Our Last Day of Vacation:(

Day #11 of our Aiden road trip and we are stuffed from dinner and exhausted from our day in DC.  There was more walking, some train riding and visiting museums today.

We explored several Smithsonian Museums, The International Spy Museum and the Capital Building.

We are so tired...too tired to eat our last Georgetown Cupcakes (they will make a great breakfast tomorrow). 

Off to bed.  Back home (home-sweet-home) in the morning!

Washington DC

Day #10 of our Aiden road trip and we are in Washington DC!  There is plenty to do and today we walked a little over 5 miles checking out monuments, attractions and landmarks.

Our first stop this morning?  Georgetown Cupcakes and coffee from TLC's DC Cupcakes TV show.  There was a short line, but it was so worth the wait!  Today is auntie Stephanie's birthday, so we ate a cupcake in her honor (Happy Birthday Stephanie!) and then bought a dozen to snack on in our hotel room:)

After cupcakes, coffee and strolling down M Street in Georgetown, we headed up to Georgetown University to check out the campus.  We sat through an information session, took a tour of the beautiful campus and then had lunch at one of the campus restaurants.  From Georgetown University we headed over to Howard University to explore their campus.

This is where all the walking begins.  Next stop...The White House, photos in front and of course the gift shop for postcards and magnets!

The Washington Monument came next.

Jefferson Memorial.



Lincoln Memorial.

We were sad to find out that the Martin Luther King Jr. memorial will not be opened until the end of August.  Eric and I decided to try to get a glimpse of it even though it is still under construction and fenced off.  The girls were not so adventurous and sat this one out (resting their feet on the lawn).  Much to our surprise, we were able to get an awesome view of the memorial (without climbing the fence)!

We have headed back to the hotel and of course, Sinobia is in the pool!  There will be a little late-nite dinner, cupcakes and movies before bedtime.  Another full day awaits us tomorrow!

(We avoided the rain today.  There was a rainbow behind the girls that I was trying to capture in the picture)

We're on the Move Again!

Day #9 and we were sad to leave Clifford, Ollie and Doris.  We haven't visited them in a long time and truly enjoyed our short time together. There are always tears when we leave their house.  There is no describing the love and nurturing that we get from them each time we come to Hamlet. 

Thank You Clifford, Ollie and Doris.  We Love You!

Today we are heading to our Nations Capital...Washington, DC.  We are planning to do a little site seeing and possibly visit a few colleges while here.

This evening we walked downtown Georgetown and had a little late-nite dinner.  It started pouring down rain as soon as we entered the restaurant!  Luckily for us, our timing was just right.  As soon as we were finished eating the rain stopped.  We took off walking (very briskly), hoping to make it back to our hotel before the rain came down again.  We made it!!!

Big Ollie/Little Ollie

(Uncle Clifford, Sinobia, Gabrielle, Aunt Ollie)

Day #8 of our Aiden road trip and we are still in Hamlet, North Carolina visiting Uncle Clifford, Aunt Ollie and Aunt Doris. 

(Gabrielle Ollie with Ollie Ruth)

Gabby's official name is Gabrielle Ollie Aiden.  She was named after her Aunt Ollie.  Eric wanted to make her first name Ollie, but I was too much in love with the name Gabrielle, so we compromised and gave her the middle name of Ollie.  She and Ollie are forever connected by their name and their love for each other.

(Uncle Clifford, Aunt Ollie, Me, Eric)

Today we spent the day visiting with Uncle Victor and Aunt Carol (who reluctantly took pictures, but asked not to put on facebook or blogs).  There was a super sale at the JCPenny's in Rockingham, so we did a little school shopping, walked to Hardees for lunch and then settled into dinner at Fatz Cafe with Clifford, Ollie, Doris, Molly and Tom.

Doing laundry now...tomorrow we are off to Washington, DC for some sightseeing and college visits.

North Carolina

Day #7 of the Aiden road trip.  We are in Hamlet, North Carolina today visiting Eric's family.

On our way from Savannah, Georgia Eric wanted to take a detour to the coast. so we headed to Hilton Head, South Carolina.  Wow...I think we have another vacation spot to put on our "places to vacation" list.
It was sunny, breezy and the water was amazingly warm. 

On our way up to North Carolina, we drove into a monster storm!  There was thunder, lightning (which Eric and the girls swear was within a few miles from us) and pouring rain.  Cars and trucks were lined up on the side of the road with their hazard lights on...there was no driving through this storm.  Scary stuff...good thing I slept through most of it:)

Today was a visiting and spending time with aunts and uncles day.  it's nice to have the opportunity to slow down the pace and sit around the kitchen table most of the day and catch-up with each other.

