The first time I started to write about this trip it was really long and I knew that nobody would really want all those details. But I've told enough people about this trip that I pretty much have it summed up now. Here it is:

Sunday - The kids and I load up and head to my parents' house a day early. I was very glad my dad suggested this b/c we needed to get away.

Monday - We play around and relax at the lake and Brick is in heaven having other pups around to play with.

Tuesday - We hit the road at 9:00 a.m. Not as early as we thought we'd get going, but what can you do when you have 2 kids and 2 women to load up. (My mom is a super good packer, so it was never her we were waiting on.) We stop on the other side of ATL and have lunch at Chick-fil-a and let the kids play in the play area for about an hour. Our final destination ends up being Charlotte, NC when I saw an IKEA on the side of the highway and thought I could tackle it here instead of D.C. We grab dinner and go to bed.

Wednesday - We hit the road at 9:00 again and are laughing b/c we see the first trend in our trip. Drive thru for breakfast and arrive in Cary, NC at my Grandpa's house and have lunch. We head to the hotel to rest, we think, and end up all swimming in the pool for a few hours before going to my aunt and uncle's house for supper. Aunt Jean is the ultimate hostess and the kids were on the best behavior I have ever seen. She even had little toys pulled out for them and gave us a gift card to a local toy store so the kids could get a treat for the trip.

Thursday - My grandpa is an artist and he wanted to give Christopher an art lesson. I remember painting with him as a small child and I was bursting when I watched him paint with my little boy. Then Sophie wanted a turn too. The kids loved it! It's really hot so we decide to just go to the toy store and a local mall for lunch. Then we head back to the hotel to swim some more. Back to Grandpa's for supper and then drive around to look at houses when the kids become too excited for his little apartment.

Friday - We hit the road for D.C. and finally arrive around 3 or 4:00. It was great to see Brandon finally after being apart for 2 weeks. We grab dinner and then take Grammie to her hotel. (Brandon was supposed to be staying in Bethesda, but was moved to Rockville - about 20-30 minutes farther away from downtown).

Saturday - We had originally planned to hit the zoo this day, but since it was supposed to be around 102 degrees we figured the museums were a better and safer bet. (It was about 95 degrees by 9:00 in the morning, just so you have an idea of how hot it was.) We finally get downtown, make it to the air and space museum and it is so crowded that the only things I saw were the bathroom and a room off to the side that had the most incredible photos of the moon and the planets. We eat lunch and then go to the museum of natural history. Again, extremely crowded. (Note: NEVER go when they are having the Boy Scout Jamboree, which brings in about 10,000 boy scouts, PLUS it's the end of summer vacation. BAD combo!) Didn't remember anything I saw in there either b/c you just follow the crowd, make sure your child wasn't swallowed by the crowd and never bother looking up to see what you are passing. We went home after this and the kids napped in the car. We decided to swim at Mom's new hotel (moved her closer to us) and then went to get dinner at the shopping center next to her hotel. Sophie was sitting in Brandon's lap the entire time, until I finished and took her so he could eat. I asked her if she needed to go potty to which she said no and then peed all over my lap. It looked like I had wet my pants she was positioned so well. I switched into my bathing suit and cover up so we could go to Target. (I forgot to mention that Sophie woke up that morning covered in a rash and it lasted pretty much the whole trip.)

Sunday - This morning it's only 83 degrees when we wake up so we decide to hit the zoo. Let me just say that the homes that you pass on the way are ones you only dream about living in. Gorgeous and each so individual. The zoo was great b/c it had most of the animals indoors and it was mostly shaded. It did start to get hot and since you don't do a complete loop we passed on some of the exhibits and decided to turn back and go home. Brandon finds a great pool that we can go to that has slides and other fun features so we decide to check it out. We are there maybe 20 minutes and then I think I hear thunder. They come over the loud speaker and tell everyone to stay out for at least 30 minutes and we decide to just leave b/c it looks like it's going to rain. By the time we get to the covered entrance it is pouring. The kids are freaking b/c of all the lightning and thunder. I told Brandon to just take Christopher to the car, I'll stay in line with Sophie to get our money back b/c it can't get any worse. I turn around and it's literally raining and blowing so hard you can no longer see the parking lot. Perfect. I finally get passes to come back another day (great b/c we don't live here) and it lets up enough to run to the car. By the time we get out of the parking lot the rain has stopped. The whole way home we are laughing at all the downed limbs and trees. It only rained for 10 minutes, how could that happen? We get back to the hotel and see the power is out and the fire alarms are going off too. We hang out in the car for a while, then go get my mom (also without power) and bring her back b/c we were going on a date that night and she told us to just go ahead. We go downtown, grab dinner then walk over to the mall to see the white house and the monuments. Mom calls later to tell us that her hotel has to be evacuated b/c they don't even have backup power. (The generator was struck by lightning) We get home and I take her to her place and the power comes on while we are sitting at the light. I stay with her to make sure she doesn't need me then finally head home.

