First rule of road-tripping: when you see a tiny, hand-painted sign that says "Antiques," you should definitely go wherever it's pointing, because what you might find is a half-gas station half-junk shop, and in that junk shop you might be able to find something called "Weepy The Wee-Wee."
We spent yesterday driving from Williamsburg to Asheville, and arrived about four hours later than we expected to, but that's okay: the reasons we arrived later were:
Williamsburg!
First of all, the colonial part - the section of town that's a completely preserved colonial village, complete with people wandering around in full era costumes and horses and vendors selling lemon soap (which I totally bought, because it was the best-smelling thing EVER) and slate boards - is really very cool. We had Ploughman's lunches and pulled pork sandwiches at the Dog Street Pub, and then wandered around for a couple of hours climbing on trees and such.
And then we went to an old-fashioned candy shop, and of all the amazingly delicious-looking things available to him, what Indy decided he wanted to buy a lollipop with a bug in it. A scorpion, specifically. Which my son (enthusiastically) and then my husband (reluctantly, and only because he was on the receiving end of a triple dog dare, and everyone knows that you don't turn down triple dog dares)...ate. Like, the scorpion part of it. They ate it.
OK, so yesterday - Day 1 of our road trip - was not the most exciting day, but we knew that going into it. First, I was pretty certain I was going to cry when we drove away from my parents, and: yes. A lot. (When you are sad and on a road trip, Java Chip Frappuccinos help. Just FYI.)
Our goal was to just get a bunch of miles under our belts right away both because we're not murderously tired of being in the car yet, and because we wanted to get to Virginia ASAP to maximize the time we could spend with Kendrick's sister and her family. The only place that we passed during the 8-hour drive that I would have liked to stop at was Atlantic City, but on the bright side, that little omission probably saved us about two hundred bucks at the blackjack table.
As good as our kids are in cars, this was one of the longest stretches of straight driving we've planned (most days are more like 3-4 hours), so I was a little nervous, but it went well, mostly because the point was just Get There Without Melting Down. Pretty much the most exciting thing that happened was that we stopped at Olive Garden (which was actually pretty exciting for me, because I have never been before in my life - and while that may may sound weird to those of you who aren't from NYC, it's important to know that in New York the only Olive Garden is located in Times Square and is insanely expensive and a terrible idea, given that there are zillions of much cheaper Italian food options approximately five yards away).
The big discovery at Olive Garden: they give your children stickers that - as one reader helpfully pointed out - strongly resemble sperm.
We've said goodbye to our town, our friends, our house, and our families, and over the past two days - first with a sunset barbecue on the beach, and then at the graduation ceremony itself - we said goodbye to the school (and the people in it) that has become such a big part of our world these last two years.
Two years ago, I was so scared about this decision. I knew it was the right one, but making it happen still sounded so impossibly hard. And everyone told me, "Oh, it'll go so fast. It'll be over before you know it." It didn't. I mean, we made an entire human being from start to finish - a human being who is now almost a year old - while Kendrick was away.
So no, it did not go fast. But then, all of a sudden, it was over before I knew it.
Presenting: a major project we've had in the works these last couple of months.
I thought it was time for RG to get a facelift, and worked with Anthony Creek of Thoughtbox (who you might remember as that guy who completely saved my job and my life about a year ago) to create a cleaner, more easy-to-read site (and I am SO excited that it worked out so that we're launching right as we embark on this major adventure).
I hope you like it as much as I do! Would love to hear your thoughts, and if there's anything you'd really like to see please let me know - it's a work in progress, as always, and I want to make the time you spend here as fun and fuss-free as possible.
God I'm lazy about ironing. And by "lazy" I mean "I don't do it, ever." Not because I hate it, exactly - it's sort of meditative and relaxing - but because it takes so freaking LONG. And I'm so bad at it that I don't even get any sense of satisfaction at the end, just this sort of middling "ah well, I guess that looks slightly less terrible than it did before" thing.
Fishing matters a lot to me and my dad.
Not because either of us actually likes fishing - I know I don't, particularly, and I suspect he doesn't either - but rather because it's just...I don't know, it's our way to be together. Out on the water, in the air and the quiet, talking when we want to and throwing a line out into the ocean when we don't.
It matters.
On Me: Band of Gypsies Top and Shorts; LAGOS Bangles c/o
I will not be festival-ing this year. I mean: obviously.
But I will be doing things like getting tarot readings done in a New Mexico town called "Truth Or Consequences" (really; I already booked it), so I feel like there's a place in my life for as much fringe and embroidery as I can possibly handle. Which is really quite a lot.
It's so interesting, discovering just how often the scariest moments in life can turn out to be the ones you cherish the most.
We're staying at my parents' place in the city during this interim week, between when we sold our house and when Kendrick graduates, and the second night we were here my son said, "There are two cats here. Wesley is here and Roxie is here, but Simon isn't here because he died." I had told him that Simon died - when I got home in the morning, I explained that I had gone to Nana's the night before because a sad thing had happened and that she had needed me - but I didn't know if it had hit home. And it had.
"Where did Simon go?" he asked.
