T is for Thankfulness

And T is for Texas.  I spent a wonderful week in Texas for Thanksgiving this year.  I could  have never imagined five years ago, that I would be happy, even excited to return to Texas...but that's another blog post.  

I arrived in Texas early Saturday morning (almost a week before Thanksgiving).  A few of my former students were up in Dallas celebrating a birthday, and offered to pick me up.  It was such a blast to hang out with them all day! 

Gretchen, Allison, and Kalie...the three musketeers.  Their friendship began last year on staff and I was not only excited to see them, but to experience their craziness again! LOVE them!

We had a wonderful time in Dallas, until a few of us got sick from lunch.  It was less than pleasant.  That night I met up with more Baylor friends at the football game.  Unfortunatetly, I am beginning to think I'm the bad luck charm.  Baylor football began winning when I left, and UGA football began loosing when I came.  :/

Anyway, it was a great time to catch up with some of my Baylor peeps. 

Lisa, Ryn, and me

Sunday was church with Lisa, and then Cafe Cappuccino with Sarah and Tiffanie.  I LOVE the two of them, and LOVE Cafe Cap!  My favorite, banana pecan pancake, yumm.

Sunday, was fairly low key and spent time hanging out with friends, watching movies, and just being in the presence of people who really, really know me.  What a wonderful thing for my spirit!

On Monday and Tuesday (day) I spent time at my favorite coffee shop, visiting with friends over Common Grounds coffee. :)

Monday & Tuesday (night) I went to the Baylor Basketball games (men & women).

 Sarah and me at the women's game.

Shelton and me at the men's game.

I spent Thanksgiving day with my favorite Ecklund family!  I have missed this family and their friendship, tremendously!

Selah (above) enjoyed her frosting covered cookie!  And as an early Christmas gift, Gianna and Selah got pink, glitter, Toms from their grandparents.

They are growing up so fast, but it was such a delight to spend Thanksgiving with this wonderful family!

Friday morning, Ryn and I decided to tackle black Friday (again).  We arrived five minutes before Target opened (similiar to last year), however, this time the line wrapped around the building and snaked back and forth.  It was almost twice as long, and Target opened an hour earlier this year.  We hit a few other stores after Target, then breakfast, then nap time.  It was fun to share this memory with Ryn again!

Ryn and I braving the cold.  When I arrived in Waco it was almost 80 degrees.  Then Thursday, a cold front came in...just in time for Thanksgiving.  It actually made it feel a bit more like a true November.

Friday night I was on the plane headed back to Georgia.  Although there was part of me that was ready to leave (simply ready to be sleeping in my own bed), all of me was thankful for the amazing time I got to spend with such dear friends!

Ghost Tour

UGA does a ghost tour near halloween around the campus.  Mallory told me about it.  Wednesday night, she ditched class a bit early and we headed over to the arch in order to start the tour.  Earlier in the night, it had begun pouring, however, by 8pm, it was only a drizzle.  Rain gear in hand, we waited in eager anticipation for the tour to start.

5 minutes later, we figured being late must be part of the 'act'.

10 minutes later, we figured they may be late.

15 minutes later, we about gave up hope.

Even as we walked away 20 minutes later, we kept looking back in hope that someone would appear to give the tour.

Here's a pic of us waiting with excited anticipation! :)

Maybe next year...right?!  :/  But who knows, maybe I'll be the one having to ditch class early to try and attend the ghost tour ;)

Washington Farms Corn Maze

So I'm trying not to bury myself in school work.  This will be harder and harder the next fews weeks as projects are due, and I'm trying to prepare for hurdle #1 of 11 of the PhD process (oh, and passing every class, but I'm not adding those to the list).  

Last Saturday, I was invited to a corn maze.  I enjoy mazes, and it was a good chance to get out of the house and interact with some other doc students.  

Here are some pics from the night.  Below is Nikki, she's a first year doc student in the same program.

 The group of us ready to tackle the maze.  Well, errr, the picture was actually taken after, so more appropriately...the group of us that survived the maze.

