Although I didn't sleep much, I did have an interesting dream before we got up at 6am. I was driving the minivan and we were already in Vero Beach. I'd run out to do an errand or something. For some reason I ended up in a wooded residential area, going down a large hill (which don't exist in Vero). For some reason my brakes weren't working very well. I somehow ended up driving the van out of control into the water. I made it out of the water, but the van was gone. I didn't know where I was really (since I'm new in town) and had no idea of how I was going to fine Jonathan and the boys. Dripping wet with only the clothes on my back, I look to my right and strangely see the guys playing in the water, as if nothing in the world was wrong. I realized that everything was going to be just fine (although the problem with the van wasn't resolved!). Allegorical for how I feel right now? Could be.
We arose and quickly set to getting out the door as fast as we could. We ate a quick complimentary breakfast in the hotel lobby, then rapidly gathered up our things and headed out. We had 175 miles to go, and we had about 3 hours in which to do it.
The reason for our tight schedule was the space shuttle Atlantis. For months we'd heard about it's scheduled launch. It was supposed to launch on a couple of occasions, but weather and mechanical problems kept delaying liftoff. We earnestly hoped that we might have a chance to see the launch, but we didn't know anything for sure. Finally a launch window of Wednesday-Friday was announced. When our departure from Winston-Salem was delayed by a day, it looked like we were going to miss it. But then for some reason they decided to extend the window into Saturday morning. The launch was scheduled for 11:15am. We had a shot.
So we intently drove down I-95, hoping to make it in time. Then something interesting happened. We got about 22 miles down the road, over the Florida line and to the airport when I realized that we'd left our Dell laptop in our hotel room. There was no other option--I had to turn around. The group went on without me, and the hotel was alerted to my arrival. I recovered the laptop, but I honestly didn't know if I'd lost my chance to make it to the shuttle launch on time. I'd lost about 45 miles and 45 minutes of time.
Fortunately it was a Saturday, so I-95 wasn't very busy. Except for downtown Jacksonville, I kept my speed right around (or above) 80mph the whole time. My heart was racing the whole time, worried I wouldn't make it and concerned about driving so fast. The amazing thing was, even though I was going fast, plenty of people were blowing right by me! (I was told later that this is common.)
As the miles went by, I was constantly making calculations in my mind, wondering if I could make it. I had to go 175 miles in less than 3 hours. And as we got closer to Titusville, FL, it looked like I'd make it. I pulled into our meeting place at 11am (we were meeting Jonathan's Florida cousins there), I jumped out of the car, we all crossed the street (with the cat in her carrier!), found a good viewing position by the water, and the shuttle went up at exactly 11:15am!!! It was absolutely amazing! What a way to start our days in Florida!
Jonathan's cousins Jeff and Francis Lipscomb were our hosts in Titusville. It was great to see them again, as we'd visited with them on a trip to Florida in January. The Lipscombs had known about the "Grand Scheme" before most of our friends and family did. I was so happy to hug them, because seeing them meant we'd made it to our goal!
The launch was a pretty special thing-- the pad was far away, but the whole event is so huge, we could still see the ship and feel the rumble remarkably well. Jonathan had Matthew on his back with binoculars. I had the cat in her carrier, as leaving her in a hot van wasn't an option. Everyone took tons of photos and video. It was a beautiful day, with a few clouds in the sky. What a joyful time-- I felt as if the Lord said,"See, I saved this for you-- welcome!" So amazing.
After the launch Shirley bought the guys commemorative shuttle T-Shirts. We then went on to a seafood restaurant for lunch. We got a super-long booth table and had a great time visiting with Fran and Jeff and talking about the launch. During our meal I stashed Callie under the moving van, in the shade and enjoying the breeze.
Fran and Jeff decided to join us in Vero Beach to see our new home and help us move in. We had about and hour left to go, so we were there in no time.
As we pulled into town, it amazed me that JH and I had only been there days before, securing housing. And now here we were with our family and the moving van. Amazing!
We pulled into our street, 6th Place and found the other rental home next door with a moving van as well! Our behemoth of a truck blocked the entire road-- thankfully our neighbors across the street have a pull-through circle driveway, so people could still get through on the road.
We immediately set to work on unloading the truck. Our realtor Vicky Nagy arrived with our paperwork and key, so we were in and unpacking pretty fast. I thanked her for all her work and talked about how she's made such a difference in our lives and how I didn't think our meeting on the internet was an accident.
Shirley and I ran to Wal-Mart with the kids to get a few basic supplies. Milk, cereal, sandwich fixin's, garbage can, etc. That would be the end of the rope for Shirley-- she was totally wiped out and it was time to stop. She gave so much to this project, and going to the store would be the last thing. Not long after we returned from our shopping trip, the truck was done and everyone was heading out. We took a group photo out front, kissed everyone goodbye, and went our separate ways. What a whirlwind-- what amazing help from such amazing people! Thanks so much to everyone!
JH and I ran out to return the rental truck, and as I write this a week later, I don't remember much about the rest of the day. I know we came back home and waded through boxes and began the process of putting things away. We had sandwiches for dinner, I think.
And that light, as I rested in our bed, I marveled at what had happened. There we were-- hundreds of miles away, with the boys, the cat and all our things, safe and sound, in Vero Beach. Amazing. Incredible. We were slam-out-tired, but my, were we grateful!
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