Still breaking

What I love about coming home is seeing sweet friends like these ladies! Taking the time to catch up and laugh and hear about what the Lord is doing in each of our lives.  It is amazing how politics can bring people together!

Still more people to see before the week is over and Little Rosie's to fill my belly!

Christmas, briefly

This year we had a low key, but very exciting Christmas! Both the boys were very excited to have a white Christmas! Me on the other hand, I was trying to get away from the snow and the cold! Daniel and Doug worked hard to make a big snow pile in the middle of the sidewalk.  I think they got most of the snow rolled out of the front yard!

 

We spent the morning hanging out together, opening presents and eating a really good breakfast.  Thurman and Sunny both took part in the festivities.  It has been nice to be home and relax, to see friends and read for fun.  I have a week left of vacation and then back to work! 

Christmas Music

I do love Christmas music.  It is great to listen to when studying for finals.  Those thankfully are over with for the semester! But, Amazon has a free song download every day this month! You can get a Christmas song every day. How fun is that! Thanks for sharing the Christmas spirit with us Amazon.  Just thought you should know.

Merry Christmas!

Christmas Banquet

Last weekend was the Covenant Christmas Banquet.  It is hosted by the Student Council (me). I had a final on Thursday night and the banquet on Friday.  I also was one of the people making the decorations for the banquet so I had a super busy week.  Of course, I didn't take any pictures of the centerpieces, but they looked really good!  I was channeling my inner Allison/Sandra as I was trying to be budget friendly and make pretty centerpieces.

 We had a live band and your typical hotel food but it was a great night. I enjoyed hanging out with my friends but was definitely glad when the night was over!

To catch you up...

So I have gone off the radar lately as life has been really busy. I am in the midst of finals, papers and work. I celebrated Thanksgiving here in STL with 14 other people. My roomie, Katie and I hosted the party and a friend's house and had a great time.  We had more food and drink than we knew what to do with which of course made for a great night! I'm super proud of Katie.  She cooked the 21 lb. turkey for us. It took ALL day long and was SO tasty. I made a soup out of some of the leftovers.  I loved another successful Thanksgiving feast in STL.  What a blessing to have sweet friends to celebrate the holidays with here.

West Champions!

I told you I would be busy and man am I ever! Wrapping up this semester is crazy! This weekend I flew in to Birmingham to go to the Auburn game.  It was another great weekend in Auburn.  I didn't have a ticket this time, they were going for $150-$200!! CRAZY! Instead, I spent the day hanging out at the tailgate and watching the game.  I really do love spending a whole day hanging out, watching football, and eating.

You know it is a good weekend, first of all because Auburn won! Second, I got to talk to all 3 Ware girls within 24 hours!  I loved getting to see Allie and Kelsey in the same day.  Now if only the rest of the Ware/Martin families could have been present!

We had another successful tailgate with TONS of food to eat and LOTS of people stopping by.  The sad thing is I don't know most of them now.  I enjoyed spending my day hanging out at our tailgate holding my neighbor's twins, reading for school, eating ALL day, watching football, and people watching.

 Mom and I went down to Toomer's corner to roll the tree before the UGA fans decided to light the TP on fire.  We apparently missed all of that excitement.

 At the end of the night we celebrated Mrs. Hinson's birthday with a cupcake from Gigi's.  We still love her even if she is wearing the wrong colors!

Now that I'm back in STL I have tons of school still left to do before the semester is over.  Looking forward to a few weeks for Christmas break!

Deathly Hollows

I didn't ever think I would be excited about Harry Potter.  The past few weeks though I have been watching the remaining movies with my roommates.  Katie is finishing book 7 before the movie comes out.  With all things Harry going on in our apartment it makes me really excited for HP7.1!  I really never had any plan to get reeled in to this series but I think I am!

26

That is the number of pages I have to write in the next 2 weeks.  THAT is a lot of writing.  Most of what I have done today is work on papers, yet I'm writing more for you.

