We left the Georgia mountains very early Monday morning for our 600 mile drive to Champaign. The kids slept until way into Tennessee.
While we were driving along Interstate 24, I noticed that the road sign said “Manchester 24 miles.” All of the sudden this little light turned on in my head. I was pretty sure that some of Evan and my dearest friends live in Manchester, TN. Thanks to modern technology we had Nadelie and Dave’s address plotted in our GPS within seconds. I texted Nadelie to give her a cryptic clue we were coming and at 8am in the morning we knocked on their door with a little McDonalds breakfast. Dave had to get to work, and we needed to get back on the road, but it was so wonderful to see them. It’s amazing how long time can pass between seeing friends and it still seems like no time at all.
After our little detour it was serious road tripping for us. It was only about 8 hours of a drive, which seems like a huge difference from the 12 we are used to. The kids did well. The iPad and iTouch performed to all our expectations. Hazel slept most the way.
This leg of the road trip was monumental for several reasons. First, Ensley discovered the wedding scene in the movie The Little Mermaid. She must have watched it over and over again for two hours. By the end of the trip she was singing right along with Ariel when Ariel got back her voice and could pretty much quote the entire movie. Secondly, we learned about Illinois speed limits. Dang it! Right as we got into Illinois there was a huge speed trap set up. We got pulled over. As if our new insurance premiums won’t remind us enough, Ensley still brings it up randomly at least once a week.
We arrived in Illinois just in time for the fresh chocolate chip cookies. Delicious!
We had a lot planned in our short stay, so we got right to work. Nancy and I did some Christmas shopping and of course had to hit the regular shops. By Tuesday evening, we had crossed shopping off our list.
We took the kids to a reindeer farm. It was very fun. They had a little playground for the kids to play on with bales of hay to climb on, swings made from tires to look like reindeer, and pretend trains to drive. We got to go into the reindeer’s little habitat and feed them, of all foods, graham crackers. They were smaller than I had expected. They were very friendly and acted almost more like horses than deer. It was very fun.
The next day we visited Curtis Orchard. We’ve been a few times before. It’s always a successful trip. The little billy goats and playground are always a hit for the kids. The apple donuts and apple cider are always a hit for Evan and me.
Last time we were at Curtis Orchard we took this picture. It’s amazing how much she’s grown.
Might as well start the tradition with Will too.
Grandpa and Mary K came over for Thanksgiving dinner. Ensley (with a lot of supervision and help) made candy turkeys to decorate people’s plates. Ensley also made everyone a place card. She wrote everyone’s name and decorated their card special for each person. I was surprised at how meticulous and diligent she was with each one.
Dinner was wonderful. It turns out if you flavor the turkey with butter instead of pre-packaged marinade it tends to “blacken” faster than normal. Our turkey was a little toasty, but we had some good laughs and it turned out wonderful anyway. It’s funny though, even if we did slightly burn the turkey, it still got several last laughs (keep reading).
Of course, Ensley had to wear her Indian costume to this Thanksgiving dinner as well.
After dinner we spent some time talking and laughing with Grandpa and Mary K. I never knew any of my great grandparents. Our kids have 4!
A few days later Evan’s Grandma McNabb (the kids great grandma) came down with Evan’s Uncle Mark and Aunt Ann. Right before they arrived, Paul had gone out to the garage to do something and slipped on some spilled turkey grease. The first of the turkey’s revenge. Paul’s ankle was bruised and swollen. He could barely put any pressure on it. After much coaxing he finally agreed to go to the urgent care with Evan and Uncle Mark. A few hours later we had a diagnosis of a bad sprain.
We had a really nice time sitting and visiting. We played a few games and ate dessert. Grandma is an avid reader — she always brings the kids new books. She’s so thoughtful that way.
Despite his injury, Paul was still able to hold Hazel. Hazel can get a little fussy, but Paul could totally hold her and calm her right down. He was so wonderful to have around. It really gave me a bit of baby break.
Along with visiting family we also had time to rest and relax. Ensley would watch Little Mermaid with whoever would agree. Even if it meant just sitting next to Grandpa or showing Hazel.
Will was happy to play dinosaurs or with the little people. He also discovered his love for canned mixed fruit and Grandma’s animal spoons.
Hazel was the happiest of all. There was always someone to hold and love on her (or take her picture).
Stewart and Evan have a silly little game they play. Stewart will come up to Evan’s arm and grab his watch or where the watch should be. Evan will say, “Stewart, no watch.” Then Stewart laughs and does it again. I don’t remember how it started exactly, but it’s been going on for a while now. Whenever we see Stewart they always play their little game.
We love having family home evening with everyone. Ensley now likes playing Hi-Ho Cherry-O. In fact, recently she brought in some holly berries from our holly out front with the great idea of making our own game. I do have to give her credit though, those little berries do look a lot like the cherries in the game.
Before we left we stopped by Grandpa and Mary K’s place for one more visit. Ens and Will were very pleased to find Mary K’s candy bowl had recently been restocked with chocolate doves. I, on the other hand, looked at her beautiful white couches and was slightly concerned.
We were originally planning to leave early in the morning, but the night before Evan got the bug to just pack up and drive all night. We gave the kids a good night snack, dressed them in their pajamas, loaded the car, took a few last pictures and kissed everyone goodbye.
I have to admit it, I was a little doubtful about driving all night, but it worked out well. The kids slept the majority of the time and we were home before noon. The only major kink in the whole trip home plan was that Tuxie had licked up some of the spilled turkey grease and her tummy was a little (okay more like a lot) sick. We had to stop 5 times on the way home just for the dog! Each time, the kids would wake up. Multiple times the car was so stinky Evan and I didn’t know if we were laughing or crying. Several times we didn’t know if we’d get her out of the car fast enough. It was horrible!
We calculated we drove over 30 hours and over 1500 miles on our Thanksgiving Eastern U.S. tour, but we had such a wonderful time. We saw both our families, ate wonderful food, and enjoyed ourselves beyond measure. It really was a Thanksgiving to be thankful for.
Posted on March 18th, 2012 by Lisa
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