sweet

I thought perhaps I'd go away for a week and then Anne would be less clingy upon my return. Didn't happen.

the sisters went down to georgia

The third week of March is my mom's Spring Break so the Slade girls decided it was time for a girls' trip. Our first was to Boston in June '02. Then we met in Colorado in March '06. This year's destination: Atlanta, Georgia, home of newly-married Merrit and Matt.

The rest of the girls arrived on Saturday but I couldn't come until Monday. My flight was at bright and early 7:00 Monday morning. Dave and I had to leave to get to the airport at 5 am. I asked my visiting teacher to come sleep on my couch so we wouldn't have to wake up the kids. I enjoyed a wonderfully child-free flight and arrived in Atlanta about 4 in the afternoon. First stop: the Varsity.

I'm not sure why this drive-in restaurant makes the list of must-sees in Atlanta. Other than being fifty years old and employing fast talking "waiters", it is kind of pathetic. The food especially. Oh well. It made for a good photo-op.

With scary chili dogs and less-than-stellar Frosty Oranges in hand, we headed over to Piedmont Park to take pictures. Unfortunately the weather was not cooperative. It was cold and very windy. We didn't last too long.

I never relish my role as the fat, frumpy sister but it was really disheartening for me on this day. Look at these gorgeous, stylish women in my family! And then there's me...trying to fit in. Seriously.

When we gave up trying to fight the weather, we went home to Merrit's totally cute apartment. Marriage has been very good to my little sister. She is so happy. That makes me happy. We arrived to find chocolates and roses from our men. So sweet.

On Tuesday, we went to hike Stone Mountain and enjoyed a beautiful day outside.

It seemed to be my sisters' mission to visit every TJMaxx, Ross or Marshall's within the greater Atlanta area and do it multiple times. Shopping is generally akin to torture for me but I managed to endure a small amount with my mom and sisters. Although by Friday, I was just sitting outside on the bench reading instead of succumbing to the evils of the sales racks.


I had my first ever chiropractic adjustment on Wednesday. Matt is graduating from school in the next week and decided he needed some more practice. He is specializing in Upper Cervical Specific chiropractic care. Never heard of it? Me either. I know this may come as a shock to some of you but I am a total skeptic. Matt was very patient in answering all my questions and explaining the benefits of his discipline. I learned a lot and am very intrigued by it. Turns out I am also very hard to adjust. Matt tried twice and finally had to call in reinforcements.


Sadly, we had to say goodbye to Dana on Wednesday. You know, Dana, there certainly was more room in the car after you left but of course, it wasn't the same without you!

Unfortunately, Mom spent the week feeling sick. She didn't feel up to the day's outing on Thursday. We left her resting at home. While Merrit and Matt went house hunting, Keri and I went to the Atlanta History Center. We toured the lovely Swan House built in 1932. Followed by the less exciting Tullie Smith farm. Finally, we walked through several exhibits showcasing folk art, civil war history, urban development and the 1996 Olympics. Then we left the History Center and drove through a few of the gorgeous streets of Buckhead. Oh the loveliness!


On Friday, we went out to Kennesaw Mountain Battlefield. Then we toured the CNN Center, which was boring and disappointing despite its rave reviews. We finished our sight-seeing with a trip to the Cyclorama. What's the Cyclorama, you say? "The Cyclorama painting — 42 feet tall and 358 feet in circumference — is said to be the largest painting in the world. It offers breathtaking realism enhanced by a foreground of three-dimensional figures and terrain. The presentation is accompanied by music and narration." It was interesting.


After a full day of culture, Merrit, Matt and Keri entertained us with something a little more low-brow: chin singing.

My last day in Atlanta was filled with more sight-seeing. We saw the Fox Theater, Rhodes Hall, and Meadow Nook.

I enjoyed my last bit of feminine indulgence by reading Mr. Darcy's Diary on the plane ride home. I was welcomed back home by my own beautiful family at the airport about 8:00 Saturday night.

