Sweet Home Alabama (and Nashville and Everywhere in Between)

Thursday morning at 6:00am I started out on my over 2000 mile round trip to Nashville and Gulf Shores, Alabama.  The night before James printed out directions to J.M.'s condo in Nashville.  I was bummed because the directions were to go through St. Louis and down through Illinois.  A route I've driven before.  So he found a "back way" that took the same amount of time, but the scenery would be new.  I was nervous that it would end up being a lot of country 2-lane roads, but I was up for the adventure.  And so I started out.  There were 36 different steps I needed to do to get from my house to her house.  I decided that I would mark off each completed step so I wouldn't get confused on which one I was on.

I was doing ok (missed one turn because the road wasn't marked how the other roads were).  At 1pm, though, I encountered a problem.  I was in Mountain View, MO (yeah, you may need to Google it because I'm sure it's not a well known epicenter of activity.)  I tried to find the road for my next turn.  For 20 minutes I tried.  I finally pulled over and put the needed highway into my GPS.  The highway's name was not recognized.  I decided that I would travel back into the little town and ask for directions (and get a Subway sandwich while I was there.)  I asked the Subway workers and a customer if they recognized this particular highway.  They didn't and the other customer tried to locate it on his phone and wasn't successful.  I decided that I needed to scrap trying to find this road and recalculate a new set of directions (Thanks Google Maps for making up an imaginary road!!!)

In a few minutes, I was back on my way with a different set of directions and hoped that I could make up some of the lost time. Everything was going great until I was forced to drive over a type of bridge I am absolutely scared to drive over.  It was incredibly narrow (I could have touched the semi coming straight at me.)  I went s-l-o-w-l-y which probably irritated the drivers behind me, but I couldn't help it.  I'm not sure I breathed while crossing it...probably not the wisest idea.

About an hour left of the trip, the skies darkened and I had to drive through a huge thunderstorm.  Fortunately, I didn't have to endure a traffic jam, but I did drive by a red Viper that had flipped over.  Right before 7pm, I made it to J.M.'s condo.  What sweet relief and I was so excited to see my dear friend.  I quickly changed and freshened up.  We then went to downtown Nashville for dinner and entertainment.  We ate at Margaritaville;  I had their Jambalaya which was fabulous.  We then walked up the street to a "Honky Tonk", but the live band wasn't very impressive so we went to Tootsie's and enjoyed a really good band.  When they were finished, we headed home so we could get up early to head to the beach.

Friday morning we were greeted with torrential rain and couldn't wait to get out of it!  It was an 8 hour trip and we arrived in Gulf Shores right before 5pm.  After unloading the car, we walked on the beach for about an hour.  It was dinner time so we chose to eat at Jimmy Buffet's sister's restaurant, Lulu's.  They were packed, but we found 2 spots at the bar so we ate there.  We struck up a random conversation with an older man sitting next to me.  He wanted us to be on the look-out for any women close to his age who didn't weigh over 200 pounds and didn't have huge hair.  (He also asked for our mothers' phone numbers, but we didn't oblige him.)  Lulu's had a live musician who was the most horrendous songwriter/singer you could imagine.  He sang a song that had the following lyrics: "I own a bank.  Its name is Piggy."  And then he sang about mirrors and a vampire.  Not exactly impressive!

I jokingly asked the bartender how much money it would take to get the singer to stop.  The bartender said that the singer was married to "one of the sisters (we think to one of Jimmy Buffet's sisters) and he was a really good guy.  I told him that I was sure he was a nice guy, but not a great entertainer.  I left it at that.  We were planning on staying there to watch the KU/Detroit basketball game, but the bartender said they closed at 10pm.  He suggested a great sports bar down the road.  J.M. and I thought it would be fun to watch the game with others so we made our way to the other place.

We were NOT prepared for what we encountered.  It was a mixed crowd of 60-80 year old men and 40 year old women (with 2 random 20-something women).  There was no good place to fix your eyes upon because there were couples making out or 4-5 women dancing with one old guy.  And to top it off, they didn't have the KU game on any of their TV's.  It was so unbearable that I didn't even finish my drink and we got the heck out of there.  We joked that we hoped we didn't catch any disease by sitting on their chairs.  It also crossed our minds that maybe the bartender at Lulu's referred us there because of my negative comment about the singer.

