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We had two weeks and didn't want to spend it all on the road so we headed out to see family and mix it up with our time. Heading up to Charleston first to see brother Dan and his wife and daughter, Pam and Danni, where we enjoyed a great seafood dinner at the Wreck of the Richard and Charlene. Not much to look at, (picture) the food was great, the prices reasonable and the atmoshpere..ahh...ahh... unique. The best part was enjoying our neice Danni as she laughed and giggled her way through her crab as she cracked the claws with the length of 1/2" galvanized pipe given her for that purpose. If you're in Charleston, ya gotta go! Just remember to take cash, they take no credit/debit cards.

Then on to Myrtle Beach for a few days at my cousin's home and some quiet times strolling the beach. Cousin Suzanne has a couple beach homes to rent for vacation, if you're looking. There
was time for walking the beach, playing miniature golf, walking the beach, catching a great movie, Seabiscuit, oh, and did I mention, walking the beach.

Vacation! A time we all look forward to and sometimes plan too well. And all those plans end up running us crazy to "get all we can" out of our time of relaxation and revitalization. Well, this year we decided to not pack so much into our time.

We wanted and needed to see family since mine all live far enough away that we cannot see them when ever we want.

Still, we needed some time for us, since that is a big part of what vacation time is about. Enjoying each other without the constraints of a schedule and work.

to the Smokie mountains to take in a bit of the fall color. Though colors were not spectacular, it was still pretty and I always enjoy the mountains. I love both the shore and the mountains, but when I dream of where I'd like to live, it's always the mountains.

We drove up through Cherokee County and western North Carolina. I was amazed at the development and the price of real estate around the towns of Cashier and Sapphire.

Then on to the Cherokee National Forest and the Oconee Whitewater Center where some of the events of the '96 Atlanta Summer Olympics where held. While the river bed was pretty low, they release the water from the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) Oconee Dam #3 upstream periodically to produce some amazing whitewater kyaking. But the major season ended the last week of September and now there are releases only on the weekend, so we missed it. Still, it was pretty cool to be there and let your imagination go wild.

Leaving the Whitewater Center we headed on to Dalton, GA and Peanuts Carpet Barn. Dalton is the carpet capital of the US with more carpet dealers than anywhere else, and Peanuts is the king of low cost carpeting. If you ever need an area rug, this is the place. Sadly, the owner, Peanut, passed away shortly after our visit a year ago, but his children are carrying on the tradition.

To look at, you'd drive by as fast as you could. But if you dared to stop in, you would find unbeatable prices on great quality area rugs, Oriental style rugs and so forth. It is the first stop for area decorators because of the broad color selection and the cheap prices.

They are basically a wholesaler but sell to the public at the wholesale prices. We picked up an 8 X 12 high quality area carpet for $45, and that is standard pricing. They price by the size so 9 X 12's are $49 and so on. Need an area rug and are going to be near northern GA? Take the time to go to Peanuts on east 76, you won't be disappointed. Be sure to take your tennis shoes and a sense of adventure.

We left Dalton and headed south on I-75 to Ocala, arriving Tuesday evening and home never looked so good. I enjoy getting away, but always love to come back home.

The rest of the week we'll sorta poke around Ocala and the area then it's back to work on Monday, rested, good memories and ready to hit it again.

From there to Wake Forest, NC and some time with my sis Jana and her sons Billy, Brandon, and Kyle, then on to Greenville, SC to see my folks.

We had an enjoyable time visiting and going to see a great Patriotic/Christian themed stage theatre called Revelation Theatre. Unfortunately it was their final show in the current location but we are praying they find a new home to continue this entertainment/ministry. It was good theatre and good ministry.

From Greenville we headed northwest