As we said so long to the beautiful beachfront condo, the ladies posed for a farewell photo.
I would like to say the trip home was uneventful, but that's simply not true. At our first gasoline stop, somewhere east of Pensacola, one of our young drivers locked her keys in her vehicle. This caused a considerable delay while we waited for a locksmith to arrive.
Her explanation for "How could this happen?" was plausible. She was driving her mother's car. The car she usually drives has keypad entry, so she has a habit of leaving the keys inside the vehicle. She was a good sport about it, which is a good thing because she endured her share of grief from her buddies.
The delay provided an opportunity for a brief drivers' meeting. 
We discussed the route home and decided to drive through south Louisiana instead of going northward through Mississippi and across the northern part of the state. While that added an hour or so of drive time, it prevented us from driving directly into the setting sun.
The timing was thrown off a little by the locksmith issue, so the lead vehicle (me) made a command decision to turn north on one of the old highways so the sun would be on our left late in the day and not be shining right into our eyes. This provided a chance to pass through little towns like Cheneyville.
And for reasons only they can truly understand, the people in my van were fascinated by our brief trip through Bunkie. Apparently, they had encountered a group of girls from there during one of their outings and found the Avoyelles Parish ladies to be hauty.
Everything you need to know about the collective attitude of this crowd can be summed up by an unsolicted statement made by one of them as we drove along the old road. A red-tail hawk flew ahead of us while an egret blanc was perched in some water along the side of the road. She said, "It's nice to get off the interstate for a while. You really get to see Louisiana."
We made it home a little late but safe and happy. Their parents picked them up and we had a brief closing ceremony in our front yard.
A week ago I knew a couple of my fellow travelers rather well; some of them were just acquaintances, friends of my daughter. Others, I had only met once or twice before. Now, I'm in love with every one of them. I would adopt them if their parents would let me.
We're going to miss them. It was a week I believe none of us will ever forget.
Saturday, March 20, 2010
We're Going to Miss Them
Friday, March 19, 2010
Making the Most of the Last Night
I'm not sure what was going on in there, but a brief glimpsse revealed snacking, talking and lying around on top of one another.
Who knows how late they stayed awake in there? To me, it's notweworthy that we have spent a week on the Florida gulf coast during spring break with 14 bright, attractive young women who have outgoing personalities; but they all have been together with us every evening. There was no fuss about it, either.And so, on the last morning, there is peace in the condo.
A school of dolphins is swimming by about 25 yards off shore.
It's like they are giving us a farewell parade.There's still time to squeeze in one more beach morning before we reassemble the Great Big Convoy and head west. Sphere: Related Content
Thursday, March 18, 2010
Photo Op With the Entourage
(Destin, FL)- We have been stared at in awe by many parents over the course of this trip. The comment most often heard is some version of "Wow. You have your hands full." Herding 14 girls garners attention, but it reached its peak tonight as we rolled onto the beach for sunset photos.
Think about it. You're sitting on the beach, minding your own business, when this parade rolls by. It would be almost impossible to not stare.
We waded out to a little island formed by the ebbing tide and shot until the sun went down. There are hundreds of frames on multiple cameras, girls arranged in what seemed like dozens of combinations.
One big group shot:
The younger set: 
The older group: 
A reflective moment...
The dramatic....
And the candid...
One of the ladies was overheard on a phone call saying "I love these people." It's easy to believe she's sincere. Just take a look.
Or, if you prefer a different kind of affirmation, several have proclaimed this week "the best spring break EVER."
Too bad it's almost over. 
A Balanced Diet
(Destin, FL) - Over the last week, we have eaten many meals together. We made a commitment to cook in the condo and with a couple of exceptions, we kept it. There was an impressive amount of between-meal snacking, as well. Pounds and pounds of grapes were consumed. There was some salad along the way. But the prize, the guilty pleasure of the week: Nutter Butters!
Feeding 16 at a time wasn't as challenging as you might think. We just prepared mass quantities of fajitas, baked ravioli or sandwiches.
It was suggested that on the last night, we have "breakfast at dinner," and so we rolled out a chocolate chip pancake assembly line.
There were three skillets on the stove, an electric griddle, bacon broiling in the oven and two kinds of syrup heating up in the microwave. There were moments of intensity, but everybody got fed and they all seemed happy about it.
The issue, as the evening wore on, was that the entire assembly experienced a sugar rush. I mean seriously, as if they weren't active enough already.
The evil master plan involved inevitable sugar crash a little later. Maybe they will sleep through the night.
March Madness or Pigskin Prowess?
(Destin, FL) - Our last full day on the beach is the first full day of the NCAA basketball tournament, and I was conflicted. Basketball or beach? I reached what I thought was an elegant compromise with myself by opening the sliding doors of my bedroom while turning the games on TV with the volume muted.