I've been craving sweets the last few days, so Ollie is making a cake for tonight!  I can't wait.  My diet/healthy eating lifestyle is also on vacation.  Cravings, carbs and this morning I had coffee, biscuits and bacon for breakfast!  Back on the elliptical machine next week.

Savannah

Day #6 of our Aiden road trip and we are in Savannah, Georgia.  It is a beautiful city.  It's also super hot here, feel like it's in the 100's...we are sweating!

We explored the River Walk, Downtown, the Market Place and settled for lunch at the famous Paula Deen's restaurant, Lady and Son's.  It was over an hour wait for a table at the restaurant, but it was well worth the wait!

We also ventured over to Savannah State University, where my brother, Uncle Jason attended years ago. The University has changed dramatically.  Everything looks brand new, restored and bustling students.  This is an all-black university that has been around since 1890. I remember the campus being a little old and unkempt.  I had to call him to tell him how beautiful the campus looked!  We drove through the campus, hoping to peak Gabby's curiosity.

Our next stop is North Carolina!

Back on the Road

Day #5 of our Aiden road trip and we are off to Savannah, Georgia. 

We are driving along the coast on this trip and it is a beautiful day...hot, but gorgeous.  Every time we take this trip, Eric wakes us up when we get close to the battleships in Mobile, Alabama.  We always give a look and then go right back to sleep.  Today, we exited highway 10 and headed over to the Battleship Memorial Park to see the ships up close.  How could we deny Eric this little excursion, He's driving us all up and down the coast? 

Much to our surprise, we all enjoyed exploring the ships, submersibles and planes. 

There was a group of tourist that were taking pictures of each other, I offered to take a picture of all of them together.  After a few photos (they took our picture too) and some chatting, we discovered that they were from Illinois too!  It's such a small world.

A quick stop to the gift shop, a bathroom break and we're back on the road again!  Eric's a happy camper/driver!

Oh yeah, I can't resist...here is a photo of my all-time favorite Louisiana sign:

It' cracks me up every time I see it!



A Bad Habit!

I've picked up a bad habit on our trip.  Does anyone remember the candy cigarettes they used to sell when we were kids?  I used to love those candy sticks (and pretend that I was smoking).  We'll guess what I found at Stelly's Truck Stop and Casino in Palmetto, Louisiana?  CANDY CIGARETTES!!!!!

I bought a pack, I couldn't resist.  Back in the day, they we 10 cents, yesterday I dropped 59 cents for a pack of Luck Lights.  I brought them over to Eric and kids to share.  I handed them out:

"Yuck!"
"These taste like chalk!"
"Mom, you are so weird."

Well, that just meant more for me. They tasted just the way I remembered them:)  Throughout the day I grabbed my pack of cigarettes, offered one to everyone, "Would anyone like a cigarette?"(I knew they didn't want one, but of course I'm always trying to be cute and funny) and then happily munched all by myself.

I just munched my last cigarette.  I guess I've got a pack a day habit now.  Can't wait until we get to the next gas station...I'm running in to search for a few more packs!

This Is Where I'm From.

Day #4 and we are still in Louisiana.  Why are we in Louisiana for our family vacation?  This is where I am from...I bet you didn't know I was born in Louisiana! 

Both of my parents were born in Louisiana and my family roots are here.


Today is the 3rd anniversary of my dad's death.  There are times that it feels like he has been gone forever and then moments when it seems like it was just yesterday that he left us. It's hard to be here in Louisiana without him.  I sometimes expect to see him in the fields with his cows, there have been times that I believed that I did see him way out there.  There is no longer the smell of cigarettes in my mother's house, the adventurous road trips into the swamps and bayou and the festive parties that he would throw in our honor are not quite as grand as when he would throw a party.  There is a void in Louisiana without my dad here.  I feel it, my girls feel it and Eric feels it.  We are happy to be here with my mom and my brother, it has been a great visit, but I will always miss my dad when I come to Louisiana.

I was feeling very sentimental and nostalgic today.  I wanted to go visit the hospital where I was born, I bought an Opelousas t-shirt (the city where I was born), went to take pictures of my grandfather's church, which he founded and preached at for many years and visited 2 of my dad's sisters. 

I am thankful for my beautiful family today.  There are so many lessons about being a parent and raising a family that my dad taught me.  Many of those lessons, I paid absolutely no attention to when he was "preaching" them to me, but many of them I truly understand, respect and honor. 

I miss you and love you forever daddy.

Part 2: You Know You're in Louisiana When...

• You see Sinobia driving!  Steer clear....