Grand Tetons Part Seven: The Drive Home

The drive home was long and exhausting. We drove straight from Boulder to Missouri, with plans to stay at Liana's house near Fort Leonard Wood. She had no idea that Mike was with us so we decided to keep it a secret and surprise her. We convinced our other friend, Anna, to also come surprise Liana and met up with her just outside of Liana's neighborhood. Mike hopped in her car and they followed us. Logel and I emerged first and then a few minutes later, Mike and Anna pulled up. She was so excited that she jumped and screamed, leaping toward us eagerly. Soon thereafter, the five of us piled in Liana's car and went to buy some fireworks. We headed to an empty field to set them off. I am not much of a fireworks person. I like them in theory and I like them from a safe distance but setting them off freaks me out. Rather, I ran around with sparklers and danced in the darkness.

The next morning when we woke up, Anna had already returned home and Liana had already headed to base. We started another lengthy drive to Chattanooga. Logel drove most of the way while I was sprawled out in the back seat, wrapped in my fuzzy purple blanket. Mike commandeered it at one point so he could work on his computer without the harsh glare from the sun. When we arrived in Chattanooga, we dropped Logel off at his brother's and headed down to Sandy Springs, GA, just north of Atlanta. We stayed with Mike's aunt and uncle, who were very hospitable and generous. We were greeted with food, showers, and warm beds to sleep in. We woke up early the next morning and sped home. I made it back to Jacksonville with an hour to spare until my doctor appointment. The drive was mostly uneventful, hours of music peppered with random conversations. I was just glad to be home to start the healing process.

Events occurred: July 1-2, 2013

Post-Colombia: It's Wedding Season!

My typical adventure train veered onto a different track last spring. Within two weeks of each other, my childhood best friend (and freshman college roommate) and my cousin (who was and is like a sister to me) both got married! Since I've known both of them since birth and maintained close relationships with both of them, especially in the past few years, I was of course IN both weddings, as a bridesmaid. Weddings themselves are definitely adventures, and luckily for me, I didn't have any monster brides and both weddings were a blast.

Emma was the first down the aisle, on a rainy Saturday afternoon in Tallahassee, Florida. Rain was not part of the plan but it's actually considered good luck if it rains on your wedding day. There were a ton of bridesmaids, we had so much fun running around and getting ready in our cowboy boots. Typically, I'm more of a hiking boots kind of girl, but those would have clashed with my dress. After an emergency change in venue from outside to inside for the ceremony because of the rain, we sprinted outside for the reception, dancing around in the mud and rain. I was grateful for my cowboy boots as I stomped in puddles and stayed (mostly) dry, dancing into the night in the pouring Florida rain.

Fast forward two weeks to a sunny (yet still chilly) Saturday afternoon in Locust Grove, Georgia. Courtney's vintage-themed wedding was a crazy combination of Greeks (my side of the family), Dutch, and Filipino-Cajuns from Louisiana. She made everything herself and let us pick our own dresses. My long antique dress was perfect for twirling around and it was great to see all of my family dancing around, especially my brothers. With tons of open space, I ran around from family member to family member, talking to everyone and getting to spend quality time with my younger cousins as well as my aunts, uncles, and grandparents. My mother and I also performed the Time Warp for everyone, followed by my brothers and I belting the words to I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles) and Don't Stop Believin'. 

Events occurred: March 23, 2013 and April 6, 2013