One more day

Back row:  Nancy, Sue, Florence & Mary/ front row: Mary Lou & Harriet

 It's always a fun challenge when using the self timer on your camera.   The top picture is the "final" success.  The rest were practice shots- but they were a lot of fun!

Technically, it is already Thursday - being after midnight and all.    We are leaving Ocean City and heading back to Northern Virginia on Friday morning.

This last week here has been so good for me.   I feel like I have had a chance to just breathe.   Nothing to worry about.   We have all taken turns cooking.  We have had a few dinners out too.  There has been a consensus about everything.   Not that we all do everything together all the time.  But each of us if fine with what we are doing as a group or as individuals.  

Yesterday we drove around Assateague looking for horses.  We came back to home base, each made our own lunch, sat and read or knitted or napped.  Then we all went to dinner together.   No fuss.   There are long periods of comfortable silence here.  We have watched some TV in the evenings, DVDs that we have brought.    Last night some of us played games sitting at the dining room table while others read the books they brought.

I know that we are all at different stages in our lives.  The eldest member of our group is 86.  She has to have dialysis.  She arranged to have her treatments here.  She has been driven and picked up by a couple of the women in the group- alternating who took her and who picked her up.   She is a delight.  She is so upbeat and says that just looking out the window and the water makes her really happy.

Two of the women in the group have mobility issues.  They use canes or a walker.   They are not able to just jump up and go, but go they do.  We all accommodate each others needs and abilities.

Today, several women in the group decided to go for a walk on the Boardwalk.  I am sure I would have enjoyed it.  But I decided to stay in.  I knitted.  I read.  I looked at the water. 

Tonight we watched the movie "Charade" with Audrey Hepburn and Cary Grant.  That was one of the DVDs that we had in our collection of stuff from home.  What a fun evening!  We even made popcorn.

We have not discussed what we are doing tomorrow.  We are thinking of driving to Rehoboth Beach.  We are thinking of going to a movie and maybe dinner there for our last night.

I am looking forward to going home.  I am.  But I am sad that we are leaving.  I don't want to go home to the laundry and sweeping and running around and worrying about money and paying bills and all the stuff that people always do have to do.   How can I do it all without doing the stress part?  

When we got here I was in so much pain I was miserable.  My ribs hurt on my left side- probably a pulled muscle.   I could hardly move without pain.   The pain is gone.   I think I needed to relax it away.  My sciatica has not been bothering me.    My legs are a bit sore from all the walking, but that is a good feeling, not a stress/ pain feeling.

I talked on the phone with my sister today.  That was nice and fun.  I talked with Nick too.  I love hearing his voice!   He and Austin are doing fine.  Buddy misses me.  The cats probably don't even notice!

When we watched Shirley Valentine the other evening, the character played by Tom Conti made me think of Nick.   So sweet.  So much a look alike for younger Nick.

So goodnight for tonight and then one more night here before home sweet home.

The view out our door when looking to the left