Ever since we moved to Texas we have been making the trip back to GA/SC for Thanksgiving and Christmas. We try to fly for Thanksgiving but Christmas is the one time a year that we actually make the long drive. With all the presents and the dog it just makes it easier. But when you are driving two of the six days you have off and you have two families to see, it makes for one exhausting trip.
Day 1 - Drove from Houston to Atlanta with my Grandparents. We left at 4am and drove for 14 hours which didn't seem too bad. When we arrived, we went to his parent's favorite Friday night Mexican restaurant to unwind.
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| Derek and Me with his brother and cousins |
Day 2 - Christmas Eve! Part of Derek's extended family has been living in Atlanta for over the past five years. His uncle is being transferred to Chicago and the move would begin right after Christmas. Not knowing when everyone would be back together again made this a very special Christmas that everyone wanted to cherish.
We took lots of family photos, enjoyed a pasta bar and chocolate fountain, and opened tons of presents.
It certainly won't be the same next year without everyone!
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| All of the Families |
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| Derek, Me, and Maddie |
Day 3 - Christmas Day! We spent Christmas morning at Derek's house and opened presents with his parents and brother. His other set of grandparents came over to eat breakfast and open more presents. We then packed up the car and made the 3 hour trip to my parents house in South Carolina.
Christmas at my parent's house was a bit different than in past years. This was the first year that we were without my oldest brother, his wife, and the only two children. They recently moved to Utah and it was difficult not having my niece and nephew to enjoy the day with. I can't wait to see them in a few weeks when we go visit.
We didn't take many family photos but I took lots of pictures of the delicious food.
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| My Mom's adorable Red Velvet Cupcakes |
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| My Mom's Pumpkin Roll. Beautiful and Delicious |
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| Picking the fried turkey clean. It's family tradition. |
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| Maddie really wanted some turkey |
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| Smoked turkey, smoked salmon, and fried turkey! |
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| Me with my brothers, Chris and John. I have a picture of John smiling but I like this one better |
Day 4 - We relaxed and recovered from the traveling and festivities. We did leave the house long enough to pick up my brother's new car.
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| Chris saying goodbye to the beloved Kia. This was his first car and he drove it for 10 years. It sounds like an airplane taking off in the morning and has one really squeaky belt. It was time for him to move on. |
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| Dr. Chris and the new Nissan Murano |
Day 5 - Once again it was time to pack up and get on the road. Before leaving, I went through all the stuff in my old room to bring a few nostalgic items back. There was much to sift through but I found some really great things I never realized I had saved. We packed up a couple of my favorite trophies, medals, awards, and pictures to bring home along with all of my year books and my wedding dress. I packed as much as I could into one box to bring back to Texas.
We drove back to Atlanta to pick up a Uhaul and load Derek's childhood furniture and a few boxes of his favorite items from growing up. It was a long day of sorting and packing but it was great to get everything that we wanted from our parents. I think our parents were probably more excited than we were because they could finally get it out of their houses.
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| This is what Maddie does in the car |
We made it safely home and are looking forward to celebrating the New Year and a much needed three day weekend at home. Happy New Year!
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