Within the past seven months I've been South three times — May, July and September — and all for family. My first trip was to see my in-laws. The second trip was a vacation with the kids, driving down to Florida. And the last trip was for a family wedding. The best trip was the last one, which was only nine hours away by car if you're riding with my brother Sam and his fiance Robi. I think we laughed more than I have ever laughed as we traveled down the highway. Unlike my second trip this year to Florida (that vacation was nothing but rain), this time we were blessed with sunshine the whole time. It was a fast, but wonderful three days away to my brother Dave's wedding in Winston-Salem, N.C. Karen, my new sister who has been with my brother for 10 years, and Dave made it legal on Sept. 24. What a beautiful wedding and reception. Karen, being the unique person that she is, reserved our sleeping accommodations at Graylyn Conference Center, which is on an 87-acre estate. There were fluffy bathrobes in the bathroom and a freezer full of ice cream in case you needed something to nibble on. I don't think I ever had nutty buddy ice cream with pure chocolate drops in the middle before. My husband enjoyed an early morning walk around the grounds, but I enjoyed sleeping late.

The night before the wedding the bride stayed on the grounds, too, and the night after the wedding, the newlyweds honeymooned there. On the morning of the wedding, my future sister- in-law made sure

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we got to breakfast in the big mansion on the property by having a driver take us to breakfast. That was the first time I had ever ridden in a golf cart. As we walked in the door, the driver instructed us to turn left. Set out, there was an unbelievable array of food with anything that you could imagine for breakfast. It was fit for a king or queen or a movie star. In fact, we were told Oprah Winfrey stays and rents an entire bungalow there.

The wedding was at noon not far from the Graylyn followed by the reception at another nice hotel. For a fast weekend, I came back home very relaxed. That's what I call real 'Southern hospitality.'

Marva Hamilton is the librarian at the Connecticut Post and writes on the first Monday of the month. She can be reached at mhamilton@ctpost.com.