SE Roadtrip Day 4: Charlotte, NC 2012

We made it to Monday!  But... not without paying a high price already.  Sunday night while I was at Sarah and Aaron's wedding, Kevin stayed at a hotel and watched James.  While James was running around and playing with the millions of toys we packed, he decided that he preferred our water bottle.  He also decided that today was the day he was going to advance and be able to unscrew the water bottle for the first time.  And he decided he was going crop-dust our electronics. But... let's never talk of this again. Too much sadness.

So Monday morning, we bucked up, and started our day in Charlotte, NC with Sarah and Aaron's wedding breakfast.  It was great to get to spend more time with them, and it was even better that Kevin and James could make it this time. Sarah got to meet James for the first time, and Kevin got to meet Aaron. James is not wedding-friendly, but he was decently good at the wedding, running around banging his head on every table, opening kitchen floor cabinets, and his new favorite game-- darting under people's legs.

Aaron, Sarah, me, James (what is he doing?), and Kevin

Afterwards, we were going to walk around Charlotte a little, but it was raining so we followed the one recommendation we had from Audra and Sarah, the Discovery Place Kids.  James is probably a little young for it, but he enjoys any place he can run around with having to go back in the stroller.

Uptown Charlotte (what they call the downtown area)


My swiss cheese family at the Discovery Children's


James loved the newspaper vacuum


Heat-map family portrait, proof that my nose isalways cold


Catching floating balls


Pointing at the tropical birds


Pointing at the fish


Checking out the ladies of Charlotte


Getting wet in the toddler area

Afterwards, we had our first BBQ of the trip at Mac's Speed Shop, which had a good reviews.  We had pulled pork sandwiches, coleslaw, and the green bean casserole. The pulled pork was decent, but the North Carolina vinegar sauce is not my favorite, and the sauce came on the side. Mix it in guys! No one is trying to be healthy here! I would skip the green bean casserole altogether (but perhaps I've been spoiled by how well Katy makes it?).

I'm from New Jersey, so I realize that some of my unintiated northern friends might not understand what I'm talking about when I say BBQ.  In New Jersey, BBQ refers to food prepared on a BBQ grill in the summer, usually chicken with a dark tangy barbecue sauce.  In the South, it's a completely different cuisine.  BBQ here refers to pulled pork, chopped pork, beef brisket, or a number of other items carefully prepared in a kitchen with different regional sauces.  If you have never tried Southern-style BBQ, go try it, NOW!

Mac's Speed Shop in Charlotte

Sarah and Aaron's Wedding 2012

Aaron and Sarah during their wedding ceremony

Sarah and Aaron got married! What a lovely and fun wedding!  The wedding was Jewish so they did the processional in the Jewish style where both parents walk the bride and the groom down the aisle.  I love this anyway, but Aaron and his awesome parents, Janice and Ron, dance-shuffled up the aisle with Aaron. Sarah could see from behind the doors. Sarah looked beautiful coming up the aisle. I didn't take a picture, because believe it or not, sometimes even I need to put the camera down for a second and enjoy the moment.  I remember how much I loved walking down the aisle and seeing my friend's and family's faces, and I always want that moment for other brides.  But... I only put the camera down for a second.  After Sarah passed me, I did manage to get the look on Aaron's face.

Aaron looking at Sarah come up the aisle

The rabbi was really phenomenal, and the best rabbi I have ever seen perform a ceremony.  She explained the faith and traditions well, and more importantly she really captured some of Aaron and Sarah's best qualities and what they love about one another when she talked about them. I love that the rabbi shared that Aaron said Sarah is smarter than him, and I love that Sarah shook her head no.  If they both think the other person is smarter, they are off to a great start in their marriage with a foundation of respect for one another.

Aaron and Sarah exchanging vows.

The reception was a lot of fun, possibly because they harnessed the fun of UVA Law (where they met) by decorating in the UVA colors, blue and orange, and invited tons of UVA Law graduates. At one point some of the UVA Law people got the Thriller dance going on the dance floor. It was very impressive.

