Christi and I went out west for her brother's memorial and while we were there, we got to see her parents and she got the opportunity to re-connect with her siblings, some of whom she had not seen in as much as 10 years. I flew home to take care of the rest of the family and the house while she remained in California with our daughters Harper and Farryn and our son Vaughn. They took some time for my in-laws to get to know Farryn, as she was born here in Indiana, and then they headed home, making a couple of stops on the way.
They drove like fiends to meet up with Kaylee and the group visited Ruby Falls in Tennessee.
Kaylee, Harper, Farryn and Vaughn at Ruby Falls
From there Kaylee returned to her duty station and Christi and the littles continued on home via the Blue Ridge Parkway seeing some awesome mountain views and taking in the local flavors such as boiled peanuts, venison jerky and bringing home an excellent custom roasted and ground organic coffee for me. Harper even got in a little bit of driving practice as she now has her learner's permit.
Although it started with a sad occasion, Christi made the most of things by seeing her family and enjoying just a little time on the road and away from the daily grind at home. I'm very glad she got to go, and amazingly proud of her stepping out of her comfort zone and driving much farther than she ever had on her own before. I'm a little JELLY and needless to say, I missed her and the kids tremendously, but I'm happy they enjoyed the trip.
