Wedding Road Trip

On the road again! It has been awhile since our last trip together, so Finn and I were looking forward to hitting the road for some adventures and seeing some friends and family. We left Lily at home to look after Mark and make sure he went to work and brought home the bacon (figuratively and literally). First stop: HOT-lanta to visit our friends the Benich bunch. We met them at the pool where the kiddos swam themselves out and Kriya and I got to visit until I had to dive in after Finn who lost steam while swimming across the pool. Not sure what the lifeguard who was sitting directly in front of him was thinking as he was yelling "help!"??  So I had to pull a Clark Kent and sprint from the other side of the pool and dive in to help him. Incidents like these just serve to reinforce the fact that I should never take my eyes off of him . . . until he reaches Ryan Lochte swimming capabilities. Anyway, we headed back to the Benich casa where the boys decided to camp out on the floor under their homemade "fort." The next day we headed to the Lego Discovery Center at Phipps Plaza followed by a special lunch at the counter of Johnny Rockets. Finn has hit a BIG lego phase--loves them- so this was right up his alley. The fact that he had an equally interested buddy just made it that much better. They played together for hours. We had to drag them out of there. But alas, it was time to hit the road again. Thanks Benich bunch!

Mini nerds waiting for the 4-D movie to start

Lego Power!

Next stop: Birmingham! I haven't been back to Birmingham in a really long time so it was a great treat to get to visit again. Of course, Finn didn't care a thing about hearing about mom's old stomping ground and former "glory" college days.  We went to visit aunt Lindsey's office and met some of her co-workers and then went to see her big girl apartment. It is a little surreal to see my baby sister all grown up and living responsibly on her own, with a big girl job in a big girl apartment. For no other reason than the fact that somehow even though I get older, it seems everyone else should not. So sometimes I still picture her in high school. Sorry Lindsey! So it was a fun treat to be able to crash Lindsey's apartment! Even though we were in town less than 24 hours, I called some of my dear college peeps to see if anyone could meet up. Turns out it was my lucky day! Lauren and her adorable daughter Reese and Jennifer and Finn and I met up for mexican and a fun night of catching up. Mexican restaurants=loud restaurants=happy moms and kids! 

Even though I don't get to talk to these girls regularly, whenever I do see them, it's like no time has passed at all.  A great night--thanks for making the effort ladies. Hope to see you all sooner rather than later.

Lauren, Reese, Finn (the little stud), Me and Jennifer

Finn and Reese emptying their mom's change purses into the fountain

Final stop: Montgomery, Alabama. We made it to the hotel and decided to take a load off by the pool. It was the perfect way to swim off all of the excess energy that had built up over 3 long days in the car. Everyone met up at the hotel, changed and headed to the church. On the way down, I remembered my (other) friend Jennifer had recently moved to Montgomery. So I called her up and told her we were in town and turns out she lives only two miles from the church. So, she and her beautiful girls were able to meet us at the church for a quick visit. It was too short but so great to see her again. Now, Montgomery is not that big of a city, but the church where Bo and Liz got married was like a city within a city. It had a coffee shop, aquarium and an INDOOR PLAYGROUND. Perfect for someone who has an antsy 4 year old with an hour to kill before the wedding (we had to be there early for pictures). So, the kiddos played and Jen and I were able to catch up. My sweet little (now big) cousin played the pied piper and entertained the kids. Finn showed up to the church in a tie, shirt tucked in and dress shoes on. Before the wedding started you will see below, he was down to an untucked shirt and pants (barely). We pulled it together to get into the church without too much embarrassment. The ceremony was lovely Bo and Liz looked so excited to begin the rest of their life together. Congratulations to the happy couple. Now, as Finn says, it's party time! 

We headed back to the hotel for the reception. My whole family was there so it was great to visit with aunts, uncles, grandparents, cousins, and of course, my parents and sister. Finn didn't want to waste time with food, he was ready for the dance floor. He danced his little heart out--and everyone got a turn to be his partner. He was first in line for the cake (they had to move him out of the way for a picture), but other than that he was on the dance floor. I have to say that the band was amazing. Really and truly, heads above any wedding band I have ever heard. I would pay money to go see them, they were that good. So the wedding was a huge success and we were so happy to be able to share and witness Bo and Liz's special day. A quick digression: I was somewhat surprised and very proud of myself that I had gotten a wedding gift ready to give BEFORE the wedding, made sure it was wrapped, securely placed in the car so not to get smashed by our luggage and the 15 million other bags in my car, and hauled it more than 500 miles. I was equally surprised when Mark unpacked said wrapped wedding gift when we RETURNED from the wedding. 

Back to the wedding . . .

3 little monkeys and their "handler"

Harper and Oliver Patrick, Finn and Katie Grace

My wedding date (doesn't he kind of look like a preschool version of a sweaty fraternity boy?)

The Happy Couple . . . Bo and Liz

A dancing blur (he really was moving that fast, for the entire reception)

Soul train, with aunt Ginger

The "Young" cousins

Papa and Grandmother--Don't they look amazing!

Causing trouble

Hmmm . . . could they be next??? No pressure or anything.

(only kidding Justin and Lindsey)

A great time was had by all. We crashed at the end of the night, luckily our beds were just a short elevator ride away. The next morning we had a LONG drive home back to South Carolina. Which was made ever so much longer by the 10 bathroom stops we had to make along the way. Because 4 days of eating fast food, followed by wedding cake, both pieces, and an endless supply of sprite for dinner will do a number on a little boy's stomach. I really did feel badly for him because he was really uncomfortable but the poor kid could have given me a little warning along the way. We would be driving and then all of a sudden he would scream from the backseat "mom, I have to poop NOW!" And of course, we would have just passed the nearest rest stop and would be in the middle of nowhere. The nearest gas station would also be the most disgusting, but here we would come, running as fast a we could, undressing along the way. Here is a little TMI for you . . . Finn has to undress from the waste down anytime he poops. Pants, undies, socks, shoes, it all comes off every time. Which is fine at home, but not in the middle of a flooded men's restroom in who knows what exit off of I-20. Finn didn't just do this once. But EVERY TIME he had to go. It would be a 0-60, 4 alarm sprint to the closet potty. I lost track of how many stops we made, but he changed clothes at least twice if that gives you any idea. We finally made it home and made a beeline for a HOT shower. My take-away from that ride was that I will always carry a potty in the trunk for long road trips. Lesson learned. It's always fun to go away, but equally fun to come back home.