The next morning we got up early, ate breakfast and made our way to the beach.  We only had 4 hours before we had to get ready for the wedding so we wanted to enjoy every possible second.  We were under a Dense Fog Advisory and so we didn't think that we would get a tan.  It was a nice cool morning and we laid on our chairs, talked, laughed, and enjoyed the morning.  We were bummed to leave the beach, but were excited about our evening.  It wasn't until we were inside our room that we discovered we both got burned.  J.M. had put some sun tan lotion on, but missed some spots.  I, on the other hand, was burned from head to toe only on my front side because I never rotated sides because I didn't think I was getting any sun.  To top it off, I had a sunglasses burn line on my face.  I was mortified, horrified and in pain!

The wedding was about 30 minutes away.  It was a beautiful ceremony and then we made our way to the reception.  It was a beach theme and fortunately, we sat at the back of the room.  I was getting redder and redder as the night wore on.  I was stopped by many people telling me in their sweet Southern accents, "Oh honey, you need some Aloe Vera."  Or, "You should try some lavender Epsom Salt dear."  The groomsmen we met jokingly asked what SPF sunblock I used.  But it was worth every joke because I got to witness C.R. get married!

J.M. and I danced to the Cupid Shuffle and the Cha-Cha Slide.  We were in our element.  Back in college, we were constantly wanting to dance.  The groomsmen recommended a great place to go dancing and they had a live band, too.  We went back to our hotel room to change and headed to "Live Bait" which was right down from our hotel.  We stayed for a few hours and got our groove on just like old times.

Early Sunday morning we made our way back to Nashville.  We were tired and J.M. wasn't feeling super great from a cough that had started a few days before.When we got to her condo, we had enough time to shower and get ready to eat at a local sports bar where we could also watch the KU/Purdue game.  I was quite surprised and elated to find that the place was loaded with other KU fans.  The ending to the game was amazing and we all chanted the "Rock Chalk Jayhawk, KU" song that follows every win.

I left Nashville at 6:30am on Monday.  I was exhausted, but still had a long way to drive.  Since the route I initially took was full of country roads (and made up highways), I took the St. Louis route.  It was only 14 steps as opposed to the 36 steps.  I was doing ok until I got into St. Louis (which makes me very nervous to drive through).  It was during noon-time rush hour traffic and a motorcycle beside me did a pop-wheelie and then zig-zagged all over the lanes.  He then exited and stood on his motorcycle with his hands in the air as he was going down the ramp (without a helmet, protective gear, etc.)  I was so disturbed and frightened by this that I couldn't wait to get out of this city but the city seemed to go on and on and on.

About an hour and a half later, I drove into torrential rain that lasted all the way through Kansas City (during evening rush hour traffic) and I didn't get a break from the rain until I got home.  I was so thankful to have survived =)

This was such a rare opportunity to spend some quality time with my BFF J.M. (and see C.R. even if it was for a brief amount of time.)  I love my friendship with her.  We reminisce about the past, but make a bunch of new memories, too.  There were so many moments where our stomachs hurt and we were crying from laughing so hard.  These may not seem funny to you, but we cracked up.

  *J.M. was talking about being easy to please (not being high maintenance).  She then said, "I'm easy, spread the word!" I told her I would do no such thing. Before we left, she got a spray tan and had brown on her hands that made her hands look dirty. Then, we both left our razors in Nashville so we got a cheap razor from the hotel that butchered up our legs.  We both had a horrible cough that sounded like pneumonia and we were popping cough drops throughout the trip. Finally, she was concerned that her dress for the wedding was too short and looked "skanky".  We put all of these things together and came up with: "Easy, dirty, hacking up a lung, butchered up skank."  Even though that was the furtherest from the truth!  We laughed so hard that our make-up started to run before the wedding.  We repeated this the rest of the trip.

