Home at Last!

Whew! After a week full of adventures, I am finally home. Quite a bit happened over the last seven days, so I'll give a fair warning that this is likely to be a long post!

Pond Number 1

My family and I left at 2:30 in the morning last Saturday on our journey to northwestern New York. My uncle lives on 60 acres of land in the finger lakes region, on a hill that gives a gorgeous view of upstate New York's beauty. He has 4 man-made ponds on his property filled with fish, surrounded by hammocks and forestry. He also owns several golf carts for riding through the trails he has created on his property. Truly, the serenity of his home is indescribable in words.

Pond Number 2

Pond Number 3

Old Montreal

I, however, am not one to just stay serene for very long. Therefore, on Sunday and Monday, I journeyed up to Canada with my dad to visit an old friend of his from work. We spent the majority of our time at a cottage in the mountains north of Montreal. Again, the beauty is difficult to put into words. Most excitingly, I learned how to waterski!! I was told that I was a natural, although I personally thought it was difficult and required intense balance and concentration. The best phrase I have to describe my experience is terrifyingly awesome, and it was definitely a highlight of my trip. On the way back to New York from Canada, my dad and I drove through old Montreal. Being Canada Day, the place was PACKED with highly patriotic Canadians. Although I didn't have a chance to see as much of the city as I would have liked, the slow-moving traffic allowed me to take in at least some of the scenery from old Montreal!

A large family means LOTS of food and drink!

The second half of the week was spent at my Uncle's, culminating with our family reunion on July 4th. About 35 people showed up for the Flood Family Fun Festival & Fryout Frolic on the Fourth (FFFF&FFF) - and that's only PART of my family. Truthfully, it was slightly overwhelming, but also absolutely wonderful to see family that I haven't seen for years. Our family reunions are slightly carnival-ish, usually with a balloon toss, chocolate pudding eating contest, and tons and tons of prizes! Although the chocolate pudding was absent this year, the fun was not.

Thursday night, the Fourth of July, my sister and I decided to drive into the nearby town in search of fireworks. We didn't know exactly where we were going, which always is the preface for a good adventure - but the adventure we had this time was a bit more than we expected. We found ourselves stuck behind a parked car on the highway, with no way to get around. What made this situation even more frightening was the fact that a small brawl had erupted around our car. There was blood, fighting, swearing - I was extraordinarily thankful we were in our car, although since we were surrounded by angry people, we were definitely not in the safest place. Thankfully, the majority of the people from the opposing "groups" were trying to calm down the aggressive members, and when one of these calmer individuals finally moved the car off to the side of the road, we wasted no time leaving the scene and driving back to the serenity typical to the area. Although a bit shaken up, neither my sister nor I, nor the car, were injured in the slightest. That will surely be a story that will be shared at Flood Family Reunions for years to come.

Finally, I left with my sister, brother-in-law, and niece Friday morning. We took a mini-detour to see Niagara Falls (where we almost ran out of gas - but thankfully, made it to the gas station just in time!), then began the journey back to Wisconsin. We spent the night in Ohio and on Saturday finally crossed back over the Wisconsin border. I spent the afternoon at my sister's house, waiting for my parents and brother to pick me up and take me home (they had stayed an extra day and left Saturday morning instead of Friday morning). A few disney movies later, they arrived, and just after midnight Saturday night, we pulled into our driveway!

It was an exciting week, indeed, and plans for my next adventure are already being made. As a little side note, I decided today to lead a freshman Bible Study with two other girls from my Christian organization (Cru) next year! I'm both excited and nervous, but I have no doubt that I've committed to an experience that will help me grow in my faith while helping other people at my wonderful university do the same.

God Bless America!
-Theresa