IT'S NIFTY TO BE FIFTY

"It's nifty to be fifty!" At least that's what my husband says. I, on the other hand have no complaints. I got to share in his very special fiftieth birthday celebration using our timeshare points at Fairfield's Governor's Green in Williamsburg, VA. What a celebration it was!

First, I should tell you, three years earlier we celebrated my "big one" by banking our points and taking a trip to the Cayman Islands. The weather was a flop, teaching us not to plan special trips to the Carribean during hurricane season. However, as with most resorts, there was still plenty to do even during inclement weather.

That was not the case when we spent a week at Governor's Green. The weather was beautiful! And though, there were plenty of activities to keep us entertained at Fairfield's third, and perhaps their loveliest resort in Williamsburg, we were kept too busy with activities outside the resort to spend much time at "Grammy and Grampa's house", as our beautiful granddaughters referred to it.

I have to tell you for a while there I thought the trip would be as big a disappointment as the weather was three years ago for my trip. Getting four kids and their families to one central location at the same time, from four distant locations was a monumental task. It took some real logistical expertise and a lot of patience. But we were greatly rewarded!

Ken and I had the lovely three bedroom and two bathroom unit to ourselves for the first two nights since it was impossible for our kids to make it that weekend. With two pastor son-in-laws, Sunday trips are almost always out of the question; not to mention another daughter who recently started working for a college and was up to her elbows responsibilities for the fall semester; and another son who is a store manager, and weekends off are not a fringe benefit to the boss.

However, the two of us managed to entertain ourselves in the rambling unit, knowing sometime during the upcoming week it just might seem cramped. We even took the scenic route, "Route 13" down the coastline from Pennsylvania to Virginia, taking in the Chesapeake Bay Bridge and Tunnel. It was a longer trip, but well worth the drive south. Our only problem was the drive north again into Williamsburg, where we learned another lesson in patience as traffic was moved by inches rather than miles.

Without the kids we spent some time at Busch Gardens, knowing we probably wouldn't get to enjoy most of the adult activities there once our granddaughters arrived. We took in their Imaginique diner show and other than suffering from sore feet from all the walking, we loved every minute of our time.

The kids from out of state kindly scheduled their flights together so it made one less trip to the airport. Who wants to spend their vacation in an airport anyway? Their two flights out again would be bad enough, when we had to say good-bye.

The plan was for each child to treat Good Ol' Dad to one day of activities. And let me tell you, with a little more logistical planning we packed a lot into our week. We played miniature golf at the Pirate's Cove and ate at the Aberdeen Barn, one of Ken's favorites when in Williamsburg, compliments of Ken's daughter Sandra, her husband Eli and our granddaughter, Angela.

We had a picnic and enjoyed the sun and surf at Virginia Beach compliments of Cassandra. It was there we got to see our first dolphins whisking their way through the water. We returned to our unit with a little sand in our shoes, two sleepy granddaughters, high spirits and thankfully no sunburn.

On one day Mary, Rob and Amanda, who hale from our homestate of PA, treated Ken to a wonderful, relaxing massage right on site at the Governor's Green. It was another special treat for a man who usually spends long days behind the wheel of an eighteen wheeler, bucking traffic for a living. The meals these kids provided were prepared by loving hands right in our unit after a day of swimming at the pristine pool. – One of the few days we did spend at the resort.

Ken enjoyed another round of golf at the Pirates Cove when our kids, Bill, Trisha and Rachel arrived. Then as one part of our group left we topped off our stay with more time at Busch Gardens where the "guys" took Ken to the beer school, while the females of the group spend our time watching the Angela, Amanda and Rachel enjoy the many children's activities.

We even got to spend one day shopping. Though it wasn't on Ken's list of activities he most wanted to do while in Williamsburg, he enjoyed it all the same, because it was time with the family he gets to see too rarely.

Our last day and night we were down to one family, besides ourselves, and we certainly made the most of it. One last trip to Busch Gardens, where we got to see the Irish dancers, which we always love. We hadn't gone with the other kids because we honestly didn't think the younger kids would appreciate the show with authentic Irish song and dance; but watching how much our oldest granddaughter, Rachel loved it, we may have to rethink that for our next family trip.

It was a vacation from which we returned exhausted! But isn't that a sign of a good vacation? A very satisfying one, indeed; proving it is Nifty to be Fifty. At least when you're a Fairfield owner.

Timeshare ownership may not be for everyone, but it has certainly worked out for us. It has helped us bring our family bridge the distance for a really special vacation.