Aaron and Sarah with their good friends from law school, Caitlin and Jared

The hora was a little restrained because Sarah is a little feather of a woman and they practically tossed her to the ceiling, so she decided to celebrate on the ground.

The hora, before they launched Sarah to space

The food was great. I am not just saying that to politely mention the food, I am saying it because as someone who has now attended 35 weddings, I can easily rank their food at the top of the list, maybe tied with another 2-3 weddings. The cake was also delicious. I will not confirm or deny that I may have eaten two pieces.

The cake topper was otters: "Aaron likes otters because they hold hands
when they sleep, so they won't lose each other." - Sarah. So sweet!

Sarah was a year below me in law school, but I met her my 1L year when she came to visit and decide whether or not to attend the school.  Aaron, you're welcome for not scaring her away.  Or maybe she wasn't scared away despite me and my friends. Yes, that's probably more accurate.  Either way, Sarah and I became fast friends, and my 3L year we took a Spring Break cruise that was easily my best Spring Break ever.  She was my roommate and travel buddy through Mexico, Guatemala, and Belize.  We've also had some adventures in New York. Unfortunately, she only started dating Aaron after I graduated law school so I never got a chance to get to know him.  Based on what I learned about Aaron from attending the wedding, here are some of the qualities they share: they are both smart, confident, and extremely fun-loving.  I am pretty sure that's more than enough to be amazing people in an amazing marriage.

Cake-cutting: Aaron started the cake-on-the-nose game, but Sarah won!

Of course, I know a lot more about Sarah from our six years as friends.  She is kind, and warm, and joyful in a way that's pure and very unique to her.  To explain this, let me tell you that she was actually the first friend I called when Kevin and I got engaged.  She moved to Charlottesville right at the time when Kevin and I started dating, and she heard all my happy reports of our early dates (while she and I were petting goats at some ridiculous local fair we went to together). I called her after we got engaged because I knew she would say all the right things, and because I believed that she would be happy for me in a totally unselfish way even though she wasn't dating anyone at the time.  I bet on the right girl.

There's something else I learned about Aaron at the wedding. Aaron's a cocky guy-- and good for him-- and marrying Sarah is definitely another reason to be self-congratulatory.  What a wise and rewarding choice.  If you become more like your spouse as the years go by, what more would anyone want to be than pure in your joyfulness?

Dancing together, and so happy

Mother's Day in NC 2012

We got to spend Mother's Day with Audra and Rob which was lovely. I got up late thanks to my wonderful husband. James refused to sleep from 2 am- 5 am, and Kevin handled all of it, and then took care of him when he got up as well. I slept until James got up from his first nap of the day!

Celebrating Mother's Day together!

Audra made french toast casserole for breakfast which is as awesome as it sounds. I think this might need to be a new Mother's Day tradition for me from now on. This was the first Mother's Day Audra was able to spend playing with her baby boy, since last year he was still in her pregnant belly. It was nice to spend the day with them and Rob. And Carter decided to take his first step as his Mother's Day gift! He did it while both his mom and dad were watching and then sat down.

Getting some Carter-snuggling time


James is a big fan of playing with Audra

We went for a nice walk around their pretty neighborhood, and we even took their two dogs, Levy and Lilly. James LOVES dogs, and even though he didn't get a chance to play with them, he spent most of the walk giggling because he thought the dogs were funny. Or maybe he was fantasizing about yanking their wiggling tails.

Fur-baby Levy


Fur-baby Lilly

We left in the afternoon because I was going to Sarah and Aaron's wedding in Charlotte and staying at a hotel closer to the wedding that night, but I didn't really want to leave because I had so much fun and felt so pampered. Thank you Padgets! Come to New York! We miss you already!

