We left the campground early to try to get ahead of the storms that were headed our way. We made it up into Georgia before it started raining and did it ever rain. We were hearing loud rumblings of thunder even above the noise of the motorhome and rain. Then we heard a very loud crash and saw lightening hit the wires beside the road right beside us. There were sparks flying ... a scary sight.
We made it to Twin Lakes Campground in Cummings, GA late afternoon, set up, and drove down to Aaron and Titina's. Titina's parents and aunt were there. Everyone was busy doing something to get ready for Arthur's first birthday party. Aaron had built a Brazilian Barbecue (Churrascaria) from cinder blocks and was rewiring the projector in the movie theater which required removing some sheetrock which Ted helped with.
After Titina got home from work, I went with her to pick up the kids from day are. Pietra saw me, yelled "Grammy", and ran over and jumped in my arms. It was the first time she had done that and it was such a good feeling. We see her so seldom and don't speak the language she uses most so it is hard to connect with her. As I write this, I am so sad that I may never really get to know my only granddaughter. Arthur, on the other hand, still lets me rock him to sleep and play with him.
Friday
Friday was a busy day setting up for the party. I added yellow daises to the flower boxes by the front door; Ted and Aaron worked at patching holes in the wall, finishing the barbecue and getting the tables and chairs. The rest of us worked on food, decorations, party favors and setting up. The whole day is pretty much a blur but we do know we were really tired from running up and down stairs (which we are not used to) by the time we got back to the motor home late that evening.
The morning was busy with last minute details. The theme was "The Little Prince" and Titina and her mother had made a wall hanging of a scene from the book. They also had large photos of Arthur and Pietra on the walls. Besides all the Little Prince hats, plates, napkins, etc., Titina had saved dozens of Gerber plastic baby food containers that she covered in fabric and ribbons and filled with M&Ms that had Arthur's picture on some and Arthur's 1st year (or ano) on others. What a great party favor and wonderful recycling effort!
The party was a big success with about fifty people attending. The guys doing the barbecue did a great job and the rest of the food and desserts were yummy. The kids (including Aaron's best friend, Scott) all had fun running between the bounce house and the movie theater. Most of the people were speaking in Portugese but Ted and I managed to find people who would speak to us in English. After cleaning up, we were again beat by the time we got back to the motor home.
Sunday
When we arrived mid-morning, Pietra greeted me with "Happy Birthday Grammy". They all sang happy birthday in both languages and I got some lovely gifts. There was a lot of food left over so Aaron fired up the grill and cooked more of the wonderful beef. A few friends came over and we had a more relaxed party. The patio under the addition and the new back lawn make a great place to entertain. What was really special was they let me have Arthur all day because it was my birthday. He is such a happy, affectionate little guy. They also kept saying "Grammy" to him so he would learn to say it. Titina's mother and I have a bet as to whose name he will say first. Of course, I will lose as grammy in Portugese is Vovo, two repeating syllables like mama and dada. Oh well...
Monday
Ted went to Aaron's in the morning to pick up Titina's parents and aunt so they could see our new motor home. They don't have the road system in Brazil to support having RVs but are interested in our life style. When we took them back, Carlos left for the airport and the rest of us went out for lunch. Ted and I went back to the motor home and Aaron joined us before going to the Best Buy in Cumming to look at computers, my birthday present to myself. We looked at computers and I picked one out but they didn't have it in the store. We decided to go to the Best Buy in Alpharetta but on the way, Aaron got a call that Arthur had a fever so we turned around and picked the kids up from day care. Aaron suspected that it was from teething (he did have two new teeth showing through) and within a few hours his fever was down and he seemed himself again. After dinner Ted and I went out to get my new MacBook Air which is as light as a feather compared to my old dog of a Dell. It was really difficult saying goodby to the kids as we won't be seeing them for quite a few months. Thank goodness for Skype.
Tuesday
On the road again... We drove to J. Percy Priest Lake which is just outside Nashville, TN. The spring greens of the trees were beautiful coming up through the mountains and there were wildflowers beside the road. It was a glorious day for traveling and we arrived mid-afternoon. It is a beautiful campground where all the sites are manicured. We are on a hill looking across the boat ramp at the water. It is a little windy to be putting kayaks in this large lake. Ted spent a long time talking to Verizon trying to figure out why our data usage is so high and then we walked around the campground loop and down to the lake which is high but not really flooded.
Love the picture of you two holding the birthday boy!!!
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