 This particular field had two mazes, a short and a long.  One way to enter the long maze was via a homemade pipe slide.  Don't be fooled, it was a beast.  We watched little children slide down and they barely made it off the end.  Well, with a little extra weight (compared to a 10 year old) I slide down in a hurry...and laughed the entire way down.  Here's a pic of Jen (a doc student currently in dissertation phase; and look if she can walk away from writing and studying...so.can.I.) :)

(Below) they had a pumpkin you could stand next to to measure your height.  This just proves that I am taller than my sister :)  Or rather that I'm clever enough to stand on some hay to make myself appear to be 6ft. tall.

Overall the maze was fun and the company was nice.  I'm guessing that I'll make another trip back to Washington Farms multiple times in the next three years as they have all sorts of seasonal festivities.

30 Years Young

October 16th marked my 30th birthday.  In some ways, I already felt 30.  In other ways, I still feel like a kid in grown up clothes waiting for someone to discover the magic fortune machine I made a wish on.  Either way, I didn't panic about turning 30.  No pleas were made.  No tears were shed.  To be honest, 29 felt more odd than turning 30.

I am excited about my thirties.  I believe there are lots of things to look forward to.

For the last few years, my mom and dad have swapped coming into town for my birthday.  Since my dad and sister came out to Georgia to help me move, it was fitting that mom came for my birthday.

She flew in early Thursday morning and out early Monday morning.  We had a nice time celebrating!

Friday we toured UGA and all the important places in Athens...like Hobby Lobby ;)

Saturday at midnight, I opened my gift from my sister.  It had come a few days earlier from Target...tempting me to open it.

I was super excited about the espresso machine.  I had mentioned wanting one awhile ago, but my sister threw me off by asking me about everything else but the espresso machine on my list. :)  I LOVE it!

Saturday morning my mom made me breakfast, I opened some other lovely gifts and then we headed for the mountains of North Carolina!  Last year for my birthday, I crossed off a few states and this year...I crossed off a few more.  

As a side note, I'm down to ONE hand! Alaska, Hawaii, Connecticut, Road Island, and Kentucky are the only states left on the list.   

Here are some pictures from our trip through North Carolina.  We drove the Blue Ridge Parkway outside of Asheville.  It was beautiful.  I would like to go back for an entire weekend. :)

 There were numerous tunnels.  They were a wonderful addition to the drive, minus driving out of the dark into the bright light...little hard on the eyes.

 I love fall colors!  I love brisk weather.

 Sunday afternoon we headed to Atlanta.  We were going to try and see Olympic park and the MLK museum.  Unfortunately, the MLK museum closed early AND Olympic park was kind of a bust.  I mean, it's a water fountain and a grassy area.

However, I had been craving some Panda Express and fortunately, Atlanta (unlike Athens) has one! Get excited, it's the little things in life. ;)

Sunday night was finished off with an ice cream cake.  I love ice cream cake.  It's the best of both worlds.  The selection was slim, but we found a supposedly delicious flavor.  However, when we cut into it, we were deceived.  White cake.  Boo.  It still tasted good, just not what we had anticipated!  We had the ice cream cake while sipping on lattes.  It was a wonderful ending to a fantastic birthday weekend!  I was glad my mom was able to celebrate the weekend with me and see my new home!

Celebration

My grandpa's 82nd birthday is Monday, October 11th.

A couple months ago, when he was diagnosed with cancer my family talked about doing a living memorial in celebration of his life. Often times, at funerals, people say such lovely things about the person who has passed. Unfortunately, many times those wonderful things aren't said to the person while alive.

Today my family is celebrating my grandpa's birthday and life in a sort of living memorial sort of way. They've invited people from all over. Family, friends, friends of family, even some of his doctors and hospice nurses are planning to attend.

I wish I was able to attend, unfortunately, living on the other side of the world (sometimes it feels that way), and school prevent me from being there. However, I was able to participate in the event through the creation of a video that will be played during the party.

Paul Rhymes, you are loved!

(since the video won't post...here is the YouTube link)
Happy Birthday Video!

