Road trips

I’ve been so busy discussing the fun we had this weekend in Birmingham that I haven’t taken the time to bring up a question that has been weighing on my mind.

What is up with people eating Chinese food at 8 a.m. in an airport?

It’s as if people have lost their mind in the midst of their air travel plans.

I landed at Houston Hobby airport at 8 a.m. Friday morning and, big shock, I was hungry. I needed some sustenance so I went in search of something that could pass for breakfast. And I’m not a breakfast snob.

I have been known to eat a strawberry Go-tart, so obviously taste and nutrition weren’t huge factors in my decision-making process.

I found a Pappasitos that was serving breakfast tacos and, although I was leary of eating eggs made in the airport and sausage that was cut in slices as opposed to browned and crumbled like God and Mexico intended, it wasn’t half bad.

It was all bad.

Oh I kid because I am a breakfast taco snob.

Here’s what I found disturbing. The Pappasitos was located in a food court type location with other dining venues around it. There was a Pizza Hut, a McDonalds, and a Rising Phenix Hunan Cuisine.

(I’m hoping the Rising Phenix makes someone else think of Stefano DiMera on Days of Our Lives…if not, nevermind…forget I said anything)

All of them were open at 8 a.m. Friday morning.

Okay, I understand McDonalds being open because they have the McGriddle and if you only eat one McGriddle every three years, it can actually taste decent. In fact, the morning after I had Caroline and hadn’t eaten for over 24 hours, P brought me a McGriddle (he is a sly, romantic dog) and that first bite was akin to a religious experience.

But anyway, as I sat and ate my faux breakfast taco, I noticed that all around me people were eating plates of General Tso’s chicken from the Rising Phenix and slices of pepperoni pizza from Pizza Hut. What kind of sick and twisted world do we live in where people are eating Chinese cuisine and bad pizza at 8 a.m. IN AN AIRPORT?

It’s as if they had no concept of taste or decency. It’s as if the airport had robbed them of their senses. It’s as if their tastebuds were confiscated along with the 4 oz. bottle of lotion they had in their carry-on luggage.

Because, in case you were wondering, it’s only 3 oz. of liquid or less that is allowed in the carry-on luggage. Even one extra ounce could lead to an evil terrorist plot. Oh sure, it may look like Bath and Body Works Anti-Bacterial lotion, but it is a weapon of mass destruction.

If you’re bacteria.

I finished up my taco and resisted the urge to go throw up due to the overwhelming stench of General Tso and his evil chicken. I headed to my gate to wait to board my flight and as I arrived I saw numerous people milling around drinking adult beverages.

What the???

It’s 8 a.m.

Anyone with a shred of decency knows that you don’t drink alcoholic beverages before 9:00 a.m….unless you mix it with tomato juice and a celery stick, in which case 8 a.m. is perfectly acceptable.

But what I’m talking about are cans of Coors Light, Bud Light, and Miller Lite. Apparently if you’re drinking that early in the morning it better be a light beer because it’s a marathon, not a sprint, people.

Then, I saw some folks walking up to the gate with a bright purple cooler as their carry-on and it finally dawned on me. I was getting on a plane headed to Alabama with all the LSU fans.

Those LSU folks don’t mess around.

Geaux Tigers with your bad Chinese food and your Miller Lite.

I salute you and your intestinal fortitude, not to mention your football team’s astounding ability to win games in the last 30 seconds.

We should all be so blessed.

Well, here I am. Somewhere in the air between Houston and San Antonio. And as much fun as I had this weekend, I’m ready to see my people.

That’s the part of having kids that you don’t understand until you have one. It’s so nice to get away, what with all the uninterrupted sleep and the not eating at McDonald’s, but I miss Caroline like crazy and can’t wait to see her so that she can ignore me completely and act completely indifferent that I’m home after being gone for more than 48 hours.

And since I wrote that part while I was still in the air, I can now report that when Caroline saw me she gave me a big hug and told me I smelled like a sleeping bag.

I’m not sure what that means, but it doesn’t necessarily sound like a compliment.

Motherhood is an endless joyride of happiness, guilt and wonder.

So, how to sum up the weekend?

It’s a weird thing to meet people you feel like you know, but yet have never met in real life.

In reality, I knew more about Sophie and Shannon going into this weekend than I know about the mamas who drop their kids off at school with Caroline or that I see at the playground twice a week.

I know about their kids, their husbands, their faith and the things that make them laugh. I know some of the things they’ve struggled with over the last couple of years and how they’ve dealt with it.

Most importantly, I know that Sophie’s hair is a little blonder than she’d like and that Shannon is concerned about her hair being too short.

But this weekend I got to know them in real life. We got to talk about how we feel about our families, our lives, and our faith in person.

We got to hug and laugh and cry. We got to shop at Steinmart together. And Walmart.

And y’all know what they say, you don’t really know a woman until you’ve shopped with her.

Or maybe I just say that.

But it’s true.