The age I turn in 4 months. Crazy huh?!

The day (Nov. 26) I'm hoping we beat the pants off that "other" team.

The day (Dec. 26) to celebrate sweet people like...

And 26-2 days until the end of the semester!!

War Eagle!!

So I know I'm a few days late on the post but my computer was a little bit slower joining me here in STL after the trip to AU.  I had a little bit of trouble with the transition between cars so I went all week without a computer.  NOW though I can show you all about my fall break!

 Katie Traylor and I made a last minute decision to head to Auburn for the AU vs LSU game.  Boy am I glad we went!  After about 11 hours in the car we finally made it to spend time with friends and family for the weekend.
After some fun hanging out friends at Momma G's and their apartment I called it a night to prepare for an early game day! Dad and I set up the tailgate, with much success we were able to get the satellite going! Maybe next time Mr. Craig!

The TigerWalk was also another highlight of the trip.  I wish I had gotten there a few minutes earlier to be a bit closer but it was still great to be in the midst of all the Auburn excitement.

 Lastly, to be in the stadium for the game is probably about the best thing ever. I hope those of you that haven't been in a while get to go soon!

The university showed a video of service men and women repeating the Auburn Creed and thought I was going to cry at the end of it because it was SO good.  Oh and check out the Creed on the side of the new coliseum.  Isn't it gorgeous?! Still haven't gotten to check out the new sorority dorms but maybe I'll get to do that UGA weekend.

Auburn Bound!!

It's official! I'm headed to The Plains this weekend!! What a great last minute, surprise trip for my fall break!

War Eagle!

Busyness

This past week was non-stop.  I worked almost 30 hours, took a midterm, and had a weekend class to attend. Oh and I made myself soup for the week too! Somehow I'm still kicking after all of that!
Working 30 hours is A LOT for a full time student.  School had to take a seat on the back burner while I worked all the time.
Fall break is this weekend and I am ecstatic.  I can't wait to have a few days off to relax and get some work done! I need all the time I can get right now.  I have been so busy I haven't had time to think straight!  I have so many things I want to bake right now and not enough time!  I am ready for some fall goodies. Baked goods that contain pumpkin and spice and everything nice.  I found some treats here that I would like to try, especially the molasses cookies with chocolate chips.

Happy soup and pumpkin spice season to you all.

Grief

I read CS Lewis' A Grief Observed  this past week. First time to read it. I highly recommend it-really good read, and super fast. He describes grief in ways that makes sense to me.  Some of you know what I have been walking through this season with loss and grief of friends and life.   So I just wanted to share some of Lewis' thoughts on grief that really resonated with me this semester as I continue to grow.  But mixed in with all of this grief is hope.  I have been thinking a lot about hope after a conversation with a friend on Tuesday.  So there is hope in the midst of all of this.  Know that  I won't leave you strictly with these thoughts of grief but that there is hope coming later this week.

I have experienced loss and death before, but never in ways like this.  I have learned though that we serve a mighty God and we are more loved than we could ever imagine or comprehend.  The pain is great but the redemption is greater.

  "No one ever told me that grief felt so much life fear. I am not afraid, but the sensation is life being afraid. The same fluttering on the stomach, the same restlessness, the yawning. I keep on swallowing. 
  At other times it feels like being mildly drunk, or concussed. There is a sort of invisible blanket between the world and me. I find it hard to take in what anyone says. Or perhaps, hard to want to take it in. It is so uninteresting. Yet I want the others to be about me. I dread the moments when the house is empty. If only they would talk to one another and not to me" (1).


  "Grief is like a long valley, a winding valley where any bend may reveal a totally new landscape. As I've already noted, not every bend does. Sometimes the surprise is the opposite one; you are presented with exactly the same sort of country you thought you had left behind miles ago. That is when you wonder whether the valley isn't a circular trench. But it isn't There are partial recurrences, but the sequence doesn't repeat" (69).