Soothed by the sound of the surf gently yet relentlessly slapping the shore, I drifted off to sleep.
Having surrendered to slumber, I was roused by a noise riding in on the wind: Laughing. Screaming. Although coming from some distance away, I knew it instantly.
Our girls.
Something was up.
They found a football with boys attached to it.
I sprung into action. It was vital to send a message that there are adults attached to these girls and we've got our eyes on them.
Plus, who wants to miss a good football game? There was the requisite intensity.
They might have come up spitting sand, but they did so with smiles on their faces.
It's not clear who won, but they did work up a sweat out there and they seemed to have a lot of fun doing it.
And they all came back to the condo without the football or the boys. Sphere: Related Content
Take Out the Papers and the Trash
(Destin, FL) - Put a group of more than a dozen young women under one roof for a week, and what do you get? A mess!
They were advised in advance to "pack light," and it's possible from their perspectives they actually did. I shudder to think how the place would looked if they had packed heavy.
While one of our travelers has expressed personal satisfaction in staying organized and relatively neat, it's just a lost cause. They might not have brought as much stuff with them as they were inclined to, but they are accumulating more. All the newfound treasures find their way to horizontal surfaces such as countertops and floors.
The bags! The shoes! The Make-up! It never stops.
The sheer volume of trash we have generated would induce nightsweats in your average environmentalist. Honestly, I have felt pangs of guilt over the amount of paper and plastic we have sent down the garbage chute, knowing full well much of it was recyclable.
To be fair, the girls have pitched in like troopers to help keep the place relatively clean, although "tidy" is just a pipe dream. The best part about all this has been the hilarity. Any given moment has been an opportunity for laughter, even taking out the garbage.
We seem to have found our happy place.
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
Music Of The Night
(Destin, FL) - Any hope of getting a reasonable start on a good night's sleep has been shattered by the squealing and singing emanating from the opposite corner of the condo. The girls have decided to make a music video. This involves dancing and screaming, as well.
This project has all the necessary elements: casting, directing, a video camera, lights, sound and make-up.
They are grinding the details:
art directing costumes, making sure hair and nails are just right for their creative enterprise.
Here's a conversation surrounding the project: "Hey, do we have any scissors?"
"You are NOT going to cut your hair for this!"
It's an all-inclusive project as they choose just the right songs to make sure everyone has a part to play. Rumor has it someone will be playing the role of Reba McEntire.
Another is cast as Ke$ha. Taylor Swift and Li'l Wayne are on piano. We have Lady Gaga and Britney Spears. Oh, and the Ying-Yang Twins are getting crunk. It's a virtual "We are the World" of pop music!
I'm not sure exactly which direction this will take, but there are belly laughs involved. It's certain to be an extravaganza.
Rainy Day People
(Destin, FL) - It took a drizzly, overcast day to finally convince the ladies to split up into small groups. An older sister of one of our travelers is staying nearby, so we had visitors today. Big Sis brought some of her crew to the condo. Is it me, or do they all seem to have the same coloring, hair and smile?
That's my daughter back there in the headband, looking like a blue-clad hippie. This was quite intentional. Her group went in search of that look today. Hippe chic, I suppose.
When your most desirable alternative activity is cruising shopping centers, you have to be careful not to make silly, recreational purchases. It seems this crew threw caution to the wind, coming home with headbands, sunglasses and boxer shorts. They were eager to model their purchases.
By all accounts, the Emerald Coast's shopping centers were jammed today. So much so that one of our small groups got stuck in a parking lot for almost an hour. It was there that a boy-taunting strategy backfired. Two of our older girls were in a car with three of the younger set, stuck in traffic next to a carload of guys. A conversation ensued, no doubt with flirting involved. The younger girls, actually sophomores in high school, told the guys there were freshmen at LSU. The boys, instantly deflated, said "Oh. We're 17."
Ooooooops.
Still another group went on a mission to find chocolate. The Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory proved to be just what they needed. The best part was the chocolate was healthy. Of course it was. It was covering fruit and berries: apples, bananas, strawberries. When it's raining at the beach, you do what you must.
Some of the girls broke off into pairs. When you peel back all the layers of friendship, you can sense those who are particularly close.
A couple seemed to relish the quiet moments, taking a late afternoon trip to the silent shore to enjoy some reflection and reading.
Everyone had the same evening destination, though. Supper was on the stove, and after a day of adventure everyone reassembled for The Big Feed.
Even though they were stuffed with baked ravioli and salad, there was a lament: There are no more brownies. I guess the complainers were the people who didn't make the chocolate trip.
As long as we were breaking up into groups of two or three, I took the opportunity to spend some quality time with my best girls.
Shortly after sunset, the group was completely reassembled. Rested and well-fed, they were back in full voice. Quiet time is definitely over.