Sweet Surprise

Friday evening, I hung out with the Correll-Hughes'. Not only are they great people, it just nice to feel as though you are known. I enjoyed getting to know new people and making new friendships, but every now and again it's nice to go...where everybody knows your name.

Anyway.

When I arrived at the CH home, Larry mentioned that his friend Megan who worked in Housing at UGA would be joining us but that she was late and we should start eating. After dinner, we sat out on the porch chatting. There was a knock at the door and Larry went to answer it. As two women entered the house, I thought, wow, his friend Megan looks a lot like my friend Megan.

Then it hit me. It WAS my friend Megan. Ha.

Rewind to earlier in the day. I was hanging out with Laura. Laura is a 2nd year in the Masters program and did her summer internship at Baylor. I was using her ticket into the game, as she wasn't going to be going. When she gave me her ID (how the student tickets are issued) she also gave me another ticket. She said this was in case I couldn't get in on her ID. I laughed and asked if she remembered Megan from Baylor. I made some sort of comment that Megan was going to be upset because I had an extra ticket to the Arkansas v. Georgia game (Meg is Arkansas alum).

Fast forward. I was surprised to see Megan, I even asked...what are you doing here? Then I laughed and told her she was in luck, that I 'randomly' had an extra ticket to the game. Oh yeah, not random.

Megan had planned it. All very last minute of course. Her friend Alicia had posted on facebook that she wanted to go to the Arkansas Georgia game. Megan asked her if she was serious, since Alicia currently resides in the state of Arkansas. She was. So they began trying to make plans. It wasn't until Wednesday that things looked like a go. Megan had called Laura, secured a ticket, talked with Larry and Christy to make sure I was around. And the rest...history.

It was a nice visit. Quick, but nice.

Saturday we went to the game. Saturday night we hung out with some of Megan's Arkansas people. Sunday (today) she left to go back to Little Rock (drop off Alicia) then head back to Waco.

What a fun surprise!

Megan and I on the bus to the game

Noon kick off, it was hot!

SEC football! WOOHOO!

Goooooo Dawgs, Sic Em, woof, woof, woof, woof

Sorry for the whistler, and yes, she was just as annoying in person. SEC football is something to marvel at. We were in the 'overflow' student section as the first was filled AND we figured it may be safer for Megan as an Arkansas fan. I was excited to experience my first game with Megan. Again, what a fun surprise!

101 things to do in 1001 days

A friend, and member of my cohort, introduced me to a website called Day Zero Project. It's a site that lets you create a list of 101 things to do in 1001 days. Interestingly enough, if I had started this on the first day of class (Aug 16th), 1001 days later would be the day after graduation, May 13th.

Although I'm a month behind, I thought it would be fun to create a list of things I wanted to do & accomplish during these next three years.

Here is the beginning of the list

Walk across the stage (one final time)

Visit the Georgia Coast

Visit North Carolina

Visit South Carolina

Visit Kentucky

Be the first author on a published paper

See the Appalachian trail head (GA)

Purchase sweat pants

Run a 5k

Go to Disney World

Create a list of 101 things to do

Get contacts

Go to a planetarium

Go to a drive in movie theater

Run warrior dash

Run the Nike Women's marathon

Participate in the urban adventure race

Visit the Florida keys

Send a note via balloon

Write a letter to my future self

Learn to water ski

Road trip back to Texas

Pictures with the uga mascot around Athens

Attend a SEC football game

A one month photo journal

Watch the sunrise over the Atlantic ocean

Apply to be a court appointed special advocate (CASA)

Go to a UGA gymnastics match

Obviously I need to put this list together quickly as I'm already behind. Thus I'm soliciting you for suggestions. :) Thoughts?

California Dreaming

This weekend, I flew out to California to spend some time with my grandparents. Additionally, my sister found a flight and was able to join the party. We had a wonderful visit with our grandparents.

