Picnic & exploring

Today I had to get up early.  Earlier than I have in quite awhile in order to have a shower and get downtown for Sabbath School and church in time.  I made it and I enjoyed both very much.  After church, our whole group drove to Chesterfrost Park in Hixson where my brother Mark and my sister-in-law Terrie put on a wonderful picnic meal for Bryn and me.  Veggie meatballs, potato salad, assorted raw vegetables and then a triffle and cookies for dessert.  I ate so much I thought I would pop.  My mum's cousin, Alan, and his granddaughter, Brianna, drove up from Dalton, Ga. and it was really neat to meet them.  I've seen pictures and read e-mails, but had never met them in person before, even though we were so close to them for three years.

Before lunch was fully ready some of us played a game that Mark and Terrie had brought along for their kids, Tucker and Coral.  There were two ladder sort of things set up across from each other separated by several meters and each person got three balls (which were each really two balls connected with a string) to throw and see if you could land on certain rungs.  Each rung higher was more points.  It was kind of hard at first, but soon enough us older people got the hang of it and it was fun.

After playing that and then eating and visiting and playing the game again some more, Bryn and I and Jodi, Julie and Cherry decided to go explore Lookout Mountain.  Other people wanted to leave and go rest for a bit so we took off all squished into one car and found Point Park.  We were disappointed at first because we thought you had to pay to get in when we saw the turnstiles, but then we realized there were no people taking money and all the gates were open, so we just went in and really enjoyed ourselves as we walked around.  We took a bunch of fun pictures and just had a great time hanging out together.  Then we realized it was getting late so we quickly drove by Rock City and then down the other side of the mountain and back to Collegedale to change into warmer clothes.

Soon after, we left for Cleveland where my parents had their fifth-wheel parked and joined our family and Jonathan's family for a worship and then meal of hot dogs and other fire-roasted-type foods.  It was delicious and again I ate too much, especially when the marshmallows were opened!  And then we all left and now I'm about ready to fall into my bed, smoky smelling and all.  Wow, what a busy day.