America, the Beautiful - Part 2

I'm back after a short delay.  :)  After a wonderful visit with my family in (very) hot Ohio, we flew South to Alabama to see Brian's family.  We had a connection in Atlanta, and, when we got there, we thought we were really awesome and savvy travelers when we noticed there was an earlier flight to Huntsville, and managed to get on it.  This would have put us in an hour earlier, so we were excited (hey, cute babies were waiting).  Everything was smooth sailing until we noticed we were circling the Huntsville Airport.  There were some bad thunderstorms in the area, and they could not land the plane.  Eventually, we needed to stop circling or we would run out of gas... so, we went to Birmingham, landed, filled up, waited, shook our fists with frustration, and eventually made it back to Huntsville.  Our suitcases from the other flight made it before us.  So much for smart, savvy travelers.  grr...

Despite the minor delay, we were in such good spirits when we saw Randy, Brian's dad, Lisa, Brian's sister, and our nephew, Oliver, waiting for us at baggage claim.  I've said it once, and I'll say it again, but I couldn't have married into a better family.  Brian's mom, Joan, and his grandmother, Leona, were waiting back at the house for us, cooking up some yummy Mexican food (Joan got the recipe on Pinterest = hip mother-in-law.)  

It's been so fun watching Ollie grew up.  We really wish we could see him more, but we treasure the time we have.  We've seen him at 2 weeks old, 7 months (in Hong Kong) and now 10 months.  Every time, the development is just amazing.  Now, it's teeth and crawling!  He's getting big too fast!!!

 

The next morning, all of the girls (and by girls, that includes Lisa's dog, Picadilly, and Joan & Randy's dog, Darby), plus Ollie, piled into Lisa's mini-van (which is like an awesome spaceship), and drove South through Alabama and then on to the Gulf.  Brian's family is pretty cool - they are spread out all over the US, however, everyone somehow has stayed so connected.  We made a lunch stop in Birmingham, where Brian's cousin, Anna Beth, is doing her internship, and she met us for lunch.  She's a doll, and it's always nice to get to spend time with her.  We also made a dinner stop at Brian's Aunt Cathy & Uncle Joe's house.  Believe it or not, but this was the first time I had ever had chicken salad, and I could have eaten it all night.  Still need to get that recipe...  :)  Finally, we made it to the beach.  This is Cathy & Joe's family beach house, which they kindly let us use for the week.  We had a really nice time relaxing and catching up.   

We also spent one entire morning having Leona show me how to make her famous peanut butter balls.  Um, hello, right up my alley!!

Seafood basket - fresh caught and SOOOO yummy!  (shhh... don't tell, but Brian gained about 10 pounds on this trip.  But, don't worry, he needed it!)

This didn't come out as well as I would have liked, but it was so nice to go to dinner with our whole group, plus Joe & Cathy.  A really cozy evening!

One of our days in Florida, we drove to Brian's Aunt Rosemary & Uncle Doug's house.  Now... Brian and I have this conversation a lot.  If we could live in any place, what would be the requirement.  I say - mountains, a lake, and a BOAT!  I am not sure what it is about me, but I love being on the water and I always feel so at ease on boats.  So, it's on our 15 year plan.  Doug already has achieved his 15 year plan, and has a really nice boat that he was kind enough to take us out on.  We went to this really interesting place called Crab Island.  I think he said that it used to be an island, but now it is below water and actually is a sand bar.  People anchor their boats there, and there are ice cream, BBQ, canoe rental, and anything else you can imagine boats anchored there to serve your every need.  Really cool place.

The first of the sunglasses pictures... 

Ahoy!!!  Ollie's first boat ride!

I was very spoiled on this trip.  My birthday was July 17th, but I got to celebrate my birthday TWICE before the actual day.  My mom made some amazing "buckeye cupcakes" (yes, chocolate with peanut butter inside).  Then, in Florida, Brian's family surprised me with a "Peanut Butter Playground" cake from Cold Stone.  Yes, I am one lucky (and dieting) girl!

Before we knew it, our time in Florida had come to an end.  It was so hard to leave our families... we had been looking forward to this trip for SO long, and then it came and went in the blink of an eye.  Being away from our families is the hardest part of living in Hong Kong.  I was used to talking with my mother every day, but, with the 12 hour time change, this becomes a bit of a problem now.  It was so nice to be physically in the same location, and we can't wait to show my family our new home when they come to visit (hopefully next year!).  One thing is for sure - Brian and I both come from wonderful families, and we miss you all so very much!