Here are some pictures from the (quick) wonderful trip.
On Sunday, my aunt, uncles, and cousins also joined for lunch. While my cousin was there, she fashioned her new work outfit. After she left, my grandma fashioned the jacket she got when she was up in Portland last time visiting my mom & sister. She needed a little coaxing, but came out parading the coat. :)
While sitting around eating dessert, my grandpa was looking at pictures on my sisters iPhone, amazed by all the things it could do.
We had to leave early Monday morning in order for my sister to catch her flight out of San Francisco. Unfortunately, both grandma & grandpa were in bed, which we thought might be the case, so we said goodbyes Sunday evening.

My dad took us to the airport on Monday. Since there was a bit of time between my sisters flight and mine, we went to Pier 39, ate sea food, visited with my Aunt Laura & Uncle Robert, and of course made a stop at In-N-Out before heading to the airport.

Although the trip was quick, I know I was extremely blessed to have been able to spend the weekend with my grandparents. Not only was the timing perfect, I was able to find a flight for around $350 with a weeks notice. Amazing. I know I am blessed to have almost 30 years of memories with my grandparents, and call me selfish, but I hope and pray that I have many many more to come!

Labor Day 2010

Since I don't work Friday's, I've been trying to determine what to do with my four day weekend. Many ideas came to mind. Visit friends in Texas. Visit friends in South Carolina. Read, study, and feel accomplished. Stay at home and veg. Or book a plane ticket at the last minute to see my grandparents on the other side of the country.

Guess which won?

In addition to seeing my grandparents this weekend, I will also get to visit with my sister! We found her a flight too (thank you Continental frequent flyer miles)! She'll be flying in on Friday evening and I'll be flying in Saturday morning (which also leaves Friday for me to bust my butt reading and such).

I am so grateful to be able to spend this time with my family, and I'm thrilled I found a flight for a decent amount of money on such short notice.

There are many other things to update on, but this was the most pressing for the moment. Thank you to those of you who continue to keep my family in your prayers during this time!

Questions

Sometimes this life just isn't fair.

I just received word that upon doing the scope, they found the cancer has spread throughout my grandpa's body.

I don't know much more than that at this point. They're going to try and make him as comfortable as possible.

This just sucks, I really didn't expect this would be the outcome.

Grandpa's Surgery

Thank you to those of you who have asked and been praying for my family. I just spoke with my grandparents and my grandpa's surgery is scheduled for this Tuesday, August 24th at 8am (pst).

The surgery will go as follows:

They'll open him up and use a camera to survey the cancerous tumor.

If they find other places where the cancer has spread, they'll close him up and make him comfortable until he leaves this earth.

If they only find the one cancerous tumor (which is what they're expecting to find) then they'll remove it, do some other work, and then patch him up.

My grandparents are in good spirits and trust that God will use whatever outcome for his glory. My grandpa finds every opportunity to share his story of God's love; this is just another opportunity to do that.

I'm obviously praying it's just a cancerous tumor, that it can be removed with ease, for a quick recovery, and to restore my grandpa to full health.

I (and my family) would appreciate your prayers. Thank you.

Mysterious Ways

God works in mysterious ways sometimes.

There are many times I sit in awe of what God is doing. There are other times where I throw my hands up in the air and think, 'what are you doing?'

When I was interviewing for assistantships, I spoke with this woman, Jan. She had an assistantship in her office of assessment. Although I wasn't too thrilled about the position itself (not that the job was bad, just very removed from students, and lots of assessment (which I already knew I'd be doing in the program)) BUT I was extremely excited about the opportunity to work with Jan. For whatever reason, I knew she valued people, would help create the experiences I desired, and would be a wonderful supervisor.

Well, I didn't get that assistantship.

Instead, I have an assistantship working in the student center. Having never worked with any sort of student union, it'll be a good opportunity to learn. Additionally, my office is just down from the dean, I have interaction with some students, and there's the ability to create my own job description (all wonderful things).

So I started on a Tuesday. My supervisor left (I mean left left) on Friday. The next Tuesday, my new supervisor was announced. On Friday, she moved in.

If you haven't guessed it yet...Jan is the interim...and my temporary supervisory. I couldn't have been more thrilled when they announced it!

...

So...God story number 2.