Scottish Games

This weekend was the STL Scottish Festival.  I have been waiting all summer for this weekend to roll around so I could go watch the dancing again and just be there to enjoy the festival.  This time I was blessed enough to have a few friends come out to enjoy it with me.  I was able to watch most of the dancing, some of the athletics and a little bit of sheep herding as well.  Usually when I go I stay at the dance tent the whole time but with friends there I was able to enjoy the rest of the festival.
We all had a late lunch while there and I had a a bridie:
 A bridie is similar in shape to a Cornish pasty, but the pastry is not as hard and no potato is used, making it much lighter in texture. It is made of minced beef, sometimes with onions and spices, placed on rolled-out pastry, folded into a semi-circular shape, and finally baked in an oven. (Wikipedia)

Michelle got a meat pie, which it has been AGES since I have had one of those.  Hers was just filled with minced meat.   After eating my bridie I forgot what Scottish food does to you. It sticks around all day. It is definitely not light fare because everything is greasy or fried! It was a beautiful afternoon to be in Forrest Park and enjoy the bagpipes.  I just don't know that I am ready for this cool fall weather!

Life Lately

Life lately hasn't been all that exciting.  I have been getting in to the swing of life and what it is  going to look like this semester.  My job has finally picked up and I am working regular shifts MTW nights from 5-10 pm.  I have class on Thursday nights so by the end of the week I am worn out!
Classes are going well and keeping me busy.  I have a weekend class coming up in 2 weeks so I am trying to get one of the books read and reviewed before class starts.  Plus I have the rest of my weekly assignments to take care of.
The weather here has changed and fall is on the way! It is about time to break out my jackets and sweaters to prepare for the cooler temperatures.

Not much else to update y'all on because life here has been pretty slow and boring.  Hopefully I will have more exciting things to share with you guys in the coming weeks!

Greek Festival

School has started! I have been in school almost two full weeks.  I am only taking 10 hours this semester (minimum allowed) and it is fantastic.  I feel like I have all this time on my hands.  I think I need to give it a bit longer though and see how I feel once work starts tomorrow.

This weekend one of the Greek Orthodox churches had a festival all weekend.  They gave tours of their church, served TONS of food and had dance performances.  I went Monday for lunch.  I got a gyro and had some of a dessert sampler.  The dancing was okay.  The kids dancing didn't really seem to be enjoying themselves.  I think they were all tired of performing and way over the festival.

I might try the Japanese Festival next year and see if it is any better.  Still, I love having all these options of things to do!

Huntsville again

I have been burning up the highway between Huntsville and St. Louis this summer.  I drove home again  for another quick trip.  This one was really quick.  I left at 6:30 Friday morning and got home for a late lunch and some quality time with the Calvert family.  I was so excited to see Jess, Ben, and Parker!

I hate that I won't get to see them again until Christmas but still glad I got some time to hang with you guys. Parker was only 10 days old when I got to see him. His eyes were closed most of the time so I chose to annoy him and get these aggravated faces out of him.  I think he just wanted to be left alone to sleep and not be poked and prodded.

Saturday was party central.  I had a baby shower and 2 weddings to attend.

It was great to be able to celebrate and see friends while I was at home even if it was brief.  Unless you were at a wedding then I didn't get to see you.  Life was just that crazy!

Sunday after the early service I hit the road back to STL.  I pulled in just in time to unload the car, sit for a few minutes and then head out again.  My church here had a picnic for seminary students.  It was so good to be able to interact with the pastors, their wives and some of the elders.  Plus, I got to hang out with some of the great seminary folks and dinner was free!

This is the first full week of school. Looking forward to getting settled in to a schedule.  PLUS...I have a job!  I'll  be working at a progressive care retirement community.  It is owned by the same group that runs the one in Jones Valley.  Yay for employment!

Exciting Weekend

While I was home I was surprised to find out that David and Caylen had flown in for the weekend.  They had come in to celebrate an exciting weekend with Kelsey and the family.  I got a few hours on Friday night with Caylen, David, and Mr. & Mrs. Ware.  I'm pretty sure seeing C&D was one of the highlights of my trip home.

