Vacation Recap Part Deux...is that how you spell it? Deux...?

We left Caleb's around 9 o'clock Monday morning and began our drive to Tennessee. We stopped in Louisville, which was just about half way, Jared called an old friend, and we met up for lunch. Guess where? Yeah, the Cheesecake Factory. Take 4. Our favorite spot to eat in Louisville closed about a year ago, otherwise we definitely would have went there. It was neat to stop in a town so far away from our house, that we've never lived before, yet it felt like home because we knew our way around. We jumped back in the car then gained an hour of time because of the time change. We had dinner at a place called Ryans, and although I have a lot of things to say about it, I won't. Just don't eat there :). Oh, Grandpa did say (you meaning anyone in general), "If you don't leave here stuffed, well, it's your own fault". Hmmmmmmmm.

Spending the week with Jared's grandparents was lovely. I learned a little bit about gardening, things about the depression, stories of their childhood, and got to look at really neat family photos from decades ago. We took lots of naps, went to church with them on Wednesday night, and laughed about the filter that disappears from your mouth once you get older. It really was a wonderful time, though, and their love for one another is so inspiring. We appreciated how happy they were to be with us and share with us.

On Thursday, Lindsay got there. We were so excited for her arrival! We ate out at Olive Garden and since we carpooled, Susanna went with Grandma and Grandpa, and Jared drove Lindsay's car with the three of us. We laughed, and laughed, and laughed SO hard! I love to laugh--it's so good for the soul. I was so thankful for that. We also walked around the neighborhood and it felt great to be able to stretch our legs and breathe. I saw two frogs in the driveway, too. They made me happy.

On Friday night, we had a surprise baby shower planned for us! It was so exciting! Lindsay and Susanna planned it and Aunt Barb was in charge of the most of the games. The 1st game I won--we had to guess the amount of organic jolly beans in a 'safe' baby bottle (we got our very first bottle, wow!!!!) and I was only off by a few. I had to forfit my prize, which was totally okay because the whole party was truly a gift, and Grandpa was the next closest guesser. He won a bar of Burts Bees soap. Loooove it! You could tell that everyone was genuinely happy and so excited for us. It really meant the world to me. It's so nice to be surrounded by loving people. The gifts were adorable, so useful, and I can honestly say that I love every single little thing that we were blessed with. Ah, I can't wait to meet my little boy, but I am thankful for each precious moment that I'm experiencing in the present.

That night, we had very encouraging conversation with Lindsay. I felt like it brought us all closer and I loved that. I really value true, meaningful relationships. I think that is one of the main things life is about. Relationships--real ones.

(Check out the corn field in the background!)

We packed up early so that we would be able to leave pretty seamlessly right after breakfast Saturday morning. I ate a muffin and an orange, Jared had his stuff, we grabbed our fresh produce from Aunt Barb & Uncle Craig's garden, plus some cuc's from Grandma & Grandpa's and we were on our way.

Back to Louisville for lunch and back to the Cheesecake Factory, of course. Goodness gracious, right?! I know. We had lunch with Charles again, but this time his wife came along. She's really nice and what was cool was that they just found out that they're expecting too. Sometime around Valentines. It was so nice to talk about pregnancy stuff with someone, since I usually have no one to talk to about it at length besides Jared. He is a very good listener, though :). After lunch, we popped over to Whole Foods, stocked up on some goods for the car, and left for good ol' Columbi. I want to barf saying this, but we ate at the Cheesecake factory for dinner. Caleb and Ellie really wanted to have dessert there and after we sat down at another restaurant to eat, looked at the menu, then decided there was nothing there we wanted, back into the car we went to the big CCF. I didn't gain any weight, have horrible digestion, or feel like I was going to die after all these trips to restaurants (well, maybe Ryan's lol), so that just goes to prove that you can make wise decisions if you're forced to eat out all the time. After dinner, I had to go to bed because Judah said so and we got up and eventually made our way out the door around 9:30 am to drive back to our amazing house.

We were gone about a week and a half and had a wonderful experience. Life is good.

See you along the journey--