2nd trip to GA - Grandma's Funeral

A lesson in last-minute travel. Knowing the Katie's grandma was dying, but not quite dead yet, made it hard to plan travel. But we did it. We flew Delta nonstop both ways, first class on the way back! Free checked bag on the way back but had to pay for it on the way down...go figure. The hotel we wanted to stay at (and a lot of the others) were booked solid for weddings and sports tournaments so we tried a new one. Candlewood Suites in Athens, off the Atlanta Hwy. Not bad, but we missed a lot of things we considered standard like a swimming pool! Got to see Ashlie and Hope again. Had dinner w/ Katie's Uncle Rick and Aunt Mary at Outback and breakfast at Cracker Barrel. Saw a lot of family (duh). Rented a car from Avis at the ATL airport again.

Cullman, AL to Athens, GA

I have a lot of friends. And by association, so does Nathan. I just wish they were closer.

We checked out of the motel and drove out to the project for breakfast with the dwindling crew at the Carpenters' project. After a few last hugs we hit the road. Only for an hour though since we were stopping at Samford. We went to the bookstore to get a few things we hadn't found to order online and then met with the alumni director, David. He's a really nice guy who I had only spoken with by email. Definitely a good connection to have. While we were at the bookstore, I saw Sherry who worked in Human Resources and got a hug from her. In the food court I talked to a different David and was amazed he remembered me even 3 years after graduating. I saw Miss Dot in the caf and she was just as sweet as ever. I got to show Nathan a few things we had missed last year in our stop at Samford but there's still plenty more to see the next time. I kinda like it that way....it means we have to come back. =)

Our next stop was in Gainesville to have dinner with Ashlie and Derrick. That meant driving thru Atlanta....on a Friday afternoon.....on the downtown connector. This may sound simple if you're not from here. Our side alone of the downtown connector (I-75/I-85) had 7 lanes. I can only imagine the southbound side had 7 lanes too. We criss-crossed traffic changing interstates 3 times or more. We had a massive lightning storm while sitting in bumper to bumper traffic. And we saw a couple people merge 5 lanes of traffic in one swoop. Nevertheless, traffic really wasn't that bad. Most of the time it stayed moving and we were always in the right lane thanks to accurate signage being posted in advance!

We got to Applebee's and had good food and good service. Mostly I was intersted in the good fellowship so I think I forgot to eat. We had such a good time we went to Starbucks for after dinner coffee and I got a slice of marble loaf since the Pacific NW has decided never to serve it again (meanies!). It was wonderful to realize how similar married life is, no matter where you live or how long you've been together. We definitely enjoyed an adults only dinner (though the boys are precious...) and wish we could do it more often. So if anybody would like to invent an instant travel machine.....

The drive to Athens from Gainesville wasn't bad. No deer and no cops. We have been on the road quite a bit today but it was worth it. We are now in eastern time zone and not quite used to it. Maybe it is better to fly and settle into it faster than a one hour adjustment every few days...not sure. Soon enough we'll be back in my favorite time zone (Central) which is where the majority of our trip takes place, surprisingly.

My favorite car (detail) wash also does oil changes so we're going to go there tomorrow since we've definitely gone 3000 miles! We'll also be negotiating our return route as the bonus of our trip has been canceled. Maybe another day.

'Night, y'all.

Athens, GA - April 2009

Nathan and Katie flew Continental April 15 and April 19. Dave dropped us off at the MAX stop at the Fairgrounds after coming over to meet Peyton and Eli. We got to the airport just after pizzicato closed even though their website said they'd be open 2 more hours (apparently summer hours are posted and they're still operating under winter hours....blah) We met "Apple" at our gate. Apple, or "Manzanita" was an appleheaded chihuahua headed to Costa Rica for a 6 week vacation...with his owner. Such a sweet dog, 18 months old, had never flown before. He only whimpered a little when we took off and landed as he stayed in his under-seat crate the entire trip. We connected in Houston right as restuarants were opening for breakfast. This is the only Starbucks to still serve marble loaf (chocolate/vanilla marble pound cake). We learned to appreciate being "Elite" members as we got to board the plane second to only the first class customers. This proved beneficial on our first flight since the overhead bins filled too early and people had to check bags last minute...I hope they got them at their final destination! The second flight wasn't quite as crowded so we got to share 3 seats together and pretend to sleep on the 2 hr flight to Atlanta. Wayne and Kay were at Hartsfield to pick us up and we did our best to stay awake in the car. We stopped at the new Chick-Fil-A in Monroe and Katie got a stuffed cow for Nathan to take to work since the cows were for children and she is Kay's child =)

We flew down for Kim and Daniel's wedding which was on Saturday but had acouple of festivities to attend before it. First was the shindig at Dave and Buster's in Gwinnett. They serve LOTS of food as a "normal" amount. It wasn't our favorite spot to be but most of that was because of how tired we were after staying up 40 hours or so. Luckily, Carla drove us to and from dinner so we only had to drive to and from Carla's apartment in Athens.

Friday we got biscuits from AJ's where we saw the sweet lady who always works there. I think she remembered us too! Then we had Jason's Deli for lunch before meeting Ashlie and Derrick and Hosea and Levi at the park to play for a bit. Then Wayne and Kay decided we should squeeze in visits to Katie's grandmothers which was fine except for how hurried they were and that they were almost late to Kim and Daniel's rehearsal dinner. The dinner was at Blind Pig Tavern and Nathan tried fried pickles for the first time and liked them! We also got more sweet tea =)

Saturday we stopped by to see Ricky on the way to Kim and Daniel's wedding. Ricky had been in a near-fatal car accident a month before and since Katie had babysat him for 6 years, she really wanted to see him. He looked a lot better and has improved even more since then! We left their house and began our quest to Carlton...just past the middle of nowhere. The wedding was gorgeous and the food delicious. Katie did receive warning that there were ticks in the area (outdoor wedding/reception) so she decided to apply bugspray just in case. We rushed to Laura and Jeremy's reception (their wedding was also the 18th!) but were unable to see them because the bride and groom arrived 1.5 hours late. By that point we had to leave to have dinner with Katie's family in Braselton at the Cracker Barrell. Nathan had been wanting to try hush puppies ever since hearing Brad Paisley's song "Ain't Nothin' Like" where he says you should have "good hush puppies with some sweet iced tea" so he made sure to order some with his dinner.

Sunday Kay cooked breakfast as she and Katie had been trying to figure out Fran's homemade biscuit recipe. It's getting closer. Then it was time to go to the airport. We got drinks once we cleared security but opted to get food in Houston. Once again, Continental overbooked their flight and took forever to get people sorted out as there were three people who had all been given the same seat! Finally we landed in Portland and took the MAX to 170th where Casey picked us up and took us home.

Athens, GA - Nov 2008

Nathan and Katie flew Frontier to Athens Sat Nov 22 to Fri 28. snow in denver made return flight suck.

Athens, GA - July 2008

Nathan and Katie flew Frontier July 19 and Aug 3.

Athens, GA - Feb/Mar 2008

Nathan and Katie flew Frontier Feb 27 and Mar 2nd 2008.