gates burst open. Waves of human bodies of various ages flowed through the doors into buses, trucks, vans and cars. Everyone had individual plans of how they would enjoy a week of no school.
I couldn't wait for my adventure to begin. I wasn't sure what that adventure would be, but I knew it would be exciting. Okay, I hadn't planned a thing and I was bummed out because we couldn't take time off as a family long enough to go anywhere. We usually go to Disney World during Fall Break but this year it didn't work out. I made my usual errands and made supper for the family. Once we had finished eating and the dishes were done I joined my hubby in a cup of coffee in front of the television. There wasn't much on and I noticed that I felt very tired. I found this odd because it was still a couple hours until my usual bedtime, but I took a shower and curled up with a book in bed. I was reading a very interesting book about Walter Elias Disney because I really admire his vision and his work.
I woke up and to the sound of my husband's voice as he was trying to wake the girls. I must have still been dreaming because first of all I couldn't believe that he was up before I was and that he would be getting the girls up on a Saturday morning- before I was even out of bed. I could hear him and Joy whispering in the hall saying something about "her stuff". I really got suspicious now and had to get up. I tried to be quite, I know that is sorta sneaky but I wanted to know what was going on. I slipped on my house shoes and pulled a sweatshirt on over my pajamas and headed to the restroom. It was then that I noticed several of my personal hygiene items were missing from the cabinet. I slowly opened the door to walk back into our bedroom and noticed that my dresser drawers were partially opened, the closet door had been left ajar and our vacation tote was missing. This was the final straw I wanted to know what the heck was going on. I walked to the door and as I swung it open, Mike was standing right in the doorway with a smile and said, "Good morning, dear. The girls are almost ready. There is not much time to explain, but you will need to change into some traveling clothes and we need to be heading out." He walked straight into me, forcing me to walk backwards into the room and then he shut the door. I tried to ask him questions but he just kept repeating the same message only saying it somewhat differently each time. I wanted to be angry that he wouldn't let me talk but I was so shocked at his behavior. So I did as he said, I grabbed a pair of jeans and a tee shirt, some under garments and went to the restroom to change. I washed my face and brushed my hair into a ponytail. As I walked out he was at the door asking Michelle something about Ginger. I panicked, I knew that she was officially a senior dog now but was not ready to say good-bye to her. As I walked toward the door he heard me and spun around. He told me to make sure to grab my jacket and sunglasses after I put my shoes on. I asked him what was going on and demanded that he tell me right now. He said everything was already worked out but we needed to hurry. I asked if Ginger was okay. He looked surprised at my question and assured me that someone was taking care of her. By now I had put on my sneakers and was more determined to know what was happening. I could hear the girls doing something in the hallway, so I said, "Good morning girls!" to which they replied in unison, "Morning Mom!" and continued their hustling around. Mike then looked at me and said quite firmly, "Stay right here." as he walked out the bedroom door. He said something to the girls in a low whispery voice. I could tell he had not walked very far from the door so I didn't try to leave. I made the bed quickly, because I hate to think of going somewhere, who knows where, and my bed not being made. I could just imagine a firefighter bursting through the ceiling and noticing our unmade bed through the flames and then shaming us to the other firefighters later. I know that seems silly, but that's what I imagined happening, so I made our bed and picked up the socks and other dirty clothes off the floor and toss them into the hamper.
My husband opens the door and says, "Okay let's go."
We walked to the front door and set the alarm. As I walked out the front door I noticed that the Bravada was packed full of bags, luggage and two girls smiling from ear to ear. I looked at my husband and asked him, "What are you guys up to?" trying hard not to smile myself. He motions for me to get in as he approaches the driver's door. I oblige and get in on the passenger side and ask again, "What is going on?" I see him glance at the girls in the rear view mirror and they burst out together, "WE'RE GOING CAMPING!" as they start bouncing and cheering like two small kids. My husbands starts the engine and backs out. I am in shock! I couldn't believe they had kept this from me, successfully! I asked, "Lake Barkley?" they replied, "No,... Mammoth Cave!" Now I smiled, I was excited because I had wanted to go there in the future but wasn't sure when we would be able to arrange it. As we turned onto the bypass I said, "WAIT! What about Ginger?" Mike said, "Joy took her to the kennel this morning while you were getting dressed. Everything is arranged. I called and reserved a campsite with water and electricity for three nights. The girls packed the food you had on that old camping check list from a few years ago." I laughed and said, "Honey, that was more than a few years ago." As we all laughed in agreement he continued, "I packed the camping gear and pulled out our clothes for the girls to pack up with theirs. Oh, I forgot to ask, how did you sleep dear?" I gave him a puzzled look and asked, "Soundly and too long obviously, why?" They all busted out laughing and he said, "Remember the cup of coffee I made you? Well I put Tylenol pm into it. Remember when you said that you didn't care what people said, YOU could taste the difference between decaf and regular? I almost chocked on my coffee because I knew it wasn't decaf and I knew that wasn't what you tasted. I'm sorry that I had to pull that on you but you just sleep to lightly for us to do anything once you go to bed. There was no way to pack things up without you knowing it, so we had to knock you out." They all laughed again, this time I joined them and playfully slapped at him.
I was thrilled that we were going camping for a few days at Mammoth Cave, but I think I was more pleased that they had planned it all with out my help and kept it a secret from me; that in itself was shocking. This was one of best vacations that I could remember. I never realized how much planning everything by myself stressed me out. I had such a good time laughing at all the things they forgot or didn't even think about to prepare for, like utensils for eating with or extra tarps in case it rains. Sure we spent extra money to run to the nearest store to buy aluminum foil, plastic forks and spoons, dish detergent and paper towels as well as a few other things but how could I be angry they did a good job for their first time. They remember the most important stuff and the fact that they had done it was amazing to me. This is a camping trip I will never forget.