When I was looking for places to live, you may remember I decided to live on campus and the whole hoopla of securing my spot. Well, I had been in contact with this woman Mallory. A friend of mine in the program (Larry-2nd year) had someone in his cohort (Danny) that knew someone (Mallory) who was looking for a roommate too. Random, I know. So Larry put me in contact with Mallory. After a few emails back and forth, it seemed as though we may get along, although how much can you truly know through email. Well, after I had decided to go with on campus housing (and secured a place), I get an email from Mallory saying she's decided to go solo this year (phew). But we agree to meet up for coffee after we're both moved in.

A few weeks ago, Mallory shoots me an email saying she's moving in and that she'd like to schedule coffee. She informs me that she is living in on campus housing. (Insert random laugh here ps she didn't know I was also living on campus) Then she tells me that she's in the building next to mine (Insert confused look and thoughts of where her apartment is)

Literally, I can see her apartment door from mine (when the tree in the courtyard is trimmed).

Mallory and I soon meet up for dinner. Here are some of the things we talk about.

• We both like the outdoors
• She has her master's degree in higher education from UGA so she knows all my program faculty
• She's been working in a leadership development program
• We both finished our masters in 2005
• She's not married and about the same age
• She's a Christian

And the list goes on and on. We joked that we lived parallel lives. But really, it's just another reminder of God's provision for me along this journey.

I was reflecting the other day about this transition as opposed to the last, and surprisingly this one has been smoother. This may be in part because I'm not deathly ill three weeks into moving, but for whatever reason, I'm grateful. I know this journey to PhD will be a tough and long (roughly over 1000 days) road, but I'm so thankful for reminders that God is with me and watching out for all the details.

Firsts

Last week was filled with firsts and these next couple weeks promise the same. Here are some that top the list.

Started my assistantship on Tuesday.

Had a boss for three days.

Have no boss now (Wednesday they should announce an interim)

Received a study guide for prelims (yeah, those are still 2 years away)

Was completely overwhelmed with the thought of starting school

Was completely underwhelmed because I was 'working' with no work to be done...yet.

I've seen three confederate flags in three days (I can't get used to that, nor do I want to)

And I visited my third official city in Georgia....Commerce, GA (it's where the outlets are)

And this week should be filled with more firsts...

Graduate Assistant orientation (tomorrow)

Grad school orientation (Wednesday)

Program orientation (Friday)

That's a lot of orientating. Anyway, just wanted to let the world...or my little world know that I'm enjoying my time in Georgia thus far!

Oh...yeah...and school starts with 16th. :)

With all these firsts, and of this new beginning, it reminds me of a poem that my friend Kristin shared awhile back. Enjoy.

Help Me to Believe in Beginnings
God of history and of my heart,
so much has happened to me during these whirlwind days:
I've known death and birth;
I've been brave and scared;
I've hurt, I've helped;
I've been honest, I've lied;
I've destroyed, I've created;
I've been with people, I've been lonely;
I've been loyal, I've betrayed;
I've decided, I've waffled;
I've laughed and I've cried.
You know my frail heart and my frayed history -
and now another day begins.

O God, help me to believe in beginnings
and in my beginning again,
no matter how often I've failed before.

Help me to make beginnings:
to begin going out of my weary mind
into fresh dreams,
daring to make my own bold tracks
in the land of now;
to begin forgiving
that I may experience mercy;
to begin questioning the unquestionable
that I may know truth
to begin disciplining
that I may create beauty;
to begin sacrificing
that I may make peace;
to begin loving
that I may realize joy.

Help me to be a beginning to others,
to be a singer to the songless,
a storyteller to the aimless,
a befriender of the friendless;
to become a beginning of hope for the despairing,
of assurance for the doubting,
of reconciliation for the divided;
to become a beginning of freedom for the oppressed,
of comfort for the sorrowing,
of friendship for the forgotten;
to become a beginning of beauty for the forlorn,
of sweetness for the soured,
of gentleness for the angry,
of wholeness for the broken,
of peace for the frightened and violent of the earth.

Help me to believe in beginnings,
to make a beginning,
to be a beginning,
so that I may not just grow old,
but grow new
each day of this wild, amazing life
you call me to live
with the passion of Jesus Christ.

