Packing It All In!

The past several days have been busy, busy, busy to say the very least. This weekend was spent enjoying the company of Amanda's dad and aunt who were visiting from Georgia. Friday night was low-key as they had just completed a 6-hour drive and we didn't expect them to be in too much of a hurry to get back in the car. We feasted on hamburgers, gourmet fries, Amanda's pasta salad, and her Aunt Liz's homemade potato salad. Our stomachs were bursting by the time we settled downstairs for some Scene It! trivia which Joe continues to reign as the ultimate champion.

Our Saturday was hopping with sightseeing as we toured Ft. Knox's Patton Museum, watched the beginning of the GA/KY game, and got the on the road to Louisville. Once we arrived downtown, we made our only requested stop (from Amanda's dad, Glenn, of course) at the Louisville Slugger Museum. We got a guided tour through the bat production plant and personalized bats were ordered. We're pretty sure Glenn was in baseball heaven the entire time! Afterwards, we headed to 4th Street Live! which is an entertainment district in Louisville; we ate dinner at Sully's Irish Pub & Restaurant where Joe and Amanda both ordered Pumpkin Spice beer...doesn't sound that tasty, but it was delicious. Once dinner was done, we had made reservations to see comedian, Norm McDonald (famous from SNL's Weekend Update in the 90s). The host and the opening comedian were both funny and got several laughs from our group while Norm was somewhat of a disappointment. He was difficult to understand due to mumbling and his content was a bit on the morbid side. Needless to say, we all left feeling a little let down, but the coffees from Seattle's Best helped chipper us up. And of course, Aunt Liz got a picture with Col. Sanders himself, so this Kentucky trip was considered fulfilled!

Once Dad & Aunt Liz got on the road Sunday morning, we hung around the house before hitting the gym and then preparing for our next adventure. Our neighbors, Grant & Tammy, had won a night and dinner at a casino in southern Indiana and weren't able to get away, so they passed the prize off to us. We gladly accepted and took the hour drive north for a buffet dinner and luxury accomodations. We spent a little time in the casino, but after our run in Vegas earlier this year, we knew when to call it quits. $60 blown, we headed out of the casino after an hour and took safe haven in the hotel!

Monday was a day of DO AS WE PLEASE when we at The Cracker Barrel for lunch and then hit TJ Maxx for new bed linens, Best Buy for an external hard drive, and Barnes & Noble for nothing. We ran into Brett & Julie at Cracker Barrel where Julie & Amanda had on the same jacket which is what happens when you shop together. Their cutie, Peyton, was flirting with almost everyone in the place, but being as adorable as she is, it's welcomed. Our Barnes & Noble stop was marked by a nice surprise when we ran into Col. Nuckols and his wife, Julie. Joe use to work for Col. Nuckols when Joe was a 2LT and served as the B Troop XO of 5/15 CAV while Nuckols was a Major and was the squadron XO. They had a great working relationship and Joe continues to view Col. Nuckols as a mentor both in CAV and the ARMY. We used the bookstore entrance as a reunion space for approximately 20 minutes before making plans to meet up soon for some football. The remainder of the day was spent hanging around the house and doing laundry...dun, dun, done.

This Veteran's Day was rainy and cold! A little to close to Seattle weather for us. We hung out all day inside and enjoyed keeping warm under fleece blankets. Joe is officially a VETERAN and we're so thankful for his service as well as the service of countless others! This day will forever be an extremely important day for us as we now know the sacrifice that so many given in order to ensure our nation's freedom. We thank our family members who have served prior to us and we thank the fellow military colleagues who continue to serve with us. Sometimes you don't realize what a day like this means until you have a personal experience that is recognized by a federal holiday like this one. If you are utilizing your constitutional rights, thank a vet!