So I'll start with Surfside Beach. Surfside has always been a touchstone for me. I'm not actually aware of when I first remember being at Surfside, but Sherry remembers it being called Floral Beach. The name changed in 1954 and I was born in 1948, so I know I was there at a very young age.

Grandpapa Morris had a beach house 2 blocks from the pier which he called The Ark. The Ark was supposedly built from an old hotel ( or possibly from boards from the plantation The Ark which was here first.) The Ark was two stories with porches on each that ran the length of the building facing the ocean. There was always a breeze on the porches. Not so much inside. The top half was rented by the week and the family stayed downstairs when visiting. The house crawled with spiders and bugs which made it interesting for me! There was an indoor tub but everyone used the outdoor shower since the tub was dark brown with stains ( I guess from the sulfa water.) Grandpapa had a hammock which was the delight of all the grandchildren.

 Surfside is known as The Family Beach to this day and was certainly so when I was growing up. The children had free rein over the beach, the woods, the sandy paths (only the main roads were paved), the pavilion and the pier. The pavilion had rides and bingo and indoor games like Skee Ball, and a wonderful jukebox and small dance floor. Soldiers from the air base came down to Surfside and loved hanging out around the dance floor. I remember a soldier coming up to me to ask me to dance and Sherry stopping him by saying I was only 9. That's what height can do for a girl!

Grandpapa gave a lot to each of his children at Surfside except Uncle Barry who was given a lot outside of Brevard. No one else built except Mama and Daddy. They decided to build while we were living in Acme, NC , and , although it was definitely a bare bones house, it was wonderful to spend as many summers there as we could. The floor was not finished so when we swept up, we would just sweep the sand through the knot holes! Sherry and I used to wonder how tall the sand was under the house when they finally floored it. There was no insulation but there were walls delineating the rooms: 2 bedrooms, a galley kitchen, and an interesting bath. Daddy scrounged for materials so the top half of the bathroom was transluscent - and noisy!  Since the bedrooms didn't have walls and there was only subflooring, we had multiple big spider families that would come out in the dark. Despite not having air conditioning, I would sleep under a full blanket with a flashlight and wake up throughout the night to shine my light on all the spider webs to get the spiders to retreat.

Despite the spiders and mosquitoes, life was absolutely wonderful there. My friend Mike and I would collect coke bottles on the beach and turn them in for cash to buy ice cream and candy. Mr. Barbee, who actually lived for awhile in a trailer on the  beach, built a bath house under the right side of the pier. Mike and I worked for him ( we were 10 years old) and made money for more ice cream and candy. Then Mike's older brother bought the bath house concession and we worked for him. It had showers and lockers for day-trippers to put there things in. Loved working there and met some interesting people.

Although I had free rein over the beach, I was not allowed to go in the water unless there was an adult watching.. Mama was always fishing on the pier and Sherry was always surrounded by a bevy of boys, so I would walk and walk and walk. It wasn't unusual for me to walk to the Garden City pier and back twice a day (4 miles round trip). I also had summer friends from Conway and we were busy seeing how many coquinas we could pile up before they would disappear into the sand. Sherry and I had a contest to see who could find the most shark's teeth. So I stayed pretty busy during those summer days and nights.

Most summers we were at Surfside while Daddy was making the transition to a new town and new house. We were a one car family, so Grandmama Coker would come down from Myrtle Beach once a week and take Mama grocery shopping and to the laundromat. The rest of the time, we hoofed it. I think Mama had as much fun as I did  since she could have fished every day of her life. We got to enjoy the spoils of that fishing and feasted on whiting, spot, and croaker fried up with grits and her hush puppies and her lettuce salad with mayo. Yum, Yum!

That's a lot! And all for now.

Day 9-Carolina Beach

Home around 9 tonight.  Forgot how many steps it takes to get up to condo. Three trips tonight. Minimum of two trips tomorrow.

Both sliding doors are open, the AC is off, and the sound of the ocean is wonderful!

We got Maybelle turned in and unpacked a few kitchen boxes before we left for Carolina Beach.

We are watching the tv and seeing what is happening in Houstonn and Austin. Wow, what a mess! Hope everyone and their homes are safe.

Day 8-Greenville, SC

3250 miles!!!

Maybelle is unpacked, my car is packed and we are ready to turn in the truck tomorrow and head to Carolina Beach. So great to be here with R and J and see their new house!

