Hunter and I spent the long Labor Day weekend down at Callaway Gardens and had such a great time!  The last time I was there for LDW was 12 years ago, when we scattered my dad’s ashes on the lake (and the weather was horrible) so I was looking forward to a relaxing weekend with Pegs.

Of course hurricane Hermine was hitting the SC coast when we were leaving on Friday, so we drove through a LOT of rain on our drive to Georgia.  It stopped around Lake Oconee and was smooth sailing from there, with a pit stop in Peachtree City to see Rollene and get TCBY before the last leg to Pine Mountain.  We got to her house and grilled out before taking the golf cart down to Lake Robin for the balloon glow.

Sky High Balloon Festival

Balloon glow? Yep – every Labor Day weekend Callaway hosts the Sky High Balloon Festival where several hot air balloons will offer tethered rides, and they do a balloon glow at dusk on the beach.  Unfortunately Friday’s glow was cancelled because of wind, but the three of us walked our dinner off around the lake and enjoyed the band playing on the beach.

Sunday night the balloon glow was a go, so mom and I headed back down on the golf cart to get a glimpse of the balloons all lit up.

Car Show

Inside and all around the circus tent were all sorts of classic cars for a LDW car show.  Mom and I checked it out Saturday afternoon while Hunter was watching football.  There were some really cool classic and custom cars to see! (That’s about the extent of my car knowledge – thinking they are pretty)

Triathalon

While no one in our family partook, there is a big triathlon each Labor Day weekend at Callaway.  They take over the gardens on Sunday morning and then enjoy the rest of the weekend when their race is done.  We passed part of the biking portion of the race on our way to the golf course.

Golf

The weather was absolutely gorgeous, and even had a hint of fall in the air, so Hunter enjoyed playing 18 holes on the Mountain View golf course on Sunday morning.  I drove the golf cart around and loved seeing the course (I’m not a golf girl).  There was even a ladies tournament going on so I was glad we made an early tee time!

Speaking of golf, the three of us went down to the beach to play putt putt Sunday afternoon, and guess who won? This kid.  Mom had the most holes in one though..

Football

No Labor Day weekend would be complete without some college football!  We watched so many of the games at mom’s house and ultimately missed the fireworks, balloon glow and live music on Saturday night for the Clemson / Auburn game.  Since I’m not sure how many times I’ll get to say this this year – Go Jackets! What a win over Boston College in Ireland!

Golf Cart Rides

Growing up in Peachtree City (the golf cart capital of the world) we took golf carts everywhere, even to school.  I love being able to drive the golf cart around at Callaway and use that as our primary mode of transportation.  We took a long ride on Sunday after putt putt and enjoyed the wonderful weather.

Pool

The afternoons were still pretty hot, and we cooled off at the pool.  If you’re a guest, you can enjoy the beach or the hotel / cottage pools, but being a resident has it perks of the quiet neighborhood pool.  Add a drink and it’s a  great way to wind down the afternoon.

We were busy watching football and eating, but still managed to cover a lot of ground and spend time with mom’s neighbors this weekend.  I didn’t realize how many events they had going on at Callaway and was impressed with the big crowds.  I definitely recommend heading to Callaway Gardens next Labor Day, especially if you’re close by and can make a staycation out of it!

Another LDW and trip home in the books, and we’re already looking forward to the next one…