  *On the way down to Gulf Shores, we drove through Florida.  We saw a sign there that said, "We accept out of town cash."  Uh, because our cash is different from theirs?

  *Also in Florida, there were huge lilac bushes.  I was thinking it would be nice to dig up a bush to bring home.  J.M.'s initial thought was she wanted to roll around in the bushes. That created a lot of laughs!    

Since I had to travel through Missouri, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Florida and Alabama, I thought I would share some observations:
*Missouri has plenty of drivers who don't think that when there is torrential rain it would be a good idea to use their head-lights, slow down and not tail-gate.  
(and they have crazy motorcyclists as mentioned earlier!)
 
*Kentucky needs to clean up their road-kill on the side of the road.  I can't count
the number of decaying creatures I drove past

*Alabama...oh Alabama.  To begin with, the speed limit signs are the starting off
point for speed negotiations.  We were probably the only ones that followed the signs.

If they had signs for upcoming road construction, it's a good bet that they wouldn't really have road construction. There were only 2 spots that actually did have road work going on.

I think they should pass out "I Survived Alabama Drivers" T-shirts once you cross the state line.  They are a crazy group of drivers if ever I saw some.

*Florida posts signs once you come across the border from Alabama warning you they mean business about enforcing the speed limit.  Hmm...I wonder why?!? 

I am ever so thankful to have shared these memories with J.M. I will treasure them always.  Enjoy the photos!

Downtown Nashville

Margaritaville!

Honky Tonk

At Tootsie's listening to music

Random Space Rocket to greet you in Alabama

Toes in the Sand

Pretty Lady

Silly Girl

Beach Babes!

View from our hotel room

Fried Green Tomatoes

Yum!

Had random bar guy take our picture. He asked if it looked ok, we said "sure"

Waiting for food

Morning on the beach

See, it was really foggy!!!

Chill-axin

Ahh...this is the life

Ready for the wedding

Oooh-la-la

Me and the Groom

KU fans in Nashville

T Minus 4 Days!

This Thursday morning I set off on a new adventure.  I am driving 12 hours to Nashville and staying the night with my bestie from my days at Baker University.  We'll call her JM.  She has planned dinner for us and then we'll walk around some of the sights. Friday morning she will accompany me to Gulf Shores, Alabama. I have another friend from Baker who is getting married there Saturday night....we'll call him CR. CR was one of our ushers at our wedding and we have stayed in contact over the many years.  I'm so blessed to be able to witness this new era in his life while hanging out with JM.

But 4 days is not a long time to get everything checked off on my to-do list.  This is a busy week as it is and to prepare for a 5 day trip will add to the intensity.  Alas, the thought of waking up to this view will keep me going..       

"Spy Vests", Dollhouses, Nerf Wars, and the Stomach Flu

And another Christmas season has come and gone.  It was a busy time, but was filled with precious and not so precious memories.  The afternoon of December 23rd, we made the trek up to KC so we could celebrate with my family.  Earlier in the week, Malachi and Samara had the nasty stomach bug that was going around.  It had been 5 days since they threw up so I thought we were in the clear.  Boy was I wrong.  Late Friday night it started.  Isaiah stayed up all night throwing up at my sister's house.  Around 6amish, he was so tired from the lack of sleep and from his ordeal that I had to hold him up over the toilet because he didn't have the strength.  I felt terrible for him.  I also felt bad because I didn't want my nieces to get sick (which they ended up sick the following week).

My parents had planned on taking everyone to Dunkin Donuts for breakfast so that the kiddos could pick out their own donuts and the mess could stay at the restaurant.  Instead, they brought the donuts and breakfast sandwiches to us.  We had a wonderful time with my parents, sister and family, as well as my grandparents and aunt and cousin.  My sister made craft kits for the kiddos.  They are so excited about all of the projects they will be able to make. They all received a sand/water table like my parents have at their house.  I'm excited about the sand castles they will make this spring/summer! My aunt and cousin gave each of us our own "tie" blankies.  They are super cozy and are perfect for the long car rides. The boys' loved their Backyard Safari vest that came with a bunch of the essential accessories.  Malachi called it his "Spy Vest".  Oh the fun they have already had with these vests!  My parents also gave them a portable DVD player which is awesome for the long car rides the kiddos make to see family.   It came along with The Incredibles movie which was on their "most wanted" list. My grandparents gave them money so they are excited to go on a shopping trip with just Mommy or Daddy to pick out whatever they would like (well, that fits in their budget!)

