A Wonderful Weekend

I had one of the best weekends of my life!!  

We left at 6:00 am Friday morning for an 8 hour drive to Raleigh.  We arrived at my sister's (YS) house 11 hours later.  

We knew it would take longer than 8 hours,  because we had to stop to put drops in my mom's eyes, take potty breaks and eat.  I was all for snacking in the car and pushing through.  My sister, the nurse (OS), had other ideas.  She, very wisely, kept a close eye on my mother, and stopped a few times just to walk since my mother's feet and ankles were swelling.  (There was no drama, just precaution.)

We hit Raleigh right at 5:00 pm and it took another hour to get to YS's house because of rush hour.  Granted, it wasn't like driving through Atlanta at 5:00 on a Friday but it was enough for us!  I had YS on the phone and the GPS in my hand navigating OS through the traffic.  There was no way around the situation.  We just had to wade through.  We did and it was so worth it.

We spent most of the evening discussing home renovations.  YS is in the midst of a kitchen remodel.  The appliances are installed and functioning but the cabinetry and trim work is still being done.  As a result, she has boxes of food all over the place.  

In the morning, we went to the little league game, for which we made the trip.  My nephew (N5) is confined to a wheelchair.  This league, called the Miracle League, is for special needs children.  There were only two players with wheelchairs.  One on crutches, and the rest were mobile but had other limitations that kept them from participating in other team sports.

I was totally blown away by the dedication of the volunteers that organize and play with these kids!  Each game is two innings.  Every player bats.  There are no outs.  Each player has buddy.  (N5's is his dad.)  The buddy helps to bat and navigate the bases.  Once each player has batted & most of the time made a home run, the inning is over.  

The outfielders, make a big production of appearing to field the ball, but just can't quite ever make the out.  It was almost like a ballet how they would reach to catch the ball and then 'accidentally' bat it away.  Honestly, I'd find myself watching them as much as the base runner.

The games are announced by a wonderful announcer.  He watched the game and spun it as if we were in a major league ball game.  The crowd was totally into the game.  Lots and lots of clapping and yells of support.

I cannot say enough good things about this organization.  It was a wonderful experience and worth every minute of the drive out there and back.  But that wasn't the totality of the weekend.

My niece's birthday was Monday and we tried to work it out to stay to celebrate with her, but could not.  Instead OS and I took her shopping.  We got her several new outfits for her birthday and then got mani/pedis.  I was impressed with the maturity my niece displayed in selecting the clothes she wanted and keeping up a conversation.  It was like talking to any adult, not filled with teen slang, and giggles or various teen angst.  She, and both her brothers, are incredibly pleasant company.

We ended our time there attending church together and my brother-in-law delivered the message.  It just capped off the weekend perfectly.  We hated to leave.

The drive back only took 9 hours.  We attributed it to going downhill more on the way home!!!

While I was gone, 65MD got about half way through with the backer-board.  Maybe we can start a competition with my sister to see which renovation is completed first.  Maybe that will spur us both on to action.