Georgia on my Mind

About two weeks ago, we packed up our little family and headed back to Jason's homeland - lovely Georgia. This was Eli's second cross-country trip, so we felt a little more comfortable about the long plane ride. Plenty of books, his favorite toys, snacks and we were on our way. I must say that he did fabulous! I already think he is the perfect baby of course, but it is so reassuring to have complete strangers stop you on the way off the plane and tell you what a good baby you have. It was completely adorable watching him interact with the passengers around us. He constantly wanted to see what the people behind us were doing and would peek over the top of the seat and wave at them.

When we arrived in Georgia the humidity hit us like a wall. I always forget how humid it is in the south. I thought it was hot back home, but 100 degrees plus humidity is unbelievable. It was already fairly late when we landed so we decided to just head straight to the hotel. The munchkin of course was still on west coast time, so we bed was the last thing on his mind. Poor little baby was not having it. We finally decided to head to bed too and just snuggle as a family. After we all laid down he fell fast asleep. I must admit that it was quite a treat to have the warm cuddly little body snuggled up next to us all night. When we woke up in the morning I thought for sure that Jason was going to give me a talk about how this was a one time thing, but I think he was as addicted as I was ;-)

We got up, showered and headed out for a little exploration. We started with a trip down memory lane. Jason drove us up to his old neighborhood. We got to see the house that he grew up in, and his elementary school.



It was so cute to watch his face as he relived memories at all of these places. I feel so blessed that we were able to make this trip and I was able to see these spots that he so fondly talks about. After that we took a trip over to the preschool that his dad owns.



This is a place that JAson definitely has fond memories of. The teachers knew who Jason was as soon as the opened the door. "Hey! You're Joe's boy!" So cute! They gave us a little tour around the school and Jason took me out to the play ground. I could almost see a toddler Jason as he explored the play area. We even found his and B.J.'s handprints in the cement sidewalk. Those mini hands were so sweet!

When we were done at the school, we decided to take a quick tour around Atlanta. We headed off to Centennial Olympic Park where we got to see the bricks laid in the ground that Jason's dad purchased. Jason and BJ each have their own brick with their birthdays inscribed in them. It was pretty cool to see!

We then wandered through the park and headed over to the World of Coke. For those of you that don't know, Atlanta is the home of Coca-Cola and you won't soon forget it! Coke is everywhere and the World of Coke is a museum/exhibition hall that shows you the history of coke and let's you taste Cokes from all over the world. I did not realize that Coke wasn't just Coke everywhere you went, but with different cultural beliefs, traditions, etc. it makes sense that different ingredients would need to be used. Unfortunately, we didn't have time to actually tour the building, but we did of course tour the gift shop. You have never seen so much Coke memorabilia in your life! They even had shirts that smelled like Coke!

After our brief walking tour, it was time to head down to south Georgia to see Jason's dad and stepmom. It's actually so enjoyable driving on the freeway on the east coast. It's something that I still miss. They are surrounded by trees and are really beautiful. I know it sounds odd to describe a freeway as beautiful, but it's true! Of course on the way down we saw a sign for the outlets...trouble! We had to make a quick pit stop and then we were on the road again! We made it down to Adrian, GA and checked into our hotel and then headed over to the Cracker Barrel to meet up with Joe and Shirley. I admit it, I adore Cracker Barrel. Good country food! The biscuits are to die for! My personal fave is the chicken and dumplings. So yummy!

This was the first time that Joe had been able to meet the munchkin and while he hugged Jason and I, he definitely made a bee-line for the baby. It was so special to watch that first meeting. He was so excited! The video camera immediately came out and I swear it didn't go back for the next 4 days! We had a great meal and the munchkin made a friend behind him and kept turning around to wave! This kid is a waving fool these days!

After a great meal, we headed back to the hotel. The journey was definitely catching up with the duder and he went straight to bed and slept until morning. This was actually the only night that he slept in his own bed.

To be continued....