Towards the afternoon, I was feeling nauseous so we hurriedly packed up and headed home.  We were 20 minutes outside of our town when Isaiah got sick again.  All over the truck.  I was ever so happy to get home!

After tucking the kiddos in bed, James worked on Samara's dollhouse.  I love that timeless tradition of a dad putting together a dollhouse for his daughter.  Malachi woke us up at 7:30 and tried to wake up Isaiah and Samara, but they were enjoying their sleep.  He finally was successful and we all made it downstairs to see what they had. Below there's a video of their reaction.

We enjoyed a leisurely morning and then in the afternoon, we packed up to go to Salina to see some James' family.  After the annual Bingo game at his grandma's house, we made the almost 2 hour trip to James' hometown.  It was past 10pm when we got to my in-laws.  We tucked the kiddos in bed and decided to have the adults open their gifts.  The next morning it was the kiddos' turn to open up their gifts. The boys are now armed with 4 Nerf guns, 2 Light Sabers, bow and arrows,along with some games for their DS's (including the much desired Mario games!).  They also have matching SpongeBob PJ's and slippers. Since their birthdays are so close to Christmas, they also opened up birthday gifts.   

Samara is the proud owner of an Easy Bake oven.  She also received a trunk full of Fairy costumes, a jewelry box complete with some rings,  a Snow White dress, Princess PJ's with matching slippers and a new dollie.  They also received the Cars2 movie.

After all of the gifts were opened, the older boys (aka Daddy and the Uncles) started a Nerf War.  Our kiddos joined in and for probably about an hour it was an intense battle complete with ducking, hiding, rolling, and lots of laughter.  Later that afternoon, the boys tried out their bow and arrows outside.

My appetite was not what it normally is and later in the afternoon, I started having stomach issues.  We had our annual Wine and Cards night, but I couldn't really enjoy it because I was feeling so badly.  I was up most of the night and spent the next day sleeping and just laying around while still having stomach problems.  It ended up taking me the rest of the week to feel back to normal.  I don't remember being that sick in a long, long time and I hope it will be years before I have to go through that again!

Late Tuesday night James and I left to go back home.  The kiddos were staying some extra days with James' parents.  We enjoyed some time to ourselves and for New Year's Eve, we used our gift card to Olive Garden that we received from my sister and her hubby.  We are always excited to go out on date!

The kiddos got back last night and we are going to enjoy the few days that are left of Christmas break.  We are so richly blessed and thankful to have such a wonderful family that we go spend time with. 

Below are pictures and videos of some of our Christmas...

The KC Crew with Our Santa Hats

The Appendicitis Story

It has been requested that I post the story about James' appendicitis.  Why you ask?  Well, it's simply hilarious due to my actions (or lack thereof), the chaos of the whole experience and the visuals that accompany the story.  No worries, though, there is nothing gross.

It was late June 2008; I was massively pregnant with Samara.  In a few days, we were going to celebrate our 5 year wedding anniversary.  Before we knew we would be blessed with another baby, we booked a trip to NYC.  James had never been and I was anxious to go back because I love the City.

Our plan was that Thursday night we would drive up to KC and fly out early Friday morning.  My parents had offered to watch the boys for the extended weekend trip.  Wednesday night I came home to find James laying on couch complaining of stomach pains. Being a nurse, I automatically start asking him questions.  He said that it was a generalized pain and that there had been a pot luck at work earlier that day.  Because the pain was not centralized, I assumed that he might have eaten bad food or had really bad gas.  And since my stomach hurt continually with pregnancy, my concern for him diminished.  My advice for him was to put his butt up in the air and fart.  And if my recollection serves me right, I think I even asked him to put the boys to bed. (maybe a dose of empathy on my part would have been more appropriate!)