The trip was fanastic. I've left out so many details here. I didn't mention Merrit's fabulous cooking, or watching Gone with the Wind, or all the talking and laughing we did. And someday I should write a blog post about life back on the homefront. Dave did an awesome job taking care of things. What a blessing that I got to go. What a blessing to have these women in my life!

More pictures here.

happiest place on earth

We went to California the first week of March to enjoy a few days at the happiest place on earth. We have been talking about going for a long time and finally decided now was the time to go. We are so glad we did.

DAY 1

Disneyland

Highlights of day 1:
--Dave wasn't feeling well in the morning as we were getting ready to go. Warren gave him a priesthood blessing and he was able to get through the day. He never felt great but he was able to ride with us without throwing up.
--We ordered a large pizza at the Pizza Port for lunch and just munched on the snacks I brought the rest of the time.

--No lines. Because of the sparse crowds the park wasn't even offering fast passes. We were able to ride everything multiple times without much stopping.

DAY 2
California Adventure

Highlights of day 2:

--We loved the Toy Story ride. I think in the end it was Dave's favorite ride. We were never able to go back and ride it again because the lines were always long.

--We were actually in a different car but it was quite entertaining to hear Phyllis's screaming on the ferris wheel. Actually, in many ways it was one of the most frightening rides because there was nothing to hold you in and the cars swung back and forth.

--Grandma and Grandpa graciously stayed in the hotel room with Anne and Sawyer that night so that Dave, Emma, Slade, Nathan and I could all go back to Disneyland and ride some more.

DAY 3

Disneyland

Day 3 Highlights:

--I took Emma and Slade back to California Adventure in the morning so that they could ride the big rides a few more times. Dave was happy to let me have that opportunity. It was sweet to walk through the park with both of them holding my hands.

--At the advice from our friends, we made a sign in order to get picked for Jedi Training. I just used hotel stationary to make one long continual sign. All four of the kids got to go up. Sawyer was totally adorable standing up there next to the Jedi. He could never quite figure out how to get his light saber out. When it was time to fight Darth Vader, Sawyer was first. As he approached you could see a look of panic slowly spread across his face and he couldn't hold back the tears as he refused to fight him. It was so sad and cute. I loved how Slade immediately put his hood over his head. It was just so him. Emma wasn't all that into the whole thing but I think she was still glad she got to participate. Nathan smiled the whole time.

--We ate lunch at the Blue Bayou which is the restaurant inside the Pirates of the Carribean ride. Dave loved the whole ambiance with everything dark. I hated it on the other hand. I did love my Monte Cristo sandwich though. Sawyer fell asleep on two chairs pushed together while we were eating. Anne didn't last very long and we had take turns with her out in the lobby. She was perfectly happy out there where it was light and she could crawl around. I'm not sure it was worth the $100 tab but it is fun to say we did it.

Overall highlights/thoughts:

--Anne was really quite good the whole time. Upon returning home and her reverting back to a sad, clingy baby, I realized she was so happy because we had nothing else to do but hold her. Still I am grateful she was able to go with the flow.
--I honestly don't know how anybody goes at peak times. We had such a wonderful experience I think largely because we didn't spend large amounts of time stuck standing in lines. The longest wait in line was 20 minutes I think.

--We were so lucky to have gotten great advice from friends about how to do things. What a difference it made.

--Being together as a family with nothing else to do was wonderful.

--If it weren't a ten hour drive, I could see us going more often but as it is I think we won't be going back for a while.

--We wouldn't have been able to have such a fantastic time without Grandma and Grandpa being there. Thanks so much for coming with us, Warren and Phyllis!

I am so happy that we finally decided to go. We have many, many happy memories from the happiest place on earth.

If you happen to be interested. I uploaded many more pictures to a gallery here:

http://lindsaydaniel.smugmug.com/Family

Some of them are mine. Some of them are Warren's. They are not in order. Nor did I edit them. Enjoy them if you care to.