Jackson, MS

Last weekend, I headed to Jackson, MS to exchange cars with Shelton. Although I could write in extreme detail about the weekend, I'll refrain and limit it to the highlights (or lowlights).

While in Jackson, we tried to do something 'fun'. Well, we failed. Again. And again. And again.

Tried to eat lunch 'downtown' 4 out of 4 places were closed.

The state park closed at 5pm, on a Saturday?!

The Arboretum was closed for a wedding.

The Art Museum closed at 6, early... for a wedding.

Walked around two college campuses, only after driving back to where we had come from.

Got lost trying to find the reservoir.

Tried to get an icee. Key word, tried.

When we were about to give up, we found a 'park' (which was more of a grassy null) and the reservoir (which was actually huge and worth seeing) :)

I was ecstatic to finally find the reservoir. Shelton was just happy to not be driving around Jackson anymore.

Before heading out of town, my overhead light got stuck in the 'on' position. Can't make the trip across the country without something happening to all vehicles involved.

On Sunday, we ate lunch (at a place we knew was open), said our goodbyes, and drove 7.5 hours in our prospective directions.

Jackson, MS left much to be desired, and honestly, not much to write home about (another than the big FLOP of a weekend). But the trip reminded me how blessed I am! I had multiple people offer to help me move, people who helped me move into my temporary place in Texas, out of my temporary place into a Uhaul, people helped me move across the country, people helped me unload in Georgia...I am blessed. Thank you, to each of you who helped in both big and small ways!

My little honda and I are back in Georgia; it too seems to be adjusting well.

Until next time!

Check List Bust

After getting (mostly) settled in my apartment, and the fam is gone, I have a hefty checklist to accomplish. Today, I decided to:

*tackle the bus system

*turn in my HR forms: so that I can begin my assistantship

*get the ISBNs for my fall books (from the bookstore): so that I can purchase them cheaper elsewhere

*get my ID card

*enroll for my health insurance: needed to talk with HR about this

Now, before I get to the checklist, let me say I am loving my apartment location. It is within walking distance to my classes and literally 30 feet away from the bus line I will take to my assistantship. Con. ven. ient. Another blessing!

I did my research on the bus schedule. Planned my route. Got off where I thought I was suppose to be. Wrong.

Walked around, waited in the heat, and got back on the bus.

Upon arriving at the bookstore (and right across the way from my assistantship), I tried to get my ID card. Apparently, I can't get one until August 2nd. Bust.

Then I went to the bookstore and tried to find my books. Many of them weren't there, so I was only able to get the ISBNs for a couple of them. Bust.

I got back on the bus and headed to HR to turn in my paperwork. When I arrived I found out the system is now online and I have to contact the grad office for some number to register with. Bust.

And last, but definitely not least, I talked with the woman about enrolling for student insurance. I apparently can't do that until I have an ID card...but I think I may be able to find my way around this one. But for today...bust.

I did, however, find the bus ride around the campus enjoyable, found myself laughing at myself on more than one occasion, and I learned a bit more about the routes I should and should not be taking. :)

I am grateful I have another whole week before I have to start work.

Weeks of Whirlwinds

It's crazy to think that two weeks ago tomorrow (Friday) my sister flew into Austin to begin the adventure to Georgia.

I went down to Austin a little before her plane was to arrive in order to meet up with Trey (former colleague) and Dave (former supervisor). It was great to visit with them and I can't wait to fly into Austin for my Waco visit and (hopefully) get to see them.

There isn't a trip planned yet, but probably sometime this semester.

Anyway...after visiting with the two of them and finding out my sister wasn't going to get in until later than expected, I headed to my favorite coffee shop. A few hours later, we were headed back to Waco.

Saturday we hung around the house during the day and went tortilla tossing that evening; yes it's true, I had not yet been tortilla tossing (final thing to check off the list)

I had mixed feelings about tortilla tossing. 1. it's a tradition, so you must do it. 2. it's a waste of food. 3. the ducks will at least benefit. 4. it's a tradition, right?!

