Continuation of the Moving Saga

So, after dealing with the crazy HOA ladies, we drove to Fayetteville. It was a long day of driving, plus, the HOA ordeal, and it was also about 103 degrees. I know that being from SA, I should be used to this, but it is so much worse here because it is so humid. My parents will attest to this. It's not just me. Anyway, I wasn't in the best mood. And to top it all off, I had been trying to contact my moving company to find out what time they were delivering our stuff the next day, but I hadn't been able to talk to anyone. Our stuff got to NC before we did, so it was in storage.

Finally, as we pull into the Hampton Inn, I get in contact with someone from the company. He looks up my info for me, and then says, "Well, this might be a typo, but I have your stuff being delivered on the 27th." The next day was the 22nd. This would have been five days later. I just kept thinking that I couldn't stay in a hotel for five more days, especially in a place like Fayetteville where there is nothing to do. The guy told me that he would investigate and call me back. At this point I was trying not to have a breakdown. A few minutes later, I head into the hotel and get a call from the guy. Indeed, my stuff was not scheduled to be delivered until five days later. As I'm receiving this news, I am simultaneously walking into possibly the most disgusting Hampton Inn ever. There is no air conditioning and it smells like bleach. It was a terrible moment and I proceeded to have the breakdown that I had avoided a few minutes earlier.

We decided to move hotels. I don't know what was up with the hotel. Usually Hampton Inns are really clean. We moved to the one in the next town and it was much better. Then the HR lady from the moving company called and apologized profusely and said that they would try to get my stuff to me sooner and that they would pay for our hotel if it did take the full five days. That helped but I still really didn't want to stay in a hotel for five days. Well, I guess they didn't want to pay for it, because the next morning, I got a call that they could get a crew together for that afternoon.

So we got moved in. It was exhausting, and I was so grateful to have my parents there to help, especially with Clara. My parents left on Monday, and we were both sad to see them go. Clara says that I'm not nearly as entertaining as Nanny and Grampy. But I have been taking her to the pool the last few days, which she is really into. Brad gets back Saturday, and I'm really excited to get back to some sort of normalcy.

Oh, and sorry for no pics or videos. Brad has our laptop with him and I just have my iPad and can't figure out how to export to the blog. I'll post some soon!

Road Trip!

Well, we have made it to NC and are settling in. I'll post some more about our move in, but I wanted to recap the journey here. It was marked by laughter, tears, fun, and not so much fun.

Brad was not here for the trip because he is in Georgia learning how to jump out of planes at Airborne training. So my parents graciously agreed to drive with me.

We decided to make the journey into a four day trip because we didn't know how Clara would do on long days in the car. Most of the days we drove for about six hours, some more and some less. Clara did great everyday. She got a little fussy at times, but she slept some. Also, my iPad saved us. It!s the best investment that I've made in a long time. She spent hours watching Sesame Street, Muppets, and playing her apps.

Here is a recap of the days.

Day 1 - from San Antonio to Texarkana

We didn't leave until about 9 because we didn't want to hit Austin traffic. I had my last Whataburger for lunch that I will have for awhile. Man, does it take a long time to get out of Texas! We spent the night on the Texas side of Texarkana.

Day 2 - Texarkana to Memphis

We decided to make this our short day because we wanted to spend at least one night in a cool place. And I absolutely love Memphis. Brad and I have stopped here before and it is one of my favorite cities. I don't really know exactly why. Maybe it's the laid back, casual vibe. Maybe it's the cool downtown with Beale St. (they've also done a lot of work to revive the downtown area). Maybe it's the great food. Or maybe I've just seen "The Firm" one too many times. We stayed downtown. We took Clara to see the ducks at the Peabody. For those who don't know, here is the story of the ducks. Then we went to the Rendezvous. It's a restaurant that Brad and I happened upon by accident. We had no idea that it was a Memphis institution until afterwards. They're known for their pork ribs, which have this amazing dry rub. Different from Texas barbecue but delicious. Clara was happy because she got a sausage and cheese plate. It was kind of a dream dinner for her. When we got back to the hotel, Clara and I could hear the music from Beale St from our room. Luckily, we were so tired that we could still sleep.

Day 3 - Memphis to Knoxville

We crossed the entire state of Tennessee. Well, almost. I love the drive through Tennessee. It was even better this time because I had forgotten what green landscape looked like, since Texas has been in a drought. The terrain of Tennessee changes dramatically as you cross it. Near Memphis, it's flat farmland. As you get near Nashville, there are more dramatic hills. And from Nashville to Knoxville, you get into rocky, almost mountainous hills. Knoxville is really close to the Smoky Mountains, so you start to get that type of terrain.

Day 4 - Knoxville to Fayetteville

This was the most beautiful drive of all. We went right through the Smokies. I've always heard people say that Ashland, NC is beautiful, and now I am really eager to drive back out there, because it really was spectacular. We stopped at a rest stop in the mountains and you could feel the mountain breeze. We made it to the house and I picked up the keys, and everything went pretty smoothly, aside from a run in with the crazy HOA ladies in my neighborhood. I had to get an access card for the neighborhood entrance, because it is gated. I am not joking, you could do an SNL skit about my HOA. I found it more difficult to obtain this access key than I have to obtain any sort of government ID. If TSA hired these ladies, there would be no more lapses at airport security.

Anyway, after that was over, we headed down to Fayetteville to stay for the night before my stuff was delivered the next morning. Or so I thought. More on that in the next post...

Clara the Bookworm

I took this video today of Clara reading in her room. Very often, while I'm getting ready in the morning or doing laundry, she will go into her room and read to herself. I love how much she loves her books. As you can see from the pile next to the chair, they never stay on her bookshelf. I had to sneak up on her to capture this, so I apologize for the poor camera work.

Push-ups with Daddy

Doing push-ups with Daddy is Clara's new favorite thing to do. She also does some animal noises in this video. Some of the noises are, shall we say, creative? But they are always consistent.

Snow Day

Well, SA actually got some snow. Only a dusting, but it has shut the city down. Luckily, Brad didn't have to go in so we're enjoying a snow day together. Here are some pics of Clara experiencing snow.

Pondering what this white substance could be.

Snow Bunny

The Hot Dog Dance

Clara is really into dancing these days, and her favorite song is the "Hot Dog Dance." It's from Mickey Mouse Clubhouse on the Disney Channel. At the end of each episode, Mickey and friends do this dance and Clara goes absolutely nuts. She not only dances, but also sings along. Apparently, love for this song is typical among many toddlers. My nephew Jackson loved it when he was Clara's age and all of the kids in our playgroup react the same way as Clara. Here she is watching it from our computer.

New Video

Here is some new video of Clara. She is learning the names of body parts and can now point to her head, feet, belly, eyes, ears, and mouth. I've been trying to film it but it's difficult because as soon as she sees the camera, she wants to play with it. Here's a little sampling.