In case you haven't heard or figured out why they were home....Kelsey got engaged!! Whoohoo!  Congrats to the happy couple!  Saturday night was family dinner celebration.  Too bad I missed out on all the fun.  I love that we have a growing family.

One more on how quickly we are growing soon.

Year Anniversary

I missed my year anniversary.  Michelle and I wanted to celebrate living in STL for a year but we were out of town or busy when it happened.  But I just wanted to mark being in STL for one year and completing the first year of three in the Counseling program!
What a year it has been!  I ran out of gas for the first time, had a flat for the first time.  I've learned about kefir and beer making (not that I've attempted the beer process, just tasted the fruits of Brook's labor). I have learned more about my faith, the PCA, and theology and realized I actually knew more than I thought.  It has been an all around pretty good year.  The Lord has definitely taken me out of my comfort zone and placed me in a season where I feel that I am constantly being grown and stretched.  But I don't think there is any better place to do that than here alongside so many other people who are walking the same path.

Emily

While I was home I had the privilege of celebrating Emily's birthday.  Katherine, with the help of a few others whipped up a fantastic birthday dinner for us to eat in honor of Emily's 26th. It was great to be able to see some sweet friends and catch up on their lives as of late.
What better way to celebrate Emily's birthday than to be together with 3 of the sweetest girls I know! What a great night to be able to see Katherine, Emily, and Laura all at once.

More on how great the night was soon...

Relaxing at Home

This past week I spent some time at home again. One of the nights while I was home I went with the fam to a Maker's Mark Ambassador event.  Maker's was revealing one of their new liquors 46.  We were able to get a free sample and a free drink. Then they also had some appetizers for us to snack on too. These are the souvenirs we got from the evening.  Thanks for the fun, free event Dad!

Donuts

This weekend I did a little dog/house sitting.  Other than Max having a bit more hair than I prefer it was a pretty great job.  Over near Kristen's house is one of the donut shops that Mom/Dad started telling me about a few days prior because they had seen it on Food Network.  So of course I wanted to try it out!

World's Fair Donuts is on Shaw, near the Hill and the Botanical Gardens.  I went at 11 in the morning and there was still a line for fresh donuts.  The line was totally worth it! I think I found a blueberry donut that rivals the Donut Hole in Destin.  Yes, there are 4 donuts. Yes,  I ate all of them in 2 days and it was totally worth it.  They were really good.  I loved the buttermilk cake donut and the blueberry cake donut.  I would definitely go back for them.

MIA

Well I have been MIA for a while now! To catch you up to speed on where I have been for I guess what has been almost a whole month since I last appeared, hang on. After the 4th I hung around STL for a bit longer. I am no longer living in my single room anymore. I moved into a double room of the apartment sharing my tiny space with Michelle.
After moving all my stuff I headed home for almost 2 weeks.  I spent time hanging out with friends, eating Little Rosie's and standing by Laura Edwards Davidson in her wedding.
While home I also made a stop in Auburn to see friends and eat a Big Blue/Momma G's/BBQ House. It was fantastic to be back and see how much the town has grown! I also made a pit stop in B'ham to see Allison. It was a whirlwind stop but I'm hoping to make it back to see folks again!   Oh, and don't forget quality pool time. Oh how I miss it!
Now I am back here in STL. Last night I went to the Muny to see The Sound of Music. Great performance and I LOVE that it is free! Now all I need is a pair of binoculars to see from our free seats. 
I still don't have a job but have been applying to two or three jobs almost every day.  Hoping to hear something back in the next 1-2 weeks. School starts back Aug 26. I'll be back in Huntsville for 2 weddings on the 28th and hopefully a baby too!

July 4th!

Happy Belated July 4th!