This Mother's Day photo appropriately captures our relationship

SE Roadtrip Day 2: Visiting Audra and Rob 2012

In preparation for our trip, I got Kevin to sleep a little more than he usually does Wednesday and Thursday night. He was so energetic from a few nights of 8 hours of sleep instead of 6, that somewhere in West Virginia, he made the decision to drive straight to Charlotte, North Carolina. There was merit in his decision because James was sleeping in the car and likely would have woken up if we stopped and not really allowed us to sleep at a hotel anyway. Still, it took us about 11.5 hours to get to Audra and Rob's house, and Kevin was exhausted. We spent a little time with the family, and when it was time for James to take his morning nap, we took a big fatty family nap with all three of us passed out the bed drooling.

Rob, Carter, and Audra

Audra and Rob have a son, Carter, very close to James's age. James is about 12.5 months old and Carter is 10.5 months old. Carter isn't walking yet, but he's crawling and pulling up a lot.  We figured with the age, weight, and mobility advantage, we'd have to protect Carter a little.  At first they played pretty easily and we were pleasantly surprised. Then, sweet little harmless Carter started making some loud babbling noises that would regularly reduce James to tears.  Full on tears, streaming down his face. Carter didn't understand what the problem was- why wouldn't his buddy James play anymore? Actually, none of us understood. James has been pushed around by bigger kids with no problem, but a little noise, and he was beside himself.

James and Carter playing together-ish


Starting a xylophone and maracas band


Carter is inspired to try walking with James around

Rob and Audra were super awesome hosts. Their house is beautiful, and Audra made us a delicious casserole for lunch. We played with the babies all afternoon and in the evening we went out to a cute Mexican place which was kid-friendly.  Well, kid-friendly for charming babies like Carter, but not so James-friendly since James hates sitting and his parent's happiness.

Bad baby James versus good baby Carter


At the restaurant- We're smiling, but inside we're crying a little

When we returned it was bathtime and bedtime! My favorite part of the day! After they went to bed we got to relax and enjoy some good beer Rob bought. Though I usually run to bed as early as possible these days I lingered to an almost respectable weekend bedtime because I was having a good time.

Bathtime friends

Carter is really cute! He's got Audra's eyes with Rob's color.

Audra and Rob's Wedding 2008

It was lovely white wedding with snow! Audra and Rob got married while Audra is still attending law school with me at UVA, but they plan to live in North Carolina together after she graduates so they can start their married life there. We will always remember Audra's wedding ceremony, not only because one of the groomsmen locked his knees and took a tumble, but also because their ceremony was very personalized for them. The minister talked in terms of both religion and life practicalities, Audra's stepfather sang during the ceremony, and Audra and Rob read their own vows to each other. After Rob lifted Audra's veil and kissed her, their first married act was to pray together. And you don't need me to tell you because you can see for yourself in the pictures, but Audra was a beautiful and stunning bride.

Coming down the aisle together after getting married

A bunch of our friends from law school traveled to the wedding together. It was at the end of our law school Spring Break so we spent the whole week in North Carolina relaxing and looking forward to the event.

Roger, Brian, Kevin, me, Audra, Sarah, Donald, Katy, and Josh

We had a lot of fun at their wedding reception. After the first dance, Rob danced with his mother, and Audra danced with her stepfather who sang to her as well. She has the same sort of close relationship with her stepfather that I had with mine, which is to say that they are our real fathers.

Rob and Audra's first dance

 

Father-daughter dance

After dinner we had two flavors of cake, a white cake with strawberry coulis, and a groom's cake made of chocolate. I enjoyed the groom's cake so much that I dubbed it my birthday cake.

Wedding cake and groom cake decorated just for Rob

I like that the strawberry is dressed up

We spent the rest of the evening hitting the dance floor with Audra and Rob's friends and family. I spent a little time dancing with Audra's California friends who are as awesome as they are beautiful, and some time photographing and chatting with Audra and Rob's Charlottesville friends, who I already knew a little because of pre-wedding events. Brian made friends with every last person at the wedding and led a few line dances. I am not talking about the electric slide because it was already 2008-- I'm talking more along the lines of Cupid Shuffle and the Cha Cha Slide. There was even a conga line that basically the entire wedding got in. Even Donald!

Slide to the left, slide to the right!

Conga line with everyone!

Dancing!

Roger spinning Katy

Sarah and Donald being super cute