This morning I realized that it has been a while, 3 weeks since I last posted. Oh my goodness where does the time go? Where does my discipline go?

I have been on the move. I left my niece’s home at the end of the third week of March. All the grandparents descended on Ohio and it was time for me to give them room. Room to love their grandson and their children.

I had some time to visit with my sister, Ruth. We haven’t seen each other in a few years. It was nice to have the time to spend with her and her husband, Joe.

Ward is doing well. His first three month CT scan came back clean. Yes!!! All of us are breathing a sigh of relief. He will continue with frequent scans until he is three. I wonder if we will need to breath a sigh of relief after each one.

After leaving Ohio, I headed south. It was cold up north and snow was expected. I wandered my way through the New River country in southern West Virginia. It was day of beautiful waterfalls and water. I rolled through close mountains and gorges until I crossed the border of Virginia. All of a sudden the vistas opened up and I moved into rolling country.

Afrter spending a few days in Charlottesville I drove to North Beach, MD. I spent a few days with a long time good friend, Joy. We have been friends since high school. The two of us drove to Raleigh, NC to spend Easter with her family.

Best Buds

The thing you must remember is that I am now on the east coast. The states back here are close together, especially when you look at them from north to south. It is not like California here. It does not take two days to drive through one state. In six hours Joy and I went from Maryland to Virginia to North Carolina.

Whirligigs

My Easter was marvelous. I have not seen Joy’s sister since high school. Dee and her husband, Ken were delightful. They were the perfects hosts. We biked the greenway twice while we were there. It is pretty cool to accesss a paved bike system from you house. It was really nice. They toured us around Raleigh. We spent a part of day in the town of Wilson, where we met the mayor while we toured Whiligig Park.

The best fun was all the laughing and talking. We dyed Easter eggs. All of us pitched in to make a delicious Easter supper. It has been a long time since I have been part of a family for a holiday and this one was delightful. I would return again.

I left Raleigh two days ago. I am driving north to New Jersey to visit with my other sister and her family. I have been waiting for the nor’easters to clear out before I approached this area. And they are still having snow. Go figure.

Currently I am on the Delmarva Peninsula.  I crossed the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel on a glassy, still day. There was no wind to worry about on the 23 mile drive across the Chesapeake Bay. I have been wandering up the peninsula since. It has been many years since I have been out here and I am enjoying slowing down and enjoying where I am. I took time to visit one of the Nature Conservancy properties and despite the front that was coming in, took a hike through the preserve. I even saw a flock of white ibis. It was a new sighting for me and I was excited.

Last night I spent until sunset on Assategue Island National Preserve. Although I saw the ponies at a distance, remember Misty of Chincoteague?, my real joy was the birds. Many of the migratory birds are gone yet it was still great to see all the local wildlife. I was going to bike it this morning but it was 37 degrees F. I drove it. The egret rookeries were very entertaining. I also walked the Atlantic for a few miles before I decided I was just too darn cold.

Now I am rolling north and seeing what I can find to entertain myself as I drive. Elsie as always has been a delightful companion. Well mostly, she sleeps a lot. If all goes well I will take the Lewis-Cape May Ferry to New Jersey and maybe be at my sister’s tonight.

Since I left San Diego this trip has been about family. I love the ease of loving and being loved by all my families. I don’t have to struggle with what is correct. All of us just accept each other for what we are. I need easy in my life right now and family, no matter which one, helps me to be at ease in my skin, in my body, in my head and in my life. Family is not just the one we were born in to. It is friends who have been around long enough to feel that ease. I am glad for all my families.

Today I am glad for my life in all it’s imperfect and perfect forms.