Anyway, my feelings of my own wastefulness (and our bag of 10) were soon out-shadowed by a group of 10 young women. They each came out with a bag of 50 (one or two each). This was the display from their tortilla tossing experience, and by the time I snapped this, there were already an equal number in the water on the other side of the bridge.

Sunday we went to church, then met up with Sarah for some cafe cappuccino action. Sarah had already met my sister when Sarah and I made a trip down to Portland after NASPA last year :)

My sister is a tea snob. She LOVES tea, and well...they gave her a gallon of it at cafe cap! None of us had seen it come in this fashion before.

Sunday afternoon we went to the pool. It was a wonderfully relaxing time! My sister hadn't seen the sun in ages (as she's from the pacific northwest).

Sunday night we met up with Megan for some dinner and dessert. We went to a few places looking for starbucks ice cream...no luck. But we did find some fantastic alternatives.

Monday, we packed the uhaul with the help of some peeps (Thank you Tim, David, and Megan; we couldn't have done it without you!). Then off to the airport to pick up my dad.

Side note: I have been so blessed during this move. Many people have helped in some way or fashion. For example, I had TWO people offer me their cars to tow the uhaul. Since one car already had a tow-hitch, it was the winner of the trip to GA. Thank you Shelton! That alone saved me about $800. Again, amazing. God provides in big and small ways!

Monday night we had dinner at my favorite Mexican food place, altos de jalisco and coffee at CG. This was a wonderful time for my family to interact a few of my friends...and for me to say goodbyes.

Thus far everything seems to be going as planned.

But what's a move without some drama, right?!

Well, Monday night, we go to hitch everything back up and notice that the running lights on the uhaul aren't working. Great. So I call the uhaul emergency number and they send someone out. It was actually pretty quick, however, at almost 10pm when you have to be on the road by 4am, nothing is ever 'that quick'. At a little after midnight, the uhaul mechanic had gone through a few cigarettes, a trip to Wal-Mart for a tool, had redone the wiring, and finally had the running lights working.

We were off to take naps (as you can't truly constitute a few hours of sleep as anything more) for the 3am wake up. We were up at 3ish and packing the final items by 3:45. At 4:30am, we were pulling out of the parking lot.

But again, things can't be that easy. As I drove out of the lot, there was a sound.

Oh it was a bad sound. Like metal on metal.

Thinking it was the uhaul again, I began to mentally curse the uhaul shop that rented me this POJ (piece of junk). As we pulled into the gas station, my dad decided to run alongside the uhaul and listen for the noise.

Unfortunately, it didn't seem to be the uhaul but rather the vehicle. Knowing that Shelton had recently replaced his front breaks, and not knowing what was wrong, we headed to his house to see if we could figure out what was wrong.

So at almost 5am, we were knocking on his door.

After a few trips around the block with the uhaul, it was certain it was the back passenger side and that something was rubbing. They (my dad and Shelton) unhitched the uhaul and raised the vehicle to look at the back breaks. After comparing both sides they realized that whoever did the breaks last (prior to Shelton owning the car) had not replaced the bolt that held the caliber in place, thus when I stepped on the breaks (with all the extra tow weight) the caliber would get thrown forward and rub against the inside rim.

Wow.

Easy fix, right? Just go get another bolt.

So we hung around until 7:30 when auto places opened. Had some breakfast, and waited more. At 7:25, they headed off to get the bolt. At 8, they were back, but unfortunately, with the wrong bolt. So they were off, again. At 9:30, I called my dad to see what was taking so long. Apparently, neither auto place had the right bolt, they tried an auto pull place with no luck, the chevy dealership could get the part in 4 days, so headed back to the auto place to get the most similar size bolt. Nervous.

But it worked, and at 10:30am, we were on the road and headed for Georgia. Only a six hour (ish) delay.

Tuesday we drove to Moody, AL and arrived in Georgia on Wednesday around lunch. WOOHOO!

All in all, once we were on the road, we had no hiccups. And besides, what's a good moving story without some drama. Ha.

More updates to come!