This year I was able to get a double dose of fireworks.  St. Louis is divided up in to different townships and almost each one does its own set of fireworks.  On Saturday night I went out with a few girls to check out Webster Groves' community fair and fireworks.  We walked around and split a funnel cake.  They turned off the field lights and shot fireworks over the fairgrounds.  It was a great night with the girls.

Sunday night a group of us went down to The Arch to watch the fireworks for the 4th.  It was a great way to celebrate and WAY crowded.  We were able to listen to the B-52s and hang out.  Once it got dark enough the show started and was over faster than I was ready for.  I know you can't really tell from the picture below but there were a TON of people there!

My new toy

Life has been crazy around here lately.  I've done some last minute travelling to be with friends and I am in the process of wrapping up my summer class, research methods.  I think the most exciting thing that is going on around here right now is the surprise Mom and Dad sent to me via the Honeycutts.  It came just in time for the 4th of July. Maybe I could even make some Butterfinger ice cream in honor of our family gathering (J&C)! But I know I have some strawberry sorbet and peach ice cream in my near future at least.  The neighbors and I are all excited about my new toy!

One day you'll know

That was the admissions slogan for Auburn while I was there.  I don't know if it still is but it is one that is SO true.  One day you will know.  It isn't something that can be explained or understood by those who haven't experienced it. Boy do I miss being a part of game day tradition! Coach Chizik has a new website.  Check it out!

While you are there, watch the Auburn Creed. It gives me chills.

Hoping I make it to a game this season.

KC Games

Saturday I made the 4 hour trip to Kansas City for their Scottish Games.  It was amazing! It has been almost 10 years since I have been to a games and I loved every minute of it.  I spent about 3 hours watching the Intermediate and Premier dancers.  Watching the performances was so much fun. I loved watching the different skill levels and different dances.  (This dance is the Irish Jig.)

After hanging out watching dancing for several hours I moved to the Pub Tent to watch a performance from Tartanic.  They are a Celtic rock group.  And of all surprises I know one of the pipers in the band! Mike McNutt used to pipe for me and the rest of the group that did Scottish dancing in Huntsville. Such a surprise to see him.  His group is really good and a lot of fun.  They travel around to a lot of renaissance fairs.  So maybe you could find their group at one.

I had hoped to see Mrs. B, my old dance teacher at the games, but she wasn't there (her son graduated from high school this weekend).  She sells dance and other Scottish products. She also used to live in Kansas City.  Although she wasn't there for the games she may be coming up for a workshop this year! I may just have to go so I can be taught by her again!

Truly a fantastic weekend.  I'm looking forward to the games in October here in STL!

Rhubarb

I am taking part in our community garden here on campus.  We are growing different fruits, vegetables and herbs.  One of the things that I have harvested so far this season is rhubarb.  I don't think I have ever had rhubarb to eat until yesterday.  I looked at lots of different recipes for something to bake and settled on this "pudding" cake.  It is super easy to make and tastes really good.  I would definitely make it again.

Summer class started this week. So I am in class Monday, Wednesday, Fridays from 12-4.  It is a pretty slow class, research methods, so it makes paying attention really hard.  I'm enjoying the slower pace of being able to hang out with friends and neighbors right now.  I'm looking forward to a whole summer of relaxation and reading for fun.  2 Harry Potter's down!

Family time

May 22 weekend the family came up for a visit. Yet again having visitors in town allows me to eat my way through STL.  We took very few pictures while everyone was here but I will at least give you guys one from the day we visited The Arch.  Some of our stops over the course of the weekend were Blueberry Hill, Fitz's root beer (I had a float with coffee ice cream and root beer on top), Mama Campisi's on the Hill, Schlafly and  Sqwires. Oh and Pappy's Smokehouse which is always SO good. I miss good bbq and ribs.  Yes, I started running/walking post this trip for all of the eating we did!

Eventually, Daniel will get his chance to go to the top of the Arch but this wasn't the visit.  Maybe next time.  Thanks y'all for coming up!

