Heading West

This time we decided to ramp up our drive time to Austin, averaging 7.5 hour days from Greenville, NC to Austin. This put us at a 3.5 day drive with overnight stays in Atlanta, GA, Jackson, MS and Corsicana, TX. The first day was great, clear skies and no traffic. We arrived in Atlanta just before dinner and were able to take advantage of the hotel's free limo service to & from a nearby restaurant. Of course the boys loved it -- they didn't want to get out!

Morgan decided not to partake in the limo bar : )

After turning in early (what is it about driving that makes you so tired???), we set out just before lunch for Jackson, Mississippi. We had an uneventful drive along an unending tree-lined highway. Once at the exit for Jackson, we were surprised at how, er, how do I say politely... unkempt it was. Our hotel was nice, but the downtown was lined with condemned buildings and not much to do. We did manage to get a good meal at The Mayflower restaurant close by that specialized in authentic Mississippi cuisine (i.e. fried everything). The interior looked like it hadn't been altered since the 1940's and apparently, some movies have been filmed there, most recently "The Help" as well as being featured on the Food Network for their seafood. It was definitely good, but when talking with the staff about things to do for the next morning, they all told us to keep on driving as there wasn't anything to see there. It was a little depressing to be honest.

breakfast in Jackson, MS

After waking up the next morning and happy to find that our car was not broken into, we set off for Corsicana, TX. We stopped in Monroe, LA for lunch at a surprisingly delicious restaurant called Cotton with such intricate combinations such as duck fat fries, pork ribs topped with watermelon pickles, pickled fried okra and strawberry & egg salad. Thank goodness for yelp!

We were happy to pass the Texas state line, although the main road passed through lots of small towns, requiring us to slow down, then speed up, slow down, speed up. 5 minutes from our hotel in Corsicana, we must've missed a reduced speed limit sign and got pulled over. Bummer. But I suppose that was better than getting into an accident. Corsicana wasn't anything to write home about, a smaller version of Breezewood, PA, populated by chain restaurants and big box stores in the middle of nowhere, but it put us at only a 2.5 hour drive for the following day so that we could be in Austin by noon. It was funny when we pulled up to our hotel in Corsicana, Morgan looked confused asking where the pod was that we had all our things stored in. I realized he thought that because we had passed the Texas border, he thought we'd be sleeping in Austin that night : ) I explained that Texas was a very, VERY big state.

On Wednesday, August 22nd, we woke up happy to have our long drive coming to a close. The 2.5 hour drive was a breeze compared to the past 3 days and Ed and I had to smile when Crystal Fighters "At Home" came on as we crossed into Austin proper. It felt good to be back, familiar and not as hot as we had expected. Our new landlords were there to help us move in and the place felt better than we had last seen it, as they had moved out a lot of bulky furniture per our request. 

Our boys have become quite the travelers, used to life on the road. We've explained to them that we are here to stay (at least for the next 10 months). They were really awesome on the drive this time. Ed and I were pleasantly surprised at the lack of tantrums and crying. Shows that some activity books at Target can go a long way to entertain!

Greenville/Great Nana & "Great Daddy's" 65th Anniversary

 

Next stop was Greenville, NC to visit my mom, Tom and attend my grandparent's 65th wedding anniversary party (no, that's not a typo -- 65 years, can you believe it!) The boys got to go hiking with their Nana, go to the pool, and we even had a special project for Nana to help us with -- converting Morgan's sleep sac (which was shredded at the bottom from his feet poking through) into a blankie. Nana did a great job and we managed to get Morgan's approval. (Whew! since there was no going back!) Then on our last night, all the extended family came to town to raise a glass to my grandparents who happily celebrated their milestone anniversary. We spent an evening honoring their lives, their love and the lessons they've taught us. It really meant a lot to be there with them for such a special occasion.

Chapel Hill Visit

on the way to the ballgame

 We were able to spend some time with Darren, Annie and Jonas as our first pit stop on the way to Austin. It was great to see them and be able to be healthy enough this time to actually do some things around town like a Durham Bulls baseball game, local hikes and coffee shops, a performance of Paperhand Puppet Intervention (which was so much more than a puppet show -- the elaborate puppets, choreography, original live music and intricate sets were awe inspiring), the Life & Science Museum, walking around UNC campus and good old fashioned cook outs. Morgan and Dean enjoyed time with their cousin and it was great to spend some quality time with family.

Bye Bye Maryland

We had a fun summer in Maryland visiting friends and family -- it was a whirlwind and I feel like we barely had time to see people! Thanks Rich & Jill for hosting us all summer -- I'm sure the house is much quieter (and cleaner) now that we're gone : ) We went out with a bang on our last night, the kids enjoyed a ginormous inflatable water pool complete with slide in the backyard. We were filling it up with water during dinner and Morgan said, "I want to eat dinner in my bathing suit!" so that he could run outside right afterwards. It provided hours of entertainment and the kids didn't want to get out of that thing. Even little Elana enjoyed it through chattering teeth! Also included here are some photos from the Urbana Fair where we ran into Cory & Christine and their family.

Tessa & Dan's Wedding

Morgan performed as ring bearer again at Ed's cousin Tessa's wedding in Pittsburgh on July 28th. This time it was a much longer aisle with cathedral ceilings, but he had a smile on his face the whole time and did great. It was awesome visiting with all the extended family and even doing some sight seeing in Pittsburgh. Congrats Tessa and Dan/Bob/Michael : )