The next day he didn't complain of his stomach and so I didn't think too much about it.  Then around 11:30am he calls me at work (which is very unusual).  He told me that I might have to pick the boys up from daycare.  Since I normally didn't get off of work in time to make it to pick them up, I immediately asked why.  He said that he might have to have surgery. (nothing like cutting to the chase!)  He went on to say that his stomach's pain had become centralized and because we were going out of town he actually went to see the doctor...amazing!!!  Anyway, his CBC came back normal, but the doctor still wasn't convinced it wasn't appendicitis so James needed to undergo a CT scan.  Being that it's our crazy life, the CT scanner at the local hospital was broken that day so James was driving into Wichita when he called me.

After getting off of the phone with him, I immediately began to try to get a game plan.  We don't have family nearby so I needed to call a friend to see if she could be on stand-by in case I needed to drop the boys off.  For some reason, I didn't have Friend #1's phone number so I needed to call Friend #2 to get it.  I had to look up Friend #2's number online.  Because her hubby owned a business and a home in the same town, there were 2 phone listings for their family. And what are the odds that at that time, both the business and house were on the same street? Because of my stress level, I didn't think that one number could be his business. I seriously thought there were 2 guys with the same name in this small town. And I don't know the difference between North and South, East or West, so I couldn't tell by the address which one was right.  I thought I would just go for it!  I called the first number and a guy answered who sounded just like the husband, but when I told him who I was, he pretended to not know me. He asked if he could help and I politely said that I would just call the other number.  I apologized for calling the wrong number and was getting ready to hang up when he quickly said that he was just kidding and would get my friend on the phone.  I told Friend #2 that he would feel really bad for playing a prank on me when he found out why I was calling (which he did feel bad, but it just adds to the story).  I was able to get the needed phone number and Friend #1 graciously agreed to be available to babysit if needed. (Friend #2 was in the process of moving so that last thing I wanted to do was add 2 extra boys to the mix)

I rushed to the CT scan office.  James was attempting to drink the contrast when I arrived.  He was doubled over in pain; I felt horrible for him.  After the scan, we needed to wait around to hear the results before I went back to work.  I realized that I had not eaten lunch; a pregnant girl never misses a meal!  I had just placed my order at Wendy's when we received the phone call.  James needed to head back to our local hospital for immediate surgery.  The good news was that his appendix had not yet ruptured so we were thankful for that.  I followed him back to our town, but instead of going to the hospital, I picked the boys up from daycare and then drove the 40 minute round-trip to my friend's house who was going to watch them.  By the time I got to the hospital, he was already in surgery.  The surgery went without incident, but because it was early evening, he had to spend the night at the hospital for observation.  He was roomed with a man who had dementia and a horrible snoring habit. Pay-back for all of the years I put up with his snoring! Friend #2's hubby came up to the hospital to check on James; of course, I said it was to relieve his guilt from his earlier joke ;-)   Once James was settled in for the night, I drove to pick the boys up.

Now, I'm sure you're wondering, what about the trip?!? We couldn't get a refund on airfare and Broadway show tickets so I knew that I was at least still going to go.  James was adamant that he too was still going.  Thursday morning I dropped the boys at daycare and went to work for awhile.  After leaving work, I went home and loaded up the truck with our bags, picked James up from the hospital, and then got the boys from daycare and headed straight for KC.  We had to make a pit-stop at Walmart to pick up pain meds and a walking cane.  James was too sore to stand up straight and needed a little assistance with walking.  (yes, it's ok, you can chuckle at the thought of James using a cane).

Early Friday morning we made our way to the airport.  Let me tell ya, we were quite the pair.  James is hobbling with his cane and I am the big, pregnant lady who is wheeling the luggage and is loaded down with a purse, carry-on bag and James' laptop bag (plus I was starting the pregnant wobbling stage...very attractive).

It was quite the experience.  Now I'm the running joke that if you have a nursing question, my answer will be, "put your butt up in the air and fart".  My nursing instructors would be so proud.