Day #7 (June 18, 2015) - All Good Things Must Come to an End

Brave girl!

All good things come to an end....on the 7th day of the trip, we were headed to our final destination, Richmond, Virginia, and due to a series of events, we decided to head home instead. We left the Wild Dunes at noon, and by 4:30pm, we decided to stop for some gas and Starbucks. Assuming everyone was IN the car, I began to slowly pull out of the parking lot, when I quickly realized that Audrey was NOT in the car. The door open, I said to her, "get in the car." She replied, "I can't." I said, "why not," she said, "because the tire is on my foot." NO!!! I quickly put the car in reverse and then park and then took a lot at Audrey's foot. YIKES! I just ran over my daughter's foot. She was calm. She said it didn't hurt, but that maybe I should get some ice. So, as my level headed daughter suggested, I got ice and then promptly drove to the nearest hospital which was 10 minutes away (Cape Fear Medical Center...REALLY?)

I was a train wreck. I couldn't believe what had just happened. We entered the hospital at 5:30pm and just as quietly as we entered, we left at 6:45pm. NO BROKEN BONES. Just a little bruising. Dodged a bullet. Thank you, Hash-m! My children and I prayed from the minute it happened to the minute the doctor said, "she is fine...and good to go!"

I was unbelievably relieved...and then the next shoe fell. My 23-year-old nephew, Nathan, who was graciously watching my little dogs all week for us, called me two minutes after the doctor gave us our clean bill of health to tell us that "it happened. Copper got out of the yard." And he was nowhere to be found. Stanley immediately erupted in tears. He was inconsolable.

I managed to get out of the hospital and back on the road while sending a Facebook post out to notify everyone that Copper was lost AGAIN! Stanley still in visible agony, I pulled the car over and held him as he told me, "Mommy, I can't live without my dog." And I assured him that he could. After 10

Not broken!

minutes on the highway median, I told the children that perhaps it was best to end the trip and head home. They all agreed.

Then after a series of events that involved some very special people, Copper was found! A nice woman, Kelly, from a nearby neighborhood had found Copper and taken him to the nearest vet where his chip was scanned and I was notified. Simultaneously, my friend Ellen, saw a post on Facebook with pictures of my dog found by Kelly. There was elation in the car when I got the news at 9pm.

Emotionally exhausted, I was still headed for home, but it was not meant to be...at 9:15pm in Fayettesville, North Carolina, the heavens opened up and a rain storm like no other I have ever seen began to beat down on my car. I could see NOTHING. Absolutely, nothing. Inches away from being hit by semi-tractor trailers, I pulled to the side of the road where we were in danger of flash flooding. So I called upon my trusted GPS to find me the nearest hotel just a few miles away which I inched my way towards and checked in for the night!

I was done! I ordered the kids a pizza and went to bed. At 4:30am the next day, I headed home....a little weary, a lot tired, and extremely grateful to all of the people in this world and my life that support me every single day. My girl's foot wasn't broken. My dog was found and my son's heart saved. And I made it to safety in a rain storm.

Thanks for coming along for the ride...stay tuned for my final road trip blog....