Friday, December 28, 2007

Home Sweet Home

There are not words to explain how happy I am to be home right now. Last Friday we left at 10 pm and began our 12 hour drive to Sodus, NY. Terrance's home town, the humble abode that he was raised in. We drove with Valerie (T's mom) and Maurice (T's brother). She didn't get off of work when she said she would... in reality she got off of work 5 hours later, and then picked up the smallest SUV in the whole world, and drove 2 hours from SC to our house. This is how my "vacation" began. Late, annoying, in a hurry, rushed, worried, tired, irritated... Christmas cheer if you know what I mean. But we left, and we only stopped three times that night until we arrived in Sodus on Saturday morning at 10 am. I spent that day nursing my flu filled husband. We always seem to get sick when we're resting... and he had the chills and everything. No worries though, he slept and overdosed on NyQuil, Theraflu, Airborne, and Robitussin... and kicked it by Sunday. We did the family thing Christmas Eve at Amy and Tony's apartment (they used to live with us). It was really nice. Christmas day was really hard, a lot harder than I had imagined it would be. In 27 years of being alive, I have always been with my family on Christmas Day. Always. I knew it would come one day, that I would have to spend my Christmas with my in laws, and I was totally fine with it. Actually, I was excited to be in the cold, snow for Christmas and do something new. However, when I was making all my Christmas Day phone calls, it hit me like a load of bricks. I'm not there. I'm not in Charleston. I'm not there. My first phone call was to my Grandma E. My mom's mom. My favorite. I'm her little red, I have been since I was born, and here she was on the phone miles away, telling me that she loved me, that they had had a wonderful Christmas Eve, that they couldn't help but talk about my grandfather, my poppy. Unexpected... not ready for that one, the tears started. She was sharing with me how much he loved me, and how proud he would be of me, and how she still watches the video of his funeral service in which I read a poem. We talked for about thirty minutes... it is now another good memory to have. I love my Grandma. Things have been so different since I got married. Unfortunately she has a problem with other skin colors, but maybe we've moved on. It's a phone call I'll never forget. I had to wait until the afternoon to call my mom though. I didn't want to start crying again. Christmas Day was hard, sad, and a new beginning. I think I have a new appreciation for my own family and their traditions, even though its not always spectacular, there is just something about the familiarity of it all. Life went on though, I sucked it up. Open to new things, welcoming the newness as much as possible. We drove around, and saw lots of people, lots of malls. We were in Rochester, Syracuse, and a lot of other small towns in between. Thursday morning came, and I was SO ready. North Carolina, here I come. We smashed ourselves back into the Jeep something... and hit the road at 5:30 am. It was a long and annoying drive home. Terrance and his mom bicker the whole time. If they aren't bickering then she is telling him how to drive, when to slow down, when to change lanes. Or he is telling her to pay attention to the GPS system and not ask questions. We listened to at LEAST 12 hours of gospel music... our favorite. I suffered through it, reminding myself that she probably wasn't enjoying Terrance's R&B and constant changing of the radio stations. Lucky for me when we got home, she and Maurice stayed the night. Although it was probably the best, she tends to get lost anywhere she goes. I don't talk about Maurice a lot, because he doesn't talk. NEVER talks... he barely even laughs. So its not that I don't like him, its just that he is freakishly quiet. Below are the pictures of the trip and when we got home. Home Sweet Home...




PS.... I did pretty well with staying on top of my "diet". Still 179 lbs. so I didn't gain any weight. I didn't drink a lot of soda, and I didn't eat allot of carbs, but they don't' eat fresh veggies, and I was dying for a salad when I got home!!!



PPS.... Thank to Andrea for complimenting me on my blog. I really appreciate your thoughts, and I look forward to reading your blog!! Give Carrie, Alanah, & Mia a hug for Terrance & I.



Everyone hanging out, Christmas EVE.


Devin Crawford, Tony's youngest son.Jordan and Tony. Father & Son. Terrance's uncle and cousin.


Terrance & I at my parents house.


Parker was so glad when Ray got home this morning! He was sleeping in Ray's bed.
Ray was worn out from the Dog Park.
Sleeping together under the Christmas Tree, before I took it down today!!!
The tree... :)
My cutie!

Terrance with his newest cousin, Jaden, on Christmas Eve. That is Jaden's mom in the back. Charlene, Terrance's aunt.
Christmas Eve, He is too cute with this baby... hmmm? Not yet!!
Terrance holding Jaden still. Me- getting my gear on for the cold.
Syracuse, NY- Ice Skating Rink, We saw this when we went to Dinosaur BBQ to eat. It's the best place EVER~
Syracuse, NY
Terrance!!! My LOVE!

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