Girls just wanna have fun.

First of all you must remember that I see my granddaughters every day before and after school. And all day long when school is out. They're at an age where they snip at one another constantly, each one putting the other down. I raised two kids who did the same thing, so it isn't new to me. But it's a little harder to put up with when you're past sixty.

So Cliff had this little road trip he was dreading because he hated to drive 250 miles alone; but I wasn't crazy about the place he was going. And I had to watch my granddaughters all day because there was no school.

I cooked up the idea of the girls and me going with Cliff, getting a motel with an inside pool, and having a mini-vacation. The only think I wasn't looking forward to was the kids' sniping and putting one another down.

So I told them as we left that if they ever wanted to do anything like this again, they'd better behave.


They made the trip to Independence, Kansas, in fine style. Cliff settled us into the motel around 2:30 and went to his brother's to paint tractors. The girls checked out our room, running around excitedly and bouncing on beds, turning on the hair dryer, and briefly watching the flat-panel TV on the wall.


I watched while they swam for an hour or more, still behaving quite nicely. We went to see "Meet The Robinsons" across the street, which was a pretty cute movie. Afterward they swam at least an hour again, and I soaked in the hot tub.


This morning we had plenty to choose from for breakfast. The girls were still being nice to one another, with only one brief lapse.


We wanted to enjoy the water just once more before heading home. Another hour swimming and soaking.



As we started loading the car to head home, the sweet little angels morphed back into the granddaughters with whom I'm so familiar. But for over twenty-four hours, the three of us had the time of our lives.

By the way, if you're ever in Independence, Kansas (I can't imagine why anyone would be, but still), I highly recommend the Apple Tree Inn. It's one of the better motels I've had the pleasure of staying in. No, it wasn't that pricey: $87 plus tax for the four of us.