Bill and Cathy McArthur on the Road 2008: 12  

  Monday, November 3, found us still in Cumming, GA enjoying our visit with Son Bill, Stacey, Sarah, and Billy. It was a beautiful day. We drove Sarah and Billy to daycare and then went to the Starbucks in Krogers for our espresso drinks and newspapers. We also went to Lowes for some air filters and a battery for the garage door remote. Then, we drove to Publix for some shopping. When we got back, Bill attended to the changing of the air filters, while Cathy put away the groceries. Cathy and Bill walked a fast lap around the neighborhood. After a quick lunch, Cathy, Bill, and Son Bill drove to Sawnee Park for a half hour of walking. Then we drove to the AMC theater at The Avenue to see Zack and Miri Make a Porno - highly recommended. Afterward, we drove Son Bill home and then went to pickup the kids. When we got home, we prepared a pasta dinner.

  Tuesday was Cathy's Birthday and Election Day and a gorgeous day to boot. We drove the kids to daycare and just picked up a cappuccino for Bill and a couple of newspapers and drove back home. We picked up Son Bill and drove him to his polling place at the Matt Elementary School. There was a very sparse crowd, so Son Bill was done in less than a half hour. Then we drove to Lake Lanier for a half hour walk along the shoreline near Buford Dam. We dropped off Son Bill and then drove to Spondivits Restaurant in Cumming for lunch. We had very good Grouper sandwiches. After lunch, we returned to Lake Lanier for a 3.8 mile hike on the Laurel Ridge Trail. We did the hike in 1:22 for an average speed of 2.6 mph, not a bad speed for a hilly trail in the woods.Then, we returned to the Krogers near daycare so that Bill could get a frappaccino light. We talked with Katie and Rachel and Rachel sang "Happy Birthday" to Cathy. We picked up the kids at daycare and headed home. Meanwhile, Stacey was picking up take-out from Rice Restaurant. We all enjoyed the Thai food. Stacey also brought a cake which we enjoyed after dinner. Later in the evening, we started to watch election coverage and quickly noticed the Obama landslide. We watched John McCain's concession speech and Barack Obama's post-election address.

  Wednesday was another beautiful day. We dropped the kids at daycare and then did our usual stop at Krogers. When we got back home, we worked on some small stuff around the house. Then, Bill and Cathy walked a lap around the neighborhood. After lunch, we drove to Dahlonega, a small historic gold mining town and home to Northern Georgia College and State University. We walked around for a while, enjoying the nice day and quaint surroundings. On the way back, we stopped at Home Depot for a window scraper and a 25' coax cable for the RV. When we got back, Bill scraped the tape residue off of the microwave glass. Then he scraped the Obama sticker from the back window of the RV. We drove to the Krogers near Goddard School for a couple of items and then picked up the kids and drove home in the dark on the back roads. We had a leftover dinner.

  Thursday was nice once again. We dropped the kids at daycare and did our usual stop at Krogers. We walked a lap around the neighborhood when we got back. Bill signed up for two years of web hosting with Blue Host and moved the Baiechalet.com website over. He moved the mySQL database over and got that working. Then, he moved over CapeMayBeach.com and found that the query form didn't work. He wrote an extensive support ticket about the problem. After lunch, we went to the outlets up route 400 and walked there. We did a bit of shopping as well. Later, we picked up the kids from daycare. Stacey had to stay in work all night working on a problem in China.

  Friday morning was nice, but a front came through in the afternoon. We dropped the kids at daycare and Son Bill at his barber shop. We went to Krogers for our usual coffee and newspapers and then picked up Bill. On the way back, we stopped at Sawnee Mountain Park for a walk. Cathy and Bill did a lap around the neighborhood before lunch. After lunch, the rain threatened, so Bill, Cathy, and Son Bill went to see the movie RocknRolla at the Regal 12. This was a typically confusing and entertaining Guy Ritchie movie. We picked up the kids from daycare. We had pasta for dinner. Bill finished transferring his websites to the new web host.

  Saturday was clear and cooler. Bill completed his work on the new web host by setting up email accounts and moving all of the domain names. Then, he cancelled service with Server Beach for the dedicated server. We pulled the kids around the neighborhood in the wagon and stopped at the playground at the entrance to the development. After lunch, we all went to the Atlanta Zoo. Afterward, we stopped at a Super Target for some shopping. We grilled chicken, garden burgers, and vegetables for dinner after watching Penn State blow its season by losing to Iowa.

  Sunday was a lot cooler and windy, but sunny and clear. Everybody slept in a little to start the day. Stacey and Bill and the kids went to the gym, while Son Bill relaxed at home and Cathy walked around the neighborhood. At the gym, the kids went to their play area. Stacey walked the treadmill. Bill lifted weights, rode 3 different stationary bikes, and walked the treadmill. They stopped at Panera Bread for takeout lunch and Starbucks drive-through on the way home. The kids ate lunch in the car, but Stacey and Bill joined Cathy for lunch at home. Somewhat later, Bill, Cathy, Stacey, and the kids went to Sports Cuts where Billy got his first haircut and Bill got one further up the ordinal numbers. Then, the group went to North Point Mall for a Starbucks stop and some browsing. Following that, the group went to Buca di Beppo in Alpharetta for a good Italian dinner. Bill saw a photo on the wall that he remembered from the past and later wrote a blog post about it. The group finally headed home after dinner. Every adult did some computer work or play into the late evening.

        Bill and Cathy