Florida with my mom.

     Florida has that humid, stuffy heat that like an enemy surrounds a person and leaves no room for escape. It is the kind of hug that lingers forever and becomes terribly uncomfortable and constricting. A slow death by suffocation if you will. In the midst of that heat lives my dear Grammy. A spunky, mischievous woman with eyes that twinkle and a wit like lightening. She likes to keep her house at 85 degrees Fahrenheit. It's the temperature that, if it were to speak, would boast of a woman who has fully acclimated to her climate. Anything below 85 requires long pants and a blanket. Too far above 85 and she gets slightly uncomfortable, but only slightly.
     She is part of a retirement community full of RV's and double wide trailers where an elect few reside. They have managed to break away from the cold of the North and settle, determined to live out their days under the sun. They drive around in fun (sometimes fancy) golf carts and attend weekly bingo nights at the community hall. They are a family of sorts. Everyone knows about everyone and everyone is concerned about everyone. They entertain various hobbies and every one of them has a story to tell.
     I think that's what I like best. I could sit and listen to all of that history and never tire. Stories upon stories of a different time and place, truly fascinating. I mean, being one of eleven children isn't something to snuff at. Living with your siblings, parents, and other family members in a two bedroom house? Just crazy. Learning to cook for a huge family because your mother wasn't keen on it and would trade you chores. For instance if you cooked dinner she would clean your room or do your laundry. Going to dances every Friday to meet guys. Stories upon stories.
     In the midst of the conversations we went to the pool. Caught some rays. Frequented her favorite restaurants and shops and walked around like royalty. "Oh don't you know? This is my daughter and my granddaughter and look! My first great-grand-baby!! Isn't he adorable?!!" We were the headline on the first page of the Sunday paper! Well, Tobias was, I felt like the Duchess of Cambridge when she gave birth to an heir to the throne of England (hehe). . . and that's how my mom and I spent our last week in March on her spring break. Together, with my sweet baby Tobias and my dear Grammy. Eight hours drive from Greenville, South Carolina and four hours flight from Xenia, Ohio, down in hot, sunny, Brooksville, Florida.