It's practically September now and I want to squeeze in one more entry before the proverbial page turns on a new month. I planned to carve time out of my evening for this, but it's after 3 o'clock on the Friday before Labor Day and I have officially checked out. After conducting three meetings today, my focus is shot and I'm ready to do something else, so here I am. Way back when, I promised I'd write about our week-long trip to North Carolina in July and by golly I think today is the day.
Per usual, we loaded up and left after a full day's work on Friday (7/19), making our routine overnight stop at the Comfort Inn & Suites in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. It's not a bad 4 hour drive to that stopping point, and nice to make it there early enough to get a full night's rest for the following full day of driving. On Saturday evening, we rolled into Alex's mom's driveway right around suppertime.
We got up early on Sunday morning for 8 a.m. mass, which got us back to the house with plenty of time for breakfast and then services at his mom's church. We practically had to run out of there afterwards because the service lasted for-freaking-ever, and Alex's groomsman, Christopher, planned to stop over and say hello on his way to Greensboro for a conference. Thankfully we barely beat him there, so it ended up working out just right.
That afternoon, we loaded up (this was a reoccurring theme) again, headed for Topsail Beach. Alex's mom made arrangements for the three of us to stay overnight at her friend's beach house down on the coast, so we were able to get our fill of the beach on that short trip. The major sunburn we both took home was a great souvenir, I might add. ;-)
On Tuesday, we drove from Dunn to Clinton for the second half of our visit. The remainder of our week was spent with Alex's dad's side of the family, relaxing and spending time together. There, we were able to enjoy delicious food, making up for the "diet" we'd been on the previous few days...
Wednesday was extra special because we took a mini-"pilgrimage" back to where it all began for us - Krispy Kreme in Raleigh. Well, let me back up. Before dessert, we had dinner at Mellow Mushroom with Kara, one of my bridesmaids, and Justin, one of Alex's groomsman. Justin also brought along his girlfriend, Sarah, so we could meet her. The food was good, as was the opportunity to spend time with friends. (Remember my last entry? Friend-time doesn't happen very often these days.) During dinner, Kara and I joked about how it would be fun to have hot donuts for dessert, so we made an executive decision and told the group we were going. Haha.
When I say we made a pilgrimage to where it began, I'm referencing the first time Alex and I met, and our terrible attempt/failed double-date at Krispy Kreme. Looking back over previous entries, I'm realizing I didn't write much about that event. Note to self - share that story sometime. Double note to self - also, share the story of how we weren't legally married for nearly a month after the ceremony. Anyway, back to what I was saying...Krispy Kreme is special to us, and Kara played a major part in that, so going back to Krispy Kreme together was pretty cool. And of course, when hot donuts are involved, does the rest even matter?? It may have been a late night drive back to Alex's dad's but the fellowship was well worth the effort and I hope we can all do it again sometime.We closed out our week on Friday, making the long leg of the journey to Tuscaloosa for the night, and returning to Monroe on Saturday afternoon. My parents were there when we arrived, since my dad makes his annual trip for the tent sale at Simmons' Sporting Goods in Bastrop. It's definitely been nice to see my parents so often while living here in Monroe. In fact, "the women" (my mom, grandmother, and great aunt) are coming to visit tomorrow. This is when I keep reminding myself there are perks to being closer to home...
In any case, ya'll be safe and enjoy the holiday.
-Lauren
1 comment:
Not legally married?! I need to hear this story, please.
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