A Georgia Girl in Germany

After our last-minute trip to South Georgia for Granny Walker’s funeral in early November, we all really needed some “down time” with family. That’s the down side to living overseas: nothing is ever quick or easy when it comes to getting back to the States. After we learned of her passing, we packed up to catch a Space-A flight, waited at the passenger terminal for a few hours, made it onto the rotator to Baltimore, had an aborted take-off for maintenance, took off two hours later to Baltimore, missed the last commercial flights to Jacksonville (and Atlanta) that evening, spent the night at the wonderful Baltimore USO (free food, free internet, free place to sleep, free phones to coordinate the rest of our travels, and wonderful hospitality by the volunteers -- what a top-notch organization that cares for our nation’s servicemembers!), caught an early morning flight to Jacksonville, drove from Jacksonville to Blackshear, and made it to the farm one hour before the family gathered for the funeral. The trip took us 37 hours. I wasn’t worried about making it in time -- I had a peace knowing that things would work out, and was very thankful for the angels watching over us along our journey.

So, back to our “down time.” When we visited over the summer, the kids didn’t have an opportunity to drive Uncle Sam’s tractor, so they were very excited about being able to climb in the cab and go for a spin this time. Benjamin was ready to go, and ran to the tractor so he could be the first to have a turn. I don’t think Zachary and MacKenzie minded, and it made Benjamin’s day!

Just look at the smile on Benjamin's face as they drove off! That’s the look of pure joy!

Of course, MacKenzie and Zachary weren’t going to miss out on their turns.

Hmmm, minor adjustment when it was Zachary’s turn -- he had to sit in the seat instead of on Uncle Sam’s lap. They both were tickled about that! On a side note, Zachary recently commented to me that when we move back to the States he wants to live with Uncle Sam and Aunt Gail so he can graduate high school in Georgia and go to college on the Hope Scholarship. What 14-year-old thinks of these things!?!! I told him that living on a farm meant that he’d have to work on the farm. His reply: “That’s OK, Uncle Sam said I’m a natural at driving the tractor.” I had to explain that there’s much more to working on a farm than simply driving a tractor.

While we were there, my cousin’s school held its annual fundraising event -- a fall festival. It was a great evening for everyone, with tons of different activities for all ages. Best of all, the rides, games and treats were very reasonably priced -- as in one or two quarters each. Now, tell me, where else can you play games, ride horses, play with animals, etc., for mere quarters!?!! I can see how it’s the school’s biggest fundraiser, with prices that reasonable, you’re more inclined to stay longer and keep contributing those quarters!

The horses were the first thing the kids saw when we arrived, so naturally MacKenzie and Benjamin immediately headed that way.

There was a petting zoo with a cow, chickens, a turkey, a goat, and a rabbit. Zachary stayed with Owen as he approached the different animals, and MacKenzie helped Olivia with the rabbit.

I think all the kids really enjoyed their time with the animals (except Benjamin, who wasn't interested at all -- he stayed on the playground climbing and jumping).

Uncle Sam’s favorite part (aside from watching his grandkids, grand-niece and grand-nephews) was the cake walk. After a few walks, most of the kids were walking along with him. No one in our clan won a cake, but they all seemed to enjoy walking around to the music and trying to take a seat when the music stopped. Here’s Zachary, Claire, Olivia, Ava, Benjamin and MacKenzie waiting to see if they won on this go-around.

MacKenzie decided she wanted a henna tattoo while we were there, and finally settled on a turtle. This photo shows the henna still on her arm before we wiped it off to reveal the tattoo. It actually lasted a good week before it slowly faded away!

As we left the festival, Ava had to ride the horse one last time (so did MacKenzie and Benjamin).

We were in Georgia just before Veterans Day, and there were gourde-men dressed up and on display around the town. I liked this soldier saluting and holding a flag. Very patriotic!

Before we packed up and left the farm for our trek back to Germany, I had to get a photo of the kids with Nana and Papa. Benjamin’s the only one standing on a rock ... yes, Zachary and MacKenzie are each that tall!

And the final shot of Nana and the kids walking down the dirt road. I suspect that Zachary will be taller than Nana next time we take this photo!

We headed to Charleston to catch a C-5 flight back to Germany. We had a super-early show time, but fortunately the kids were able to catch a few zzz’s before time for us to board the plane. Nana loved that they all wanted to cuddle with her.

Labels: Benjamin, MacKenzie, Nana and Papa, Stateside visits, Zachary