Sisters Week

My mother-in-law has a time share condo in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee. This year, most of my sisters-in-law were able to meet up for a few days and hang out together at the condo. It was quite cozy (small) but we were able to sleep six adults and a baby in a pack 'n play. (Emily got to come along for the 1st Annual Sisters Week.) I flew into Charlotte where my SIL Janice and her family lives. My first adventure started while I had a layover in Cleveland, Ohio. Emily did really well on the first leg of the flight. She made all sorts of friends on the airplane and at the airport as well. My flight leaving Cleveland had been delayed about an hour which turned out to be a blessing. While we were waiting Emily had a diaper blow-out. I was in the bathroom changing her diaper and clothes (always, always be prepared with an extra outfit!) when she started crying really hard. So hard that it made her throw up. All. Over. ME. Luckily I hadn't put her clean clothes on yet but I just stood there in the bathroom trying to figure out what to do next. There was vomit all over me, all over the floor, and a little bit on her legs and socks. I took her to the sink to wash her off and a lady in the bathroom offers to help me. I am so stunned as to what just happened that I blurted out, "I don't have another shirt to wear." (Hmmm. Always be prepared with an extra outfit.) As I'm washing Emily off I am trying to think how I am going to get all this vomit off me and still be able to wear the shirt. The sweet lady in the bathroom hands me a shirt and asks if it will work. I was torn between feeling bad about taking another woman's shirt and really wanting to have a clean shirt to wear. At first I started to refuse but she really insisted. (Luckily it was a long-sleeved shirt that fit instead of a tank top or something.) Then the lady proceeds to clean up the mess all over the bathroom floor. I tried to stop her from doing my dirty work but she kept telling me to take care of my baby. It all happened so fast and I really think I went into a state of shock for about two minutes. The next thing I know is my baby has clean clothes on, I'm wearing a stranger's shirt, and the bathroom floor is clean. We still had a few minutes to wait for our plane to board and everytime I saw that woman I would get all teary-eyed. She just saved my life (not medically but emotionally.) I wonder if I would have done the same thing she had done for me. I pray that the Lord will bless that woman with anything she wants!

The next day after arriving in Charlotte Janice and I were off to Pigeon Forge. It should have taken us about three hours to drive but since there was a rock slide on the freeway we ended up having to detour which added about three more hours to our trip. It was a lot of fun driving with Janice. I don't think that I have ever spent that much time alone with her in my life but the conversation never dragged. We definitely had some good laughs!


In Pigeon Forge we met up with Mama Jean, Samantha, Liz, and Angela. We went shopping, ate lots of junk food, stayed up WAY too late, watched movies (the BBC variety that are about 7 hours long - seriously!), we talked, we bonded - all of it was great! I can't wait to do it again.
Some of the movies we watched: "Cranford" (5 episodes, 60 minutes each), "The Bleak House" (391 minutes), "The Proposal" (108 minutes). Sadly, we did not have enough time to watch our traditional movie "Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice" (300 minutes) but we had to at least have our picture taken with it on in the background. [In this scene Mrs. Bennett is having an "episode".]