The trip south went well. After I kissed my kids goodbye on Tuesday, a flurry of final preparations commenced. I made a quick stop at a birthday party, then came home to do laundry, finish packing, clean the house, and study for a Microbiology test. I headed out the door earlier than normal Wednesday morning, dropped off a gallon of milk with the Sister Missionaries, made it to an 8:30 appointment with my academic advisor, and made it to class in time to complete my test. I was elated after the test to discover that the lab for the day had been canceled--and quickly left campus to drop a few things off at the library, take a house key over to my next door neighbor, make my bed, and do a final survey of the house. Russ had loaded the car while I was in class, and we were on the road south by 11:15.
After a few quick stops for gas and food, we made it to Dothan, Alabama by 11:30 that night. I washed my face, brushed my teeth, and crawled in bed with my boys to snuggle with them until about 6 am on Thanksgiving--at which point they gleefully decided it was time to be wide awake. I was a bit bleary-eyed, but happy to be on vacation and spend time with family, so I pretended not to be grumpy.
Thanksgiving day was good. There were a lot of people--and after a few intense grief-related moments, I was able to enjoy the holiday. Nobody knows how to lay out a spread of food like a Southern family, and I'm thrilled and surprised to report I'm up a measly 2 pounds from the trip--I had braced myself for much, much more than that.
Thursday night I headed even further south with Kadon and Brooklyn, and spent the night at Ammon's sister Lisa's house. I collapsed on the couch early, and got about two hours of sleep before Brooklyn decided that the hours between midnight and 2 am were not for sleeping.
Huh. Nobody informed me. I didn't do so well pretending not to be grumpy that time.
By the time the rest of the clan arrived on Friday afternoon, we had time to eat lunch and dinner. Then, the girls got pretty-fied and headed out for an evening at the mall and a showing of New Moon. Then, Lisa and I took the old(er) people back to her house, and headed back out to the local Howl at the Moon. It was great--and I can verify that they have tasty Diet Coke in stock. I know, because I drank a fair amount of it between choruses of 'Sweet Caroline' and 'Great Balls of Fire'. Good times.
Saturday, oh Saturday. Saturday found us at the beach. And the mall, again. I have pictures, some of the only I took on the trip. When my camera stops being spooty and agrees to play nicely with my laptop, I will post them.
Saturday evening after dinner, the troops de-barked from Florida. Angela, Mary, Angela's kids, and Jeremy traveled until late Saturday night, then stopped for a hotel. Russ, Kadon, Brooklyn, and I made an intrepid journey through the night, and arrived home at about 6 am Sunday morning. Notwithstanding the head-shaking and arm-pinching I engaged in just after 3 am in an effort to keep myself awake and driving safely, it was a good trip.
Today, I got the tree up. Seeing as how the Christmas tree was such a sore subject last year, I'm proud of the accomplishment this year. It's erect, has lights strung on it, and ornaments hanging from it's branches--and all of this accomplished without a meltdown.
Now, to finish the last week of classes for this quarter strong, and the season can truly begin.
1 comment:
Phew - sounds like a world wind but fun. Good you could spend quality time with your kids. Good for you on getting the tree up. I like your new look to the blog as well.
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