And as much as I was ready to get home and hug my people, I’m sad that the weekend ended so soon.

I owe a huge thank you to Casting Crowns and Provident Music for sending me to Birmingham this weekend. It was everything I thought it would be and more.

I can’t say enough that if you get the chance to see Casting Crowns, Leeland, and John Waller in concert, you must go.

And if you can’t go, buy their CD’s. It will be money well spent. They are just the real deal.

The real, talented, humble deal.

Much like the girls I met this weekend.

Oh, and one last thing.

P didn’t see me leave Friday morning because I left at the crack of the crack of dawn. When he picked me up at the airport this afternoon, and saw the size of the suitcase I took for the weekend, he was honestly speechless.

Here is Caroline curled up in my suitcase after I unpacked tonight.

I think P may have a point. A bag that you could pack your child in and still fit in a nice pair of boots is probably a little overkill for a weekend trip.

I just need options.

I’m sitting here on the bed with the fitted sheets, with Sophie and Shannon right next to me.

I wasn’t going to write anything but they are both furiously typing away on their laptops and, honestly, the peer pressure is getting to me.

However, I have been way too busy reading the TexAgs message boards, hoping and praying that someone will say that Fran has been fired. So, my point is, I haven’t come up with a way to even discuss the day.

Well, other than to say, we have had so much fun.

This morning Sophie brought Alex to the hotel so that we could meet the little man in person. And let me tell y’all I would pack him in my suitcase and take him home. He is a doll.

And he told me my sweater was “gorgeous”, so he totally already has a way with the ladies.

Then, since we figured he probably wouldn’t enjoy a day of shopping, we took him home. Sophie had prepared us that her house was “just a mess”.

And it absolutely was.

If by mess you mean that not a thing is out of place and everything is totally and completely beautiful.

The view out her back windows is like being at some sort of country retreat. I mean there are trees. With leaves that are colors I have seen in pictures, but never in real life.

And a river.

And a deck on which a person could sit outside and absorb the beauty of the fall foliage while thinking deep thoughts.

By contrast, the view out my back windows consists of a porta-potty on the neighbors driveway and a Little Tykes slide that has seen better days. Neither of which really make me want to sit on my back porch and think deep thoughts.

Except for maybe wondering how long our mailman is going to stay in that porta-potty.

Anyway, after we dropped Alex off at home, we headed out to eat and to shop. We had barbecue for lunch and some of the best sweet tea I’ve ever had.

Then, fortified by our pulled pork plates, we started shopping. It should come as no surprise that our first stop was Steinmart.

And that we all bought something.

Shannon bought the prettiest bag for her laptop and it was 30% with an additional 20% off, which is practically free.

Of course once we got back to the hotel we realized her laptop doesn’t actually fit in it, so when you add in the cost of a new laptop, it’s not quite as much of a bargain, but it’s so pretty it doesn’t really matter.

We went in some darling stores in the Homewood section of Birmingham. One store tempted me beyond all reason to decorate my Christmas tree with blue and brown ornaments this year. Until I realized Caroline would probably rather have toys than a beautifully decorated Christmas tree.

We looked at beautiful things, talked each other into buying some things, and ate a lot of food. So it was pretty much the perfect day.

And now we’re all sitting together blogging about it. Which is probably more than slightly nerdy, but you know what they say about birds of a feather.

I just have to say that I adore these girls. We have laughed until we’ve cried. We’ve talked until we’re slightly hoarse.

We’ve just had the best time. They are both as honest, funny, sincere and genuine as y’all would expect and more.

And being with them has taken the sting out of the fact that the Aggies are losing 42-7 and Coach Fran is still our coach.

That is some powerful friendship.

Because we don’t want Jeana to think we have some sort of conspiracy.

Here we are with Mark Hall after the concert last night.

Excited doesn’t really cover it.

I have almost been up for 24 hours, so I’m going to bed. Immediately.

But two things real quick.

1. The Casting Crowns concert was awesome. Seriously, they are so humble and so talented.

And I can’t even talk about how thrilled I was that we got to talk to Mark Hall for a few minutes.

2. Kudos to the hotel where I am staying for having fitted bottom sheets AND feather pillows. That is what I call FANCY.

Oh wait, one more thing.

Shannon and Sophie are even better in person. My stomach already hurts from laughing so hard…or maybe it’s from the Taco Bell I ate 30 minutes ago at 11:30 p.m.

It’s as if I think I have the same digestive system I had in college.

Oh, and one last thing.

If you want to upload photos to your computer, it helps to pack a USB cord.

Well, it’s 9:06 a.m.

I’ve been up for 6 hours.

I’ve had two Grande Non-fat Lattes.

And one breakfast taco. Which means I must be tired because I ate eggs prepared at an airport.

Also, true to form, I woke up at 3 a.m. and was too excited about the weekend to go back to sleep.

And I wonder where Caroline gets it.

It’s a good thing I’ll get an extra hour of sleep this weekend with the merciful end of Daylight Savings Time. I’m going to need it.