Spicy Chicken Sandwich

I registered to pick up my free spicy chicken sandwich from Chick-fil-a today.  Much to my surprise I was given a whole meal, not just the sandwich! Thank you West County Chick-fil-a.  With the spicy sandwich you can also get pepper jack cheese if you want it.  Overall, not a bad sandwich, it has a definite kick to it but like Doug said the breading might be a bit heavy. You should try one when they release them!

Summer

It has been brought to my attention by several people that I have taken a long hiatus from blogging.  I know, I think I was just recovering from completing my first year in graduate school.  Post finals I haven't wanted to do much writing for some reason.  I have, on the other hand, done some baking.

May 23 weekend the family came up for a visit to STL.  Doug and Daniel got their first whirlwind tour of the town.  We also took some time to celebrate Doug's birthday.  To do so I made him some Guinness and Bailey's cupcakes  that are to die for.  I have made them again since then.  The cupcakes are rich and so good! The Guinness batter has a very distinct chocolate-Guinness taste before you bake them.  But when they come out of the oven it is a little less Guinness and a lot more chocolate!   I highly recommend baking some of these.

I am also without internet right now so the blogging may continue to be patchy at best. Sorry folks!

Full Fridge

Living in an apartment with four girls it is easy to quickly fill up our refrigerator.  We fill up until there is no room and then eat until it is almost empty.  We are currently in the process of eating until empty.  I bought a rotisserie chicken this week at Costco and decided to make some of it in to BBQ chicken.   

The recipe is really quick and easy, which I like for during the week with class and other stuff going on.  The only thing I did differently was add a little bit of brown sugar.  I also didn't follow the amount of chicken, I probably used less.

I am having a friend over for dinner to share some of my food and catch some good time with her before she disappears for the summer! She is going to spend the summer working with the Yakama Nation in WA state.  If anyone is looking for a cool ministry to support check out Sacred Road. I know Joelle would appreciate it!

Birthday weekend

Not only was it Derby weekend but it was also Brook's birthday this past weekend.  So in honor of both we had a birthday party and I made a Kentucky Derby Pie.

Sunday night we had a cookout at the neighbor's apartment and hung out with a handful of Brook's friends.  Having grilled burgers is always so good.  The weather is perfect now to be outside and enjoy hanging out with people.  The sad thing is this is the first roomie picture we have together and Brook moves out in less than a month!

If you haven't ever had a Derby Pie you need to try it! It is kind of like a pecan pie but with chocolate chips! It is amazing and not good for you but so worth eating.

I also made an apple crisp this weekend, much less successfully.  I was short on the butter and figured I would be fine-boy was I wrong.  No worries though, ice cream covers up a multitude of mistakes!

Finals week is quickly approaching.  My first group oral final is Wednesday to kick off the week! It is going to be busy!

Freshman Year

Freshman year at Auburn I tried out for a handful of student organizations.  I tried out for enough that I can't remember how many, it was a lot.  My freshman and sophomore year I didn't make anything I tried out for which turned out to be pretty challenging.  The good thing from all of that-I got a TON of interview experience! Eventually, I made CWE and spent two fabulous years working with some of my favorite people.

I feel like it is freshman year again as I keep "trying out" for things. I'm glad I have the interview experience and the updated resume' (Thanks to my Monday night career counseling class I had to update my resume).  I know, just like freshman year, the Lord has something exciting out there for me.  I just have to hold out for whatever that is. Until then, you can find me blogging, FB-ing, and getting website experience.  Anything to occupy myself!

Blizzard

This week until the 25th you can go to Dairy Queen and buy 1 blizzard and get the 2nd one for 25cents.

What a great deal!! Tuesday night after RCF (the college ministry I am working with) we all went out for Blizzards.  It has been a while since I have had one.  I highly recommend stopping by to pick one up! So many options to choose from!

