Anybody miss me?

As much as I promise myself that I'm going to catch up...I'm going to keep up...life happens at about 90 miles an hour around here. I'm thinking that's what I should have named this blog...Life at 90 miles an hour... At any rate (punny, eh?), we're back from a whirlwind trip out east. And I just wanna say that I plan to complain less about my quiet, albeit boring, midwestern lifestyle. At least I can get to the grocery and back in less than an hour and without paying a toll...not to mention, saving myself a little cortisol from all the stress of driving in the process.

Okay, so now...where all did we go? Well, the purpose of our venture was to attend the wedding of my dear nephew, Daniel...a true southern gentleman who has transplanted himself to the Jersey suburbs. He followed his true love, his high school sweetheart, there from South Carolina a few short years ago, attended the College of New Jersey, got himself a job and married his girl. This wedding was a long time in coming, and we were all happy to welcome his bride, Jenalyn, to our family!

If you know anything about me at all, you know that when I do get to travel, I am all about trying to squeeze in all the sightseeing I can squeeze out of any and all sights to see in the near vicinity. It just so happens that Hershey, Pennsylvania, home of the Hershey chocolate factory, is right on the way to Whitehouse Station, New Jersey! And halfway between Hershey and Whitehouse Station is the perfect location for a rendezvous with one of Caroline's China sisters and family!!! And I wasn't going to drive all that way and end up within an hour or so of the Statue of Liberty and NOT go see it, for crying out loud! Might I also mention that Philadelphia is just a short trek south of New York City and home to the famous steps from the Rocky movie. Yes, I know there are lots of historical sights to see in Philly, but we only had time for one, and that's the one that won the vote. True patriots, we are.

Our trip was not without cost...financial and otherwise. We spent a blue fortune on tolls and parking. The cost to park our car in lower Manhattan for approximately five hours deserves a post of its own. And our little last-minute jaunt to Philly cost us an 11-hour drive home on Monday. At one point, my sanity was clearly in question as I listened to Friends on Abby's DVD player, Mickey singing out loud to the iPod that I could hear without headphones, a raucous game of Who Gets the Last Word between a three-year-old and an 18-year-old, and Jon's book-on-tape blaring in the front seat. Oy. I can tell I'm getting older because I can remember the day when multiple noises didn't send me running for a seat on the luggage rack.

So that's the scoop. I'll dole the whole story out in small doses so you don't have to wait my usual three months to hear it. We're having a garage sale on Saturday (UGH!), so the rest of the week will be spent preparing for that...and doing laundry...shocker, I know. Maybe, just maybe, I can sneak away for a few minutes to work on a post.