Blessed Girlhood: Family-Fun

Summer is such a nice time of the year. Many families take a vacation to see relatives, visit historical sites, or just to spend some time together, but it's all fun. This year my family took a two-week long vacation to all the southern states of the USA, except for Arizona. We had an absolutely wonderful time getting to see the countrysides, the cities, relatives we hadn't seen in 15yrs, and much more! In total we traveled over 5,000 miles, drove for almost 100 hours stop to stop, met four blog-families, and took over 3,000 photos. I'll share with you just some of my favourites!

The map is marked and our course is set


Our transportation


The driver... Dad


On the road


Happy travelers


Visiting friends we met online


Cowboy Caleb is rearing to go!

Making new friends

Making dinner, giving Aunt Barbra a break.

The Dixon Chicks with Aunt Barbra


Aunt Jen & Uncle Adrain with the boys


Father Sir & Mother Dear


Grandma Starr taking Eric for a drive

I'm so thankful for the time God gave us for that trip and the people he provided to help care for our farm animals, the people we stayed with, and for the friends and family we got to visit!

August is Family Fun month so I asked some of the GGM readers if they would share a little bit of the family-fun they had this past summer. I hope you will take a few minutes to read each story and share something of your own! We love hearing from you!

A Trip To Bollinger Mill by Miss Sharla
This summer my family had a lovely visit from my great grandparents and my grandmother, who live across state. Because they live so far from us we have not been able to see them in quite awhile. While they were here visiting we wanted to keep them entertained so one of our plans was to take them to see a historic mill house and covered bridges that is about half an hour away from us. We all piled into our cars and headed out. We got a lost and had to turn around before finally made it to the secluded spot.

It was a very wonderful day, and only just a little warm but not to bad. It was so nice to be near the little river and the huge mill house that takes you back to the old dayʼs of Missouri. The covered bridge that was there, we read, is one of the four covered bridges left in Missouri.

Afterward, we had a wonderful picnic that my mom and grandma had put together, and then we went into the mill and looked around. Read how it used to run and what it produced way back when. We took lots of pictures and explored the little area around the bridge and mill house. Before we left we all went into a little antique shop (one of our favorite pastimes) and looked around and enjoyed ourselves.

It was so much fun to spend time with my family this summer. Iʼm awaiting and looking forward to the summers to come, and the time that I hope to spend getting to know my family.

Miss Sharla

Having Fun From Texas To Washington by Miss Melanie

This past May my Mom, sisters and I moved from Texas to Washington State (Dad was already here waiting for us). And we drove those 2000 looooong miles in 4 short days. Thankfully, there was lots to see (most of the time) and we even made a few touristy stops on the way so it was almost like an early Summer vacation! We spent our second morning at the American Quarter Horse Museum in Amarillo, Texas. There was so much to read there, so many fascinating stories, but we had to keep bookin' so off we went to Colorado.

We stayed the night in Colorado Springs and since we were literally less than 5 minutes away from the FOF headquarters, Mom agreed to take us the next morning. But as it didn't open 'til 10 a.m. we made our way over to the United States Air Force Academy to see the the chapel. The whole place was amazing and the chapel was really fascinating (though we didn't get to go inside). You can see my sisters and I in front of it in the picture. FOF was also a lot of fun. We got to create our own Adventures in Odyssey episode in the Kyds Radio studio, slide down a three story spiral slide and on the way out we enjoyed a Wodfamchocsod, short for World Famous Chocolate Soda.

After all that excitement we drove through the very sunny fields of Utah (which there were miles and miles of), and we experienced lots and lots of rain after that, even potential hail and tornadoes. We stayed the night in Billings, Montana and for the rest of our drive the only stops we made were for gas and meals. That is, until we reached our favorite stop of the whole trip, the last one! Because, of course, that meant home and home meant Daddy. It was a great start to a relaxing summer!

Miss Mellie

"I hear you all are coming down here after convention."

"Yuppers!" I answer with a smile.

"Why don't you stay for a month? …We'll take you all out and stuff and then you could fly back or something. Please?" What is this? My 18 year old cousin was actually begging for his little cousins to drive him crazy for a month? A whole month? My parents will never allow that. I use the 'schoolwork' excuse about having those summer assignments and stuff as not to bum him out too much.

"Hey, give it a break. No, what you need is some fun. FUN! Okay? You heard me?"

And yes, fun is what we had when my younger brothers and I arrived at my cousin's house two weeks later. We only stayed for a day and a half, but he promised us fun, even if it bit a huge chunk out of his pocket.

The entire family made our way over to 'Boomers' in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. It was a spacious, air-conditioned place with lots and lots of games. Before we hit the games inside, we made our way outside where there was a miniature golf course, a roller coaster, banana boats, etc. The miniature golf is better than it sounds. I promise! Especially when you're with a corny family with bad aim such as mine! Haha. We all enjoyed ourselves trying to get the tiny ball into the tiny hole.

We soon got tired of it and went back inside to play some games. After Air hockey, Deal or No Deal, and some other games, we went back outside. The boys went on the Banana boat, where all they do is sit in the inflated circular thing and spray each other with water. Oh how it looked refreshing! Florida is a hot place and when you're from New Jersey, heat means 'hit the water'… getting wet is awesome! We went on a kiddie ride to buy some time so the boys could dry off a little bit before heading back inside to win some tickets. We got 1,000 something tickets -- and bought harmonicas, an art kit, and a rocket launcher.

The fun wasn't to end yet. Have you ever been on a Go-Kart? I have never been on one. Ever. As I waited in line watching the others drive like maniacs on the tracks, my heart was doing some sort of a crazy rhythm. I kept turning to my other cousin, a sweet 19 year old girl, wanting to chicken out so badly. Thankfully, she kept insisting that I try it. I tried it and it was the best ride of the day! And that day was the best day my brothers and I had that week! God is good!

Miss Jocelyn Paul

Niagara Falls by Miss Joy
One treat that we had this year was to go visit some friends in Illinois and on our way back, after a few stops, we went to see Niagara Falls in New York. I had never seen the falls, so it was an amazing experience. We got to go up on the observation deck where you can see really well, and then we went for a ride on the "Maid of the Mist" boat, which takes you right up to the falls. It was awesome to see the huge, beautiful, waterfalls that God has created. Here is my sister in front of the falls. It was a wonderful experience and I am so glad that we had the chance to go.

Psalm 93:3-5
The floods have lifted up, O LORD, the floods have lifted up their voice; the floods lift up their waves. The LORD on high is mightier than the noise of many waters, yea, than the mighty waves of the sea. Thy testimonies are very sure: holiness becometh thine house, O LORD, for ever.

Miss Joy

Arlington, Washington Here We Come By Miss Eyebright

This summer, my family and I made an almost two-week trip to Washington state. We visited several friends, and had a marvelous time with each of them. On the way to visit them we got to see the inside of an old school building, a miniature Stonehenge, and see a wooden sailing ship as we ate clam chowder on a ferry. The second part of our trip was centered on the Experimental Aircraft Association Fly-In, at Arlington, WA. Being a fly-in, there were planes everywhere! We actually camped at the airport, so we were roused every morning by the roar of aircraft as they zoomed over our heads. We got to ride in a flight simulator, and had a BBQ almost every night. We were all exhausted by the time we had to leave, and more than ready to come home, but we had so much fun! We were so blessed to be able to go on that trip, and we are blessed to have wonderful friends who helped make our journey enjoyable.

Miss Eyebright

If you would like to be contacted whenever we do a GGM reader article, please email me and let me know so I can make sure to include you next time!

May your Girlhood be a Blessed one!