so where have i been? obviously not on blogger. evan and i have been traveling america! first we went to l.a.- no, not los angeles, lower alabama, mobile to be specific. we went so that all of my mom's family could meet the little man. they threw us a shower and i got to see so many people! my mom's cousin took evan's first professional pictures while we were there too. it was a great trip.
me and evan, brittany and ryland, jaime and jamison (2 of my 2nd cousins and their boys)
this is a special picture. you can barely see it but in the background, in the brown frame, there is this same picture in the same place (in front of my aunt's fireplace) when i was 2 months old with my mom, grammye, and her mom, who just passed away a year ago.
from mobile, we drove to hilton head to visit with katie for a couple of days. that was a LONG drive, but worth it to see katie. we went around to a lot of thrift stores (HHI is THE place for thrift store shopping) and then headed back to seneca. my dad came that weekend and katie came up too. we all went to upperstate to see matt's last band competition of the season. his band did well, but did not make state. it was a major growing year for him and the band though and i am super proud of all they accomplished.
so then we were home for a week before departing again. this time, on plane! SO MUCH BETTER! evan was perfect! seriously. no crying, just happy or sleeping or eating a bottle. his new love is books and they keep him occupied for a long time. katie and i flew with him from charlotte to NYC to visit my parents for a week. and it only took about 2 hours to get there. flying is by no means my favorite activity but i sure do love the convenience of it.
of course we arrived right after the biggest snow storm in october in recorded history. most of it had melted by the time we had landed but there was still plenty around to see. i had not been to my parents house and they've lived there for 10 months now. it was so nice! we hung out at the house the first day and ate at the italian deli/meat market that is literally next door to my parents. it was delicious! that day was also halloween. we went out that night to sushi mikes- a wonderful sushi restaurant in my parents town. katie bought evan a dinosaur hat that he wore as his "costume".
ak and her dino boy.
the next day we went to my dad's job. it just opened so we shopped around while he worked, but only after he showed evan off. they have a model in his office that cost 1/2 a million dollars (i can't even wrap my head around that kind of money) and we thought it would be fun to take evan's picture in it like he was a giant baby. we were right- it was a lot of fun!
taking over the center!
chatting with someone walking on the sidewalk.
at poppa's job with a hard hat on.
the third day katie and i went into the city while mimi got her evan time. we basically just window shopped times square, 5th avenue, and soho but we had such a great time! if your siblings aren't your best friend, i'm sorry. we ate at the star light diner, where aspiring broadway stars are the waiters and they sing during your meal. not only was it super entertaining but my meal was absolutely yummy! we ended the night by eating italian food and then seeing "anything goes". it was great! but the next night was the best- katie and i saw "how to succeed in business without really trying" starring daniel radcliffe (yes, harry potter himself) and john laroquette and we sat in the 4th row center! our uncle's friend is the trombone player in the pit so he got us tickets. OMG- not only is that show awesome (so funny and just so good) but i was feet away from daniel radcliffe! we had an amazing time.
in front of "anything goes. we didn't take one in front of h2s for some reason.
both of my trips were so great. i love my family and love getting to spend time with them. next trip is in 2 weeks to visit matt's family and my "extended family" (best friends from... forever and their families) in ky. i can't wait for evan to meet more people who love him and i cannot wait to reunite with my long lost loves (aka, the bbhc).
