We rented a house on Norris Lake in Tennessee and rented a pontoon boat for the week. The house was really great and provided a terrific haven for our families to enjoy the area. For the first part of the week, Brian's family joined us, and we had perfect weather to get some play time on the lake.
And Katy makes four blonde granddaughters...
Overheard: "This is awesome!" and "Let's come here every year!"
A family swim...Katy's not quite sure what to make of this whole lake thing...
Uncle Mark sets Carrie up for the tubing experience of a lifetime...
Aunt Kelly and the other girls watch the tubing...Katy's the only one who didn't get a turn. :(
For the 2nd part of the week, my mom and Greg and Melanie joined us. We didn't have quite as much success with the weather, but we still managed to have a really good time. We spent a lot of time relaxing at the house (evening hours watching 24 - man that show is addictive), grilling out, spending time on the water, and of course, outlet shopping. No vacation with my mother is complete without a serious shopping trip. It's just what we do. And it's a blast.
A week without the internet? Impossible...keep trying.
Mom and Mel, enjoying the scenery
I learned to drive a boat. I know, it's really hard.
Between duckies and doggies, Katy had lots of entertainment for the week.
So about that New Life Perspective I mentioned earlier... it's very strange as I look back, because as I was packing for this trip, I had this worry/fear/premonition that something bad was going to happen while we were gone. I wasn't sure what form it would take (national disaster, death in the family, etc.), but I just had this weird feeling. And then it also occurred to me that we would be gone over September 11th. And ever since 2001, I just never think that 9/11 is a normal date. There's something about it that has a gloomy cloud over it's head.
So on Tuesday, September 11th, we woke to find a forecast of rain, rain, and more rain for the day. So we decided to count our losses and take off for the outlet malls in Pigeon Forge. My mom, sister, and I took Greg's Nissan and headed for our destination. As we were making our way through Knoxville, we were in the left lane of a busy highway, passing a semi on the right. Suddenly, seemingly out of nowhere, we hit a patch of water and hydroplaned, swerving and spinning between the semi and the cement wall on the left for what seemed like several seconds. By the grace of God, we spun around and hit the cement wall head on, and somehow all that traffic swerved to miss us, and we sat stunned and panicked. We all seemed ok. An emotional wreck, but ok. I was sitting in the back seat, and was having some chest pain, neck pain, and faintness. In the next hour that was a blur, emergency vehicles arrived, I was strapped to a backboard, taken to the hospital, x-rays completed, and Brian arrived. Everything came back ok, and they determined that I probably have a fractured rib or two, and other minor bumps and bruises. Mom and Melanie had bruises and scrapes from seat belts and air bags as well, but relatively, we are amazed at how well we walked away from this accident. There were so many "what-ifs" that could have been more serious. I'm so thankful that Brian offered to watch Katy so she wasn't with us when it happened. I'm thankful that we hit the wall instead of the semi, the more forgiving of the two, I think. I'm thankful that somehow no one else hit us, which I still can't understand to this day. And I'm thankful for the emergency response team that "just happened" to be driving by when it occurred, so we had immediate help on the scene.
So on the one hand, this put a damper on our trip. We had to deal with insurance and rental cars and all this from out of state (you can read my mom's version of the story and see her new car here). But on the other hand, although it was scary, I am just. so. thankful. I really appreciate the chance to be alive today and enjoy my family and be healthy and safe. And I'll take that as a warning to be an extra cautious driver from here on out. Dually noted.
5 comments:
OH Emily, my heart was in my mouth reading the story of the crash. Thankfully you are all okay but wat a close encounter. Stay safe woman!!
Glad to hear that everyone was safe and that the rest of the trip was enjoyable. Hope you are doing well!
I hope that you are feeling ok after that accident. Thank goodness everyone was alright.
The pictures of the lake look great. Matt and I stayed in Sevierville, TN, two years ago in October (when I was pregnant for Zachariah). I love the outlet mall there. Actually I bought most of my maternity clothes at that Motherhood Maternity shop. I found some really good deals. I was just starting to show really well, so I needed clothes badly.
It's a beautiful area down there. I'm sure we'll go back to visit sometime. I'm glad you had a good time.
Emily. Oh. MY. Lord. That story is SO scary. I am so so so glad you and your family are okay. Like you said, I don't even want to imagine all the "what if"s. Whoa.
Again, so SO glad you are okay.
Now that's the kind of excitement you can do without. I'm glad that everything ended up okay. What a scary experience. We were in an accident on an icy road when Harper was about six weeks old. It was terrifying. I'll tell you, those car seats do their job, but I'm glad Katy wasn't with you.
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