Christmas Coast to Mountain Jounrey Day 1

December 17, 2017

December 16, 2017

We are currently driving on Route 64 heading to the Outer Banks of North Carolina.

The children are all quiet as the just ate lunch and are listening to Lamplighter Theater You Are There – Christmas.

A few weeks ago Carl and I were discussing what we wanted to do for Christmas. Were we going to give the kids gifts? How much for each kid? What? It is always so stressful around Christmas. Even if we spend just $50 per kid that is $400. We had tossed around the idea of buying them a gift and then giving each kid $5 to buy gifts for each of their 7 siblings. That alone would cost us around $450. All told it would be almost $1000 for Christmas presents.

The more I thought about it the more I just did not feel right spending the money on things that they will forget about or break before the next Christmas. We have been so blessed. Our children do not lack for anything. They have plenty of toys and clothes. They do not really NEED anything else.

Carl and I discussed it and we decided that we just really wanted to spend time with each other and our kids this Christmas. Carl decided to take the week before Christmas off and we would travel. The initial plan was that we would go to Key West, but we found out that a lot of that area is still damaged from the hurricanes this past summer.

We decided to just stay in state and travel to do things closer to home. A North Carolina Coast to Mountain journey. Seven days traveling with our family focusing on Jesus, the real meaning of Christmas.

We were packed up and out of the house by 10:30. It is kind of great having an RV that is stocked with supplies. We just had to pack clothes and food.

After a stop by BJ’s for propane and gas and then lunch we were on the road. We listened to Lamplighter Theater’s You Are There, Christmas stories. Once that was done I downloaded The Best Christmas Pageant Ever. We have read that book for the last five Christmas seasons. The kids love that book and so do I. It was neat listening to the audio book. I have read it out loud the past four years.

We only had to stop once and made really good time. The kids enjoyed the view once we got to the Outer Banks. The drive through the National Seashore was amazing. We arrived at the campground and discovered why they told us on the phone to just come on in and not make reservations. We are literally only one of four RV’s in the park. We chose one of the oceanfront sites. You can’t see the ocean because of the dunes but it is just a short walk over the path to the ocean.

Of course, that is one of the first places the kids wanted to go. I made them promise that they would not go in the water. Surprisingly, they obeyed. I think in part because it was so cold. They had a great time and I was able to take some great pictures.

We were able to drive over to the sound side to watch the magnificent sunset. We were all trying to decide what colors to describe its beauty. We just decided to call it sunset. It was orange and pink and yellow and orange and red within a matter of minutes.

We just drove around town a bit and were not surprised to discover that most everything is closed for the season. We did find a Redbox and rented the movie Sing. We watched the movie as I fixed dinner. It smelled so good. Sausage, peppers, and potatoes. Yummy. I bought treats for each evening and Caleb picked tonight. He chose Pepperidge Farms Peppermint Milano cookies. Delicious.

While the older ones cleaned up from dinner, Carl and I took the others down to the beach to look at the stars. In all of our travels around the country I have never seen so many stars in the sky. We actually saw the Milky Way. I have never been able to really see it before. I guess the fact that there were hardly any lights and the moon is waning and the crispness of the winter night made it a perfect night to see it.

I loved hearing my children play together and laugh and just have so much fun enjoying one another. The whole family laughed even though we were freezing. Sam could not find his coat and made the mistake of coming to the beach with no coat on. I watched my sweet, compassionate 18-year old take off his jacket and cover his brother with it. My heart melted just a little. We all laughed when I looked down and noticed that Sam’s new wolf shirt was glow in the dark. It was such a special time.

Sam and I eventually headed back before everyone and were able to put some hot water on and break out the hot chocolate and apple cider. It was all ready to go when everyone else got cold and came back. Things are settling down now and the camper is getting quiet.

Was the day perfect? No.

Did we all get a little snippy with one another at one time or another? Yes.

Do we have a lot of things to work on to become a family that honors God more? Absolutely.

Did we have a fun today and build lots of memories? A resounding YES!

We focused on our family and on Jesus Christ. And that makes this day memorable in my book.

The older I get and the closer I walk with God the more I find that relationships, with God and with those He places in my life, should be my main priority. Things do not matter. Who I spend my time with is what matters. I want to spend my life pouring in to the lives of those whom I love and who God leads me to.

Take the time tomorrow to spend some time having fun with the ones you love. Give them the gift of laughter. I promise it will be one of the things you remember for Christmas’ to come.