Thursday, December 13, 2007

The MOVE Part V

We were finally in the homestretch. Only 3.5 hrs. from DC is our new home. The weather was less than exciting for the final stretch.


A brief drive thru Baltimore


B pumping his last tank of gas for a while. (It's illegal in NJ to do it yourself).


IF you could read this, it would say "Welcome to Delaware"


And last but not least...they must have known we were coming!

The MOVE Part IV

With North Carolina behind us, we set our sites on Washington, DC. It was a short 4 hrs, especially b/c the kids slept almost the entire time. We stayed in the middle of it all at the Embassy Suites. It was a nice night, so B strapped Abri in the backpack,and we hit the streets.

Hello Virginia


Hello DC-it was raining & my windshield was dirty


Lise's 1st hot dog on a stick (not a corn dog b/c she wont' eat the bread)


Me and Lise' on the METRO


The White House


The Christmas Tree on the Mall


The windows at MACYS


Abri enjoyed the ride

The MOVE Part III

We said goodbye to Atlanta and headed north. Of course, before we got to NC, we had to pass through South Carolina. There wasn't much to say about that, but we do have a pic or two.

If it hadn't been for the napping children, we might have stopped near the giant peach for some peach cider.

We made it to the NC state line without incident, but boy were we in for a surprise. I'm not sure if it was the climb in altitude or what, but Lise' started screaming her head off. It didn't take us long to guess that she had an ear infection. Abri already had one, so we were familiar with the symptoms. Unfortunately for us, it was already 5pm (CST). So, we put in a call to the doctor in AL, and they hooked us up with some medicine for the evening, although it didn't do much to ease her pain through the night. In an effort to continue our tradition of visiting doctors across the nation, our suspicions were confirmed-Lise' had a double ear infection. Lucky for us, she was already on her way to recovery, and it seemed the sleepless nights were behind us.


We spent 2 nights at the Misita bed & breakfast. After our visit to the doctor, we headed to a great museum near Chapel Hill, the Natural Museum of Life & Science, and I recommend it to anyone who has the time to visit. There were just too many things to do and not enough time.

We had to make a detour to the pharmacy on our way. Lise' LOVED the grocery carts!




For all of you who know me, you know how much roaches make my skin crawl. I was just waiting for B to play some sort of joke on me and tell me one was on my head.


They had a really great outdoor area too. Lise' and B had a ball making music and shooting water all over the place.









We sure had fun staying with Nanny Caron and Parain Chris! Nanny is too cute with her 9 month pregnant belly. We can't wait for the news of their baby girl!

Unfortunately, time was too short again, and it was time to hit the road. I'll share that clip in another post.

Wednesday, December 12, 2007

The Move Part II

We didn't have far to go the first night. It was only 3 hours to Jeff & Alex's in Atlanta, GA. They graciously provided comfortable accommodations and a home cooked meal to us weary travelers. Lise' always enjoys visiting Uncle Jeff & Aunt Alex, although I'm certain our kids are a little exhausting to a couple used to a quiet home. Sorry Jeff & Alex! They do have a dog, Roux, and Abri's first word other than Dada was DOG. She enjoyed Roux so much that when she woke up the next morning, the first word out her mouth wad DOG. too cute. After a warm breakfast and quick goodbyes, we left for Durham, NC-the home of Chris and Caron. Goodbye Alabama, hello Georgia! On the way into Atlanta, Lise' was on her 100th round of Jingle Bells. It's a great song to hear her sing. Pay close attention to her southern twang.

The Move Part I

Well, both girls are in B's lap for the night, so I figured I'd catch you up a little on how the move went. As predicted, Monday was nuts. I took the girls away before the truck arrived, and by the time I returned, packing was in full swing. We hung around the house for a short time, but after a while, it was monotonous and impossible to keep the girls out of the way. Lucky for us, we have the Colvins, so to Ira & Flossie's we went. Before we went though, the girls had a good time jumping on the mattresses in the den.

Over the next 3 days, it was more of the same. Lise' was very confused by the fact that her swing set was taken apart, but other than that, she was fine with the whole thing.

Of course, it was sad to say goodbye to our friends, but the pain was eased by the promise of a visit soon.


For all of you who haven't seen it, this is B's newest aquisition, aka the green lizard (named by me). We've had it several months now, and I know you have all heard about it. It made the move on up here, and is parked out front.


The moment to say goodbye finally came. Here's our last family pic at our AL home.


Then with one final stop at the Colvin's, we hit the road. As you can see, the events of the days past hit Lise' before we were 10 minutes out.


Monday, December 10, 2007

It's been a LONG not so hard trip

Just wanted to let everyone know that we are officially in New Jersey. The movers arrived this morning and didn't finish until around 4pm. All of us are exhaused, and the house is a mountain of boxes. As soon as I regain some sanity, I'll tell you all about the trip up here.

Goodnight for now.

And, most importantly HAPPY BIRTHDAY MIMI!!!! Lise' has been singing to you all day.

Sunday, December 2, 2007

The calm before the storm

Well, here it is. Our last night before the start of the move. Tomorrow morning the doorbell will ring, and it will all start. It's scheduled for a 3 day pack and load, so we won't roll out of here until Wednesday, but it should be interesting how we're going to manage to keep the kids out of the way and happy while all this is going on.

As for the last few days, we've been kicking our heels up a little. On Friday, we of course, went to the park with Ira & Flossie. We also picked Grandma and Papa up at the train station. They came in to drive the truck back to Louisiana. Due to the fact that we have little land and 4 vehicles at the moment, Mr. Ed's been gracious enough to foster ole' Pete (yes, I named it in high school), and he will be residing in Hammond for either the remainder of his life or our term in New Jersey, whichever is shorter. B also flew in late that night, and the girls must have sensed his presence because by 2am, both were in our bed. Where's the king size when you need it????

On Saturday we couldn't help but hit a few garage sales. Ms. Jennifer, Ira & Flossie joined us for a more exciting adventure. We got a late start, but came home with a few items. The best was the last sale we hit. They advertised vintage, and it all was. We purchased 20 vintage ladies hats, and when we got home, everyone took turns trying them on. Unfortunately for you, my camera was in the car, so I'm sorry to say I don't have any pictures. Those hats are now on their way back to New Orleans where they will find their new home in an antique mall on Magazine Street.

Tonight, we headed over to Ira & Flossie's for dinner. What fun it is to see the kids enjoy each other. It's wild and exhausting for even the casual onlooker, but entertaining at the same time. The kids exchanged presents, and Ms. Jennifer was kind enough to give Lise' her own "band in a box." She suggested we bring it in the car on our way to NJ so that we could be reminded of the parade the children put on in her house.

What great memories we have from here! Don't worry Jennifer, it's not our last. I'm promising now that we will visit, and who knows, there's a plant in Bridgeport, AL. You never know where your next job could be with this company :-) You certainly give us reason to consider it should it ever present itself.

Well, I must get one more load of wash on before my washer and dryer are disconnected. I'll do my best to keep you all informed while we're on the road, but I'm not making any promises at this point.