We stopped today in Brevard, NC to have some trout for lunch and ended up at the White squirrel Festival.

Over the last 7 1/2 days we:

 Drove through 12 states

Crossed 3major rivers ( Mississippi, Missouri, and the Ohio)

Crossed both Continental Divides

Went off plan and saw approximately 14 sights

Saw many many many work zones- most without any workers 

Saw. Lots of animals

Not bad for two old broads and one Maybelle

Day 7-Cookeville, TN

Just finished a delicious meal at Crawdaddies, a Cajun restaurant in the middle of the Tennessee Highlands. Ummm, bread pudding!  I seem to have a hard time with placement. Of pictures, but am nc lauding I one of the outside of the restaurant. It is such a editorial day here that we were able to sit outside and enjoy the weather.

We stopped at the welcome center for Kentucky. The center is an old home which looks very horsey/rich Kentuckian. Picture is here somehow here.

We also went to Marion, Ky which is supposed to be Amish country. Apparently not any for us, but found good food, and enjoyed being off the interstate sooo much.

Tomorrow is the last day of this trip, we hope. Looking forward to seeing Robert and Jan and their new house!

Day 6- Mount Vernon, Illinois

Despite our best intentions, we STILL were on the road until 6 tonight. We also discovered tomorrow would be a 10 hour driving day, not allowing for gas, food, etc.

So we are not getting into Greenville until Sunday ans will unload on Monday.  Tomorrow we head for Nashville, TN and, possibly, beyond.

Today was long as I said, but the days seem to be longer now. However, we had three good stops. Our first was LaSalle, Illinois, where we just happened on the Illinois-Michigan Locks.The canal was hand dug by immigrants over a three year period.  They dug a canal 96 miles long which connected Chicago to the Gulf of Mexico for the first time and Chicago became the largest port in the US around 1836. The boats carrying passengers were moved along the canal by mules and horses. No sails or motors. We got to watch one of the mules pull a boat while the captain steered only by tiller.  Wild Bill Hickok was actually a "muler" there at one time and the Abe Lincoln family used the canal, also.

The next fun thing was in Springfield, Illinois where we saw the only home Abe Lincoln ever owned. From 1844 until he became president.

Next was the St Louis Arch. Fun to see.

So, although we are pooped, we have had adventures!

Day 6-Madison, WI

The plan was to be here by two at the latest and spend time relaxing and exploring Madison which is one of my favorite towns. Got here at 6:30 instead . There were things to see and do along the way!

First stop was Mall of the America outside of Minneapolis. We weren't there to shop but t see what all the hoopla was about. The M of A is the largest mall in the world and boasts a huge 

Indoor ride/fair section with roller coasters, thrill rides, putt putt golf and even places to try our skill at hitting balls off a bear's head. The mall also has a hotel, and an aquarium.  Anyway, it was after 10:30 before we left there.

Next was the Wisconsin Dellls. The place is a throw back to old Gatlinburg with a little of Myjrtle Beach thrown in. There was even an Eagles there. ( for those of you who aren't familiar with MB, Eagles is a department store with tons of tourist things made in China and guaranteed to break in the car right after you bought them.

So, finally we are here, after eating at yet another Irish pub. The food was excellent and we are ready for down time.

We have gone almost 2100 miles in the past five days and have approximately 800 to go in the next two.

Happy closing. Your new house tomorrow, Jan and Robert and Jan, sit down and don't overdo!,

Wisconsin Dells

Day 4-Rogers, MN

By the way, saw what I think was an indigio bunting yesterday in ND. bird people am I right?

We are done for the day! The trip is beginning to tell on us so tomorrow is a short day. The picture below only shows how tired we got today- rest stop nap!

We actually had a good day, though. Went to a pioneer village and buffalo museum. They have an albino bison, but she didn't show herself. Was good to see the others out trailing around.

This afternoon, we went to a  neat kitchen shop in St Cloud and had fun getting turned around and finding our way back to the interstate. Maybelle really doesn't  like u-turns and insists they should be three point turns instead . 

Definitely on the prairie now. Beautiful small lakes with really blue water. Looks like some wheat has been planted, but apparently in this part of the state potatoes and sugar beets have taken over from the wheat.

Road work abounds in these northern states. We figure the ice and snow does a number on the roads. Anyway, our last act was to follow the night road workers onto the interstate.