A (Cold) Trip Down Memory Lane

I hope you had a wonderful Christmas and New Years! Erin and I are settling back into home after a nice long trip back to Central Illinois. We had the opportunity to spend time with friends and family (and a lot of time with eachother). Sit back and enjoy the (heavily edited) collection of pictures and memories from our trip.

The entire 750 mile trip takes about 12 hours. We switched driving back and forth to keep things interesting. About an hour into the trip, we are climbing and twisting through the North Carolina mountains. The traffic is light and the weather clear.
At one point, in the middle of nowhere, we went under a bridge with Santa and Mrs. Clause all dressed up, waving at traffic. It was a wonderful Christmas Morning touch. God bless them for taking the time to do that! This is definitely the best part of the drive to and from Greenville.

At about 4:00 PM, we started getting into Illinois. It is a stark contrast to what we've been getting used to down South. The temperature was about 40 degrees lower than when we left Greenville. And the flat landscape brought back some memories!

We finally showed up at my folks' place for a nice Christmas dinner. Sam also got some well deserved affection! He was such a good boy in the car: hardly a sound on the entire trip.


Erin and I. Doesn't she look fabulous?!

I took a few moments to see my parent's motorcycles. Cole jumped on the back for a quick photo-op.


When did THIS happen? Pepsi doesn't look like Pepsi anymore. What do ya'll think about the new design? I think it looks too feminine. I won't drink girly soda.



My sister took me to Pizza Ranch for a belated birthday gift. I haven't found anyplace like it back in SC.


Hanging out with my nephews was fun, too. This is Lucas, Michelle's youngest. We're very proud.

Sam didn't get passed by for Christmas, either. He got some new snazzy fashion accessories...

And some PediPaws since he HATES getting his nails trimmed. Awesome!


Now I can take BWW home with me, since I can't get my favorite sauces anymore.

Of course, I got some chocolate. Actually, it's more like my family wants to kill me. I already put the bulk of it in the freezer so won't feel the obligation to eat it all right now.

For years, I have been talking to Erin about how sad I am that I don't get fun toys on Christmas. Well this year, I finally got some Legos and Erin got a new version of her favorite Cabbage Patch doll. There's nothing wrong with playing with toys at our age!
For church, we went to our old stomping grounds at Northwest United Methodist Church. They just installed a new sign on War Memorial Drive. Can you tell that the address numbers are upside down?

The church was beautifully decorated.

Here's Michelle and Daryl catching their breaths.

What's Sunday without a trip to Quizno's?

A few days after we arrived in IL, we went down to Springfield to see Erin's family.

More festivities.

What's better than Pictionary with family and friends?

Answer: Margaritas and Pictionary with family and friends.

Sam had the opportunity to socialize with Alan's Rhodesians. Yep, they could tear our poor dog to pieces.

The top priority, foodwise, was going to Panda for some orange chicken. OMG I miss it so much.

After lunch, we went to St. John Lutheran Church to see some of Erin's past coworkers.

Ya gotta love this sanctuary! Gorgeous!

While she was there, Erin got some organ practicing in.

They have a nice pipe organ there.

I got a little curious and went up into the organ loft to get a close up view.

Have you ever seen a pipe organ close-up? It's pretty interesting. Lots of different sizes, shapes, and types of pipes make all of those different sounds.

Back in Peoria, I went out with my good friend Jon.

I got some Wild boneless wings, but in all honestly, they are not hot enough for me anymore. Looks like I will have to get the hottest sauce next time.

After dinner, we went back to his place to watch Hellboy II. Pretty good flick! By that time, the temp had dropped, the snow started flurrying, and the wind bit into your skin. It was about that time that I really started to miss Greenville.
Our families were wonderful, providing us with nice places to sleep. It was nice to sleep and relax and think about nothing else while on vacation. This was my first real vacation since August 07. Moving doesn't count, cause I didn't get a lot of rest between the home closings, packing, and traveling.


Mom, Sam, and I braved a cold day to go for a nice long walk. Sam loves walks but doesn't get enough of them back home.

Here's Mom! It was a windy 25 degrees, so you can't really see much of her.

This is where I grew up...a nice quiet country road. Great for walking, running, bicycling, and learning how to ride a motorcycle!

Something really special about Christmas this year was that our whole family was together...and that is quite a feat for me and Chel living so far away.

We had a great time, though and are happy to be home again. I am slowly warming to the idea of returning to work. Not really excited, but it has been a while! I am also taking the opportunity to lose some weight this month, so you'll probably hear me talk a little about that in my blog. I hope you have a wonderful New Year! See you back here soon, for another exciting adventure.