SGA...who would have thought

So last week was SGA elections on campus.  It isn't anything like at Auburn. You get nominated by a peer and can accept or decline.  I accepted.  After that, we have elections by paper ballots that you stick in a box and are hand counted.  Oh and did I mention that your picture is on the ballot too? 

Any one else ever have bad ID pictures in college or on their license?  This is my ID picture for school. This is the one that appeared on the ballot.   People still elected me even though I look like a deer in the head lights.  Amy, I just wanted to follow in your footsteps and be elected in grad school.  Sunny days here. Back to book reviews.

My Latest Purchase

For my birthday I has some money to spend.  I thought about how to spend it, and I would like to say I thought long and hard, but I didn't.  My long, hard thinking was more about picking between my options.  One of my neighbors here in STL is a super talented artist.  She works with metals and glass.  So for my birthday I bought a new pair of earrings from her.  She also designs rings, necklaces and larger pieces of artwork.

If I had more money I would buy more jewelry from Rachel because I LOVE her stuff!  I wish the picture did more justice to the earrings because where the glass is it has turned the wire orange-bluish in places. They are so fun!

OK I must do school work at some point today. I just keep putting it off!

Easter Weekend

I was back home again this weekend for Easter.  This time though, Mom and Dad flew me home!! It was a super relaxing weekend where I did absolutely no school work.  So now it is time to get back to it here in STL.

While home I of course made a few stops at Little Rosie's but also managed to squeeze in a trip to Dallas Mill Deli.  If you haven't been I highly reccomend it.  Their burgers and sandwiches are both good-especially toasted/grilled.

Also while home I got to see friends and hang out with family.  We celebrated Daniel's 20th birthday...2...0...I can't believe he will be 21 next year. It kind of freaks me out! Daniel and I also watched the latest Harry Potter movie.  One of my goals this summer is to read the Harry Potter series while school is slower.

Now back to school.

Huntsville!

Huntsville is the last stop of our road trip.  We didn't have much planned other than to relax and try and get back in to a normal sleeping pattern for school! Oh, and of course, eat at Little Rosie's!

Saturday morning after a slow start Mom and I took the ladies to Little Rosie's for lunch.  They all enjoyed their first experience.  I will be there again on Thursday.

 We dropped Mom off and I drove them around downtown to see a bit of Huntsville and we stopped of at Harrison Brother's for a little excursion. I was probably in elementary or middle school last time I went to Harrison Brothers.

After our only outing of the trip I ditched all of the ladies at home and headed to Guntersville for a wedding. They throughly enjoyed themselves reading Better Homes and Gardens and Cooking Light, maybe even doing a little school work too while I was gone.  Ashley Bradford and Billy Ramsey were married at the Lodge at Lake Guntersville.  It was a treat to see such sweet friends from college that I haven't seen in months!

Pit Stop

The road from Lakeland, FL to Huntsville, AL is LONG! It was close to a 14 hour day for us.  Yes, a few stops helped lengthen to drive but so did a few back road detours.

Our first stop on the way to Huntsville was Gainesville, FL.  Katie and Michelle both spent some time there during college. Michelle is a UF graduate, Katie spent her first two there and finished up at Samford, but she is the one with the hard core Gator Pride.

This was my first trip to the swamp.  We walked through the main part of campus, grabbed lunch in the Union building (they have a much better selection than AU did-Subway, Starbucks, CheeburgerCheeburger, Freshens smoothies, and some Pollo Loco place), then walked through the stadium back to our cars.  It amazes me that all the athletes get mopeds to ride! You can definitely tell who they are walking around campus.  I loved being back on a college campus, but it is no Auburn!

After about 7 more hours of driving we stopped for dinner in Clanton, AL. We conveniently stopped at the Whataburger next to Peach Park.  We got there before they closed and I was able to introduce Brook, Michelle, and Katie to the goodness of Peach Park.  We had fried peach pies, peach cobble with ice cream, and the caramel peach ice cream.  OH I love it all!

Then it was almost 3 more hours of driving due to detours before we made it to our last stop...Huntsville!