The Red Head Went Down to Georgia.....

Well, actually, we went up to Georgia, but that just doesn't fit the lyrics. If you came across this grocery store, how would you pronounce it? I have been a southwestern girl way too long and pronounced it like the Spanish word for English. Makes sense right? My southern family got a kick out of that and it became the running joke of the weekend. there may have been another occasion during which I turned the word ole into ole (think accent on the e - like taunting a bull) when I saw "good ole boy" painted inside a heart on the pavement. I asked Ben was a good ole (again, accent on the e) boy was which was followed by lots of laughter. Doh.

On to the real content of this post. We took a family vacation up to North Georgia with Ben's sister and her family. We rented a cabin on some acreage and the older kids ran wild, it was great.....minus the possible concussion(s) suffered by Reid trying to keep up. The cabin was magnificent. In Alaska the term 'cabin' is loosely defined, so we always expect the worst when going into a rental situation. This place was gorgeous. Of course I only took a few pictures the first morning which I think is a testament to how much I tried to enjoy the cabin itself versus worrying about documenting every inch. Did I mention the hot tub and the outdoor shower?! Love.

Screened in portion of the porch with a fireplace. One of my favorite places to sit.

"Backyard" - the path leads to a creek

We went to a nearby corn maze. Reid had a ball leading the charge through the maze, riding the train and playing on the fantastic playground on the property. I haven't ever been through a living corn maze, the ones in AZ are always well dried out by the time corn maze season is upon us.

Piper was ready to go through the corn maze

"ginger" stalk of corn

We also hit up the Oktoberfest in Helen, a quaint little German town in north Georgia. It was definitely a festival worth checking out if you find yourself up that way.

Of course there is a Korean restaurant in the German town, but of course.

We got a chance to catch up with Ben's sister Michelle and two of her kids. I have not seen any of them since 2005 (though Ben has) and they had not met our kids yet. It was a nice afternoon of lunch and cousin play. Now that we are all in the same part of the country we look forward to seeing them more often.

Aunty Michelle and Piper

All but one of the cousins

The girls

After splitting off from the rest of the family we had a chance to check out Tallulah Gorge and falls. The weather was overcast which kept the temperatures down, something I will not ever complain about!

Overall I would highly recommend a visit to this area of Georgia if you find yourself living (willingly or not ;-) in the south, especially in the fall.