Okay, so this didn't happen, I just IMAGINED it, a girl can dream can't she?!

Tarzan-style

As a child I always wanted a tree house. I fantasized about life in a home above the ground, where you could be hidden above the world below. I enjoyed climbing trees and sitting on the branches to watch the happenings of far away. I could hide from my friends and wait for them to look for me. Sometimes I would hear what they said about me, now that was interesting but sometimes I didn't like what I heard. Anyway I always wanted to live like the Swiss Family Robinson or like Tarzan. I can remember when my dad would make a new deer stand, I wanted to keep it for myself and play in it. It was like a playhouse that he put up into a tree, perfect! I wasn't allowed to play in it though, once I turned 14 I was allowed to HUNT from it, so I did. As the years past he added carpeting to the floor and walls to help with muffle the sound of the hunter's movements while in the deer stand. He added sliding glass windows to help with the warmth and also to ward off squirrels from making nests inside the stands. They became quite comfy over the years, comfy enough that one could take a sleeping bag and stay the night in it. As a matter of face, some did.
I can not express my excitement when I discovered that Disney Vacation Club was adding Tree house villas to their resort. My enthusiasm increased by leaps and bounds when I learnt that these villas were going to be a part of our home resort, which means we have top priority for reservations and 3 extra months to reserve one. I was finally going to live Tarzan-style. Even if it was only for a short vacation stay, I would have my own tree house.

SHHH! I'm hunting adventure.

I love adventure, don't you? Every time we go to the Animal Kingdom at Walt Disney World we have to take the Kilimanjaro Safari Ride. It is almost never the same. You never know which wild animals will greet you as you explore the Savannah. The first time we took this Safari we didn't see many animals that we had not seen before. We saw Ostriches, Elephants, Crocodiles, Giraffes, and many others. The second time we went we not only saw Giraffes but was close enough to a family of 3 that we could have reached out the side of the truck to touch it (if that would have been permissible). A baby giraffe was standing directly in the roadway so we were stuck in our tracks until a park ranger could drive out on the Savannah and shoo it along. We certainly enjoyed the show as all the other giraffes stood around eating their lunch, probably wondering why the wheeled creatures won't move out of their dining room. lol!

The next time we were on this Safari we got a great view of the hippos, and wildebeest as well as other deer like animals ( I forgot their names). The last time we visited Animal Kingdom was the best of all, we saw the lions up roaming around and spotted the cheetahs. Like I said, each time we go there is something new to see.