It’s 0430 in the foothills of the blue ridge mountains in north Georgia.

This morning I was scheduled to be cruising south toward Key West…but in cancelled 2020, we had to come up with a plan B if we wanted a getaway.

So we headed north, hoping to get a glimpse of fall, and explore the waterfalls and trails that are abundant here.

This is a family vacation, by choice – and my German Shepherd is beside me on the couch, while the Aussie is at my feet.

Deciding to bring them on this week long journey meant alternative lodging, and I found a home built in 1947.

According to the history provided by the owner, this house was the home of a single family for 53 years.

They raised their three children here in this cozy 2 bedroom, I bath home.

The focus of the living room is the fireplace – framed by two wood encased windows. There are large windows in every room, to catch all the natural light.

Being a southern home, of course there is a big front porch – from the kitchen sink I can see the tendrils of the flowering vines on the metal railing that brings a charming view from either vantage point.

A squeaky metal screen door opens to a small mud room – necessary to keep the Georgia clay mud and dirt out of the all wooden floored house.

I can hear every step my dogs make as these wood floors squeak in protest. The house is a lot noisier than the one I left.

But when we are still, it’s an enclave. Trees and vines surround it on all sides, to the point where it seems a battle for the house is being waged – not just by time, but by the forest and land that was here eons before the house was. The caretaker is a gardener, and he lovingly tends to the heritage flowers and plants around the cottage.

I try to imagine a family of five in this space. Cozy is a great word that comes to mind, but in our day of 2000+ square foot homes, I find comfort in the simplicity of this place. Every window looks out onto trees and greenery. The back corner view is of the mountains rising in the distance.

I woke because the bedroom door was shut, and despite the box fan running in the room, it was hot.

Sitting in the living room, the open doors allow the fall coolness to keep the house almost chilly. Every section of this house, though, can be boxed off by the wooden doors – keeping the warm or cool air circulation better in the areas where the family gathered.

The family is the four of us this weekend – my husband, myself, and the dogs.

Entertainment is card games and putting together a puzzle. No television watching. No internet browsing.

Days were spent hiking to the waterfalls that are scattered throughout the foothills of north Georgia, not working behind desks.

We stepped back in time.

I can’t wait to do it again.