Monday - We have made plans to go to IKEA with my friend Kara, who used to live here and her husband is also there for the course Brandon is taking. We go get breakfast then meet Kara and drive over to where IKEA is. I'm bursting b/c I'd never been to one before and have my list in hand of things to buy. We walk through and then as soon as we get to the end of the showroom area Sophie pees on the floor and the power goes out. I have nothing to clean it up with and have to use a spare t-shirt and a pull up. They move us to a part of the building that has light and then tell us they have to close b/c they can't get the power back on. I didn't buy anything. We go back home and the kids nap in the car. They never napped at the hotel b/c it took about 45 minutes, on average, to drive everywhere and they'd slept long enough when we got back home to just stay awake. Brandon is off work early and I'm defeated at this point. We finally decide to go back to the pool and take Mom this time. Still have to pay, even if she isn't swimming. We are there less than 20 minutes and some idiot kid poops in the pool and everyone has to get out. We just leave b/c they are closing soon anyway. Right now my thoughts are, just screw it. This trip sucks.

Tuesday - Mom and I decide to just find a park and let the kids play since we are going to be in the car all day the next day. We both do searches and I find what seems to be one of the coolest parks I've ever heard of (they have tennis, summer camp, indoor ice rink, nature center, etc.) and it has a really huge playground in the woods. We drive over only to find out that the playground is closed due to downed trees from the storm on Sunday. My mom is dying laughing by this point, I have steam coming out of my ears. I think I was growling too. We find another one and start to head there, but have to stop for another potty break and just pull off at the next exit and have to wind around forever to get to a bathroom. BUT this place/neighborhood has a park, in the shade, and we stayed for a while and then headed back for lunch. I did laundry at the hotel next door to ours and it still allowed smoking on half of each floor. We packed our things and loaded the car as much as we could too. Brandon came home and he and Christopher went to a baseball game with some of the guys. Grammie, Sophie, Kara, Crew and I went back to the shopping center near mom's place (a HUGE life saver b/c we went here almost every day!) and played on the playground and had dinner.

Wednesday - We left at 8:30 this morning and I barely stopped for anything. We drove through for every meal and only stopped at IKEA in Charlotte to walk around. We made it to the Clemson exit in SC and spent the night.

Thursday - I woke up so exhausted that I could barely see and we had to drive thru to get a coke just so I could function. I wouldn't have been any help if Mom drove b/c I would have just fallen asleep and not been able to help with the kids. Thank you to whoever made caffeine! We stopped in Auburn and had lunch with my sister and niece. Then followed each other to the lake. Finally at "home" around 1:30 that afternoon. It felt good.

Friday - We just played and swam at the lake.

Saturday - Played and swam some more. I decided to head home on Sunday instead of Monday b/c the kids were getting restless and I just wanted to get them out of everyone's hair.

Sunday - We load up the van and I talk to my in-laws and find out my sis-in-law and her girls are coming to visit for the day so we decide to stop and have lunch too. I asked if we could just spend the night b/c I was not up for getting home at night after being gone for two weeks.

Monday - We hit the road around 9:30 and make it back to our house early afternoon. I was afraid the power would be out or the a/c was broken, but I think God knew that I'd been through enough and went easy on me. I love Him for that! (and many other things too!)

My mom summed the D.C. part of the trip really well when she said, "You know, I just wake up in the morning and think, what is going to happen today." She was much more cheery than I was, but she also had no plans other than tagging along for the ride. I'd had so many people tell me about how much fun D.C. is and that there are so many cool things to do and see there and we are going to love it. Well, I didn't. I know it had nothing to do with the city and the things that happened were totally out of my control, but that's why I have low expectations for things. When I have high ones, this is what happens. I definitely want to go back. But NOT in the summer. And I'd love to go with just Brandon and stay in the city. There were so many museums that I didn't get to see and I hate that the trip kind of went downhill, but I am thankful for the time the kids and I got to spend with my mom and my mom's family. That I wouldn't trade for anything!

Brandon will be home at lunchtime tomorrow and we can't wait to see him. It's been a really long 4 weeks with him gone and everyone moving and all the changes that have happened this summer. But we are alive and healthy and have so much to be thankful for. I'm just glad they are behind us now.