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The mix of family, food and friends has been rich....a happy melange of reminiscing and memory-making on this "island of ours". Everyone has taken a turn at prepping food with the guys favorite meal being the midnight raid-the-fridge tradition. (Some things never change.) 

A twilight cookout at the pier with island dwellers our family met at the exact spot some twenty-four years ago celebrated our friendship that has been treasured over decades. Although our children who used to frequent the playground and ice cream shops together are all grown, our grands were introduced to this precious family who has always wrapped the Scheidtlings in the loving embrace of this island paradise. 

The careful reader will notice the attentive crew of lifeguards who are surely not eating and drinking coffee on the job. Can you tell that the uncles vie for the attention of the littles and compete for their favor? And just how many Scheidts does it take to electronically rewire the house so we can watch a DVD?!?!

And for those of us who are not getting much sleep, well, who cares? There's never a lack of volunteers to sponsor a short Scheidt during nap time. 

Sea Breeze and Salt Air

Ahhhhhhhhh......waking up at the beach with a whole day ahead. The visual delight of a garden bouquet, the aroma of coffee, snuggling children yawning and stretching, good-morning hugs and breakfast at one's leisure. 

This day held all the sensory delights of island perfection. A pack of tall sweaty sprinters returning from an early morning run. The smell of sunscreen slathered on bodies. The crunch of gravel as our little entourage trudged off through Spanish moss-laden live oaks to play at the shore. Tingly noses and shoulders, kissed by the sun. 

As if on cue, the afternoon thunderstorm drove us back inside for a deliciously dreary afternoon of games, playful tussling, reading, art projects...and more coffee.  (Rumor has it that some people even got a nap.)

Our evening meal was Mexican fare on a grande level, topped off by root beer floats ala Granpa's secret recipe. Mmmmmmmmmm.....mmmmmmmm. Tradition at its best.

(Oh, and we plan to get our green and yellow vegetables tomorrow. )

Let the Fun Begin

My man and I, along with seven-eleventh of our kids and theirs--twenty-nine Scheidtlings in all--descended on this unsuspecting, tranquil island today. Here we are on our beloved St Simons where our children grew up exploring tide pools and collecting sand dollars especially during April when we annually moved to our home-away-from-home for the month. 

The occasion is a family reunion, the likes of which we have not seen, since Mandy and Chad's family moved to Thailand two and a half years ago. Here, they were married on the same beach where Mandy took her first steps. Here, we are reconnecting and reminiscing and rebooting. (Notice the lack of familiar "R&R" terms. Is there any chance we might be evicted on our first day for rambunctious reuniting?!?!)

The Sassy Peach Cottage is our gathering place. There was great whooping and hollering and hugging as each carload arrived and greetings were shared throughout the day. The decibels surely exceeded those registered at a Cape Canaveral rocket launch. 

There were some silly antics with the room assignments.

We may be missing our doggies left behind.

And we might have eaten a few cookies.

Tomorrow will surely include exploring the beach and fishing pier. Throughout the days ahead, aunts and uncles will, no doubt, tell tales on one another regarding childhood clandestine activities while vacationing, delighting the kids. Parents will introduce their offspring to bike trails and the light house and the ice cream shop. 

But for today, we hung out at the house in two's and three's (and four's and more) just sharing those intimate moments we have missed. Grandmoni might be pinching herself.

Happy days.

Places to Go, People to See

It would not feel like summer without a visit to the Stone Mountain Lazer Show. The last time this gaggle of girls was rocking and rolling to the strains of Elvis and and Ray Charles singing Dixie and  Georgia on My Mind was three years ago at a family birthday celebration. Parents and grandparents sit back and wonder if, at the cousins next meeting, because there is so much space and time between, there might be awkward silence and reserved reticence at reconnection. Not so with this crew. They seem to pick up right where they left off, not missing a beat (quite literally).

June 2012

June 2015

We called in the experts to share their resourcefulness in prep for experiencing the Los Trompos (spinning tops) exhibition on view at  the High Museum. Granpa and our friend Jan helped us with the delicate balancing act of perfecting our own little spinners which made the interaction with the people-size tops extra specially fun.

In addition to a docent tour through parts of the permanent collection, we took in the show, both historical and whimsical, that commemorsts the 100th anniversary of the Coca Cola bottle. (Grandmoni loved being with these young museum enthusiasts recalling her days on staff in the education department at the High.)

And to top off the week of culture and refinement, we stopped by for tickling, pizza, games and craziness with two uncles and an auntie.